Pre-law students have more to worry about than just a high grade point average, according to a recent study by Kaplan Law.

The study states that fewer students are applying to law school, but that the odds of getting in have not decreased.

“I can understand why it might be so,” said Steve Marietti, director of pre-law programs at Kaplan Law. “Over the past few years, fewer people have applied. If you apply where fewer people are applying, you would think the odds would be better.”

The study said 79 percent of admissions standards have not changed even though numbers are going down. Marietti said he thought this might be because the pool of applicants gets more competitive each year. Last year, 88,000 students applied to about 46,000 American Disabilities Act approved schools.

“Even though we believe overall applications are down, it is not something that will last forever, so students should do the absolute best in the application process,” he said.

The study said 66 percent of schools said low LSAT scores and unimpressive writing skills were two barriers of not getting in. Marietti said students needed to bring 100 percent of their game when applying to law school. Most schools look at the personal essay and the writing section of the LSAT most, even though it is usually not scored.

“An easy, overall thing [law schools are so difficult to get into] is because it is a rigorous education and tough profession, and law schools want to make sure you’ll succeed,” Marietti said. “Not every person who wants to get into law school likely will get in.”

Students at Eastern know that LSAT scores play the most into whether they get into law school or not.

“It’s definitely what weighs the most into whether or not colleges accept you or not,” said Natalie Sager, senior pre-law major.

She is still in the application process, and recently took the LSAT. She won’t know whether she got in or not for about a month or so.

“It seems like colleges are more competitive. There are so many prep classes and people score higher on the LSATs,” she said. “It is more difficult to get in because I thought there were actually more people applying.”

Karen Swensen, the pre-law advisor and assistant professor said most students are happy to get into a school accredited by the American Bar Association. She also agreed that the LSAT score was the most important determinant.

“More often than not it [not getting in] is because the LSAT score isn’t high enough,” she said. “Last year out of 58 students that applied to law school, and only 32 got in. Some people are deterred from even trying because they don’t do well on the LSAT.”

She also said the student’s GPA is a very low factor.

“I definitely think that the LSAT is more important than the GPA. If they have a 4.0 and the wrong LSAT score, they will not get in,” Swenson said.

Students who do not get in try again later or go down a different path.

“It is not uncommon for a student to decide to get a master’s degree here or at another school. Some will go onto another job or may try again,” Swensen said. “The average age of getting into law school is 25. People who weren’t successful might be successful later on.”

Fact Box: LSAT scores

Top law schools like to see over top half.

Measures scores from 120-180

151-50th percentile

164 or higher-top 10 percent