Question re Letters of Recommendation

[DManno]

Hi,

I am not happy with my December 2012 LSAT score and decided to not apply to any schools during his application cycle. I feel as though my application is very strong aside from a low LSAT score, with great letters of recommendation and a solid personal statement. I will be taking the June 2013 LSAT and, if all goes as planned, will be applying during the next application cycle (for fall 2014 entering class). I have everything completed; 3 LOR's, personal statements, supplemental essays, etc. My question is:

Since I have not applied anywhere, and nobody will be seeing my application twice, do I need to have my letters of recommendation redone? I'm concerned the date on on letterhead will be from 2012, almost a year prior any admissions officer seeing the letter in Sept-Oct 2013. Would this have a negative bearing on my application?

Thanks for the help!

-Dave

[Anne Chaconas]

Hey Dave,

That's a great question. Given that your letters, when you apply, will be less than or just over a year old, I don't think it will be a problem. Because, as you pointed out, nobody will have seen them before, their date will not a problem. Many students get letters from their professors as they finish classes, which means that they often submit letters that are one or two years removed from their actual application date, and that is perfectly fine. If the content of the letters is stellar, no one will be placing much emphasis on the dates of the letter themselves as long as they are fairly recent (by which I mean written in the last 18 months).

I hope that helps. Good luck with your preparations for the June LSAT!

[DManno]

Thanks so much for the quick response, Anne!

I had one more question. My apologies if this should be posted under a different thread. Should I consider an addendum to my applications explaining the difference in score (presumably!) between my December and June LSATs, or are addendums reserved for different circumstances? I know most schools say they only take the highest score into account for admissions purposes, but I wanted to hear your thoughts.

Thanks again.

-Dave

[Anne Chaconas]

It would depend on the score difference. If it just 2-3 points, then no. However, if you obtain a 5+ point increase, then yes. Schools don't always look at just the highest. Some look at all of your scores, the trend between them, how long between each test, etc. If you have a score difference that is more than once standard deviation (3 points), then you should explain what happened to get you that score increase. You can do that in a very brief addendum (probably no more than a paragraph).

Hope that helps!