Hi all,

I started studying for the LSAT in May and decided to sign up for the July exam because I knew I could see my score and cancel it and retake for free in October, thinking I wanted a solid 5 months of studying. By July, I got through around 65% of the 7Sage Core Curriculum, but only ended up taking 1 PT (scored 160) before taking the exam in July. I just got my score back yesterday and was extremely surprised to see I scored a 165 (I expected either high 150s or low 160s). My original target score was a 168 and my dream schools were Duke and Berkeley. Here is my dilemma:

I'm apprehensive about starting to hardcore study again to take the exam in October. I'm just started my senior year as a full-time student and am also working part-time at a law firm for 15 hours/week. I'm not sure if I'll have enough time to dedicate to LSAT studying while maintaining my GPA. I'm kicking myself for not taking more PTs before taking the July exam -- I keep wondering if I could have scored higher if I had. I know it is frowned upon by many schools if you retake the exam to just go up a few points, so I'm thinking my options are either: 1) cancel the 165 and retake aiming for 168-170 and apply in December/January; or 2) keep the 165, focus on applications and apply earlier in October.

Background info: I'm an undergraduate senior at UNC Chapel Hill with a 3.85 GPA.

Any opinions/advice/reassurance would be appreciated! Thanks and good luck with your studies & applications :)