For all you prosperous pre-law students planning to be lawyers, judges or the future president of the United States, I am pleased to inform you of the exam that will begin your journey. It is called the LSAT. LSAT stands for "law school admissions test." If you are a pre-law student, this most likely means you are going to law school, or at least you anticipate to. Like applying for an undergraduate university, you must take another tedious standardized test in order to get in law school. The intended purpose of this article is to provide you with a few details on what the LSAT is, how you can sign up to take it, the length of the exam, and the different components of it.
What is the LSAT?
According to the Law School Admissions Council (LSAC):
"The LSAT is an integral part of the law school admission process in the United States, Canada, and a growing number of other countries. It provides a standard measure of acquired reading and verbal reasoning skills that law schools can use as one of several factors in assessing applicants."
Why is the LSAT such an integral part of the application?
Since prosperous law students are applying to law school from all different universities (ranging in rigor and quality) and since you can apply to law school with any major, the LSAT is a way to standardize the applicant pool.
How many different parts of the LSAT are there?
Over the course of about a four-hour session (with one 15 minute break in between sections three and four), there are five different timed sections of the LSAT randomized in order. You have three different types of sections: one logic games section, two logical reading section, and one reading comprehension section. After that, you have an additional experimental section which can be a repetition of any one of the three previously listed sections. Then, you have an essay section that doesn't account towards the score of your LSAT, but will be administered during the LSAT.
How much time do you have in each section?
You have 35 minutes.
What is the score range?
The lowest score you can get is a 120 and the highest is an 180.
How do I sign up for the LSAT?
You go to www.lsac.org and create an account. Once your account is created, you can sign up for the LSAT date that works best for you.
Can I get a fee waiver for the exam?
Absolutely! Once you create an account, you can turn in your tax forms (and maybe your parents as well if you file dependent) and apply for a fee waiver. If you receive the waiver, you even get a free practice book from them.
How many times a year is the LSAT administered?
How can I study for such an exam?
You can study on your own by buying practice books, you can take a prep course from one of the many courses (Kaplan, Princeton Review, or even your own college may host a review course), or by simply taking a ton of practice exams.
Study hard for your LSATs. You are going to do well.
