Posted: 5/26/2009 11:21:43 PM EDT
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I'm looking for some advice regarding LSAT prep. Should I take a course or will books suffice? I
I realize that the experience will be different for each person, but I'd like to know what worked/didn't work for some of you. I'm currently scoring in the mid-to-high 160s on the prep tests. Thanks in advance. M |
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I did Kaplan and I think it was $1000 well spent. It basically took my score from getting into a second tier school, to multiple offers from first year schools. Because this has a direct correlation to job opportunities post-graduation (and basically, forever, since lawyers post their academic resumes publicly, including to their clients), it pays for itself over and over.
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I did Kaplan and I think it was $1000 well spent. It basically took my score from getting into a second tier school, to multiple offers from first year schools. Because this has a direct correlation to job opportunities post-graduation (and basically, forever, since lawyers post their academic resumes publicly, including to their clients), it pays for itself over and over. this. but don't stop at just attending the class. this prep should be like a full time job. every day for several hours a day. kaplan has a whole library of resources to use. take advantage of them. it will make a huge difference. by the way this process continues through out the rest of your life as an attorney; lsat, school, bar internship, then your job. that said, go to med school. |
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I did Kaplan and I think it was $1000 well spent. It basically took my score from getting into a second tier school, to multiple offers from first year schools. Because this has a direct correlation to job opportunities post-graduation (and basically, forever, since lawyers post their academic resumes publicly, including to their clients), it pays for itself over and over. this. but don't stop at just attending the class. this prep should be like a full time job. every day for several hours a day. kaplan has a whole library of resources to use. take advantage of them. it will make a huge difference. by the way this process continues through out the rest of your life as an attorney; lsat, school, bar internship, then your job. that said, go to med school. I hear that a lot. 
I flipped a coin, though, and law school won. Damn chance... |
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I did Kaplan and I think it was $1000 well spent. It basically took my score from getting into a second tier school, to multiple offers from first year schools. Because this has a direct correlation to job opportunities post-graduation (and basically, forever, since lawyers post their academic resumes publicly, including to their clients), it pays for itself over and over. this. but don't stop at just attending the class. this prep should be like a full time job. every day for several hours a day. kaplan has a whole library of resources to use. take advantage of them. it will make a huge difference. by the way this process continues through out the rest of your life as an attorney; lsat, school, bar internship, then your job. that said, go to med school. I hear that a lot.
I flipped a coin, though, and law school won. Damn chance... very seriously –– flip the f__king coin again. if you are not doing this because you love the law or want to be a politician find another profession. |
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I did Kaplan and I think it was $1000 well spent. It basically took my score from getting into a second tier school, to multiple offers from first year schools. Because this has a direct correlation to job opportunities post-graduation (and basically, forever, since lawyers post their academic resumes publicly, including to their clients), it pays for itself over and over. this. but don't stop at just attending the class. this prep should be like a full time job. every day for several hours a day. kaplan has a whole library of resources to use. take advantage of them. it will make a huge difference. by the way this process continues through out the rest of your life as an attorney; lsat, school, bar internship, then your job. that said, go to med school. I hear that a lot.
I flipped a coin, though, and law school won. Damn chance... very seriously –– flip the f__king coin again. if you are not doing this because you love the law or want to be a politician find another profession. LOL 
Thanks for the advice. I'm doing it for the right reasons. |
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I'm doing it for the right reasons.
After 17 yrs as an attorney, I have to say that I cannot name a single attorney who actually likes being an attorney. Some who are very successful are very miserable. Almost all have been divorced. Some have substance abuse problems. Some have financial problems. Some have health problems. But I cannot name one who is happy with his / her career choice and would encourage someone else to go into the same field. Go to OCS and lead a rifle company. At least you will get to shoot a gun. |
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Take the course –– it brought my good score up 11 points to a great score.
Don't listen to the naysayers. Lawschool is not for everyone, but you can do almost anything with a law degree. Also, law school does not cause life's problems, but certain kind of personalities do get attracted to law school. Ak47dan confuses correlation with causation. |
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IMHO, LSAT prep classes are a waste of time. I did better on the first practice test (before any instruction was given) then on any subsequent practice test and got about the same score on the LSAT itself. So you got your money back? What does "about" the same score mean? A difference of just a couple points can be several percentile point change and the difference between getting in and not. |
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IMHO, LSAT prep classes are a waste of time. I did better on the first practice test (before any instruction was given) then on any subsequent practice test and got about the same score on the LSAT itself. So you got your money back? What does "about" the same score mean? A difference of just a couple points can be several percentile point change and the difference between getting in and not. I took the prep course and LSAT over 10 years ago, I don't remember the exact numbers, but the difference was not enough to change anything. With these prep classes, the people who teach them are ones who did well on the test - not necessarily people who know how to teach. |
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If already scoring in the mid-high 160s, I would skip the prep courses and just pound the self-study if you want to squeeze out a few more points. Unless you really want to get in to a very highly ranked school and don't feel that the rest of your application package will be particularly compelling, a score in the mid-high 160s should serve you pretty well as-is. I believe most of the top 10 schools have a median LSAT in the upper 160s, or 170 or 171 at the very high end.
With respect to schools, you should strongly consider what you realistically will be doing with your law degree and weigh the school's tuition costs against what you expect your future career will be. If you really want to work in a large national/international law firm and make big bucks, loading yourself with $30k+ per year in debt to attend a top 10-15 school may be worthwhile. That said, the industry has seen a major contraction in the past year and (at least in the near term) jobs at large firms have become somewhat difficult to land. Not sure how much of the legal news you follow, but thousands of attorneys have been laid off from these firms and those new graduates who were lined up to start working with these firms have been put in a very tenuous situation, some being told that their start date is being pushed back a year or more. If you do obtain a job with one of these firms, be prepared to work long hours and be left without much time to enjoy the income. I have been there and have experienced it. Many of my friends still in "BigLaw" are not particularly happy there, but the golden handcuffs are a compelling motivation to stay. I don't mean to make it sound completely bad. There are some who genuinely enjoy the lifestyle and certainly working in BigLaw is impressive on the resume and will open doors down the road. On the other hand, if you would prefer to work at a smaller firm, in government, etc., you can do very well with a J.D. from a much more affordable school. Of course, salaries in these types of positions are much lower than in BigLaw (perhaps 50% of BigLaw starting salaries), but you will not have much in the way of student loan payments to make. Additionally, schools even just a little further down the list may be interested in giving you scholarship money as an enticement. School rankings are based upon, among other things, LSAT scores. A score as you are describing will likely be very appealing to some schools. However, beware the small private law school that is both expensive and lacking in recognition amongst recruiters. I went to UVA and loved it. Unfortunately, the price has gone up a bit since I graduated. When applying, I was also very drawn to William and Mary (very well respected, but not a top 10 school) and remember it being incredibly cheap. Good luck. |