Happy Friday everyone! Celebrate the end of the week by checking out some of top stories about legal education and the LSAT: 

Top Five Factors Take Into Account by Law School Admissions (JD Journal)

Can you list the top five factors that are weighed the heaviest by law school admissions teams? We’ll start you off with the number one factor: LSAT score!

Countdown to the LSAT: What you Need to Do Between Now & Test Day (Law School Podcaster)

If you didn’t get the chance earlier this week, be sure to stop by Law School Podcaster to listen to Manhattan LSAT’s Executive Director of Academics, Noah Teitelbaum, for some advice for mapping out an LSAT study plan.
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I came upon a great question on our forum that I want to bring up here, because there’s a valuable lesson in it. A student asked:

On the LSAT, when you have a constraint that says “T is performed EITHER immediately before F OR immediately after R” does that mean there is a potential for an RTF block? Or is that eliminated because of the EITHER/OR language?

LSAT guru Mike Kim answered:

On the LSAT, the statement either/or does not inherently rule out the possibility of both (though sometimes other factors, such as the design of the game itself, do “naturally” limit the possibility of both).

Not Pictured: The LSAT

Mike went on to use a great example of soup or salad on a menu. If you’re at a restaurant and given the option of ordering a soup or salad with your entree, does that mean you can have both? Not unless the waiter thinks you’re cute. You have to pick one or the other (or pay more). That’s the T.G.I.Friday’s Or.

The LSAT Or is not the T.G.I.Friday’s Or. The LSAT Or is the Cruise Or. I’m told (as I’ve yet to cruise) that on a luxury ship, as the ventriloquist makes you cackle so hard you spit out your unlimited soda, “soup or salad” means you can also have both (gluttonous places that cruise ships are). The same definition applies on the LSAT. As Mike indicated, unless there are other restrictions in the game that prevent “both” from being an option, the “either/or” language itself does not prevent it. Both is possible.

In case this post left you wanting to go on a cruise (think of all that simultaneous consumption of clam chowder and iceberg…), I recommend David Foster Wallace’s essay “Shipping Out.” It may change your mind. It’s also very good.

Last week, Law School Transparency rolled out a new tool for prospective law school students to help guide application and enrollment decisions. While many students turn to U.S. News & World Report’s annual law school rankings, LST hopes that their Score Reports will reduce the influence of U.S. News by providing more detailed comparisons. Instead of comparing law schools based solely on traditional factors like LSAT scores and undergraduate grade-point averages, LST Score Reports sort schools according to employment outcomes, projected costs, and admissions stats.

Using LST’s Score Reports, prospective students can click on any state on the country map and receive a comprehensive chart that shows the relationship between regional law schools and employment percentages in that specific state. This way, students can essentially select where they want to land their future law career and see which schools will give them the best opportunity for employment.
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Here are the free LSAT events we’re holding this week.

11/17/12 – Washington, D.C. – Free Proctored LSAT Exam – 6:00-10:00 PM

11/17/12 – Santa Monica, CA. – Free Proctored LSAT Exam – 6:00-10:00 PM

11/17/12 – San Diego, CA. – Free Proctored LSAT Exam – 9:30 AM-1:30 PM

11/17/12 – Irvine, CA. – Free Proctored LSAT Exam – 9:30 AM-1:30 PM

Looking for more free events? Check out our Free Events Listings Page.

As we near the end of this week, we again hope that those affected by Hurricane Sandy are making a progressive recovery and that life is returning to as close to normal as possible. To help everyone ease back into the usual routine, we’ve complied our weekly list of law school and LSAT-related links:

Telling Your Story: Avoiding Oversimplification, Part 2 of 3 (jdMission)

As you’re filling out law school applications and writing your personal statements, take a moment to stop by jdMission for some tips for avoiding oversimplification of your essay.
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It’s been a hard week for the east coast, and here in New York, the difficulties range from inconvenient to catastrophic. Volunteer and donation opportunities abound, and with neighbors in such dire need, it feels strange to write about the LSAT.

You’re hopefully already taking a break from study to vote, but if you, like me, are finding it difficult to focus when the need around us is so desperate in places, consider taking some time to step away from the test to volunteer.

Donation opportunities:

Brooklyn Community Foundation

Occupy Sandy

Volunteer opportunities in NY/NJ:

New York Cares

NYC Service

Food Bank for New York City

Jersey Cares

And for a quick read that finds the silver lining in hardship, I recommend Mei Mei Fox’s 5 Spiritual Lessons from Hurricane Sandy.

After a Sandy-induced delay, October LSAT scores were released last week. To those of you who rocked the test to your satisfaction, congratulations! Time to get thinking about the rest of your application.

For those of you with more LSAT work to do still, we’re here for you. Whether you’re still having nightmares about zones, or you simply want some help deciding whether or not you should retake,  I strongly encourage you to attend our free, live online review of the October LSAT. This Thurssday evening (8pm EST) Manhattan Prep’s Executive Director of Academics, Noah Teitelbaum, will cover some of the more challenging questions from the October exam, as well as provide some perspective for your retake decision. The best part? It’s completely free to sign up!

It has been a whirlwind (crappy pun not intended) few days here in New York City as we deal with Hurricane Sandy and her aftermath. Thankfully everyone here at Manhattan Prep is OK — and we sincerely hope the same is true for you and your family.

As LSAC is located in rural Pennsylvania, they have been affected by the storm. According to their official twitter feed, @Official_LSAT, LSAC’s offices are closed due to power outages, and the release of October LSAT results may be delayed beyond the Oct 31st release date.

If you’ve been following this blog, you know that LSAC traditionally releases scores at least a couple of days ahead of their stated release date. For the first time ever, they may miss their stated score release deadline. The following was tweeted by LSAC at approximately 9:20am today:

“We still expect scores to be released by Thursday afternoon.”

LSAC also commented via twitter about December LSAT registration:

“We expect to be back online today. We will make sure you get registered for Dec. and will waive the late reg fee”

As for Manhattan Prep, we’re dealing with some loss of power at our headquarters in Manhattan. We’ll continue to monitor our phone lines and email inboxes remotely, but it may be a day or two still before we’re able to resume our in person courses in New York, Washington DC, and Boston. If you are a student in any of those clases, we will continue to keep you posted via phone and email. All other classes (live online or in unaffected cities) will resume normally. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact studentservices@manhattanprep.com/lsat/ or call (646) 254-6480.

News flash: Halloween is tomorrow! Presumably, you’ve been too wrapped up in LSAT prep to even take the time to brainstorm costume ideas.
But don’t worry, we’ve got your back. How about dressing up as a funny, scary, or realistic version of your future self? Or a popular legal reference? Here’s some inspiration to get your creative juices flowing:

1. Colonial Lawyer:  Take the traditional route and pop on a black robe and white collar and wig.
2. My Cousin Vinny: Plenty of options for this one. You could go with the all black ensemble (black pants, leather jacket, and silver belt and chain) or you could spice it up with a brown/orange suit, complete with a matching bowtie, white button-down, and heavy New York accent.
3. A Lawsuit: Wear a suit and attach legal documents all over it (Amendments of the Constitution, the UCC, Restatement of Torts) .
4. The Second Amendment: Wear a sleeveless shirt.
5. The Socratic Method: Get a white sheet from the linen closet and style a Greek toga. Sling a colored sash around your shoulder with the word “method” written across it.
6. Judge: A white, curly wig, pair of glasses, white turtleneck, and black robe should do the trick. Add some pizzazz by adopting a New York accent and calling yourself Judy.
7. Elle Woods: Bring out anything and everything pink. Pink dress, skirt, shirt, heels, and hat. If you’re not a natural blonde, grab a wig, as this is a pretty essential part of the costume. Don’t forget to pick up a Chihuahua and dress him in a matching pink outfit.
8. The Lazy Lawyer: For those who want something more subtle or are just too lazy to put a complete costume together, throw on the shirt pictured above from Zazzle.com.
9. Yourself: If you don’t fancy the whole costume idea, just go as the studious LSAT student that you are. Accessorize with you’re pencils, stopwatch, and Manhattan LSAT Strategy guides.

Already have your costume picked and ready to go? We’d love to hear your ideas! Leave us a comment or tweet @Manhattanlsat

Here are the free LSAT events we’re holding this week.

10/30/12 – Los Angeles, CA – Free Trial Class – 6:30-9:30 PM

11/3/12 – Washington, D.C. – Free Proctored LSAT Exam – 6:00-10:00 PM

11/3/12 – Santa Monica, CA – Free Proctored LSAT Exam – 6:00-10:00 PM

11/3/12 – Irvine, CA – Free Proctored LSAT Exam – 9:30 AM – 1:30 PM

11/3/12 – La Jolla, CA – Free Proctored LSAT Exam – 9:30 AM – 1:30 PM

Looking for more free events? Check out our Free Events Listings Page.