Yes, the LSAT Has Become Substantially Harder

The LSAT of today looks very different from the one your mentors or older siblings might have taken. For decades, the exam was a five-section, in-person "marathon" held in hotel ballrooms. Today, it is a shorter, four-section online test.

While a shorter test might sound easier on paper, the reality is that the Law School Admission Council (LSAC) has fundamentally shifted the test's difficulty to ensure their scores remain the "gold standard" for admissions. If you feel like the test is getting more complex, you aren’t imagining it—the data backs you up.

The most significant driver of this change was the removal of the Logic Games section. Logic Games used to be the most "learnable" part of the test; with enough practice, almost any student could master the diagrams and get a perfect score in that section.

When the Logic Games section was removed following a legal settlement, LSAC lost its primary tool for differentiating high-scoring applicants. To prevent every student from suddenly hitting a 170+, the test makers had to make the remaining Logical Reasoning and Reading Comprehension sections significantly more nuanced and difficult.

In this "New LSAT" era, Logical Reasoning (LR) is doing all the heavy lifting. We are seeing a shift where LR is no longer just about identifying a few classic fallacies. Instead, the test makers are finding ways to test your analytical and visual reasoning skills—the skills previously tested in Logic Games—within the framework of a written argument. This has led to weird question types that don't always fit the classic molds taught by old-school prep books. The test has become less about tricks and tips and much more about your ability to engage with the deep, mechanical structure of an argument.

Another challenge is that because these changes are so recent, there is a lack of representative practice material. Most of the available preptests are from an era where Logic Games balanced out the test's difficulty. Many students find that they are scoring beautifully on older practice tests, only to be blindsided on test day by the intensity and novelty of the current Logical Reasoning sections. This is why it is more important than ever to work with a coach who is current with the test's evolving trends and can help you navigate these new hurdles.

So, how do you beat a harder test? You stop looking for shortcuts. When the test makers change the rules, you have to fall back on a repeatable, bulletproof process. At JurisPrep, we teach our students to stop worrying about specific "question types" and focus on the universal Order of Operations. Whether the test throws you a standard flaw or a brand-new analytical curveball, our six-step process ensures you are never stumped or spinning your wheels. In a world where the test is getting harder, the only way to win is to become a more disciplined, logical thinker.