Students can no longer do that.

As per LSAC:

We have a change in the policy related to applicants who wish to take the LSAT more than three times in two years. Applicants may not take the LSAT more than three times in any two-year period. This policy applies even if the applicant cancels their score or if the score is not otherwise reported. LSAC reserves the right to cancel the applicant’s registration, rescind their admission ticket, or take any other steps necessary to enforce this policy.  Previously, candidates could request a waiver of this policy from law schools.  That no longer will be possible.  Instead, in exceptional circumstances only, candidates can ask LSAC directly for a waiver of this policy.

If you would like to request an exception to this rule, you can do so by submitting a signed, detailed explanation addressing the circumstances that you feel make you eligible to retake the LSAT, and specifying the date that you wish to take the test. Your request must be in writing, submitted either via email (LSACinfo@LSAC.org) or fax (215.968.1277). As with accommodated testing requests, LSAC recommends that you submit your request well in advance of the date you wish to take the test on, in order to give them time to evaluate your request and render a decision. And, of course, LSAC’s decisions are final.

More information about the limitations on test taking is available on the LSAC website.

The regular registration deadline for the October 2011 LSAT is August 30, 2011. This is the last day you can sign up for the test and not get charged a late fee. The registration for fee for the LSAT is currently US$139 or $144 Canadian.

The late registration deadline for the October 2011 LSAT is September 9, 2011. This is the absolute last day you can sign up for this test. In addition to the regular registration fee, you will also have to pay a late fee of US$68 or $71 Canadian.

The deadline for changing your test center or test date for the October 2011 LSAT is September 11, 2011. After this date, you cannot change your test date or test center. The fee for changing the test center is US$35 (or $36 Canadian); the fee for changing the test date is US$68 (or $71 Canadian).

The deadline for withdrawing your LSAT registration (no refund available) is September 30, 2011 at midnight EST. If you are taking the Sabbath-observer administration, it is Monday, October 3, 2011 at midnight EST. In order to withdraw, you must do so through your online LSAC account.

The October 2011 LSAT is taking place on Saturday, October 1, 2011. If you are taking the Sabbath-observer administration, it will take place on Tuesday, October 4, 2011.

It is always advisable to register for the test online, rather then via snail-mail. Registering online not only allows you to create an LSAC account (which you will use later to apply to law schools through LSAC’s Credential Assembly Service), but will also give you extended deadlines in which to register and/or change your registration details, as well as let you receive your scores online. To register for the October 2011 LSAT online through the LSAC website, click here.

To see the different fees associated with taking the LSAT, click here.

The following lists what you must (and should, and can’t) bring to the testing center.

THE MUSTS

• LSAT Admission Ticket. Print it the night before to make sure you have the most recent test center information on it. Sometimes testing centers are changed at the last minute, and you need to make sure you have the most recent address so that you go to the right place on Test Day.
• Identification. You will need to types of ID on test day. You must have one current, valid (not expired) government-issued ID containing a recent and recognizable photo and your signature. Your first and last name on your ID must match exactly the name on your LSAT Admission Ticket or you will be denied admission. Acceptable forms of ID include passport book and government issued driver’s license. US military personnel may present their US military ID card with name, photo, and signature.
• A clear photo that shows you as you will look on test day (e.g., if you have a beard, the picture must show you with a beard; if you have colored your hair red, the picture must show you with red hair). For students taking the test within the U.S. or the Caribbean, this is a new requirement. The picture must be in color, showing your face, neck and shoulders, no bigger than 5cm x 5cm, and no smaller than 3cm x 3cm.

NOTE: The following IDs are NOT accepted by LSAC as valid forms of identification – Social Security card, Social Insurance card, birth certificate, credit card (including those with photo), cards used in Canada for health care benefits, expired IDs, photocopied IDs, employee IDs, or student IDs.

MAKE SURE YOU HAVE THE CORRECT FORMS OF ID AND THE PICTURE WITH YOU! If you do not have acceptable forms of ID or the picture at the time you are being checked in, you will not be allowed to take the LSAT!

THE SHOULDS

In addition to your ID, picture, and admissions ticket, you can also bring the following to the test center (as per LSAC): A clear plastic ziplock bag, maximum size one gallon (3.79 liter), which must be stored under the chair and may be accessed only during the break.

The ziplock bag may contain only the following items: LSAT Admission Ticket stub; valid ID; wallet; keys; analog (nondigital) wristwatch; medical or hygiene products; #2 or HB wooden pencils, highlighter, erasers, pencil sharpener (no mechanical pencils); tissues; and beverage in plastic container or juice box (20 oz./591 ml maximum size) and snack for break only.

YOU CANNOT BRING ANYTHING ELSE TO THE TEST CENTER. All other items will not be allowed, and you can be dismissed from the test center from bringing in any prohibited items (see below).

THE PROHIBITED ITEMS

LSAC specifically states that you cannot bring any of the following into the test center: Electronic timers of any kind, beeping watches, alarm watches, calculator watches, cellular phones, beepers, pagers, personal digital assistants (PDAs), hats/hoods (except items of religious apparel), books, dictionaries, papers of any kind, calculators, rulers, slide rules, compasses, mechanical pencils, briefcases, handbags, backpacks, earplugs, headsets, photographic or recording devices, listening devices, electronic devices of any kind, weapons, or firearms.

The prohibited items that seem to trip up students the most are the following:

1. Electronic timers: Yes, that includes silent timers. The only way you will have of telling the time during your test is an analog watch (i.e., a watch with hands, not digital numbers), the clock in the testing room (if there is one), and your test proctor (who will tell you when to start, when there are five minutes left, and when to stop).
2. Cell phones: No, you can’t bring your cell phone into the testing center. Leave it in the car.
3. Hats/hoods: Particularly important to remember during the winter, when everyone wears hats. Brave the cold on the walk from your car to the testing room, and leave the hat in the car.
4. Mechanical pencils: That’s right, you have to use a good ol’ #2 for the test. Remember to bring a sharpener and multiple pre-sharpened pencils.
5. Purses/backpacks/briefcases: The only bag you’re allowed is the clear plastic one listed under “The Shoulds” above. Leave everything else in the car.
6. Earplugs: A surprising number of students take practice tests with them. You won’t be allowed to have them in the testing center, so don’t get in the habit of using them when you practice.
7. Electronic devices of ANY kind: This includes iPhones, iPods, cell phones, beepers, pagers, and pretty much anything with a battery (except for an analog watch). Leave it all in the car.

You can get kicked out of the testing center for having any prohibited item. Pack what you need the night before and double check with the list of approved and prohibited items on LSAC.org (http://lsac.org/JD/LSAT/day-of-test.asp) to make sure you have all of what you need (and none of what you don’t).

Good luck!

Schools are separated into four categories:

1. Schools that accept February LSAT scores
2. Schools that accept February LSAT scores but strongly suggest taking an earlier LSAT
3. Schools that don’t accept February LSAT scores
4. Schools that don’t specify a preference regarding February LSAT scores

Keep the following in mind as you use this list:

• If a school is listed as not accepting February LSAT scores, this doesn’t imply that they do not accept any February LSAT scores. If, for example, you took the February LSAT in 2009 and are applying in 2010, the school would have no problem accepting this score. “February LSAT,” as used in this list, is defined as the February LSAT taken in the same year for which the applicant is seeking admission.
• For schools that do not specify a preference, many times they have application deadlines that fall before the score release dates of the February LSAT. If this is the case, make sure to contact these schools to ensure that you can submit the rest of your application by the deadline and your LSAT score once the scores are ready.
• In all cases, it is always a wise choice to take the LSAT in June or October of the year prior to which you are seeking admission. This will allow you to retake the LSAT in either October or December if you feel the need to increase your score, and it will also allow you to submit your application by the middle of the admissions cycle, which will have a beneficial effect on your chances within the rolling admissions process.

Schools that accept February LSAT scores

American University
Arizona State University
Boston University
Brooklyn Law School
College of William and Mary
George Washington
New England School of Law
North Carolina Central University
Ohio State University
Pace University
Rutgers University, Newark
Santa Clara University
St. Mary’s University
Stetson University
Suffolk University
Temple University
SUNY Buffalo
University of Connecticut
University of Hawaii
University of Kansas
University of Maryland
University of Montana
University of Pittsburgh
University of Wisconsin, Madison
University of Wyoming
University of the District of Columbia
University of the Pacific
Vanderbilt University
Villanova University
Wayne State University
Western New England College
Whittier College
Yale University

Schools that accept February LSAT scores, but strongly recommend that you take an earlier one

These schools accept February scores but suggest earlier LSATs because seats may no longer be available in the incoming class by the time the applicant’s file is complete, competition for seats (if available) will be fierce and will drastically diminish the applicant’s chances, and/or scores become available too late for applicants to be considered for financial aid, scholarships, or Early Decision or Notification.

Albany University
Baylor University
Boston College
Catholic University
Charleston School of Law
Cornell University
CUNY (Queen’s College)
DePaul University
Duke University
Emory University
Georgetown University
Illinois Institute of Technology
Lewis & Clark College
Loyola Marymount University
Loyola University Chicago
Northeastern University
Northwestern University
Pepperdine University
Roger Williams University
Texas Tech University
University of Akron
University of Alabama
University of Arizona
University of California, Davis
University of California, Hastings
University of California, Los Angeles
University of Chicago
University of Colorado, Boulder
University of Florida
University of Georgia
University of Houston
University of Idaho
University of Iowa
University of Kentucky
University of Maine
University of Memphis
University of Michigan, Ann Arbor
University of Mississippi
University of Missouri, Kansas City
University of Nebraska, Lincoln
University of New Mexico
University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
University of Notre Dame
University of Oklahoma
University of Oregon
University of Pennsylvania
University of Richmond
University of San Francisco
University of South Carolina
University of South Dakota
University of Southern California
University of Utah
University of Virginia
University of Washington
Wake Forest University
Washington and Lee University
Willamette University

Schools that do not accept February LSAT scores

Columbia University
Harvard University
New York University
Stanford University
University of California, Berkeley
University of Texas, Austin
Indiana University, Indianapolis

Schools that do not specify a preference regarding February LSAT scores

Although these schools do not specify a preference outright, many of them specifically state that their applications must be complete by a certain date (a complete application, by default, includes an LSAT score). Make sure to contact each school to obtain their stand on submitting the rest of your application materials prior to your LSAT score.

Brigham Young University
Fordham University
Georgia State University
Howard University
Indiana University, Bloomington
John Marshall Law School
Louisiana State University
Loyola University, New Orleans
Mercer University
Pennsylvania State University
Quinnipiac University
Rutgers University, Camden
Seattle University
South Texas College of Law
Southern Illinois University
Southern Methodist University
Southern University
Texas Wesleyan University
Tulane University
University of Baltimore
University of Denver
University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign
University of Missouri
University of San Diego
University of Tennessee, Knoxville
University of Tulsa
Vermont University
Washington University in St. Louis
West Virginia University

If LSAC score-release trends hold, then October LSAT scores will start appear in people’s inboxes at some point tomorrow (10/29/10) afternoon (typically around 5pm EST, or thereabouts). Although LSAC typically states score release dates to be on Mondays, they have historically started releasing them the Friday prior to the “official” date, thus ending the gut-wrenching agony for many an LSAT test-taker.

A few things to keep in mind, though:

1. Scores are sent out in batches, which means that some test-takers will get theirs before others. The scores don’t go all out at once.

2. Although some will receive their scores on Friday, others may have to wait until Saturday, Sunday, or even the official Monday date. This is due to the order in which the LSAC servers send out the scores.

3. The scores are not released in any order, be it alphabetic (by either first or last name), geographic, or by score. It’s just luck of the draw.

4. Only those test-takers who have an LSAC.org account will receive their scores via email. Those who do not need to wait for snail-mail. (See more on that by clicking here.)

Good luck to all October LSAT takers! You could have your score in approximately 36 hours!

First off, let us start by saying that it is very common for LSAT-takers to second-guess themselves and fret–almost from the moment they exit the testing center–about how they did on the test, what their score might be, which questions they got right and wrong, and if they should cancel their score.

In the days immediately following each LSAT, we get many phone calls from distraught (and, sometimes, near-hysterical) students, all of them asking the same thing: “Should I cancel?” Their stress and anxiety is very understandable: They have just spent months studying for a test, the test is over, they have to wait three weeks for a score, and they know that the score they get can either help them or hinder them considerably in their law school plans. Being distraught about the results of the LSAT is par for the course.

Deciding whether to cancel can be very stressful. However, there are several situations under which which cancellation might be a good option for you:

• You suffered from extreme test anxiety (sometimes manifested by extreme distraction, panic, cold sweats, nausea) during the test
• You took the exam “cold” or didn’t prepare for it very well
• You were ill during the exam, or became seriously ill during it
• You know for certain you mis-bubbled a section
• You were unable to complete the test, or had to leave during it
• You are convinced that something just went very, very wrong during the test

The situations that can lead you to consider cancellation are various and varied. One of the first things we tell students to do is evaluate their performance. Many think this is not possible; however, with just a little bit of time and some careful analysis, it is definitely possible to put together relatively accurate best- and worst-case scenarios about an LSAT performance.  Go through the following steps:

• Analyze the LSAT you just took very carefully.
  This can be hard to do, particularly in the immediate aftermath of the test, but it can prove to be very useful when attempting to determine your overall performance. Start by writing down the sections you had, and the order you had them in. Once you’ve written down the sections in order, try to recall how many questions you were able to intelligently analyze and answer, and how many you just hazarded a guess on. Determine which sections where the hardest for you, and which specific parts of the hardest sections gave you the most trouble. Was there a specific logic game that you really struggled with? Was there a reading comprehension passage that stumped you? Don’t let your feelings about a type of question or the LSAT as a whole cloud your judgment.  Instead, consider each section in a manner than is as analytical and question-specific as possible. This kind of almost-impartial breakdown of the test will be invaluable when you are trying to determine your overall performance.
• Try to determine the experimental section.
  Again, this is something that many think is not possible, but it can definitely be doable in many cases. The PowerScore website has a great breakdown and explanation of what the experimental section is, how it is used, and how you can figure out which section in your LSAT was the experimental one. Click on this link to read the article: PowerScore Free LSAT Help Area: The Experimental Section Explained.
• Create a best-case and worst-case scenario of your performance.
  Once you have determined how you feel you did on each of the four scored sections of the test, it is time to translate that into a numerical score range. We say “range” because it will be impossible for you to determine exactly how many questions you answered right or wrong in a section, but you can definitely establish a general scoring range by figuring our your best-case and worst-case scenarios. 

  ► To create a best-case score scenario, think back to each section. As objectively as you can, determine two numbers for each section: (1) The approximate number of questions you felt very confident about, and (2) The approximate number of questions you felt okay with, but weren’t 100% sure of the answer.  Add the first number and 75% of the second number together. Do this for each section. That will give you  a raw “best-case” number.

  ► To create a worst-case scenario, determine the same numbers for each section, but only add 75% of the first number and 50% of the second number. Do this for each section and then add all the numbers together. This will give you a  raw “worst-case” number.

  ► Once you have your best-case and worst-case raw numbers, you need to determine what your score range is when converted to the LSAT 120-180. Although you will not have the range for the actual range you took, you can use past LSATs’ scoring ranges to help you, since raw scores usually fall around the same numbers. Take your raw numbers and plug them in to a historical LSAT range. You can find one on the PowerScore website by clicking here: PowerScore’s Historical Range of Correct Answers for Targeted Scores.

• Think about how you did on your practice tests.
  Use your knowledge of how you felt and performed on the practice tests leading up to the test, and compare them to how you feel you did on the LSAT you just took. Don’t forget to be objective–of course you likely felt more nervous, more anxious, less secure about the “real” LSAT you just sat for. That’s only natural. Don’t consider your feelings–be objective and consider your performance. Did you feel the questions were harder? Easier? This can also help you see if the best- and worst-case scenarios are accurate. If, for example, in your final practice LSATs you were scoring between 160 and 163, you felt that the “real” LSAT you just took was easier, and your best- and worst-case numbers put you at a 162-166 range, then you’re probably right on target. The same goes if you feel it was harder than your practice tests, or about the same. Combine all this information to ensure your analysis and range are in the right area.
• Consider which scores you would feel comfortable with.
  Are you applying to schools where you need to score above a 155 to really feel comfortable? Do you feel you need at least a 160? A 165? A 150? If you don’t know what ranges your schools are looking for, a great resource is LSAC’s Official Guide to ABA-Approved Law Schools. They provide the 25th and 75th percentile LSAT scores for the prior year’s incoming class for all ABA-approved schools, and you can use that information to determine where your score should be. Once you have those percentiles in hand, determine which LSAT scores you would feel most comfortable with, and which LSAT scores you think would best improve your chances of getting into the school(s) of your choice.
• Don’t forget to think about your past official LSAT performances.
  If you have multiple cancellations or absences on your LSAT Score Report already, then you need to think long and hard about having yet another cancellation on your record. Multiple score cancellations or absences may signal to AdComs that you are unable to handle the stress of a lengthy timed test (which, when you consider how intense and long law school finals are, doesn’t bode well), or that you don’t take your test-taking seriously or don’t prepare adequately (which also doesn’t bode well). Also, if you already have one or more other scores on your LSAT Score Report, take a moment to carefully consider what the effect of this additional score may be: Is it higher than what you’re got already? Lower? The same? Although schools are not required to take the average of all scores in an LSAT Score Report, the average is still reported, and schools can see both the average as well as the scores for every single LSAT you’ve taken in the last 5 years. Consider how this new LSAT will affect your overall report, and whether it will have a positive or negative effect.
• Make a final decision.
  Once you’ve followed all the above steps, it is time to make a final decision. You have six calendar days from the day you took the LSAT to let LSAC know if you want to cancel your score.  Consider your best- and worst-case scenarios, your past performances (and how you feel the “real” LSAT stacks up to them), the score that you feel you must have, and how your current Score Report looks, and decide. Don’t feel that you must do this immediately upon taking the test. As mentioned above, you have six calendar days to cancel your score, so you have some time. However, don’t put off doing your analysis until the last minute, and make sure that, should you decide to cancel your score, you follow the steps detailed by LSAC to cancel your score.

So, what happens if you’ve decided to cancel your score? The first thing you need to do is notify LSAC. You can do this by completing an LSAT Score Cancellation Form (available here), or by sending a signed fax, or overnighted letter. BE CAREFUL: LSAC does not accept emails or phone calls as “official” cancelation requests, because the request must include your signature.  Valid score cancellation requests must include:

• A statement that you wish to cancel your LSAT score
• Your name, LSAC account number, and last four digits of your Social Security Number
• Your test date, test center number, and test center name
• Your signature

Make sure you carefully read the specific procedures that need to be followed to cancel your score. You can find these on the LSAC.org About Your Score page. If you have any–any–questions about the process or what you need to do, contact LSAC at 215-968-1001. Do not email them and wait for a response–call them.

Commonly-asked questions:

• Will schools be able to see that I cancelled my LSAT score? Yes. Your Law School Report will reflect that the score was cancelled at your request.
• Can I get a refund if I cancel my score? No. LSAC gives no refunds for cancelled scores.
• If I cancel my score, will I still know what I got? No. You will never know how you actually scored on the test.
• Will I still get a copy of the test questions if I cancel my score? It depends. If you took a non-disclosed test (i.e., any February administration, a Sabbath Day Observer administration, or an LSAT administered at a non-published test center), then you will not get a copy of the test questions. However, if you took a disclosed test (i.e., all standard administrations of the June, September/October and December test), then you will get a copy of test questions. However, you will not receive a copy of your answer sheet.
• What happens if LSAC doesn’t cancel my score after I asked them to (in writing, with a signature, on the appropriate form, etc.)? LSAC is very good about notifying students once cancellation requests are processed. They will mail out a confirmation to you once they do so. If you do not receive one within four calendar days after you submit the request, contact LSAC immediately. You will need to submit proof that you sent the request in on time–this is why keeping fax transmittal sheets, USPS/FedEx/UPS delivery confirmations, etc. is very important. If you can’t produce proof that you sent your request at or before the six-calendar-day deadline, LSAC won’t cancel your score.

Score Cancelation resources:

• LSAC.org About Your LSAT Score page
• LSAT Score Cancelation Form
• PowerScore Historical Range of LSAT Scores
• PowerScore LSAT Experimental Section Breakdown

Let’s first start with how LSAC defines “held” scores:

[A] hold will prevent the release of your LSAT score(s) and all LSAT and Credential Assembly Service (CAS) reporting to you and to law schools. If you order publications, shipping delays may also result. If the balance due is not settled, the reporting hold will carry over to subsequent LSAC files.

A hold can be placed on your account for a number of reasons:

Stop Payments/Returned Checks/Credit Card Denial
If your credit card authorization is denied

• a hold will be placed on your file, and
• no further reporting will be possible until you pay the outstanding balance.

A credit card denial will not cancel your registration.
If you stop payment on any check, or if any check is returned

• a hold will be placed on your file,
• a stop-payment charge will be applied to your account, and
• no further reporting will be possible until you pay the outstanding balance plus the stop-payment charge.

So far, it all looks pretty normal: A hold is placed on your account if you have any past-due fees. Pretty standard. However, the students that contacted us didn’t have any outstanding fees. The one thing that they did have in common, though, were unresolved fee waiver applications. In the beginning, this didn’t stand out as a potential cause of the hold. Then we did a little research and found this (hat tip: UMass Amherst Pre-Law Advising Office Blog):

I just received the following from LSAC regarding fee waiver applications for the LSAT and LSDAS [now known as CAS]:

Holds

• The LSAC files of conditionally approved fee waiver applicants or of applicants who appeal a denial decision will be placed on hold pending final approval of the waiver or consideration of the appeal.
• Applicants whose files are on hold will not receive LSAT scores, and law school reports will NOT be sent until review of their tax forms and any applicable documentation is complete.
• If the conditional approval or the appeal is subsequently denied, the applicants will be responsible for the fees associated with the service for which they registered.
• The hold on the file will be removed upon final approval of the fee waiver or receipt of payment.

It turns out that a fee waiver application on which LSAC hasn’t yet made a decision can also put a hold on your account (and thus your scores). This can be a very frustrating thing for students who are both waiting to hear back regarding their fee waiver and wanting to get their scores. If you find yourself in this position, what can you do? You have a couple of options:

1. Wait it out. Once a decision is made on your fee waiver application (be it negative or affirmative) your scores will be made available. The only thing that could put a further hold on them is if you didn’t pay for LSAT fees in the first place, hoping to get a fee waiver. If you have any outstanding fees (LSAT, CAS), they will have to be paid before you can get your scores. PROS: You get a decision on your waiver application and your scores, all at once. CONS: You may have to wait…and wait…and wait. Some students get their score 3 days after everyone else; some students have to wait 3 weeks. LSAC can’t give you a definite timeline, and you are completely at their mercy.
2. Cancel your fee waiver application, get your scores, and then reapply. If you cancel your fee waiver application, your scores are made available within 24 hours (provided all other fees are paid). PROS:You get your scores! HOORAY! The wait is over, and you can finally rest. Except, of course, if you decide you need to take the test again. CONS: You will have to resubmit a fee waiver application, and wait however long it takes to get a decision. Also, because you’ll have to pay all the outstanding fees up front in order to get your scores, if you get approved for a fee waiver you’ll have to apply to get your fees reimbursed (which might also take a while).

Which one you choose is entirely up to you, and how patient you feel you can be. The most obvious “con” to the waiting game is that you may be denied for the fee waiver, have to pay the fees, and also deal with the fact that you waited days or weeks longer than everyone else for the same result.

We recommended that all our students contact LSAC to ask exactly what their options were. If you have a hold on your account and want to contact LSAC, you can do so via phone at 215.968.1001 (press 0 to speak to a representative). They are open Monday through Friday, 8:30 am to 7:00 pm EST (from September to February); Monday through Friday, 8:30 am to 4:45 pm EST (from March to August). Their busiest day is always Monday, so calling on any other day will probably get you help faster.

SOUND OFF: Were your LSAT scores held because of an outstanding fee waiver application? What did you decide to do?

List Of 2011 LSAT Dates

Saturday, February 12, 2011 8:30 AM
Monday, February 14, 2011 (Saturday Sabbath Observers) 8:30 AM

Monday, June 6, 2011 12:30 PM
Sunday, June 26, 2011 (Asia/Australia/New Zealand) 8:30 AM

Saturday, October 1, 2011 8:30 AM
Tuesday, October 4, 2011 (Saturday Sabbath Observers) 8:30 AM

Saturday, December 3, 2011 8:30 AM
Monday, December 5, 2011 (Saturday Sabbath Observers) 8:30 AM

How many times are you allowed to take the LSAT?

Generally, the LSAC allows you to take the LSAT no more than three times in any two year period (even if your scores are cancelled or otherwise unreported). There are select exceptions to this rule: “You may retake the LSAT if a law school to which you are applying requires a more recent score than any you have on record, or approves your retaking the test, and the school provides LSAC with written proof of its requirement no later than the last day of registration for the test.”

How LSAT scores are reported:

LSAC policy is as follows: “LSAC will automatically report the results of all LSATs in your file, including cancellations and absences, since June 1, 2002. The scores are averaged and also appear separately.” (Note: LSAC rounds up when calculating the average score).

Recent change to ABA policy

In 2006, the ABA Section of Legal Education and Admission to the Bar changed its policies, now requiring schools to report the highest LSAT scores of those students who took the test twice or more: “…beginning with the October 2006 Annual Questionnaire, which collects LSAT data on the Fall 2006 entering class, the Questionnaire will seek 75th percentile, median, and 25th percentile LSAT data based on the high score rather than the average score for matriculants who took the test more than once.”

Since schools now report their students’ highest scores to the ABA, the majority of law schools now consider only an applicant’s highest LSAT, although a small number of schools still consider the average of all scores.

Is a significant score increase possible?

We routinely hear this sort of question regarding potential score increases. It is important to understand that the LSAT is not an I.Q. test! Dramatic score increases are possible with proper preparation and the right approach. We routinely see students achieve double-digit score increases after studying the cutting-edge techniques taught in our courses, using real LSAT questions, relayed by an instructor who has scored in the 99th percentile on an actual LSAT (this is the minimum requirement for all of our LSAT instructors).

There are many intricacies to obtaining accommodations while you take the LSAT, not the least of which is making sure your disability is documented and you complete LSAC’s required Accommodations Request Packet well in advance of your test date. Many students find the process a little intimidating and hard to navigate.

With that in mind, LSAC has put together an animated demo walking students through the accommodations request process. This tutorial (found on the Accommodated Testing page of  LSAC.org) provides a step-by-step guide to applying for accommodated testing, and was prepared jointly by LSAC’s Communications and Accommodated Testing staff. Based on the questions that are most often asked, the animated screens walk users through completing the request process.

This is to be a multi-part tutorial. Part one specifically discusses completion of the Candidate and Evaluator Forms. Part two will show additional forms that some candidates use. Additional parts will become available as they are completed.

The tutorial can be found by clicking here: LSAC.org Accommodated Testing Demo.

Additional information on LSAC’s accommodated testing availability and requirements can be found on the Accommodated Testing page of LSAC.org.