How do I write a personal statement for law school?

Question

What should I include in it?

How Long Should it be?

What do they look for?

Somewhere out there, there has to be someone that that can help me on this!

If you can, thank you SO MUCH!

You can't answer your own question.

Answer 1

Any time you're asked to submit a personal statement, they're looking for a glimpse into your character; whether you're someone with the right motivations, personality, interests, etc. When building a class, the admissions staff is trying to create a microcosm of the real world, so they need people of all types (though some schools may want a heavier weight of one type to another). Your statement might shed light on whether you are the outgoing type who parties a lot, the nerd who will be on law review, the funny guy who will keep some classes interesting, the butch lesbian that will be the next leader of their gay and homosexual club, etc. So just write about you and not about qualities that they "look for" and you'll paint a much clearer and convincing picture.

Oh and of course, the writing sample will also tell them whether you know how to write... in proper English... coherently.

Answer 2

I went through the law school application process, and a year later, helped my partner apply to business school. Two years ago I helped a cousin with his law school applications. I'm proud to say that we all got into our first-choice schools.

A few things to consider with a personal statement:

ANSWER THE QUESTION ITSELF. Some schools want a personal essay and leave the topic up to the applicant. Others have specific questions they want approached. For these, study the question carefully, and stay on topic.

MAKE IT PERSONAL. Talk about something you have experienced, something you have learned, or something you want to accomplish.

NARROW IT DOWN. My cousin's first draft spoke of why he wanted to be a lawyer and why he thought he'd be good at it. In passing, he mentioned a college project in which he drafted the by-laws for an activist group. Bingo! We re-wrote the essay to talk about this unique experience, and what he learned from it.

PERSONALIZE IT. Like my cousin's first draft, most essays the admissions committee reads will have a certain sameness: "I want to help the downtrodden, I'm a hard worker, I believe in justice." They read that same essay over and over. The application for my first-choice law school had a second essay: "What person do you admire and why?" How many Martin Luther King or John Fitzgerald Kennedy essays do you think they got? I did Julia Child. I know it was a welcome break for the readers. Keep in mind that I wrote about her accomplishments and explained why they made her admirable. I didn't write about her funny voice or the time she dropped a chicken on the floor. You can make these essays unique, but stay serious. Write about a chef or a movie star, but don't write about SpongeBob.

REWRITE, REVISE, REVIEW: Pay close attention to your style. Everything you learned in school up to now about writing should come together here. Look at your essay a few days after writing a first draft. Is it organized well? Do you stray from the topic? Did you use childish writing tricks, such as parentheses to explain unclear sections, colloquial language, or exclamation points? Did you try to be cute or funny? Take those things out and focus on clarity.

TAKE THE READER SOMEWHERE: You can tell a story in great detail and still not convey meaning. Hold back on every date and time, every person you met, or every struggle. If telling a story, be sure to include what it means to you. How did it change you? Were you disillusioned, hopeful, disgusted, proud? Make us feel the end of the journey, rather than just see each step you took to get there.

USE YOUR RESOURCES: Do you have a friend or a teacher who is a particularly good writer? Let them edit it and allow them to make changes, however hard that can be. If you are a science major, approach an English or History major. They write a lot more than you do, and probably can help. College career centers have staff who will help with these essays.

I wish you the best of luck! I am now a practicing attorney and very proud of the work I do. My law school applications were the first step to getting here.

Answer 3

The first thing to do is do not panic, b/c obviously that is what you are doing. I am on the verge of graduating from law school, so I feel your pain in writing this statement. Basically at the most your statement should be a page long and should basically give your background, tell why you want to practice, what your hopes and dreams are. Try using a catchy introductory quote. I have entered a website that you can use to do further research for your statement. Good luck to you in your future endeavors

Answer 4

Dont bother! Their are so many lawyers witout jobs your better off getting a more usful degree or getting three years experience at a job that pays...What they dont tell you is that a typical lawyer only sees 1 out of every four dollars he makes on paper!

Answer 5

Scott,

The best advice I can give you is to tell the readers something about yourself that will make them want to have you in their class ... what will you bring to the school that is valuable, unique, compelling .. on account of your life experiences

Obviously it will help if you write it well ....