Judy went from a 161 to a 171 and got into Columbia Law
A note from Steve: Judy took the LSAT when it still had Logic Games. LSAC dropped that section in August 2024, so skip those parts. The rest still works on today's test, which is all Logical Reasoning and Reading Comprehension.
Student story
- Official scores: 161, then 168, then 171 (first attempt cancelled)
- Timeline: About 16 months from first official test to final score
- Law school: Columbia Law School
- Program: LSAT Unplugged course, coaching, and live classes
In her words
It wasn't until I got deeper into the Socratic Review Method that I finally understood why I was getting questions wrong.
Judy
The moment I realized that, I was able to bring myself back into a calm mode and finally get that 171.
Judy
It's not only about scores. It's also about what you've been through and what you want to change in the world.
Judy
What actually moved her score
I've been coaching the LSAT since 2005, and Judy's path is the one most retakers are actually on: a decent score, a plateau, and a long grind to break it. Her 10 points took 16 months. Three things ended the plateau.
She reviewed every answer choice, not only the wrong ones. That's the core of the Socratic Review Method, and it's how she found the specific traps she kept falling for.
She learned to notice panic mid-section and reset. A hard section used to cost her the next one. By the 171 it didn't.
She talked her reasoning out loud to another student. If you can't explain why an answer is right, you don't know it yet.
Individual results vary. Score increases depend on starting point, study time, and effort.
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Full interview transcript
Recorded February 2021.
Steve: Judy, thanks so much for joining me today. I'm really excited to have this chat and catch up on what you've been up to over the past several months. I want to go back to the very beginning of your LSAT prep journey. Do you want to share where you were before we began working together?
Judy: Before working with you, I'd been studying on my own for almost a full year. From the moment I took my first real exam to the moment I got the score I wanted, it took about 16 months in total, if not more. My score went from a cancellation, then 161, then 168, and finally 171. I've been through a long journey.
Steve: That is a long journey. 16 months, that's nearly a year and a half, and you were at it for quite a while before we even met and started working together. Where would you roughly estimate you were, score-wise, at that point?
Judy: If I had to estimate the range I'd be in, I'd say I wouldn't be above 160. At the time I couldn't get a hang of Logic Games. I was quite lost. I didn't really get it.
Steve: Gotcha, so maybe max 160, somewhere in that range. What led you to reach out to me?
Judy: I just felt like I wasn't in control of what I could do, especially with how much disparity there was between my real test scores and my practice test scores. I didn't know what to do. I was reading experiences shared by others online and randomly changing my strategy from time to time, and it felt like it was going nowhere. Then I was reading your website and saw you wrote about the exact struggles I was having, and that's what led me to reach out to you for more structured, professional advice.
Steve: I'm very glad that you did. We've had a long journey together since then. It sounds like you had a lot of fluctuations over that year working on your own, trying different things: one day get a 161, one day get above 170, then drop back down again, not really having any rhyme or reason as to why. That kind of chaos can be really confusing. I'm certainly glad you reached out. We got to work together, and you joined the course as well. Can I hear more about how your prep changed once we started working together and you joined the course?
Judy: I'd say the biggest thing is definitely the Socratic Review Method. I was doing practice test after practice test, but at the time I was only looking at the questions I got wrong and thinking, okay, I understand it now, I should be fine. Then next time I'd get the same questions wrong. I was doing the same thing over and over and expecting something to change. It wasn't until I got deeper into the Socratic Review Method that you talk about that I finally understood why I was getting questions wrong. I was analyzing the answer choices themselves, what trapped me, and what my habits were. I think what was most important in stabilizing my score range and increasing my sense of being in control during the actual exam was adjusting my habits. By the time I took my final exam, I had a better understanding of what I should do and what I should avoid doing.
That led me to another point that was crucial during my prep journey: practicing mindfulness. That's also something I learned from talking with you. When I took the exam where I got 161, I got a surprisingly hard Logic Games section first, and it threw me off. I couldn't focus for the rest of the exam. Practicing mindfulness helped me recognize when I was in anxiety, when I was in a chaotic mind, and that realization would calm me down. Fortunately, I encountered the same kind of surprise during the exam where I got 171. I had difficulties during Logic Games again, but I realized I was anxious, I realized I was losing my mind, and the moment I realized that, I was able to bring myself back into a calm mode. I think that really helped me get back to gear and finally get that 171.
Steve: Mindfulness is so important. This is a stressful exam with high stakes, and the adrenaline going into the real thing, people experience all sorts of things: sweaty palms, nerves, heart racing, having to go to the bathroom a lot. These are real things, I mention it because it's real. When I get nervous, these things happen to me too. In a way, you have to prepare for and expect that those symptoms of nerves are going to happen. The question is how you handle them and maintain the focus to check yourself. I'm glad you implemented that and were able to execute it on test day, when it really mattered.
Judy: It mattered a lot.
Steve: I'm wondering if you could share more about how the Socratic Review Method translated for you on test day, in terms of navigating some of those difficult questions.
Judy: I think the key thing with the Socratic Review Method is pushing yourself to be as clear as possible about the specific questions, the logic behind them, and the intentions of the test makers. Initially, when I looked at questions, I'd just look at the explanations, and if the logic made sense to me, I thought I understood the question. But I wouldn't look into each answer choice, even the ones I didn't select, and ask myself why exactly I thought this one was wrong and why exactly I thought this one was right. It's this exchange with yourself, always pushing yourself to understand as much as possible, that helped me understand the intentions of the test makers much better. I started to notice traps in the answer choices and the kind of wording or tricks the test makers used that could confuse me, and that let me adjust my habits to be more mindful of those traps.
Steve: That's exactly what you need to be able to do.
Judy: And I think the Socratic Review Method can be done individually, but it might even work better when you work with a friend. You translate it into a seminar setting and ask each other why exactly you think this is wrong or right, and pushing yourself to verbalize what you think also helps clarify your understanding.
Steve: That's something I think is so important, doing it with others, not only alone. You can do a lot of it alone, but forcing yourself to articulate it to someone else, have a dialogue, push back, and really clarify your understanding, and also catch anything you don't fully get or misinterpret. We do it in the course all the time, live in class. I know you made a friend in the course too, because not only did we work together one-on-one, you also showed up to class and took full advantage of the opportunities, made a friend there, and studied together.
Judy: Yes. I felt really fortunate to have met her. We had a lot in common, not only with outside prep but also with our interest in international affairs. I felt fortunate to have had the courage to reach out to her, and we became great friends. I want to take this opportunity to say to students in the community: when you think you want to reach out to somebody, don't hesitate, because that could be a greatly missed opportunity to meet a great friend during the prep and admissions journey.
Steve: I'm so glad you said that. You never know what possibilities could open up if you form that connection. Some things might not lead to anything, but you never know, it could lead to something incredible. You could make a lifelong friend because you share this deep common interest and you're going through something incredibly difficult together. And it's not just about the LSAT, there's the admissions process, school, and your career goals. It's entirely possible you both could end up at the same law school in the end.
Judy: That's not impossible. I also want to say that almost everyone I've met in the community has an interesting story, and everyone is very open when you reach out. Never hesitate to reach out.
Steve: I'm always encouraging folks in the chat to DM each other. If there's someone in class who made a comment that sparked your interest, reach out, maybe they could become a study partner. You can trade numbers or emails and connect with them outside of class. We have study groups every week, but that's not the only place to connect. People connect offline too. It's fantastic that the community has grown, and I'm glad you took advantage of that.
Now you've finished the LSAT, got your score up to 171, and you also got into a top 14 law school. What was that process like for you on the admissions side, and what are you looking forward to next?
Judy: The admissions process was greatly facilitated by the confidence that came from having a good score. It let me really think about what I was looking for in a school, since I now had the basis of the score and more choices. But another thing that was crucial during the admissions process was being really honest with my story and careful in crafting the personal statement and the diversity statement. The admissions process isn't only about scores, it's also about what you've been through and what you want to change in the world, and I think that's crucial to what makes an application stand out beyond the numbers. I truly believe schools look at that. So the personal statement, the diversity statement, and whatever other statements you see fit for representing your personality and your story are really helpful. I'd definitely suggest looking for help, either professionally or from a friend, to look over your documents. All that hard work finally led me to being accepted to one of my top choices, a T14 school. It's a great feeling to see your hard work pay off.
Steve: There's no better place to end it than right there. I'm so grateful to you for sharing your background and your journey, it's an inspiration to others on this path. I'm excited that you'll continue helping pre-law students with the LSAT, and I really appreciate this conversation. Thanks for coming on.
Judy: Thank you for all the memories we had.
Steve: Thanks for tuning in. Please subscribe if you haven't already, to be notified of new episodes as I release them. Feel free to reach out if you need anything as you move forward with your prep, I'm happy to help however I can. In the meantime, I wish you all the best. Take care.
Individual results vary. Score increases depend on starting point, study time, and effort.
More student stories: Zach, 151 to 176, Annie, 153 to 170, Stanford Law, James, 157 to 168, Natalie, 147 to 170, Kenny, 154 to 164, full scholarship All LSAT Unplugged reviews
I've written free explanations for every question in LSAT PrepTest 159, 158, 157, 156, 155 and 154, with the right answer and why each wrong answer fails. All LSAT explanations are here.
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