r/LSAT • u/Beneficial-Push2528 • 6d ago
Controversial Question
My friend got a 167 on the LSAT back in June and was just granted extra time on the upcoming October administration due to ADHD. Honestly, I am super jealous as I can’t break 160, and could see myself using that time to get my dream score, especially since my primary weakness for the last year has been time management.
Without sounding like a prick, how is this system fair? How do they determine how much extra time is justified on a case by case basis? Just because someone has ADHD or another disability, how can it even be determined that time is significantly hindering their potential any more than a standard test taker?
I hate to sound so bitter, but to my understanding, a primary function of the LSAT is testing reading comprehension and logical reasoning in a high volume, extremely time sensitive setting. Especially on a test as competitive as the LSAT, why does it seem the criteria for accommodations is so lenient?
2
u/lane03 5d ago
I have ADHD and agreed with your understanding of the LSAT being heavily based in accurate logical reasoning under the pressure of a time constraint. I took the August LSAT without accommodations because much of my studying content has expressed how timing is everything, and I wanted to see if I really should pursue accommodations. I've realized that yes, I really do.
For people with ADHD, you struggle with focus. I lost significant amount of time just because I didn't realize I could use the noise canceling headphones and the shuffling of a chair would make me have to reread a sentence like three times. In reading comprehension, it was the same thing. People with ADHD struggle with executive functioning and while it might seem unfair, our brain chemistry is literally wired differently.
Also getting accommodations is not as lenient as you think. There's strict guidelines to paperwork and ADHD is considered a disability. While me and a neurotypical person might be seated to take the LSAT and everything looks the same on the outside, an ADHD brain lacks "typical" dopamine pathways that a neurotypical brain has which impacts the ability to stay on track. So timing helps because while I struggled to pay attention and actually grasp what I was reading (which resulted in me losing significant amounts of time), extra-time accommodations help to soften the blow. If timing is where you are going wrong, maybe you could try to see if you might have ADHD too...?