PSA: "10 point max improvement" theory

LSAT_Wrecker

Just a note (and a back-door brag). A year ago I laid down a 147 on a cold diagnostic. Fast forward to February 2018, I put a 159 on the board with my first "real" LSAT administration. Today, I finally scored my latest PT which I took last week at a 169 (timed, 5 section). That's a 22 point improvement over my cold diagnostic. I'm happy because that's the 75th LSAT percentile of my stretch school. I know I need to keep grinding to push it up more and then actually repeat that performance or better on test day in July and September.

You can learn the test. I am exhibit A. Just trust the process and do the work.

ebalde1234

good work - go ahead and humble brag congrats

btate87

That's awesome! Congrats!

JPJ July2021

Congrats! I don't know who made up that you can only improve ten points from your diagnostic but that's total bs. Like you said, do the work and you'll see the results.

Ohnoeshalpme

These are the type of stories that keep me motivated. Keep up the awesome work!

samantha.ashley92

So glad you posted this! And congrats! I've been feeling a little hopeless lately. I had a 155 diagnostic, and my LR drill (timed, used like a PT) score only bumped me up 7 questions... which is only 4 points. I'm hoping to improve my LR more (from -15 to -8) and then improve a lot on LG.

FoolProofFun

SWAG — hitting the 75th percentile of your stretch school. That is a beautiful concept that should probably be named after you.

The name LSAT Wrecker is well-deserved.

LCMama2017

That's great!! Keep up the good work!!

keets993

Ayyy congrats!! I absolutely abhor the "most people can only improve by 10 points" claim that's out there. 7sage out here providing counter examples

akistotle

Congrats!!

I thought this post contained a PSA question. lol

PearsonSpecterLittUp

If it helps, my diagnostic was 146, I scored a 166 in the Sept 2017 test, and will be re-taking this September to hopefully get 170+ SO IT IS DEFINITELY POSSIBLE TO IMPROVE WAY MORE THAN 10 POINTS Keep up the good work !!!

Seeking Perfection

Congratulations! It's always good to see another person prove the LSAT tests skills which are learnable.

If someone failed a math test we wouldn't tell them that they probably only have a maximum potential of getting a D. We would say it is going to take some hard work, but the skill is learnable. It's the same thing with a diagnostic in the 120's or 130's. It is just as bad an idea for those already doing pretty well too. We wouldn't tell someone who got an A- on a math test without studying that they don't need to study and have already done well enough to demonstrate they have potential. And someone who quickly gets to a high 160's score shouldn't be told not to keep striving.

At a law school I visited before my retake they asked me my numbers when talking about how competitive their admissions were. They were shocked I was retaking a good score because people in that range don't improve more than a point or two. In a world where your LSAT score matters quite a bit more than 4 years of undergrad and way more than the entire rest of your life story and it is a learnable test it is worth studying and improving no matter what score you have or at least till you are above the 75th of your goal schools (the @LSAT_Wrecker standard)!

keets993

@"Seeking Perfection" where were you when I was struggling in math and decided that it's just not my thing???

Seeking Perfection

@keets993 said:
@"Seeking Perfection" where were you when I was struggling in math and decided that it's just not my thing???

I was struggling with math too. It was infuriating, but people kept telling me it was learnable. And it was, but I also learned that I would prefer to spend my time learning some other learnable skill I liked bettter.

Habeas Porpoise

@LSAT_Wrecker Congrats, that's awesome!

I also started with a 147 on my diagnostic. Took my first real exam today so we'll see how that turns out at the end of the month!

@"Seeking Perfection" said:

@keets993 said:
@"Seeking Perfection" where were you when I was struggling in math and decided that it's just not my thing???

I was struggling with math too. It was infuriating, but people kept telling me it was learnable. And it was, but I also learned that I would prefer to spend my time learning some other learnable skill I liked bettter.

That was exactly my thought process for ditching my first major to pursue a major I was actively interested in.