Changes at LSAC for Fall 2006 Applications

LSAC (the Law School Admission Council) has made a number of changes in the law school application process. These changes take effect for the 2005-06 admission cycle -- in other words, they affect those of you applying for Fall 2006 admission. The changes are summarized below. (For general information on what LSAC and LSDAS are, and how they are involved in your application process, check out the relevant pages on the Pre-Law website.)

Electronic Applications are now included in LSDAS registration fee.
LSAC and the law schools want to encourage applicants to apply online. To that end, LSAC will no longer charge extra for the LSACD software that enables you to complete your law school applications online. Instead, this will be another of the services you automatically get when you register for LSDAS. As you research law schools, you will also notice that many offer a reduced application fee for online applicants.

Change in LSDAS report ordering
LSAC used to offer a lower price for law school reports if you ordered them with your initial LSDAS registration. They will no longer do this -- all reports are $12 each, regardless of when you pay for them. However, if you apply online, you will no longer need to guess how many reports you will need in advance. Instead, for online applicants only, every time you submit a completed application to a law school, LSAC will charge you at that time for the corresponding LSDAS report for that school. If you apply offline, you will still need to order your LSDAS reports in advance. (This is basically another way for LSAC and the law schools to encourage you to apply online).

No more paper registration for LSAT/LSDAS
Last year 92% of applicants registered online for the LSAT and LSDAS. LSAC has decided to make online registration the official norm. Some applicants must still register on paper -- including those applying for fee waivers -- and can obtain the forms by calling LSAC at 215-968-1001.

The new LSAC Information booklets are now available for free in the Pre-Law advising office. The booklets not only provide a helpful offline reference about registration, but also include a full-length sample LSAT. Fee-waiver applications are also available in the Pre-Law office.

Change to LSAT writing sample
The essay portion of the LSAT will remain ungraded. The time allotted will increase from 30 to 35 minutes, and the writing space will expand from one to two pages. In addition, LSAC has introduced a new type of essay question that will be randomly assigned to half of those taking the LSAT. The traditional essay question asks you to argue in favor of one side or another of a particular decision, based on various criteria. The new essay asks you to evaluate the strength of an argument that is presented in the text. For more on the new prompt, see pages 51-52 of the 2005-06 information booklet, available on line here. (You'll need Adobe Reader to open this page.)