Law Schools

Students Applaud Changes To LSAT Even If They Don't Know What It Means

Even though you can take the exam more frequently it doesn't mean you should.

By  
on

In an effort to be more competitive with the GRE, the current law school admissions test of choice, the LSAT, is making changes to keep their position at the top of the heap. As we’ve previously reported, there will now be six administrations of the LSAT a year (it had be offered only four times a year) and the limit on the number of times a student can take the exam in a two-year period has been lifted. So we know what has happened, but how do people feel about the changes?

Kaplan Test Prep has done a survey of over 500 aspiring law school students to find out exactly how they feel about the changes, and it turns out the test-taking public likes it:

Among those polled, 83 percent support this [increasing the number of yearly testings] change. The results also found this change could have significant impact on future LSAT takers, with 66 percent saying that had this change already been in effect, their own personal prep regimen would have been different, including the date they chose to take the exam.

…

Among those surveyed, two-thirds (67 percent) support eliminating the cap. Just 11 percent oppose the change, with another 22 percent deadlocking. But on this issue, there’s a bit of a hung jury on how beneficial this change might be. Exactly half say it would not have had affected their own study plan, while 34 percent said it would have, with the remaining 16 percent unsure.

Even though you can take the exam more frequently it doesn’t mean you should. And even if you apply to a law school that accepts the GRE, law schools will still be able to see any LSAT scores on your record, so be warned — the LSAT changes are not an invitation to take the test as many times as possible:

“As far as the removal of limits on the number of times one can take the LSAT, it’s not a good LSAT strategy to use your first testing experience to establish a baseline score, so we strongly advise against students retaking the exam numerous times. Law schools see every score, and taking it too many times in a condensed time frame may raise a serious red flag.  Our advice is to prep comprehensively for the LSAT, get a great score once and leave no doubt in the minds of admissions committees as to your candidacy for law school. Of course, if you need to retest, you can and now LSAC is providing more flexibility to do so. But, that should be your Plan B, not Plan A,” added [Jeff, executive director of Kaplan pre-law programs] Thomas.

These changes are definitely student friendly, but it is not a magic wand that will undo all your testing mistakes of the past.

Sponsored

headshotKathryn Rubino is an editor at Above the Law. AtL tipsters are the best, so please connect with her. Feel free to email her with any tips, questions, or comments and follow her on Twitter (@Kathryn1).

Sponsored

Topics

, , , ,