Sorry for the cheesy description about a secret method. I had to write something, and now you’re here. Just don’t go anywhere yet. Scoring a 160 on the LSAT is no easy feat. Believe me — I scored a 150 the first time I took it. But the second time, I scored a 164. There is a method to getting a great score, and I’ll get to that later.
The math behind 160
Generally, there are 77 or 78 scored questions on the LSAT. In order to get a 160, you’ll need to get around 57 of these questions right. Between the 3 scored sections, that’s about 19 right answers for each section. If you’re good at one section, but not so good at another, your score will average out.
That means you can score a 15 on one section as long as you score a 22 on another one. Just make sure your average score is around 19 overall.
First you need to figure out your strengths and weaknesses
The best thing you can do inyour LSAT studies is to know where you’re great and where you’re awful. The only way you can do this is by taking 2 or 3 practice LSATs. After that, reviewyour answers tofigure out how many questions you marked incorrectly oneach section.
This will tellyou where need the most improvement. Once you figure out where you’re the weakest, study that kind of question ad nauseam or until that section isno longer your greatest weakness.
Give yourself enough time — 3 or 4 months — and you’ll be able to makehuge improvements.
Find your rhythm
I am in no way advocating that you blast through questions. Finishing a section early isn’t, in fact, a good thing.It’show mistakes happen. That said, you do want to get into a rhythm when you take the exam.
Rhythm comesthrough familiarity. Familiarity comesby doing lots of questions. Once you’ve identified your weaknesses and strengthsand turned those your weak sections into strong ones, you’ll be familiar with the types of questions you’re going to see. You’ll knowwhat you need to pick out in each question. Your head may even start bobbing up and down because yourLSAT rhythm is so deep.
Whatever it is, you’ll want to get into that state as soon as you can when you start the exam. Onceyour brain gets in that rhythm, it will runvery efficiently, and you’ll find that your scores will increase.
There’s no secret to getting a 160 on the LSAT. It just takes hard work. But, more than that, it takes smart work.
Randall earned his JD from the University of Denver in 2013. He received his BA in Communications and Social Science from the University of Washington in 2010. Randall took the LSAT twice, and managed to improve his score by 14 points the second time around. He paid the price of learning to score high on the LSAT and hopes to help other potential law students avoid similar pain.
View all posts
FAQs
In order to get a 160, you'll need to get around 57 of these questions right. Between the 3 scored sections, that's about 19 right answers for each section. If you're good at one section, but not so good at another, your score will average out.
How hard is it to score 160 on LSAT? ›
Note that a score in this range places you, on average, above the 95th percentile, meaning that only 5% of all those who take the LSAT score 170 or above. To get a score of 160 you should aim for getting 57-58 questions correct. A 160 is typically right around the 75th percentile.
Can I get a 160 on the LSAT without studying? ›
The LSAT is scored on a 120-180 scale.
There's also a writing sample included in the exam which is not scored. From our independent research, we've found that students who take the LSAT without studying achieve scores between 145 and 153. Scoring for the LSAT is scaled.
How many questions missed is a 160? ›
In order to get an LSAT score of 160, you would need to get about 70-75 out of the 102 questions correct. In other words, you should be aiming to get around 70-75% of questions correct per section.
How many mistakes do you need to get 160 on the LSAT? ›
Every LSAT throughout the year is different, but on a typical LSAT, can still get around 18–19 questions wrong and still end up in the 160s—or about 12 wrong and get a 166, a 90th percentile score.
How many misses do you need to get 160 on the LSAT? ›
How many questions can I miss on the LSAT to get a 160? Depending on the test's difficulty and the specific LSAT administration, you can miss about 20–25 questions and still score around 160.
Does LSAT correlate to IQ? ›
It does not measure intelligence the way IQ tests are designed to measure innate ability.
Should I retake a 160 LSAT? ›
If you're somewhere within the 25th to 75th percentile, then a retake may not even be necessary—especially when you consider the time and money it'll cost you. If you're one of the lucky few that scored a 170 or higher on the first try, then there's really no point in retaking it at all.
What is the average LSAT score for first time takers? ›
According to the Law School Admission Council (LSAC), first-time LSAT takers score an average of 151. Of course, if you're unhappy with your LSAT score, you can always take it again.
How realistic is the LSAT score increase? ›
Ultimately, most people improve by 10-20 points or more, but there are outliers who will improve by a lot more (and also, unfortunately, by a lot less). This is not to say that a target score that is 30+ points higher than your current range is utterly unrealistic: it's just exceptionally ambitious.
A 170 will be difficult to obtain. It will require quality resources and substantial preparation. You should dedicate at least four months to reach this target. For the best LSAT support, consider teaming up with a 99th percentile tutor who can help you increase your score by 12 points!
Can I get into Harvard law with a 160 LSAT? ›
So let's take a look at what it actually takes to have a chance of being admitted to the most prestigious and preeminent law school in the world. As you can see from these numbers, an LSAT score of 170 or higher and a GPA above 3.75 will give you a chance of gaining admission to Harvard Law School.
How to score 160 on the LSAT? ›
Generally, there are 77 or 78 scored questions on the LSAT. In order to get a 160, you'll need to get around 57 of these questions right. Between the 3 scored sections, that's about 19 right answers for each section. If you're good at one section, but not so good at another, your score will average out.
What percentile is a 160 on the LSAT? ›
A student scoring a 180 is in the 99.9 percentile because the student scored better than 99.9% of test-takers. A student scoring a 160 is in the 74.8 percentile because the student scored better than 74.8% of test-takers. You can hover over the blue outline to see a tooltip for all each LSAT/percentile combinations.
What did Elle Woods get on her LSAT? ›
Elle Woods, a fictional character portrayed by Reese Witherspoon in the movie Legally Blonde, is known for her remarkable LSAT score—179 out of 180.
What percent of LSAT takers get a 160? ›
A student scoring a 180 is in the 99.9 percentile because the student scored better than 99.9% of test-takers. A student scoring a 160 is in the 74.8 percentile because the student scored better than 74.8% of test-takers. You can hover over the blue outline to see a tooltip for all each LSAT/percentile combinations.
