All about LSAC fee waivers
A $1099 value!
A 2011 study published in the Denver Law Review found that more than three fourths of the students at the Top 20 law schools in the United States came from the top quarter of the socioeconomic population. Additionally, more than half of the total students in those schools came from the top tenth of the socioeconomic population.
This disparity has long been an issue of concern for law schools hoping to recruit diverse classes. As a result, law schools and affiliated organizations have targeted this gap for decades through various programs and methods, hoping to make the law school admissions process accessible to as many applicants as possible. One such program is the LSAC Fee Waiver introduced by LSAC in 1968, which allows applicants for whom it would otherwise be prohibitive to access resources and necessary services for the application process.
What exactly is an LSAC Fee Waiver?
The LSAC Fee Waiver is an LSAC program for law school candidates who cannot afford the cost of the LSAT and the Credential Assembly Service, the two components that together make up your law school application (seriously, these two make up 100% of your application).
What exactly does the LSAC Fee Waiver contain?
The LSAC Fee Waiver program gives qualifying applicants a very generous amount of services at no cost. The following services are included at no cost whatsoever:
· Registration for 2 (two!) LSAT administrations in the next 2 (two!) years.
· One registration to LSAC’s Credential Assembly Service (which lasts for five years after the date of activation).
· A one-year subscription to LSAC’s LSAT Prep Plus (full access to LawHub).
· 6 law school reports (this is the $45 fee LSAC charges to send out a completed application).
· Access to Score Preview for your first LSAT administration (this allows you the option to cancel your score after seeing it so that it does not show up on your transcripts).
Before any online taxes, the total price of these services is exactly $1,009. Furthermore, applicants with LSAC Fee Waivers have their separate application fees waived by most law schools, and also receive heavily discounted tutoring or preparation services from many LSAT prep companies. This makes the LSAC Fee Waiver program an invaluable resource for low-income applicants.
How do I apply for the LSAC fee waiver?
Are there other benefits for students receving the LSAC fee waiver?
Yes. We are working on another post about this, but in the meantime, you can see a list of test prep companies offering discounts or free services to fee waiver recipients here.
