The most important event in the application process is the Law School Admissions Test (LSAT), administered by the LSAC. The test is given multiple times per year and can be taken either in person or through remote proctoring. The LSAT is designed to measure skills important for law school success. It includes four sections of multiple choice questions covering three topics: reading comprehension, analytical reasoning, and logical reasoning. (Each LSAT administration includes one unidentified unscored section used to evaluate future test questions.) Test takers are also required to complete an essay designed to demonstrate your persuasive writing skills. 

Schools vary in the importance they attach to the LSAT score, but you should assume that it will be a significant factor in determining the success of your applications. You have the option of taking the LSAT more than once, though law schools differ in how they consider multiple LSAT scores.

Taking the LSAT is not free, but you may qualify for a fee waiver for the LSAT and the Credential Assembly Service if you earn less than 250% of the federal poverty guidelines.

There are things you can do to prepare for the LSAT. Advice for preparing for the LSAT and sample LSAT questions and answer explanations for each of the three topic areas are available on the LSAC website. There are numerous LSAT test preparation books and courses that can assist in studying for the LSAT. The Pre-Law Advising Center has LSAT preparation books available for review on reserve at the UAA Consortium Library under the course “LSAT 101”.

The best thing you can do to prepare for the LSAT is to take multiple practice tests under conditions that as closely as possible simulate the actual administration of the LSAT. Doing this will give you a sense of what your LSAT score range might be, which could affect to which law schools you consider applying. You may find that you need more work in one topic area than others, which in turn can make subsequent studying more efficient and effective. And, it will also, in some small way, help you prepare for the stress of the actual LSAT test.