What Is a Good LSAT Score? – 2023 Ultimate Guide
A good LSAT score depends on the law school you want to apply in. Most law schools look at LSAT score percentiles, which means your LSAT score should meet their requirements for you to pass. If you are aiming to study in a particular school, you must be aware of the LSAT score policies of that establishment.
So, what is a good LSAT score?
I’ve listed down some important factors to consider when figuring out a good LSAT score. Having that kind of knowledge somehow helps you in achieving your desired score for a particular law institution. Read on.
The Average LSAT Score
If you are about to take the LSAT exam, you should know by now that the lowest score you can get is 120 and the highest you can get is 180, with the latter being the perfect score for LSAT.
The average or median score, on the other hand, is 152. Remember, there are around 99 to 102 questions in the LSAT exam, but these numbers do not equate to the LSAT score range that’s being used. If you want to garner a median score of 152, you need to answer about 60 questions correctly.
Should you happen to get a median score on your LSAT exam, you are most likely to be admitted to certain law schools, such as the University of New Mexico and the Loyola University of New Orleans, to name a few.
The Competitive LSAT Score
Now, we have already tackled the average LSAT score. Let’s proceed with what they consider as a competitive LSAT score.
To be admitted to top law schools, you need to achieve an impressive LSAT score, somewhere between 160 and 180. However, you need to bear in mind that some law schools also focus on your percentile rank, so you have to be knowledgeable enough on where you stand against your fellow test-takers.
Some top-notch law schools are meticulous about this and would admit only those who are in the 90th and above percentile ranking. Of course, that’s tough, but your overall approach to test prep mainly depends on the law school of your choice.
Furthermore, I should also mention that the top 25 law schools require a score of 160 and above while the top 10 law schools require the highest LSAT score possible like 170 and above.
Of course, law schools don’t require you to get a perfect score like Robin Singh of TestMasters LSAT. As long as you meet their LSAT score requirement, you are a candidate for admission.
LSAT Score Scale
For you to understand how the Law School Admission Councils or LSAC comes up with your scores, let’s look at this short overview of the score scale.
The LSAT exam, like any other standardized test, is not scored on a scale of 1 to 100. Instead, it follows an odd scoring that is also not equivalent to the LSAT score range of 120 to 180. If you would look at the LSAT closely, there are only 99 to 102 questions and your raw score will be converted into the 120 to 180 scale using a math formula unique to LSAT.
For better understanding, your raw score is the number of your correct answers from the total number of questions.
Due to this unique scoring, a single wrong answer does not automatically equate as a lost point in your entire score. However, a small improvement in your overall score that was already converted using the LSAT score scale would already have a significant difference in your percentile rank.
To understand this score concept better, let’s take a look at these examples:
- If your raw score is 87 or above out of 102 items, then your LSAT score is most likely 170 or above. This LSAT score also translates to a 98th percentile rank on average. This further means that only 2% of all the test-takers garnered a score of 170 or above, just like you.
- If your raw score is around 70 to 85 out of the same total number of questions, then your LSAT score is around 160 or above. This score also puts you in the 80th percentile, which is a rough estimate.
Overall, the LSAT scoring is not complicated, especially when you are already familiar with how the LSAT test goes. Everything makes more sense by the time that you will get a good grasp of the exam process.
Also, I recommend that you check the list of law schools with their respective average LSAT score requirements (1). This will make you become more specific with your goals and be efficient in how you study for the LSAT.
LSAT Takeaways
Some students think that they will be able to ace the LSAT exam even without an intensive prep through the help of a prep course or a tutor. While that is possible, it is still not a guarantee. LSAT is among the standardized tests that are hard to prepare for.
The addition of the logic games portion is even difficult for the majority of the students, and experts even suggest that you need to take a great abundance of practice tests to master the logic games section.
Finally, I would also say that your LSAT score is a big consideration when it comes to law school acceptance. However, it is not the sole indicator because law schools would still consider your resume, transcripts, and personal statements. That being said, you have to be holistic with your whole preparation, so as not to miss any chances of getting accepted to the law school of your dreams.
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