Get Greedy with Your LSAT (Ep. 346)
If you want to go to law school for free, you have to start getting greedy with your LSAT. Tune in this week to hear Nathan and Ben respond to a bucketload of listener emails. As usual, their advice centers on one main theme—don’t pay for law school! The guys also discuss why it’s never a good idea to read the question first in Logical Reasoning. They critique an admissions dean’s comments on law school scholarships. Last but not least, they encourage a student with a 171 on record to get greedy and shoot for a higher score.
Be sure to check out LSAT Demon’s free class with Rachel Gezerseh, author of The Law Career Playbook. The class will be held on May 21 at 1:00 pm EDT. All you need is a Demon Free account to join. Go to lsat.link/rachel for more details and to register.
LSAT Demon is now in the App Store! Download the iPhone app and start practicing on the go. As always, if you like the show and want to get more from the Thinking LSAT community, check out the links below. You can connect with other folks studying for the LSAT and get more useful resources from Nathan and Ben.
4.27.2022 — June LSAT registration deadline
4.29.2022 — April LSAT begins
5.18.2022 — April LSAT scores released
6.10.2022 — June LSAT begins
5:05 - Don’t Read the Question First
Listener Zach started his LSAT studies with a big-name prep company, but he found the program to be focused more on quick tricks than on actual comprehension. Reading the questions before the passages in Logical Reasoning is a gimmicky strategy that tends to hurt students more than it helps. Since adopting LSAT Demon’s approach to the test, Zach has found that he often predicts answers before even reading the questions. But he thinks there might be an exception to the rule when the passage is a dialogue between two speakers. Ben and Nathan explain why you should always read and understand the passage first—no exceptions.
15:03 - Invest in Yourself
An anonymous listener shares a podcast episode featuring Monica Ingram, Associate Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid at Cornell Law School. Anonymous isn’t fond of the jabs made at applicants who seek scholarships to cover their law school education. The guys take a look at Cornell’s ABA 509 report and see that the school offers 83% of their students some sort of scholarship, but they tend to be mostly less-than-half tuition.
Ben and Nathan reiterate how important it is to play the game right. Don’t pay full price for law school while a majority of your classmates are receiving discounts. Apply with your best LSAT score at the beginning of the cycle to maximize your potential scholarship offers. If you want to invest in yourself, start by saving yourself from six-figure tuition loans and years of debt.
29:40 - Apply Early
Acting on faulty advice from their undergraduate advisor, listener Sam crashed and burned on the official LSAT after only three weeks of prep. They applied to three law schools very late in the cycle and planned to enroll this fall. Luckily, Sam has since found the Thinking LSAT podcast and is determined to work their way up to a score in the 170s. With a 4.0 UGPA already in the bag, a great LSAT score will make Sam a contender at top-ranked law schools. Sam should withdraw their existing applications and take the official LSAT again only when they are consistently scoring above 170 on practice tests. Sam should then apply broadly at the beginning of the next cycle.
54:34 - Negotiate Scholarships
An anonymous LSAT Demon student was offered a $72K scholarship at their top-choice law school, but they’re hoping to negotiate a full-ride offer. They’re wondering if it would be appropriate to send letters of continued interest to other competing schools to aid in their scholarship negotiation. Anonymous should use all of the leverage available to them and negotiate for a full scholarship.
1:06:25 - Get Greedy with Your LSAT
An anonymous listener has a 171 on record and is considering a retake. Their law school tuition will already be covered by their GI Bill and Yellow Ribbon Program benefits. Should this listener bother aiming for a higher score? Yes! Ben and Nathan explain why you should get greedy with your LSAT score.
Anonymous also encourages fellow listeners to check out the Yellow Ribbon Program. While military service is not for everyone, it’s worth looking into. If you’re a good fit for the program, it could save you hundreds of thousands of dollars in the long term. Here are links to Yale's, Stanford's, and Harvard's Yellow Ribbon Program pages.