Law School Admissions w/ December LSAT Score?

VegMeg55

Hi you gorgeous souls,

I'm sorry to be posting about an LSAT test date that is so far away and I hope I don't offend anyone studying for June/October.
I started studying for the LSAT last summer (with PowerScorer nonetheless) and didn't buckle down with 7Sage until a few months ago. I'm almost finished with the Ultimate course and will take a diagnostic PT to see where I am but I would feel much better if I could go over the fundamentals again. My goal is to go over the LG bundle several times, go over the 7Sage course again with supplemental sections from the Trainer, drill with Cambridge packets, and then move on to PTing. My target is a 175+ but I have a long way to go before attaining that score. Ideally I want to take the October LSAT since it is much earlier in the admissions cycle, but I may have to postpone to December if my PT average is not on par with what I want. My biggest concern with taking the December LSAT is that my chance of getting acceptances will be drastically lowered since many LSs will have partially/mostly filled classes for the next year. Does anyone have insight into application competitiveness with a December test score?

A bit of personal information: I'm aiming for HYS. My UG GPA is a 3.97, I have solid LORs, and my resume is decent as well (I started a business at 19, wrote a lengthy honors thesis, and learned Arabic and Turkish). I don't want to take the LSAT before I'm 100% sure I will get the score I want/need, but I'm also afraid of getting waitlisted or rejected due to the lateness of my application submission. Any thoughts out there?

Thank you. You all are amazing!

-Meg

ddakjiking

You should be fine for HYS. Typically people recommend applying early for primarily scholarships as there is a larger pool of $$$ in the fall. But in the case of HYS, they only do financial aid so you applying in January will be fine. Good luck!

VegMeg55

That's a good point that I definitely didn't think about. Thank you @ddakjiking for replying so quickly and calming my nerves! I really, really appreciate it!

nicole.hopkins

@VegMeg55 You already know what you need to do ... get a 175+. If you can't do that in October, then don't take it in October. You'd do much worse to apply with a 170 (below the median for all 3?) early than to apply a bit later with a 181 ... like this guy:



I kid, I kid

...but you get my point

VegMeg55

@nicole.hopkins Definitely! I would have said the same thing to anyone else but my judgement is clouded when it comes to my own timeline. Also, love the meme! The only way I'm going to get through test day is by throwing back some ethanol. I want that 181 damn it!

Quick Silver

Better later with your higher score than earlier with less. That being said, not a bad idea to prep for Sept/Oct and then seeing where you are before deadline to change the date. It will force you to study earlier and stay disciplined over the summer. Just an idea

VegMeg55

@"Quick Silver" Totally agreed on prepping for October. That being said, how would I best space out my PTs? Re-doing the fundamentals will take me a bit of time, but for the October LSAT I'd be PTing 2x per week and for December I'd alternate between 1 and 2 PTs per week. I just don't want to nearly exhaust my fresh PTs in that space between October and December so I'm not sure how to study at maximum potential but not run out of material.

emli1000

@"Quick Silver" said:
Better later with your higher score than earlier with less. That being said, not a bad idea to prep for Sept/Oct and then seeing where you are before deadline to change the date.

I second this! Also, I know that some schools will let you submit your apps early before you take the LSAT they will just hold your app. until they receive your LSAT score. Not sure if that's common for HYS. But it wouldn't hurt to double check.

VegMeg55

@emli1000 Yes that is very true. I'll double check for HYS. Thank you!