Categories: Law School Admission Deadlines, LSAT, Rolling Admissions
Tags: Applying to Law School with a December LSAT score, December LSAT
 17 Comments »
We’re two weeks away from the December LSAT. This is make it or break it time. If you aren’t hitting in the range where you need to be hitting, you might want to consider waiting and taking the February or June LSAT and applying early in the next admission cycle rather than late in this one with a score you’re unhappy with. As I write more extensively about in The Law School Admission Game, February is a less than ideal time to take the LSAT for admission the same year. Of course, applications are down overall this year so it is less lethal this year than in others, but only for those who have scores that schools will find competitive. It’s not the way to get into a reach school.
For those of you who take the December LSAT, here’s how you should plan out your time in the next 6 weeks:
In late November: make sure transcripts and letters of rec are on their way (hopefully received) by LSAC/CAS.
December 3: LSAT
December 4-25: work on and finalize your personal statement, resume, optional essays and addenda (just not an LSAT addendum because you can’t explain your LSAT history without knowing your most recent score).
Late December: once you have your score, finalize your schools list and start filling out applications. There is no rush over winter break: law schools are closed and no one is moving your file around to review it.
Early January: submit applications. Aim to be done in the first two weeks of January.
This is absolutely a strategy for success – people get into amazing law schools on this timeline, so don’t panic. This post should put you at ease about your decision to take the December LSAT if you are confident you can raise your score (or if you need a score on the board, of course). Let me know if you have any questions.
Categories: Advice, Law School Admission Deadlines, Law School Admission Trends, Low LSAT, LSAT, LSAT Prep, LSAT; Rolling Admissions
Tags: December LSAT, Low LSAT, LSAT Scores, October LSAT score
26 Comments »
LSAT scores came out. Let the panic begin. Right now you’re exhausted, scouring the Internet for anything, ready to grasp the smallest, least credible piece of advice that tells you that your very low LSAT score WILL get you into the school of your dreams.
What is my advice? Sleep on it. Then, when you wake up, read these posts:
Before You Re-take the LSAT
The Post-LSAT Blues (by me, but on USNews.com)
Should You Re-Take the LSAT in December? (by me)
Should You Re-Take the LSAT in December (by MSS blog)
But to answer the easy questions:
1. NO – December is NOT too late to apply for Fall 2012 admission. Why? Because you will still be able to submit apps in early January. Because you’re better off having a higher LSAT score and applying in January than applying now with a lower LSAT score. Because applications are down 10% and this can only help you.
2. NO – You can’t significantly improve your practice exam scores in 5 weeks. If you suck at standardized tests, you’re not going to be able to teach yourself the test. To get a different result, you need to take different actions.
Happy to take questions! And would love your feedback on the new book, The Law School Decision Game:A Playbook for Prospective Lawyers.
Ann
Categories: Uncategorized
Tags: Application Timeline, December LSAT
16 Comments »
Tomorrow (Monday) I will be sharing 15 minutes of wisdom about applying to law school in the next 4-6 weeks if you just took the December LSAT. Please join in and feel free to listen, call in with questions or chat questions during the live program. The Blog Talk Radio Show will air at 1 p.m. EST/ 10 a.m. PST. If you can’t make the live event (from your computer or phone) you will be able to listen anytime later or to download it at iTunes (look for Blog Talk Radio: Ann Levine at iTunes for a list of all of my podcasts).
Categories: Uncategorized
Tags: December LSAT, LSAT
4 Comments »
For those of you gearing up for the December LSAT, listening to my podcast/Blog Talk Radio show “Last Minute Tips for LSAT Takers” is the best 45 minutes you’ll spend this week.
Click here to listen to the Blog Talk Radio Show while online or download it at iTunes as a podcast under the name “Law School Expert.”
Next week, it’s time to get started on the application materials – but for now, it’s all about getting yourself in the right mental state to take the LSAT and do your best on it. This week is not about learning anything new or increasing your score, it’s about keeping yourself calm, collected, and ready to prove what you can do.
Good luck!
Categories: LSAT, LSAT; Rolling Admissions
Tags: December LSAT, LSAT, Rolling Admissions, September LSAT
4 Comments »
I received this e-mail from a blog reader:
Hi Ann, I have read your blog and numerous discussion boards that say a December LSAT score puts me at a disadvantage in the admission cycle. I do not feel ready for the September test but I would like to know if I can send in my application before I get the score? I am 27 with a GPA below 3.0. I would appreciate your insight and advice. – TG
I want to start by thanking TG for agreeing to allow me to respond to this question for the benefit of all of my readers. Any disadvantage of applying later is more than made up by getting an LSAT score a few points higher than you would’ve gotten on the September LSAT. I am a huge proponent of rolling admissions, but a better LSAT score is ALWAYS better. You can still submit applications by early January when schools are up and running again after the holidays. Postponing the September LSAT until December is NOT the worst idea in the world. See this post from last year: Not Hitting Your Goal LSAT Score?
As far as applying earlier goes, your applications cannot be reviewed without your LSAT score. They’ll just sit in the office waiting for that score report. If you absolutely know where you’re applying (say, if you’re staying close to home and there are only a few schools nearby) then submit your applications in early December so the schools can gather the reports from LSDAS, etc. But in September, October and November I’d rather see you concentrating on the LSAT than on your application materials – assuming you have limited time to spend on the business of applying to law school.
The following is a brief excerpt from my book, “The Law School Admission Game: Play Like an Expert“ addresses the issue of how to know if you should go ahead and take September or wait until December:
How do you know if you’re really ready for the LSAT? If you don’t feel ready to take the LSAT, your instinct is probably right. You have a few options. You could take the test and if your score is halfway decent, you can apply. This is a poor strategy that usually goes worse than you expected and becomes something you have to later explain on your applications. Plus, it’s a huge ego-deflater to see a low score. Make sure to take many timed practice tests with five sections. It’s an endurance test and a speed test, so you must practice under these conditions. Practice in distracting conditions, not in ideal ones. It is better to take a test in a noisy coffee shop than in the silence and ideal environment of a library carrel of the 7th floor of your campus library.
TG, I hope this helps you and everyone else wondering exactly the same thing. As always, I welcome comments, feedback and questions.
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Ann K. Levine, Esq., former director of law school admissions for two ABA approved law schools, is a law school admission consultant and owner of Law School Expert,
