Apply to UCI or wait? Feb LSAT sucked...

BirdLaw818

GPA is a 3.26, Feb LSAT came in at 157, 4 points below my PT... was my first take.
UCI accepts until JUNE lsat but at that point, i need an extremely good score to be competitive to be accepted before school starts lol.

So, should I apply with my 3.26 and 157 now and possibly get rejected and cant apply again this cycle?
Or do I wait until June and try to raise my score atleast 10 points. At that point, idk if 167 would be competitive for apply after june...

so idk. appreciate any ideas. thanks!

nessa.k13.0

Hi @avetyans So UCI's 25th/75th percentile (gpa--lsat) is 160/165 -- 3.32/3.68. You fall below both so I would not apply at this point in the cycle because you would use up a lot of time, effort, and writing material on a gamble with not the best chances at getting in. I would apply with a higher lsat score in June if you think you can realistically put in the time and effort to raise your score to something higher than their 75th percentile, yet competitive for applying that late in their cycle. If you cannot, I'd study still with that momentum take it in June or September and apply earlier in the next cycle.

BirdLaw818

@"nessa.k13.0" said:
Hi @avetyans So UCI's 25th/75th percentile (gpa--lsat) is 160/165 -- 3.32/3.68. You fall below both so I would not apply at this point in the cycle because you would use up a lot of time, effort, and writing material on a gamble with not the best chances at getting in. I would apply with a higher lsat score in June if you think you can realistically put in the time and effort to raise your score to something higher than their 75th percentile, yet competitive for applying that late in their cycle. If you cannot, I'd study still with that momentum take it in June or September and apply earlier in the next cycle.

I have 3 months until the next test and Ive used up my study materials...I can allocate around 25-30 hours a week at this point until june lsat. Is it realistic to bump up my score by atleast 10 points after using up the tests? thanks

I had only studied for 3.5 weeks for this test.

nessa.k13.0

Ohhh you only studied for 3.5 weeks?!!! Yeah you definitely have a lot of room for improvement. If you can invest in some new prep material. I used the starter pack on here for a long while and I was able to increase my PT performance by 20 points. With the starter pack and study groups you can def increase your score but thats a lot of material to go through by June. I wouldn't recommend it---if you decide on 7sage curriculum push back to September because that's a lot of material to absorb and apply in three months.

If you go with a book like Manhattan or the Trainer then you could brush up on your weaknesses and practice with PTs. @avetyans what have you been studying with?

BinghamtonDave

+1 on the advice @"nessa.k13.0" gave.

You have plenty of room for improvement. My recommendation would be to get the highest score you are able to get before applying.

BirdLaw818

I did all the recent preptests fully, and practiced all the games. So I know or went over like 70% of the games, and I completed the 60s and 70s and 80. I studied 6-8 hours a day for a month.

BirdLaw818

I did a timed pt a day for two weeks and I saw a decline in my scores and it evened out at 161. I didn't do any PT with a full 5 sections. Only 4.

I also messed up time management on the test. They went too quick in between sections and I didn't have time to reset my watch. I did 2 sections without a solid time reference.

nessa.k13.0

What's your BR score? You can still get something out of those tests by increasing your understanding and performance on them. You could also assess your LG performance from your recollection of the Feb test. Drill the types of games that tripped you up. Something went really wrong if you were BRing at 161 and then scored 149. Were you so nervous it interfered with your test performance? Have you considered meditation to help with your concentration and focus?

BirdLaw818

@"nessa.k13.0" said:
What's your BR score? You can still get something out of those tests by increasing your understanding and performance on them. You could also assess your LG performance from your recollection of the Feb test. Drill the types of games that tripped you up. Something went really wrong if you were BRing at 161 and then scored 149. Were you so nervous it interfered with your test performance? Have you considered mediating to help with your concentration?

Sorry, i know you mean Blind Review but I dont know what it means. and I got a 157. Which is still accounted for with the test day penalty thats usually talked about, but idk...there was one logic game I didnt know how to set up because it involved grouping and sequencing so i brute forced some of those questions, and then there was a Misc game which I hadnt prepared for at all.

The logical reasoning was my easiest (or at least I thought lol) and I never finish fully but I did this time on both sections and felt good about it! Then the RC just completely screwed me with the bees. The first RC was experimental and I breezed through it and finished on time but the actual one wasn't really harder but took more time for some reason.

i think it came down to managing my time. Part of it was spazzing out every now and then and some of it was not having my watch reset in time to properly pace myself.

i think a lot of it was just not ever having taken the test in FULL testing conditions and now that I know the feeling and what to expect I think i might spazz less lol.

Alex

@avetyans said:
GPA is a 3.26, Feb LSAT came in at 157, 4 points below my PT... was my first take.
UCI accepts until JUNE lsat but at that point, i need an extremely good score to be competitive to be accepted before school starts lol.

So, should I apply with my 3.26 and 157 now and possibly get rejected and cant apply again this cycle?
Or do I wait until June and try to raise my score atleast 10 points. At that point, idk if 167 would be competitive for apply after june...

so idk. appreciate any ideas. thanks!

I would have to say to wait and retake until the LSAT is up. Sit out the cycle if you have to. Getting into a great school can literally change your life forever ... So what's another year.

Good luck!

nessa.k13.0

Check out these lesson excerpts https://7sage.com/the-blind-review-how-to-correctly-prep-for-lsat-part-1/ I believe they are still free (there are 9 of them) read through them and take full practice tests in the way outlined in the lessons. BRing properly will help increase your understanding of the LSAT.