Thursday, May 7, 2020

Will There Ever Be An Online LSAT? What about an online Bar Exam?


Law school and the internet have not been that good of friends.  It's no secret that the American Bar Association is not fond of online-only law schools.   But, what about an online LSAT test?  The current pandemic has made traditional life kind of turn upon on its head.  It seems that the internet has become a lifesaver for most.  From ordering food and items online to virtual class meetings, the internet has worked in ways that could have not been fathomable during the Spanish Flu pandemic that happened long, long ago.

A very short piece by Above the Law was published by Staci Zaretsky (she must have had far more important things to do than write this petite article).  I will post the jist of it here:
People say, ‘Just put the test online.’ This isn’t a situation like the [traditional] bar exam, where we’re all sitting in the same ballroom taking the test. It’s actually a technical system, and you can’t just wish it into existence; you have to build it. 
Kellye Testy, president of the Law School Admission Council, commenting on the proposals made by several states that the bar exam being administered in an online setting due to the COVID-19 pandemic. “I’m not going to say it would be impossible or that it won’t happen, but it’s a really big lift for states,” she continued. “They’re not testing organizations.” LSAC will be offering its first online LSAT in May due to the health crisis.
People may be saying to put the test online due to the fact that many are terrified to sit in a cramped exam room and try to answer a myriad of questions.  I think back to when I took the LSAT and the packed room at University of San Francisco where I took it.   It was not the best of times, that's for sure.  But taking it online is going to provide a host of challenges.  Will online test takers still need to go to test centers, or can you do it at home and maybe cheat your way into Harvard, Yale, Stanford or Western New England University school of law?  That's the big question, right?  Law school can be a breeding ground for cheating, but many try to stay 'above the law' so to speak.

It will be interesting to see how this turns out.   The world of law school is changing fast.  From New York saying "no bar exams for Yale and other out of state school graduates" and now an online LSAT test.

A couple is on their phones, one is taking an online bar exam.
Could an online Bar Exam be in the pipeline?
What's next?  An online Bar Exam?  Could you imagine, going into a test center and saying, "one bar exam please," then sitting back while taking the grueling and near-impossible test in a private booth?  Or even more interesting, taking the bar exam on your phone during a very long subway ride from Brooklyn Law School to your house in Kew Gardens?  It's an interesting prospect for sure.  If this virus continues to shake up the world, such things may become a possibility. 

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2 comments:

  1. An online bar exam will never happen.

    ReplyDelete
  2. I would like to see an online bar exam, but as the previous commenter stated, it will likely never happen. People would cheat. Doing a bar exam on a train or at home is absurd. Why even have the bar exam? It's a dinosaur.

    ReplyDelete

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