2020-2021 LSAT Percentile Shift: A Piecemeal Chart

Comments

• 3 Likes

  lizzogonzo Member

  September 2021 628 karma

  Hey I noticed that too. I scored a 162 in Feb 2021. I remember it being an 84th percentile then when I checked again, it became an 82nd.
• 3 Likes

  legallyblonde-3 Member

  September 2021 14 karma

  My 169 in April went from 98th percentile to 95th.

  My 172 in June went from 99th percentile to 98th

  Retaking for the last time in October
• katie.mac8 Member

  September 2021 63 karma

  My 164 from October 2020 went from 89 to 87 and my 169 from August is 95th.
• 1 Like

  GoatAdvocate_0L_SLS Member

  September 2021 269 karma

  Also, my 171 is in the 97th percentile.
• 2 Likes

  Jahn.Snow Member

  September 2021 316 karma

  I scored 167 in June 2021 and it was within the 93 percentile then and still is now!
• Jonathan Wang Yearly Sage ⭐

  September 2021 6869 karma

  166 is apparently 91st now.
• ehuneycu Member

  September 2021 5 karma

  My June 153 was originally the 53rd, but then later my LSAC account said 51st. I got a 163 on the August test and it shows 84th percentile. I was confused about this as well. I assumed it was due to the increase in test takers getting higher scores, but still it's frustrating that the percentile dropped that much. My professor for my undergrad law classes has his PhD, but also has a JD and practiced law for years and I asked him if he had any idea and he was confused as well.
• 4 Likes

  Juliet - Student Service Member Administrator Student Services

  September 2021 edited October 2021 5740 karma

  Hey everyone,

  We're trying to figure out what the most recent percentile conversion is so if you took the August LSAT, please send me your official LSAT score. Here's what we have so far:

  180 - 99th (confirmed)
  179 - 99th (inferred)
  178 - 99th (confirmed)
  177 - 99th (inferred)
  176 - 99th (inferred)
  175 - 99th (confirmed)
  174 - 99th (confirmed)
  173 - 98th (confirmed)
  172 - 98th (confirmed)
  171 - 97th (confirmed)
  170 - 96th (confirmed)
  169 - 95th (confirmed)
  168 - 94th (confirmed)
  167 - 93rd (confirmed)
  166 - 91st (confirmed)
  165 -
  164 - 87th (unconfirmed)
  163 - 84th (confirmed)
  162 - 82nd (confirmed)
  161 - 79th (confirmed)
  160 -
  159 - 73rd (confirmed)
  158 - 69th (confirmed)
  153 - 51st (unconfirmed)

  Thank you!
• byul1000 Member

  September 2021 78 karma

  Confirming that on the August LSAT I got a 166, 91st percentile.

  Curious what this means relative to previous years - is the curve getting harder to break? Do we anticipate this is the trend for future tests?
• 3 Likes

  practiceinordertopractice Core Member

  September 2021 67 karma

  If the score percentile shifts downward relative to earlier versions of the Flex exam (not saying that it does, but just in the hypothetical), how does LSAC expect law schools to fairly assess students who took the Flex in June 2021 against students who took the non-Flex in August 2021? Presumably they'll be applying in the same cycle, but shouldn't their scores be considered with this context in mind?
• mdf1960 Free Trial Member

  September 2021 55 karma

  My August 2021 153 was the 51st percentile.
• 2 Likes

  GoatAdvocate_0L_SLS Member

  September 2021 269 karma

  @practiceinordertopractice said:
  If the score percentile shifts downward relative to earlier versions of the Flex exam (not saying that it does, but just in the hypothetical), how does LSAC expect law schools to fairly assess students who took the Flex in June 2021 against students who took the non-Flex in August 2021? Presumably they'll be applying in the same cycle, but shouldn't their scores be considered with this context in mind?

  This is an excellent question, especially since law schools are now releasing their new LSAT medians as determined by the accepted students matriculating into the 2021 school year. Spivey Consulting is tracking the updates here:

  https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1Oxg1daKToiMystD7rGrbpnHNO-JXdc2ugQMrR0YR7aQ/edit#gid=0

  A podcast, also by Spivey Consulting, addresses your question at least in part. Their conjecture is that law schools will adhere to the standards set by the new medians until the well of unusually high scorers runs dry, at which point they'll consult the old medians for the remaining applicants, likely toward the middle of the admissions cycle. It's a fairly reasonable prediction.
• dauntlessd12 Core Member

  September 2021 25 karma

  August LSAT score of 159 was 73rd percentile.
• 2 Likes

  GoatAdvocate_0L_SLS Member

  September 2021 269 karma

  @byul1000 said:
  Confirming that on the August LSAT I got a 166, 91st percentile.

  Curious what this means relative to previous years - is the curve getting harder to break? Do we anticipate this is the trend for future tests?

  While LSAT scores have generally increased over time, the dramatic increase we've seen in high scores this past year is primarily attributable to the pandemic and the adoption of the LSAT FLEX. Because of the lockdowns, people apparently utilized their newfound, state-imposed free time to study.

  Crucially though, the LSAT FLEX transformed an in-person, 5-section exam with ~100 scored questions into an at-home, 3-section exam with ~75 scored questions. Whereas LR comprised 50% of the pre-pandemic exam, it now only accounts for ~33% of the FLEX, which offers an advantage to those who are particularly weak on LR. For example, let's say Person A always misses 4 questions on every LR section, and never misses anything on RC or LG. If Person A took the previous exam and missed 8 questions across the two LR sections, 92 correct out of 100 obviously equals a raw score of 92%. By contrast, if the same person took the FLEX, they'd score 71/75, which equals a raw score of ~94.67%. Lastly, for those who suffer from test anxiety - which is often exacerbated by the environment of testing centers - taking an exam at home is indeed an advantage.

  As a result of these factors, peopling scoring equal to or greater than 175 increased by >100%, effectively breaking the curve and depressing previous percentiles. This was a tremendous nightmare for many law schools as they were inundated with high-scoring applicants and somehow admitted many more students than there were available seats, consequently leading to a record number of deferrals being offered for the 2021 school year. Medians are now increasing to mind-bending highs prevent similar "catastrophes" for admissions offices. For example, Georgetown's new median is 171, and it's not even a T14 school. I am stressed.
• Lawstudent.079 Member

  September 2021 4 karma

  My August 2021 LSAT score of 170 was 96th percentile.
• Burt Reynolds Alum Member Sage ⭐

  September 2021 957 karma

  I was wondering the same thing @practiceinordertopractice -- I really wish we could actually see the bell curves for FLEX vs Non-flex. It would be interesting to compare the right tails, specifically. To think they could have avoided all of this by just keeping it 5 sections....but oh whale.
• 1 Like

  TheMommaBear Member

  September 2021 348 karma

  @"Jahn.Snow" said:
  I scored 167 in June 2021 and it was within the 93 percentile then and still is now!

  I scored a 167 in June 2021 and it was 94th percentile at the time.
• Qiran_catran Alum Member

  September 2021 103 karma

  I scored a 173 in August 2021. It was 98th percentile.
• LizzyLawSchool Member

  September 2021 21 karma

  hello can we get an update on this? Has the curve changed?
• detroit_suzuka Alum Member

  September 2021 194 karma

  @"Juliet --Student Service--"

  august 2021 was a 173-98th percentile
• Juliet - Student Service Member Administrator Student Services

  September 2021 5740 karma

  @detroit_suzuka said:
  @"Juliet --Student Service--"

  august 2021 was a 173-98th percentile

  Hi there,

  Received, thank you!
• zmaansee Member

  September 2021 32 karma

  @"Juliet --Student Service--" said:
  Hey everyone,

  We're trying to figure out what the most recent percentile conversion is so if you took the August LSAT, please send me your official LSAT score. Here's what we have so far:

  172 - 98th (confirmed)
  171 - 97th (confirmed)
  169 -95th (confirmed)
  168 - 94th (confirmed)
  167 - 93rd (unconfirmed)
  166 - 91st (unconfirmed)
  164 - 87th (unconfirmed)
  163 -84th (unconfirmed)
  162 -82nd (confirmed)
  153 - 51st (unconfirmed)

  Thank you!

  I can confirm 166 in June 2021 is now 91st.
• 1 Like

  TheMommaBear Member

  October 2021 348 karma

  @"Juliet --Student Service--"

  167 in June. Went from 94th to 93rd percentile.
• Juliet - Student Service Member Administrator Student Services

  October 2021 5740 karma

  @TheMommaBear said:

  @"Juliet --Student Service--"

  167 in June. Went from 94th to 93rd percentile.

  Thank you for confirming.
• PROMISED LAND Member

  October 2021 340 karma

  161 August 2021 LSAT. 79th percentile.
• 1 Like

  MelissaD Member

  October 2021 22 karma

  158 August 2021 LSAT. 69th percentile.
• kthg28-1 Member

  October 2021 6 karma

  165 in June 2021, went from 91st to 89th percentile.
• Juliet - Student Service Member Administrator Student Services

  October 2021 5740 karma

  @kthg28 said:
  165 in June 2021, went from 91st to 89th percentile.

  Got it! Thank you for your help!
• Annieee8 Member

  November 2021 31 karma

  164 on October. Confirmed 87th percentile.
• Juliet - Student Service Member Administrator Student Services

  November 2021 edited November 2021 5740 karma

  @KatAnne8 said:
  164 on October. Confirmed 87th percentile.

  Hi there,

  Thank you for your help! Do you mind sharing an anonymized screenshot of your official LSAT score with me at the email address studentservice@7sage.com?
• 1 Like

  agc438 Alum Member ⭐

  January 2022 253 karma

  166 LSAT 91st percentile, November 2021. Tysm 7 Sage. I went from a 155 diag to a 166 lol.