LSAT Scores
How is the LSAT scored?
The LSAT is scored at a scale of 120 to 180, with a mean score of about 150. However, if you’re trying to go into one of the top law schools, your ranking should be above 160. The test has about 101 questions, and each correct answer represents one point of your raw score. This raw score (0–101) is translated into a scaled score ranging from 120 to 180 using a specially formulated equation. For instance, a raw score of 99 out of 101 will convert to 180.
📊 LSAT Score Chart
Scaled Score | Raw Score | |
Lowest | Highest | |
120 | 99 | 100 |
121 | * | * |
122 | 98 | 98 |
123 | 97 | 97 |
124 | * | * |
125 | 96 | 96 |
126 | 95 | 95 |
127 | * | * |
128 | 94 | 94 |
129 | 93 | 93 |
130 | 92 | 92 |
131 | 91 | 91 |
132 | 90 | 90 |
133 | 89 | 89 |
134 | 87 | 88 |
135 | 86 | 86 |
136 | 85 | 85 |
137 | 83 | 84 |
138 | 81 | 82 |
139 | 80 | 80 |
140 | 78 | 79 |
141 | 76 | 77 |
142 | 75 | 75 |
143 | 73 | 74 |
144 | 71 | 72 |
145 | 69 | 70 |
146 | 67 | 68 |
147 | 65 | 66 |
148 | 63 | 64 |
149 | 61 | 62 |
150 | 59 | 60 |
151 | 57 | 58 |
152 | 55 | 56 |
153 | 54 | 54 |
154 | 52 | 53 |
155 | 50 | 51 |
156 | 48 | 49 |
157 | 46 | 47 |
158 | 44 | 45 |
159 | 42 | 43 |
160 | 40 | 41 |
161 | 39 | 39 |
162 | 37 | 38 |
163 | 35 | 36 |
164 | 33 | 34 |
165 | 32 | 32 |
166 | 30 | 31 |
167 | 29 | 29 |
168 | 27 | 28 |
169 | 26 | 26 |
170 | 25 | 25 |
171 | 24 | 24 |
172 | 22 | 23 |
173 | 21 | 21 |
174 | 20 | 20 |
175 | 19 | 19 |
176 | 18 | 18 |
177 | 17 | 17 |
178 | * | * |
179 | 16 | 16 |
180 | 0 | 15 |
⚖️ Law School LSAT Scores and GPA
Some law schools may weigh 70% of your LSAT score when evaluating admissions, compared to just 30% for your GPA.
Each school has a different system for test scores for GPA and LSAT. A university may, for instance, use (LSAT score-120)+ (GPA 20) as an index to evaluate you. Hence, if you have a 150 LSAT score and a 3.5 GPA score, the admissions scale would be the following:
- (150 – 120) + (3.5 × 20) = 100
Your LSAT score being more relevant than your 4-year GPA, probably sounds ridiculous. Why would a standardized multi-choice test be necessary as admissions to the law school? To clarify this, consider the flaws of other admissions factors:
- Based on the difficulties in comparing grades from different programs and schools, undergraduate GPA can be unreliable. There are enormous difficulties, even in individual classes within majors. Courses may not reflect the ability required for law schools. Nonetheless, law school recruitment officers don’t have that option and have to compare applicants from hundreds and hundreds or tens of thousands of students in different classes.
- It is difficult to distinguish between hundreds of candidates, all of whom claim their students are “excellent.” School administrators are often encouraged to do whatever it takes to help their students to enter top-ranking schools.
- Application essays are not necessarily academic or even personal. Most admissions consulting programs help students compose their essays. Furthermore, admission departments lack sufficient employees to read the essays. You may never read your application essay if your LSAT score and your GPA are far below average.
Given these factors, it is no wonder that admission officers at law schools tend to depend more on LSAT scores. High LSAT results are very unusual, but not high GPA, as it will have more value. The excellent news is LSAT is a great test, and if you master the LSAT, you can raise your score by 20 to 30 points.
💯 Law School LSAT Scores
Below is a table of LSAT scores for top 20 law schools:
Law Schools | Rank | Average LSAT scores by school | Average GPA | Admission Index |
Yale Law School New Haven, CT | 1 | 173 | 3.93 | 212 |
Stanford Law School Palo Alto, CA | 2 | 171 | 3.89 | 210 |
Harvard Law School Cambridge, MA | 2 | 179 | 3.86 | 212 |
Columbia Law New York, NY | 4 | 171 | 3.7 | 208 |
U.Chicago Law Chicago, IL | 4 | 170 | 3.9 | 209 |
NYU Law School New York, NY | 6 | 169 | 3.78 | 207 |
Penn Law Philadelphia, PA | 7 | 169 | 3.89 | 207 |
UVA Law School Charlottesville, VA | 8 | 168 | 3.86 | 206 |
Michigan Law Ann Arbor, MI | 8 | 168 | 3.76 | 206 |
UC Berkeley Law Berkeley, CA | 8 | 166 | 3.78 | 205 |
Duke Law Durham, NC | 11 | 169 | 3.76 | 206 |
Northwestern Law Chicago, IL | 12 | 168 | 3.77 | 207 |
Cornell Law Ithaca, NY | 13 | 167 | 3.74 | 203 |
Georgetown Law Washington, DC | 14 | 167 | 3.76 | 204 |
U.Texas Law Austin, TX | 15 | 165 | 3.72 | 202 |
Vanderbilt Law Nashville, TN | 16 | 166 | 3.74 | 203 |
UCLA Law Los Angeles, CA | 17 | 166 | 3.74 | 203 |
Washington U. Law St. Louis, MO | 18 | 167 | 3.67 | 205 |
USC Law School Los Angeles, CA | 19 | 166 | 3.76 | 204 |
U. Iowa Law Iowa City, IA | 20 | 161 | 3.61 | 199 |
Boston University Law Boston, MA | 20 | 164 | 3.68 | 201 |
💭 LSAT Questions
How long are LSAT scores valid?
After the exam, the LSAC will keep a record of your LSAT scores for 5 years. If you take the test multiple times, LSAC will keep track of each score and give you an average rating and a list of each score you obtained.
How long does it take to get LSAT scores?
If you have an LSAC account, you will obtain your markup about 3 weeks after the exam. You can also receive your score via phone with TelScore at the cost of $100, approximately three weeks after the exam.
When do LSAT scores come out?
The Law School Admissions Council (LSAC) transmits scores through e-mail about 4 weeks and about 5 weeks via mail after the test.
What is the best way to get a near-perfect score on the LSAT?
The secret to getting a near-perfect result is patience, optimism, and enthusiasm with adequate preparation and review.
Is 160 a good LSAT score for a 13-year-old with no prep?
For a typical LSAT student, 160 is a great score. For most of these ages, the average starting score was slightly less than 150.
What schools accept low LSAT scores?
Below are law schools that accept low LSAT scores.
- Southern University
- North Carolina Central University
- Thomas M. Cooley Law School
- Ave Maria School of Law
- Nova Southeastern University (Broad)
- University of Detroit Mercy
What is the highest score on LSAT ever?
The scaled score ranges between 120 and 180, so basically, the highest score on the LSAT is 180. Roughly about one in three thousand get this rating, so if you have 180, you have 99.97 percentiles.
What is the average LSAT scores for law schools?
About 150 is the average LSAT score. A score of 162 or higher is required to get into a top 14 law school, and a score of 154 or higher is required to get into a top 50 law school.
What happens if you have multiple LSAT scores?
Candidates with multiple LSAT scores will be evaluated based on all available data. However, throughout the admissions assessment process, the Law School will no longer rely exclusively on an applicant’s average score.
What University of Texas law school LSAT scores do I need?
To be a strong competitive applicant at the University of Texas Law, you’ll most likely need an LSAT score of 167 or above, as well as a 3.7+ undergraduate GPA.