Law School Personal Statement Mistakes to Avoid
By reading my articles, you're putting a ton of time and effort into your law school personal statement.
However, each year, a certain % of law school applicants make the same common mistakes. I see it again and again.
Here are some of the most common mistakes I see students make, and how you can avoid them:
Repeating info covered in another part of the application.
Seriously, avoid repeating facts that you know they'll learn elsewhere in your application.
Students keep telling me they want to repeat certain key facts in law school personal statement "just to be safe." However, admissions officers have already read, or will read, the rest of your application. Reading the same thing twice is boring.
So, don't be the applicant who does this:
"In freshman year I was in Key Club. It was a lot of fun, and I learned a lot about helping others. I also joined the lacrosse team, which took up a lot of time. However, I still found time to volunteer at a soup kitchen every weekend. All of this demonstrates that I am responsible and capable."
Trust them to do their job and be as careful as they need to be.
Exception: If you mentioned something briefly on the application, you can go into it in more detail in the law school personal statement.
Whining about hardships instead of explaining why/how you overcame them.
Nobody likes a sob story, no matter how true or heartbreaking it is. Don't look for pity. Instead, show admission officers how you overcame those difficulties to get a high GPA, leadership position, or some other accomplishment. Impress them with your determination.
Don't do this:
"Because my parents had to get rid of the babysitter after we had money issues, I had to quit the soccer team to watch my little sister. It was a real shame to have to leave my teammates and give up the chance of being state champions, but family comes first, so I didn't mind making the sacrifice."
Instead, talk about what you've accomplished in spite of the obstacles you may have faced.
.
Talking about how you want to go to a school because it has a great reputation.
Many students want to go to a top school, be successful in their careers, and make lots of money.
I'm sorry to tell you this, but no one cares.
Well, that's not 100% true. It's great that you're ambitious, but ask yourself, "Why does this make you special and different?" Self-promotion is a given. Set yourself apart by expressing your desire to take classes in subjects that interest you. If you're not sure what you want to study, make it clear that you want to expose yourself to a wide range of ideas.
Don't do this:
"University X is well-renowned, and many famous people like _____, ____, and ____ graduated from there. With a degree from University X, I'll be sure to be a success in life and make my friends and family proud."
Misrepresenting your achievements and goals.
If you graduated in the middle of your class and have no extracurriculars/recommendations to back up the following...
Don't do this:
"I was one of the top students at my college and hope to free all wrongly convicted death row inmates / start the next Innocence Project."
Using "cute" techniques to stand out.
Don't be gimmicky! Sometimes you'll hear stories of creative approaches that worked. When they do, people take it as proof that the creative approach is a great idea.
Here's the risk:
Some law school admission officers are old-school, and some are open to new approaches.
You don't know which type will be reading your application. The chances of this approach appealing to the multiple admission officers reading your law school personal statement are low.
Saying you want to go to School X in School Y's application.
Enough said.
Including careless grammatical errors, overly wordy phrases, and clichés.
You know the stakes are high. Show them you care enough about this to write an amazing law school personal statement by proofreading.
YOUR ACTION STEP
Look over your law school personal statement drafts to see whether you've made any of these mistakes. Ask your reviewers to do the same.
In my next article, I'll help you make sure you're answering the questions admission officers are asking themselves about you.
Keep at it! You're almost there.
-Steve
By reading my articles, you're putting a ton of time and effort into your law school personal statement.
However, each year, a certain % of law school applicants make the same common mistakes. I see it again and again.
Here are some of the most common mistakes I see students make, and how you can avoid them:
Repeating info covered in another part of the application.
Seriously, avoid repeating facts that you know they'll learn elsewhere in your application.
Students keep telling me they want to repeat certain key facts in law school personal statement "just to be safe." However, admissions officers have already read, or will read, the rest of your application. Reading the same thing twice is boring.
So, don't be the applicant who does this:
"In freshman year I was in Key Club. It was a lot of fun, and I learned a lot about helping others. I also joined the lacrosse team, which took up a lot of time. However, I still found time to volunteer at a soup kitchen every weekend. All of this demonstrates that I am responsible and capable."
Trust them to do their job and be as careful as they need to be.
Exception: If you mentioned something briefly on the application, you can go into it in more detail in the law school personal statement.
Whining about hardships instead of explaining why/how you overcame them.
Nobody likes a sob story, no matter how true or heartbreaking it is. Don't look for pity. Instead, show admission officers how you overcame those difficulties to get a high GPA, leadership position, or some other accomplishment. Impress them with your determination.
Don't do this:
"Because my parents had to get rid of the babysitter after we had money issues, I had to quit the soccer team to watch my little sister. It was a real shame to have to leave my teammates and give up the chance of being state champions, but family comes first, so I didn't mind making the sacrifice."
Instead, talk about what you've accomplished in spite of the obstacles you may have faced.
.
Talking about how you want to go to a school because it has a great reputation.
Many students want to go to a top school, be successful in their careers, and make lots of money.
I'm sorry to tell you this, but no one cares.
Well, that's not 100% true. It's great that you're ambitious, but ask yourself, "Why does this make you special and different?" Self-promotion is a given. Set yourself apart by expressing your desire to take classes in subjects that interest you. If you're not sure what you want to study, make it clear that you want to expose yourself to a wide range of ideas.
Don't do this:
"University X is well-renowned, and many famous people like _____, ____, and ____ graduated from there. With a degree from University X, I'll be sure to be a success in life and make my friends and family proud."
Misrepresenting your achievements and goals.
If you graduated in the middle of your class and have no extracurriculars/recommendations to back up the following...
Don't do this:
"I was one of the top students at my college and hope to free all wrongly convicted death row inmates / start the next Innocence Project."
Using "cute" techniques to stand out.
Don't be gimmicky! Sometimes you'll hear stories of creative approaches that worked. When they do, people take it as proof that the creative approach is a great idea.
Here's the risk:
Some law school admission officers are old-school, and some are open to new approaches.
You don't know which type will be reading your application. The chances of this approach appealing to the multiple admission officers reading your law school personal statement are low.
Saying you want to go to School X in School Y's application.
Enough said.
Including careless grammatical errors, overly wordy phrases, and clichés.
You know the stakes are high. Show them you care enough about this to write an amazing law school personal statement by proofreading.
YOUR ACTION STEP
Look over your law school personal statement drafts to see whether you've made any of these mistakes. Ask your reviewers to do the same.
In my next article, I'll help you make sure you're answering the questions admission officers are asking themselves about you.
Keep at it! You're almost there.
-Steve
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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