You’ve studied for months. You know your conditional indicators from your causals, and conclusions from the premises. You’re a wizard on Reading Comp and absolutely devour Logic Games. So what else is there to do but wait for Monday afternoon to roll around?
The first step is making sure you’re prepared for the LSAT. As already discussed, you’re clearly prepared for the material — but what about the physical side of it? Do you know what to bring, and even more importantly, what not to take into a test center?
Luckily, LSAC tells you exactly what to bring. Let’s break it down:
The Stuff You Need
Yourself
You, primed and ready, well-rested and well-fed, bringing your A-game. And don’t bring an imposter … law schools and bar associations frown upon that sort of thing. Make sure you know where your test center is and where you’re going beforehand, especially if it’s a large and unfamiliar college campus.
Clear Ziplock Bag
Get one of the large, gallon-sized freezer bags. All of your stuff listed below needs to fit in here, and you don’t want a tight squeeze or for the bag to break. The bag has to seal up, so make sure you’ve got plenty of room.
Admission Ticket
This is the first page of the 5-page document LSAC posted to your account when you signed up for the test. It has to the 2×2 inch photo that you uploaded onto LSAC’s website visible on it. Try and look more or less the same as in the photo, since the proctors will be judging the resemblance.
Government-issued ID
This has to be one of the approved forms of identification listed here, and cannot have expired more than 90 days earlier. A driver’s license or passport (card or book) works perfectly.
Pencils, Eraser, Sharpener
This is a surprisingly big one, because so many students love mechanical pencils or pens. But those are totally verboten on the LSAT, only old-school No. 2 pencils with attached erasers are allowed. I recommend four or five just in case, and at least one that’s worn down a little to make bubbling easier for the 50% of test takers who will have paper tests on the July 2019 test. Definitely bring along a sharpener and an eraser as well, like the ones that come along with the Blueprint course books.
Snack and Beverage
The LSAT is a bit of a marathon, and even worse than the bar exam where you’ll be given a lengthy lunch break. The LSAT only gives a short, roughly fifteen-minute break after the first three sections, so be prepared with something light and quick to eat and drink. The beverage you bring can’t be any bigger than twenty ounces, and must be in a juice box or plastic container. So no aluminum cans or glass bottles.
Keys
Pretty self-explanatory, but remember that there can’t be any data ports or USB sticks on them, so leave those guys in the car. Also, when you’ve got your ziplock baggie all packed away for test day, stick it next to your keys so everything’s in one obvious location before you leave.
Wallet
Just remember that this also must fit inside the bag, so if you’ve got an especially large one consider just taking out your ID and leaving the wallet in the car or at home.
Tissues, Medical and Hygiene Products
Optional depending on your individual needs, but keep in mind these also have to fit in the Ziploc bag unless you have an approved accommodation exception.
Analog Wristwatch
This is the one exception to the “it all goes in the bag” rule. However, the rules on what is allowed are pretty tight: the watch has to be an analog wristwatch. So no pocket watches or stopwatches — your watch can’t even have a stopwatch function. Of course, this means no digital or smartwatches either. While the new digital LSAT has a built-in section timer, the paper test won’t, so it’s still a good idea to bring in a watch. If possible, practice rewinding it back to 12:00 after each section in order to make timekeeping easier.
The No-Nos — Don’t Even Think of Bringing These In!
Digital or Smartwatches
As discussed above, these simply aren’t allowed.
Non-Religious Headwear
No hats or caps or hoods of any kind, unless it’s religious attire.
Phones
Probably the biggest no-no, and one of the easiest to forget. Try and remember to leave this in the car, even if it means sticking a post-it on the steering wheel.
Earplugs
You’d think they’d be allowed, but nope. So leave the earplugs at home to drown out all the snorers in your life.
Aluminum Cans
Most people love their caffeine (I’m a tea drinker myself) but down the iced coffees or energy drinks before you go into the test center.
How Well Do you Know Your Test Center?
And what about the test center itself, do you know where it is? How to get to it? Where to park? If not, it’s a good idea to get acquainted with it a few days ahead of time, so as to avoid any unnecessary anxiety on test day — you’ll be nervous enough as is. This is an afternoon exam, so there really aren’t many excuses for not making it on time. Once at the location, try and find the big group of similarly apprehensive young people, and you should be good to go.
Last-Minute Test Prep
As mentioned at the beginning of this post, you’ve done almost all the studying possible. The LSAT isn’t a test that rewards cramming, so don’t try and do that now. Instead, now is the time to build up your confidence, so consider taking one more practice test today, relaxing, and give it a blind review tomorrow. Don’t focus on your mistakes, but your strengths and how far you’ve come on this journey.
And then don’t do anything else LSAT-related until Monday morning — that’s right, take Sunday off and treat yourself. After all these months studying, you’ve earned it! Do something fun and enjoyable that let’s you relax, blow off steam and get a good night’s rest. It can be anything — yoga, gym, sports, the beach, a movie, whatever — but this is a treat for yourself. And remember, you’ve worked hard, you’ve mastered the LSAT (or at least come close) and you’re ready to kick its butt. Don’t be afraid to remind yourself of that.
As Monday morning rolls around, hopefully you’ve slept well and are ready for a good solid breakfast/brunch. Again, now is the time for confidence building, so refresh your LSAT muscle memory by doing a few relatively easy LR questions (maybe the first ten of a section or two) and the most basic of simple ordering games. You’ll ace them as a nice warm-up and end your studying on a high note. Remember, you’re at least as smart as all the others in that room with you, and you’ve worked harder than them. So go out there and kill it!