Where you take it matters.......................

[littlelisalaw]

For anyone taking the LSAT, location matters!!!!!

Before registering for a site, go and visit it.  See if you can find out what room it is administered in.

This sounds like a trivial thing, but believe me it is not.  I originally scheduled my LSAT exam for Sept of '06, but was seriously unprepared, so rescheduled for December. I had to change locations.  While I knew where it was being tested at, and had been on the college campus, I did not think about enviornment or anything.

Test day comes.  I feel prepared and psyched out.  And then:  Band practice downstairs, co-eds running through the halls, and an air-conditioner that is broken.  I kid you not.  If this sounds trivial to you, believe me it is not.  It seriously breaks your concentration.  I scored much, much, much lower than any practice exams that I took (and I know that lower is expected, but this was EXTREME).

Take this test seriously, and make sure you know the site.

[almostlegal]

This is so true.

I took the LSAT at a location where they did not tell you the correct building to go to, the proctors actually screamed at students as they filed in (so you're nervous already, you're running late because they told you to go to another building, then you have a person yelling at you), the desks were not flat surfaces, and even though it was June, they had the heating on.

There's a section on the registration form that recommends that you call the location in advance to make sure you know where to go, that you stop in and see the climate of the building you will be taking it in, etc.  Read through it and follow the advice.  You most likely won't be able to go into the exact room of the exam (most sites split you up and send you to several different rooms), but if you call the school you might get a decent idea.

[yourlocalsuperhero]

somewhere on here, i read that some locations offer the option of taking the test in the afternoon.  wow.  that would have been nice. 

[Denny Crane]

I agree that location counts, and that it can help to see a place before you take a test there.

However, the first time I took the test I was what could very accurately be described as the perfect location.  I took it while I was abroad in England.  The location was a private club in London, where all each test taker had a HUGE desk all to themselves (seriously, probably about 6 feet wide, 3.5 feet deep), incredibly comfortable chairs, perfectly balanced air conditioning, very quiet, courteous proctors, etc.  Seriously, you could not ask for a better location. 

I scored 4 points below my average practice score.

I took the second time, this time at my college after I returned from being abroad.  We took it on our largest lecture room, with tiny desks (you know, the half-desks that pull up from next to the chairs), and we were crammed in like sardines. 

I scored 7 points higher than my best practice test score.


So don't get lulled into thinking that the location will determine your performance.  You may be surprised (pleasantly or not).