LSAT Presentation

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    Law School Admission Test (LSAT)- administered bythe Law School Admission Council (LSAC)

    Required for application and admission to approvedLaw Schools

    Standardized test that attempts to assess reading and

    verbal reasoning skills

    Similar to SAT and ACT

    Overview

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    Dates and Deadlines

    8 June 2009

    Deadline: 5 May

    26 September 2009

    Deadline: 25 August

    5 December 2009

    Deadline: 3 November

    Fee: $132

    Sign up at

    www.lsac.orgIncludes more info on latefees, fee waivers, etc.

    Those planning to attendFall 2010 should register for

    these dates.

    http://www.lsac.org/http://www.lsac.org/
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    A Word about Retakes

    8 June 2009

    Deadline: 5 May

    26 September 2009

    Deadline: 25 August

    5 December 2009

    Deadline: 3 November

    Fee: $132

    Plan to do well thefirst time.

    Give yourself timeto retake if needed.

    The highest score isreported, but

    schools will see bothscores.

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    Importance

    Most schools willtypically combineUGPA and LSAT to

    produce a predictionindex which they useto separate applicants.

    Some schools apply aholistic approach,meaning that they will

    read the entireapplication beforemaking a decision.

    For virtually all schools, the LSAT is the mostdeterminative factor in the decision making

    process.

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    What affectsadmission

    decisions?

    Personal Statement Letters of

    Recommendation

    LSAT Writing Sample Rsum Major course of study Extra-curricular Community Service Church Mission

    Certain factors can overridethese ratios like ethnic or

    cultural disadvantage, etc.

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    WHY?!

    The need for an across-the-board standard

    Wide variety of majorsGrade inflation

    Average GPA at BYU-Idaho: 3.51

    Statistical evidence has repeatedly demonstrated that LSATscores combined with UGPA yields a strong correlation with

    first year grades in law school.

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    Applicant

    Admit

    Deny

    The Admissions Process

    Waitlist

    Admit

    Deny

    Wait may be severalmonths, even up to the

    day before classes begin.

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    School LSAT (25%-75%)

    Harvard 170 - 175

    UC - Berkeley 163 - 170

    Cornell 166 - 168

    Duke 167 - 170

    Boston University 164 - 166Brigham Young 162 - 167

    University of Washington 159 - 165

    University of Utah 156 - 162

    Arizona State 156 - 162

    Seattle University 155 - 161

    University of Idaho 151 - 159

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    Scoring

    Scaled from 120 to 180

    Based on raw score (number of questionsanswered correctly out of 101 questions)

    No penalty for incorrect answers

    Raw score converted to scaled score

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    Score Raw Score

    180 98175 95

    170 90

    165 84160 78

    155 69

    150 60145 51

    140 42

    Raw Score:Number of questions

    answered correctly

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    Score Percentile

    180 99.9175 99.6

    170 98.0

    165 93.0160 81.8

    155 65.3

    150 44.8145 26.4

    140 12.9

    Percentile:Percentage of testtakers nationally

    from the previousthree years who

    scored lower

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    Breakdown

    Five 35-minute sections drawn from three types ofquestions:

    Logical Reasoning- About 25 questions

    Analytical Reasoning(Logic Games)- 4 Games

    Reading Comprehension - 4 Reading Excerpts

    One of the five sections is an un-scored experimentalsection. It is virtually impossible to identify theexperimental section during a test.

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    Logical ReasoningWhich one of the following most accurately expresses

    the main conclusion of the economists argument?

    (A) If an action taken to secure the survival of a

    business fails to enhance the welfare of the businesss

    employees, that action cannot be good for the business

    as a whole.

    (B) Some measures taken by a business to increase

    productivity fail to be beneficial to the business as a

    whole.

    (C) Only if the employees of a business are also its

    owners will the interests of the employees and owners

    coincide, enabling measures that will be beneficial to

    the business as a whole.

    (D) There is no business that does not make efforts to

    increase its productivity.

    (E) Decreasing the number of employees in a business

    undermines the sense of security of retained

    employees.

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    Logic Games

    Exactly three filmsGreed, Harvest, and Limelightare

    shown during a film clubs festival held on Thursday, Friday,

    and Saturday. Each film is shown at least once during the

    festival but never more than once on a given day. On each day

    at least one film is shown. Films are shown one at a time. The

    following conditions apply:

    On Thursday Harvest is shown, and no film is shown after

    it on that day.

    On Friday either Greed or Limelight, but not both, is

    shown, and no film is shown after it on that day.

    On Saturday either Greed or Harvest, but not both, is

    shown, and no film is shown after it on that day.Which one of the following CANNOT be true?

    (A) Harvest is the last film shown on each day of thefestival.

    (B) Limelight is shown on each day of the festival.

    (C) Greed is shown second on each day of the

    festival.

    (D) A different film is shown first on each day of the

    festival.

    (E) A different film is shown last on each day of the

    festival.

    ______

    H

    ______G/L

    ______G/H

    TH F S

    H

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    Reading Comprehension

    Similar to Logical Reasoning, only longer, and 5 to 8

    questions test the comprehension of form, tone, andlogic

    Subject matter can range from oil drilling, to African

    literature, to global warming, to ancient Chineseagricultural techniques, and so on.

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    How to Study??

    Take a practice test to assess your standing.

    Be willing to invest a lot of time and money.Were talking about a relatively small investment for potentialscholarship opportunities and a perhaps a 6-digit income.

    PRACTICE. PRACTICE. PRACTICE.Average increase of about 10 points

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    How to Study??

    The recommendation: 4-6 months, 10-15 hours/week

    Methods:

    Practice Tests - Over 50 published actual LSATs:$8/test or a set of ten for $20

    Test Preparation Books -$100 to $200

    Classes 8-10 weeks with practice tests -$600 to$1200

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    How to Study??

    My recommendations:

    Powerscore - www.powerscore.com

    TestMasters- www.testmasters.net

    Dont touch these:

    Kaplan

    Princeton Review

    http://www.testmasters.net/http://www.testmasters.net/http://www.testmasters.net/http://www.testmasters.net/http://www.testmasters.net/http://www.testmasters.net/http://www.testmasters.net/http://www.testmasters.net/http://www.testmasters.net/http://www.testmasters.net/http://www.testmasters.net/http://www.testmasters.net/http://www.testmasters.net/http://www.powerscore.com/http://www.powerscore.com/
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    Dont Get Discouraged

    The TRUTH about the LSAT that test prep companies and USNews & World Report dont want you to know:

    Where you went to law school is secondary to what gradesyou earned in law school.

    You dont have to go to Harvard to get your dream lawyer job.

    The majority of lawyers in top-100 firms went to law schoolin the immediate region where they work.

    The time spent on LSAT prep will help your studies immensely inwhatever field you pursue.