<p>It’s not impossible to get a 180. It’s impossible to be so good that you can safely expect a 180 before you’ve taken the test. Obviously 180s occur every year.</p>
<p>Well if I can safely expect 170’s then it should be a matter of time before I can safely expect higher right? Well who knows, there are some people with only 179’s and 178’s/177’s that get into HLS so I might be ok in the end.</p>
<p>The LSAT’s upper few questions are always going to be so crazy that there’s an element of luck in them. I think there are some folks who are good enough to be confident about a 175. Beyond that they just have to get lucky on test day.</p>
<p>(The LSAT itself suggests that their standard deviation is about three points – so even if you are “really” a 180-level test-taker, you’d get a 174 or lower 5% of the time.)</p>
<p>Well according to my practice I am only a 169-173 range test taker so far so I’m in really deep trouble in that case. At least I’m still in high school and have a tiny bit more time otherwise I would panic.</p>
<p>That’s really not the problem. You have enough time to study up. The problem is that you seem to be intentionally doing things that will sabotage your overall application and counting on a 180 to make up for it.</p>
<p>1.) You can never guarantee a 180.
2.) Even that might not make up for it.</p>
<p>Such as what besides my age.</p>
<p>“If there is one person that can do it, it will be me. I am determined and will not relinquish this endeavor. I will make you guys have confidence in me and that confidence shall not be in vain.”</p>
<p>I do have confidence in you. I also agree with bluedevilmike, anything above 175 depends more on luck than on intelligence, preparation, etc. I know someone who used to believe that if he practiced so much (combined with his intelligence), he could acquire skills that would take him way beyond that required by getting 180 every time on PTs (which he almost achieved since he had 7 180’s out of the last 10 PTs he did). Therefore, when the time came for him to take the LSAT, he would be able to maximize his chance of getting 180 to a level high enough that expecting 180 would be reasonable. Guess what? He ended up with 175-178 (not 180), and his GPA was among top 1% at Harvard College.
I think it’s possible for you, but it would be wise to not put all the eggs in one basket. LSAT is unpredictable, so have some backup plan.</p>
<p>1.) Your age is a big freaking deal.
2.) Acceleration through college is also a big freaking deal.
3.) Not giving them enough on the transcript is also huge.</p>
<p>These are related (they all have similar solutions) but are separate problems.</p>
<p>4.) Law school apps will also include: (1) a short interview with Harvard, (2) essays, including an extra essay for Yale, (3) grades, which will include group projects, interacting with professors, etc.</p>
<p>Based on this thread, I think these are the things to worry about.</p>
<p>bluedevilmike, can you elaborate on number 3? What do you mean by not giving them enough on the transcript? Thanks.</p>
<p>If you only go to college for two years, and if you apply after the first of those years, law schools will only see one year’s worth of full-time college grades on your transcript. They’re going to be very wary.</p>
<p>Good point, I understand that concern so I will have to start signing up for classes at UCLA this march if that is the case to minimize that problem.</p>
<p>Given the current state of the legal economy, I have no idea why you would want to rush through to law school instead of taking your time in undergrad. Get the 4.0, get the 180, go to HYS, then profit. </p>
<p>To answer your original question, play around with this: <a href=“http://www.lawschoolpredictor.com/wp-content/uploads/Law-School-Predictor-Full-Time-Programs.htm[/url]”>http://www.lawschoolpredictor.com/wp-content/uploads/Law-School-Predictor-Full-Time-Programs.htm</a> </p>
<p>and dig around here: [LSN</a> :: Welcome to LawSchoolNumbers.com](<a href=“http://www.lawschoolnumbers.com%5DLSN”>http://www.lawschoolnumbers.com)</p>
<p>OP, I must admit my jaw dropped when I read you are a HS senior. I recognize your post is only about maximizing your LSAT score, which I can’t help you with since I last took it in 1978. I also respect your desire not to get into your personal life, since it’s your business and I can see you will keep your own counsel on that. But what I would like to explore is the end result of all this effort. Let’s assume you do get into HLS, or Yale, Stanford, or wherever. Law school is three years; what comes after that for you? How do you want to spend your life and career, and how will your plans for law school achieve those? What does being a lawyer (not just going to law school or a particular law school, the objective of your current plan) mean to you?</p>
<p>arbiter231, why would I NOT want to rush through undergrad given the state of the economy? Your post seems contradictory as you are suggesting I stay longer at an undergrad college and accumulate debt through fees and other living expenses while I could jump through hoops and come out with a JD and begin legal practice and make a future for myself. Please do explain. Maybe I’m misunderstanding. </p>
<p>merkur, I’m not too sure as to the significance of my existence after my said goals are accomplished on this earthly horizon, but I will admit that graduating from Yale or Harvard will open up many doors for me which is the main reason I have set my heart out for such an endeavor. </p>
<p>All in all I think the most beautiful quote that simplifies life itself down to pure existence is ironically from a Harvard professor himself, Barrett Wendell.</p>
<p>“To each and all of us, the final reality of life is the thought, which, with the endless surge of emotion, - now tempestuous, again almost imperceptible, makes up conscious existence.”</p>
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<p>Because of the current state of the legal economy, it’s not a good time to be a new law school grad right now. The profession is oversaturated and it’s affecting grads of top law schools too. </p>
<p>Also, don’t base your confidence too much on (anonymous) people on CC. Statements like “I will make you guys have confidence in me and that confidence shall not be in vain. But you guys must wait a bit more because I am not done with my major yet.” are kind of alarming in that it sounds like you’re dependent on a bunch of strangers as a support system. No one’s actually waiting. People will forget about this thread in a couple months. You’re describing consuming energy drinks while studying which is what people typically do days before the exam rather than years. Then you post a quote about existence. We’re talking about getting into law school here not the deep philosophical question of how to live. It’s like you’re trying too hard to impress people in this thread.</p>
<p>I’m sorry if this thread offends you. Feel free to leave at any time. I purposely tried many times to bring it back to just LSAT talk which obviously was what I was aiming at based on the thread title. It’s quite apparent that I was not attempting to brag, get support, or show off etc etc in this thread based on my continual attempts to get this topic back on track, but since that hasn’t worked so well I understand where you are coming from. </p>
<p>Also, if the law scene is looking grim even for Yale/Harvard Graduates then that is apocalyptic. Again, I’m not saying the answer to life and existence shall be answered with a JD from the top 2 law schools in the world, but I am not concerned about my profession if I come out with a Yale/Harvard degree. If I still can’t find a job and I must clean tables at a local restaurant to make ends meet after my graduation from HLS then hey, that’s a funny story to tell.</p>
<p>Yes, quite lovely about consciousness and existence. But is “open many doors for me” the best articulation of your objective? Do you want to be a lawyer, or do you just see a J.D. from a top school as some ultimate credential/resume builder?</p>
<p>Look, if you have a burning passion for the law- enough so you are actually willing to spend Saturday night downing energy drinks and taking old LSAT’s- that’s fine. But what I read is the notion that getting a perfect LSAT will get you into HLS or some equivalent. Then what? With due respect, I have to question the maturity of your plan, as well as the practicality. Waiting tables after paying $200,000 for a law degree is not just a funny story. At your age, you cannot truly grasp what $200,000 is, and the impact it can have on your life, especially if it is debt. No one- NO ONE- has the life experience at 16 or 18 to make such far-reaching life decisions. You can’t build a brick wall starting from the top; you have to build up from the bottom one brick at a time, each course supporting the ones above. There are no short cuts, which I sense you are hoping for.</p>
<p>There will be nothing more from me. Good luck in whatever you decide.</p>
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<p>Maturity? After reading this thread, I think he’s either a ■■■■■ or an aspie with no friends.</p>
<p>I don’t think the CC GPA will protect you if you slip up in upper level courses at UCLA/Cal</p>
<p>first off your graduation GPA resets so none of those A’s will matter (I know it affects the culmulitive GPA that Law School admissions use) when applying for jobs if you decide to take a few years off. Also admissions will probably only focus on your coursework at the bigger school so you dont want to slouch off there</p>
<p>But in all honesty you sound like a prodigy logician who is destined for admittance into Harvard/Yale/Stanford. My advice to you is to enjoy life and dont spend the next 4 years on one test</p>
<p>Also, I agree with the consensus on this board. You can get into a YSH but you need to slow down. There comes a time when young age is going to stop being impressive and only hurt you. It is hard to picture a top 3 law school accepting a kid who is one year removed from being a teenager</p>