Summary

A former admissions officer at Stanford Law helps you understand how the LSAT fits into your law school application.

Why the LSAT Matters

Hi, I'm Drake, a former admissions officer at Stanford Law.

When you're studying for the LSAT, it's important to get lost in all that juicy minutiae. Whether “many” implies “most.” The difference between “not lower” and “higher.” But I'm here to help you take a step back before diving completely in. Why are you taking the LSAT?

The answer, of course, is to go to law school. And, as you're studying, you should keep that broader context in mind.

The LSAT is one essential part of the story you're telling to an admissions office. It's your way of saying, "Hey, look, I'm really smart. I'm going to thrive in law school, smack the bar exam right out of the testing room, and be the kind of detail-oriented, ultra-logical lawyer that will make your school proud.”

But telling the best story with your LSAT requires more than just slamming your head against test after test. How do you know when you're ready to take your first LSAT? What's better, submitting an application with a good LSAT in September, or waiting until December to try for your absolute best? And if you flub a test, should you cancel it, or keep the lower score to show improvement later? Does taking the LSAT again and again show dedication, or desperation?

Some answers are easy. In general, you should almost always keep your first LSAT score, even if it’s well below what you want it to be—officers will assume a ‘cancel’ means a low score anyway, and you don’t want to be caught without an LSAT on record if your circumstances change. You can take the test up to five times, but—all else being equal—three attempts or less is a better look.

Some answers require careful consideration of your specific situation. Should you write an addendum explaining a low score? Maybe. You need to carefully consider how your explanation would impact the truly important thing: my impression of your overall story and the kind of person you are.

And there are some tricky nuances. Let’s say your heart is set on going to UVA. Great, suppose the LSAT median for last year’s incoming class was a 171. You take the LSAT and get a 172. Wonderful. But, hey, you were averaging a 175 on your most recent practice tests. It’s August, there’s plenty of time. Why not take the LSAT again and show the admissions committee your full power? Well, if I was reading applications for UVA, that move might convince me that you consider UVA just a safety school. I know that our US News Ranking is affected by our yield—the percentage of admitted students who attend. So what do I do? I waitlist you – I don’t want to admit people I don’t think will actually come.

In fact, the nuances of a 175 versus a 180 actually matter a lot less to a school than you’d think. Our goal isn’t to admit people with the highest scores possible. What we care about is the median LSAT score of our incoming class, not the average – and a median, any first year-stats student can tell you, is a lot different than an average.

How do LSAT medians work?

I know you know that a median is different from an average, but take a moment to internalize it. At the beginning of an admissions cycle, before any of you have even applied, a law school dean picks a number. She tells the admissions officers, “Look, when next year’s class comes marching in next fall, I’m going to line all of them up by their LSAT score. And then I’m going to point to the person in the middle of that line. I don’t care how many 180s we have. I don’t care how many 140s we have. The only thing I care about is that the person I’m pointing to, the one in the exact middle, has at least a 171.” If they manage this, great. But if that middle person only has a 170, U.S. News’s calculation of their ranking goes down, students on the fence might choose a different school, alumni complain, and – before you know it – the larger university is giving the law school trouble.

So what does this mean? It means that you’re studying for the LSAT so your goal schools can look at you and think, “Great – they’re going to be in the right half of that line.” So find your dream school, find the LSAT median from last year, and add a point to be safe. In an ideal world, that’s your goal score.

The Four Buckets

Law Schools play the same game with GPA medians – but if you’re already out of school, your score is locked in.

But, remember, half the class is always going to be at or below each median. Really, admissions offices think in terms of four buckets:

There’s the gold bucket, people at or above both the LSAT and GPA medians. The two silver buckets, one for people above the LSAT median, but below the GPA median, and one for the opposite – above the GPA median but below the LSAT median. (We call these the ‘splitters’ and ‘reverse-splitters’). And then there’s the scrappy bronze bucket—for those who are below both.

The thing is, a law school admits people from all four buckets. We also deny people from all four buckets. To greatly simplify it, for every person from the bronze bucket, we need to balance them out with someone from the gold bucket. For every splitter, we need a reverse-splitter. And if I’m at an elite school, I know that all of my buckets are overflowing.

So your numbers aren’t the things that get you in – they determine who your competition is – and what questions we’re asking. If you’re in that lovely gold bucket, I’m asking: Are you more than just your numbers? If I admit you, will you come? How many scholarships do I need to tempt you with? If you’re a splitter, I’m asking: So you’re good at tests, what went wrong in undergrad? How have you proven yourself, other than on the LSAT? And when I’m reading files in the bronze bucket, I’m looking for those applicants that I really, really love – the people who will offer tons of other things to the school.

Beyond the LSAT

In all of these cases, it’s your overall story that’s going to determine my decision. What are your hopes and dreams? Do I believe in your hopes and dreams? Do you think being a lawyer is like being on Law & Order, or do you know what you’re getting into? Are you intellectually well-rounded? Would you make not only a good lawyer, but a good peer, colleague, and friend?

7Sage offers extensive resources for answering these questions. Many of these, you already have access to, including much of our admissions course.

And the 7Sage Admissions Committee -- made up of former admissions officers from Yale, Stanford, Columbia, UVA, Berkeley, and beyond -- is constantly studying evolving admissions trends and reporting its findings on our admissions blog, podcasts, and AMAs. Every year, we put our cycle forecast – our prediction for how competitive we think the year will be and how the priorities of schools are evolving in response to national trends– along with our updated advice about how you can avoid new cliches and stay ahead of the curve.

Law schools categorize applicants into four "buckets" based on the schools’ target LSAT and GPA medians for their entering class:

1: Above both LSAT and GPA medians
2: Above the LSAT median, but below the GPA median
3: Above the GPA median, but below the LSAT median
4: Below both LSAT and GPA medians

Schools admit and deny students from all four buckets, balancing their class composition. Your stats don't guarantee admission, although they’re important for most applicants. Ultimately, your complete narrative – your goals, motivations, and fit as a future lawyer and classmate – determines admission decisions across all buckets.