Law Schools

Wannabe Law School Students Love Standardized Tests

No, you haven't entered the Twilight Zone...

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Students in favor of more exams may seem like a bizarre, Twilight Zone statement, but it is true. As the American Bar Association, the body in charge of law school accreditation, is considering doing away with the requirement that law school consider the results of a standardized test (generally the LSAT or GRE) in admissions decisions, students are coming out in favor of testing. According to a recent Kaplan Test Prep survey, 58 percent of prospective law students say the ABA should keep the standardized testing requirement in place, 36 percent want the requirement gone, while 6 percent are undecided.

Perhaps it isn’t a surprise — wannabe law students are generally regarded as an ambitious bunch, and they generally relish the opportunity standardized tests provide to demonstrate their worth, relative to the rest of the applicant pool. As one survey respondent noted:

The LSAT puts all students on a level playing field. GPAs vary tremendously based on school and major so the LSAT is a good way to score all students.

Jeff Thomas, executive director of pre-law programs at Kaplan Test Prep, noted that even if the ABA lifted the standardized test requirement for law schools, it is unlikely the schools would immediately do away with tests:

“It’s important to note that even if the recommendation to lift the testing requirement is approved and implemented, it’s doubtful that law schools will decide en masse to do so. In fact, we expect many will stick with their own admissions test requirement, be it the LSAT, GRE, or GMAT, as admitting students unlikely to complete their legal education (as measured by high dropout rates and/or low bar passage rates) would risk the school losing its accreditation. In that sense, standardized tests act like a safeguard against bad admissions practices that can have long-term ramifications for both law schools and their students. Additionally, recent Kaplan research shows that pre-law students would submit an LSAT score anyway to gain a competitive advantage over those who do not.”

The ABA is expected to announce their decision regarding standardizing testing this week at the 2018 Chicago ABA Annual Meeting.

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headshotKathryn Rubino is a Senior Editor at Above the Law, and host of The Jabot podcast. 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).

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