All you have to do is follow these top ten LSAT study tips to put your best foot forward and make your law school application shine and you will be successful on test day.
About LSAT
LSAT Writing is a mandatory writing test that students complete independently in the days, weeks or even months after the test. LSAT Writing is a 35-minute assignment that requires you to write a persuasive essay in favor of a specific choice between two possible options. We’ll dive into the details of the task known as the “Choice Prompt” shortly. First, let’s discuss some notable aspects of the LSAT writing itself.
- It is mandatory Your file is not complete until you have submitted at least one writing sample. LSAC means business! Your law school report (a compilation of your school reports, test results, writing samples, letters of recommendation, etc.) will only be sent to a law school to which you have applied. You officially have one year from your test date to complete a writing sample. Our advice is to get it over with sooner rather than later. You don’t want to drop the ball and miss your application deadlines! Keep in mind that LSAC claims it can take 3-4 weeks to process your sample and update your file.
- It only has to be done once Candidates are only required to file a single writing sample, even if it is a previous, paper-based test. Repeat offenders are not required to complete an additional LSAT letter unless they choose to. You may want to submit more than one! Perhaps you’d rather have a typed sample on file than a handwritten essay. Or maybe after reading this post you feel like you could do a better job. If you already have a writing sample and are determined to submit another, you will need to pay a small fee. Schools receive the 3 most recent writing samples as part of their Law School Report.
- It is not rated Yes, you read that right: your essay will not be numbered or valued. Contrary to the multiple-choice questions you recently worked on at the LSAT, the difference between “great” effort and something undeniably mediocre is qualitative rather than quantitative. It primarily comes down to your ability to stick to a handful of suggestions, which I’ll outline in detail below. LSAT Writing will be mailed to each law school you apply to. Many will skim it, and some will read it carefully. The last thing you want is an admissions committee reading your essay to think you’re not serious about the process. Law school is brutal. It requires a Herculean dedication. Imagine what it says to a group discussing your intentions and potential if you don’t commit to a half-hour writing exercise. The risks of rejection far outweigh the rewards. Also, according to some admissions directors we spoke to, they see the quality of your unedited and impromptu essay as another indicator of your writing ability.
What to Expect on the LSAT Writing Section
You receive a detailed prompt that describes a scenario or problem. The prompt offers two options or solutions to choose from. There is no right answer. You simply select the option that you feel best fits the scenario provided. You can’t argue for both or neither. You have to fetch aside You then have 35 minutes to write a persuasive essay arguing why the option you chose is the best choice. Your arguments should be based solely on what is provided in the prompt. Don’t make assumptions and don’t use external examples. There are no length requirements Although it is mandatory to fill out this section, it is not evaluated by LSAC. You simply send it along with your LSAT scores to the law schools you have listed.
What law faculties expect from your writing sample
As you prepare for this section, you’ll hear some conflicting reports. Some will say that the writing area is not that important. Admissions officers are much more interested in your personal statement or statement of intent as sample writing than in your LSAT essay. That is sensible. This personal statement shows what you’re capable of when given the time and resources to create something truly meaningful. However, other admissions officials argue that the LSAT essay is very important. Your statement of intent is what you can do when you’re not in a hurry when you have friends and family to edit and provide feedback. In short, if you have time. The LSAT essay shows how coherent you can be when you are under pressure and only able to work with your own mind. It’s a better measure of raw writing talent as well as your own logic and reasoning skills. To be successful in law school, you must be prepared to write a lot of essays, including some time-limited essay tests. For a career in law, your ability to be organized, coherent, and persuasive, even when speaking off the cuff, is an important skill. This LSAT essay is a way to demonstrate that you are capable of successfully completing law school and pursuing a career in law. In the end, you shouldn’t worry about the admissions officers at the schools you’re applying to take care of the LSAT writing sample. You’ll have to complete it one way or another, so you might as well do your best. After all, this could be the point that tips the scales in your favor between you and a similarly strong competitor.
What Makes a Strong LSAT Writing Sample?
This is an impromptu essay. That means you didn’t have the resources to research or thoroughly prepare a perfect essay. It also means that you had little to no time to edit or even reread the essay before submitting it. Admissions will not look for top-quality or anything close to perfection. They will look for evidence of your raw talent. You want to see evidence that you have some basic skills to organize and express a coherent chain of thought in writing. Some of the most important qualities your essay should have included:
Clear, grammatically correct writingLogical, organized structure, including paragraphs that focus on single, relevant topicsArguments based entirely on evidence, not personal opinion or assumptionClear thesis statementLogical conclusion
Top 10 LSAT writing tips to help you ace your exam
- Know what you are up against It’s always best to be prepared and know what the test will ask of you before you even open the browser. In this case, you have 35 minutes to prepare a writing sample on a given topic. The format of the LSAT writing example generally asks you to choose one of two positions and then write a persuasive essay in support of your chosen side.
- Register for the LSAT Your first step in preparing for the LSAT is to choose the LSAT test date that works best for you and register with the LSAC. This step is crucial because by registering for the LSAT you commit yourself to the exam date and cannot put off learning by telling yourself over and over again that there is still time to study. It will also be easier to say no to day trips to the beach or slopes because you’ll know exactly how much time you have between you and the LSAT. To help you decide which LSAT test is best for you, you need to make sure you have enough time to study. That brings us to tip #2 – designing your study plan effectively.
- Block your study time early Ideally, you plan to study for at least two months for the LSAT, three months if possible. During these months, you want to study about 2 to 3 hours a day, at least 4 to 5 days a week. There’s no getting around it—preparing for the LSAT is like adding another course to your semester. And the only way to be successful in your LSAT preparation is to block your calendar accordingly. Make sure you have enough time to study. You don’t want to find out a few weeks before the LSAT that you don’t have enough time to set yourself up for success. Establishing and following an LSAT study plan is critical to your success, so set your LSAT study plans early.
- Choose the best learning materials Once you have decided on the best LSAT study plan for you, you need to choose the best study materials. One or two LSAT preparation books are essential for your successful studies. There are many books to choose from, so save yourself some time by checking out this handy list of the best LSAT prep books. As well as choosing a good book, you can also decide if a prep course is right for you. If you’re struggling with discipline or the thought of creating your own schedule is overwhelming, find a scheduled class. If you love flexibility or want to fit LSAT preparation into an already busy schedule, online preparation at your own pace may work best. In any case, make your choices early and base them on what has worked well for you in the past.
- Practice, practice, practice. You have chosen your LSAT test date and purchased your study materials. To really improve your LSAT performance, you must spend hours and hours solving LSAT practice problems. You need to do this for a number of reasons. First, you need to become familiar with how LSAT problems are structured and how test writers write questions and answers to try to trick you. Second, you need to see all the difficulty levels that you will see on test day. Not every logic game or logical reasoning question is the same. Your success depends in part on your ability to identify difficult questions. You should skip these questions and come back to them when you have time. Eventually, by the time the actual LSAT rolls around, you want to be familiar enough with the LSAT test questions that you can tackle anything the LSAC creates. Another important part of your practice will be checking your wrong answers and taking practice tests. Knowing how to study for the LSAT is crucial and will help you make the most of your dedicated study time.
- Take full-length LSAT practice tests Another part of your LSAT preparation, essential to increasing your LSAT score, is taking full-length LSAT practice tests. As you stare at multiple exercise LSATs, you’re probably wondering how much time it will take. You should schedule at least four full-length practice tests. That means you’ve got about 16 hours of multiple-choice fun ahead of you. On the day of the LSAT, you’ll be so grateful for those 16 hours of preparation time – the test structure, format, and timing will be so familiar to you that you’ll have no choice but to crush the LSA.
- Focus on LSAT logical reasoning If you want to do well on the LSAT, you need to do well on Logical Reasoning. Why is that? Because logical reasoning accounts for half of your score on the LSAT. Another way to think about how much logical thinking is worth is to realize that any time you spend thinking logically is worth twice as much as any time you spend studying logic games or reading comprehension.
- Don’t avoid your weak spots on the LSAT While you’ll want to spend extra time focusing on logical thinking, that doesn’t mean you want to neglect any section of the LSAT. While it can be tempting to skip the most difficult section – logic games for most students – don’t fall into that trap. Your weakest area when starting out is also the area where you accumulate the most points and can see the biggest increase in your score.
- Don’t skip the LSAT writing sample Even if the LSAT writing example doesn’t count as part of your LSAT score, that doesn’t mean it isn’t important. Law schools can grade your writing sample when reviewing your transcripts – you don’t want to miss another opportunity to impress the admissions team. On the other hand, you don’t have to prepare long for the writing test. Just practice the writing sample every time you take a practice test and you’re done.
- Prepare for the LSAT test day To get the most out of your months of LSAT study, you need to do well on test days. Simply plan the logistics of the LSAT test day ahead of the actual test day. Find out how and by when you can get to the examination center. Plan your snacks and anything else you want to bring that the LSAC allows. By being prepared for the details of the test day, you can focus on doing your best and doing well.
- Relax You’re probably thinking, how can I relax when I have to pick a test date and location, study for months, and then take a four-hour multiple-choice exam? Good argument. However, it doesn’t matter how much you invest in learning if you don’t have a chance to recharge and let your brain absorb what you’ve learned. Also, to do well on a timed test, you must learn to relax, even when you are stressed. So practice relaxing while you study and take practice tests so you can absorb more while you study. On the day of the LSAT, you will do your best at the end.
Step to the LSAT writing process
Let’s take a look at this schedule in action. For this example, we’ll use the prompt example provided on the LSAC website. The prompt will ask you to use the details provided to select either a “national plan” or the “regional plan” proposed to help a fictional company achieve two goals: increase profits and long-term ensure financial stability. The process could look like this:
Step 1: Read and Break down the Prompt (3 Minutes)
The prompt breakdown might look like this:
Requirement: Choose the plan that you believe best serves the following two objectives:Increase in corporate profitsEnsuring long-term financial stabilityFacts about a fictional companyOnly known in the home regionHas a strong positive reputation among those who know itFaced with increasing competition in the home regionHas strong customer loyaltyPlan 1: National PlanThe plan: open several men’s clothing stores across the countryBenefitsAbility to offer lower prices due to savings from bulk purchasesWould improve the company’s ability to compete with national chains entering its home regionThe dramatic increase in profits, if successfulDisadvantagesRequires incurring a lot of debtRequire high spending on additional staff, marketing and salesHigh risk of failure and expensive in case of failurePlan 2: Regional planThe Plan: Increase the number and size of stores in the current region and improve service and product qualityBenefitsNo need to take on new debtNo need to hire many new employees or invest more in marketing and salesAbility to charge higher prices for higher qualityA test run of this plan in a store showed increased sales and profitsHigh population growth in the current region means a growing customer baseDisadvantagesDoes not respond to price competition from competing chains in their regionLimited growth potential as the company does not expand into new regions
Every single bullet point above was given in the prompt. No external information or assumptions were made. Your breakdown of the request should be a summary of the facts presented to you, free of personal opinion. You’ll use this as a reference when building your outline to ensure your supporting arguments are based directly on the details in the prompt. Creating this breakdown will help reduce the time you spend searching for details.
Step 2: Write your outline (7 minutes)
From the above, we can see that the choice is between the national high-risk, high-reward plan or the regional, low-risk, low-reward plan. For the sake of the essay, we’ll go with the high-risk, high-reward option. Now let’s outline our reasoning:Introduction:
2-3 sentences describing the problem identified in the request and the company’s current position.Thesis: The national plan is the most appropriate choice to achieve the company’s two stated goals, namely profit growth and long-term financial stability.
Paragraph 1: National plan has higher profit potential
The national plan allows companies to maintain the same or lower prices than their competitorsIncreases the number of potential customersThe ability to reduce unit costs by purchasing at a larger scale also increases the profit margin
Paragraph 2: National plan can provide more long-term stability
The company is better protected against regional market fluctuations (e.g. local recessions).The ability to expand into less competitive regions protects against potential loss of profits due to intense competition in the current region
Paragraph 3: The company is in a strong position to take risks
A positive local reputation indicates that their business model is already strongExisting customer loyalty provides stability as they establish themselves in new regions
Conclusion The national plan may involve greater risk and cost, but the Company is currently in a strong position and this plan better meets both of the Company’s stated goals. As you can see, the introduction simply repeats the prompt for a few sentences, and then briefly states your response to the prompt. Then each paragraph focuses on a specific argument that supports your thesis. The arguments were each pulled from the prompt. You do not use external information or examples to support your thesis. You’re just using what you know from the details provided in the prompt. Three supporting paragraphs is a good number to aim for. It is enough to show that your reasoning is well thought out and evidence-based. But it’s not so much that you won’t have time to write them all down in the 35 minutes you have to complete the task. If you have clear ideas for 4-5 supporting paragraphs, and each one relates directly to the prompt, go for it. In addition, your essay will likely be too long to finish in time. Finally, the conclusion summarizes the main points you discussed in the essay and reiterates your original thesis that the national plan is the preferred choice.
Step 3: Write your essay (20 minutes)
With an outline like the one above, most of your essay is already written. For this step, focus on one paragraph at a time and turn each bullet point into a complete thought in 1-2 sentences. Make sure there are smooth transitions between each paragraph. Don’t worry too much about the language. Focus on getting your point across and packing evidence to back up your claims. You don’t have to use the most advanced or academic-sounding words you can think of. You just have to convince. Often the most persuasive arguments are the ones that are most clearly and concisely formulated. So skip the thesaurus and just write naturally and use grammatically correct sentences.
Step 4: Edit your essay (5 minutes)
After you’ve worked your outline into a complete essay, use the remaining time on the clock to read through it and fix major mistakes. Don’t read too closely and don’t get too picky about perfecting your word choice. Instead, just skim it and look for obvious spelling and grammatical errors, or sentences that just don’t make sense. If you end up completing all four steps in less than 35 minutes, don’t give it up early. Just use the extra time to do a more accurate edit. While licensing officials aren’t looking for polished perfection, it won’t hurt to get as close to the polished surface as possible.
Conclusion
Success at the LSAT comes from establishing a game plan early on and sticking to that plan. By continuing to focus on your strong and weak sections of the LSAT, you will surely rock the LSAT and get into the school of your dreams. Before you sit down to do the LSAT writing test, practice writing at least three times with different prompts. While the writing sample is presented to you online, is ungraded, and is generally not considered high on the list of admissions committee considerations, you never know if a good writing sample could give you an edge over your competitors.
References
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