All About Gray Day

Gray day is almost upon us….but what is it? Gray day is the day when LSAT scores are released. LSAC’s website says that September 2017 scores will be released on October 12, but historically, scores are released a few days before the scheduled date.  No one knows when gray day will be until it actually happens. This leads to multiple days filled with anxiety while LSAT takers await their scores. There’s a very good chance that this month’s gray day will be sometime early next week. My bet is that scores will be released between Monday and Wednesday.

Why is it called “Gray Day?” That’s a great question. On the LSAC website, there is a tab that says “LSAT Status.” This page contains a list of all the LSATs you have taken or are registered to take. On the day scores will be released, the little green icons that represent your LSAT documents turn gray. Once these icons go from green to gray, later that day, LSAT scores will be released. LSAT scores are sent through emails on a rolling basis. As far as anyone can tell, there is no rhyme or reason to the way scores are sent out. You might get your scores a couple minutes or a few hours after the icons go gray.  On the day those icons go gray (and they usually go gray in the afternoon), you know your LSAT score will be released later that day.

So how can you survive Gray day- and the days leading up to it- without losing your mind?? First off, I recommend that you do not constantly refresh your LSAC page. Take a break, hang out with friends, pay attention in class, watch some Netflix, but do not just sit on your laptop refreshing all day long. Not only is it a waste of time, it is also a waste of energy. It also creates unnecessary stress. Step back from the laptop, and relax a bit!

Another tip is to avoid looking up #grayday, #lsat, or #greyday on twitter. It will only stress you out even more. Many people post their scores on Twitter as well, which I don’t recommend. This can lead to unhealthy comparisons of your score and scores of people you have never even met! Some people will post about their 180, and that can easily make you feel bad about yourself. Some people will post about their 144, which will probably make you feel good about yourself. Then, some people will post about their score, which just happens to be the score you got, but how they are disappointed in it. This was probably the hardest for me to see, because I was very happy with my score, and I knew the majority of people would be happy with my score. However, this person, whom I have never met and probably never will, isn’t. Again, this is unhealthy comparison. You never know how much someone studied, if both of their parents went to Harvard Law, so they are expected to as well, or any of the facts surrounding their test.  So my biggest recommendation is avoid looking up LSAT related tweets or from posting LSAT related tweets. You will be much better off if you do not do so.

Another piece of advice I have is to have something planned for after scores are released. I know this can be challenging as you never what day it will actually happen ,but having something planned- whether it be a workout, dinner with friends, a phone call with a loved one- can be a good way to celebrate or to decompress if your score isn’t what you hoped it would be. Being around people who love and support you is a great thing to do whether you got the score you hoped for or you didn’t.

Finally, my last tip is to keep everything in perspective. Yes, this is a huge test and often it dictates where you go to law school.  Just remember that you will get into a law school; it may not be your dream school, but just the fact that you will go to law school is amazing in itself. Also, you can always retake the LSAT. It’s not too late to register for the December exam, and you can still apply in this application cycle.

In conclusion, just relax! I know it seems hard to, maybe even impossible, but try to reduce your stress as much as you can. Hopefully, there aren’t too many “not gray” days next week and results will be sent out fairly quickly. Even if there are, it’s okay! You did the work, you took the exam, and even if your score isn’t as high as you hoped it would be, you still have another chance. Just remember, you will get into law school, and you WILL go to law school!