Is It Too Late To Raise My Score?

I think the question that I most frequently get asked is " Do you think I have enough time to raise my score? While it may seem somewhat smarmy, the answer to this is an emphatic "who knows?!" I know, that's not all that incredibly helpful or encouraging, but the truth is, the LSAT is NOT a one-size-fits all test.

You have to be self-aware. The best way to judge for yourself whether you can raise your score is to conduct an HONEST appraisal of your strengths and weaknesses. To maximize your success on the LSAT, you need to have two core abilites. First, you need to be able to read at a high level. This doesn't mean you have to be the second coming of Tolstoy, but you should at least have a decent ability to not only read quality script, but more importantly, comprehend what you're reading. If you are the type that can get through that kind of material, but struggle to a point where you read exceptionally slow, you may want to consider buying yourself more time and investing some hours in elevating the level of your reading. If you can't read through the LSAT material and digest the majority of what you read in a somewhat quick manner, you are most likely going to run into problems. (We won't even discuss what your first semester of law school will feel like when you're struggling to get through Marbury v. Madison.)

Second, you need to have a decent level of common sense. So many students sit and do a section of logic games and get frustrated when the answer they didn't pick looks so obvious after looking it up. By its nature, the questions and answer will make sense. After all, it's not just a game, it's a LOGIC game. If you are the type of person that can easily sift through quantum physics calculations, but spend hours trying to jam a square peg through a round hole, chances are, the test isn't for you. On the other hand, if you do have some amount of common sense, that is really all you need to get through the exam. After all, no amount of subject matter studying outside of the LSAT questions will prepare you for the exam. That's the beauty in the LSAT. You don't need to know anything to get through it.

Assuming you are the typical law student hopeful, you are decently skilled in reading and have common sense, there is absolutely no reason you can't make drastic improvements on your base scores. The key is to identify where your pitfalls are. Is it timing? Work on developing strategies geared towards taking minutes off your time. (As the weeks go on, I'll try to offer suggestions for that.) Is it that you just can't get a certain section? Sink time and energy into that particular section and figure out what you're doing wrong. (A good reliable tutor can do wonders towards helping you get into shape.)

Whatever the reason is, assuming you meet the most minimal qualifications for the LSAT, there is absolutely no reason you can't make major strides towards improving your score by the next test date. Remember: It's not about studying, it's about studying effectively.