Take it again?

[DavidAg]

I took the June 2012 LSAT. Just got my score back and it was a 162. I had taken the virtual course and really liked it. I started at 156 and had scored as high as the 165-169 range in the 3 weeks leading up. I did, however have 3 or so tests in that same time range that were around 162. Needless to say, I am pretty disappointed in my score. The Saturday before test day I had scored a 169 so I was confident going into it. I just had a bad test day.

My question is, should I take the test again?

I am from Texas and my schools of interest are U of H, Baylor, and (previously) UT (Texas). My GPA is a 3.684. I looked at some Law School Predictor websites and one said that I was 100% for U of H and about 90% for Baylor. Another site had it at 75% and 59%. My dilemma is that I would like to be very confident in my chances of getting into to those schools and do not want to risk not getting into either. If, in your opinion, I am 50/50, I will probably take it again because I am confident I can do better. I just do not want to have to go through the process of studying again.

This all being said I am very pleased with Powerscore's course. My disappointment has nothing to do with your course, but with my bad test day.

Thank you in advance!

David

[Jon Denning]

Hey David - thanks for the question. To me this one's pretty straightforward: take it again. I know digging back in and studying for a few more months sounds torturous, but when you consider the potential payoff--I mean that literally and figuratively; a 169 is a whole different world than a 162 in terms of schools, scholarships, etc--it's the right call. Especially considering you've got access to the archives from your course until October, so an awesome resource to use as you continue to review.

With your undergrad stats and a high 160s score you could really open up some amazing doors...shoot for October and it'll be behind you before you know it.

Good luck man!

Jon

[DavidAg]

Jon,

Thank you so much for your response. It really encouraged me.

I have another question for you. I put in a great amount of time for the june test and took all of the practice tests that the virtual test offered along with a great portion of the other practice material. How should I approach restudying? Can I redo old tests? How much time do you recommend?

David

[Jon Denning]

No problem! I suppose the first thing I'd advise is to consider whether you're mentally ready to dive back in just yet. That is, if it'd help you get more motivated to just take a week and remind yourself what you're looking to accomplish and why this is important to you, then that's a week well-spent. Take whatever time is necessary to get your head where it should be before you start studying again.

Once you're ready to go, I'd take a long, detailed look at the June test you just got back and break it down to determine, very specifically, what caused the score drop. So compare to the past few 169s (or tests where you scored particularly well) and note the differences.

That should give you a good starting point. From there you can go back and more specifically review any concepts on which you underperformed on test day (anything from Grouping games to conditional reasoning to science passages), and then work through the relevant lessons and homework in the course dedicated to those concepts. Even if it means redoing old work.

Take it slow and steady and spend the next two months or so just making sure EVERYTHING you do is done correctly. Identifying question types, isolating conclusions, diagramming rules...do everything perfectly and then start taking tests again with a focus on proper application of technique, and consistent time management. Save any tests you have yet to complete for the month or so before the exam, and then begin taking them as timed exercises and spending a bunch of time thoroughly reviewing them post-test.

Finally, if you find there are still some areas in which you feel less than 100%, consider investing in a tutor (or some form of outside assistance) to give you that final push. This may not be necessary, but it's something to consider down the line if you still feel a bit shaky.

That's how I'd go about things. The keys for now: maintain a positive attitude about the test, make sure your fundamentals stay sharp/solid, spend a ton of time in detailed review of everything you do looking to understand questions on both micro (what exactly happened) and macro (how could this idea/concept/construction be tested in the future) levels, and don't be afraid to get some extra help if it turns out you need it.

Hope that helps!

JD

[parins8]

Hi Jon,

I am a basically in the same boat (with strangely almost the exact same circumstances) but I am considering taking the December LSAT. Do you think one month is too short a time crunch? How do you think I should approach it?

[Anne Chaconas]

Hey parins,

I'm sure Jon will come in to answer your question, but I wanted to put my two cents in case they might help.

Whether a month is too short a time to prep for retaking the test is really going to depend, in my mind, quite a bit on how you did on your last official test (was it October?), and how much you want to go up. If you're looking for a significant score increase (in my mind, 5+ points) and you haven't studied in a while (a month or more), then a month might not be enough; to put in the kind of dedicated studying and analysis Jon suggests is not the matter of a few weeks, but of months.

A lot of it is also going to come down to your mental state regarding the LSAT. Do you think you can go up in your score? Do you feel you have enough time to study again? What do re-taker statistics say about your chances of going up? I can't really answer the first two, since those are both decisions of a personal nature that you must make by undertaking self-scrutiny. However, as far as the third question goes, I can tell you that students who take the test a second time go up, on average, 2.8 points from their previous official score (assuming the previous score was their first time taking the test). You can see more about that in an article Dave Killoran wrote for our blog, here: http://blog.powerscore.com/lsat/bid/153 ... Statistics

So, if you're looking to go up only a few (2-3) points, and feel confident in your studying and have a positive outlook on the whole thing, then retaking it in December seems like a feasible option. Otherwise, my personal opinion you might want to wait until February; it will give you more time to study and analyze your October results and use them to fine tune your LSAT skills.

I hope that helps! I'm sure Jon (and anyone else who chimes in) will have some great insight to add to mine. Good luck!

[Jon Denning]

Ha - thanks Anne! And no pressure for my "great insight," right?

Truthfully, I think Anne is absolutely correct: it's very, very difficult to predict how much time is "sufficient" or "necessary" for a given score increase, as everyone is different and improves at different rates, so I can't give any absolutes about what can/can't be accomplished in a month...however I do think a realistic expectation would be in the neighborhood of say 3-5 points for the typical student, as opposed to 10+.

But, again, I'm generalizing in response to a question about an individual, which inherently limits the potential applicability/accuracy of my response.

I mean, someone who goes in and misbubbles something, or carelessly diagrams some big rules incorrectly in a couple games, could throw their score off by 5+ points easily, and regaining those points on the next exam, even the next day, is more a matter of just attention to detail than to great leaps in conceptual understanding. Whereas someone who studies for nine months, does every question available, attends classes and reviews supplementary material, takes 20 practice tests with the last six all right at say a 165, and then gets a 165 on the real thing...well they're probably not jumping into the 170s with just a few more weeks of prep.

My point is that predictions are suspect, and, to be honest, largely foolish. Instead, consider how you've been performing on practice tests, how much work you've done and the gains you've seen, how you did on the real thing relative to those practice tests and that work, and then be honest about how much potential improvement you feel is realistic. If it's more than a few points then it might be well worth the work; dig in and make the next month count, and use practice tests a month from now to gauge whether you've made the improvements for which you were hoping. Then you'll know if taking it in December is a good idea.

[parins8]

Thank you! This helped considerably. I have been doing a lot of practice and my score has improved remarkably. My only concern is (especially with Reading Comprehension), since I am redoing many of the old practice tests/sections, will the improvement be representative? If not, should I do something that sort of introduces me to "new" material?