LSAC questions

[Jenn]

So, I am a bit confused on how the whole LSAC/LSDAS process works. I know you need to register with both in order to apply to law school. But where do you go from there? What exactly can you do with LSAC and how does each step work in getting your applications ready? Any help with be appreciated!

[Jeffort]

So, I am a bit confused on how the whole LSAC/LSDAS process works. I know you need to register with both in order to apply to law school. But where do you go from there? What exactly can you do with LSAC and how does each step work in getting your applications ready? Any help with be appreciated!

Good question.  The process can be rather confusing, especially at the beginning.

LSAC is the master organization.  LSDAS is a department/subsection/service of LSAC that deals with collecting, organizing and reporting vital applicant academic data to Law Schools students apply to with what they call your applicant law school report.

LSDAS (Law School Data Assembly Service, but now they call it the Credential Assembly Service.  Why they changed the name but stuck with the same acronym to refer to it is weird  ) basically is the middle man that puts your LSAT score(s), GPA, transcripts & LOR's together into one report about you that they transmit to each Law School you apply to. 

You have to get certified copies of the transcripts from ALL Undergraduate facilities you attended (even ones like if you just took one cooking class in the evenings for fun at a community college) sent to LSDAS.  From those they come up with one master transcript and an adjusted GPA about you.  Since different schools have different grading systems (for instance some have A+ and A-, while others do not), LSDAS converts all applicants overall GPA onto one scale so that LS admission committees can fairly compare the academic credentials of applications.

Most schools now prefer that you have your LOR's sent to LSDAS and distributed as part of your report rather than sent directly to the school.  You have to check the policies of the schools you plan to apply to.

Once your LSDAS report is 'complete', including a reported LSAT score and you have submitted a complete application by the schools deadline for the cycle, it will be reviewed by the admission committee and a decision will be made. 

[UnfGirl]

Thanks for the information!

Just to clear things up..I will need to register for the LSAC and LSDAS both separately, correct? Then I just have everything (LOR's, transcripts, scores, etc) sent to LSDAS? Do LSAT scores get sent there directly or do I need to do it? Sorry for all the questions..just trying to get a handle on this stuff!

 

[Anne]

I will need to register for the LSAC and LSDAS both separately, correct? Then I just have everything (LOR's, transcripts, scores, etc) sent to LSDAS? Do LSAT scores get sent there directly or do I need to do it?

It can definitely get confusing.

Here's the deal:

LSAC is the umbrella organization under which both the LSAT and LSDAS fall. You don't "register" for LSAC. LSAC is just the organization that handles LSAT registrations and LSDAS data.

To register for the LSAT, you go to the LSAC website (www.lsac.org). When you register for the LSAT, you can also register for the LSDAS. Each of them has a separate registration fee, but they are both done through LSAC and LSAC handles both of them.

All your information (applications, LORs, transcripts, essays, etc.) will all go through LSDAS. LSDAS will process it all. LSDAS will also have access to all your LSAT scores, since it is a part of LSAC. Along with putting together all the information you submit to them, LSDAS/LSAC will also put together a Law School Report for each of the schools you apply to that will include your LSAT scores. They will take care of everything, including sending it all to the schools you apply to.

A very useful resource is the "Applying to Law School" section at LSAC.org. Take a look at it; there's a lot of comprehensive information there: http://lsac.org/Applying/Applying-menu.asp

[Jeffort]

More important things related to the topic: 

Start working on getting LOR's written and secured right away.  It is common for many professors to drag their feet and take a long time to get around to writing and submitting them.  You certainly don't want to wait until the last minute with those.  If you are in the geographic vicinity of the professors (LS's like academic LOR's much more than ones from employers), show up during their office hours and sit down and talk with them to ask for the LOR. 

Before showing up, read up a bit about the research/work and subject matters the proff/recommend-er is involved with, then you ask about and create discussion about those topics. 

Something like "Hey Dr. Emmett Brown, how's your work on the Flux Capacitor going?  I heard that you've decided to put it into a DeLorean, that's pretty cool.  How does that thing work?  Once you get it done and vanish while testing it I'll stop by and feed your dog Einstein if you want."

Most professors love to be asked about and talk about their specialty areas of interest and work.  It makes a good impression so they like you, remember you, are more motivated to write you a good LOR and not wait forever to do it.

[UnfGirl]

Thanks Jeffort.

Can I start getting reccommendations without being registered with LSDAS yet (would like to delay that 125.00 fee for a little longer).

[Jeffort]

Thanks Jeffort.

Can I start getting reccommendations without being registered with LSDAS yet (would like to delay that 125.00 fee for a little longer).

You can register and create your LSAT and LSDAS/CAS account online and get the forms you need before paying the fees.  I am pretty sure they will accept the LOR's as long as you have those accounts setup.  

They do not require payment of the fees to register and setup your LSAC and LSDAS/CAS/Credential Assembly Service account through their online interfaces to get the forms and an LSAC account number.  However, they will not process or report anything to you (except maybe a 'Show Me The $$' notice) or to Law Schools until you pay the required fees.  It seems that they will accept the documents and put them into your LSAC account file if you have registered. 

I tried it out with a little experiment to verify and it seemed to work just fine to get the forms, (keep in mind I played with MS paint to put stuff onto the below form and certainly did not submit it!  I was just having a little fun to make the point.)



All in all, just pay the darn fee so you don't have to worry about stuff like this.  Two weekend 'date night' dinners with your SO in seven days (Friday, then the next Friday for instance) will cost around as much as the fee unless you do the Drive-Thru fast food date night dinner. 

[Anne]

To the best of my knowledge, you can complete apps and get the initial application forms without having to pay a fee. All you have to do is set up an LSAC account. I would have to call LSAC to double-check, but I'm pretty sure that LSDAS will not actually PROCESS letters or transcripts for you if you haven't actually paid the fees yet. You need to do that in order for them to actually process letters and transcripts sent from third parties. I know you can get the forms though and view the apps; I haven't paid for my LSDAS account but I have access to the apps and forms through my LSAC/LSDAS account.

Be careful; while you can definitely start asking profs for recs and get that process rolling, I would make sure that you pay the fees before your recommenders start sending letters in to LSDAS for processing (if nothing else, just for peace of mind, so that you know that everything is paid up and nothing will fall through the cracks due to non-payment). The last thing you want is a letter getting lost in the shuffle because you hadn't paid the LSDAS processing fee. That would be tremendously sucky. 

[Jeffort]

Be careful; while you can definitely start asking profs for recs and get that process rolling, I would make sure that you pay the fees before your recommenders start sending letters in to LSDAS for processing (if nothing else, just for peace of mind, so that you know that everything is paid up and nothing will fall through the cracks due to non-payment). The last thing you want is a letter getting lost in the shuffle because you hadn't paid the LSDAS processing fee. That would be tremendously sucky.