Deciding between the LSAT and the GRE
Policy varies by school. Check every target school's current admissions page individually — GRE acceptance varies by school and can change from cycle to cycle, and a school's acceptance of the GRE does not guarantee equal weight in its admissions index. If even one target school requires the LSAT specifically, that requirement should usually control your decision.
Candidates already holding a strong, recent GRE score, or those applying to a broader mix of graduate programs alongside law school, are the clearest fit for the GRE route. A candidate applying only to law school with no existing GRE score has less reason to add a second test instead of preparing directly for the LSAT.
How LSAT accommodations actually work
Accommodations requests go through LSAC directly, not through your undergraduate or current school's disability office, and require current documentation meeting LSAC's own standards — a school's accommodation letter alone is not automatically sufficient. Build in time for the request and any follow-up documentation well before your registration deadline.
The August 2024 removal of Analytical Reasoning (Logic Games) itself traces to a disability-rights settlement, and LSAC's accommodations process interacts directly with the August 2026 shift toward in-center testing: confirm which delivery format applies to an accommodated test taker for any specific administration directly with LSAC instead of assuming it matches the general population's format.
What the sources say about GRE acceptance
ETS's October 4, 2022 release said 100 of the 199 ABA-accredited law schools then accepted the GRE for admission, and that the American Bar Association's November 2021 decision confirmed the use of the GRE in law school admissions in lieu of the LSAT. That is a dated count, not a current one, so use ETS's own list of law schools accepting GRE scores for JD programs, and confirm each school's policy on its admissions page.
ETS's list is not uniform: at least one entry carries a note that the GRE is accepted for select students only, and ETS says many listed schools also consider GRE scores when awarding scholarships. LSAC's fee page lists the LSAT at $253, including LSAT Argumentative Writing, for the August 2026 to June 2027 testing year.
What LSAC's accommodations process requires
LSAC says registered test takers submit accommodation requests through JD Services, with all supporting documentation, by the accommodation request deadline, which is always the same as the test registration deadline. It says there are no exceptions to that deadline, that requests submitted late will not be considered, and that it does not return or copy documentation, so you should keep your own copies. Decisions are posted as a letter in JD Services, typically within two weeks according to LSAC's remote-testing page.
If a request is not approved in full, LSAC's letter explains why, and you have two business days to say you will appeal and five calendar days to submit documentation. LSAC says the appeal result comes within one week of the submission. Candidates approved on their last LSAT registration are automatically approved for the same or substantially similar accommodations, except for temporary conditions and the changes LSAC lists for paper format and modality exceptions.
Which accommodations LSAC lists, and who may still test remotely
LSAC's non-exhaustive list includes assistive technology such as JAWS, ZoomText and Dragon at Prometric centers, extended testing time, additional breaks between multiple-choice sections, stop/start breaks of up to 60 minutes, braille equipment, tactile manipulatives, a human reader and a scribe. It says the combination of testing time and breaks for the multiple-choice LSAT may not exceed eight hours in one day, and testing over two days is administratively approved if the combination would exceed it.
Starting with the August 2026 LSAT, LSAC says the multiple-choice portion is moving toward in-center testing for almost all test takers. Remote exceptions it will consider for 2026-2027 are certain disability-related accommodations that require remote testing, active-duty military stationed abroad and their accompanying spouses and dependents, test takers more than 180 miles or three hours' driving from a center with available capacity, and test takers whose domestic center closes for weather or unforeseen reasons. Approved remote test takers must use a smartphone as a second camera. LSAC does not annotate accommodated score reports and does not tell law schools a candidate requested accommodations.
Common questions
How many law schools accept the GRE instead of the LSAT?+
ETS reported on October 4, 2022 that 100 of 199 ABA-accredited law schools accepted it. That count is dated, so check ETS's current list and each school's page.
Did the ABA approve the GRE for law admissions?+
ETS's October 2022 release says the ABA's November 2021 decision confirmed the use of the GRE in law school admissions in lieu of the LSAT.
When is the LSAT accommodation request deadline?+
The same as the test registration deadline. LSAC says there are no exceptions and that late requests will not be considered for that administration.
How do I request LSAT accommodations?+
Registered test takers submit the request and all supporting documentation through JD Services, and LSAC says it does not return or provide copies of documentation you send.
How long does LSAC take to decide an accommodation request?+
LSAC's remote-testing page says decisions are typically communicated in a letter posted to JD Services within two weeks following a request.
Can I appeal a denied LSAT accommodation?+
Yes. LSAC gives you two business days to notify it of an appeal and five calendar days to submit supporting documentation, with a result within one week.
Will law schools know I tested with accommodations?+
No. LSAC says it does not annotate score reports for accommodated testing, including extended time, and does not tell law schools that a candidate requested accommodations.
Can I still take the LSAT remotely in 2026-2027?+
Only under limited exceptions. LSAC says starting with the August 2026 LSAT, the multiple-choice portion is moving toward in-center testing for almost all test takers.
What to do next
- 1
Confirm each target school's current GRE-acceptance policy on its own admissions page, not a third-party list.
- 2
Start an accommodations request early, with current documentation meeting LSAC's own stated standard.
- 3
Don't assume a prior school's accommodation letter transfers automatically to LSAC.
- 4
If accommodated, confirm your specific test date's delivery format directly with LSAC.