Retaking the LSAT Forum

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Jimlaw123

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Retaking the LSAT

Post by Jimlaw123 » Fri Apr 14, 2017 1:52 pm

Well, I'm not getting into many schools I thought I had a chance at. Maybe it's my essay (speaking of my vision being an issue with my LSAT( which it was), but it must sound like I'm not taking responsibility), plus my school screwed me by keep an " academic probabtion" in my transcript, that I thought wasn't there( they just addressed and fixed this, but it's done it's damage. I must look like a " liar" on my application).

Maybe I sound to " whiney" I don't know. But I went to JC and UC( top UC), 3.4 GPA and 152 LSAT. A lot of schools are saying no. These are the schools that sent me stuff to apply, and fee wavied me. It's annoying. But I do not see myself retaking this, and waiting another year. I'm older, work in my field, and plan to go.. I'm on a couple waitlists.. but dang. I'm on the fence, what would you guys suggest? Just want some advice.

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dietcoke1

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Re: Retaking the LSAT

Post by dietcoke1 » Fri Apr 14, 2017 2:37 pm

retaking seems to be the right call. It may be tough to do depending on personal circumstances, but you will thank yourself later if you can get your score significantly higher

Hobbesy

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Re: Retaking the LSAT

Post by Hobbesy » Fri Apr 14, 2017 3:04 pm

I agree, you should retake.
Also, what you have for your PS should be an addendum, and also documented as much as possible (accommodations, the like). Unless your vision problems really define who you are as a person and how you do what you do (past, present, future), your personal statement shouldn't be centered around it. Based on you saying you felt like it made you seem whiny, I'd say honorable mention at most.

With all of the complications you've had this cycle it sounds like you didn't have the chance to express yourself properly.

crookedsmile

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Re: Retaking the LSAT

Post by crookedsmile » Fri Apr 14, 2017 4:01 pm

I dislike when people just throw the "retake" response around but in your case, I firmly believe you will regret not retaking.

BobBoblaw

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Re: Retaking the LSAT

Post by BobBoblaw » Fri Apr 14, 2017 4:40 pm

If I recall from one of your other threads, you should have been given accommodations on the LSAT but your paperwork was late, and there were sizable parts that you weren't able to complete. That, and it sounds like there were some problems with your application which you have a growing awareness of.

I'm an older applicant as well, and I know how impractical some of the 'retake and wait a year' advice can be for those of us with work, careers, families, etc. However, in your case a retake would be very worth it. If you get into the 160s and can write a compelling personal statement, along with your URM status, you could probably get into a number of tier-1 schools with a good amount of scholarship money to boot. It's probably worth it to wait a year and retake in order to go to a much better school, have much better job prospects, and save at least $100,000 in the process.

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TripleM

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Re: Retaking the LSAT

Post by TripleM » Sat Apr 15, 2017 10:43 pm

Jimlaw123 wrote:Well, I'm not getting into many schools I thought I had a chance at. Maybe it's my essay (speaking of my vision being an issue with my LSAT( which it was), but it must sound like I'm not taking responsibility), plus my school screwed me by keep an " academic probabtion" in my transcript, that I thought wasn't there( they just addressed and fixed this, but it's done it's damage. I must look like a " liar" on my application).

Maybe I sound to " whiney" I don't know. But I went to JC and UC( top UC), 3.4 GPA and 152 LSAT. A lot of schools are saying no. These are the schools that sent me stuff to apply, and fee wavied me. It's annoying. But I do not see myself retaking this, and waiting another year. I'm older, work in my field, and plan to go.. I'm on a couple waitlists.. but dang. I'm on the fence, what would you guys suggest? Just want some advice.
I don't remember whether it was in a thread or a pm but you and I had a back and forth about this before. I'm not a "retake" auto reply but in your case the answer remains the same at I told you before. Please retake. You bump that lsat up by five questions and get your applications in during the first wave and you are in at a top six, probably with money and possibly a near-full ride at a lower t-14. My GPA was 3.3, I applied late and I'm still getting 66% offers from t10 schools. You are, flat out, a superior candidate to me.

I'm probably the oldest person active in the URM forum. I'm old AF. I'll be in my fifth decade of life when I graduate. I've got a family to support, including a 14 month old, so I get the idea that you want to get it on. I promise you, you can afford to retake. The worst case scenario is that you end up with the same score or lower (which won't really hurt you) and benefit from early submission.

I agree with you that your personal statement may have gone in the wrong direction. When your numbers are low (and mine are) you need your story to shine. If your story didn't sing about who you are and why you're awesome, that's a huge miss. You need to have people read it and edit it aggressively. They will hurt your feelings if they're doing a good edit. Thank them.

I believe that you have a compelling story and also elite school potential. I wouldn't say shit if I didn't. If you will commit to retaking I will personally edit your PS. I'm not the best editor in the world but I wrote for the New York Times so I'm not a total hack either.

In general, I feel a lot of passion and fire in your writing. To be honest, you sometimes come off as if you have a chip on your shoulder. That can be a powerful tool. I'm guessing you've dealt with some shit in your life. You need to set that aside, try to separate the emotions and really think about how happy you're going to be in less than a year when you're choosing between a couple of regional full rides and respectable money at elite schools. That's the emotion you need to latch on.

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brinicolec

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Re: Retaking the LSAT

Post by brinicolec » Sat Apr 29, 2017 4:05 am

I know you don't want to retake, but retaking really is the best option here.

Whether or not schools send you stuff/fee waivers is not at all indicative of your odds of being accepted. If anything, it's more about schools trying to get their applicants up which in turn, lowers their acceptance rate.

With that being said, I have a similar LSAC GPA and a higher LSAT and will be going to a T13 with money. I'm less than a year out of college so I don't have substantial softs/WE to make me super impressive either.

Retake recommendation aside, what you said was in your essay should probably have been an addendum, if anything, so it sounds like you could also benefit from reapplying with different statements and the like.

Idk about TripleM's T6 promises, but I do know that you could have a much better cycle if you're able to get into the 160s.

LS is a huge commitment. Don't sell yourself short.

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A. Nony Mouse

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Re: Retaking the LSAT

Post by A. Nony Mouse » Sat Apr 29, 2017 8:42 am

Retake.

I also don't think your PS should be about how your vision problems made you do badly on the LSAT. You can write an addendum about that (though if you retake it may not be necessary!), but your PS should be a way for schools to learn about you as a person, not an explanation for weaknesses in your app.

Plus the academic probation thing is probably a big deal. But keep in mind that even if it gets taken off your actual transcript, if you were on academic probation at some point you will have to tell law schools that.

Npret

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Re: Retaking the LSAT

Post by Npret » Sat Apr 29, 2017 8:57 am

How were you on academic probation? If it was an error or a simple computer mistake, then do an addendum explaining it.

It sounds like you know that this isn't the right time for you to go to school. With a better score and a polished application you can do better next year.

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