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Related Discussions
Anyone taking the July LSAT?
VanessaL_12
Alum Member
I am only a 1/3 done with the CC at this point and am really concerned I won't be prepared for the June LSAT.
However, since this is the first year the July LSAT is being administered, and it is a non-disclosed test, I am also weary of taking my chances on a completely "experimental" test date. At the same time, I am unsure about the September LSAT cutting it too close to the early decision deadline for my top law school in November. This will also be my first time taking the LSAT.
I want to score really well for scholarships and I fully intend to apply this fall for SY 2019 (I went straight to my Masters after UG and graduated last spring and worked on a fellowship since. I am ready to move on in my career and go to law school so I can finally practice what I've been studying for).
Should I just go for June and retake in September if needed, or prepare longer and take my chances in July or September?
Looking forward to hearing your opinions!
Comments
Hi! I think it depends on your current PT score (diagnostic?) and your goal score.
Also, the July LSAT will be the same as other ones. It’s just that you won’t be able to see your mistakes and review. It’s not “experimental.” It’s just undisclosed.
Good luck!
Hi! I am also planning on taking July. I don't think there's any reason to worry, it should be just as reliable as any other administration. I think taking July is definitely smart if you aren't finished CCing yet (I'm not either).
Sounds like our paths are a bit similar. I also went K-Masters and am applying for fall 2019. I'm planning on July but also keeping September in mind as a backup. I don't want to rush it- I want to go in knowing I'll do really well.
@akistotle
Thank you! So I took my first ever diagnostic the summer before leaving for grad school and I got a 164 and (shamefully) didn't do any LSAT - related prep for the last 2 years I was there. I tried my hand at a diagnostic again since being back and got a stunning 10 point drop at 154. I don't know if grad school burned me out a bit but I'm now just trying to get back to that original range. My goal is to score in the top 160s to get in to the schools I'm aiming for but obviously praying to break 170s to get a decent scholarship offer so I can actually afford to go.
I suppose my concern with taking my first LSAT undisclosed is I wouldn't have the option to see where I went wrong and work on those in case I need to retake in September. But I do think that it's best to be prepared than to rush for June.
Exactly! I was thinking of September as a back up as well. I want to feel confident taking the test, and had initially decided on the July before starting the course ( but then I started having doubts once I went down a dark rabbit hole of forums endorsing the June-Sept. combo).
Also that's really amusing how similar our paths are, glad to know I'm not alone with this #twinning
Good luck, we got this!
@a97889 Good luck to you too! We'll crush it
It's definitely great to run into someone with a similar path to mine!
I personally say if you feel prepared in July, there's absolutely no reason not to go for it.
To this point, I think if you're as prepared as possible you a) will get a great score and won't have to worry about what went wrong and b) on the chance you have a bad test day, you'll at least be comfortable enough with the test to know where you went wrong.
At least that's my thinking in terms of goals for myself and justifying taking an undisclosed administration.
I'm currently planning to retake it in June (I took the February 2018 LSAT), but I'd be open to switching to July if I felt the extra time would be beneficial. Taking an undisclosed test doesn't seem so bad if you know you're as ready as you could possibly be. I definitely want to sit for one of the summer administrations so I can enjoy the later testing time.
.
How was your experience with the Feb LSAT? Does it being undisclosed affect your prep for June at all?
Hi! I'll be taking the LSAT in July 2018 to get ahead of the the admissions curve for the 2019 cycle! If you feel like you could benefit from the extra month of study time, then I say go for it. Worst case scenario is a September retake. You've got this
Good luck!
From my recollection, July administrations aren't disclosed, meaning that you won't be able to get your score breakdown. Unless you are averaging 3 points comfortably above your desired score, I wouldn't take the July exam. You won't get much feedback as to how you did, in case you need to retake again.
Fair advice, thank you! I really am torn between spending more time prepping or leaving the September as a back up open. I'm apprehensive about the undisclosed nature of the July LSAT, which I agree might be a source of frustration if I don't get the outcome I want.
Also, I'm considering early decision for this school because it's my dream school and I really don't know if I have a shot at it otherwise. They do offer full-ride scholarships for it / any outstanding applicant in general. Some forums had a consensus that these lucky recipients typically have a certain GPA and LSAT, and as I have the GPA, my goal is to get my LSAT score to meet that criteria as well.
It really hasn't because I know which section was my weakest in February (LG), and so I am certain that that's the section in which I need to improve the most. I think that it's possible to predict your performance once you're familiar with this test, to a certain degree. If you did well, you will leave the testing center feeling confident on test day most likely. Of course, there are the people who are pretty good at this test who may make a minor mistake or two and be dramatic and just assume that it destroyed their score when it probably didn't.
I wouldn’t recommend the July exam for the first time takers. Getting the breakdown of scores and having the copy of the exam are so crucial for retake. Given that July is undisclosed, not having that valuable info would stump preparations for retakes later on.
All else being equal, I’m sure a disclosed test is better than an undisclosed test because of the additional feedback you have in terms of what you got wrong and what you need to work on if re-taking.
However, in this case all else is not equal. As long as it’s not an undue financial or logistical burden, you almost certainly improve your chances at getting the highest possible score by taking both July and September as opposed to just September.
I had to take the exam in a foreign country, so I’ve taken 3 non-disclosed exams. The LSAT is so consistent that it really is just like taking another PT. As long as you’re using 7sage’s excellent analytics, you’ll know exactly what you need to work on for September if you don’t hit your goal in July.
I think we need to take the 7sage analytics with a grain of salt. it’s absolutely a great method to see how we do on practice exams; however, I also know that first time takers tend to perform a bit differently from the usual practice tests. I have taken the LSAT twice, once disclosed and once undisclosed. When I took the lsat for the first time, I missed questions that I don’t normally miss, and having that disclosed exam copy helped me to identify a weak area that I couldn’t catch by doing the practice exams.
Most people take the LSAT at least twice. June and July are only a month away, and I’m not sure what substantial gains could be made during that time period. If I were in OP’s shoes, I’d either take the June and use the material to really prime myself for the September retake, or just take the September one and November (which is still not late).
Also to note for is that July and September exams are less than two months apart. Having real gains in September retake, with no feedback on July, might be difficult.
I think, in an ideal world, when you take your LSAT officially you should be going in knowing that you're averaging 3-5 points above your goal or minimum goal-score (if there's a certain range you're happy with) so that regardless of any curve-balls or anxiety that occurs on test day you are confident that you will most likely get a score you are satisfied with. The fact that the test is not discosed ( I think) just means that you won't know exactly what you got wrong/score breakdown. Again, this shouldn't really be a deterrent if you're scoring consistently before you take the LSAT, and albiet any irregularities, you get the score you are satisified with.
Is there a July Study-BR group? June seems too early for me since I just started PTing ~2-3 weeks ago. Although September is an option, I really need to knock July out so I can find a job between LSAT and admission.
If theres is no study-BR group, will anyone be interested?
I think that some people who struggle with testing anxiety or who are thrown off by taking the exam at a different time are likely to underperform on the actual LSAT.
I was also annoyed by not knowing what I missed on my first exam.
But I think we are largely likely to miss the same types of questions on practice exams and the real test so I don't think that the feedback is very important. Not having it is more of a nuisance than a serious obstacle.
The timing does seem important though. You definitely want to have time to improve on weaknesses between takes.
Hi! If there isn't a July BR group, you have the option of joining the September BR group that is in the works. It was started by @keets993 and you can find the discussion in the forum. A set schedule hasn't been announced yet.
This is what I did, anyway
I'm signed up for the July test but may delay it to September.
Why not sign up for all three? In essence these are all just another practice test. Worst case scenario, you have to retake one or two times. This is perfectly normal, and I don't think a September score is too late by any means. Who knows, you could score really well in June, and use that experience to score even better in July or September.
But everyone is right, the July is no different than any other test. They probably do non-disclosed tests just so they can recycle some questions and give themselves a little break.
I'll be taking the July 2018 test as a first timer with the idea that I can retake in September if I'm not happy with my score.
I'm a non-traditional student and don't have the flexibility to go to any law school I want - there are basically two options for me: Stetson and Florida State. I need to score high enough on my LSAT to get a full/very large scholarship offer from Stetson in order to not have to move my family to Tallahassee...last year, Stetson students received 35 full/more than full grants and scholarships with the 75th percentile LSAT score being 157 and GPA 3.55 (mine is 3.82). For FSU it's 160/3.73 (with about 40 scholarships, though since it's a state school I'm far less concerned about getting a scholarship there). I just want to score somewhere in the 160s. My diagnostic (with zero exposure to anything LSAT) was 150.