Are you confused about how the coronavirus will affect the coming law school admissions cycle?
So am I!
I wish I had that crystal ball. If I did, I’d be George Soros playing the currency markets.
But I’m not.
What I do know is this:
There is no playbook for law schools — or applicants — to follow, because this situation is unprecedented.
The enrollment models that law schools typically use to predict yield and to decide how many offers to make (and to whom) have gone out the window.
In the meantime, the March LSAT has been cancelled, and I bet you dollars to donuts that the April test will get cancelled as well.
What will happen with the June/July/August LSAT? Who knows. So keep prepping for the test and take it the first chance you get. Even under normal circumstances, I tell people to plan on taking it more than once, because very few people are happy with their first scores. That’s especially true now.
In happier news, you’ll now be able to take the GRE at home!*
* if you live in the United States, Canada, Colombia, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Hong Kong, or Macau
If you want or need to plan your test dates with some certainty, the GRE might be the more attractive option. Most, but not all, law schools have been accepting the GRE. The notable hold-outs are Stanford (all applicants) and Berkeley (most applicants). In the current circumstances, though, they might all be forced to accept the GRE for the coming cycle. We’ll see!
There has also been chatter that LSAC might allow applicants to revive their cancelled LSAT scores. I’m not sure how happy you’ll be with those scores — if you cancelled, I assume you did so for a reason. My wish: Maybe LSAC will one day even let you see your score before you make the cancellation decision (the way you currently can for the far more civilized GMAT, and the way you could for the July 2019 LSAT, when you were beta testers for the digital LSAT that they finally rolled out last year). A girl can dream.
You should also assume that you might not be able to visit schools during the application cycle. I’m hoping that schools will be offering good virtual alternatives soon.
The situation is highly fluid and changing daily, so do keep up with the latest news from LSAC, ETS (GRE), and the law schools you’re interested in.
If you’re still dreaming of going to law school, don’t let the current craziness stand in your way. And most importantly: isolate, and take good care of yourselves.
I’m off to forage for food. Not breathing on anyone, no sir.