Taking LSAT in July or August

[Ryan Ashburn]

Hello,

I have two questions: one about taking the LSAT in July vs August, and one more general admissions question.

For some background, I have been on and off studying for the lsat for the last 9 months but only consistently studying for the past 3 months. I am currently averaging in the low to mid 160's on PT's but my goal is to break 170. I want to attend a T30 school, and as high up the list as possible; however I have a 3.3 gpa in engineering so assuming I can get my goal score, I will be a splitter at most schools I apply to. For this reason I registered to take the July lsat because I want to be able to apply as early as possible in the admissions cycle.

I am considering opting out of the July test and getting the coupon from LSAC to register for the August LSAT instead. I think the likelihood that I will get a 170 is much higher in August then in the next three weeks.

Do you think it is a good idea to do this?

Also I have no problem with retaking if I do not like my score, but the downside of waiting until August is that if I have to retake I will have to wait until October and will thus be applying a couple months later in the cycle. Also it seems like law schools tend to favor applicants who only take the lsat once so in general does and increase lsat retake score outweigh any advantage gained from early admissions or from only taking the test once?

Thanks!

[Adam Tyson]

Hey Ryan, happy to help if I can here. First, I disagree that law schools prefer candidates who take the LSAT only once. These days, most people take it multiple times, and schools really only care about the high score and not how many other scores you have. Don't hesitate to take it again if you think you can do better! A high score later is generally better than a lower score with an earlier application, so the delay, if it comes with improvement, is worthwhile. Even a delay until October, which is still very early in the application cycle.

I'm not sure if there is still at this point a free coupon to cancel July and switch to August, but if there is, then I would suggest making that swap. With two weeks to go, if you are not getting practice test scores that you find acceptable, you stand a better chance if you keep at it until August. If you were scoring in the high 160s I would probably say stay the course and shoot for that 170+ in July, but if you are still on the lower side of 165, and if that 170+ is crucial, then create a study plan that will get you there two months, rather than two weeks, from now.

Do not fear a retake! It's the normal thing to do nowadays! Just focus on doing the best that you can, and then, if you retake, focus on doing a little better. Good luck!