Self-study
Hello!
I am seeking a bit of advice regarding what I should do this fall in my law school journey. I am 2 years post-grad and was initially planning when I graduated to be attending law school this coming fall (obviously did not happen). I have been working a full time job since I graduated (about 55 hours/week) and have been studying consistently for about 10 months about 10-12 hours per week. My diagnostic score was a 153. I first tried using Mike Kim's book the LSAT trainer and that did not work well for me. I also took a full Kaplan course and got my score up to a 159-160. I have big goals for law school and ultimately would like to go to a T14 school as it has the specific program I'm interested in pursuing (a combined JD+MS). I graduated with a 3.95 GPA, had a ton of extracurriculars, a great story for my personal statement, and overall feel like I'm a very strong candidate. The one thing that feels like a roadblock has been my LSAT score. I am feeling very defeated as my LSAT score has not improved relative to the time that I feel like I have been studying. I also took the June LSAT (my first official LSAT) and received a 157 which felt incredibly disappointing.
Standardized testing has always been difficult for me and right now it feels like it will be impossible to achieve my goal score of a 174. I am going to take the September LSAT and was planning to apply this fall by October 1st. I am now trying 7sage after my advisor from college suggested I give it a shot and have been sticking to my tailored study plan.
I am wondering if it is even worth it to apply this fall if I can't get my score in the 170s. I have mixed feelings as I really wanted to apply this fall but I also don't want to force it if I am capable of eventually getting a better score. Any advice on next steps and if I should continue delaying my application process would be much appreciated. It just feels difficult to have to wait yet another year out from when I wanted to start attending. I'm trying really hard not to give up, but this has been very difficult for me.
Also open to hearing more about what helped people increase their scores the most. I did a lot of drilling when I had the Kaplan plan but not as many full length practice tests. I also have watched a ton of videos on the fundamentals and for 7sage fast track videos, I've pretty consistently gotten all the answers correct before Kevin walks through them.
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4 comments
It's okay to be disappointed by your score but if the only way you want to go to law school is through a T-14, you need to ask yourself what this is really about. like many others have said, there are 200+ law schools and only a very select few will get into a T14. You can take it again and see your score and let that decide if you wait another year, the two don't have to be mutually exclusive. Im 5 years post-grad, so for me it's a bit different. I want to go next fall 100%, so even if my October retake (diagnostic: 146; June score: 162) doesn't jump up a considerable amount, I'm still going to apply.
I'd suggest reading the Loophole for LR and focusing on quality over quantity with your blind review. Rather than studying for four hours a day, cut down to one full practice section with thorough review and use 7sage analytics to drill your weak areas. It gets better. I studied for 8months and I def feel more comfortable with the test. Also for the reading sections, something that helped me was understanding that the answer is ALWAYS in the passage. Don't let this thing defeat you, don't go on reddit. Mindset genuinely plays a huge role in this (along with anything in life). You can do thisss, it might just not look like what you planned out in your head
Man yall make everyone else feel like a failure for not scoring 180.
It’s not T14 or die.
You can still pursue an LLM after your JD. I’ve seen it suggested that LLM or MS programs are a lot more accepting since they do not count towards the school ranking.
You could get your JD and hide behind the T14 name adding on LLM. I’ve seen people who don’t really publicize where they got their JD, but went to better school for undergrad and make being that alumni their personality.
The thing with T14 clout chasers seem to only worry about making money.
I’ve yet to see someone name drop T14 specifically because it is nearly necessary for the coveted politicized positions.
Do you only have one specific program in mind at a certain T14?
People don’t really care about where you got the MS like a JD, and where you got your JD is only becomes really important if you specifically want a certain placement.
Your scores now aren’t a problem, try not to worry so much. You aren’t behind the development curve, you are progressing on track. The LSAT is really really hard and I believe patience is necessary when building the skills to achieve a good result. Think of it as a life lesson, while also imbibing you with the skill that will carry over into law school.
1) Do all the course content.
2) Make sure to Blind Review.
The Blind Review will expose gaps in knowledge.
If you are not scoring well in Blind Review than that means there are fundamental concepts you are not getting yet, or LSAT quarks you haven’t adapted to like the trap answer or just knowing how to approach question types.
If you are scoring well in Blind Review than it is not a knowledge thing, it is execution.
From there it is a matter of time spent practicing which will slowly bring improvements.
Drill. Like a kid trying to make it into the NBA. Drill. Drill. Review and WAJ to address mistakes. Drill so we can execute.
You keep at it, and it begins to become more naturally. Then like someone who has put in the work, when the ball comes to you, you won’t hesitate, you will know what to do, be able to react, and choose what you wanna do at that time. Do we wanna dribble it up/POE, shoot now/anticipate the answer, pass/pass. You will know what move to do, and when. Kobe!
The good news is that the LSAT is learnable and you can master it. I can't speak to your admission questions / frustrations but it is certainly possible to go from a 157 to 170s. I would stick to your study plan and make sure you're drilling consistently, and working toward full sections and PTs over time. It sounds like you can get questions right when they're lesson examples, but struggle when actually taking the test? This could mean your issues are timing or stamina with sections, which can be improved with practice. I also began my LSAT journey while working full time, and I promise it is possible. It could also be that you have some fundamental issues with your understanding somewhere, which I would certainly suggest sticking with a study plan and following the 7Sage curriculum, once those pieces fit together the LSAT becomes much easier. You can also track what kinds of questions you're getting wrong to potentially diagnose places where your understanding isn't quite there yet. The LSAT is a marathon, not a sprint, but with consistent practice you can get where you want to be.
@Colton it’s nice to hear that someone else has successfully studied while having a full time job. I feel like a lot of the people I’ve seen have taken time off to study and I don’t really have the ability to do that. Thanks for the advice, I’ll keep working at the 7Sage curriculum