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I am wondering whether I should withdraw from the December test or to go ahead and just take it. My pt scores are around 168 and with my gpa below the medians at HYS, I need a 172 at least. I am hoping maybe the adrenaline of test day will give me a 5 point boost at least. Tonight I was -7 on the two LR sections combined, -3 on LG and -3 on RC. On test day, can I get to -2 on LR combined and -1 on RC and LG? Or should I swallow my pride and keep plugging away till June? I was planning on applying next fall anyway so there is no particular rush. But I thought I could get the test done now with 172+ score and confidently approach next fall's cycle. What do you wise folk think?
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Early decision
What does ED stand for on mylsn?
I'm grateful for all your thoughtful comments. I've decided to withdraw from the December test and keep prepping till I can hit at least 175 in one go either in June or October of 2016. My gpa is between H's 25th and 50th percentiles and as alexandergreene93 points out, I probably have to exceed their 75th percentile lsat to be very competitive. I'm not a URM since I'm an international student. Thanks for your comments.
I need a 172
Says whom? What makes you think a 172 is going to cut it for HYS if your gpa is not perfect or close to perfect? Are you a URM? I think you should play around with mylsn and search for anecdotal evidence. http://mylsn.info/r/pre-law/admissions/search/
I'm in a similar position and I'm going to take in Dec. but my averages are slightly higher than yours and I must apply this cycle. Given that you're not applying this cycle and that you think that you need at least a 172, you should wait. :) That way if in June things still don't go as desired, you have October and December to fall back on.
If your GPA is below median for HYS that means you're pretty much below Yale's 25th, so your chances of getting in there with a below median LSAT are minuscule unless you're a URM, and even then it will be very tough. Furthermore, Yale looks down on multiple takes. They don't care if you get a 173 and a 178, they just don't want people who feel the need to take the LSAT twice.
As far as S and H are concerned, the former is a mostly a black box, but they will only care about your top score. H will be easier simply from a numbers perspective since their classes are roughly the size of S and Y combined.
But the biggest thing here is if you are applying for Fall 2017 there is no reason to take this test before June. Keep plugging away and get your PT scores up because you are not going in there and gaining 9 raw points, it's just not happening. It's not quite monkeys typing Shakespeare odds, but it's not something to bet your future on, especially when there is literally no reason to rush. Postpone now and get your head in the game to crush it in June, or next fall if necessary.
Also, adrenaline does not raise scores, it lowers them because it gives you false confidence rather than true confidence. You need to be relying on having put in the work in order to set yourself up for success rather than trying to luck into it. If you go in next Saturday, you're likely going to end up with a 165 and a bruised ego and that's going to negatively affect your outlook until June and it won't help you get where you want to be in the end. Don't put yourself in that position. If you haven't seen a 172 5-10 times then you have no business taking the test if you're marrying yourself to that number.
If you know you aren't applying until next cycle, I would wait until you are consistently scoring a couple points above your target score. This claim I am about to make is entirely unfounded, but I am willing to bet that most people on test day score a couple points below their practice average.
You'll substantially lower your chances at Yale or Stanford if you take it and score under 170. Harvard will pretty much just take your top score but Yale and Stanford tend to already be black boxes when it comes to admissions and getting a sub-170 score will only hurt your application compared to everyone else (unless you're URM).
I think it's worth it for the practice. You'll probably score at or somewhat below your current average. Or you could get your best score on test day - always possible. So it doesn't seem like there is much downside for you to take it in Dec.
Also it might be worth a little research to double check; I believe most top schools basically take your highest score and have abandoned averaging multiple scores, but I can't guarantee that is absolutely true.
I haven't taken it before. If adcoms at HYS are neutral then I might just take it.
You are close, but you probably won't score that 172 unless you're at least averaging around172... you need to often be hitting above that to expect it on test day.
Have you taken before? You could sit for December, see what happens, and plan a retake. Then you'll have the advantage of a first take under your belt, and may feel more prepared or less nervous when you retake. HYS will take your highest score anyway.