For years, law schools were wedded to the LSAT. Like any marriage, the partnership had its ups and downs, but it was a bedrock relationship. The LSAT, after all, was the test developed for law schools. It pledged to help law schools assess applicants’ lawyerly mettle, and in return, law schools promised to use the LSAT as their primary means to appraise law school candidates. By upholding these vows, they forged a mutually beneficial partnership.

However, as stories old as time have said, the heart wants what it wants. As law schools and the LSAT hit a rough patch, some law schools sought romance outside the homestead, gazing towards the LSAT’s neighbor, the GRE. They saw the GRE (or Graduate Record Examination) as a slightly easier, more accessible alternative to their spouse. The University of Arizona, in particular, couldn’t contain itself and became the first law school to step out on the LSAT. A messy fight ensued, but when Harvard Law — a respected pillar of the law school community! — declared it too would tryst with the GRE, the LSAT realized it might be permanently sharing its partner’s affections.

Since then, many law schools have flirted with the GRE or outright proposed an extra-marital affair. For those tracking these so-called affaires de cœur at home, here’s a full list of the 100+ law schools that accept the GRE or another non-LSAT test.

List of Law Schools Accepting the GRE or Non-LSAT Test

1. Albany Law School
2. American University Washington College of Law
3. Belmont University College of Law
4. Boston College Law School
5. Boston University School of Law
6. Brigham Young University J. Reuben Clark Law School
7. Brooklyn Law School
8. California Western School of Law
9. Case Western Reserve University School of Law
10. Chicago-Kent College of Law
11. Cleveland-Marshall College of Law
12. Columbia Law School
13. Cornell Law School
14. DePaul University College of Law
15. Drake University Law School
16. Drexel University Thomas R. Kline School of Law
17. Duke University School of Law
18. Faulkner Law School
19. Florida International University College of Law
20. Florida State University College of Law
21. Fordham University School of Law
22. George Mason University Antonin Scalia Law School
23. George Washington University Law School
24. Georgetown University Law Center
25. Golden Gate University School of Law
26. Harvard Law School
27. Hofstra University – Maurice A. Deane School of Law
28. Indiana University Maurer School of Law
29. Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law
30. Kern County College of Law
31. Lincoln Memorial University Duncan School of Law
32. LMU Loyola Law School, Los Angeles
33. Massachusetts School of Law at Andover
34. Mercer University School of Law
35. Monterey College of Law
36. New England Law | Boston
37. New York University School of Law
38. Northern Illinois University College of Law
39. Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law
40. Pace University Elisabeth Haub School of Law
41. Pennsylvania State University Dickinson Law
42. Pennsylvania State University — Penn State Law
43. Pepperdine University Rick J. Caruso School of Law
44. San Joaquin College of Law
45. San Luis Obispo College of Law
46. Santa Clara University School of Law
47. Seattle University School of Law
48. Seton Hall University School of Law
49. South Texas College of Law Houston
50. Southern Methodist University Dedman School of Law
51. Southwestern Law School
52. St. John’s University School of Law
53. Stanford Law School
54. Suffolk University Law School
55. Syracuse University College of Law
56. Temple University Beasley School of Law
57. Texas A&M University School of Law
58. Touro College Jacob D. Fuchsberg Law Center
59. University of Akron School of Law
60. University of Alabama School of Law
61. University of Arizona James E. Rogers College of Law
62. University of Baltimore Law School
63. University at Buffalo School of Law
64. University of California, Berkeley, School of Law
65. University of California, Davis School of Law
66. University of California, Irvine School of Law
67. University of California, Los Angeles School of Law
68. University of California Law, San Francisco (formerly known as University of California, Hastings College of the Law)
69. University of Chicago Law School
70. University of Dayton School of Law
71. University of Florida Levin College of Law
72. University of Georgia School of Law
73. University of Hawai’i at Manoa William S. Richardson School of Law
74. University of Houston Law Center
75. University of Illinois Chicago School of Law
76. University of Kansas School of Law
77. University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law
78. University of Massachusetts School of Law – Dartmouth
79. University of Miami School of Law
80. University of Montana Alexander Blewett III School of Law
81. University of New Hampshire School of Law
82. University of Notre Dame Law School
83. University of Oklahoma College of Law
84. University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School
85. University of Richmond School of Law
86. University of San Diego School of Law
87. University of Southern California Gould School of Law
88. University of South Carolina School of Law
89. University of South Dakota Knudson School of Law
90. University of Texas at Austin School of Law
91. University of Toledo College of Law
92. University of Virginia School of Law
93. Wake Forest University School of Law
94. Washburn University School of Law
95. Washington and Lee University School of Law
96. Washington University School of Law
97. West Virginia University College of Law
98. Western State College of Law
99. Widener University Commonwealth Law School
100. Widener University Delaware Law School
101. Willamette University College of Law
102. Yale Law School
103. Yeshiva University Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law

As you can see, quite a few schools accept the GRE in lieu of the LSAT these days, and we expect this number to grow. To many law schools, announcing that it will accept the GRE is a no-brainer. It will get the school’s name in the news; promote its unassailable ideals like diversity, accessibility, inclusion, and innovation; and maybe even increase the quality of its applicant pool. If I were a law school dean, and my school could afford the ABA’s Standard 503 testing process, I’d make this announcement in a heartbeat. Even though I love the LSAT — enough to start this blog post with some weird fanfic equating it to a spurned spouse.

So, Should You Take the GRE or LSAT?

The short answer: Take the LSAT. This way, you’ll know where you stand more easily, using the 25th-75th percentile range. Since the GRE is still a new LSAT alternative, it’s harder to understand how schools weigh students’ performance for admissions and scholarships. 

The long answer: Perhaps you’ve already taken the LSAT and plan to use that score to apply to law schools. You may be worried that an influx of GRE-takers might make the field way more competitive, but fret not. There aren’t that many applicants applying to law school with a GRE score. A “fairly small volume,” according to Wake Forest’s dean. At Harvard — that bellwether of GRE acceptance — only 18 out of 566 students in its 2018 entering class had reportable GRE scores, and that number likely includes some with both an LSAT and a GRE score. Harvard has the most students admitted with the GRE. USC, George Mason, Washington at St. Louis, and Cardozo each admitted just one student with a GRE score. So any effect the GRE has on the admissions field is really small, at least for now.

What if you’re studying for the LSAT but want to keep your options open? Preparing for the GRE isn’t uniformly easier or harder than studying for the LSAT. It tests skills different from, but somewhat adjacent to, the skills the LSAT tests. Plus, it has math. Maybe the GRE skills are slightly more in your wheelhouse, or maybe your skills are better suited for the LSAT. If you haven’t started studying for either test, it may make sense to try both exams to see which one is your cup of tea. 

LSAT Scores vs. GRE Scores

You should also be aware that once you take the LSAT, admissions offices can access your score for five years, even if you take the GRE and prefer that law schools judge you based on that score alone. In fact, some law schools, like Wake Forest and Chicago-Kent won’t allow you to apply with the GRE if you have a reportable LSAT score on file. If you are allowed to apply with both scores, some schools, like UCLA, BYU, and USC, claim that they’ll evaluate you based on both. At other schools, it seems like the LSAT score weighs more heavily on their decision. Some schools, like Harvard, claim they’ll even consider your GRE Quantitative (read: math) score. 

What if you try out the GRE and get a substandard score? Can you just hide that from law schools? As in, not report it to the schools you apply to? Well, according to multiple law school deans, hiding reportable GRE scores may raise red flags regarding your character and moral fitness.

Since you can’t just take both tests and apply with the better score, there really aren’t any advantages to taking both tests. We recommend just choosing one and dedicating all your effort to it. At Blueprint Prep, we recommend the LSAT since it is still the only exam accepted by all 203 ABA-accredited law schools. There are also numerous LSAT prep options to help you prepare for the exam. But this is your path and your decision to make. Try both out, pick one, and then fully commit to it. Because unlike law schools and the LSAT, your commitment should be unwavering.

Ready to start studying for the LSAT? Start with our free account to access our free practice test, study planner and flashcards.