Scoring better on a Retake possible?

[akalsi]

Hi,

I apologize in advance for this lengthy post, but I was hoping to get some insight into this.

I've been studying for the LSAT for quite a few years, and as embarrassing as this is to admit, the December 2016 LSAT was my 4th time around writing it. Unfortunately, I scored the exact same as my score two years prior, on the dot (160). The worst part is, I tend to do well with my preptests, scoring the mid- to high-160s, but I don't understand how my score drops so significantly the day of the test. I've read the blog posts about test mentality, and I understand how that could affect my score.
My issue is, a 160 isn't really good enough for me to get into law school. I should mention that I'm from Canada, and I'm applying to Ontario Law schools only. I know powerscore has done some materials related to Canadian schools in the past, from what I've seen on the blog posts. The issue I have is, with a 160, I'm sitting at the min percentile to get into law school, however my cumulative GPA is terrible (to terrible to even say what it is). I know that having a higher LSAT can offset the cGPA and make up for my losses there.
I guess my questions here are two-fold:

1 - By retaking the February lsat again (which would mean my 5th time around), how badly would this reflect my capabilities to the law schools and affect my chances of admission?

2 - How can I come out on top this time around. I've written the test multiple times, and I would like to get as close as possible to a 170. Currently since there is only a Month left to study, I'm going through all LR concepts again and utilizing the online powerscore resources (I've taken a course recently so I still have access to the online student centre) like the lesson supplements and the supplemental test sections and questions. And of course I am doing preptests every so often as well. I'm also incorporating stuff outside the physical studying of the LSAT as well. I've made my own study bible and I review that every night before bed. I've also gotten copies of Scientific American, the Economist, and National Geographic to help with my RC scores. I'm fairly confident with LG where I score perfect almost every time, so I'm not worried about that aspect of the test. I always look at the LSAT blogs and forums for help with tips and anything I'm struggling with. So what more can I do here to ensure I get a high score and not have the same situation happen to me where I do well with preptests and end up losing many points when it actually counts?

I really don't want to give up on this (as you can probably tell with the number of times I've attempted this test). Any and all advice and help is greatly appreciated!

[Adam Tyson]

Hey there Akalsi, I hope we can offer you some useful insight on this tough situation. I've asked some colleagues to add their two cents, too.

I'll be frank to start with - the odds of a jump in score like you are looking for in the short time we have before the February test, after all the work you have already done, are slim. Probably not realistic. Not impossible, mind you, but slim odds. What I don't know is how much you were doing over the past two years since the last time you took it, while you waited for the older tests to age off so you could give it another go. Were you continuing to take practice tests? Were you studying the whole time, or was there a long break before you jumped back in, so that you got rusty in the meantime?

There can be many reasons for a drop from practice tests to the real deal. Were your practice tests all five sections long, to simulate the experimental section and to build the stamina needed to sit for that long a test? Where were you taking the tests, and how distracting were those environments? As you know, the test is never administered in a perfect setting. People around you will be coughing and sneezing and making other bodily noises, proctors will be walking around, you will hear whispers and chairs scraping and pencils tapping and pages turning. You will hear traffic noises, nature noises, maybe a dripping or creaking HVAC system. The room might be too hot, or too cold, or smelly, or dimly lit. And of course there is the anxiety that comes from knowing that this time it really counts, ratcheted up by the nervous energy of everyone around you. The stink of fear fills the air sometimes, and it can eat its way into your brain and do terrible things in there.

How long have you been out of undergrad? The longer that gap, the less your old GPA should matter, and the more weight gets put on the LSAT. You can't do anything about that GPA now, but you can control your LSAT results by hard work and practice, so put your energy into that and don't give the GPA another thought. You might have to address it in your personal statement or an addendum, if you have a good reason for why that GPA no longer reflects what you are capable of doing in law school, but otherwise don't let thoughts of that GPA eat away at your confidence now. Move forward with a positive, confident attitude. You are the master of your fate, the captain of your soul.

Review the December test and the few practice tests you took before it and look for patterns in the wrong answers and the ones you struggled with. Do they tend to fall into the same family? That might give you some ideas about where to focus your efforts now. Are you consistently prephrasing your answers? If not, start making that a habit every single time. Are you sorting the answers into losers and contenders, not stopping to analyze any of them until you have looked at all five? If not, start doing that right now. Time spend analyzing before sorting is almost always time wasted, and there is no time to waste on this test.

Finally, give some thought to the "softs" in your application. What will your letters of recommendation say? Will they be glowing reports about your true abilities? What will you say in your personal statement that tells a compelling story to overcome your raw numbers? What have you done in your life outside of academia that allows you to bring to the table a different and valuable perspective that will enhance the program at your law school? I just spoke to an admissions officer at one school who told me that they review every application, regardless of the numbers, and that frequently they hit on an app that has numbers that immediately suggest a decline but whose personal statement and other softs make the candidate an "oh wow" that they end up happily accepting. Be that "oh wow" candidate, in part by ensuring that your LORs will be absolutely phenomenal.

As I said, I've asked others to chime in, particularly on the issue of what schools might think seeing that you have taken it so many times. I'm not sure that will matter all that much if ultimately your high score is in their preferred range, but control what you can and don't worry about what you cannot.

Good luck!

[akalsi]

Thank you so much for your reply Adam.

While I wait for the others to add some insight, I thought I would reply to some things you mentioned in your response to my post that may help them as well.

I graduated from my undergrad in 2014, so it hasn't been a long time since. Considering I had to wait two years to write this test again, I actually ended up going back to school for a year and completed a Paralegal diploma, which I'm happy to say I had a 4.0 GPA in, and I can be a recognized licensee with the Law Society of Upper Canada, once I write my license exam of course . Unfortunately, because it is not a university-degree program, I am unsure how the Law Schools in Ontario would view or take that into consideration when looking at my application. As you've mentioned I do have some "softs" per se in my application, such as two moot competitions that I competed in and placed in the top 4 and top 8 out of 16 teams and 108 teams, respectively. Because that program was a one year program it was highly intensive (i.e. taking 8 courses per semester for 3 straight semesters), and as such I didn't have time to look at the LSATs again until I started studying again in September for the December exam.

For my prep itself, I took tests in areas that simulated the exam-day type feel, i.e sitting in a library or at a coffee shop. Occasionally I would implement an experimental every now and then, but not all the time, out of fear I would burn-out consistently doing that. I should mention that the week leading up to the december exam, I actually ended up scoring in the mid to high 150s with the preptests (which I guess gave the fear and anxiety leading into the december exam).

Thanks again for the reply, and I hope this additional information can help with getting some further insight on my issues.

[David Boyle]

Thank you so much for your reply Adam.

While I wait for the others to add some insight, I thought I would reply to some things you mentioned in your response to my post that may help them as well.

I graduated from my undergrad in 2014, so it hasn't been a long time since. Considering I had to wait two years to write this test again, I actually ended up going back to school for a year and completed a Paralegal diploma, which I'm happy to say I had a 4.0 GPA in, and I can be a recognized licensee with the Law Society of Upper Canada, once I write my license exam of course . Unfortunately, because it is not a university-degree program, I am unsure how the Law Schools in Ontario would view or take that into consideration when looking at my application. As you've mentioned I do have some "softs" per se in my application, such as two moot competitions that I competed in and placed in the top 4 and top 8 out of 16 teams and 108 teams, respectively. Because that program was a one year program it was highly intensive (i.e. taking 8 courses per semester for 3 straight semesters), and as such I didn't have time to look at the LSATs again until I started studying again in September for the December exam.

For my prep itself, I took tests in areas that simulated the exam-day type feel, i.e sitting in a library or at a coffee shop. Occasionally I would implement an experimental every now and then, but not all the time, out of fear I would burn-out consistently doing that. I should mention that the week leading up to the december exam, I actually ended up scoring in the mid to high 150s with the preptests (which I guess gave the fear and anxiety leading into the december exam).

Thanks again for the reply, and I hope this additional information can help with getting some further insight on my issues.

Hello akalsi,

Just because the paralegal course was not for a university degree, that doesn't make it irrelevant. A 4.0 in any field of endeavor can look fantastic.
Those moot competitions could be quite helpful in your application too.
As for more general advice: try to make sure that other sources of stress are eliminated if possible, or at least delayed until after the next test! This can be quite helpful.
Some others may weigh in later, but one final thing: at least you're putting in a lot of effort, and you deserve a round of applause for that! Your dedication may carry you very far. (It's good you're making some efforts to avoid burnout, though!)

Hope this helps,
David