July test takers: As you know, this is the big “transition to digital” exam, and ONLY for this exam, takers will be able to see your score, cancel if you choose, and retake for free until April 2020. It’s smart to think through your retake options now, especially if you intend to apply to law school this cycle (to enter law school in Fall 2020).
Tip: Before reading this, you may want to read our earlier blog post on 5 Things to Know & Do For the July LSAT
Let’s talk about 2 important details for considering any LSAT retake options.
- July LSAT scores will be released on August 28, and takers will have until September 4 to cancel that score. Given that information, let’s consider all of your LSAT retake options.
- The July LSAT is nondisclosed, meaning that takers will not receive a full report of questions you got correct and incorrect. Takers will only receive a score, nothing more, to study from for a retake.
Let’s consider all of the free LSAT retake options for July takers.
September 21, 2019 LSAT. Registration is currently open here and closes on August 1.
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- July scores will be released long after the September 2019 LSAT registration deadline (August 1), so this will not be a realistic free retake option. Also, takers would have less than 1 month after July score release to prep for a retake, and that’s not a realistic time frame to see improvement.
- This LSAT is offered on our campus. It is also the last LSAT of 2019 to be offered on a Saturday.
- IF you really want this option because pushing to a later LSAT won’t work, then you may want to go ahead and pay to register for the September LSAT prior to August 1. You won’t get the advantage of the FREE retake, but you will still have the advantage of cancelling your July score if you aren’t satisfied with it.
- Those who take this route would be wise to keep up with the LSAT studying until your July score is released (so that you don’t lose ground if you decide to retake), knowing that if you like your July score, you can just cancel your Sept registration and be done.
- This LSAT is disclosed, meaning that test takers will get a full report of questions answered correctly and incorrectly.
October 28, 2019 LSAT. Registration for this LSAT is currently open here and closes on September 10.
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- This is the most realistic next LSAT for July retakers. (Demand will probably be high for that reason.) July takers will have 2 full months after July scores roll to prepare for October, which is a more realistic time frame to see improvement.
- Note that this exam is on a Monday, which may mean making arrangements to miss class or work.
- This LSAT is not offered on our campus, so takers should plan to travel elsewhere. Registering as early as possible will help secure a seat at a strategic location near campus or near home, if you want to avoid hotel expenses.
- IF you plan to apply Early Decision, then this may be the latest LSAT accepted. It depends on the law school. Check the application of the law school where you plan to apply Early Decision to see whether they will accept November scores…many will not.
- This exam is nondisclosed, meaning that test takers will only receive a score and will not receive a report of questions answered correctly and incorrectly.
November 25, 2019. Registration is currently open here for this LSAT and closes on October 10.
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- IF you are planning to apply to law school this cycle (to enter in Fall 2020), then this is the latest LSAT we advise taking. (Why? The next LSAT isn’t until January 2020, which is getting late in the cycle due to rolling admissions.) This LSAT may also be too late to apply Early Decision–see the note above.
- This exam is on a Monday, but it’s also during our Fall Break, so current students won’t have to miss class. It may be necessary to miss work.
- This LSAT is not offered on our campus, so takers should plan to travel elsewhere. Registering as early as possible will help secure a seat at a strategic location near campus or near home, if you want to avoid hotel expenses.
- For current students–This exam is very close to finals, and LSAT prep will need to be carefully balanced with academic performance throughout the fall semester.
- This exam is disclosed, meaning that test takers will receive a full report of questions answered correctly and incorrectly.
January 13, 2020 LSAT. Registration is currently open here for this LSAT and closes on December 3.
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- This exam is possible for those who want to enter law school in fall of 2020, but it is getting late. Remember that in a rolling admission cycle, law schools begin accepting people–and awarding their scholarships–in September.
- LSAT takers who are applying to law school this cycle would be wise to complete all other elements of the application as soon as this exam is over in order to apply ASAP once scores are released.
- This exam is on a Monday, but it falls during our Winter Break, so current students will not have to miss class. It may be necessary to miss work.
- This LSAT is not offered on our campus, so takers should plan to travel elsewhere. Registering as early as possible will help secure a seat at a strategic location near campus or near home, if you want to avoid hotel expenses.
- This exam is nondisclosed, meaning that test takers will only receive a score and will not receive a report of questions answered correctly and incorrectly.
February 22, 2020 LSAT. Registration for this LSAT is currently open here and closes on January 7.
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- This exam is very late in the cycle for those who are applying to law school to enter in Fall 2020. Applicants may even miss some law school application deadlines by the time February scores are released; check the deadlines of law schools you’re applying to if considering this option.
- This may be a great option for those who aren’t applying to law school this cycle. Current students will have all of winter break to focus on LSAT prep. And, you’d be done with the LSAT before midterms–always a plus. You can spend the rest of the semester focused on your classwork.
- This exam is on a Saturday, so current students don’t need to miss class. Alumni may not need to miss work, either.
- This exam IS offered on our campus. Current students and local alumni can avoid travel costs and logistics.
- This exam is nondisclosed, meaning that test takers will only receive a score and will not receive a report of questions answered correctly and incorrectly.
March 30, 2020 LSAT. Registration for this LSAT is currently open here and closes on February 11.
- This exam is not a realistic option for those who are applying to law school to enter in Fall 2020. Applicants will miss many law school application deadlines, and many scholarships will already be awarded.
- This may be a great option for those who aren’t applying to law school this cycle. Current students will have all of winter break AND spring break to study. And, you’d be done with the LSAT before finals. However, balancing of LSAT prep and classwork would be necessary throughout most of spring semester.
- This exam is on a Monday (and does NOT fall during our spring break), so current students would need to miss class, and alumni may need to miss work.
- This LSAT is not offered on our campus, so takers should plan to travel elsewhere. Registering as early as possible will help secure a seat at a strategic location near campus or near home, if you want to avoid hotel expenses.
- This exam is nondisclosed, meaning that test takers will only receive a score and will not receive a report of questions answered correctly and incorrectly.
April 25, 2020. This is the final FREE LSAT retake option for July 2019 LSAT takers. Registration is currently open here and closes on March 10.
- This exam is not an option for those who are applying to law school to enter in Fall 2020. It is well past most law school application deadlines.
- This may be a great option for those who aren’t applying to law school this cycle. Current students will have all of winter break AND spring break to study. However, this LSAT is so late in the spring that it requires balancing LSAT prep and classwork essentially the entire semester. And it’s close to finals, which is not ideal.
- This exam is on a Saturday, so current students don’t need to miss class. Alumni may not need to miss work, either.
- This LSAT IS offered on our campus. Current students and local alumni can avoid travel costs and logistics.
- This exam is nondisclosed, meaning that test takers will only receive a score and will not receive a report of questions answered correctly and incorrectly.
