Updated November 18, 2024
How to Get Into Top Law Schools With a Low LSAT Score
You probably already know this, but the median LSAT score for full-time and part-time students is about 157. But this isn’t true at the most competitive law schools. Those at the top of the U.S. News law school rankings list have a median LSAT score of about 172.
So as you probably expect, most students at the top three law schools have LSAT scores somewhere in the stratosphere. But roughly 25% of the entering classes at Harvard, Yale, and Stanford have LSAT scores at or below 170. Every year some students with scores in the 150s and many in the 160s will be admitted. So how do you give yourself the best chance of being admitted from the large pool of applications with low scores?
Every other aspect of your application has to be top notch. The LSAT is supposed to be an indication of how you will perform in your first year of law school. If your score is low, the burden is on you to demonstrate that you are capable of excelling in a rigorous academic environment.
The best way to do this is with a high GPA during your undergrad years. Your GPA is arguably a better indication of your academic potential than your LSAT score because it reflects your performance over four years rather than one day.
Successful study in grad school is another way to demonstrate your academic excellence. A stellar GPA from a graduate program can boost your academic record and make you stand out from the pile.
But for most applicants, your undergraduate GPA is more or less fixed by the time you apply to law school and you may not want to enroll in an MA or MS program just to boost your chances of admission. This is why your personal statement, other essays, and letters of recommendation are so important.
How to write essays for a law school application when you have a low or average LSAT score
Take advantage of every opportunity to showcase your work/volunteer experience, extracurricular activities, intellectual depth, and writing skills by writing any optional essays. Make absolutely sure that you have zero errors in your essays. Don’t give your reader a reason to put your file in the “no” pile.
Briefly explain your low score, but focus on your strengths
If there are extenuating circumstances that affected your LSAT score, use an addendum to concisely explain the issue. For example, if you’re not a great test taker when it comes to standardized tests, the addendum is a good place to explain your history.
Do not use up valuable space in your 250-word essay or personal statement addressing your score. Use that space to build such a compelling application that they would be crazy not to admit you.
Remember that LSAT scores and percentiles are not everything. Top law schools like Harvard, Yale and Stanford get so many high LSAT applications that they could easily fill their classes entirely with test scores above 170.
They choose not to do that for a reason; law school admissions committees at top schools know that there is more to creating a truly exceptional culture than avoiding low scores. Give them a reason to pick you by putting your very best self forward in your application.
Make sure you explain why you are the perfect candidate—for your target schools in particular
You can be sure that most applicants will try to showcase their best qualities to boost their chances of admission. But a surprisingly high number of people forget one of the key ways to get into law school: be specific and convincing. You’re not just talking to any law school. You’re making a case for you and this school being a perfect match.
It’s also worth showing why you are not the best fit with law schools that typically have lower median LSAT scores such as Thomas Jefferson School of Law, Appalachian School of Law, Southern University Law Center, or even your local in-state option. Show the law school admissions committee why you’re a better fit for Chicago-Kent than Loyola, Columbia rather than New York Law School, or Michigan rather than Cooley. Be as specific as you can!
Academic letters of recommendation
It will be particularly important to have stand-out letters of recommendation from professors who taught you in an academic setting. Choose recommenders who are familiar with your academic work and will speak to your superb analytical and writing skills. A quasi-academic recommender, such as a debate coach, is fine for a supplementary letter but be sure that your core letters are from professors who taught you in class.
What else can I do to improve my chances of acceptance?
There are a few possibilities, depending on how much time you have:
If at first you don’t succeed…
If you miss your target LSAT score and you have enough time, you can retake the test. If you decide to do this, it’s a good idea to take practice tests or an LSAT prep course before you try again.
(This is also good advice for first-time test takers.)
If your target schools accept it, take the GRE instead
115 ABA accredited law schools—over half—accept the GRE, including many of the top schools. Harvard, Columbia, UPenn, Yale, Cornell, Chicago-Kent, Boston College, Boston University, and the University of California at Berkeley and LA all accept the GRE.
Not as many applicants submit GRE test scores as part of their admissions process, and many students have an inherent bias about the test as it compares to the LSAT. However, it’s not at all clear that schools share this bias. For example, representatives from the admissions office of Harvard Law have said that their acceptance rate of GRE-only applicants was similar to that of other applicants.
And consider this: if top schools really favored the LSAT that much, why would they accept it at all? Or wouldn’t applicants with the lowest LSAT scores in the pile be accepted more quickly than those with similar or average GRE scores? The fact is, there is no inherent status to an LSAT score unless it’s very high.
A few other thoughts about LSAT scores
Although it may impact your acceptance rate, according to the National Report of Findings for the AccessLex/LSSSE Bar Exam Success Initiative, a high LSAT score is not even the best predictor for later success on the bar exam. In fact, law school GPA is the best predictor of bar passage rates, and law students who struggle the most early on but then improve during school seem to have the best bar pass rates. This report also found that students who worked in law firms and other jobs related to their studies had improved chances of passing the bar the first time.
Who tended to have trouble? Again, test scores were not the deciding factor. Instead, law students who spent over 21 hours per week on responsibilities such as working a non-law-related job or caring for dependents had both lower third year (3L) GPAs and bar passage rates compared to peers who spent 0 to 5 hours on these tasks.
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