Starting with a 138

[AMB22]

Well, I think the problem is that he can't put it off a year. If he doesn't take in June he can't apply for the extension and would get a branch assignment and would ahve to start his 4 year military committment which without a law degree he couldn't do JAG. The extension allows him to go to law school and continue his  education and then use it in the JAG for his military committment rather than just take a standard officer's position.

I'll check with him about if its is possible to take in Oct, but the way I understand it, its June or nothing.

If this is really what he wants to do, I really suggest he wait and put it off a year.

The biggest regret that's voiced is that people wish they'd put more time into studying for the lsat, or had studied differently.  He's not going to realistically be able to prepare for the june test in a month.  If he took the test cold and scored in teh mid 150 or 160s, I'd say sure, take some more tests and give it a go.

But starting from a 138 says that he has a lot of work to do, especially if he doesn't really have any strenghts.

Also, 1 month is NOT enough time to get him familiar with the timing of the lsat, IMO.  Lots of people would do MUCH better on the test if the time limits were taken away.  You need to practice enough so you can finish a decent amount of the sections, adn I don't see that happening in a month.

It's his life, so he can take the gamble if he wants to.  But just make sure he's 100% aware that a score lower than 150 is going to make it VERY VERY hard to get into the school he wants.  Say he scores a 145.  If he decides to take again, he'd need to score a a 165 to average out to a 155 (some schools will take the higher score if you score that much higher, but not all do).  So doing poorly on the first test would be a severe handicap.  If he knows and understands this, and decides to try, then that's his decision.

But if I were him, I'd rather regret missing law school for 1 year instead of regretting a low score that would follow me around for 5 years.  (or is it 4?  Either way, it's a significant period of time)

[_EKC_]

I guess the only time it would make ANY sense to take a diagnostic cold is if you're dumb enough to consider taking the LSAT with only a month of prep.
 

excuse me? i went from a 155 to a 174 in only a month of prep. i resent being called dumb.

[Amanda H.]

Yeah he was looking into weekend courses but I think he said the only one he could find/get into was a week before the test. If he could take one like this weekend it would be worht it but a week before the test probably won't be any good.

i took a full test on august 31 - totally cold - and scored 155.

october lsat: 174.

study methods: powerscore weekend course, about 10 practice tests, lots of timed sections.

Let me just emphasize:  There is NO WAY IN HELL this guy should even consider taking in June.  He probably won't get into any law school, much less the one he wants, with a score below 150.  There's also no real downside to waiting until October, at least not in this context.

[thelawfool]

i went from a 153 cold to a 155.  studying didn't go so well.

did he spell his name right?  i think you get a 140 for doing that...

[_EKC_]

yeah there is. aren't you paying attention to the op? it's june or bust. it's his only chance to get it paid for.

[jacy85]

Then unfortunately, I have nothing other to say other than he really f*cked up, and did himself a huge disservice putting this off for so long.

I hope he does well.  I'm sure he has other qualities that will strengthen his application, but a low lsat score (read: 140s) is going to pretty much make him an autoreject at almost any school he applies to.

There's also no real downside to waiting until October, at least not in this context.

He's saying that he can't do JAG or get the time off to go to law school if he waits.  That could be a huge downside.  Although, not waiting could mean not getting into law school anyway, so you're sort of damned if you do, damned if you don't here.

[Amanda H.]

I guess the only time it would make ANY sense to take a diagnostic cold is if you're dumb enough to consider taking the LSAT with only a month of prep.
 

excuse me? i went from a 155 to a 174 in only a month of prep. i resent being called dumb.

Let me clarify.  You're not dumb, but your approach wasn't the best.  You happened to be very gifted, and very lucky, and I'm happy for you.   

But most people who only give themselves a month to prep probably aren't exercising very good judgment.  The test is obviously very important, and most people need significantly more time than that to really max out.

[AMB22]

Ok, I think we can stop the bickering. I pretty much understand he should have been studying sooner and that its his own fault for waiting....I'm just trying to gather how screwed he is and if its worth putting in both of our time to get him as ready as he can be or if its a complete lost cause. I think I'm going to see how well he does on the next test and if hes making consistent improvement stick with it but if hes not improving I'll just tell him its not feasible to get the 155 or so he'll need.

[Amanda H.]

Ok, I think we can stop the bickering. I pretty much understand he should have been studying sooner and that its his own fault for waiting....I'm just trying to gather how screwed he is and if its worth putting in both of our time to get him as ready as he can be or if its a complete lost cause. I think I'm going to see how well he does on the next test and if hes making consistent improvement stick with it but if hes not improving I'll just tell him its not feasible to get the 155 or so he'll need.

Why wouldn't he wait until October?  That will at least give him a chance to do the best he can (which might be pretty good, after all). 

Or is he only willing to expend 4 weeks of effort on the test?


EDIT:  Okay, missed the other post you made.

Hope he can take in October.  If not, I guess he might as well bust his ass and do the best he can now.  Maybe an early weekend course, then a ton of practice exams.

[_EKC_]

actually, considering the situation, it was pretty thoughtful. i decided 8/31 that i was going to apply to law school. i signed up for the lsat immediately, knowing that if i wasn't comfortable with my score walking out of the test, i could cancel and retake in december with more prep, but without the early application advantage. because i scored higher than i originally expected, i decided to wait an additional year in order to minimize the effect of my low gpa and gain more work/volunteer experience.

unfortunately, all this guy can do is study hard without getting burned out, and do his best. if i remember correctly, ambs22 had a high score and should be an asset to his friend. just make sure he's studying the right stuff when he studies - lrb/lgb - and is taking timed sections often with full length timed tests with the practice section included on a regular basis. i did 2-3 per week, on the weekends for the most part. he'll only be out the time and $$ if he isn't scoring well enough by the june date.