@wrasschaert283 said:

@lmoghim961 said:

@aholtzer34 said:

@lmoghim961 and @nf22251 did you practice with Newer test in the 70's and 80's. If you purchased the starter course and just practicing with test in the 30's an 40's that could be the reason why you see a difference in your practice test scores and real LSAT score. Great to practice with older tests but also important to practice with newer tests as subtle differences in LR and also changes with the comparative RC sections. If you purchased the starter package and completed the CC and the older practice tests, you could either purchase the newer tests with 7sage individually(if your course is expired i think you would have to purchase a new course to do this) or purchase them through amazon. If you purchase PT through amazon, the recent book of 10 PT or the inidividual newer test 82-85 you would not have access to the 7sage explanations for RC and LR only the LG but there are other explanations free online.

That's the thing! I bought like 4 of the recent "real LSAT" 10 exam books off amazon and used those. I studied so hard, and was PT at an average of 165, lowest PT score was 161, and highest was 167. I'm just very upset and frustrated that 3 takes of the LSAT and i'm still at a 159. Obviously something is wrong with the way I am studying for the exam or my test taking ability. I really want to retake the January one because I am a Canadian student, and even a point increase to 161 would bring me from borderline waitlist/rejected to in. But I'm just so terrified that if I do badly in January, then I'll have to retake AGAIN for the 2020 cycle and I'm just so embarrassed to be taking this LSAT 4 or 5 times when others get it right in one try.

You should learn to block out the "noise". There will always be people who are naturally good at this, and others who need to work hard. Does it matter how you achieved your goal? I don't think anyone would think less of you in law school for taking the LSAT multiple times.

I'm also retaking for a 2-3 point increase as that would give me a chance at my top choice in Canada, and I've studied for this test while working full time for over a year now. I was PT'ing in the 166-169 range and ended up getting a 164. It was really upsetting because November felt like everything went right and the test didn't feel difficult. The worst part is knowing that if I had gotten 3 more questions right I would have been at 167.

Right now I'm trying to focus on my weaknesses in LR in the hopes that in January I can get those extra 3 questions right. Anyway, good luck with everything! If you're applying in the west coast we might end up in the same school if we get in :)

That looks like the plan! I think I will put my head down this December, buckle up and try once last time for this cycle in January since I still have the shot. I look forward to meeting you :) I'm really aiming on staying close to home, so fingers crossed!

@aholtzer34 said:

@lmoghim961 and @nf22251 did you practice with Newer test in the 70's and 80's. If you purchased the starter course and just practicing with test in the 30's an 40's that could be the reason why you see a difference in your practice test scores and real LSAT score. Great to practice with older tests but also important to practice with newer tests as subtle differences in LR and also changes with the comparative RC sections. If you purchased the starter package and completed the CC and the older practice tests, you could either purchase the newer tests with 7sage individually(if your course is expired i think you would have to purchase a new course to do this) or purchase them through amazon. If you purchase PT through amazon, the recent book of 10 PT or the inidividual newer test 82-85 you would not have access to the 7sage explanations for RC and LR only the LG but there are other explanations free online.

That's the thing! I bought like 4 of the recent "real LSAT" 10 exam books off amazon and used those. I studied so hard, and was PT at an average of 165, lowest PT score was 161, and highest was 167. I'm just very upset and frustrated that 3 takes of the LSAT and i'm still at a 159. Obviously something is wrong with the way I am studying for the exam or my test taking ability. I really want to retake the January one because I am a Canadian student, and even a point increase to 161 would bring me from borderline waitlist/rejected to in. But I'm just so terrified that if I do badly in January, then I'll have to retake AGAIN for the 2020 cycle and I'm just so embarrassed to be taking this LSAT 4 or 5 times when others get it right in one try.

@wrasschaert283 said:

I think that’s an option for me. I’m currently in my 4th year. I’m stuck between two options.

Take the January exam (4th LSAT take) and study hard until then to improve my score and still have a shot at improving my LSAT this cycle. BUT risk getting the same and having to do the LSAT a 5th time after I graduate for the 2020 intake cycle.

OR

Just give up on the 2019 cycle, see what happens, if I get in anywhere, and after I graduate study hard and get a good grade on the 4th retake for 2020 cycle.

What do you think?

I think it depends on how you're feeling. Take 2-3 days off from the LSAT and revisit this when you are in a better state of mind. There's roughly 7 weeks from now until the January LSAT, and it depends on whether you can pinpoint your weaknesses and improve on those weaknesses during this period (also consider the holidays and be realistic in your ability to study while everyone is celebrating). If you think you're up for it then definitely go for it. Otherwise, enjoy the holidays and kill your last term in the new year.

In the grand scheme of things delaying one year is not a big deal. Get some work/volunteer experience while studying and you'll start law school a stronger and more mature student. A word of advice though - keep your GPA up. In my fourth year I was pretty much over being in school and just coasted. It is now costing me (ie. I have to get a higher LSAT score than if I just put my head down and focused during my last year of undergrad).

I think this is what I'll end up doing. Its just so shocking because every single one of my PTs were 165 or higher. And I just can't improve my score when it comes to the real thing...very disappointed in myself

@mik528 said:

@lmoghim961 said:

@wrasschaert283 said:

@lmoghim961 said:

@wrasschaert283 said:

@lmoghim961 said:

I going to just give up now. I just keep getting the exact same score over and over.

June 159

September 158

November 159

I PT fully simulated with 165+ I don’t understand... I’m just so discouraged

I won’t be writing again as I have already applied, and I’m a Canadian student so applications already sent out and done

Hey, I know it's tough but you still have one more shot in January. I'm a Canadian applicant too and planning to rewrite in January. Did you do a breakdown of what your weaker sections are and then focus on those weaknesses? Getting 3-4 more questions right can bump you into the 160s.

I’m just so discouraged and I feel like I wasted all that time and effort and money to just get the same result. So frustrating because I know I PT at a higher level. And the errors I get in each section fluctuate. I usually -2 for LG but this time the mining game I got -5. Usually LR is -4 or -6. And RC scan be a mess but I think I did alright this time. Super shocking because I choked on the September exam and this time coming out of November I was thinking wow I did it, felt like a normal PT no surprises. And then I get my score and it destroys me.

I don’t think I’ll be rewriting in January, I think I just want to sit this cycle and see what happens. I’ll graduate with my undergraduate degree first and maybe when I’m done that I’ll retake and reapply next cycle

I felt the same way - I thought I did fine in this test and even figured out the mining game but LR really did me in. I scored 4 points below what I was PT'ing at.

Taking some time off from the LSAT and revisiting it later on may be a good idea. If this cycle doesn't work out, taking a year off is good for gaining experience and strengthening your application. I ended up taking 6 years between undergrad and law school lol.

I think that’s an option for me. I’m currently in my 4th year. I’m stuck between two options.

Take the January exam (4th LSAT take) and study hard until then to improve my score and still have a shot at improving my LSAT this cycle. BUT risk getting the same and having to do the LSAT a 5th time after I graduate for the 2020 intake cycle.

OR

Just give up on the 2019 cycle, see what happens, if I get in anywhere, and after I graduate study hard and get a good grade on the 4th retake for 2020 cycle.

What do you think?

I’m in the same boat and am going with the latter option. I don’t want to be on record taking the lsat 5 times. If I retake, it’s going to be for an exam where I have 3+ more months to study and guarantee a higher score. Jan/feb is too close. Hopefully this will end up being a good cycle and neither of us has to retake.

I agree! I thought taking 3 times was already bad. I do not want to take 4th and risk a 5th. I also think I should try my luck this cycle

@wrasschaert283 said:

@lmoghim961 said:

@wrasschaert283 said:

@lmoghim961 said:

I going to just give up now. I just keep getting the exact same score over and over.

June 159

September 158

November 159

I PT fully simulated with 165+ I don’t understand... I’m just so discouraged

I won’t be writing again as I have already applied, and I’m a Canadian student so applications already sent out and done

Hey, I know it's tough but you still have one more shot in January. I'm a Canadian applicant too and planning to rewrite in January. Did you do a breakdown of what your weaker sections are and then focus on those weaknesses? Getting 3-4 more questions right can bump you into the 160s.

I’m just so discouraged and I feel like I wasted all that time and effort and money to just get the same result. So frustrating because I know I PT at a higher level. And the errors I get in each section fluctuate. I usually -2 for LG but this time the mining game I got -5. Usually LR is -4 or -6. And RC scan be a mess but I think I did alright this time. Super shocking because I choked on the September exam and this time coming out of November I was thinking wow I did it, felt like a normal PT no surprises. And then I get my score and it destroys me.

I don’t think I’ll be rewriting in January, I think I just want to sit this cycle and see what happens. I’ll graduate with my undergraduate degree first and maybe when I’m done that I’ll retake and reapply next cycle

I felt the same way - I thought I did fine in this test and even figured out the mining game but LR really did me in. I scored 4 points below what I was PT'ing at.

Taking some time off from the LSAT and revisiting it later on may be a good idea. If this cycle doesn't work out, taking a year off is good for gaining experience and strengthening your application. I ended up taking 6 years between undergrad and law school lol.

I think that’s an option for me. I’m currently in my 4th year. I’m stuck between two options.

Take the January exam (4th LSAT take) and study hard until then to improve my score and still have a shot at improving my LSAT this cycle. BUT risk getting the same and having to do the LSAT a 5th time after I graduate for the 2020 intake cycle.

OR

Just give up on the 2019 cycle, see what happens, if I get in anywhere, and after I graduate study hard and get a good grade on the 4th retake for 2020 cycle.

What do you think?

@wrasschaert283 said:

@lmoghim961 said:

I going to just give up now. I just keep getting the exact same score over and over.

June 159

September 158

November 159

I PT fully simulated with 165+ I don’t understand... I’m just so discouraged

I won’t be writing again as I have already applied, and I’m a Canadian student so applications already sent out and done

Hey, I know it's tough but you still have one more shot in January. I'm a Canadian applicant too and planning to rewrite in January. Did you do a breakdown of what your weaker sections are and then focus on those weaknesses? Getting 3-4 more questions right can bump you into the 160s.

I’m just so discouraged and I feel like I wasted all that time and effort and money to just get the same result. So frustrating because I know I PT at a higher level. And the errors I get in each section fluctuate. I usually -2 for LG but this time the mining game I got -5. Usually LR is -4 or -6. And RC scan be a mess but I think I did alright this time. Super shocking because I choked on the September exam and this time coming out of November I was thinking wow I did it, felt like a normal PT no surprises. And then I get my score and it destroys me.

I don’t think I’ll be rewriting in January, I think I just want to sit this cycle and see what happens. I’ll graduate with my undergraduate degree first and maybe when I’m done that I’ll retake and reapply next cycle

I going to just give up now. I just keep getting the exact same score over and over.

June 159

September 158

November 159

I PT fully simulated with 165+ I don’t understand... I’m just so discouraged

I won’t be writing again as I have already applied, and I’m a Canadian student so applications already sent out and done

@jlawrence996z388 said:

Anyone think the scores are coming at 12:01 AM? I’m definitely waiting up

I waited up last cycle and nothing happened. They just send out emails at like 6am

I woke up in a sweat this morning because I dreamt I got 52 on the LSAT. Not even the 52th percentile, but 52. Is that even possible??? HOLY MOLY that was scary

@serenahui495 said:

For whatever reason, I was completely unable to understand the mining logic game. As time was expiring, I just "Charlied out" 3 of the questions. Didn't help that after I skipped it and moved on, on the next game I failed to set up my days of the week properly at first--I started my week with Monday... That was an easy fix after I realized what I'd done...

In LR the stupid oyster question was absurd--can't even remember what I guessed for that one. The password question sucked, but I think I got it. The car theft question took a while, but I finally figured it out, too. The "bats" question gave me a hard time.

Everything else I thought was pretty straightforward.

I can't really remember exactly how the writing part was worded, but I wrote the whole thing about building "telescopes" and not about "observatories." Is that a major F-up or was that implied? Did anyone else do this? Hope no one reads that thing. LOL! At least I realized that I initially referred to the "astrOLOGY" department instead of the "astronomy" department and fixed that.

I am 100% with you on that one! The mining Q was my last section, and the last game as I had skipped it. I couldn't even understand what the implications of the restrictions were, nor could I understand the wording of it. It was HORRIBLE, I ended up guessing after trying fruitlessly to figure it out

I had LG RC LR LR LG

I panicked bc I swear the first LG had a question with 2 answer choices. The whole experimental LG was not fun. Inside/Outside Flower Landscaping stuff I believe?

The RC was also not fun, mainly the movie and Big Bang stuff...

But the second LR section was so easy (???) I thought it was experimental until I hit my last section and found it was the good old Mining game.

All in all, not too bad

Wow I had to triple check that I didn't write this. I felt the EXACT same way. For some reason i ws stuck in RC. Couldn't get out of the horrible headspace after choking on RC, and semi chocked on the first LR. got it back together by the second RC section which of course was experimental, and was back to normal in the last 2 graded sections. But by then the damage was done

@5810 said:

I scored ~8 points below my PT average for the whole month before September test, normally I got -2 or -3 each LR section, but got -11 and -7 on the real test. I literally don’t know if I can get a score I want in November, thinking if it’s better I take more time to study and apply next year instead :(

I am relating so deeply to all of your comments...holy cow, I have NEVER gotten as low a score in certain sections than I have on my september lsat. it was...very bad to say the least

@yifeiwang926 said:

I'm in a similar situation, as I am applying to Canadian law schools and and writing for a third time in Nov. Where are you applying to in Canada and what are your top choices? And what score do you need to get accepted there? I think it also depends on how important it is that you get into those schools. Depending on your GPA, with a 159 it seems like you have a really great shot a whole bunch of Canadian law schools. Depending on the school, most of them take your highest score anyway, so I haven't gotten the impression that it would really hurt you by writing it again.

I am applying allllll over Canada at this point. Cannot afford to pick and choose. I live in BC, so my top choices are UBC and UVIC but as it stands I am not sure my scores are competitive for either of my top choices....

My university does a pure letter grade official transcript so that drags down my cgpa quite a bit (some courses only give A, while some other courses are curved, or a 95+ required for A+)

I need around a 165 to be competitive, so I am not that far off, but I really expected myself to do much better the second time around.

@koffi04jun147 said:

First, I want to congratulate you on taking the LSAT. This is a hard test and a long journey. Even if you are disappointed, everyone here is proud of you and the work you have done. Remember, Law Schools really only look at your highest score. You can retake the LSAT in November. Perhaps, start your November studying with a retake of a PT did you did well on. Go back to favorite games or passages to build up steam. Have you ever gotten a glowing job review while in service, schools, or employment? What about LORs? Re-read them, hear from those who know you best about why they believe in you. This occasionally helps me build confidence and get going after a setback. You go this!

As for actual test prep, I am not sure how to give advice without seeing a complete section breakdown. On a hunch, I would suggest studying up on LG. It is the easiest to grab points on and the confidence you build there should snowball into a better test performance.

If you want more detailed advice, dm me. I would be happy to take a look at any material!

I teared up reading this. I also got shot down by the september LSAT and I was really down until I read your post. Thank you so much

Hi all,

Thank you all again SO much for all the help and advice! I am a Canadian student, so this may change the application process a bit. According to some of the canadian law school forums, the 159 and my GPA will get me into some of the canadian schools, but not the ones I am aiming for.

Thank you guys already for the reply! The breakdown is as follows: Choked RC: -13 (omfg how did this even happen), -9 LR (choking continues), -3 LG, -4 LR

The -3 -4 is how I USUALLY perform, and I have never gotten something as low as -13 on a RC section before

@ksdenos977 said:

I had LR RC LR/LR LG format. My second LR section had a strengthening question about geneticly determined facial recognition in humans and chimps. Anyone know if this was the experimental? Can’t remember any other questions.

That one was real. I only had 2 LR and one was definitely about chimps. I narrowed the choices down and guessed for that one

It was a really tough exam! I had 2 RC and of course the one that I messed up was the real one. I too usually get -2 or better for LG and only attempted 2 questions for the musicians game. hopefully the exam goes down as one of those -14 but still 170 curve?

Sorry again for the confusion. I have both PT 82 and 83 and typed in the wrong one. Definitely did PT 82 with judicial candor yesterday. Thanks again for all the help everyone!

Sorry for the lack of clarity!

I have been taking PTs using the 10 actual official LSAC PT books, and at the end of each exam, the book gives a range of scores that are specific to that test. For example, some PTs the LSAC scoring allows a 180 for a score of 98/101 while some PTs the scoring chart gives 99/101 for a score of 180.

When I bought PT 83 off 7sage, I scored my exam using the 7sage platform and my scores are much lower. So I was wondering if 7Sage takes the official scoring chart from the administered exam where they got PT83 from to score the PTs, or if the scores and curve are more so generated by 7Sage users who have taken the PT using 7Sage. (Am I making any sense sorry)

Thats what I mean about scoring discrepancy and if the 7Sage scoring platform creates a tighter curve so to say.

Thank you everyone for the tips/tricks/words of wisdom!