Everyone hopes for a good score on the LSAT, but we at Blueprint know that not everyone can actually get one. That’s not to say that not everyone is capable of a good LSAT score, but rather that the curved nature of the LSAT forces some people to get bad scores; nearly half of LSAT-takers must score below 150. What constitutes a “bad” score will vary from person to person, depending on individual law school plans and expectations. But still, what happens if you get a score below what you wanted? What should you do with a bad LSAT score? We at Blueprint can help you answer this.

First of all, you need to understand why you didn’t score well on your LSAT. At Blueprint, this is the first question we ask when students come to us with a low LSAT score. Was preparation thorough? If not, then a sub-par score shouldn’t be incredibly surprising. At Blueprint, our job is to know the LSAT, and the most undeniable truth about the LSAT is that it’s hard. If you don’t study, you won’t do as well as you could have. So if you’re in this boat, then you should take the LSAT again, but you will have to study more than you did before (Blueprint offers classes to help with this).

But what if you scored poorly, in spite of feeling ready for the LSAT? At Blueprint, we’ve found that for some people scores do drop on test day. You can retake the test if this happened to you, but you need to make a plan. First, keep studying, so that you can get your average score up. That way, even if you “bomb” it again, you’re dropping to a higher score than before. Then, you should make sure to practice in realistic conditions. At Blueprint, we recommend you take your practice LSATs in a testing-like environment, while adhering to all the rules (strict timing, no eating or drinking, etc). Doing this will make test-day feel more familiar, and you’ll be less likely to see your score plummet.

You might also need to reevaluate what you consider to be a “bad” score. If you scored just a few points below where you wanted, but you don’t have the time to study any more, then it’s not the end of the world. You might just need to readjust which law schools you apply to. Also, if you put a lot of effort into really making the rest of your application shine, that can help mitigate a lower-than-expected score.

But on the whole, we at Blueprint think the smartest thing to do about a bad LSAT score is to keep studying. At Blueprint, we know that the LSAT is a very learnable test, and it can be mastered, even if it didn’t go well the first time.