I’m a senior in high school, going to college in the fall, and I just took the 2007 LSAT that’s hosted online, and I got a score of 153, raw score 66. I took it pretty much cold without looking at any of those “increase your LSAT score” websites and videos. Since I’m not in college yet, can I reasonably expect this score to increase with college and actual preparation, or should I assume that I won’t be able to improve on my score much? I did notice while taking the test that time was the biggest issue for me though, which is probably something I can work on.
Hmmn, not specifically related to your question and/or circumstance, but across the range of LSAT scores, the average increase for repeat test takers was about 2.5 points and approximately 70% of repeaters improved their score.
If you look at numbers from about 8-10 years ago,it appears that about 1/3 of people that retake the test improve by 5 points or more, roughly 1/5 improve by 7 or more points, and only 1/16 or so improve by 10 or more points.
what was your SAT/ACT score? (Strong test taking skills translate well into Grad/Professional school tests. The reverse is also true.)
btw: on Feb 11, you have a post stating that you are a Soph at BU…hmmmmm
Well, do you think a 7th grader’s SAT score can be improved by going to middle and high school and retaking the test in 11th grade?
As a point of reference, a score of 153 is correlated to about a 50% bar pass rate…i.e. your in trouble in making law your chosen profession.
SAT score is 1450/1600 - 2060/2400. @bluebayou Is that directed at me about BU? I’m definitely not a soph at BU, and I’ve never posted that. Also, doing some proportions, I have calculated that if I manage my time better and perform on average as well on each question, then my score would be a 157. I’m more concerned with how much undergrad can improve my score/critical and analytical thinking. I’ve heard people say that IQ tests are meant to stay constant regardless of age and experience, and I’m wondering if LSAT scores are similar. Also, does anyone know the best program to prep for the LSAT?
@boolaHI: A 153 unstudied doesn’t say anything about pass rate. I was a 158 without studying, 174 after studying. The LSAT is a learnable test and studying can make a big difference.
For some folks…that is not applicable for everyone.
^^exactly. Someone starting with a, say, 110 IQ could study for months and months and will never get close to 174.
@boolaHI: No kidding, that’s why I said the unstudied LSAT score “doesn’t say anything about pass rate.” There may be some variation with the final results, there may be none. At this point, there is no reason to think the unstudied LSAT score correlates with bar passage whatsoever.
Well, I think there are some inflection points of data that relate to the LSAT and bar passage rate. By way of example, according to statistics from the Law School Admission Council—the organization that administers the LSAT—scores higher than those in the 60th percentile correlate with a low risk of failing to eventually pass a bar exam. Scores ranking from the 60th to the 40th percentile, by contrast, correlate with a moderate but rapidly increasing risk of failure. Scores below the 40th percentile correlate with a high risk of failure, and scores below the 25th percentile correlate with an extreme risk of failure, to the point where it is quite unlikely that someone with an LSAT score below 145 will ever pass a bar exam.
@boolaHI: I have no doubt that final LSAT scores correlate with bar passage. I see no reason to think that an unstudied LSAT score would do the same.
True. I was just providing a marker in terms of scores on the low-end; that there are diminishing returns for a segment of folks who have lower scores.
The OP is not a soph at BU but he is looking at BU (and if he doesn’t get in at BU, he will go to Clark or some other school instead.)
However, there is little to no literature that uses the LSAT for measuring the educational effectiveness of college, even though it definitely is doable.
I don’t see how college itself could help an LSAT score, other than just with practice for test-taking and concentrating under stress.
Studying for the LSAT, however, can help significantly. I think that anyone should be able to increase a score pretty significantly.
I did much better percentile-wise on the LSAT than on the SAT–but I studied for the LSAT vs. I took the SAT cold, without any preparation whatsoever.
I think I’ve read there is a correlation between your SAT score and LSAT score. Did you do well on SAT, provided that you had time to do some prepping, not taking it cold.
of course there is a correlation. Great test takers are great test takers. It should be no surprise that HYP (2250 mean SAT; i.e., they select out poor test takers) have the highest average LSAT scores.