Applying for Fall of 2022 Cycle

JessicaLeigh

So after a realization of mine, I've realized that it just simply won't be feasible for me to apply to law school for the Fall 2021 cycle. This exam has been such a challenge for me, and after 6 months I have seen little to no improvement in my score, scoring from 147-149 with little to no improvement and barely breaking 150. I have had 14 hours of private tutoring, read "The LSAT Trainer" in full taking notes, and have taken about 15 PT's so far. I feel that I have made progress, because I do of course recognize the patterns of the questions and the material overall at this point, but I just get so thrown off by the timed conditions and don't perform nearly as well as I would with more time. I feel like the progress that I have made is all in my head and is not reflecting my score which is frustrating. This exam has really humbled me in a sense and had me question my own capabilities. I did take the November LSAT Flex but I truthfully do not even want to see my score. I don't want to settle with an application that I am not happy with. Also not to mention but this exam has consumed me to the point that I was unable to focus on any other part of my application anyway, so i know it is for the best to wait. Can anyone else relate or has anyone else experienced this? Let me know in the comments, thanks!

Law and Yoda

Aside from taking the Nov Flex (I haven’t taken an administered exam yet) I 100% relate to this post. I started studying in 2019 and told myself I’ll take the exam after 3 months (since that was the timeline everyone said was sufficient) and found myself absolutely unprepared. I hadn’t even gotten through half the core curriculum at that point. As much as I wanted to apply to that cycle I told myself it’s better to delay than to apply with a score I’m not happy about. Much like you, I started with a 144, read the LSAT trainer, wrapped up the core curriculum, took my first PT 6 months after studying and bumped up to a 156. Now one year later, I delayed another cycle because I’m just reaching my peak. You’re certainly not alone in the sense of delaying a cycle and feeling like you’re making slow progress. Remember, strive for progress not perfection.

karko2525

I agree with @"Law and Yoda" !! I did not even consider law school until my senior year of college and thought I would be able to study for the summer after graduation and apply immediately that following fall, but boy was I wrong lol I think when people first dive into the world of the LSAT, it's easy to get caught up in these "conventional" timelines that are advertised on a ton of LSAT prep courses. It's true that for a good amount of people, 3-6 months is enough to score high on the LSAT... but for a lot of people, 6 months to a year and more is required to achieve their optimal score. There's no set improvement or LSAT journey for everyone. I think it's important to remember that everyone absorbs and applies the material at their own pace. Don't be too hard on yourself for taking more time to study. It took me a little over a year to really see the improvement I wanted and even now, I am not where I know I could be. The only difference is I just can't put off law school anymore for my specific timeline so I will be going with what I have.. But I say all that to let you know that improvement is very much possible. I was told in the beginning of my LSAT journey that I would never reach the score I want (20 + increase), but here I am scoring higher than I thought was ever possible for myself. So just keep grinding and you'll get to where you need to be. Best of luck!

Meg_5280

I felt like I was the one writing this post! This is so relatable to me. I decided to go to law school in the summer after trying to figure out what I wanted to do once I graduated. My degree is in special education and I’ve always wanted to help people with disabilities outside of the education sector. So I took a huge chance on myself and started studying for the October LSAT in July (lol). I failed miserably in my opinion (149), but decided to go for it again in Jan. However, i work full time and noticed I was really slacking in my study group and was not performing well on PTs and I was not getting through the 7Sage material. My brain was just blocked and I had no direction or schedule.

I live with ADHD and chronic pain that honestly renders me so useless sometimes, especially when I’m exhausted from work and when I’m experiencing a lot of pain. With all that in mind, and cracking under the pressure, I decided to move my test to February (i might push it further) and request accommodations. I made the decision that I am just not ready for law school (especially the 1st year!) with all the issues I’m having during this pandemic/studying, not to mention I’d have to pack up and move somewhere by August. After making the decision to wait, I felt like I could finally breathe! The LSAT was making me resent my own intellect and focus on my “can’ts “ rather than my “yet’s”. If you are feeling this way at all it is best to do what is best for yourself. A piece of advice to leave with anyone reading this is try not to get to the point where you’re hating the LSAT. The LSAT is not doing this to you, YOU are choosing to do the LSAT much love you guys.