168 LSAT 3.88 GPA. Retake LSAT? Forum

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loveejora

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168 LSAT 3.88 GPA. Retake LSAT?

Post by loveejora » Tue Jul 24, 2018 12:52 pm

Hi, I'm an Asian American female and I'll be applying this cycle straight through from UC Berkeley with a 3.88 GPA and 168. I took my first LSAT last year and got 167, studied and scored 172-174 average on practice tests, and retook the LSAT last month and got 168 because I freaked out. I'd love to go to NYU, UPenn, or Berkeley. I wasn't planning on retaking the LSAT so that I could focus on my applications, but I'm rethinking it. Do I have a good shot at those schools without retaking the LSAT? Thanks!

hoos89

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Re: 168 LSAT 3.88 GPA. Retake LSAT?

Post by hoos89 » Tue Jul 24, 2018 1:39 pm

You have a pretty good chance to get into one of NYU, Penn or Berkeley, probably at sticker. If you increase your LSAT to your practice test range you'd probably get into Harvard though, with a shot at Yale or Stanford. That would also take you from "pretty good shot" at NYU or Berkeley to "almost definitely in". You'd also be more likely to get some scholarship money at NYU, and you'd be looking at substantial scholarships from schools like Cornell or Northwestern. Retaking could save you $100k though so probably worth it....it's not like you'd even have to delay going to law school. Just study for the November 2018 administration. No reason to settle for 5-7 points lower than your practice range.

loveejora

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Re: 168 LSAT 3.88 GPA. Retake LSAT?

Post by loveejora » Tue Jul 24, 2018 2:25 pm

Thanks so much for your input. I'm worried because the November LSAT scores are projected to be released on December 8, which isn't early in the application process. If I don't take the Nov LSAT, I'm going to submit my apps by the end of September. I'm worried that by applying later, my chances will be hurt. Would you say submitting apps in early December is too late?

hoos89

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Re: 168 LSAT 3.88 GPA. Retake LSAT?

Post by hoos89 » Tue Jul 24, 2018 2:45 pm

loveejora wrote:Thanks so much for your input. I'm worried because the November LSAT scores are projected to be released on December 8, which isn't early in the application process. If I don't take the Nov LSAT, I'm going to submit my apps by the end of September. I'm worried that by applying later, my chances will be hurt. Would you say submitting apps in early December is too late?
Well it certainly wouldn't hurt your chances if you ultimately do better on the LSAT. There's also a September administration upcoming...if you feel 6 weeks is enough time to prep for that one then you can send out apps in late September/early October with that score. There's also the option to apply in September, take the November LSAT, and update your application when the score comes back in December. In any case if you reach the end of the cycle and feel your results aren't quite what you'd like you can always take a gap year.

There are a lot of points on the table right now...you should be doing everything you can to get them. Figure out what's going wrong on exam day for you and do what you can to fix it. I suspect that if you get yourself to the mindset that it's okay if you take a year off (seriously...it's fine) it will help your nerves a bit come exam day because retaking will be an option.

Lurker19

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Re: 168 LSAT 3.88 GPA. Retake LSAT?

Post by Lurker19 » Tue Jul 24, 2018 3:33 pm

Yeah, you'll probably have some good outcomes with your current numbers, but if you literally just bump your score up one or two more points your results could be substantially better. I think your GPA is already at or above most T14 medians, which is great. But your LSAT is below the median at almost all T14's except for Georgetown, Cornell, Berkeley, and Northwestern if I recall correctly. If you get up to a 169 suddenly you're at median for Michigan, UVA, Duke, Penn, and NYU. If you get up to a 170 you're at the 75% for most of those schools. That can make a huge difference in terms of where you get in and how much money you're offered. It's worth a retake for that chance alone. Statistically your score band is +/- 3 points, so you basically just need to get a little luckier on test day and you could be at a better school with a six figure scholarship. Retake for sure, and wait until next year if you need to. You'll be a more competitive applicant with some work experience anyway, and law school isn't going anywhere.

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