LSAT
The LSAT is a half-day standardized test required for admission to all LSAC-member schools. 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.
Format
The test consists of five 35-minute sections of multiple-choice questions. Four of the five sections contribute to the test taker’s score. These sections include one reading comprehension section, one analytical reasoning section, and two logical reasoning sections. The unscored section typically is used to pretest new test items and to preequate new test forms. A 30-minute writing sample is administered at the end of the test.
Scoring
The writing sample is not scored by LSAC, but copies are sent to all law schools to which the candidate applied. The score scale for the LSAT is 120 to 180. The LSAT score is based on the number of questions answered correctly (the raw score). There is no deduction for incorrect answers, nor are individual questions on the various test sections weighted differently. Raw scores are converted to an LSAT scale that ranges from 120 to 180, with 120 being the lowest possible score and 180 the highest possible score. This is done through a statistical procedure known as equating, a method that adjusts for minor differences in difficulty between test forms. The LSAT is designed to measure skills that are considered essential for success in law school: the reading and comprehension of complex texts with accuracy and insight; the organization and management of information and the ability to draw reasonable inferences from it; the ability to think critically; and the analysis and evaluation of the reasoning and arguments of others.
LSAC will mail scores and the percentile ranks in approximately four weeks after the test. LSAT takers who have LSAC online accounts will automatically receive their LSAT scores by e-mail in approximately three weeks after the test.
To ensure confidentiality, LSAC will release scores only through mail and e-mail. Scores will not be faxed. Scores are released only to the examinee and to the law schools to which he/she has applied. They will not be released to a parent, spouse, friend, or any other person. When a person registers, he/she may request that a score be sent to the law schools through the Candidate Referral Service or to the prelaw advisor at their undergraduate school. Release of this information to prelaw advisors will enable an advisor to improve advisory services to the examinee and all students and alumni of his/her college.
Retake Policy
Normally, a person may not take the LSAT more than three times in any two-year period. This policy applies even if the score is cancelled or it is not otherwise reported. LSAC reserves the right to cancel registrations, rescind admission tickets, or take any other steps necessary to enforce this policy. However, a person may retake the LSAT if a law school to which the candidate is applying requires a more recent score than any he/she have on record or approves the candidate to retake the test, and the school provides LSAC with written proof of its requirements or approval no later than the last day of registration for the test. (LSAT & LSDAS Registration & Information Book, p. 15)
Registration Procedures
• An examinee can pay and register online at www.lsac.org.
• An examinee can call the LSAC at 215-968-1001.
• Once the registration has been processed, they will be sent an admission ticket that they must take with them to the test center.
• The fee for taking the LSAT is $160
Additional fees include:
• Late registration: $69
• Test center change: $35
• Test date change: $80
Identification Requirements
On the day of the test, the examinee must bring their admission ticket with a passport sized photo attached taken within the last six months showing only the examinee’s head and shoulders, one current, government-issued photo I.D. from the list below which is not more than 90 days expired from the test date.
Acceptable forms of ID:
• Late registration: $69
• Passport card
• Passport book
• Driver’s License
• State or province-issued ID card
• U.S. Military ID card (Common Access Card or CAC)
• U.S. Permanent Resident Card (Green Card)
• Canadian Permanent Resident Card
• National ID card
• Consular ID card
• Canadian healthcare benefit card
Unacceptable forms of ID:
• Social Security/Social Insurance card
• Canadian Social Insurance cards
• Birth Certificates
• Credit Cards (including those with a photo)
• Student ID card
• Government-issued employment ID card
• Photocopied ID
• Employment ID card
• ID that does not have a recognizable photo
• Any expired ID over 90 days prior to the test date
Helpful Information
Resource Materials:
• A sample test can be found at www.LSAC.org.
• You may order test preparation manuals at www.LSAC.org. Examinees can check the following items in their LSAC file online at www.LSAC.org:
• Receipt (or non-receipt) of transcripts
• Receipt of letters of recommendation
• Reports requested by or sent to a law school
• Receipt of their electronic applications submitted through LSAC
• The name and telephone number of the prelaw advisor at their four-year undergraduate degree-granting school (File status online is available at all times expect 6:00 a.m. to 8:00 a.m. on Sundays)
Accommodations for Persons with Disabilities
Accommodations may be available to individuals with documented disabilities who are registered to take the LSAT. Candidates need to be aware that submission of the accommodations request packet does not guarantee testing accommodations. Decisions will be made on a case-by-case basis on the documentation submitted.
To request accommodations for the LSAT, candidates need to:
1. Obtain an accommodations request packet by going online at http://www.lsac.org/jd/lsat/accommodated-testing.asp and printing out the entire packet or write to LSAC at the following address (well before the registration deadlines):
Law School Admission Council
Test Administration
Testing Accommodations Section
662 Penn Street, Box 2000-T
Newtown, PA 18940-0995
The test is available in regular print; large, 18-point-type print; and in braille. A non-scan answer sheet is also available. Depending on the nature of the disability, other accommodations may include but are not limited to the use of a reader, an amanuensis, a wheelchair-accessible test center, additional rest time between sections, or additional testing time. Requests for these or other arrangements, or the use of special aids, should be included when a candidate submits their registration materials.
2. It is important that the candidate reviews the entire Accommodations Request Packet for detailed information on accommodated testing policies, procedures, and deadlines.
3. Register for the LSAT, and submit all the required forms in the accommodations request packet. The accommodations request packet contains forms that the candidate and their evaluator must complete; a description of the type of documentation they must supply to support their request for accommodations; and detailed instructions for completing the forms. It is the candidate’s responsibility to obtain and submit all required documentation with their LSAT/LSDAS Registration Form by the registration deadlines listed on the Candidate Form, which is part of the accommodations packet.
LSAC encourages candidates who need accommodations to register and submit all required documentation well in advance of the registration deadlines.
LSAC will review your request for accommodations within two weeks of its receipt. However, the entire process may take substantially longer. The candidate is advised to submit their request for accommodations well in advance of the test date in order to facilitate their planning and preparation for the test.
If the request for accommodations is granted, LSAC will make arrangements with the test center and send the candidate and the test center supervisor confirmation of the accommodations granted. Since some test centers may be unable to provide certain types of accommodations, LSAC strongly recommends that the candidate registers early to allow sufficient time for alternate arrangements, if necessary. LSAC cannot guarantee that they will test at the center for which they hold an admission ticket. Additionally, the candidate’s test may be scheduled for an alternate test date. LSAC reserves the right to make final judgment regarding testing accommodations.
Test Agency
Law School Admission Council-LSAC
662 Penn Street
Box 8512
Newtown, PA 18940-8512
(215) 968-1001
Fax (215) 504-1420
lsacinfo@LSAC.org or www.LSAC.org
Automated telephone systems:
Phone: (215) 968-1001
Hours: Available at all times except 6 a.m. to 8 a.m. ET Sundays.
Service representatives (weekdays only):
Phone: (215) 968-1001
Hours: September to March 8:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. ET; April to August 8:30 a.m. to 4:45 p.m. ET.
UTEP Codes: ACT: 4223; AP, CLEP, SAT, TOEFL: 6829; THEA: 357; DSST: 8021
