Day of the Test
Items Needed for Admission to the Test Center
Admission Ticket. Whether you register for the LSAT online and print out your ticket yourself, or you receive a ticket in the mail, you must take the ticket with you to the test center. Your ticket will contain the following pertinent information: reporting time, reporting address, test center instructions, and test center procedures.
The address on the ticket is a reporting address. Test takers are responsible for obtaining directions and arriving at the test center at the reporting time. At centers where multiple rooms or buildings are used, the address will be a centralized location. You will be directed from there to a specific testing room or building.
For the October, December, and February administrations of the LSAT, candidates are required to be at the test center no later than 8:30 am. For the June LSAT, candidates are required to be at the test center no later than 12:30 pm. The actual test date and reporting time at international centers may vary. Refer to your LSAT Admission Ticket for the exact test date and time.
At the test center, be sure to sign your ticket and carefully read all information provided on the front and reverse sides. If your admission ticket is not signed or the certifying statement is modified or altered in any way, a reporting hold will be placed on your file, possibly causing a delay in reporting your score. Your ticket may be used only for the test date printed on it.
Online registrants can reprint the LSAT ticket if it is misplaced. If you register by mail and do not receive your ticket, call LSAC at 215.968.1001 before the late registration date listed.
Check your LSAC.org account the night before the LSAT. Because LSAT test supervisors sometimes need to change reporting addresses without much notice, LSAC recommends that registrants print out their LSAT Admission Ticket the night before the exam to ensure that they have the most recent and accurate reporting address for their centers. Test takers should not contact LSAT test center supervisors for any reason. Test takers are not permitted access to testing rooms prior to the exam.
NOTE: Candidates should expect the test day to cover up to seven hours.
Identification. You are required to provide two types of acceptable identification in order to be admitted into the test room on the day of the exam.
FIRST: All candidates must have one current, valid (not expired) government-issued ID containing a recent and recognizable photo and your signature. Your first and last name on your ID must match exactly the name on your LSAT Admission Ticket or you will be denied admission.
Acceptable forms of ID include passport book and government issued driver’s license. US military personnel may present their US military ID card with name, photo, and signature.
The following items are not considered acceptable forms of ID for access to the test center: Social Security card, Social Insurance card, birth certificate, credit card (including those with photo), cards used in Canada for health care benefits, expired ID, photocopied ID, employee ID, or student ID.
IMPORTANT: The ID must sufficiently authenticate your identification to the test center supervisor and must be kept with you throughout the testing process, as it may be checked at any time. Under no circumstances is access permitted to the test center without proper identification. If you have questions about whether your ID is acceptable, you must contact LSAC well in advance of the test day.
SECOND: The second type of identification is determined by the location at which you will be testing.
Test centers outside the US and Caribbean
Beginning with the June 2010 LSAT, all candidates testing outside of the US and Caribbean must attach to the ticket a recent photograph (taken within the last six months) showing only the face and shoulders. The photograph must be clear enough so there is no doubt about the test taker’s identity, and must be no larger than 5 x 5 cm or smaller than 3 x 3 cm. Your face in the photo must show you as you look on the day of the test, for example, with or without a beard. The photograph will be retained by LSAC only as long as needed to assure the authenticity of test scores and to protect the integrity of the testing process.
Test centers within the US and Caribbean
Candidates testing within the United States and the Caribbean will continue to provide a thumbprint on the admission ticket at the testing center, as the second type of identification. As with the retention policies of the photograph, the thumbprint will be retained by LSAC only as long as needed to assure the authenticity of test scores and to protect the integrity of the testing process.
All candidates must ensure that they have the correct types of identification for the location where he or she will be testing, as supervisors are instructed to deny admission to the test center to anyone who does not present an acceptable form of identification. When a candidate registers for the test online, he or she will be presented with the full instructions regarding the requirements of the center that he or she has selected. Once registered, the requirements for the particular center will be listed on the test taker’s LSAT Admission ticket.
If the test taker is unable to present the two types of acceptable identification for the testing location, he or she will be denied entrance to the testing room.
Pencils. Bring to the test center three or four sharpened No. 2 or HB wooden (for Canadian centers) pencils—with good erasers. Mechanical pencils are prohibited. All answers must be recorded on your LSAT answer sheet in pencil. Pencils must be used for the writing sample as well. Pencils or sharpeners will not be supplied at the test center. Pencils and highlighters may be used to underline passages in the test book. Ink or ballpoint pens are not permitted.
Items Allowed in the Test Room
Test takers may bring into the test room only a clear plastic ziplock bag, maximum size one gallon (3.79 liter), which must be stored under the chair and may be accessed only during the break. The ziplock bag may contain only the following items: LSAT Admission Ticket stub; valid ID; wallet; keys; analog (nondigital) wristwatch; medical or hygiene products; #2 or HB wooden pencils, highlighter, erasers, pencil sharpener (no mechanical pencils); tissues; and beverage in plastic container or juice box (20 oz./591 ml maximum size) and snack for break only.
Items Allowed on the Desktop
Test takers may only have tissues, ID, wooden pencils, erasers, a pencil sharpener, highlighter, and analog (nondigital) wristwatch. No electronic devices are permitted. No timers of any kind except analog wristwatches.
Items Prohibited at the Test Center
You may not bring into the testing room any of the following: electronic timers of any kind, beeping watches, alarm watches, calculator watches, cellular phones, beepers, pagers, personal digital assistants (PDAs), hats/hoods (except items of religious apparel), books, dictionaries, papers of any kind, calculators, rulers, slide rules, compasses, mechanical pencils, briefcases, handbags, backpacks, earplugs, headsets, photographic or recording devices, listening devices, electronic devices of any kind, weapons or firearms.
IMPORTANT: Electronic devices, including cell phones, are not permitted in the test center, and the use of any electronic device is strictly prohibited. Any test taker discovered using or having in his or her possession an electronic device, including but not limited to cell phones, pay phones, pagers, iPods™ or other media players, or personal computers will be dismissed from the test. This policy will be enforced from the time test takers arrive at the test center until they leave at the conclusion of the test—including the break. Violations will be grounds for score cancellation and review by the Misconduct and Irregularities in the Admission Process Subcommittee. LSAC and test center staff assume no responsibility for personal items.
Test Center Regulations
- Certifying statement. You will be required to write and sign a certifying statement on your answer sheet attesting that the person taking the test is the person whose name appears on the answer sheet and that you are taking the test for the sole purpose of admission to law school. Failure to sign your answer sheet or to complete the certifying statement, or modifying the certifying statement in any way, will result in a hold on your file and possibly a delay in reporting your score.
- No latecomers. Under no circumstances will supervisors admit anyone after testing begins.
- Seating. The supervisor will assign each examinee a seat. Examinees are not permitted to choose their own seats, rooms, or building.
- Test administration. The supervisor will tell you when to start and stop work on each separately timed section. Blackening of answer spaces on your answer sheet must be done before time is called for any given section. Supervisors will administer the multiple-choice sections first, followed by the writing sample.
- Time. Supervisors will keep the official time. You may take an analog (nondigital) wristwatch to the test center. No other timers—including electronic and countdown timers—are allowed.
- Testing staff. Testing staff may circulate throughout the testing room to ensure that examinees are marking their answer sheets correctly and are working in the appropriate section. The supervisor will announce a five-minute-remaining warning for each section.
- Recording answers. All answers must be recorded on your answer sheet using a No. 2 or HB pencil. Answers recorded in the test book will not be scored. Do not make stray marks on your answer sheet or record answers in your test book. You will not be permitted time after the test to clean up your answer sheet or transfer answers from your test book to your answer sheet. Answers recorded in test books cannot be scored.
- Scratch paper. Scratch paper is not permitted. (Scratch paper will be provided at the test center for the writing sample portion of the test only.)
- Underlining passages. You may use only a No. 2 or HB pencil or a highlighter to underline passages in the test book. Fountain pens or ballpoint pens are not permitted.
- Hats/hoods. No hats or hoods are allowed (except items of religious apparel).
- Handbags, backpacks, briefcases. No handbags, backpacks, briefcases, or other bags except a maximum-sized one-gallon (3.79 liter) clear plastic ziplock bag are allowed in the test room.
- Food and drink. Food and drink of any kind may not be taken out of your ziplock bag in the test room. Food and drink may be taken only during the break.
- Rest break. A 15-minute break is given after Section III. All test materials will be collected before examinees are dismissed for the break. Supervisors will check identification as the test materials are returned. Cell phones and other prohibited items may not be accessed during the break.
- Leaving the room. If you find it necessary to leave the room during the test, raise your hand and obtain permission from the supervisor. Your test materials will be collected and held until your return. You will not be permitted to make up the time. Use the restroom before entering the testing room; once checked in, you will not be permitted to leave until after the start of Section I.
- Misconduct/Irregularities. Supervisors will report to LSAC any misconduct/irregularity that occurs during the administration on the Supervisor’s Irregularity Report. A copy of a Misconduct/Irregularities Warning Notice will be given to the test taker and submitted to LSAC.
- Testing materials. All testing materials, including test books, answer sheets, and LSAT Writing Sample Topic sheets are the property of the Law School Admission Council and must be returned to the test center supervisor before dismissal from the test center. Under no circumstances may test content or any part of the test be removed, reproduced, or disclosed by any means (e.g., hard copy, verbally, electronically) to any person or entity. Legal action may be taken against anyone who removes test materials or reproduces test materials in any way, or shares LSAT test content prior to LSAC’s disclosure of that test.
- Left-handedness. Test supervisors attempt to accommodate left-handed test takers. However, LSAC cannot guarantee special desks or tables for you.
- Unexpected problems. If any problems arise that necessitate retesting, we will notify affected test takers as soon as possible regarding arrangements for taking the test with no additional charge at the next regularly scheduled administration.
- Creating a disturbance. Disruptive behavior in any form will not be tolerated. The test supervisor has sole discretion in determining what constitutes disruptive behavior. The test supervisor is authorized to dismiss from the test center any test taker who creates a disturbance.
Rights and Responsibilities of Test Takers
When you take the LSAT, it is your responsibility to report all instances of suspected cheating on the part of any test takers and any other inappropriate behavior that becomes known to you. In addition, you should respect the ownership of and intellectual property rights of LSAC in all test items and test materials, and understand that any violations of its intellectual property rights could lead to cancellation of your score and a ban preventing you from testing in the future, prosecution in accordance with applicable law, or the pursuit of other remedies by LSAC.
You are an important part of protecting the LSAT and ensuring a fair test environment. Cheating impacts everyone. If you believe that you have information about actual or potential test security violations, please contact LSAC immediately.
Misconduct and Irregularities
If you engage in any misconduct or irregularity during the test—such as creating a disturbance; giving or receiving help; working on or reading the test during a time not authorized by the supervisor; removing test materials or notes from the testing room; taking part in an act of impersonation or other forms of cheating; failing to follow the directions of test center staff; or using books, calculators, ear plugs, headsets, rulers, listening devices, paging devices (beepers), any type of desktop timer (including electronic timer), cellular phones, recording or photographic devices, papers of any kind, or other aids—you may receive a warning, or be dismissed from the center, or have your test score canceled by LSAC and may be subject to other penalties for misconduct or irregularity.
Warnings and Dismissals from a Test Center
Test takers who bring prohibited items into the test room, or use them during the break, will be subject to the confiscation of such items by the test supervisor, a warning, dismissal from the test center, and/or cancellation of their test score by LSAC. LSAC and test supervisors are not responsible for test takers' belongings.
In addition, test takers who violate LSAT test center regulations, including but not limited to those listed below will also be subject to a warning, dismissal from the test center, and/or cancellation of their test score by LSAC. Test takers may receive an LSAT Misconduct/Irregularities Warning Notice and their cases may be referred to the LSAC Misconduct/Irregularities Subcommittee and/or to the Questioned Score Review Board for further investigation.
Possible Test Center Violations
- Attempting to take the test for someone else or having someone else take the test for you.
- Failing to provide acceptable identification.
- Obtaining or attempting to obtain improper access to the test, a part of the test, or information about the test.
- Creating a disturbance. (Disruptive behavior in any form will not be tolerated; the test supervisor has sole discretion in determining what constitutes disruptive behavior.)
- Removing or attempting to remove test content from the test center.
NOTE: Under no circumstances may test content or any part of the test content, including LSAT Writing Sample Topic sheets, be removed, reproduced, and/or disclosed by any means (e.g., hard copy, verbally, electronically) to any person or entity. Legal action may be taken against anyone who removes test materials and/or reproduces test materials in any way, or shares LSAT test content prior to LSAC's disclosure of that test. - Bringing a weapon or firearm into the test center.
- Leaving the test center vicinity during the test session or during the break. Test takers may not leave the building or the floor where the test room is located.
- Leaving the test room without permission.
