When Is It Helpful to Answer Targeted Questions?
Many schools offer a prompt or opportunity to talk about something specific like “socio-economic challenges.” The most common of these prompts is generally known as the “diversity statement” and invites information about how you might differ from the typical incoming law student and add something unique to the class.
The simple answer to “should I or shouldn’t I?” with regard to these statements is, “Yes, if you have something to say.” That doesn’t mean you have to fit into the narrow box that might spring to mind when you read the question: if the question were just about race or country of origin or being thirty years older than the average entering law student or some other statistical trait, it would hardly be necessary to ask it. And, of course, most of the “diversity” statements would be very similar and wouldn’t really do a whole lot to help the admissions committee round out a class. We’ll talk later in this book about what schools are looking for with diversity and other common targeted statements and how to determine whether you have something valuable to say in those essays, but the basic question to ask of yourself is this: Do I have something useful to say that I honestly believe addresses this question?
If the answer is “yes”, use that opportunity. If it’s “no”, don’t. It’s not quite so important to write these statements as it is the general application questions because the fact that you’ve skipped over it could simply mean that it didn’t apply to you. If you didn’t face socio-economic challenges you just didn’t, and it’s counterproductive to try to twist something from your past into a response to that question. So, admissions officers are far less likely to interpret the fact that you skipped over one of these essays to mean that you just couldn’t be bothered to do more than what was absolutely required of you.
Give it some thought, though. Don’t just glance at a prompt, decide it doesn’t apply to you and move on. Just like your personal statement, optional essays require some thought, some brainstorming, some internal excavation to make sure you know what’s most relevant and compelling about you and how those characteristics run as a common thread through your life. Invest the effort, whether that effort leads to an optional essay or to a well- considered decision to skip a particular prompt.
Photo by aepoc
...quick question about these diversity statements..so as not to pull the proverbial "card" ...
ReplyDeleteHow and why should you emphasize gender/race/socio-economic background...does it matter or should it matter to your entrance into law school?
It matters partly because a lot of people who are implicated in what lawyers do don't fit the fairly privileged socio-economic background of most lawyers. The world needs lawyers who can understand the implications of the law for all kinds of people; if there's something about your background that gives you special insight, that may be attractive to law schools not just because you already have that insight, but also because your presence in the law school might help share that insight with classmates who don't already have it.
ReplyDeleteQuick question: I am a high school dropout who went on to earn degree from a decent public university (Penn State) for undergrad, and then on to a master's degree at American University. I also am a gay man who has been involved in many volunteer positions for civil rights/lgbtq rights, and have been working full-time for the past two years since earning my MA. Are all of these considered good softs that I should mention in a personal statement or a diversity statement?
ReplyDeleteI'm in a similar situation. I would focus in on how a specific time your volunteer position taught you something new about civil rights or lgbtq that you never realized before. Or at least someone you helped volunteer your time to at the organization that made an impact on you.
ReplyDelete