What is the LSAT®?

About the LSAT

The Law School Admission Test (LSAT) is unlike any test you've ever taken in your academic career. The LSAT is a multiple-choice, skills-based exam designed to measure your preparedness for law school.

Before you begin your LSAT prep, it’s important to familiarize yourself with the ins and outs of the exam so you can be prepared for what is on the LSAT.

Types of Questions on the LSAT

The Logical Reasoning and Reading Comprehension sections of the LSAT contain multiple-choice question types. 

LSAT Reading Comprehension Questions

The LSAT Reading Comprehension section is similar to its counterparts on other admissions exams. It rewards your ability to make sense of dense, unfamiliar prose, but unlike the way it appears on some standardized tests, LSAT Reading Comprehension requires you to understand the passages’ structure, purpose, and various points of view, rather than just the facts presented in the passages. 

On the LSAT, you’ll see four passages, each with a set of 5–8 questions to answer. One of the passages, referred to as Comparative Reading, is actually a pair of shorter passages expressing different points of view on a shared subject, with questions asking you to compare and contrast the passages’ ideas, points of view, or evidence. While initially the most likely to feel familiar, Reading Comprehension is often the section in which those prepping for the LSAT find it toughest to improve.

LSAT Logical Reasoning Questions

Logical Reasoning tests your ability to analyze and evaluate arguments, or to draw valid inferences from sets of the facts or assertions. Logical Reasoning are discrete with each item having its own paragraph-length stimulus (i.e., a short passage) and its own question stem.

LSAT Experimental Section

The LSAT’s Experimental section is either an additional section of Reading Comprehension or of Logical Reasoning. This unscored section contains questions the testmaker is validating for use on future LSATs, but to you, it will look exactly like one of the other sections, and it can appear at any point in your test. 

On test day, don’t waste test time trying to identify the Experimental section. If you have three Logical Reasoning, or two Reading Comprehension sections, you will know one of the extra sections was the experimental section, but you won’t know which one it was.

How long is the LSAT?

The LSAT breaks down into four sections, each 35 minutes long with a 10-minute break after the second section. This adds up to 150 minutes of LSAT test time—or 2 hours and 30 minutes. You will take the LSAT on your own computer at home or another quiet place of your choosing. You will select a testing time from a variety of times available in each testing window.

Remember that, in addition to testing time, you’ll also need to be online for a pre-test check-in with your proctor, equipment validation, acknowledgement of the rules, and so on, so your full LSAT “test day” may run closer to four hours all in. Keep that in mind as you build your test-taking stamina and sharpen your concentration. 

How Hard is the LSAT?

There’s no way around it: the LSAT is a hard test. It’s not a content-based exam testing your recall of facts and concepts. It is a skills-based exam—your law-school audition, if you will, a chance to show admissions committees that you’ve got what it takes—and the specific skills it tests aren’t taught in most undergraduate programs. But for exactly that reason, there’s no limit to the kind of improvement you can make over the course of your preparation: it’s all a matter of building the right skills.

There’s no way to cram for the LSAT, and while there are a few tricks that seem exciting at first, they will only take you so far. But, with the right tools, the right coaching, and with your dedication, you can master the LSAT. One of the keys is knowing how and when to take LSAT practice tests, and just as importantly, how to evaluate your performance and review questions. With the right guidance and analysis, you can join thousands of Kaplan students who reached their goal scores. 

How to Register for the LSAT

The LSAT is administered by an organization called the Law School Admission Council (LSAC). You’ll register for the LSAT through your LSAC.org account. The LSAT is typically offered 8 times throughout the year (see LSAT test dates). Register early, as spots can fill up quickly. If you require any testing accommodations, communicate this to LSAC well in advance of the registration deadline for your preferred test date. The cost of the LSAT is $248.

Understanding your LSAT Score

When you receive your LSAT score, it will include the following:

• One overall score ranging from 120-180
• A "score band" is a range of scaled scores above and below your score
• A percentile score, ranking your performance relative to the scores of all LSAT test takes over the previous three years.
• [ RELATED: LSAT Score Ranges and Percentiles ]

Receiving your LSAT Score

You'll receive your score via email approximately three to four weeks after the test. If you take the LSAT more than once, law schools will see all scores earned within the past five years, though most will evaluate your candidacy based on your highest score. Law schools also see if you canceled a score (though not what the score would have been), withdrew, or were a no-show at a test administration. Your score is only released to you and the law schools to which you apply.

Your LSAT score will remain “active” for 5 years, so if a 22-year-old is forward-looking, they might be wise to study for LSAT and take the test right after finishing their undergrad, before getting too deep into work, travel, or other entanglements that would make studying for the LSAT logistically tougher later on.

Canceling your LSAT Score

You have six calendar days after you take the LSAT to cancel your score in your LSAC account. You will not see your score before you decide to cancel. If you take the exam more than once, LSAC reports the average score, each separate score, and each cancellation. Most schools will not question one cancellation on your record but will question multiple ones. 

LSAC also offers a Score Preview option that allows you to see your actual score before deciding whether to keep it or cancel it. There is a cost associated with the service which varies depending on whether you purchase the Score Preview option before or after taking the test. 

How is Your LSAT Score Used?

Your LSAT score is a crucial factor in determining where you go to law school—or if you go at all. Law school admission committees look at your LSAT score to determine if you have the skills required for success in law school. It helps admissions officers compare your record with those of students from other schools and different majors. 

While law schools use a holistic review process, law school admissions officers frequently cite the LSAT score as the most important admissions factor, as the test has been specifically designed to test your readiness for law school and has a greater correlation to law school success than any other admissions factor.

Law schools also use LSAT scores to decide who will be offered merit-based scholarships. Schools want to attract applicants with high LSAT scores, and many offer substantial tuition discounts (and even “full rides”) to elite scorers.

[ RELATED: The importance of your LSAT score ]

How can your LSAT score help you?

If your grades are lackluster‚ an outstanding LSAT score can help make the case that you are capable of handling the academic rigors of law school. Alternatively‚ if you've been out of college for some time‚ your score can show that you still have the skills necessary to succeed.

An outstanding LSAT score won't necessarily get you into your target school, but a low score will certainly keep you out.