Law school personal statement don'ts

Writing can be as simple – or as complicated – as you make it. This is true for writing of all forms, including the law school personal statement. Of course, the law school personal statement is one of the most important pieces of writing you’ll ever draft.

Of course, it makes sense that you want to make it the best it can possibly be. So, you might find yourself obsessing over word choice a little bit. If you’re like a lot of the students I’ve worked with, you’re probably quite familiar with finding a synonym by simply right-clicking in Microsoft Word. Here’s the thing: I want you to break that habit, at least for now. Why? I’d say there’s only about a 50/50 chance of that new word being the right fit. MS Word wasn’t there during the life-changing experience you’re writing about. MS Word doesn’t know whether a situation was just stressful, or whether it was truly traumatic. Although it may list “traumatic” as a synonym for “stressful,” these two words have two very different meanings.  And if you’re accidentally saying something entirely different than what you mean, it could skew the entire message of your law school personal statement. If THAT doesn’t convince you to stop using the synonym feature, here’s another thing to consider:  Law school admission officers can tell when you’re using a word you’re not familiar with.   Sure, maybe it’s the right part of speech – you’ve used a verb, noun, or adverb correctly – but if it wasn’t your original word choice, it might wind up sounding a little forced. There are certain nuances writers develop naturally on their own. Then, there are attempts to sound more intelligent. But it’s not the word choice that will convince your readers you’re smart – it’s the overall message your law school personal statement sends that’s important! So, you should never use “big words” to state your point if they weren’t the first choices that came to mind while you were writing. (If they come to you later, when you’re re-reading your work, that’s fine. In fact, you can find out more about how to review your law school personal statement the right way here.) Focus more on the story you’re telling, and let the words to come to you on their own. While we’re on the subject of what not to do, I’d like to share a few other “don’ts” you may wish to keep in mind while writing your law school personal statement: 1. DON’T Be Too Wordy Another mistake I see students make is trying to use too many words when fewer work just fine. Write concisely and get straight to the point. Remember, admission officers have countless law school personal statements to read. Your ability to deliver your message right away could help you stand out against the rest. 2. DON’T Simply Repeat What’s in Your Application Your law school personal statement is your opportunity to supplement what your application tells admission officers about you. Don’t choose to highlight something you’ve already listed on your application. Share a different experience instead. 3. DON’T Just List Facts About Yourself Even if you have a lot to say about yourself, your law school personal statement should never read like a list. Instead, tell a story and weave facts into it as you go along. 4. DON’T Force Humor I almost always recommend avoiding humor entirely, as you don’t know your audience and therefore can’t predict how it will be received. Remember, your readers will only have words on a sheet of paper. Without body language, tone of voice, and other elements needed to achieve a comedic voice, it can be very difficult to convey humor properly. Don’t risk having lighthearted humor confused for a different, less-desirable tone, such as haughtiness or sarcasm. Bottom line: Don’t do anything in your law school personal statement that doesn’t feel natural. If you feel like you’re trying too hard to make something work, there’s probably a simpler way to say it – and one that will be truer to your unique voice and experiences. Until next time, Steve P.S. It may seem like there are a lot of “rules” I share with you for writing the best law school personal statement possible. Remember, these are all just guidelines and recommendations I’ve developed through years of working with students like you. If it doesn’t work for your law school personal statement and the story you’re telling, that’s completely fine!  In fact, in my next article I’m going to share some rules you should break to start the law school personal statement. Stay tuned!

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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Law school personal statement - 3 questions to answer

Have you ever wished you could just fill out a questionnaire to complete your law school personal statement? If you’re like the many students I’ve worked with, you’re not alone. For a lot of students, writing any essay isn’t their ideal version of fun. No surprise there.

But the law school personal statement is particularly dreadful for many students. It’s almost too open-ended. If you tend to approach assignments in a systematic, organized fashion, you might wish you could just answer a series of questions and be done with it. Here’s a little secret: in a way, you can. Don’t get me wrong – you’ll still have to do some writing. But answering a few specific questions can give you the starting point you need to craft your law school personal statement. Let’s find out how. One of my free resources from my website is this list of questions every law school personal statement should answer. I’m not going to include the full list here, since there are ten questions in total.  Instead, I’m going to share three that I feel are particularly important and show you how to answer them in more detail: 1. Do you have long-term goals of some kind that require higher education? (It’s okay if these goals might change.) In other words, why are you going to law school in the first place? It shouldn’t be because your parents are encouraging you to go. What do you want to become, and how will law school help you achieve that? And, more importantly, why do you want to become that type of professional?       2. Are you able to overcome difficult circumstances and distractions in order to succeed? This is what we sometimes refer to as “grit,” or strength of character. Don’t just say you have it, show them how you developed it. What set of circumstances have you had to overcome? How have those circumstances shaped you? Did they impact your values, or inspire you to pursue a certain career path? Admission officers want to see an applicant with resolve. This shows them that you’ve worked hard and truly deserve to be a student there. At the same time, it also shows that you’re still willing to work hard, even after you get accepted. There will be times when law school is going to be difficult. Admission officers want to see proof that you won’t run at the first sight of a challenge. In fact, they want students who embrace challenges. 3. Do you have something unique to offer X Law School that another applicant won’t? Lastly, you must show how you’re different. What distinct set of values, characteristics, or circumstances are you bringing to the campus that sets you apart from other students? (Hint: it’s not your LSAT scores or GPA they’re talking about. It’s something that goes deeper than that.) Want more like this? Check out this article I wrote listing 7 more questions your law school personal statement also needs to answer.   Yes, your law school personal statement needs to do a lot. And will simply answering these questions give you a perfect, polished law school personal statement? Unfortunately, no. But it will give you the framework for one, and that’s the most important part! If you need help with your law school application essays, no matter where you are in the process, just reach out and let me know what’s giving you the most trouble right now. Until next time, Steve P.S. Sometimes, even after students have all of the basic information they need to write their law school application essays, they still struggle with putting it all together. A tip I recommend is writing your intro and conclusion last. And remember: you can always walk away from it and come back with a fresh perspective the next day.

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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Law school personal statement - overcoming writer's block

Here’s a scenario I hear often from students who are having some trouble with their law school personal statement: They clear their schedules. Schoolwork is finished, family obligations have been handled, and all other work's done for the day. They’ve brainstormed some ideas for a topic. Maybe they’ve even written an outline for their law school personal statement.  But then, something happens. Sometimes, the feeling is described as “the brain shutting off.” Other students say they have too many ideas and can’t focus them into one cohesive start. Others still say no matter how great the ideas are in their heads, they just can’t get them out.  So they sit and stare at a blank computer screen. The more time goes by, the more frustrating – and impossible – the challenge feels. This is called writer’s block. You may have heard of it. Let me share a little secret with you: writer’s block happens to everyone. In fact, for a few reasons, it’s almost bound to happen at least once – to all students – as they prepare to write their law school personal statements. There are a few reasons why: • You have to write creatively. Unlike research papers, which are mostly based on your interpretation of facts, you have to come up with your own topic and make your own argument based solely on your experiences. If it seems like a challenging feat, that’s because it is! But trust me when I say this: no student writes a perfect law school personal statement on the first try. If you’re unfamiliar with creative writing, it may be especially challenging for you. But it’s not impossible.  • There’s a lot riding on it. You know that the quality of this personal statement will directly impact your ability to get into your top-choice law school. When we have a task that important, we tend to overthink it. You’re not alone. Yes, the law school personal statement matters – a lot. However, by starting it as early as you can, you’ll give yourself ample time to truly write a winning law school personal statement that can convince admission officers you’d be a great fit for their school. Which brings me to my next point… • You have a deadline. Whenever there’s a due date looming over us, we tend to go into panic mode. Our brains think only of the deadline, causing our creativity and focus to shut down. This is one of the reasons I’m always encouraging students to start the law school personal statement early. But even if you’re pressed for time, there are still a few ways you can beat writer’s block and get started on your law school personal statement. (Getting started, by the way, is the hardest part. Most students find that once the words start appearing on the screen, it’s easy to keep going.) So, the challenges are there. We’ve recognized them. In fact, we’ve confronted them. Now that we’ve tackled them head-on, let’s get to that law school personal statement. If you’re staring at a blank screen, here are some tips to clear your mind: 1. Get some endorphins flowing. This might sound silly, but going for a short run, biking, or even just doing a few jumping jacks can get the blood flowing and take your focus off the pressure for just a little bit. You’ll also get a rush of endorphins, which may give you the mood and confidence boost you need to get started. 2. Get out in nature. Whether you’re in your school library or your bedroom, four walls can feel confining. Sometimes, a place that’s too familiar can prevent you from thinking creatively. If it’s possible for you, get out in nature for a bit – even if it’s just a local park. Just be sure to bring your laptop or notebook so you can start writing when inspiration strikes! 3. Avoid silence… Complete silence allows our minds to go all over the place. If you can’t listen to music with words, I suggest an instrumental or nature sounds playlist. There are lots of free streaming apps with these types of playlists. 4. …But minimize distractions. The one thing you don’t want to hear is the sound of constant notifications on your phone. You might think that taking a quick “break” for texts, Snapchat, or Facebook would be fine, but it could seriously disrupt your creative flow. Turn your phone off – or at the very least, on airplane mode – to minimize interruptions for now.  5. Visit the law school's website. A few weeks ago, I shared my idea of linking your law school personal statement to your target school's mission statement. If you haven’t already done so, I recommend checking it out. You can also just poke around the school’s website for a bit, looking at sections like campus life, course listings, and so forth. Imagining yourself as a student there might just give you the spark of creativity you need to begin your law school personal statement.  6. Just write. Once you have an idea – even if it’s not fully formed – just get it out on the screen or paper. It doesn’t matter of it doesn’t make sense. You can go back and fix it later. This is called “stream of consciousness” writing and sometimes it produces the best ideas of all. 7. Ask your friends. If you’ve tried everything above and are still stuck, consider asking your friends what they wrote about. But do me a favor and give yourself at least 20 minutes of really trying one or more of the methods above before you do so. Also, resist the urge to “copy” their idea. Simply use it to get thinking about the unique experiences you’ve had. So, what are you waiting for? You have everything you need to get started right here. Close this article and go! Until next time, Steve P.S. If you still can’t get the creative juices flowing after trying all of these tips, I do have a few more tricks you can try, too. Just check out these articles where I share additional strategies for beating writer’s block.

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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Law school personal statements - sharing work experience

The answer – which is the same for most questions about what to include in the law school personal statement – is it depends. (Strangely enough, this is exactly what lawyers often answer about any given situation!) You may have discovered by now that deciding what to write about almost always depends exclusively on you and your experiences. One of the best pieces of advice I share with all of my students is this: remember to focus on you! (I have plenty of other related advice on that, too.)

But for now, let me share some scenarios for when you should or shouldn’t choose work experience as your law school personal statement topic. When You SHOULD Write About Work:  1. You’ve Made Progress in the Job A student named Jake who approached me for help with his law school personal statement wanted to write about his experience selling real estate in New York City. He described how he was originally nervous about being given such a big responsibility. Not only was he younger than all of the other brokers, he was also the least experienced. By the time he wrote his law school personal statement, he had progressed so much that employers had begun asking him to work full-time. Law school admission officers like to see that you’re driven and future-focused. If you’ve already shown commitment in pursuing a job, chances are you’ll also take your college career seriously. If you’ve excelled in a job – even if it doesn’t seem like a “big deal” – it could be perfect to use as your law school personal statement topic.  2. It’s Taught You Valuable Life Lessons Maybe you waited tables through college school and learned some valuable lessons in your experience. For instance, maybe you discovered that you can judge a person’s character based on the way they treat their servers – or their employees. Or, maybe you found that hard work isn’t always immediately rewarding. Perhaps you discovered that you’re fortunate to have an opportunity to be considering law school in the first place! Jake, for one, worked with people from all walks of life during his job as a real estate broker. What he learned from his experience is that, no matter who you’re working with, treating people with respect is always the best road to take at work – and in life. 3. The Job Helped You Realize Future Goals If the job you had helped you discover for a passion for law, and your desire to go to law school, I’d almost guarantee that you should include it in your law school personal statement. For instance, if you worked as an immigration paralegal and it led you to pursue immigration law, you can write about the exact experience(s) that fed your future goals. On the other hand…  Maybe you hated your job. (You wouldn’t be the only one!) Can you still write about it? Yes. Here’s why: Your work experience may have helped you discover what you don’t want to do. A good example of this is shown in a college essay featured in the New York Times. Student Caitlin McCormick writes about her experience growing up in a bed and breakfast. She disliked it, and it helped her realize what she didn’t want to do. But it did help her discover a passion for public service, and it also taught her a valuable life lesson (which fulfills the second point in this list): although not all service is created equal, all work is noble. Now that I’ve shared some tips for when you should write about work experience, allow me to show you some examples of when you SHOULDN’T: • If you only worked in the job for a few days. Sometimes, even the jobs we take on in our younger years just aren’t the right fit. If so, that’s ok – but you probably didn’t draw enough experiences from it to create a meaningful law school personal statement. • If there was nothing remarkable about the job. If you truly can’t recall a meaningful lesson you learned during your time at work, don’t try to force it. • If you hated it and still didn’t learn anything from it. Some jobs only teach us that we want to do anything but that line of work for the rest of our lives. If that’s all you learned, that’s fine; but it’s not enough for a substantial law school personal statement. Still questioning whether you should focus on work as your law school personal statement topic? If you want some advice, you know where to reach me. Just reach out, and I’d be glad to weigh in. Until next time, Steve P.S. If you think you have a great topic but are just feeling “stuck” when you sit down to write, you could be suffering from every student’s worst nightmare: writer’s block. Don’t miss my next article, where I’ll include some tips for beating it! 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.) Free Stuff | YouTube | Podcast | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | Books | Courses

Law School Admissions Diversity Statements

If you’re stumped about what to write about in your law school application essays, showcasing your heritage or culture might be the perfect topic - especially for the law school diversity statement. Here, we’ll discover why. The U.S. is lucky to have such a rich blend of nationalities.

Even many students whose families have been in the U.S. for many generations can still trace their ancestry back to places all over the world. Other students might be the first generation in their family to attend law school in the U.S. (and even the first to attend college). So, since having a diverse background isn’t necessarily uncommon for students who hope to attend law school, why do so many students choose to write about it? Ultimately, for many students, it’s an excellent topic choice. Here are a few reasons why: • It demonstrates self-exploration. Universities are very interested in students who practice self-exploration. When you aim to learn more about your culture – whether that’s by visiting your parents’ or grandparents’ birthplace or learning a second language – it demonstrates your interest in self-exploration. This also translates to a love of learning, which is a great quality to showcase on your la school application. • It shows your appreciation of cultures. By nature, most law school campuses have developed more culturally-rich student bodies over the years. This gives law schools an ability to provide students with new insights from peers who may have unique perspectives. • It explains what makes you unique. Remember, the goal of all law school applications is to show why the experiences that have shaped your life make you unique. If you have a particular tradition, environment, or cultural experience that’s meaningful to you and connects with a key aspect of your character, it might be an ideal topic. Of course, it’s only a good idea to write about your cultural background if it truly has shaped you in very meaningful ways. It’s also important to somehow connect it to your future plans. However, the fact that law schools allow you to write a diversity statement means you should take full advantage of the opportunity to share more about yourself if you have something unique to share (and everyone does). Do you think there’s some aspect of your cultural background you can highlight to write a standout law school personal statement? If not, no problem. I have plenty of other ideas for your law school application to share with you Until next time, Steve P.S. Your background doesn’t have to refer to nationalities alone. For instance, if you felt displaced because you moved from a populated city environment to a rural location, you could write about that, too. There are other types of culture, as well, such as military culture (for students who were raised by military parents), surf culture, city culture, and so forth. If a cultural aspect of your life has shaped your perspective and values, consider writing about it! (And if you’re having trouble figuring out how to make it work, that’s something I can help with, too.)

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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