Tag: Mock LSAT

SHSU Pre-Law Among Top in Nation

Few schools offer as much as SHSU when it comes to preparing students for a career as an attorney. Sam Houston has a dedicated pre-law advising center (the LEAP Center), offers law-related internships, features a robust Pre-Law Society, boasts extensive programming, sports a Moot Court team, and ranks among the top four percent in North American Universities as a “law-school feeder,” according to the Law School Admissions Council.

One small part of this equation is students’ access to free practice LSATs under supervised conditions, professionally scored. Each long semester, the LEAP Center hosts a Mock LSAT, where students–freshmen to post-grad–can come in and take the LSAT under test-like conditions. In the past year, more than 100 students have availed themselves of this option.

This includes 45 students who showed up today, on a rainy Saturday morning for a three-hour test.

All of them are part of the Pre-Law Society at SHSU, one of the largest academic organizations on campus, and one of the largest pre-law organizations in Texas.

The simulated test provides many advantages: (1) it provides test-day conditions for the LSAT, giving students a better idea of what to expect on the day of their real test; (2) it gives students an idea of how close they are to achieving their desired score; and (3) it allows them to compete for the Pre-Law Society scholarship for LSAT test preparation.

These advantages are just some of the reasons that SHSU ranks among the top LSAT feeders in the country. Of course, that ranking also reflects the fact that SHSU students are sufficiently dedicated to their studies and their futures that will awake early on a Saturday and sit through a grueling test.

For the motivated students at SHSU or who might be considering SHSU for their pre-law studies, advising is available at the LEAP Center. Professor Mike Yawn (mike.yawn@shsu.edu) or Ms. Jean Loveall (jal072@shsu.edu) can assist students with a timeline, steps to take, and, of course, regular opportunities such as the Mock LSAT.

Pre-Law Activities and Mock LSATs at SHSU

On Saturday, April 1, a beautiful spring day, the LEAP Center continued with a packed schedule of both community and academic events. While LEAP Center Ambassadors and volunteers assisted in the annual Wynne Home community Easter Egg Hunt, 17 Pre-Law Society students showed up at 9:30 am on Saturday to take a Mock LSAT, the Law School Admission Test.

Students applying to law school will take the actual LSAT in a fall semester, a year before they plan to start law school. Students who are freshmen through seniors are encouraged to take the Mock LSAT.

A Mock LSAT score provides helpful information to aspiring pre-law students early in a student’s academic career. First, a baseline Mock LSAT score allows students to see how close they are to their goal LSAT score. Then, students can work with a pre-law advisor at the LEAP Center to develop a study plan to prepare for the LSAT, an important first step in their journey to law school. Second, students experience taking an actual LSAT under LSAT timing conditions.

In addition to administering the Mock LSAT twice a year, the LEAP Center offers pre-law advising and various pre-law activities, such as the provision of a Mock law school taught by a law professor from Houston’s South Texas College of Law. These pre-law activities contribute to Sam Houston State University’s continued ranking in the top 200 nationally as a top law-school feeder among almost 3,000 four-year universities and colleges in the United States.

LEAP offers Mock LSAT to Pre-Law Students

The LEAP Center offered a Mock LSAT to SHSU pre-law students this fall, making 16 semesters in a row that the Center has offered this service.

Approximately 57 students showed up for four-hour test on a Saturday morning, simply to assess where they stand on the single most important criterion for being accepted to law school.

SHSU, LEAP Ambassadors, LEAP Center, Center for Law Engagement And Politics, Mock LSAT, Princeton Review, Pre-Law Students

For the past 10 years, SHSU has ranked in the top 150 “law school feeders,” a ranking put out by LSAC.  Our students have gone to top schools around the country and, of course, in Texas.  Part of the reason for this is the many programs offered by the LEAP Center: (1) mock LSATs every semester; (2) Mock Law class every spring; (3) a strong Pre-Law Society organization on campus; (4) law-school trips; and (5) many other programs designed to promote the skills emphasized by law schools.

SHSU, LEAP Ambassadors, LEAP Center, Center for Law Engagement And Politics, Mock LSAT, Princeton Review, Pre-Law Students

Of course, it largely begins with our students, who are willing to spend half a Saturday taking a test simply to invest in their future.

Mock LSAT: Fall 2018

Saturdays tend to be a time for recovery from the hard week of studying, but for some of our SHSU students, this Saturday was one for the books! Every semester, for the past 9 years or so, the LEAP Center provides a free Mock LSAT for SHSU students who are considering law school and careers in the Law field.

LSAT stands for Law School Admissions Test and is similar to what hopeful graduate students take, the GRE. The exam produces a score based off of logical thinking, critical thinking, and reading-comprehension skills.  The LSAT is scored from a 120-180.  Most law schools need an average of a 151 and above to get in. The LSAT exam is not for the weak at heart, because it takes months of studying and personal responsibility to follow through with it.

The Mock LSAT is taken under conditions that mimic the situations under the actual LSAT exam.

SHSU, LEAP Center, LEAP Ambassadors, Law Engagement And Politics, Mock LSAT, Princeton Review

And on this morning, more than 35 students hunkered down for the four-hour test.

SHSU, LEAP Center, LEAP Ambassadors, Law Engagement And Politics, Mock LSAT, Princeton Review

The Mock LSAT is not just for our PreLaw students, but for everyone who wishes to try their hand at learning what they would need to improve their score and just get a better understanding of the exam.

 

Rise and shine, it’s Mock LSAT time!

Saturday mornings tend to be a time to relax and sleep in. However, on this Saturday morning, for thirty- three future lawyers that would not be the case.  Every semester, for the past 8 years or so, the LEAP Center provides a free Mock LSAT for SHSU students who are considering law school.

The LSAT, an acronym for Law School Admissions Test, is a challenging exam that assesses student’s reading comprehension, logical thinking, and critical thinking skills. The offered Mock LSAT, is a full-length exam taken under timed conditions to mimic those of the real LSAT. Princeton Review, who is one of the main companies that offer LSAT Prep Courses, also provides mock exams like these to get the appropriate training for the real LSAT.

Such an intense exam should not be taken likely and may seem quite foreboding….

SHSU, LEAP Center, LEAP Ambassadors, Princeton Review, Pre-Law Program SHSU, Mock LSAT

 

But it’s actually quite user friendly.  More than anything the LEAP Center encourages students to attempt the Mock LSAT so that they can get their footing on what they need to work on and get an idea about how they would do in the real thing. The LSAT is scored from a 120-180.  Most law schools need an average of a 151 and above to get in.  It takes a lot of hard work on behalf of the student, which is why the Mock LSAT is so imperative to future law school students.

SHSU, LEAP Center, LEAP Ambassadors, Princeton Review, Pre-Law Program SHSU, Mock LSAT

All of this was mentioned by Ambassador Bianca, who was briefly interviewed before the exam by a Mass Communication student, Raven Cheek, for a class project.

SHSU, LEAP Center, LEAP Ambassadors, Princeton Review, Pre-Law Program SHSU, Mock LSAT

We hope this Mock LSAT helped students find their strengths and weaknesses before taking the actual LSAT and plan accordingly. The LEAP Center would also like to thank Michelle Bell, the proctor for the Princeton Review, for making the trip to Sam Houston.

 

 

 

 

Brushing Up on the LSAT

Pre-Law students at SHSU have extensive resources to help them prepare for law school.  Apart from knowledgeable professors, simulated law classes, a Legal Studies minor, full-time pre-law advisors, and a Moot Court team, the LEAP Center also brings in Kaplan Testing each fall and spring to offer a Mock LSAT.

This spring’s test was offered on April 1st.  With 43 students signed up to take the test, the class was full.  That’s a lot of people to show up for five hours on a Saturday.

Pre-Law, Legal Studies, SHSU, LEAP Center, Center for Law Engagement And Politics, Kaplan, Mock LSAT SHSU

The test is enormously beneficial to students, and the LEAP Center recommends that pre-law students take the Mock test their freshmen year.  While no score on the mock LSAT determines a student’s future, students will need more time to study if their mock score is low.  Knowing that the additional study time is needed is a necessary part of preparing for the real thing.

Also, knowing the mean LSAT of TX Schools is also helpful, giving students a goal for which to shoot.

UT: 165
UH/Baylor/SMU: 160
TAMU: 156
TXTECH: 153
St.Marys/STCL: 150
TSU/UNT: <148

A student who scores a 140 on the Mock LSAT has some studying to do, and that might be difficult if the student is a junior, with little time to prepare for the test.  Students who score lower than a 140 will need to think thoroughly about a plan for improving their score in the time they have before they take the real test.

Pre-Law, Legal Studies, SHSU, LEAP Center, Center for Law Engagement And Politics, Kaplan, Mock LSAT SHSU

And when should you take the real test?  A typical recommendation is to take the exam a year before you plan to enroll in law school.  If you are graduating in the Fall of 2019 and plan to enroll in law school that fall, you should have the exam completed by the end of 2018.

You can find more information about LEAP’s law-related activities (and other activities) here.

Mock LSAT: Prepping for the Real Thing

Every semester, the LEAP Center offers a Mock LSAT, a chance for pre-law students to practice the most important test of their careers. The Mock test is an actual exam used by the LSAT in previous years, it is professionally scored by Kaplan, and students receive their scores the day they take it.  The only difference from the real thing is that this one doesn’t count.

Mock LSAT, Kaplan, SHSU, LEAP Center

For many of the test-takers, that’s a good thing.  The scores on the Mock LSAT tend to be low, primarily because we have a lot of people who are freshmen, sophomores, or otherwise unprepared for the test.  But that’s a good thing, too.  The LEAP Center encourages students to try the Mock LSAT as soon as possible, allowing them to see where they are in the preparation stage, and to have a better idea about how much time they will need to be ready for the real thing.  Our advice is to prepare for the LSAT correctly, and to take it once.

Here is the LEAP Center’s suggested timeline:

  • As early as possible, freshman year if possible: Take Mock LSAT
  • Spring or Summer of Junior Year: Take LSAT Prep, if needed
  • Summer of Junior Year/Fall of Senior Year: Take LSAT

The LSAT Prep course isn’t a panacea, and not all students will need to take it.  But unless a student has the score they want to get into the school they are hoping for, or unless a student can study 12-16 hours a week without the discipline of meeting times and deadlines, then the LSAT prep is a reasonable option.

But an LSAT prep test isn’t likely to get a student from a 140 to a 160 (it’s been done, but it isn’t likely).  But it might get a student from a 145 to a 152, and that’s the difference between going to Texas Southern University to going to Texas Tech, and that’s a big difference in terms of life and career opportunities.

Mock LSAT, SHSU, Kaplan, LEAP Center

For students with a score below a 140, particularly those who are a junior or senior, a year might not be sufficient to get the score you need.  For those in this situation, a gap year should be considered, while a long-term plan for LSAT-prep is undertaken.  For those who are scoring in the 160s, a good law school is already within reach, and it’s just a matter of how high you can climb.

But whatever the goals the student has, taking the Mock LSAT early on in his/her school career is to the student’s advantage.

The LEAP Center will likely offer another Mock LSAT in February 2017.