Guest Column: LSATs Aren’t Always an Accurate Gauge of your Success in Law School

By: Andrea Mitchell, Managing Partner at Mitchell Sandler PLLC

Research has shown that LSAT scores are the primary statistical predictor of success in law school; however, this observation is based on the predictiveness of success relative to the predictiveness of success in undergraduate school based on ACT or SAT scores. From a practical standpoint, numerical scores also create efficiencies for admissions offices that are looking to triage a barrage of applications. Emphasis on LSAT scores in admissions decisions may also be a function of law school rankings such as U.S. News & World Report, as average LSAT score is a factor in those rankings. For a variety of reasons, law schools tend to assign greater weight to LSAT scores higher than college grade point average and other factors. That may leave some aspiring law students feeling pressure to achieve a high score in the LSAT. While a high LSAT score opens doors and creates increased chances for admission, students should not treat an average or low score as a barrier to admission.

By way of example, I took my first LSAT in 1992 and scored in the 50th percentile. I took it again and scored in the 55th percentile. I was so convinced that I could not get into law school that I opted to enter the work force in lieu of applying to law school and waited six years until my scores were erased. In 1998, I took the LSAT and still only scored in the 75th percentile. On the other hand, I had six additional years of work and life experience by the time I applied, making me a more appealing candidate. I was rejected by all my “reach schools,” admitted to my “safety schools,” and admitted to the part-time program at American University-Washington College of Law. My confidence was shaken about my ability to excel in law school because I bought into the narrative that LSAT scores predict success in law school. In the end, I worried needlessly. In my first year of law school, I received straight As, graded onto the law review, and went on to graduate summa cum laude. I encourage others like me whose brains are not wired to perform well on standardized tests to find schools that teach the way you like to learn and value the entire student beyond scores and grade point averages. If you do, you will be a better student and a happier one.