Multiple LSAT Attempts

[ginger99]

Hi PowerScore Team,

First off, greatly appreciate the podcast and all the LSAT prep you all provide. I used the 3 bibles back in 2021 and got so much out of them! I have an LSAT attempts question that I hope you can provide some guidance on.

I took the LSAT 3 times in 2021, scoring a high of 165 and two lower 160s. Ultimately, I decided not to apply that cycle for several personal reasons and have been working as a legal assistant since. I'm now gearing up to apply in the upcoming cycle and considering diving back into LSAT prep and taking it a fourth time (most likely in Oct.) and applying as soon as I get my score back in late October. My concern is would a fourth attempt be a red flag to admissions committees? If not, and assuming I can get my PT average above a 165, I lean towards registering for the test one last time as I always felt like logic games was by far my toughest section, and I think I can improve on my high score with ~3 months prep. However, if I failed to improve my score, would that be viewed negatively by reviewers? Trying to make sure I'm not missing anything in the risk v. reward evaluation.

To the extent it affects your advice, at this point I don't plan to apply to many T14s other than those in my area (UVA & Duke), but would like to be very competitive for scholarship consideration at the schools I do apply to and thankfully have a really strong GPA. In that vein, it seems like it's worth trying to up my LSAT score especially given another likely high volume applicant cycle.

All said, please let me know if this sounds like a worthy endeavor or if there are angles I'm not considering. Thank you in advance for your thoughts!!

[Jeff Wren]

Hi ginger,

My advice would be to plan to take the LSAT a fourth time if you are able to get your practice tests above 165. (Given that it is quite common to score a few points lower on the actual LSAT compared to practice tests, ideally you'll be averaging 168+ on your practice tests prior to taking your LSAT just to give yourself a little "buffer.")

The fact that logic games was your worst section is a very good reason to retake the LSAT, and simply the removal of the games may make all the difference for you.

While four LSAT attempts is more than what most applicants do, I wouldn't consider it excessive (and neither would admissions officers, I expect).

Here's an article on this topic that you may find helpful.

https://www.spiveyconsulting.com/blog-p ... g.ghost.io

I'd also recommend getting Score Preview, which lets you see your score before deciding whether or not to keep it. This should limit the potential risk of possibly having a bad day and getting a lower score than your 165. In that unfortunate event, you can simply cancel your score. It can also make taking the LSAT itself a bit less stressful, since you know that no one will see your score unless you decide it's worth keeping.