LexScholars FAQs

There will be two groups of LexScholars participants. One group of roughly 230 participants will be given an online LSAT course, with a cohort of 20 participants receiving the online LSAT course, supplemented by classroom LSAT preparation, law school admission counseling, financial education, and writing skills development via a 4-week residential summer program in Washington, DC. The cohort of 20 will also receive ongoing admission counseling and financial education that will span more than one year after the summer program ends.

The LexScholars residential summer program will take place July 6 until August 3 in Washington, DC.

LexScholars is using an experimental research design that is premised on the random selection and assignment of participants. All applicants must be willing and able to participate in the residential summer program, if selected.

In 2017, there were 108,299 law students enrolled in the almost 200 ABA-approved law schools in the U.S. (not including the three law schools in Puerto Rico). The table below lists the law school enrollments of the largest racial and ethnic groups and compares them to their proportion of the overall U.S. population:

Students who identified as Black, Latino/Hispanic, or Native American were each underrepresented among law students. These trends are longstanding and reflect the unequal access that has typified legal education since its inception. It is no surprise that the legal profession is the least diverse profession in the U.S., with members of these groups collectively comprising just 11% of U.S. lawyers despite comprising a third of the overall population.

The socioeconomic backgrounds of law students are not systematically tracked, but the available evidence suggests that lawyers tend to come from relatively affluent backgrounds. Therefore, people from lower socioeconomic backgrounds are considered underrepresented as well. LexScholars applicants are considered to be socioeconomically underrepresented if they are either first-generation college graduates or if they received Pell Grants in college.

Yes. LexScholars is targeted at underrepresented applicants who possess potential for success in law school but have standardized test scores and/or grades that suggest they would have difficulty gaining admission to most law schools. In order to be eligible for LexScholars, applicants cannot have LSAT scores above 144 or undergraduate cumulative GPAs higher than 3.3. Applicants who have not taken the LSAT may submit ACT, GRE, GMAT or SAT test scores. These test scores cannot be higher than 25^th percentile.

LexScholars is rooted in the belief that there is much untapped potential among law school applicants who are least likely to gain admission, due to unfavorable LSAT scores and undergraduate grades. We believe that with adequate information, resources, and support, many of these applicants can be successful as law students and lawyers. LSAT scores and undergraduate grades have value in predicting law school success, but aptitude and potential are not fully captured by these measures.

There are no fees associated with LexScholars. All stipulated resources will be provided at no cost. Participants selected to take part in the residential summer program will be provided travel assistance to and from DC, housing during the four-week program, a living stipend of $800, and a meal stipend of $560. There are possible tax implications associated with receipt of stipends. It will be the responsibility of participants to apprise themselves of those responsibilities.

LexScholar participants will be randomly selected from the pool of eligible applicants. To be eligible, an applicant must: 

• Be a member of a racial, ethnic, and/or socioeconomic group that is underrepresented in legal education
• Possess a bachelor’s degree or will receive a bachelor’s degree by August 2020
• Plan to seek law school admission for the Fall 2020 entering class
• Have a high LSAT score of 144 or lower
  • For applicants who have not taken the LSAT, scores on GRE, GMAT, SAT, or ACT may be submitted. Scores can be no higher than 25^th percentile.
• Have a cumulative undergraduate GPA no higher than 3.3
• Complete diagnostics of reading and writing skills

In lieu of traditional letters, recommenders will be asked to assess applicants on the following ten qualities research has associated with effective lawyering skills:

1. Analysis and Reasoning: Uses analytical skills, logic, and reasoning to approach problems and to formulate conclusions and advice.
2. Problem Solving: Effectively identifies problems and derives appropriate solutions.
3. Speaking: Orally communicates issues in an articulate manner consistent with issue and audience being addressed.
4. Writing: Writes clearly, efficiently and persuasively.
5. Community Involvement and Service: Contributes skills to the community.
6. Integrity & Honesty: Has core values and beliefs; acts with integrity and honesty.
7. Stress Management: Effectively manages pressure or stress.
8. Passion & Engagement: Demonstrates interest in law and/or the goal of completing law school.
9. Diligence: Committed to and responsible in achieving goals and completing tasks.
10. Able to See the World Through the Eyes of Others: Understands positions, views, objectives, and goals of others.

Two recommender assessments must be submitted by April 1 in order for the application to be considered. 

LexScholars will use College Success, an online skills testing platform, to assess applicant reading and writing skills. The diagnostics will be used to tailor LexScholars program activities to the individual needs of participants. A link to the online diagnostics will be forwarded via email to eligible applicants shortly after applying. The diagnostics will take about one hour each to complete. Be sure to access the diagnostics only when able to dedicate sufficient time to completing them. To ensure that the diagnostics are an accurate reflection of one’s skills, applicants must complete them without assistance. Diagnostics should be completed by May 10 to ensure timely delivery of results. There is no cost associated with the diagnostics. Samples of the diagnostics can be found here:

https://college.measuredsuccess.com/mscollege/practiceTest2/index.html

The purpose of the diagnostics is to measure applicants’ reading and writing skills. Therefore, there is no “passing” score. To ensure that the diagnostics are an accurate reflection of your skills, you must complete them without assistance.

Yes. LexScholars participants selected to take part in the residential summer program will receive round trip air and/or ground transportation to and from Washington, DC, housing during the four-week program, a living stipend of $800, and a meal stipend of $560 to augment meals provided during the summer program. There are possible tax implications associated with receipt of stipends. It will be the responsibility of participants to apprise themselves of those responsibilities.

The purpose of LexScholars is two-fold: to maximize your chances at acceptance into law school, and to explore and develop sustainable models for increasing law school diversity by addressing common disadvantages faced by applicants from underrepresented backgrounds. A primary research method will be to compare the law school admission experiences and outcomes between the two groups of LexScholars participants: the 230 who received the LSAT course only and the 20 who received the holistic admission support. In order to conduct these comparisons, participants must agree to allow AccessLex researchers to track their law school admission experiences and outcomes. 

As a condition of participation in LexScholars, participants will be required to submit monthly reports and complete surveys detailing their experiences during the law school admission process. An online reporting form will be forwarded to participants via email each month, beginning in September and continuing through August of the following year. Participants will complete and submit reporting forms and surveys online. The participant research agreement will outline the complete scope of ongoing obligations and responsibilities associated with LexScholars participation.

Monthly update and survey prompts may include, but will not be limited to:

• Have you applied to any law schools in the last month?
  • If yes, please list the schools.
• Have you received any admission decisions in the last month?
  • If yes, please list:
    • each school from which a decision was received
    • each respective decision
• Have you registered for the LSAT in the last month?
  • If yes, please list the month and year of the test.
• Have you received an LSAT score in the last month?
  • If yes, please list:
    • month and year of the test
    • score you received
• Have you received any admission decisions in the last month?
  • If yes, please list:
    • each school from which a decision was received
    • each respective decision
• Have you received any law school scholarship offers or grant awards in the last month?
  • If yes, please list:
    • each school/organization offering the scholarship or grant
    • amount of each scholarship or grant
• Have you paid a seat deposit to any law school(s) in the last month?
  • If yes, please list the school(s) to which you paid the deposit.
• Please list the school in which you have enrolled.
• As you reflect on your experiences during the law school admission process, rank the different components of LexScholars in order of usefulness.
• As you reflect on your experiences during the law school admission process, what were the primary factors that influenced:
  • your decision regarding the number of schools to which you applied
  • how you chose which schools to apply to
  • the timing of your application submissions
  • your decision regarding the school in which you enrolled

Participants who enroll in law school will be asked to submit reports every semester on their law school outcomes, including grades, overall academic status, participation in internships, co-curricular activity participation (e.g. clinic, journals), graduation status, bar exam performance, post-graduation employment status, etc.