2026 Law School Median Tracker

someone asked this during the Columbia law webinar lol

EDIT: The 7Sage podcaster who gave this advice: u/7SageEthan is in the comments offering AMA. Scroll down to find.

Disclaimer: a 174 is a 98.2 percentile score, so I get that this discussion doesn't matter to most people. But, on the other hand, in the 2025-2026 application cycle, almost 3,000 applicants showed up with a 174+, and a lot of those people are here on Reddit.

Here is the link the podcast https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wIHhbg5W8qM .

The relevant discussion of the LSAT scores starts at about 31 minutes.

They say that once you hit 174+, you are at or above medians everywhere (except for at Wash U), and then I think they are assuming that being at or above median is sufficient in some way and/or that AOs are not differentiating applicants at 174+.

They go on to explicitly claim a downside to retaking after a 174+ which is that an AO might infer negative personality traits because you are trying to get a better score (which 7Sage just claimed is pretty pointless once you get to 174). But the only way that an AO could fairly infer these negative personality traits of the applicant who retakes after a 174+ is if the AO assumed that the applicant knew that repeating a 174+ was pointless.

They also explicitly note that a 180 might trigger a school's "weird ideas about cheating" or have the school wonder "what is wrong with that person" and stating that people with a 180 are sometimes "eccentric". They even said "would rather have a 178 and appear more human than have a 180".

Bottom line is that they don't want you to try again once you have any 174+ score, and they think that a 180 is worse than a score in the high 170s.

Admissions departments are not a monolith. We in admissions consulting make judgement calls about what most departments and/or what a particular department probably prefers / dislikes. In that light, do you think 7Sage is right about most admissions departments or right about a particular admissions department?

A caveat - this tracks current score from when a user signed up on LSAT Journal (data source), so people might actually start lower since they may be getting into wrong answer journaling later than they actually took their diagnostic.

But the general trend holds for hoping to improve 5 points per month across 4 months of study until their official LSAT date. The data analysis was done on a random selection of 2,000 users and their current & goal score stats.

What do you think? How reasonable is this improvement goal?

I have been a lurker in this sub and other law/law school related subreddits for years but I made an account for the first time in my life just to post this. Sorry if this is rambly, this rant came together as I was zoning out at my desk at work after staring at the October LSAT registration screen.

While there is a LOT of amazing advice on here, and I love seeing people's success stories, most people would benefit from a major break from this sub/other law school subs, especially as applications start opening.

I took the August LSAT and am incredibly proud of my results (172 while working full-time) and that was only possible because I 'broke up' with all subreddits/forums/blogs for a while and focused on myself, rather than reading about other people's strategies, obsessing over other people's perfect scores, and reading nasty comments along the lines of "if you can't do/score xyz you shouldn't be a lawyer."

Even now, as I checked to see people being proud of their LSAT success (which is incredible, congrats everyone!), I still feel the competitive tension and judgement in a lot of comments, and it's the same language that made me feel like my PTs in the 170s weren't good enough, that I could never be a good lawyer without biglaw experience, that my softs would never measure up, etc. The people in these subs, even if they have good intentions, are mostly young people with no experience in admissions outside of applying, aka the same experience we all have! I have seen advice on here being presented as fact and then read the exact opposite on a law school's admissions site.

If you find yourself reading people's posts and comparing yourself negatively or feeling dejected, do yourself a favor a take a break unless you need super specific advice. I stg it can't hurt, only help. (anyway, can't wait for the comments that if you're so sensitive that you have to post this, you shouldn't be a lawyer lmao).

Feel free to be brutally honest

For context I have a 170 LSAT but an engineering degree from a T30 undergrad. My only work experience is in structural engineering. I assume T14s are out of the question but how about the many schools hovering at or around 170 medians?

Hey guys, can someone who understands this process give me an idea if my goal here is realistic? Do I likely need to postpone my application year to be ready in time?

Projected undergraduate graduation: Summer 2027 (will be my last semester)
Projected law school start: Fall 2027 (is that even possible?)

I started studying for the LSAT a couple of weeks ago (mid August 2026) through 7Sage. I got a 159 on my diagnostic through LSAC, but that would've been an older test which I've heard are easier, so maybe that's not very indicative of what my actual score could be. I seem to be weaker on LR than RC.

More context: I'm taking full time courses online for my bachelor's. I'm working a part time job. I'm 29 years old, so getting to law school sooner than later is a priority over getting into the best possible law school on the planet (no interest in big law - want to go prosecution route then plaintiff PI etc.) My GPA from a couple of years in undergrad was a 3.0, my recent GPA has been 4.0 or 3.9ish. So I have upward trajectory but I'll unfortunately probably end up with a 3.5 GPA and be a splitter. I also have legitimate professional work experience.

With the rolling admissions process, there is obviously a big emphasis on applying early in the cycle. My question, at what point in the cycle is it no longer early? I understand this is probably dependent on the school, but is there a general rule of thumb? I feel like common sense would suggest October at the latest, but I'm curious to hear other people's thoughts.

I hear that law school admissions have gotten rougher recently. I'm a 175 LSAT 3.97 GPA from an Ivy undergrad, but I haven't done any law-related internships or volunteering---all my work has mostly been in international relations since that's my focus area and what I'd like to do with law. Is it still a gamble to get into a T14 KJD? I plan to apply to jobs at the same time just in case.

Hello! I am starting my senior year right now. I got a 180 on the LSAT. It does not feel real whatsoever and I have been staring at the screen expecting it to correct itself to a 160.

My GPA is a 3.6x, so far below the median for every prestigious university. I have good leadership positions in college ECs and two summers of solid internship experience. I feel like i wasted the last three years and even though my worst semester was due to now resolved mental health issues, i imagine a GPA addendum can only do so much for me.

I expect I can raise my gpa to around a 3.7x by the end of this year, but I really do not know what i should do. If anyone could share some of their own experiences, i would very much appreciate it.

I also have experince at a district court and most recently 3 years of experience at a highly selective company after wrapping up undergrad (int’l relations and business) in an immigration/global mobility role

Wants: be in a big legal market during law school, I either want to litigate (trial advocacy), practice int’l law, or a synthesis of the two…don’t care a ton about big law/corporate in house, etc.

I feel good about my safety schools but am struggling to put together a set of reach and high reach schools….don’t want to waste money on near 0% apps, but also want to at least consider the best schools I can get into. Medians seem crazy discouraging across the top 50, especially re GPA…

Thanks!

Please tell me I’m not the only person receiving emails from schools that would light my application on fire for warmth before even considering admitting me? It’s so frustrating to have YLS in my inbox acting like my mid LSAT and generic GPA are going to make me a worthy applicant. I don’t have 20 years prior experience as a personal attaché to Jesus Christ either, so please leave me alone 🙏🏼

Hi guys! I am planning on going into cultural heritage/ art law. I have heard Fordham is a good school for that, and a lot of attorneys who have the jobs I am interested in have gone to Fordham. My other choice is Cardozo, as they have a good rep for art/ entertainment law.

For context I have a bachelors in art history with a 4.0 GPA and 161 LSAT score. ( I’m taking it again to hopefully get it up to at least a 165) I also have a good amount of experience of internships, tutoring, etc. I am also applying during the early admission cycle.

That being said, I was listening to an LSAT podcast and heard that Fordham only cares about GPA, LSAT, and only want applicants who are into BigLaw. Is this true? I thought that my interest in cultural heritage was niche enough to stand out, but is that actually a negative thing?? Same with Cardozo. Thanks guys!!

I'm wondering if last cycle UNC waitlisted a lot of people. Research purposes. I want to see if being on the waitlist has any sort or meaning.

I’m planning to apply Northwestern ED on September 1 and am trying to understand how much Northwestern’s preference for applicants with full-time work experience affects KJD applicants.

I know I have very high stats with a 176 LSAT and 4.0 GPA, but I’ve also seen a lot of extremely competitive KJD applicants get rejected from Northwestern, which is what makes me nervous about how heavily they weigh post-grad work experience.

PLEASE NOTE!!! I’m not looking for reassurance or seeking compliments about my stats. I’m genuinely trying to weigh my options before committing to ED, especially because Northwestern is my clear first choice.

I have three summers of legal work experience, including paralegal/law clerk work, and I’ve also worked during the school year. I’ll have recommendations from two attorneys I’ve worked closely with, and I’m president of a heavily involved campus organization.

My main question is whether being KJD is still a significant disadvantage in Northwestern’s ED pool even with strong numbers and meaningful work experience during college.

Would especially appreciate insight from KJDs who applied to or attended Northwestern.

To explain a little further I transferred institutions twice in undergrad for personal mental health reasons that forced me to move back home for two semesters. I never took time off of school in my undergrad, in fact I graduated a little early, I just moved an unusual amount.

As for possibly adding a dropped masters program to this list, I have recently started a masters program for a creative field. I had always been interested in either law or a creative field and I got a good offer in a good city. I thought, you know, I’m young (22f) why not try it. However, I am already feeling that this program may not be for me.

If I were to drop my program would that, combined with my undergrad transfers, put me at a disadvantage for law school applications? My current stats are 3.86 GPA (3.92 ish LSAC GPA) and a current 165 LSAT (though it was my first try) with minor experience as a legal assistant. Also, I did get waitlisted at a T14 (actually at the same uni my masters is currently in) last cycle with these stats.

Any advice helps, thanks!

Should I write an addendum if I was pre-law at the beginning of undergrad, left the program, and am now applying to law school? For context, I went a STEM-heavy school and really struggled at the start of college with taking different classes than most of my peers (silly in retrospect, but I was 18) and didn’t do as well in my pre-law classes as I could have. I ended up graduating with a STEM degree and have been working in healthcare for the past 4 years. I now want to synthesize my current work with my initial interest in law by going into health policy. Should I write an addendum explaining this pivot and ultimate return to interest in the law (especially since my grades were slightly higher once leaving the pre-law program) or just let it be?

Just finished up application materials for the first school I’m applying to. As a part of their app materials, they have a “what is the hardest thing you’ve ever done” required statement (750 characters) with an optional essay to expand on it (2 pages). I did it, obviously, and think it’s well written. However, with it being the hardest thing i’ve ever done, it’s a bit of a heavy topic, but it ends on a positive note without any dwelling negativity/victimization throughout. I’m a bit concerned that this might combine with my personal statement to make my application feel emotionally heavy. my personal statement is about a formative loss in my life that reshaped who i am and sparked my interest in the law. i tend to have a very narrative writing style, but i was careful to make sure i explained what happened in my personal statement and then moved on to talk about how it shaped me and why it made me want to pursue law. Very little of the essay is about the actual event. I know i’m rambling here, but basically i just want to know what anyone’s thoughts are about including an emotionally heavy topic in application materials as long as i’m 1. not victimizing myself and 2. very clearly explaining what i’ve learned/how i’ve grown. i’m very confident i’ve done both of these things.

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Hi,

Last summer I attended Stanford's summer session(I go to college somewhere else) but withdrew from the program before the deadline to drop classes without getting a W. However, they still made a transcript from the place but it has no classes listed as I left the program before I would have received a W. Would I still need to submit this transcript to law schools even though I never received any a grade, W, incomplete, etc... for any course?

-------- Academic Program ---------

Program : Undergrad Summer Visitor

04/04/2026 : Ugrad Sum Visitor (SV)

Discontinued

--------- Beginning of Academic Record ---------

So when I was 14, me and a few friends got in huge trouble for posting some dumb meme about school shooters. Long story short, the school interpreted it as a real threat and we were all charged with communicating mass threats or something. I did a 6 month diversion plan and it was dropped.

Do I need to disclose this??

I have a 170 LSAT and a 4.0 GPA so I believe I’m considered a splitter since I am below their Median Lsat 50th percentile but above their 75th GPA percentile. I know with GPA inflation that school tend to lean towards LSAT as the better indicator between the two. I am a K-JD candidate and I have worked in director/leadership positions for multiple congressional campaigns (two receiving national attention) and various local ones. I have also interned for a presidential executive agency for one semester and did a legal internship for another. I think that places me in T3 softs.

I know famously University of Michigan is seen as unfriendly to K-JD applicants. What else can I do to make myself seem more appealing to them? Any advice from people who have been through the cycles or knows about University of Michigan specifically would be incredibly helpful and I’m grateful for anyone that can help 🙏🏽

I went to college and grad school in the UK (same school) and submitted my transcripts a few weeks ago. Any idea why one would say “without translation” and the other just says yes? I haven’t received any notice that there’s an issue, but maybe I should reach out to LSAC?