A Means to an End

Comments

• bSM45LSAT Member

  July 2015 522 karma

  I'm not taking my test til October, but I've been browsing 7Sage and TLS and I find it insane that some people are scoring high 160s or even 162+ and aren't happy. But if its lower than what you're capable of, then I understand and wouldn't consider you going crazy or obsessing with the LSAT.
  
  If someone's goal is to hit 170+, and they get 160s then I can see why its a disappointment. To put it into perspective my goal is just to get 160+, but if I got 150s then I would be devastated knowing that's not my full potential.
  
  So I think you have a reason to be upset, but I wouldn't worry about it too much, just give it another shot in October .
• brna0714 Alum Inactive ⭐

  July 2015 1489 karma

  Cool. I totally agree with you, @bSM45LSAT. Everybody has their own goals and I recognize that.
  
  I guess I'm just trying to figure out whether this goal I've set is a positive or if it just adds undue stress to the situation. The 170+ goal is definitely self-imposed.
• blah170blah Alum Inactive ⭐

  July 2015 3545 karma

  @brna0714 I should have read your thread first before I posted my discussion, which deals with the "philosophical" component behind why we both tanked on the LSAT. TL;DR it's our mental state and we blew the test out of proportion (aka as something our dreams are riding on, as something that is constantly trying to derail us). Please add to the discussion either there or here because I'd love to know if we had similar experiences.
• brna0714 Alum Inactive ⭐

  July 2015 1489 karma

  @blah170blah I agree with you to a point. Everything points to a nerve issue and a situation similar to the one you described, I built the test up in my head and then got nervous and messed up the first section. The only way I think my experience my have been different was in that I didn't necessarily feel nervous at the time. Interesting to think about for sure. The LSAT sort of becomes this larger than life concept but it's really just a test rewired to gain entrance into law school.
• Pacifico Alum Inactive ⭐

  July 2015 8021 karma

  As you said, it's a means to an end. For me, my GPA is so terrible that I need a 170+ for my target schools, and a 167+ for my safety school. I chose my safety because I'd be perfectly happy there (great weather/great faculty/new law school/family nearby), so even though I am really gunning for a 170+, at the end of the day I just want to go to law school.
  
  It sounds like you feel the same way, so I would probably retake if I were you just to shore up your chances at your target school, but if you get a 169 I would just be confident that you'll reach your desired end when acceptances come back. And in the end, once you're in law school, not many people will care what your LSAT score was (not anyone that matters anyways), and that will only become more true as you become a lawyer. You know what you really want, so don't get caught up in the score once it can do what you need it to do.
• 1 Like

  Dr. Yamata Member Inactive ⭐

  July 2015 578 karma

  Yeah I think a lot of people dive into this like "oh man I'm gonna get that 180 I'm gonna get in everywhere and get all these scholarships and I'm the best and I can do it. That's a great attitude, but it might not be realistic to materialize. This is a very hard test, it's not designed for everyone to just waltz in and nail it. I was avging 170s on my last PTs.. I knew I would probably dip a little below that, but I went in and tried to get as high as I could.. came out with a 165, which was extremely predictable. (I thought I did way worse)
  
  My decision now is whether I should try again and attempt to go to UT (whose median is around 167) which would require another 2-3 months of prep, stress, time, effort, etc. and where I'd probably not get a lot of scholarship money because I'd be on the lower end of the GPA / LSAT scale, AND where I'd be required to attend law school full time without any income or health insurance.
  
  OR
  
  Be happy with my 165, apply at UHouston, probably get an average award pkg, and go part time where I can also make a regular working salary of like 40-50k, and not be knee deep in dept by the time I get out.
  
  Of course UT is like the "harvard of the south" but when I really consider all factors, is it really wise to put all my eggs in that basket? Bar passage rate from Houston is very high. The price is reasonable. The area is nice. It all just kind of "makes sense" whereas striving for this ideal of some affluent school really doesn't.
  
  So that's great for all the 180 HYS people, but I think my 165 is exactly where I need to be, exactly what I wanted out of my prep, and perfectly acceptable for my target school (UH 75th percentile is like 163) and so.. I may hang up my pencil sharpeners and just call this one a day! It's been a wonderful experience, and I'm very satisfied with the discipline I was able to conjure up and the skills I learned while doing it like critical reading and logical reasoning.
  
  
• nicole.hopkins Inactive Sage Inactive ⭐

  July 2015 7965 karma

  @brna0714 said:
  My question- has anyone else become obsessed with the LSAT itself and lost sight of the fact that it's a means to an end?
  

  I think of it as an end in itself, but from a bit of a different perspective. I enjoy the LSAT; it's my favorite hobby, and something I want to do even after I've taken the test (probably tutoring would be a good excuse to play LSAT all the time).
• c.janson35 Free Trial Inactive Sage Inactive ⭐

  July 2015 2398 karma

  I have a similar test day experience as you, and this is how I think of it: Everyone goes into the LSAT with 3 bullets. Some people kill the test on their first shot, and others need one or two more. What matters most, though, is not on which attempt you kill the test, but that you keep on shooting. My first time taking the test was September 14, and I fooled myself into thinking I was prepared. I canceled my score and looked ahead to December. In the intervening weeks, I took 30 preptests--give or take a few. Over the course of these tests my average was a 176, and the range was from a 172 to a 180. I went into December feeling maximally confident, excited even to prove to myself that I could do this. And then it all fell apart on games.
  
  First game, I went through 3 or 4 of the questions just to realize that something was wrong, the answers weren't falling into place like they normally did. Going back to the rules I saw that I read the word "before" as the word "after" and had to start the game all over again. The pressure was on, I wasted close to 5 minutes of test time, and then I got to game 2 and did it all over again. Twice I had made a careless reading error that affected my diagrams and all I could think about was that my score was ruined. I skipped the game entirely, raced through games 3 and 4, and returned to game 2 with 3 minutes left hoping to salvage what I could. Ultimately, my mistakes here did me in and I got a 169.
  
  Good news is that I have one bullet left! I recognize 169 is a good score, but still quite a bit lower than by average so I'm retaking the test in October and plan to kill it then once and for all. You asked if anyone has lost sight of the fact that the test is just a means to an end, and you can definitely put me in that camp. But it's also a kind of end in and of itself, too! My favorite writer today, Ta-Nehisi Coates, wrote this about his struggles learning French: "To "have it," I must manage my emotional health. Part of that long-term management—beyond French—is giving myself an opportunity to get better at difficult things. There is absolutely nothing in this world like the feeling of sucking at something and then improving at it. Everyone should do it every ten years or so."
  
  The LSAT has afforded me that opportunity, and its been (weirdly) fun working at it and improving. Maybe thats why that 170+ score is so important, to you, to me, and to a whole lot of other 7sagers out there. My two-cents: take the test again! You said it yourself... many people would take a 164 and run. You acknowledge that you've already achieved a great score, so there's nothing to lose and everything to gain by retaking. Whatever happens, take solace in the fact that you've given yourself an opportunity to get better at difficult things.
  
  Good luck!
• visualcreed Member Inactive ⭐

  July 2015 326 karma

  I didn't do my best on the June test, I got a 161. But its a pretty decent score for deciding to be a lawyer a few months ago. During the test I was a bit ill and it was in the middle of a military exercise where I couldn't focus. If I took it again I'm almost 100% sure I could do better. I won't though. I have specific goals and plans. There is only one school I want to go to and thats the local school. It's not the top school but people who go there beat out HYS students for jobs in our local market. I have a nagging issue called pride which is making me want to take it again and actually be serious this time but it really is a means to and end and I can move to the next step with my score.
  
  Like I always say, its really up to your long term goals. If you're going to HYS or you need that big scholarship or whatever, then get that great score but keep in mind this is just a test to get you in the door, you haven't even begun the journey yet.
• Quick Silver Alum Inactive Sage

  July 2015 1049 karma

  @brna0714 I can relate to what you're asking. I think it's okay to get "obsessed" with the LSAT - provided it's healthy and you don't lose sight of what's important. If you wanna retake for scholarship opps or even just to know you hit the 170 mark then go ahead.
  
  Just don't let it get in the way of what's important - the people you love and you're real dreams.
• hrjones44 Alum Member

  July 2015 323 karma

  i would metaphorically murder someone for a 164! so be happy! and if you're not done, don't be!
• brna0714 Alum Inactive ⭐

  July 2015 1489 karma

  I appreciate each and every piece of advice offered here. Thank you very much. Onward and upward!