Education News interview with Jodi Triplett

After the new Blueprint LSAT video course: Blueprint the Movie 2.0, came out, I got a chance to sit down with Education News and talk about it. Here's the interview with me, Jodi Triplett. Our maze logo is perhaps displayed more prominently than I would have chosen, but it was nice to be able to talk about what I think is a really great product for LSAT prep.

LSAT Testing Centers

When you take the LSAT, you might be in a hotel, you might be in a lecture hall, you might be in a dance hall (seriously). And, despite what your parents may have told you, not all LSAT centers are created equally. Things that can make a testing center better or worse are seating arrangements (tables are generally better than desks, sparse rooms provide less opportunity for distractions than cramped sardine can-like rooms) and noise (being in the middle of a forest sounds pretty good; being under a highway, not so much). This might sound sort of silly, but a couple of years ago an LSAT was administered in a hotel near LAX that was having a Harley convention the same day.

If you’re in a Blueprint class, then we’ve already sent you an email telling you about the historically best centers near you. Make sure you sign up for these early, as the good ones go quick. If you haven’t yet signed up for the LSAT, though, it’s probably the case that the great centers are gone. So are the good ones. So are the close ones. In fact, LSAC can make you drive up to 100 miles to a testing center. Fun way to start the morning when you’re taking the LSAT.

If you’re in one of these less-than-desirable locales, then we’re here for you. Read on.

So what can I do about it, Jodi Triplett?

Glad you asked. If your center of choice is all filled up, then you have to pick a different center, as long as something is open within a hundred miles of you. They’ll only consider opening closed centers once everything within that radius is booked.

So one choice is to bite the bullet, register at a distant center, and wake up early to drive there the morning of the test. You could also consider getting a hotel the night before, as long as you think you’ll be able to get a good night’s sleep in an unfamiliar bed.

But if you’ve got your heart set on a specific location, you’ve got some work to do. First of all, you need to be regularly checking the LSAC website to look out for opening spots. This has been very successful for many individuals. Perhaps you can have a window open on your desktop that you toggle to a few times per hour to refresh. As students cancel their registrations, spots open.

If it’s been too long, and seats still aren’t opening (the last day to register, with late fee, is 9/4), then you can go ahead and take a seat in a center you don’t really want. But you then go back to checking the LSAC website multiple times per day for openings in your center of choice. The only problem now is that you’ll incur a $34 switching fee. But considering the benefits of a good center, that seems to be worth every cent.

If everything within your 100 mile radius is totally full, the rules start to change. You can sign up, but you get on a waiting list. LSAC says that they’ll do their best to put you in your desired locale, but they generally just throw you in the first spot that has an opening within the blast zone. And, just because they love you, LSAC doesn’t let you be registered at one center and on a waiting list for another; you’ve got to choose.

A dirty little secret is that you can actually take the test wherever you want. If you’re registered at one location, you can show up at any disclosed location and hope that there are open seats. If some people don’t show up the day of the test, you can take their spot. This almost always works, but is still extremely risky, because if it doesn’t work, you’re really, really screwed. As such, this method does not come highly recommended.

So what’s an LSAT student to do?

In our opinion, your best bet is to just take the closest center that you can, and then try to forget about it. The absolute most important factor is how much you study, and your seat size or driving distance isn’t going to mean a damn thing if you don’t know a circular argument from a sufficient assumption.

However, if you can’t keep yourself from freaking the hell out about taking the test anywhere but your desired center, then Jodi Triplett’s advice is to hold out a couple more days and try to sign up on the 3^rd or 4^th of September. Why? Well, that’s the deadline to change dates or pull out of the test all together. During these days a swarm of registrants will be canceling for various and unimportant reasons, so there will be spaces opening up. Spend these days refreshing LSAC’s website to get a center (bear in mind that other people are doing the same thing, though, so be patient and diligent).

But while you wait, may we suggest that you go get yourself some Rum Raisin ice cream. It’s the most underappreciated ice cream there is.

So You Want to Go to Law School

Highly amusing youtube video about an interview between an attorney and an aspiring lawyer.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nMvARy0lBLE

Jodi Triplett's interview with Admissions Dean

So Jodi Triplett (that's me!) got a chance to sit down and talk with Admissionsdean.com the other day. The interview was about Blueprint and what we offer for LSAT students. You can read the interview here.

Admissions.com is a great resource for students who want to research their chances of admission to law school, read interviews with law school deans, and find out whether the Twilight movies will ever stop being made. (Perhaps not this last one).

Post by Jodi Triplett

The Defenders

Another new legal drama is making the rounds of prime time television. Set in Las Vegas, The Defenders chronicles the partnership of boozy Jim Belushi and the who knew he was that hot Jerry O'Connell. Will it be the next Law and Order or suffer the fate of the recent The Deep End? Blueprint's very own Todd Baynes offers his thoughts at MostStronglySupported.com.

Post by Jodi Triplett

Blueprint: The Movie 2.0, part 2.0

Blueprint: The Movie 2.0 continues to blaze a glorious path across the galaxy of interwebs. The latest comet dust sparkling in the reflected light from a nearby star? The Ivey Files. Written by Anna Ivey, law school admissions consultant extraordinaire, the Ivey files give sage advice about everything from letters of recommendation to applying with a DUI. Ms. Ivey kindly put up a post written by my very own self (Jodi Triplett) about Blueprint's newest online LSAT course. You can view samples on the Blueprint youtube page or check out the Blueprint website for more information. It is, in my very biased opinion, amazingness in video form.

Post by Jodi Triplett

Blueprint: The Movie 2.0

Well the Blueprint online LSAT course, written and created by Trent Teti, Matt Riley, and yours truly (Jodi Triplett) is making the rounds of the blogosphere. Ann Levine of LawSchoolExpert.com has a nice little write-up about the newest addition to LSAT prep here.

A former law school Dean, Ms. Levine opines that the LSAT score is important for law school admissions. We agree, and it's the hope of Trent Teti, Matt Riley, and Jodi Triplett that our newest addition to LSAT prep will help students obtain the scores they want. Because the course is fully animated with professionally hand-drawn illustrations, its calculated to retain student interest while explicating difficult LSAT concepts like logical implication or causal assertions.

Samples of Blueprint: The Movie 2.0 may be viewed on youtube and the Blueprint website.

Post by Jodi Triplett of Blueprint Test Preparation