The State University of New York-Buffalo Law School, followed by the University Iowa College of Law announced this month that they will begin accepting applications without the required Law School Admission Test. This move, supporters say, will raise the law school interest and enrollment rates across the country.
“Taking the LSAT is a pain, and it is expensive,” says James Gardner, dean of SUNY Buffalo’s law school. The test comes with a $170 fee, often in addition to months-long prep courses and tutoring that can cost thousands of dollars. “This is just a way to identify strong-performing students based on perfectly rational criteria that don’t involve the LSAT,” Gardner says.