is taking the september LSAT putting me at an disadvantage? Forum

[cavalier2015]

Initially, I thought I will be taking the June LSAT. however, it was very difficult for me to balance my course load and focus on LSAT. I will be taking the LSAT in september.

I have always heard applying early is advisable. Will taking the LSAT in september allow me to be in the "early" stage of law school admissions? I suppose I have to get my personal statement and letter of recs done by the end of this summer, right? I would love someone with knowledge to let me know of the timeline I should be expecting and when if taking september will screw me over in applying early. I'm not sure how long it takes for the LSAT to come back. But, I've heard a good rule of thumb is to get application submitted by halloween. what is a completed application and will taking the september LSAT allow me to be have this completed by then?

[papercut]

Yeah you can be early with a Sept/Oct LSAT. Just get all the other shit done, so you can submit when scores come out.

But, higher lsat >> applying early

[UnicornHunter]

Initially, I thought I will be taking the June LSAT. however, it was very difficult for me to balance my course load and focus on LSAT. I will be taking the LSAT in september.

I have always heard applying early is advisable. Will taking the LSAT in september allow me to be in the "early" stage of law school admissions? I suppose I have to get my personal statement and letter of recs done by the end of this summer, right? I would love someone with knowledge to let me know of the timeline I should be expecting and when if taking september will screw me over in applying early. I'm not sure how long it takes for the LSAT to come back. But, I've heard a good rule of thumb is to get application submitted by halloween. what is a completed application and will taking the september LSAT allow me to be have this completed by then?

Not at all. Way better to have a higher score than an app in day 1. In by Halloween is the standard for early, beat the x-mas break rush and you'll be fine. Score is usually a 2-3 week around.

[cavalier2015]

i'm sorry if this a dumb question but can i be working on school specific applications in the summer? does each school have a seperate application and does each application have its own essays that are separate from the personal statement?

[cavalier2015]

sorry for adding on but what are the things I can do over summer to ensure that the only thing I have to do is submit scores come mid october?

would it be:
-personal statement
-ask for recs
-addendums
-ask school for final transcripts (not sure about this)

anything else I should be doing to make sure by the time I get my scores back I can hit submit and get everything in early?

[papercut]

sorry for adding on but what are the things I can do over summer to ensure that the only thing I have to do is submit scores come mid october?

would it be:
-personal statement
-ask for recs
-addendums
-ask school for final transcripts (not sure about this)

anything else I should be doing to make sure by the time I get my scores back I can hit submit and get everything in early?

Fill out all the apps on LSAC. Get resume in order. Write any extra essays.

[ScottRiqui]

And ask for those recommendation early - depending on your recommender, the turnaround time can be frustratingly long.

[drawstring]

There is some data suggesting that at some schools even applying in September rather than October will boost your chances, all else equal. October/November is still fairly early though, and it''s usually better to apply then with a higher score than to apply earlier with a lower one.

[cron1834]

October applications are definitely ahead of most of the unwashed masses. That's when I plan to reapply.

[cavalier2015]

i'm a little confused on the turnaround time. According to the LSAC website, September 2014 scores will be back on October 22nd (earliest by email).

What is the turnaround time from having the LSAT score emailed to having it sent to each school? Can it be done by halloween? So, does this mean I should have everything set up on the LSAC website (meaning: personal statements, recs, resume, addendum, and any supplementary essays) done by October 22nd? So all I have to do then is input my score and have in completed? How long does it usually take for a school to receive an LSAT score and then consider the application complete?

I apologize if I asked multiple questions with the same answer. I'm just not sure and would love to have a clear picture of my timeline by the end of this month.

Source: http://www.lsac.org/jd/lsat/test-dates- ... -september

[ScottRiqui]

The projected release dates from LSAC are virtually always a little pessimistic by a few days. Going back ten years, there's only been once when they were released exactly on the projected date, and once when they were one day late (because of the October 2012 storms). The rest of the time they were at least one day early, and usually 2-3 days early for the October test.

As far as I know, schools get the scores at essentially the same time as the students.

[cavalier2015]

thank you for the reply.

how does LSAC know which schools I will be sending my scores to? I see that there is an active application tab on my account. will it automatically send the scores to those schools under there?

[rebexness]

Schools will get your score when it is released by LSAC. Quickly.

This summer you should be studying for the LSAT, getting your Recs, getting Transcripts, and getting your PS together. Depending on where you plan to apply you may also want to look at what additional essays they recommend (T14). If you have any significant c&f history, you may want to pull your records to have handy when filling out apps.

I wouldn't apply before you get your score back, as you may end up getting fee waivers, plus if you don't meet your lsat goal you may end up wasting money on schools (or if you exceed your goal- you may not need to apply to some safeties)

Apps don't come out until around Sept 1, but some of last years still may be available for viewing online so you can see what is up.

[bombaysippin]

thank you for the reply.

how does LSAC know which schools I will be sending my scores to? I see that there is an active application tab on my account. will it automatically send the scores to those schools under there?

It's not automatic. You'll still have to go through checkout even if you have fee waivers to submit your apps.

[rebexness]

thank you for the reply.

how does LSAC know which schools I will be sending my scores to? I see that there is an active application tab on my account. will it automatically send the scores to those schools under there?

No scores get officially sent until your application is submitted. The only way schools see them before that is when they do CRS searches for giving out waivers.

[cavalier2015]

thank you so much for the replies y'all

is there a list on TLS that shows which schools have supplementary/or recommend supplementary essays?

i'll focus on getting everything but my LSAT score done by october. if i have any other questions, ill be sure to post in this thread again. thank again!

[ScottRiqui]

The schools where you've applied will pull your scores (and see any future LSATs you've registered for) when they evaluate your application.

[cavalier2015]

so does that mean my LSAT need not be submitted for my application to be considered "complete"? or is a complete application one that includes everything AND the LSAT?

also any idea how long official transcripts take? i'll be taking a two week summer course from july 14-25th that will affect my GPA so I will request for an official one after that. will the turnaround be done before october?

[bombaysippin]

so does that mean my LSAT need not be submitted for my application to be considered "complete"? or is a complete application one that includes everything AND the LSAT?

also any idea how long official transcripts take? i'll be taking a two week summer course from july 14-25th that will affect my GPA so I will request for an official one after that. will the turnaround be done before october?

Schools need at least one score to make your file complete, but if you have a pending registration to take a future LSAT, most of the time the schools will wait on your app and thus it won't be "complete" until after score release. This is the case unless you specifically ask the schools to go ahead and review your application with whatever score you might have on file.

[ScottRiqui]

also any idea how long official transcripts take? i'll be taking a two week summer course from july 14-25th that will affect my GPA so I will request for an official one after that. will the turnaround be done before october?

Depends on the school. I've been lucky that I could go online, request a transcript, and have it get where it's going in 3-4 days, or faster if I wanted to pay extra. But barring any us usual fuckery, I can't imagine getting it to LSAC and having them incorporate it into your files before October will be a problem.