Retake a 170?

jndnk111

I took the June LSAT abroad so I only got the test results this morning. Scored a 170, which I'm pretty happy about, but I'm thinking of retaking in October anyway. I have a 3.5 GPA from a prestigious liberal arts college, and have worked abroad for 2.5 years at a MNC until I quit in April to study full time. My dream school is Columbia so I was going to retake no matter what, but then I started reading some posts about retake decisions elsewhere and began to have doubts. (170 is already a solid score, etc.)
I did about 51 PTs total and averaged around 171 overall with lowest at 164 and highest 176. On more recent ones I averaged around 172, which is where I'd like to be after the retake. Granted, I'm glad I pulled off a 170 and it's more or less how I've been doing, but I would also love to increase the score to compensate for my GPA.
Am I being unrealistic/too optimistic about this? Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

NYC12345

I personally do not think you should retake. Here's why. Your average was a 171, which means you performed as expected. In fact, you performed closer to your average than most test-takers. If your PT average was a 178, then I would suggest retaking. Furthermore, a 3.5 and a 172 does not put you in a good position to get into Columbia anyway. I'm just being honest here. With your stats you will probably get into Penn, UVA, Duke, Georgetown, Cornell, Michigan, and you have a slight shot at NYU ED.