After a stressful Grey Day earlier this week, LSAT scores were finally released yesterday. In order to explain the emotional ups and downs LSAT takers encounter, fellow Law Streeter, Samantha Reilly, and I have tried to put our experiences with the LSAT score release into words (and gifs).

Whether you were ecstatic about your score, pleasantly satisfied, or are gearing up to take the test again in a few months, you probably have experienced at least some of these stages in the past 24 hours. 

Stage 1: Anticipation

Receiving the score is a spiritual experience like no other. Once word begins to spread that LSAC accounts have gone grey and you see that fateful “Your June 2016 LSAT Score” subject line in your inbox, your life feels different.  

Shaking with disbelief, you open up the email. There it is right in front of your very eyes–the three digit number that has the potential to change everything for you. It is finally here!

Stage 2: Relief

It doesn’t really matter what score you got, the second that email is in your inbox the months of anxiety and endless waiting are over and it sure feels good.

Stage 3: Panic

After the initial rush of relief, comes the panic. What was that number you just read? Was that above or below your target score? What percentile did you score in? How does your score stack up against your dream law school’s average? Then you remember all of the reasons you were dreading score day and, although you’re thankful it’s finally here, you’re not sure you’re still breathing.

Stage 4: Denial

Next up is denial. There’s no way you got a perfect score. It’s IMPOSSIBLE to score lower than you were scoring on every single prep test. How in the world did you score as average, or high, or low as you did? There must be a mistake. LSAC has been wrong before and they’ve done it again; you’re sure of it.

Stage 5: Scrutinizing Results

That denial sends you straight into a spiral of scrutinizing your response report. Now that you’ve let the number sink in, it’s time to focus in on what went wrong (or right). Wait, you made that same mistake in your last three practice tests? Rookie mistake.

Stage 6: Mourning

After you finally realize that, no, this is not some evil LSAC plot to fake you out, and yes, this is the real deal, you steamroll straight into mourning. You had waited so long for this moment and now there is no more waiting, no more guessing, and no more LSAT–at least for a couple of days. The world feels bleak and empty without the wishing and the waiting. Time to kick back, put on a rom com, and eat your feelings (whether it’s in celebration or despair).

Stage 7: Acceptance

What happens now? Well, good or bad score, you’re probably about to drop some money sending your killer score off to law schools, registering for a retake, or picking up some new study materials. Life is going to move on and you will continue to be the same old law nerd you always have been, only, now you’re a survivor of one of the most frightening standardized tests in existence.

Stage 8: Dealing With People

You’ve spent the last two days in excruciating anticipation and now everyone who follows you on Twitter is suddenly very interested in this numerical evaluation of your intelligence. Some of them are trying to be supportive, but no, 100 is not the target score. Please stop trying.

Stage 9: Returning to Normalcy

And finally, things go back to normal. While many of us aren’t quite at this stage yet, it will come. You will stop seeing LSAT scores in your sleep. You will stop logically analyzing conversations you hear on the metro. You will stop obsessively checking Dave Killoran’s Twitter page. Things will be back to the way they used to be, but you won’t. There’s something different about you now. A little extra spring in your step now that your LSAT lifecycle has come full circle. It’s back to work for you!

Keep in mind that no matter what news you received yesterday, you survived! It was a long and winding road. Maybe you have to travel it again, maybe not, but one thing is certain: you did it! 

Rest easy tonight knowing that you can be proud of yourself, whatever the results of Grey Day happened to be.

Alexandra Simone

Alex Simone is an Editorial Senior Fellow at Law Street and a student at The George Washington University, studying Political Science. She is passionate about law and government, but also enjoys the finer things in life like watching crime dramas and enjoying a nice DC brunch. Contact Alex at ASimone@LawStreetmedia.com

The post The 9 Stages of Receiving Your LSAT Score appeared first on Law Street.

The Law School Admission Test (LSAT) has long been the seemingly make-it-or-break-it test that prospective law school students take. For years, it’s been a simple rule: if you want to go to law school, you take the LSAT. But the University of Arizona James E. Rogers College of Law is breaking away from that mold–the school is accepting students who submit the Graduate Records Examinations (GRE) as well.

Arizona made its announcement about the GRE in February, and immediately saw backlash. The Law School Admission Council, which is in charge of the LSAT test, allegedly considering ousting Arizona from its membership–although the Council now states that its actions in regards to Arizona were “misinterpreted.” In addition to administering the LSAT, the Council offers a number of other admissions-related services, so it’s not really a membership that Arizona would have wanted to lose. The Council did decide to let Arizona retain its membership. Other law schools backed Arizona’s attempt to break from the norm–approximately 150 deans signed a letter supporting Arizona’s “effort to broaden its applicant pool.”

So why does Arizona want to let in applicants that don’t take the LSAT? There are a few reasons, including the fact that the American Bar Association (ABA) has never been clear that the LSAT is the only test that prospective law school students should or can take. According to Carrie Jung of NPR:

The American Bar Association says law schools must require a standardized test that’s valid and reliably predicts student performance, ‘but it doesn’t say that standardized test must be the LSAT,’ says Marc Miller, the Arizona law school dean.

Arizona commissioned a study which came to the conclusion that the GRE is a reliable way to measure applicants. And Arizona’s administration makes some good points about the accessibility benefits of the GRE–there are a lot more opportunities to take the GRE than the LSAT, and Arizona is hoping that increased accessibility leads to more a diverse pool of applicants.

Arizona’s admissions website now clearly states that submitting a GRE score instead of an LSAT score is allowed, and while it’s the first school to make this move, there may be others following suit. According to NPR, the University of Hawaii and Wake Forest are also considering opening admissions to GRE-takers as well.

Anneliese Mahoney

Anneliese Mahoney is Managing Editor at Law Street and a Connecticut transplant to Washington D.C. She has a Bachelor’s degree in International Affairs from the George Washington University, and a passion for law, politics, and social issues. Contact Anneliese at amahoney@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post No LSAT, No Problem: University of Arizona’s Law School Begins Accepting GRE appeared first on Law Street.

Law school, LSATs, and the daily grind–check out the top legal tweets of the week below.

A Baseball Fan

Stuck in court making constitutional arguments during the #BlueJays game. Isn’t that unconstitutional? #lawyerproblems

— Alison Craig (@lawandchocolate) October 21, 2015

Anneliese Mahoney

Anneliese Mahoney is Managing Editor at Law Street and a Connecticut transplant to Washington D.C. She has a Bachelor’s degree in International Affairs from the George Washington University, and a passion for law, politics, and social issues. Contact Anneliese at amahoney@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post Best Legal Tweets of the Week appeared first on Law Street.

It’s official — there’s less than a week until the LSAT! By now you should all be feeling pretty well prepared — after all, you’ve gotten the chance to check out tips to master the Logic Games, Logical Reasoning, Reading Comprehension, and Essay sections. We also filled you in on what to do if everything goes terribly wrong the day of the LSAT. But as your prep probably winds down, here are some last minute tips to make sure that you reach your full LSAT potential.

The day before the LSAT, you should try to relax.

A lot of times, especially as an undergrad, it’s tempting to cram for a test until the very last moment. But for the LSAT, that’s not the best idea. This test is less about information, and more about testing skills you have learned, so you might want to give yourself the day before the LSAT off. At the very least, don’t spend all day studying. Instead do an activity that relaxes you, whether that is reading, having a quiet lunch with friends, or some sort of physical activity. Just make sure that whatever you do is actually relaxing and won’t affect you on test day — for example, consuming any sort of alcohol is probably a pretty bad idea.

The day before the LSAT you should also get motivated. 

In addition to getting relaxed, it might also be nice to remind yourself of why you’re going through the craziness that is LSAT prep. Do whatever motivates you. Some LSAT experts recommend going through the website and looking at pictures of your ideal law school. It’s easy to forget that there is a light at the end of the tunnel, and that light is going to the school you want and having the career in law that you’ve been striving toward. Or motivate yourself with something else — maybe a great speech, or a letter from a loved one. Just make sure that you do something to remind yourself why you’ve been putting in this great, crazy-hard work over the past few months.

The day of the LSAT warm up your brain. 

You don’t want the first thing you do that day to be to take the LSAT test. Instead, try to warm up your brain a little bit by doing an easy puzzle or something similar. Sudoku is great because it requires similar logic skills to ones used on the LSAT. You obviously don’t want to exhaust yourself with anything difficult, but if you can get back in the routine of thinking in a logical way before you actually get there, that’ll make sure that you’re prepared when you actually sit down to take the LSAT.

The day of the LSAT have a good breakfast, but still follow your routine. 

It’s really hard to eat breakfast, especially if you’re nervous about something. But there’s really a lot of value in making sure that you’re well-fed before you go take the LSAT. It’ll wake up your brain, of course. But more importantly, it will keep your stomach from making weird rumbly noises during the test, and it’ll keep you from being distracted by your hunger during the LSAT.

That being said, don’t deviate from your normal routine too much. If you’re not a coffee drinker, don’t decide to drink coffee just to get some extra caffeine before the test in the hope that it’ll make you work faster. If you are a coffee drinker, don’t deprive yourself of your morning cup of joe. Just do what you’re comfortable with, and add in a little extra protein if possible.

On the day of the test, be early. 

No matter how you prepare to take the LSAT, make sure that you do everything that day a little earlier than you normally do. Get up earlier, leave your house earlier, everything. Don’t be too early, obviously, you don’t want to be at the testing site before it opens. Just make sure that you leave tons of time to get where you need to be. That way you don’t have to rush and feel stressed right before the test.

Good luck everyone — it’s been a long countdown to the June LSAT, but I know you’ll all do a great job! We here at Law Street are pulling for you!

—

Anneliese Mahoney (@AMahoney8672) is Lead Editor at Law Street and a Connecticut transplant to Washington D.C. She has a Bachelor’s degree in International Affairs from the George Washington University, and a passion for law, politics, and social issues. Contact Anneliese at amahoney@LawStreetMedia.com.

Featured image courtesy of [Jayneandd via Flickr]

Anneliese Mahoney

Anneliese Mahoney is Managing Editor at Law Street and a Connecticut transplant to Washington D.C. She has a Bachelor’s degree in International Affairs from the George Washington University, and a passion for law, politics, and social issues. Contact Anneliese at amahoney@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post Countdown to LSAT: Last Minute Tips for the Home Stretch appeared first on Law Street.