LSAT Scores Weighted Too Heavily at Law Schools

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Summary: A recent study done by two law school professors has opened up the discussion to the effectiveness of the LSAT at determining how students do in law school.

Professors Alexia Brunet Marks and Scott A. Moss at the University of Colorado Law School have been collecting data for seven years from over 1,400 students that have attended Colorado or Ohio’s Case Western Reserve University to determine how well test scores predict the success of a student. They have been collecting the data for LSAT scores, college major, undergraduate grades, graduate-school experience and other data that can affect the performance of a student in law school.

  

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The results of the study aren’t considered shocking, especially when you compare it to other general tests like the SAT and ACT that are losing their importance in determining how successful students will be as an undergrad. The results of the study have been posted on the Social Science Research Network show that “The magnitude of the predictive power of the LSAT is modest compared to how heavily schools weight LSAT scores. A 6-point LSAT difference is enough to make a dispositive difference in where one attends law school and whether one receives a six-figure scholarship.”

The study does show that the LSAT can more accurately predict how well a student does their first year in law school, which is an exam heavy year. Other results that the study uncovered are that the undergrad major of the student does not affect their GPA in law school. Other resume worthy notes like being captain of the debate team are not a successful predictor of LGPA. They are still good things to have when demonstrating people skills to future employers.

Source: http://blogs.wsj.com/law/2015/07/13/new-study-tries-to-predict-law-school-grades/

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