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I took the LSAT for the first time this December and under performed my PT average (174) by 9 points, scoring a 165. I'm currently signed up for February, and have continued studying since my last attempt (I pretty much knew that I blew it walking out of the test center—bad testing environment & nerves got to me).

Ideally, I would like to attend law school in Fall 2018. However, I'm willing to reapply for 2019 if no $$$ come through this cycle. I have a 3.95+ GPA and several years of work experience. My best scenario would be to end up at UChicago, although I'm interested in a wide range of T-20 schools.

It looks like I can expect to minimize my score drop if I take the February test from the way my prep has been going, but I can't realistically hope to push my score higher than 170-172 in Feb. My dilemma is that Feb. studying is interfering with finalizing my applications. My goal is ultimately to score 175+, which I believe is within the realm of possibility since I've scored several 180s and plenty of 176-179s on timed fresh PTs. For this reason, I already know that I'll be taking in June.

I know it's late in the cycle, but I'm applying to several HYS/CCN schools and didn't want to get auto-denied/waitlisted at them before my Feb. score comes in. I feel obligated to take February just so I'm not wasting my effort applying to these schools with my current score.

So, my question is this: Would I be better of just delaying my second attempt until June and focusing on perfecting my applications to more realistic schools for this cycle right now, or should I go ahead and take both, aiming for 170+ in Feb. and 175+ in June?

I'd just get the score out of the way first and then start working on applications, which sadly means waiting till next cycle. With your GPA you'd be leaving hundreds of thousands of dollars on the table by rushing things.

It sounds like you're in the fine-tuning phase of your test prep. Make sure that you're practicing under the most realistic conditions possible - better yet, under conditions somewhat more difficult than the ones you expect. Use a small table and with fluorescent lighting and background noise (radio/TV in a foreign language, loud traffic, office bustle), bubble in your answers, push to finish each section in less than 35 minutes. It's like lifting weights - once you've gotten used to the 20lbs dumbbell, 15lbs feels like nothing. That should help you get your actual performance closer to your (excellent) PT average.