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September LSAT Recap: Final Thoughts

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As of now, all that’s left from the September LSAT is to wait for the scores. The test has been administered, and the deadline to cancel your score has come and gone.

Let’s then go through one last recap of the September LSAT before scores come out, and also discuss what the September LSAT means for those studying for December.

From the impressions I’ve been able to gather, the September LSAT seems to have been fairly unremarkable. There were hard questions, of course, but nothing that had everyone screaming on the way out of the test center, like, say, the fourth Logic Game on the June LSAT.

Let’s take it section by section. I’ve heard differing impressions on Reading Comp. Some found this section on the easier side, whereas others felt that some of the passages slowed them down more than normal. But all in all, it sounds like it was pretty much just normal Reading Comp. The day LSAT test takers all agree about Reading Comp difficulty will be the day our elected representatives in Washington sit down around a campfire and sing Kumbaya. Let’s call it a normal, if slightly easier-than-average, section.

Over in Logic Games land, there seems to be a rough consensus that the hardest games weren’t all that horribly bad, and that none of the games were terribly unusual. But while some test takers thought the section as a whole was easy, others found the easier games to be more time consuming than usual, and so had trouble finishing. It’s likely that taking the correct approach to the easiest games was really important on the September LSAT. It’s important to go into the LSAT with a full arsenal of strategies, and to know when to use each.

I hear that the Logical Reasoning sections were pretty much straight-down-the-middle normal. Some sections were harder than others. That’s normal. Some questions were really hard. That’s normal. Since Logical Reasoning sections have 25 or 26 distinct questions, I find that test takers often have trouble remembering many of them. That’s normal. Not much to report here.

Given the impressions I’ve heard, I’m going to go ahead and guess that the score conversion table (or “curve”) will let you get 11 wrong for a 170. Keep in mind, that’s just a guess from someone who didn’t actually take the September LSAT. I wouldn’t be surprised if I’m wrong by a couple points in either direction.

What does the September LSAT mean for those of you preparing for December? Almost nothing. It would be fallacious to assume that one LSAT predicts the next. If you’re studying for the LSAT, you should have an idea by now that logic doesn’t work that way. The only really notable takeaway from this LSAT, at least until it’s released, is that there wasn’t a really weird game. Since there was a weird game in June and there was rumored to be one in February, that’s a relief.

If you’re studying for the December LSAT, the last 20 years of released LSATs mean much more than this year’s September LSAT. You need to be prepared for the full range of what the test throws at you. There’s no telling what December will hold, except that it’ll be very similar in general to LSAT administrations over the years. Don’t waste energy trying to read into small-scale trends on the LSAT. Prepare thoroughly for whatever you might see.

Stay tuned for more analysis when the September LSAT is released. If you took the September LSAT, get to work on those law school applications. If you’re going to be taking (or retaking) the LSAT in December, get back to studying. Either way, good luck!