Overheard at the LSAT Forum

[incompetentia]

This is because most Asians are too smart to become lawyers.

I'm pretty sure we are the dumb ones.

By what you're saying, it seems like you're implying that there's something inherently more intelligent in pursuing a degree in mathematics, or medicine, or another field more typical of asians to pursue. But there isn't, so I don't believe your implication is correct.
Anyway, I've lived in Asia for a long time. I see lots of asians all the time. I have private students who are engineers. One of my students, a really good example of what I'm trying to get across, went to Kaist. If you're Korean you've probably heard of it. It's the top technical college in Korea. He is constantly impressed by the verbal abilities of the lawyers, Korean and non-Korean, he needs to collaborate with on group projects. And he's the lead engineer for a team of engineers working for LG. He would disagree with you, and so do I.

At least to the extent that I've been exposed to and observed Asian culture, being a doctor or a teacher is about ten times more prestigious than ending up in lawyering circles. Figured it was a riff on that...
My dad went to Kaist. Nice place, although I've only been there once.

[tazmolover]

By what you're saying, it seems like you're implying that there's something inherently more intelligent in pursuing a degree in mathematics, or medicine, or another field more typical of asians to pursue. But there isn't, so I don't believe your implication is correct.
Anyway, I've lived in Asia for a long time. I see lots of asians all the time. I have private students who are engineers. One of my students, a really good example of what I'm trying to get across, went to Kaist. If you're Korean you've probably heard of it. It's the top technical college in Korea. He is constantly impressed by the verbal abilities of the lawyers, Korean and non-Korean, he needs to collaborate with on group projects. And he's the lead engineer for a team of engineers working for LG. He would disagree with you, and so do I.

There are no dumb doctors.

There are many dumb lawyers.

Anyways this argument is silly. I was just working the whole Asian culture thing - something I grasp much better than you.

Stop taking everything so literally.

[ThreeYears]

By what you're saying, it seems like you're implying that there's something inherently more intelligent in pursuing a degree in mathematics, or medicine, or another field more typical of asians to pursue. But there isn't, so I don't believe your implication is correct.
Anyway, I've lived in Asia for a long time. I see lots of asians all the time. I have private students who are engineers. One of my students, a really good example of what I'm trying to get across, went to Kaist. If you're Korean you've probably heard of it. It's the top technical college in Korea. He is constantly impressed by the verbal abilities of the lawyers, Korean and non-Korean, he needs to collaborate with on group projects. And he's the lead engineer for a team of engineers working for LG. He would disagree with you, and so do I.

There are no dumb doctors.

There are many dumb lawyers.

Anyways this argument is silly. I was just working the whole Asian culture thing - something I grasp much better than you.

Stop taking everything so literally.

There are many many dumb doctors, sir.

[vegenator]

Tidbit #3: During break in crowded bathroom, two girls washing their hands next to me engage in the following conversation:
Girl in mini skirt (in UPPERMIDWEST in FEBRUARY!!! I'm talking 15 degrees outside): This test is waaaaaaaaay harder than the practice tests I did.
Random girl 2: Yah, I know what you mean. How many practice tests did you do?
Mini skirt girl: A TON!!! I think like, four?
Random girl 2: WHUT? 4! Girl, you are so ready for this! You'll rock this thing. I took that free test online and this is way harder.
Mini skirt girl: Awh, thanks? You really think I'll do good?
Random girl 2: For sure. Good luck!

I didn't know people would be listening to my conversation! Oh, and the miniskirt was for good luck. Elle Woods wore one, I think!

Hi Barbie. No, I don't think it was you. It must have been Skipper or one of your other (less-accomplished) friends in the mini skirt. While Barbie may wear miniskirts (and occasionally teachers and doctor uniforms), her wardrobe is ALWAYS situationally appropriate
But seriously... who wears a miniskirt when they have to walk through two feet of snow and the salty, muddy slop just to get into the testing facility?!? I may not be a fashionista, but IMHO a little common sense with the wardrobe goes a long way....

[mctomes]

"My mother is sending us positive energy through her mind, so we're going to do great!" She then proceeded to reach out her hands and wave them towards him saying "energy!"

These three girls who knew each other "We're are gonna do awesome, because we're taking this together!" I don't know if they were planning on taking one test together or what.

And my favorite: "I brought 5 pencils for luck, one for each section." I have no clue what she expected to use during the writing section. I mean I wish I had bought some lucky pencils, I only had ordinary pencils.

[pam920]

For some reason, there were a lot of idiots at my LSAT

Girl: Can I move? The clock is really loud and I won't be able to concentrate. (This girl also complained loudly and repeatedly about the small fold-up desks in the test center)

The second girl was the best, though. After the proctor read the part about no eating, chewing gum, etc, she raised her hand.
Girl: So we can't chew gum?
Proctor: No.
Girl: What if I, like, just sucked on the gum and the people around me could say if it was disruptive to them? (I'm not kidding - that's exactly what she said)
Proctor: No.

And then there was the idiot who brought a cell phone.

[Kretzy]

Not from this cycle, and not something I heard, but a fun test center story nonetheless I think.

I took the test in Denver in 2008. At the DU center, they split you in to rooms of about 25 people. I ended up chatting in a group of 5 folks outside of the room during the test. Didn't think much of it, just normal pleasantries.

Proceeded to see 3 of them at visits in the T10 the next year. 3 of us (out of those 5) wound up at HYS. I don't really know what the odds of that are, but it was pretty neat to randomly run into the folks I talked with during the break.

Was this the Sept '08 test, Kretzy? I was there for that (and then again Oct. 09 )

June '08. I had just broken my ankle, and was fairly conspicuous hobbling around on my crutches around the DU campus...all in all though, good test center experience

[downing]

There are no dumb doctors.
There are many dumb lawyers.
Anyways this argument is silly. I was just working the whole Asian culture thing - something I grasp much better than you.
Stop taking everything so literally.

There are NO dumb doctors?
Sure thing. I'm sure there's a reliable statistic for that.

You grasp asian culture better than me?
That might be true, but you don't know anything about me. Great show of confidence though, Mr. expert on Asian culture.

[SchopenhauerFTW]

The only funny thing that happened involved me. I was in a good mood once time was called for the third section and stood up to stretch. When I turned around I saw that every single person in the room was still sitting down (I was in the first row, directly in front of the proctor). I quickly realized that the proctor had not given us permission to stand up yet. I literally dove into my seat. The proctor then told me that I was lucky to not have been shot by one of the snipers stationed across the street.

[Adjudicator]

The only funny thing that happened involved me. I was in a good mood once time was called for the third section and stood up to stretch. When I turned around I saw that every single person in the room was still sitting down (I was in the first row, directly in front of the proctor). I quickly realized that the proctor had not given us permission to stand up yet. I literally dove into my seat. The proctor then told me that I was lucky to not have been shot by one of the snipers stationed across the street.

That's great.

[happywarmgun]

This thread wins the whole internet.

Okay, walking in, two girls in line greeted each other: "hey bitch!" "hey you fucking slut" "you wanna be a lawyer?! youre too much of a slut!" "fuck you, bitch" followed by hysterical laughter. (quite classy)

Then, during the long instructional part, after the proctor said "no gum" a kid in the front row raised his hand and said "can you take my gum? I'm not supposed to get up." (like a perfectly polite 5 year old)

later, someone passed gas during the finger printing, shook his head and said, "nerves" under his breath.

during break, the guy next to me said he was going to cancel his score, and almost started crying. I gave him one of my poptarts... he felt better.
Another guy asked the proctor if he could go outside the building. She said no. He asked "where the hell am I supposed to smoke?!" she said "not inside the building, that's for sure..." He looked like he was about to rip her face off, and then sat down and sucked on an unlit cigarette.

After the test, the guy next to me said "thanks for the pop tart. I think it helped on the LG."
And 1 kid talked about how he wouldn’t have drank so much the night before, but frat pledges only learn by example...

Welcome to the future of Law in NJ.

[Tainted_Praise]

This thread reeks of undeserved elitism and an overvalued sense of self worth.

Thanks man. We'll take that under consideration.

I'm so glad I found this forum......

[Flett]

during break, the guy next to me said he was going to cancel his score, and almost started crying. I gave him one of my poptarts... he felt better.

lol. That just made me go 'awwww... how sweet!' Pop Tarts work magic.

[Tainted_Praise]

I once disagreed with the above post, and I am URM. But I have to say that if someone wants the information they can get it. Presumably they went to college, and they have a pre-law advisor. They have peers who are applying, and their peers can serve as resources (book sharing, study groups, etc). They have computers or access to them, and can get on the web, where there is a host of information. If they need books and are too poor to pay full price, they can buy them used. The LSAC gives waivers (over multiple years in some cases) for poorer students.

Some schools offer their students financial aid/scjholarships that pay for grad prep, even if the student doesn't want to apply to his own UG. Most test prep books are sold in the stores, and the same people who claim they have no money are out at clubs on weekends drinking, or at the mall on weekends shopping. Instead of buying new $200 Timberlands and Jordans and spending $50 on alcohol in one night, save that money for law prep.

And LSAT prep courses aren't always a good idea for some students. if you train alone, you can go at your own pace. Many higher scoring URM's have found that this worked better for them after they took a course, where the teachers paid little attention to helping them overcome their weaknesses or were biased towards the other students, for whatever reasons.

A lot of URM's and poor whites do not have the "immediate access" to the same resources (i.e., tutoring, relatives who are lawyers, etc), but they can overcome those disadvantages if they truly want to. At some point, it has to be about desire and discipline.

Bill Cosby? Is that you?

I just spit out my soda. El-Oh-El

[happywarmgun]

during break, the guy next to me said he was going to cancel his score, and almost started crying. I gave him one of my poptarts... he felt better.

lol. That just made me go 'awwww... how sweet!' Pop Tarts work magic.

He was a nice kid. I think the pressure was just getting to him. & poptarts ARE magic!!

[Tainted_Praise]

My proctor could barely read. She was asian and clearly never even glanced at the rules before reading them out loud. It was kinda funny and made me want to make fun of her but at the same time I felt bad. I was gonna come up to her during the break and be like "So, which law school did you go to?"

I don't think anyone has gotten banned for being racist against Asians. Blacks/hispanics probably. Asians?

They just scream ORM.

Bahahahahahahaa

[Tainted_Praise]

I don't want to burn in hell, but our proctor assistant was mentally challenged and had one hand and one nub. Throughout the test he was furiously scratching his nub and smiling. It was very distracting.

Damn you. I think you just gave me bad karma for laughing at this.

[lennonist]

I don't want to burn in hell, but our proctor assistant was mentally challenged and had one hand and one nub. Throughout the test he was furiously scratching his nub and smiling. It was very distracting.

Damn you. I think you just gave me bad karma for laughing at this.

is that aishwarya rai as avatar?

approved

[cynthia rose]

Nice call toad. It definitely pays to be (or have at least one person in the room be) assertive on test day.

Unless the "assertive" one is a gunner...

Random test taker 1: "It's kind of warm in here, can you turn on the air?"
Proctor: "No, there is no central air in here, I'm sorry."
Random test taker 2: "Can we open the windows?"
Proctor: "No, the windows don't open, I'm sorry."
Me: Who the hell designs a building with no central air and windows that don't open? Why did Georgetown and Howard have to be full? Ugh, I knew I shouldn't have picked UDC...
Proctor assistant: "All we have is this fan. We can try it and see if it cools off the room"
Five or six test takers: "OKAY!"
Assistant turns on fan. It's amazing and somehow reaches even to the back of the room
Conspicuous gunner: "THE FAN IS TOO LOUD I WILL NOT BE ABLE TO CONCENTRATE"
Five-six test takers: "It's warm!"
Conspicuous gunner: "IT IS TOO LOUD WE MUST TURN IT OFF I CAN'T CONCENTRATE"
Random test taker (1? 2? Who knows) attempting to compromise: "Well is there a lower setting?"
Assistant: turns fan to lower setting. Not that the fan noise was that obnoxious anyway but you can definitely hear the difference
Conspicuous gunner: "NO IT IS STILL TOO LOUD. TURN IT OFF."
Proctor: "Well I'll leave it on while I'm reading instructions and then turn it off right before we begin the test."

Proctor turns fan off. And closes both doors.

After section two...

Nine or ten test takers: "OMG, can we please turn on the fan it is so hot"
Conspicuous gunner: Furiously shaking head and is obviously about to yell her objection to the noise again
Proctor punking out like a bee-yotch: "I'm sorry, the fan is going to be distracting to one test taker so we can't have it on." Then she says something about that's why they tell you to dress in layers
Me: The high is 79 today and everyone in here is already wearing a t-shirt under his/her hoodie. Does my bra count as a layer?

After section five...

Fifteen+ test takers: "OMG FAN, PLEASE, IT'S JUST ONE MORE SECTION
Conspicuous gunner: "Well okay, BUT ON THE LOWEST SETTING POSSIBLE!"

I was two rows behind her and after section five I noticed the sweat pouring down the back of her neck. I think that's the only reason why she gave in that little bit. I'll be testing at NVCC next time so hopefully that won't happen again. Still can't get over a building with no air and windows that don't open. How do you make a building with no ventilation???

[bartleby]

Nice call toad. It definitely pays to be (or have at least one person in the room be) assertive on test day.

Unless the "assertive" one is a gunner...

Random test taker 1: "It's kind of warm in here, can you turn on the air?"
Proctor: "No, there is no central air in here, I'm sorry."
Random test taker 2: "Can we open the windows?"
Proctor: "No, the windows don't open, I'm sorry."
Me: Who the hell designs a building with no central air and windows that don't open? Why did Georgetown and Howard have to be full? Ugh, I knew I shouldn't have picked UDC...
Proctor assistant: "All we have is this fan. We can try it and see if it cools off the room"
Five or six test takers: "OKAY!"
Assistant turns on fan. It's amazing and somehow reaches even to the back of the room
Conspicuous gunner: "THE FAN IS TOO LOUD I WILL NOT BE ABLE TO CONCENTRATE"
Five-six test takers: "It's warm!"
Conspicuous gunner: "IT IS TOO LOUD WE MUST TURN IT OFF I CAN'T CONCENTRATE"
Random test taker (1? 2? Who knows) attempting to compromise: "Well is there a lower setting?"
Assistant: turns fan to lower setting. Not that the fan noise was that obnoxious anyway but you can definitely hear the difference
Conspicuous gunner: "NO IT IS STILL TOO LOUD. TURN IT OFF."
Proctor: "Well I'll leave it on while I'm reading instructions and then turn it off right before we begin the test."

Proctor turns fan off. And closes both doors.

After section two...

Nine or ten test takers: "OMG, can we please turn on the fan it is so hot"
Conspicuous gunner: Furiously shaking head and is obviously about to yell her objection to the noise again
Proctor punking out like a bee-yotch: "I'm sorry, the fan is going to be distracting to one test taker so we can't have it on." Then she says something about that's why they tell you to dress in layers
Me: The high is 79 today and everyone in here is already wearing a t-shirt under his/her hoodie. Does my bra count as a layer?

After section five...

Fifteen+ test takers: "OMG FAN, PLEASE, IT'S JUST ONE MORE SECTION
Conspicuous gunner: "Well okay, BUT ON THE LOWEST SETTING POSSIBLE!"

I was two rows behind her and after section five I noticed the sweat pouring down the back of her neck. I think that's the only reason why she gave in that little bit. I'll be testing at NVCC next time so hopefully that won't happen again. Still can't get over a building with no air and windows that don't open. How do you make a building with no ventilation???

This is hilarious.

[shinyusername]

One proctor, after droning on for 5 minutes, paused in the middle of the 'prohibited items/electronics' section, looked at the other proctor, and said, "Really?" Other proctor made him continue.

Proctor also stumbled on his reading, saying, "[Some rule stuff here blah blah] page break to the next page --- wait, that doesn't make sense." Then he read it all over again and continued to the next page.

Everyone in the room had finished writing out the certification/authentication statement except for one woman....who had her test booklet open:
Proctor: Ma'am you cannot have your test booklet open.
Ma'am: *unaware*
Proctor: Ma'am, close your booklet now. ... Ma'am, your booklet.
Ma'am: *looks up* Oh, oh... *closes booklet* So we just fill out this thing here...? *pointing to answer sheet*
Proctor: ....yes.
We all wait a few minutes. Proctor debates whether to start reading even though he knows Ma'am's not done.
Proctor: Uh... okay everyone that's done filling that out, please raise your hand. *stares at Ma'am*
Everyone but Ma'am raises hand. Everyone but Ma'am has silent eye-conversation. Proctor starts reading.

[cynthia rose]

This is hilarious.

Seriously, she was the kind of gunner that I think would have killed every other person in that room if someone had told her that less competition would mean a higher score. I thought I wouldn't see a live one in action until I actually got TO law school, not while I was taking the test to determine if any of us could get in at all.

One proctor, after droning on for 5 minutes, paused in the middle of the 'prohibited items/electronics' section, looked at the other proctor, and said, "Really?" Other proctor made him continue.

LOL, our proctor read the whole thing while laughing a bit then asked, "Okay, so are we sure no one has any firearms? Okay, moving on."

[DearCan]

My proctor read "erasures" as "erasers".

[Tainted_Praise]

I don't want to burn in hell, but our proctor assistant was mentally challenged and had one hand and one nub. Throughout the test he was furiously scratching his nub and smiling. It was very distracting.

Damn you. I think you just gave me bad karma for laughing at this.

is that aishwarya rai as avatar?

approved

HaHa yes. Totally obsessed with her.

[J. Galt]

In June a girl stood up in the second section crying, yelled, "I'm sorry!" and left the room. This made a bunch of people start freaking out. The guy next to me started breathing heavily, and I thought he was going to blackout. I think 6 or more people left the test early after that. I should have canceled for sure.

Nothing crazy in October, but my proctor was a young guy who kept making jokes. He was very laid back and encouraging compared to some of the horror stories I have heard.

I did wear a t-shirt with the legendary symbol from the Halo series on the front. I thought it was fitting. It definitely got me some weird looks.