June 04, 2018
Thom Carroll/PhillyVoice Staff
The Quadrangle at the University of Pennsylvania.
Following a growing trend, the University of Pennsylvania Law School will now consider prospective students' scores on two additional standardized tests as a basis for admission in addition to LSAT scores, the traditional entrance examination taken by aspiring law students.
Penn Law announced Monday it will accept GRE and GMAT scores as part of a pilot program for the school.
The school said the change is being made to build on its strengths of "cross-disciplinary curriculum and degree offerings." Penn Law offers several joint degree programs, including ones with the Wharton business school and Penn Engineering.
The GRE, or Graduate Record Examinations, is a test typically taken by those applying to graduate school for engineering, the sciences, business and other fields. The GMAT, or Graduate Management Admission Test, is taken by those pursuing MBAs.
As the test-prep website QS LEAP explains, while the LSAT is much more a test of one's reasoning skills than subject knowledge, the GRE is a mix of both.
In terms of the test sections and types of questions, the LSAT and GMAT have many similarities, but differ greatly in the way they're administered: the LSAT is pen and paper, while the GMAT is on a computer.
Another big difference between the LSAT and the two other tests is that while the LSAT is only administered on specific date every year, the GRE and GMAT can be taken anytime.
Penn Law joins 16 other American law schools that now accept the GRE in place of the LSAT, including Harvard, George Washington University, Georgetown and Columbia.
