Many law schools across the country are trying to thin their swollen classes, and MacKenzie Scott gave millions to colleges serving students in need.
Law schools experienced a surge in applicants over the past year, driven by a mixture of factors, including the coronavirus pandemic, the presidential election and the Black Lives Matter movement. Perhaps the biggest driver, however, was a spike in LSAT scores: Applicants took a shorter version of the admissions test, which was administered online, and had more time to study during pandemic lockdowns.
“I don’t think the test questions were any easier,” said Mike Spivey, the founder of Spivey Consulting, which helps students navigate the law school admissions process. But the anxiety facing test takers appears to have eased somewhat, he said.
The result: more students with strong scores, a record number of applications (out of 200 law schools surveyed by the Law School Admission Council, 190 had an increase), and some schools that accepted too many people are now asking students to defer a year to avoid overcrowding. Overall applications were up by about 30 percent across law schools.
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