Law school personal statement length

Law school personal statement length (or why law school admission officers want short essays)


Throughout your high school and college education, your instructors have probably asked you to “be concise” with your writing. In other words, they’re looking for short, punchy language. Instead of using long phrases, they’ve encouraged you to state your point with fewer words.



Sure, there’s a time and a place to be wordy. But let’s be clear: it’s not the law school personal statement.  

In fact, it’s never been more important to be concise than right now. Your law school personal statement needs to get your message across as promptly as possible. Law school admissions officers want to read concise law school personal statement, for the following reasons:


1. They’re Pressed for Time

Law school admission officers have deadlines, too. The reason most schools limit the word or page count for law school personal statements is so they have time to actually read each one! If your law school personal statement is too wordy, readers will become frustrated by it. A clearly-written statement should be able to be read fully within 5-10 minutes. So, the more concise you can make your language, the better.


2. They’ve Read a LOT of These


In-demand schools receive tens of thousands of applications. While no single admission officer would be expected to read all of those, it’s safe to say they’re reading quite a few. They’ll appreciate yours even more if it’s easier to read!


3. Your Message Will Be Clearer

When you ramble instead of choosing concise sentences, your words begin to lose their precise meaning. To make your message as clear as possible, try to say what you need to say in as few words as you can.


4. You’ll Show Your Value as a Candidate

When you choose to write concisely, it says a few things about you as a student:


a. You’ve done your research and know law schools look for short, concise essays


b. You know how to follow directions

c. You can communicate a message or idea clearly

d. You respect the admission officers’ time and value the opportunity to have your essay read



It’s not always easy to be concise with your writing, but with the law school personal statement, it’s definitely worth aiming for. And that’s one of the biggest things I help students with – transforming 1,000+ word law school personal statement drafts into concise and polished pieces of prose that pull no punches.


Or, in other words, writing law school personal statements that admission officers can (and want to!) read.


Please feel free to reach out if you need any help with your law school application essays. I’m here to help.

Until next time,
Steve


P.S. Now that I’ve shared why it’s so important to be concise, keep an eye out for my next article. I’ll be going over how you can be more concise with your law school personal statement. In the meantime, if you’re struggling to get started, take a look at these law school admissions resources.


Recommended Resources:

1. Law School Admissions Coaching
Get personalized 1-1 help on every aspect of the law school admission process -- or just the law school personal statement.

2. Law School Admissions Guide
I've written a concise guide to the law school admission process with tips on completing every aspect of your applications from start to finish. It's a small price to pay for a whole lot of guidance, and it's short enough that you'll actually read the whole thing.

3. Law School Admissions Cheat Sheet
Quick-reference guide for the law school personal statement, the "Why X?" essay, and the law school résumé. (You can also get it with the LSAT Cheat Sheets.)





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