#digital lsat

There’s a brave new world of LSAT dates for those students planning to take the test in 2019 or early 2020. Not only are students choosing among more test dates than ever, but they also have the option of taking the exam multiple times and (potentially) in different formats. For an overview, here are the updated LSAT dates for 2019 and 2020:

January 26, 2019, 8:30 am (N) March 30, 2019, 8:30 am (N) June 3, 2019, 12:30 pm July 15, 2019, 12:30 pm (N) (D) September 21, 2019, 8:30 am (D) October 28, 2019, 12:30 pm (N) (D) November 25, 2019, 12:30 pm (D) January, 13, 2020, 12:30 pm (N) (D) February 22, 2020, 8:30 am (N) (D) March 30, 2020, 12:30 pm (N) (D) April 25, 2020, 8:30 am (N) (D)

(N = Nondisclosed; D = Digital)

If you’re feeling unsure (or overwhelmed, or apathetic) about the various LSAT date options, here’s the more detailed look at some of the benefits to each of the above test dates for the upcoming year:

January 26, 2019: It’s the first exam of the year, and the first AM exam. Unlike the February LSAT of years past, people taking January test can be less concerned that their scores will be submitted too late for serious consideration when they use their score as part of their applications for a fall 2019 law school start date. For people retaking the exam in January, it’s also nicer than the old February test, because they’ll have time to restudy over the holidays without having to keep their skills up for an unreasonable amount of time.

March 30, 2019: Speaking of an unreasonable amount of time, the March exam may just be too late for those trying to submit a first LSAT score to law schools for admission the following fall. However, for those waitlisted applicants or any others in the purgatory of waiting on the results of their law school applications, the March exam may be a strong opportunity to demonstrate improvement on the LSAT while you’re waiting to hear back from schools. It also may be your last chance to take the LSAT before getting swamped with undergrad final exams, depending on your school.

June 3, 2019: The perennial “gunner” exam month — the students taking the LSAT in June are most likely planning to take the LSAT and then use that score for applications in the upcoming fall. But since June is far from the last opportunity to take the exam in that application cycle, it can be a chance to take the LSAT, with the option to retake in the coming July, September, October, or November, if necessary. And apart from just the overachiever-types taking summer LSATs, it’s a great time for those who are less busy in the summer than they are during the school year, or of course, folks who just can’t get themselves to wake up before 11 am.

July 15, 2019: Like the June exam, July LSAT takers still have plenty of time, and it may allow students time to focus on the rest of their applications throughout the fall. You also start to see a couple new twists coming into the July exam. Half the test takers in the July test will be randomly selected to take the new digital exam while the other half will be assigned to the traditional pencil-and-paper exam. Also, July test takers will have the option to cancel their score after seeing it (a luxury beyond what any previous LSAT-takers could have conceived when they contemplated cancelling a score).

September 21, 2019: The LSAT’s gone digital! It’s time to embrace the future, because this and every subsequent LSAT is going to be administered on a tablet. This is still a fine time to take the LSAT for people submitting law school applications in the fall. It’s also an opportunity to take the LSAT after a solid summer of studying.

October 28, 2019: Maybe you didn’t feel ready for the September LSAT or it didn’t go as you planned, but the October exam is still here for you, and not necessarily too deep into undergrad semesters to overburden your studying. And for the last time in 2019, you can take the LSAT at 12:30 in the afternoon.

November 25, 2019: In 2019, Thanksgiving is Nov. 28, so taking the LSAT the Monday before could be to your benefit or detriment. Ideally, the timing gives you a break from school or work to rest up and make a final push through your LSAT studies right before the exam. Since 2019 has no December LSAT, this is the last option of the year, but anybody with final exams to worry about in December can happily say good riddance to the old schedule. Deadline to register: October 15, 2019

January, 13, 2020: Unlike the January exam of 2019, this one is going to be on a Monday, will be administered on a tablet, and will start at the dignified afternoon hour of 12:30 pm. But like the January exam of 2019, signing up for this exam will allow you to use your winter break from school or work to study up. And even though you’ll be a little late in the application cycle, you’ll be able to apply to any law school with a January score and potentially start 1L in the fall. Deadline to register: December 3, 2019

February 22, 2020: After taking 2019 off, the February test is coming back strong for 2020. It’s also the first Saturday exam of 2020. If you want to use this test to apply to start law school in fall 2020, you’ll probably be fine — though it never hurts to double check with the school! If, on the other hand, you’re willing to start law school in the fall of 2021, you’ll have plenty of time to get your application materials in order. Deadline to register: January 7, 2020

March 30, 2020: Although some law schools will accept scores from this test administration, we don’t recommend taking the March 2020 LSAT to start law school in the fall of 2020. If — on the other, much more patient, hand — you’re OK with waiting until 2021 to start law school, this might be a good test. Many universities have their spring break the week before this exam, giving you a full week of distraction-free studying before the big test. And really, is there any cooler way to spend your spring break? Deadline to register: February 11, 2020

April 25, 2020: It’s the first April LSAT, ever! And if April showers bring May flowers, on an April test you may score your best. College students taking this test will at least be able to knock the LSAT out before finals week kicks into high gear. Deadline to register: March 10, 2020

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If the above schedule tells you anything, it’s that test takers have a lot of options and opportunities. However, the benefit of any particular test date really comes in when you give yourself some time to plan out your whole law school application cycle and your LSAT prep study schedule. There’s no such thing as an “easier” LSAT; there are only tests you have time to adequately prep for and those where you don’t. Our LSAT classroom and Live Online courses have set schedules to help you prepare for a specific LSAT while, you know, living life. If you need a bit more flexibility you can try a self-paced online course or even private tutoring—it’s like having your own personal LSAT coach! So take a look at your choices as a 2019 or 2020 test taker and make the choice that’s right for you. If you need some extra help, schedule a free LSAT consultation with our Academic Managers! It’s time to bite the bullet and get on the journey to 180!

This article was originally published on November 9, 2018. 

Maybe you’ve heard, but the LSAT is going digital this year. I mean, you’ve probably heard this, right? LSAC has certainly done its due diligence publicizing this change. This blog, for one, has discussed this upcoming change a lot, as have many others. We even have a whole FAQ on this blog, link available to on the top of this page, labeled clearly as “DIGTIAL LSAT FAQ” — unless you’re reading this on your phone, in which case you can access that FAQ by pressing on the three horizontal line segments on the top right-hand corner of your screen.

The point is, there’s a lot of information on the digital LSAT now. If you’re taking the LSAT in 2019, you should know that this year, a test once defined by the graphite powder residue left on answer sheets by your trusty no. 2 wooden pencils will become a test defined by the sequences of 1s and 0s that signal a certain selection was made with a stylus that test administrators leant to you. You should know that the first digital version of the test will be administered in July 2019, but will only be administered to roughly half of the July 2019 test takers. You should know that the LSAT will become permanently digital in September 2019.

And yet, still, many of you don’t know this. Or, you know only in very a general sense that the LSAT is going digital — you know the broad outlines of the change, but haven’t quite nailed down the specifics. Or, worse still, you have certain misconceptions about the forthcoming digital test. I know some of you don’t know about the digital LSAT, because I talk with a lot of people who take the LSAT this year, and I’ve been surprised by the number of you aren’t aware of what we in the LSAT biz consider a “seismic” shift.

I can’t blame you, though. You have a rich and full life — tracking the vicissitudes of a standardized test isn’t high on the old priority list. So you’ve maybe relied on what you’ve heard from your law school-bound peers. And they’re relying on what they’ve heard from some unknown sources, and who knows where those sources got their info. This game of telephone happens for many aspects of the law school admissions process. It’s why the misconception that law schools average multiple LSAT scores persists today, for instance. And I think it’s why so many have missed the memo that the LSAT is going digital, or only got part of that memo, or got a completely misconstrued version of that memo.

So, let’s discuss the LSAT doing digital, once more. And let’s separate the facts from the fiction, to make sure you aren’t left with any misconceptions.

FACT: The LSAT is Going Digital LSAT in July 2019

This is true! As we’ve mentioned before, the LSAT will switch its format in July 2019. In July, all test test takers will be given the same exam, but about half of all test takers will be given that exam in its swanky new digital format. The other half will be given the dull, old paper-and-pencil test. Then, in September 2019 the LSAT is going permanently digital. That test, and every subsequent exam, will only be given in its digital format.

The digital test will be given on Microsoft Surface Go tablets, proudly mounted an adjustable stand LSAC provides. The test software was developed for the LSAT specifically, and will allow test takers to underline or highlight the text (and in multiple colors!), adjust the text size, screen brightness, line spacing, and cetera. Test takers will make their answer choice selections on the tablet, and can jump back and forth between questions at their pleasure. A stylus will be provided by LSAT to help test takers operate the software. A preview of the digital software is available here.

FICTION: The Digital LSAT Will Be Harder/Easier than the Traditional LSAT

The digital LSAT won’t be any different than the current LSAT, other than the fact that you’re using a tablet and stylus, and not a test booklet and pencil. Only the delivery system is changing. LSAC says that the “content and structure” of the LSAT will remain unchanged. So there will still be four scored multiple-choice sections, thiry-five minutes each. There will still be two Logical Reasoning sections, one Reading Comp section, and one Logic Game section, with one unscored “experimental” section thrown in for good measure.

Sure, there will be some changes with the format switch. You won’t have to bubble in your selections on an answer sheet, which will save a little time. You’ll get to quickly access whichever questions you’d like to look at, without having to flip through multiple pages in your test booklet, which might also save a little time. But most of your work will be done on scratch paper, forcing you to look at both your tablet screen and the scratch paper. That may take a little more time than just looking at your work in your test booklet on the old paper exam. In all, we anticipate that these pros and cons of the digital test will just about balance out.

And, by the way, the reason LSAC is making half the July test takers take the traditional paper-and-pencil test is to ensure that the digital test is no easier or more difficult than the traditional test. Essentially, before the permanent digital shift is made, LSAC needs to have a test in which a group of people takes the digital LSAT and another group takes the same exam in its traditional format, to make sure that the scores earned by the two groups aren’t meaningfully different. If the scores earned by the groups are meaningfully different, expect LSAC to make the needed adjustments.

The questions you’ll get on the digital exam will also be the same as the questions that were asked on the traditional exam. So whatever strategies and methodologies you’re studying right now will also help you on the digital exam.

FACT: You’ll Be Given Scratch Paper to Work With

Yep. LSAC, in its beneficence, will give test takers scratch paper. This, believe it or not, was a luxury not afforded to those who took the test in its traditional paper-and-pencil format. Those unlucky souls had to do all of their work in the margins of their test booklet, which was especially difficult when they used to jam the whole Logic Games section onto four pages. But, since digital test takers won’t be able to write with their stylus, LSAC will provide scratch paper and a pen to allow test takers diagram conditional statements, map out logic games, and make notes for Reading Comp.

FICTION: You’ll Get Your Score Back Instantaneously

Unfortunately, no. The interminable period between test day and grey day (AKA score release day) will still remain a roughly three-week affair. For every test, digital or not, LSAC needs to process and analyze test takers’ raw scores in order to scale the exam. That takes time no matter the test format, so it’s still going to take a few weeks to get your score back.

In fact, LSAC has suggested scores for the July 2019 exam may take even longer to come out, since processing and comparing the scores from the two different formats “will take additional time.” Fortunately, those who survive the elongated wait for the July test will get a reward. They get to decide if they want to cancel their score after receiving it. And, those who do decide to cancel their July score will get to retake the test one time, free of charge, for any LSAT administered through April 2020. Some things are worth the wait, apparently.

FACT: The Writing Sample Will No Longer Be on Test Day

This is technically a change that’s occurring with the June 2019 exam, but it’s worth mentioning nonetheless. Instead of having to spend an extra thirty-five minutes in your test center risking carpal tunnel syndrome handwriting your response to the writing sample, you’ll now get to complete the writing sample at home, on your own time, after the exam. Plus, you’ll get to type out your response to the writing sample. Moreover, you only have to do the writing sample once, rather than retake it every time you take the LSAT. It’s a pretty sweet change for 2019.

We are certainly in the final moments of 2018 — if this year were an LSAT, we are solidly in the Writing Sample portion of the exam, which means we’re mostly just phoning it in and thinking about how hard we’re going to party tonight. But before we close the metaphorical test booklet of the year that was two thousand and eighteen, let’s get contemplative. Believe it or not, this LSAT blog has some stuff to say about the LSAT.

Last week, we spilled a lot of digital ink about the LSAT in 2018, paying special attention to what was on the five exams administered over the course of this year. Today, we’re going to cover the things that weren’t on the LSAT. Today, we’ll give a recap of all the LSAT news that came out over 2018.

And this year had more LSAT news than … maybe any year ever? The LSAT will undergo many changes in 2019, and so we spent much of 2018 scrambling to make sense of the myriad announcements LSAC and others made about the forthcoming changes to the test. Some announcements were a big deal, others were minor blips, but all augured changes to the test in 2019. So let’s review all the LSAT news from 2018 that was fit to print … or post. You get the idea. Let’s go!

A July 2018 LSAT is Announced

In a January announcement, LSAC released a selfie.* A coy smile, its partner supportively grasping its shoulder, its hands gently cupping its slightly-more-rotund-than-usual abdomen … we all knew what this photo meant. LSAC was expecting. It was with child.** And in July 2018, LSAC would give birth to this brand new LSAT, bringing the number of LSATs administered this calendar year to five.

*Technically, it released an updated LSAT schedule on Twitter.

**The child in this rapidly devolving metaphor being, of course, a new LSAT.

The Score Release Date Got a Little Less Stressful

The modern LSAT turned 27 this year. But — as anyone who has seen their temples grey and their bodies ripen into a slack, soft mush as they study for an LSAT that is approaching improbably quickly knows — time moves pretty fast when you’re studying for this test. So the LSAT ages, if not quite in dog years, at least much more quickly than we do. So in 2018, the LSAT was really entering a wizened middle age. And as it reached this maturity, the test lost some of that DGAF spunk of its youth, and began to mellow out and make some common sense solutions to issues that have historically plagued test takers.

The first of these changes came via an early March announcement. The LSAC CEO personally addressed test takers, letting them know that LSAC was making the score release process a little less stressful. LSAC used to release test takers’ scores basically whenever it felt like it … usually a week or so before the announced score release. So test takers would spend a few weeks following the exam as an frazzled ball of nerves, constantly checking their emails and LSAC accounts to see if the scores were released early, on a whim. In March, LSAC announced that it would stop doing that, and would instead release the scores on the promised release date. Now, it didn’t do a great job of keeping that promise, at least early on, but this promise was the step in the right direction.

It’s Now Harder to “Accidentally” Cancel Your Score

Another student-friendly change to the test came quickly after that, when LSAC announced that it was “simplifying” its score cancellation policy. Apparently, there were a bunch of test takers out there who weren’t the best at following directions and would accidentally check the box on their test booklets that cancels their score when they actually … whoopsie … didn’t want to cancel their score. LSAC threw these test takers a proverbial bone when it announced that for future exams, test takers would have to cancel their scores using their online account, hopefully limiting those accidental cancellations.

LSAC Made Good After Screwing Up the Score Release/Registration Dates in July and September

Even with all the calendar and scheduling apps available to me, I still screw up my schedule all the time. So I sympathized with LSAC when it too made a scheduling blunder. But I was still pretty mad, on behalf of my students. After opening registration for the brand new July LSAT, we realized that the last day to register for the subsequent September exam was the same day as the July exam. Which meant that if test takers didn’t feel great after the July exam,* they would have at most a couple hours to decide whether they should drop $190** on the September test. And this was after LSAC created a similar scheduling issue for June and July test takers.

But fortunately, LSAC cleaned up this mess. LSAC announced that anyone who signed up for the July and September exams could get a full refund of their registration fee to the September test if they were happy with their July score once that came out (and June test takers who signed up for July could get the same refund if they were satisfied with their June score). As we wrote at the time, “Who says LSAC can’t be nice sometimes?”

*A feeling shared by pretty much all test takers, regardless of the LSAT.

**A fee that was raised in 2018, to add insult to injury.

The LSAT, for Better or Worse, Fended Off Major Challenges from the GRE and GMAT

Why was LSAC being especially cool this year? Did it finally find that special someone? Did it begin talking to a professional? Meditating? Did it adopt a loving pet and start prominently displaying a bumper sticker on its midsized sedan that reads, “Who Rescued Who [sic]?”

Maybe. But a perhaps more like explanation is that LSAC was feeling the pressure from the GRE and GMAT, as more and more law schools announced that they would accept applicants who took those tests in lieu of the LSAT. In fact, for a minute there it looked like the American Bar Association would drop a rule that made the LSAT the default test for law school applicants. But a year of playing nice was apparently enough for the ABA to keep that rule, further entrenching the LSAT as the king of law school admissions exams.

LSAC Got With the Times and Allowed Cell Phones in Some Test Centers

If you’ve taken the LSAT or have perused the incredibly long and complex list of “Test Center Admissions Requirements” on LSAC’s website (both of which I do more than what would be considered to be “healthy” or “normal”), you’ll know that cell phones are strictly verboten in LSAT test centers. Despite the fact that we do almost everything with those devices — including, for many, coordinating our rides to and from the test center — LSAC wants you to leave your phone at home. Or, if you’re using your phone to hail a ride share service to get you home … maybe in a bush near the test center?

LSAC seemed to recognize that this policy inconveniences many test takers. It offered a few September test takers the chance to try out a new cell phone “pilot program,” in which test takers were allowed to bring their cell phones into their test center, provided they turned the phones off and placed them into an LSAC-provided “lockbox” (shout out to Al Gore jokes from the year 2000). We haven’t heard any updates on how this program went, or whether LSAC’ll offer this service to future test takers, so this is a story we’ll track into 2019.

The LSAT Will Officially Go Digital in September 2019

The biggest announcement of them all came at near the end of 2018. After teasing us for years that the LSAT would make the switch from the traditional pencil-and-paper exam to a digital format used by pretty much every other graduate entrance exam … LSAC finally announced that the September 2019 LSAT would be digital.

Since the announcement of the digital test in October, LSAC has filled in some the details on how the switch from analog to digital will go. The digital exams will be given on Microsoft Surface Go tablets, there will be programs to allow test takers to get comfortable with the digital format before next September, and, best of all, the Writing Sample will be administered at home.

The July 2019 Test Will Be a Freebie (Aside from the Sign Up Fee, Of Course)

Finally, there was a bit of weird announcement with respect to the July 2019 test. Technically speaking, it’ll be the first digital LSAT. Except only half of the test takers will be given the test in its digital format. The other half will be given the traditional paper-and-pencil format. And test takers won’t know whether they’re getting the new or old format until test day.

This, apparently, is consistent with “best testing practices,” but it’s also consistent with “no one’s going to sign up for this.” So to sweeten the pot, LSAC announced that it would allow July test takers to get an early preview of their score, and then decide whether they’d like to keep or cancel the score. Which is maybe the most generous thing the typically miserly LSAC has ever done. Here’s to more of these kinds of announcements in 2019.

A test that has been administered on pen and paper for decades goes digital … what could possibly go wrong? Turns out, quite a lot! Test-day horror stories from LSAT takers ever since the big September digital switch have been terrifying: three-hour check in queues, tablets malfunctioning, proctors reading outdated instructions … anything can happen! It just goes to show you that you can’t control what happens on test day, but you can make sure you used the best LSAT prep you can!

Although we don’t want to drive you into a panic just a few days before your test, we want to make sure you are prepared in case something does go wrong.

Without further ado, here’s a list of a few things that could go wrong on test day (and what to do if they do go wrong):

1. Long check-in times: Most people will see the 12:30 start time on their admissions ticket and assume it’s a swift check-in, sit-down, start-testing kind of a situation. Unfortunately, this is sometimes not the case. We have heard horror stories of three-hour lines just to get into the testing room.

What to do about it: Bring something to read while waiting! Maybe try a few easy Logical Reasoning questions and an easy logic game? Make that your reading material is disposable — the proctors will make you throw it out prior to entering the testing room. You could also bring an extra snack to have on hand — getting hunger pains in the middle of the test would not be cute.

2. Tablets don’t arrive to test center on time: This sounds crazy, but it has happened! Here’s an anecdote from an October test taker:

“I showed up to my center about 15 minutes before my 12:30 test. After checking us into the room, my proctor announced that the tablets were 20 minutes away. After 20 minutes, he announced they were a couple of hours away. We finally started the exam just after 4 p.m.”

As awful as this sounds, tablet delays are something that have happened in the past and may happen again.

What to do about it: Go to the bathroom, have an extra snack on hand, try not to stress out. As cheesy as this sounds, meditating helps calm test day nerves. You could also try a very Los Angeles method: “manifesting” a higher score. Don’t think of the delay as an inconvenience, think of it as extra time to get into a high scorer mindset.

3. Proctor reads outdated rules: Although the digital LSAT is fairly new, there have been developments since the launch. Some proctors receive outdated rules which may say things like, “You may not bring your own pencils,” which you absolutely can!

What to do about it: Bring a printed copy of the rules to the test center, which you can find on the LSAC website. This way, you can point out any discrepancies to your proctor.

4. Tablet malfunctions while you are taking the test: Here we have an absolute nightmare situation. Your tablet has a small chance of not working, skipping a ton of questions, or completely shutting down. Your first reaction may be to begin panic mode — we get it, it’s a natural reaction. However, there are other ways to get out of this awful situation!

What to do about it: Notify your proctor immediately! If you are unable to finish your exam, or if you lose significant time, LSAC should know about this. Make sure your proctor puts a note about the situation into your file. Also make sure to send a follow-up email to and/or call LSAC about this. Although it may seem like the end of the world, LSAC should work with you to help you take the test again, hopefully for free.

5. The check-in folks say that you don’t look like the photo on the admissions ticket: Look, with all of the college admissions scandals, it’s the responsibility of the proctors to ensure that everyone is taking their own test. Uploading a current photo seems straightforward, but we’ve heard of too many students trying to upload a “pretty” photo of themselves and end up choosing a photoshopped senior-year-of-HIGH SCHOOL picture. This isn’t a beauty contest, it’s the LSAT. Save the beauty for an Elle Woods-style Harvard video. This doesn’t mean you’re banned from taking the test; it just means you’ll need to prove that you are the person on your ticket.

What to do about it: Bring extra forms of identification. A driver’s license, school ID, passport … anything with your name on it!

6. Your proctor eats pistachios as a snack: I have to throw this absolutely ridiculous personal anecdote in here as a PSA that proctors can be inconsiderate. We’ve heard stories of proctors typing loudly and furiously, spilling coffee everywhere, whispering on the phone, humming, and my personal favorite: my very own proctor, eating pistachios (the world’s loudest and most unnecessary snack).

What to do about it: The truth is, your test center will probably not be completely silent, and you can’t let that affect your performance. (Also, you cannot wear earplugs to the test center.) A long-term solution is to practice studying in public places (coffee shops, libraries, etc). Another great option, if you’re a Blueprint classroom student, is to actually attend the in-person practice exams!

7. Your whole test gets canceled: You show up to the test center with your gallon-sized Ziploc bag, nervously wait with other test takers, and then get told that the test was canceled. Again, this sounds crazy — but it has happened. During the November administration, there were multiple reports of LSAC being under-staffed and proctors failing to show up to test centers. The bad news: it’s not a cruel joke and you actually won’t get to take the test that day. The good news: you’ll eventually take the test.

What to do about it: Email LSAC and await a response. Every report of a canceled test center resulted in students either a) taking the test a week or so later, or b) getting a free retake for a later test administration. Either way, do not freak out! View it as an opportunity to get some extra studying in!

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If you’re freaking out about your test day after reading this — please don’t. For most test takers, the day is very smooth. However, if things do go wrong, you’re not alone. Feel free to vent! No matter how badly you think things went, there’s always a solution, and we’re here to help you!

The end of 2019 fast approaching. If 2019 were an LSAT, we’d have just finished making our frantic, final answer selections in the fifth section, and would now be listening to the proctor drone on about some final instructions before being dismissed. Which is to say that our minds would be drifting away from the LSAT and towards how much we’re going to celebrate finishing the test. But before we let our minds drift away from 2019 and towards our New Year’s Eve celebrations, we thought it’d be appropriate to reflect on all the changes to the LSAT this year brought.

In fact, there were so many changes this year. You could argue that the LSAT changed more this year than it had in its entire twenty-eight-year run since taking its modern form in 1991. The number of LSATs administered in 2019 increased dramatically. The test went digital in July. There was a major change to one of the sections of the test — OK, it was just the Writing section, but still. With so many changes to the LSAT in 2019, let’s take a trip through the year to review just how much this exam changed.

January 2019

Even back in January we knew 2019 would bring a ton of changes to the LSAT, but LSAC threw a curveball at us by announcing that they’d be changing the way the LSAT Writing section was administered. LSAC said it would remove the Writing section from test day in June, allowing test takers to take the section at home, on their own computer.

Later that month, the January LSAT was administered. Although it was one of the “nondisclosed” tests that don’t get released — so we never got an in-depth look at it — we learned a few things about the exam. Most agreed that the Logic Games section was the most difficult, made difficult by some hard-to-parse rules. As it turned out, that would be a recurring theme this year — the games given in 2019 would be a little trickier than usual. Read more about the January 2019 LSAT and test takers’ reactions here:

January 2019 LSAT Instant Reaction January 2019 Post-LSAT Carnival

February 2019

This was an unusually quiet February, LSAT-wise, since the typical February exam was pushed to March in 2019. Scores for the January LSAT were released on Valentine’s Day, of all days … and that was about it. Without much LSAT content to feast on, we honored Valentine’s Day by making some LSAT-themed cards and Valentine’s Day logic games, and honored Presidents’ Day by doing a deep dive our favorite facts about presidents who were lawyers.

March 2019

A lot of LSAT- and law school-related news came out in March. We learned that the students of Southern California law school Western State would not be getting their student loan disbursements, which augured the potential closing of that school (it, in a surprise twist, would get sold to Westcliff University and started classes for enrolled students in August). The 2019-2020 U.S. News & World Report law school rankings dropped. And then the March 2019 LSAT was administered. Like January, it was also the first of its kind. Also like January, it was a nondisclosed test, so we never got an extensive look at it. Based on student murmurs, it seemed like the game about the improbably named towns of Quandaryville and Pleasantville was the most difficult part of the test. Read more here:

March 2019 LSAT Instant Reaction March 2019 Post-LSAT Carnival

April 2019

April didn’t exactly shower us with LSAT or law school news. Scores were released for the March exam … and that was about it. We were all excited for the Game of Thrones premiere, so we wrote about LSAT lessons learned from that series. Say what you will about that series’s wet fart of a final season, but at least we got some pearls of wisdom and LSAT content out of it.

May 2019

With switch to the digital LSAT looming, LSAC put some free practice exams in the digital format on its website. We weren’t terribly impressed with the initial interface, though LSAC did eventually make some changes to make it more user friendly. We also did our part to prepare students for the digital LSAT by distinguishing the facts from the fictions about the format change and giving some advice on how to do the online version of the LSAT Writing section.

June 2019

June — which marks the technical beginning of the non-Gregorian LSAT “year” (running from June 1 to May 31, according to LSAC) — saw the first major changes to the LSAT in 2019. For the June test, LSAC officially removed the LSAT Writing section from test day, allowing June test takers to do the section at the time of their choice from the comfort of their homes. When that change came, we tried out the new version of the Writing section, and gave it a very positive review.

If you still have to complete the Writing section, one tip: follow the directions of the security portion of the exam very carefully. After speaking with many test takers, the biggest issue they had with the new version of the exam is getting their LSAT Writing response rejected because there was some “testing irregularity” — read: they didn’t follow the directions entirely. Now, we really doubt that anyone is trying to cheat on the unscored Writing section. Still, for whatever reason, there are a ton of hoops and ladders you’ll have to jump through to do the at-home-version of the section. It’s not a big deal if you get your response is rejected — you’ll just have to do the Writing section again. But to avoid that hassle, make sure to follow all the directions as closely as you can.

The June LSAT was also the last paper-and-pencil version of the test, so technophobic pre-law students signed up in droves to take it. The June exam was administered on the third of the month and, despite having one more question than most LSATs, was generally considered to be a “fair” test, although many complained that the Reading Comprehension section was quite difficult. Fortunately for us, June exams are “disclosed,” so a copy of the test was made public once the scores were released. After we took a look at the June exam, we agreed that the Reading Comp was quite frustrating. Read more about that exam here:

June 2019 LSAT Instant Reaction An In-Depth Look at the June 2019 LSAT

With the unveiling of the digital LSAT in July, we also spent some time preparing our readers for that format switch. We discussed how to get prepared for the digital test, and how to do Reading Comp on the digital test, since marking up the passage with a pencil was no longer possible.

July 2019

July is when things got really crazy for the LSAT. The July LSAT, based on announcements made in 2018, was going to be a totally unique test administration. For one, it would be the test day that LSAC finally unveiled the digital test. However, LSAC would only be administering the digital test to about half of people taking the test. The other half would be given the traditional paper-and-pencil test. And test takers wouldn’t know which version of the test they were getting until test day. This was done so LSAC could conduct a comparative study on the two versions of the test, to make sure that test takers weren’t performing dramatically better on one version of the test. As a reward for being human guinea pigs in LSAC’s studies, July test takers got an unprecedented perk — they could elect to cancel their scores after seeing their score and retake the test for free. Perhaps unsurprisingly, about half of all July test takers took LSAC up on that offer.

The administration of the digital LSAT went, on balance, fairly smoothly. However, there were definitely a few reported hiccups. Many test takers noted that they found it difficult to see their screens clearly under the glare of overhead lights. Many also claimed that the provided stylus made it slightly cumbersome to highlight or underline text or select answer choices. Several test centers experienced significant delays as proctors worked to make the tablets functional. And there were a couple of test centers that had to cancel the test altogether. These issues would, unfortunately, be a recurring theme at test administrations for the rest of the year.

As for the July test itself, most agreed that it was a fairly difficult exam, with a few brutal passages and some very tough games. Read more about the July exam here:

July 2019 LSAT Instant Reaction

August 2019

With all the madness June and July wrought, August was a calmer month for LSAT and law school news. We finally got all the data about last year’s law school admissions cycle, which we summarized here (and will also summarize here: the number of applicants are up overall, but the number of applicants with good LSAT scores has remained steady or even decreased for certain score bands, so having a great LSAT score is still a huge competitive advantage). And in preparation for the first all-digital LSAT in September, we made a comprehensive guide on digital LSAT strategies and updated our test center review page.

And on August 28th, scores from the July exam were finally released. As we discussed above, almost half of all July test takers canceled their score.

September 2019

The LSAT became fully digital in September. Unless you were taking the exam outside of the U.S. and Canada or had special testing accommodations, you were taking the September exam on a tablet. And that’s how the LSATs would work for all subsequent tests, including the October and November tests held later in 2019. People who took the September test had some thoughts on how the newly digital test went. As on the July exam, most reports on the digital test were positive. It seems like most test takers prefer the digital test to the paper-and-pencil version, unless there’s a significant delay in starting the exam or malfunctioning hardware. Unfortunately, there continued to be a number of test takers who reported significant delays or malfunctioning hardware.

As for the content of the September test … it was a hard one. After the exam, test takers expressed a lot of frustration about the difficulty of the games and passages, with the most ire reserved for the so-called “flower game.” Since the September test was disclosed, we got to take a look at the test. And we agreed. It was definitely a hard one (though the difficulty of the “flower game,” we felt, was maybe a bit overstated). Anyway, read more about the September exam and test taker reactions here:

September 2019 LSAT Instant Reaction September 2019 Post-LSAT Carnival An In-Depth Look at the September 2019 LSAT

October 2019

In October, we got what was probably the most unexpected news about the LSAT of the year: the Logic Games section will maybe, one day, disappear. LSAC reached a settlement with a few blind test takers and, according to the statement released by those test takers’ attorney, the Logic Games section would be removed from the test within the next five years. However, according to LSAC’s statement on the matter, they promised only to research alternatives to the Logic Games section during the next five years. So who knows when or how that section is going to change. But this news was still shocking enough to make our resident LSAT nerd write an impassioned defense of logic games.

Outside of that news, the October LSAT came and went. The October test was another nondisclosed test, but according to test takers, it was another fairly difficult test. An unfortunate trend of 2019! Read more about the October exam here:

October 2019 LSAT Instant Reaction October 2019 Post-LSAT Carnival

November 2019

LSAC saw it fit to make one more change to the test in November. It made the surprise announcement that it would now release an applicant’s LSAT score to law schools before that applicant completed the at-home Writing section of that test. We noted how this shouldn’t change your approach to completing the Writing section or applying to law school, but this was still one last change to a test that got so thoroughly changed in 2019.

In addition to that announcement, there was the November LSAT, the last test of the calendar year 2019. Overall, the Logical Reasoning questions, Reading Comp passages, and logic games on the November test weren’t quite as difficult as those on the June or September tests. However, we felt the “curve” for November test was somewhat ungenerous. And, most concerningly, there were a lot of test center disasters for the November exam. Many test centers could not hold the LSAT as planned, so LSAT had to offer a make-up exam to affected test takers on December 8th. Read more about the November test here:

November 2019 LSAT Instant Reaction November 2019 Post-LSAT Carnival An In-Depth Look at the November 2019 LSAT

December 2019

After so many changes, surprise announcements, and trends to monitor throughout 2019, December has been a relatively quiet month. Though I suppose I shouldn’t speak so hastily — there are still two days left for LSAC to announce that the LSAT is now going back to the paper-and-pencil version of the exam, or it’s now going to be a dance recital, or that it’s going to merge with the GRE to form a super test. But, even if those final changes do not come to pass, 2019 has been a wild ride for those of us who have to take or teach the LSAT. Nevertheless, it’s been a pleasure being on this ride with you. We wish you a safe and happy New Year. All the LSAT News from 2018

Let us guess which LSAT concepts have you been tackling lately? Perhaps you dedicated last week to nailing down logical fallacies? Maybe you were suddenly inspired to start doing circul — uh, challenging, logic games? Let’s just admit it: logic games can be a lot of fun!

Ok, now let us guess what you didn’t study: Reading Comprehension.

Reading Comprehension is a section that test takers tend to avoid. Generally, they score the highest on Reading Comprehension when they take their first diagnostic exam. Feeling humbled by the Logical Reasoning section, and excited to learn the methods behind the games, Reading Comprehension ends up getting neglected. If I’ve caught you — ahem — read-handed, do not worry! We can still change those bad habits.

Here’s why you shouldn’t avoid studying for Reading Comprehension:

1. The RC section has become increasingly more difficult in recent years

If you are practicing with earlier tests, you may have noticed that the RC passages and questions seem easier. You are not wrong! Throughout the years, the test writers have become clever with how to tempt students with wrong answer choices. Don’t fall for their trap!

2. Old habits die hard

When learning logic games, you are generally learning a whole new skill set. When learning something for the first time, you have the opportunity to learn it the right way. Most of us have been reading for as long as we can remember. Most of us got through college by relying on a quick skim of the reading, perhaps accompanied by a life-saving Spark Notes summary. Some people like to take their sweet time with reading. (What’s the last book you read for pleasure?) Whether you know it or not, you probably have already developed a reading style. It can be difficult to change that. But neither a quick skim nor a leisurely stroll is the best way to read an RC passage. By practicing a ton of Reading Comp passages, you can modify that style to succeed on the LSAT.

3. The digital LSAT

If you have not yet acquainted yourself with the cutting-edge digital LSAT, we suggest you head on over to LSAC’s website and familiarize yourself with it. If you’re a Blueprint student, then you already get to take your practice tests digitally (and if you’re not a BP student, then let’s change that). The Reading Comprehension section, in particular, has quite a few nuances that you may want to check out! How else would you know that “Passage Only” is an option? What about the 3 different colors of highlighter? By practicing Reading Comprehension sections on a digital format, you give yourself the opportunity to make test day that much easier.

Ok, you get it, studying for the RC is important. But … what if studying for RC is so boring that it’s painful? You’ve just started having fun with LR. Games are your new Sudoku. Reading Comp? Ugh. Get me out of here. No worries; we’ve thought of that unfortunate, “boring,” aspect of RC studying. Now that we’ve told you why it’s important to study, here are some tips to make studying for the Reading Comprehension more fun:

1. Read the passages in a foreign accent

This seems silly, but it can actually be a lot of fun! Especially on antithesis passages! Make one of your speakers super posh and British; the other speaker can be from the South! The possibilities are endless.

2. Make predictions as you read the passage

If you find yourself staring at a page rather than reading, you are not alone! Here’s how to help with that: pause as you read! We get it, the 35-minute timer is right there in front of you; however, pausing to make predictions while reading can actually help with your timing later on. If the passage is posing a question, why don’t you try predicting an answer? If you’re proven right: great! If you’re proven wrong: even more reason to continue reading! After reading a ton of these passages, you’ll be able to guess where the author is going most of the time. And what’s more fun than feeling smarter than the passage?

3. Pick up new fun facts

We at Blueprint are a joy to have at parties. Thanks to our trust friend, RC, we know a little bit about pretty much every topic from neutrinos to the cake walk. You, too, can be the life of any party by picking up super cool fun-facts from RC passages. It’s a win-win situation: study for the LSAT to improve your score AND improve your social life with your new knowledge!

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Don’t run off to study Reading Comp too quickly! We wouldn’t be Blueprint without testing your RC skills after reading this post! Quick; what is the main point of this post?!

We hope you’ve figured out that our main point is that studying Reading Comprehension is both important and can be fun! Ok, now you can get to productive days of RC practice!

G’morning, law nerds. Today we’re going to take a step back from our future profession’s reputation as traditionalist and small-c conservative and talk about technology. 🤖📱💾

Since the introduction of the digital LSAT in June, the test has gotten a lot more technologically advanced than it used to be. Which means that it’s time to take LSAT prep online, kicking and screaming, into the twenty-first century. But what am I saying — you’re here, on a blog, looking for LSAT advice. You know that ye olde World Wide Web can be used to help in your LSAT journey. But since you’re already here, let’s get systematic about it.

How to incorporate technology into your study habits: A brief, annotated list

1. Learn the digital format. Love the digital format. Practice the digital format

LSAC’s website lets users look at the general format of a question, in tutorials, and try it out with a few recent practice exams.There’s obvious value in getting comfortable with the look and feel of the exam — if you know ahead of time how to mark questions to review later and the quirks of formatting the Reading Comp passages, you won’t have to worry about figuring them out on test day itself. There’s enough things to worry about on test day itself — you don’t need to stress about how to un-highlight a sentence that isn’t as key as it seemed at first glance.

Once you learn your way around the mechanics of the digital format, then you can start digging into the long process of practice. The more practice you do using the actual constraints of the test, the better adjusted you’ll be on test day itself.Resources like Blueprint’s own collection of old LSAT questions let you routinely work through practice that will look like the digital exam.

2. Spreadsheets, spreadsheets, spreadsheets

Practice is the best way to improve your LSAT score, plain and simple. But how you practice matters, too. As a tutor, I always recommend that students keep some spreadsheet records of practice sections. Noting down …

• Prep test number • Number of question(s) missed per section • Type of question(s) missed per section • A quick note to yourself about where you went wrong with each question

.. will help make sure that you’re focusing your energies in the places where you need the most help. Some cold, hard numbers will make it impossible to miss that you’re struggling with Strengthen questions, or that you’ve managed to forget the same common fallacy four times in the last two weeks.

Nobody likes staring their weaknesses in the face. But for all that it sucks to stare right in the face of your own failings, there’s some reassurance to be had in knowing, numerically, where you can see the most improvement. Plus, it gives you someplace to start your daily studying — wherever you missed the most questions on your most recent practice.

3. Use your phone

You’ve got a busy life. We’re all on the go. So why not use some of the downtime that you’d usually kill on Twitter for doing a bit of self-study. There are dozens of apps that you can use to create flashcards or small quizzes. Having a ready-to-go list of indicators of necessary vs. sufficient conditions can be a great way to brush up on conditional statements without needing to devote an entire sit-down session to studying.

4. Crowd-source some wisdom

Don’t be afraid to ask the internet for a little bit of help. If you’ve hit a snag on a particular logic game — say, you can’t figure out how to pick which or how many scenarios to set up — you can always query Dr. Google. Decades of students worrying about the LSAT means that there’s a wealth of information to be found about how other people set up problems or picked through answers. Obviously, you’re going to want to go in with a reasonable amount of caution … superlegitlsatprep.notascam.biz is probably going to be a bit more questionable than something like, say, this very blog. But there’s no reason why you can’t benefit from the hard-won work done by others before you. LSAT prep is a journey, but you don’t have to go alone.

We tried out the new version of the LSAT Writing. And we’re using the format of LSAT Writing to review it.

A nonprofit organization known as the Law School Admissions Council (LSAC) is tasked with facilitating the law school admissions process, in part, by administering the Law School Admissions Test (LSAT). LSAC is considering changing part of the LSAT known as “LSAT Writing.” LSAT can either return to the former version of the LSAT Writing section, in which test takers handwrite a short essay at the end of the scored, multiple-choice sections of the exam, or continue to use their recently adopted new version of LSAT Writing, in which test takers write a short essay on a personal computer, anytime within a year following their completion of the scored, multiple-choice sections of the exam.* Using the facts below, write an essay in which you argue for one option over the other based on the following two criteria:

     • LSAC wants optimize the overall test experience for test takers      • LSAC wants to provide law school admissions offices with an accurate appraisal of test takers’ writing skills under timed, law school exam-like conditions

Under the old format of the LSAT Writing section, students would write their essays after finishing five multiple choice sections, each lasting thirty-five minutes. These scored, multiple-choice sections — variously referred to as “difficult,” “soul-crushing,” and “my personal seventh layer of hell dear God what did I get myself into?” — would typically tire test takers considerably before writing their responses. In this version of LSAT Writing, students would also be required to handwrite their responses, using a no. 2 wooden pencil, in a test booklet provided by LSAC. The test takers would be given thirty-five minutes to write short persuasive essays, based on a prompt. The same proctors who monitored the multiple choice sections of the exam would monitor the LSAT Writing portion; these proctors would attempt to minimize any instances of cheating or “testing irregularities.” Test takers could use all thirty-five minutes to complete their responses, though most test takers would complete their responses in roughly half the provided time. However, test takers could not leave their test center until all thirty-five minutes had elapsed. Additionally, although law schools admissions offices would typically only review the most recent LSAT Writing responses on file, those who were retaking the LSAT would have to complete the LSAT Writing section each time they stood for the test.

With the recently adopted format of the LSAT Writing section, test takers are provided access to digital testing software when they sign up for the exam. The test takers are given instructions on how to install the software and complete the LSAT Writing section, which they may do anytime, on any webcam- and microphone-equipped personal computer, within a year of taking the multiple-choice sections of the exam. The installation process for the testing software has been described as “user-friendly.” The software itself allows students to type their responses to LSAT Writing prompt; the software also includes features such as spell-check and text bolding and italicization. Because the LSAT Writing section is no longer administered during the proctored multiple-choice sections of the LSAT, the testing software includes extensive features to ensure testing security. The testing software accesses the webcam and microphone on the test takers’ personal computers, and records audio and visuals of test takers as they complete the LSAT Writing portion. Test takers must also use the webcam to show the entire site at which they are taking the test, to make clear that there are no prohibited items anywhere on site. These recordings can be reviewed later by a proctor. Test takers are still given thirty-five minutes to complete their responses; however, test takers can submit their responses and close the application early, if they finish before the thirty-five minutes elapse. Finally, test takers are only required to have one LSAT Writing response, completed within the last five years, on file. Those who retake the multiple-choice portions of the exam are no longer required to retake the LSAT Writing portion of the test.

Test Taker No. 130387 Response:

“Having just taken the recently adopted LSAT Writing section, I believe that LSAC would be well-advised to keep the new digital version of the section, which is much preferable to the traditional version that was administered at the test center after the multiple-choice sections of the exam. The recently adopted digital version of the LSAT Writing section provides a better test experience and will provide law schools with a more accurate appraisal of applicants’ writing abilities under timed, test-like conditions.

“Compared to the traditional, handwritten version of the LSAT Writing section, the new digital version of the section significantly improves test takers’ experience. With the old version of LSAT Writing section, test takers would be forced to write an essay after they completed five difficult multiple-choice sections. These would leave test takers drained — mentally, emotionally, existentially. Requiring test takers to write a brief persuasive essay after these five multiple-choice sections made the writing process significantly more burdensome. Further, because these responses would be handwritten, the old version of the LSAT Writing section would overstress the transverse carpal ligaments in a test taker’s writing hand, adding a physical toll to the LSAT. On the other hand, the new version of LSAT Writing can be taken at any time, when the test taker feels motivated and energized. The test taker may also take the test from their comfort of their own homes, wearing — hypothetically — only the amount of clothing required not to offend any proctor who might review the recording of the exam. Further, the ability to type the responses makes the writing process itself less physically taxing. Features of the software, such as spell-check, also help ensure that the test takers can feel proud of their responses. Additionally, test takers who finish their responses early may submit their responses upon completion, allowing the process to take as little as ten or fifteen minutes. The installation process of this software, which takes only a few minutes and approximately 201 MB of hard drive space, is easy. Finally, while the security measures of the digital testing software feel slightly draconian (especially the virtual “tour” of the test site), they pale in comparison to the extensive check-in process and occasionally overzealous proctoring of the multiple-choice portions of the exam.

“Additionally, the new digital version of LSAT Writing likely provides law schools with a more accurate appraisal of applicants’ writing skills under law school exam-like conditions. Although law school exams are long and arduous affairs, these exams are not given *after* another longer and more arduous exam. In this way, the recently adopted digital version of LSAT Writing better mimics the conditions of an actual law school exam. Further, most law school exams are administered using testing software that is very similar to the digital version of LSAT Writing section. The software used in most law school exams also allow test takers to type their responses and provide tools like spell-check. Compared to the old version of the LSAT Writing, the new digital version better conforms to the format and conditions of a law school exam, and thus provides law schools with a better insight into test takers’ writing abilities under such conditions.

“In summation, the recently adopted digital version of the LSAT Writing provides a better testing experience for test takers and a more accurate depiction of applicants’ writing abilities under test-like conditions. LSAC should therefore keep the recently adopted version.”

*Ed. Note: You probably figured this out, but just to be clear — LSAC isn’t actually thinking about going back to the old version of LSAT Writing. They, by any and all accounts, are sticking to the new digital version, thankfully.