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I got a score that I am extremely happy with, and was pretty much in line with what I was averaging on PTs. This was my second test and I saw a 6 point improvement over my old score, which is great. I'm a super splitter so there are no guarantees, but this score should at least make me competitive with my target schools.

But... There was a question on the LG section that I was stumped by and accidentally left blank, and there were two other dumb mistakes in my RC section as well. I was able to compensate by over-performing in LR, but it still feels like I could have improved my score by a handful of points by just not making dumb mistakes. Is it ridiculous to be considering another retake?

I realize this sounds a little douchey - it's just that the LSAT is probably going to be the only attractive part of my college app. No extra curriculars, bad GPA, a PS that's not exactly likely to win any awards... I need the LSAT to be my saving grace.

Ok. So some real talk that may upset some locals:

1) If you are not scoring high enough to get into a T-14 or top 20 school then yes, you probably need to prep more and retake... because otherwise this law school thing is a gigantic waste of your time and money

2) HOWEVER, it is rather unlikely you will successfully raise your score much more from where it is and super unlikely you will do so by December. If you are absolutely committed to this law school journey and your grades are really crap and your LSAT score is sub-169 or something, then I guess you will have to give the retake a shot

3) If you are heading down that path, you better charge the hell out of the test prep. Work SUPER hard.

4) If you are already scoring well enough to get into the T-14 then I suggest not bothering with a retake. It's painful and unlikely you will see a score improvement.

Voyager wrote:Ok. So some real talk that may upset some locals:

1) If you are not scoring high enough to get into a T-14 or top 20 school then yes, you probably need to prep more and retake... because otherwise this law school thing is a gigantic waste of your time and money

2) HOWEVER, it is rather unlikely you will successfully raise your score much more from where it is and super unlikely you will do so by December. If you are absolutely committed to this law school journey and your grades are really crap and your LSAT score is sub-169 or something, then I guess you will have to give the retake a shot

3) If you are heading down that path, you better charge the hell out of the test prep. Work SUPER hard.

4) If you are already scoring well enough to get into the T-14 then I suggest not bothering with a retake. It's painful and unlikely you will see a score improvement.

I don't want to get too much into what my score is or where my target schools are in the rankings, but suffice it to say that I'm happy with my target schools and think I could get into a number of them with the current score. However, I'm also at a point where any improvement at all could substantially increase my chances at some of the schools at the higher end of my target range. My PTs have ranged from 3 points below my current score on bad days to 3 points above it on good days, and I'm in a place where I would absolutely retake the test if I could be guaranteed that 3 point bump.

As far as the challenges of improving by December, you're probably right. However, I was able to see a 6 point bump from when I took the test in June, although my PT average didn't change much during that time.

I've got a lot to think about. I appreciate you taking the time to respond

Hstrat wrote:I got a score that I am extremely happy with, and was pretty much in line with what I was averaging on PTs. This was my second test and I saw a 6 point improvement over my old score, which is great. I'm a super splitter so there are no guarantees, but this score should at least make me competitive with my target schools.

But... There was a question on the LG section that I was stumped by and accidentally left blank, and there were two other dumb mistakes in my RC section as well. I was able to compensate by over-performing in LR, but it still feels like I could have improved my score by a handful of points by just not making dumb mistakes. Is it ridiculous to be considering another retake?

I realize this sounds a little douchey - it's just that the LSAT is probably going to be the only attractive part of my college app. No extra curriculars, bad GPA, a PS that's not exactly likely to win any awards... I need the LSAT to be my saving grace.

So that's just not true then

sweets91 wrote:

Hstrat wrote:I got a score that I am extremely happy with, and was pretty much in line with what I was averaging on PTs. This was my second test and I saw a 6 point improvement over my old score, which is great. I'm a super splitter so there are no guarantees, but this score should at least make me competitive with my target schools.

But... There was a question on the LG section that I was stumped by and accidentally left blank, and there were two other dumb mistakes in my RC section as well. I was able to compensate by over-performing in LR, but it still feels like I could have improved my score by a handful of points by just not making dumb mistakes. Is it ridiculous to be considering another retake?

I realize this sounds a little douchey - it's just that the LSAT is probably going to be the only attractive part of my college app. No extra curriculars, bad GPA, a PS that's not exactly likely to win any awards... I need the LSAT to be my saving grace.

So that's just not true then

Touche. "Extremely" might have been a little strong. But it's a score I celebrated, and certainly *should* be extremely happy with.

Hstrat wrote:

sweets91 wrote:

Hstrat wrote:I got a score that I am extremely happy with, and was pretty much in line with what I was averaging on PTs. This was my second test and I saw a 6 point improvement over my old score, which is great. I'm a super splitter so there are no guarantees, but this score should at least make me competitive with my target schools.

But... There was a question on the LG section that I was stumped by and accidentally left blank, and there were two other dumb mistakes in my RC section as well. I was able to compensate by over-performing in LR, but it still feels like I could have improved my score by a handful of points by just not making dumb mistakes. Is it ridiculous to be considering another retake?

I realize this sounds a little douchey - it's just that the LSAT is probably going to be the only attractive part of my college app. No extra curriculars, bad GPA, a PS that's not exactly likely to win any awards... I need the LSAT to be my saving grace.

So that's just not true then

Touche. "Extremely" might have been a little strong. But it's a score I celebrated, and certainly *should* be extremely happy with.

Well, friend if (a) you are happy with the score and (b) it gets you into the schools you want then why isn't this thread instead about how to celebrate?

You won!

Forget this LSAT nonsense. Retaking is painful and fraught with peril. You probably aren't going to improve much anyway.

Happy for you. Good luck at law school.

Voyager wrote:

Hstrat wrote:

sweets91 wrote:

Hstrat wrote:I got a score that I am extremely happy with, and was pretty much in line with what I was averaging on PTs. This was my second test and I saw a 6 point improvement over my old score, which is great. I'm a super splitter so there are no guarantees, but this score should at least make me competitive with my target schools.

But... There was a question on the LG section that I was stumped by and accidentally left blank, and there were two other dumb mistakes in my RC section as well. I was able to compensate by over-performing in LR, but it still feels like I could have improved my score by a handful of points by just not making dumb mistakes. Is it ridiculous to be considering another retake?

I realize this sounds a little douchey - it's just that the LSAT is probably going to be the only attractive part of my college app. No extra curriculars, bad GPA, a PS that's not exactly likely to win any awards... I need the LSAT to be my saving grace.

So that's just not true then

Touche. "Extremely" might have been a little strong. But it's a score I celebrated, and certainly *should* be extremely happy with.

Well, friend if (a) you are happy with the score and (b) it gets you into the schools you want then why isn't this thread instead about how to celebrate?

You won!

Forget this LSAT nonsense. Retaking is painful and fraught with peril. You probably aren't going to improve much anyway.

Happy for you. Good luck at law school.

Fair enough! I'm probably just being crazy. Thanks very much, hopefully it goes well!