• For general information on the LSAT and LSDAS see the LSAC Site.  This is a very useful site and you should check it out closely.
• You can apply on-line to take the LSAT. Note: you will need a major credit card to apply on-line..
• On-line applications to the law schools from the LSAC Site are generally preferred.
• You can also subscribe to the LSDAS on-line.  (Credit card required.) This is the data management "service" whereby the Law School Admission Council (they are the ones who administer the LSAT and run the LSDAS) gathers your various transcripts, letters of recommendation, and personal statements and sends them along with a "summary" of your transcripts to the law schools to which you are applying.  The process can be arbitrary, complicated and time-consuming, but it does get the job done.

What can you do about the situation described above? Use it as a learning experience.  If you end up going to law school, you will have to jump through various hoops, some reasonable, some unreasonable, some expensive, some priced more fairly, etc. But you have been hoop-jumping for a few years now.  OK, enough of this tirade....

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

1. When should I take the LSAT?

You should take the LSAT in June between your junior and senior years, assuming that you plan to apply for September admission following your senior year.  If you cannot take it in June, then take it in October of your senior year. This timetable allows you time to take the test again if your score is not acceptable to you.  A June test also allows you to apply for early admission; there is a slight statistical advantage in doing this for schools which have rolling admission procedures.

2. How many times should I take the LSAT?

One, if your score is as high as you can reasonably expect it to be; more, if not.  Law schools will see every score; thus, unlike the SAT, do not take it for practice.  Take it for keeps.  If a school sees a low score and a higher score, that is less helpful than if the school sees one higher score.

3. How do law schools use the scores?  Do they average them if I take the LSAT more than once?

Beginning in 2006, it is rumored that most law schools will use the most recent score. You might want to telephone the admissions office at the law school you are interested in and ask them.

4. If I have a high GPA and do poorly on the LSAT, does this mean that I will not get into law school?

• There seem to be two types of law school admissions processes.  First, there are what might be called the "Whole Person Law Schools" which use the "whole person" approach in assessing an applicant's promise for law study.  Examples are the University of Virginia and the University of Baltimore.  In this approach, the admissions process considers a number of factors --- your GPA, your experiences, your letters of recommendation, your personal statement, etc.  This is an enlightened approach whereby the admissions decision considers a number of factors and in which the LSAT is NOT treated as a rigid mechanism resulting in almost automatic admission or automatic rejection.
• The other approach, used by what might be called the "Reptilian Law Schools" (in the sense that the reptilian part of the homo sapiens brain is associated with univariate, ritualized decision-making), treats the LSAT as the almost sole determinant of the admissions decision.  Not only is this anti-progressive and arguably unfair, but it is also conceivably a predictor of how the student, once admitted, will be treated by the particular school.   Thus, a student with a high GPA (in courses of substance and emphasizing the same types of cognitive skills required in the study of law), unique life experiences, proven abilities in organizational and academic contexts, Pulitzer-winning writing skills, a Nobel prize in physics, a Lenin peace prize,  and three consecutive best seller paperbacks will probably not be admitted if the LSAT score is short of some arbitrary threshold.  Yet, the student with nothing positive to show for his or her first 20 years of existence on this planet and no indication of future contribution will be admitted if he or she meets or exceeds that arbitrary threshold.  You tell me which student body (your first professional colleagues) is the richest in promise! Ritualized decision-making in inherently dysfunctional some percentage of the time.
• How do you know which law school takes which approach with the LSAT?  Ask the admissions offices at the schools.  Ask the Pre-Law Advisor.

5. Should I take a prep course for the LSAT?

• Yes.  Since every score will probably count in some way, you should prepare thoroughly and plan to take the LSAT one time.  (Of course, if you botch it, then take it again, etc.)  Familiarity and practice should maximize your LSAT score.  The best way to obtain the familiarity with the types of questions and the best way to practice under test conditions is to take a prep course.  In the Baltimore area, the LSAT Prep Course offered by UMBC's Continuing Education Department is a proven course which has generated years of positive feedback from past Loyola students.  It is economical as these courses go.  (Compare Kaplan's price tag if you want to.)  See their web site for more information. There is also an excellent course in Columbia, Merlin Learning Center, and their web site has the relevant information.
• If you plan to take a prep course somewhere other than Baltimore, I recommend telephoning a Pre-Law advisor at a college in the area where you will take the course.  Usually the better and more economical courses will be associated with a college or university.
• Sign up for these courses well in advance since the better and noncommercial courses often fill up pretty fast.

6. What do I do if I make a really bad score on the LSAT?

• If you took the LSAT without taking a prep course or without heavy independent preparation, take a prep course and take the LSAT again.
• If you took a prep course and still did not do well on the LSAT, consult the Pre-Law Advisor.
• Note that there is a very general correlation between SAT and LSAT scores.  Thus, if you did not do well on the SAT but nevertheless proved that you have academic aptitude by doing well in college, then chances are decent that the LSAT is not a good predictor for your success in the first year of law school and this should be pointed out clearly and with supporting detail to the law schools' admissions personnel.