Applying Early v. Retaking the LSAT

September is here! That means for the most part law school applications are open!

If you’ve been following my blog, you know that I consistently stress that applying early is one of the best things that you can do for yourself in the application process. Applying early in a rolling application cycle can sometimes mean better opportunities for scholarships. If you’re below the median of a particular school, applying early can also sometimes give your application more consideration than it would otherwise in December/January. At the end of the day, however, you should apply when you are most ready to apply. A strong applicant is a strong applicant.

So what do you do if you’re weighing the decision of applying early with retaking the LSAT another time to increase your score?

Factors to Consider:

Your Timeline for Retaking

Oftentimes, there is not enough time for you to get your score back and register for the very next test so some advanced planning is required. For example, you won’t be able to register for the July test if you want to get your June test scores back. However, you will have time to register for the August or October test.

If you took your first test in June, you should feel confident retaking the LSAT in August or October and know that your timing for law school applications will not be significantly impacted. The October LSAT occurs at the beginning of the month. You will normally get your scores back during October and can submit around the end of the month or the beginning of November.

If, however, your first LSAT sitting is in October you may want to preemptively register for the November test as well. This way, you will be able to retake in November in the event that the October testing does not go as planned. With LSAC’s new Score Preview option — you will be able to see your score and have six (6) days to decide whether you would like your score to be kept as part of your LSAC transcript and law school report or cancel your score.

You always want to apply with your strongest application, so if you are certain that you can get a higher score on a subsequent testing date then you should highly consider that. This analysis becomes crucial if you are considering retaking a November exam in January or February, for example - as at this point you will be toward the end of the application cycle and may run into some deadlines. Retaking in February can still be the best strategy if you are certain that you can increase your score by 4+ points. However, I advise you to really be honest with yourself about your study plan and habits. What are you doing to do between your first test and your retest to ensure that your score will increase? Will you hire a tutor or dedicate more time to self-study? What went wrong on your first test? Did it go as expected? Were there any unintended distractions or unexpected testing anxiety? Did you take enough practice tests prior to your testing so that you had a good idea of your predicted score range?

These are all the questions you should consider before choosing to delay your application for a possible retake. It is not a good idea to delay your application to retest if you are just hoping you’ll score better without any sort of action plan to do so. You could find yourself in the position of having the same (or lower) score and a few months later in the cycle. If you don’t believe that you can increase your score and you are looking at a possible February (or later) retake, it may be time to have a conversation about your law school goals and timing. For many applying to more regional law schools, they should continue applying as normal. However, if you are set on attending a T14 law school and you find yourself in this situation, you might ask yourself if it is worth it to wait, dedicate the necessary time that you need to really study, and be ready to apply in September of the next cycle.

Schools Differ on Timing

There isn’t an advantage at every school to apply early. Applying early matters much more if you are applying to the T14 law schools than if you are applying to schools lower down the rankings (see our blog post next month on how there is more to choosing a law school than rankings!). Last year, Powerscore Blog did an analysis of the admission boost for applying early vs. increasing your LSAT score for T14 schools.

To note, however, at Yale Law School you have no advantage if you apply before you are ready. Yale has a unique file reading process that involves faculty readers. This process standardizes the time when Yale will read your application, so there really is no benefit to applying early.

Additionally, Yale (and many other schools) will not hold your application for late materials. If you apply but are planning to retake the LSAT, Yale and other schools will not hold your application for that score and therefore your application may be read without the updated score. This lower score could cause you to be prematurely denied. You want to put your best foot forward when you do hit submit on your applications.

On the flip side, some schools will hold your applications and not read your file if you indicate that you plan to sit for a future exam. In that case, you will almost negate all benefits of applying early because your file will not be treated as complete until your updated score arrives.

It is best to contact the schools you are applying to and ask how they treat future LSAT score dates to understand the best strategy for you.

Merit Scholarships

Some schools give a combination of need-based aid and merit-based aid (some schools give only need-based aid, however). Some schools will give merit-aid at the same time that they give admission, some schools, however, make merit-aid scholarship determination at a later date (even maybe February/March).

It is true that at some schools applying earlier can give you more consideration for merit aid, however, it is certainly true that a higher LSAT score can increase your chances of getting merit-aid. Similar to my advice above about timing, if you know that you can get a higher score, that point increase (even 1-3 points) could be the difference in thousands of dollars in merit aid. In order to make this type of decision, however, you want to look at historical and comparative data of scholarship amounts of other students with a similar profile. Additionally, you want to inquire into how each of your schools decides merit aid, timing, and factors. Not all scholarships are based on LSAT scores. Some are based on essays, letters of recommendation, certain professional or community service experience, etc.

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Ultimately - there is no bright-line rule on whether it is better to apply early with the LSAT score you have or retake your LSAT and delay your application. There are many factors including your personal academic and score profile, the schools you are applying to, and the financial policies and considerations of those schools.

If you want to discuss your specific circumstances, I would love to help you think through these issues. I offer one-hour sessions where we can strategize and come up with a game plan for your applications this fall. If you’re looking for guidance on the entire application, I would love to become part of your team to make your law school dreams a reality. Don’t hesitate to contact me!

As always, I am available to answer your questions and share application tips in my (free) private Facebook Group as well as on Instagram @smontgomeryconsulting.

To hear more on this topic and my own personal take and experiences on timing, be sure to check out my YouTube Channel this week!