Great law school personal statements - what it takes

Students often come to me because they can write a good law school personal statement, but they need help writing a great law school personal statement to get them into their dream school. A law school personal statement that impresses admission officers could be the one make-or-break factor that gets you into your top-choice school… or doesn’t. So, it’s not surprise even students with strong writing skills seek out a little extra help to find out: What makes a law school personal statement incredible?

It’s not so easy to pinpoint. If you’ve been reading my articles, you may know by now there are always new tips and strategies for me to share with you, because the law school personal statement is complex. That’s mostly because each student has a different story to tell. With that being said, there are a few standout qualities all amazing law school personal statements have. The way you present these qualities is what makes your law school personal statement special. Here, I’ll share with you the three things you can include to take your law school personal statement from good to outstanding: 1. The “Unique” Factor Some portion of your law school personal statement should be unique and unexpected. This could include the way you tell it, the story itself, or even the structure of your law school personal statement. In other words, even after reading hundreds of law school personal statements, admission officers need to be surprised by something in yours.  That may seem challenging, but it’s not impossible.  Your law school personal statement doesn’t have to include the most unbelievable or extraordinary event to ever happen. Instead, you just need to include something unique to set yourself apart. 2. A Turning Point Something all great law school personal statement include is an “aha” moment. Usually, this happens when the writer overcomes a challenge. The whole purpose of your law school personal statement is to demonstrate a challenge you’ve overcome, how you’ve been influenced by a meaningful experience, or a similar way you’ve changed. Your reader must see how that change took place.  The turning point can be subtle. You don’t have to make it too obvious for your reader – they’ll already be looking for it. 3. An Ending That Makes Your Reader Think  Lastly, every excellent law school personal statement has an ending that leaves its reader with thoughts or questions. A well-thought-out law school personal statement should be wrapped up succinctly, but still leave room for additional thinking.  Creating a law school personal statement with these three elements can take some time and careful planning. But the good news is that anyone can transform a good law school personal statement into an incredible one with a little bit of extra effort. If you think yours could use a little extra polish to become outstanding (or you’re just beginning), reach out and let me know– I’d be happy to help. Until next time, Steve P.S. Even though these are three must-have qualities for a superior law school personal statement, there are a few other factors every law school application essay should have. You must also make sure your essay is answering all of the right questions. Find out which questions yours needs to answer by taking a look at my list here.

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 mistakes to avoid

You might remember that, in my last article, I shared the most common law school personal statement mistake I see students make. (In case you missed it, it’s forgetting to show how you’ve overcome a challenge and become a better, more determined student.) Although this is an important mistake to avoid, there are others you should also be aware of. The problem is, these mistakes are very easy to make. And, although they’re simple for students to overlook, law school admission officers will definitely notice if you’ve made them. To prevent your law school personal statement from being tossed aside by your reader, make sure you’re not making any of these simple mistakes: 1. Restating what’s on your application Your law school personal statement is your one opportunity to show something other than test scores, grades, and extracurriculars. It should describe a unique experience that your reader wouldn’t know about you from reading the other parts of your application. 2. Skipping over detail The law school personal statement should bring your reader into your world and make them feel as if they’re really there. The way to do that is to write using details. If you’re not sure how to include the right amount of detail in your law school personal statement, take a look at my previous “show, don’t tell” article for some helpful advice. 3. Using clichés Clichés are overused, which means law school admission officers have read them more times than they can keep track of. Your goal should be to state your message in your own unique way. Don’t use someone else’s words to tell your story. 4. Having a weak intro or conclusion Too many students overlook the importance of a strong introduction. It should grab your reader’s attention and make them feel like they’d be missing out on something amazing if they didn’t keep reading. A powerful conclusion is just as important. It should leave your reader with a meaningful thought or image so you stay in their minds!  5. Misspellings, improper grammar, or other mechanical errors Remember, this is one of the most important essays of your entire life. There’s no room for simple mistakes you could easily fix through proofreading. Don’t just glance over your work quickly. Read it, leave it, then come back to it. And, make sure you have a trusted source – whether it’s a parent, teacher, or me! – look at your work to make sure it’s absolutely perfect. While these mistakes are simple to make, it’s worth taking the extra time to go back and ensure you’ve avoided them. A few extra minutes could make or break your ability to attend the law school of your dreams. Until next time, Steve P.S. Sometimes, even when students check over their own work, they could still be missing some mistakes. Certain errors are just that easy to miss. If you ever want to be 100% certain your law school personal statement is entirely mistake-free, you can always reach out to me. My law school admissions counseling services have helped countless students get into top-14 law schools, and they can help you, 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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Law school personal statement mistakes

There are many different mistakes you can make when writing the law school personal statement. Yet, in working with students for more than 10 years, there’s one in particular that stands out to me. Why? Because it’s the one I see most often.

It’s an easy mistake to make, which is why it happens so commonly. In fact, you might be making it in your law school personal statement – without even knowing it. It may sound simple, but it’s a very important mistake to avoid. In fact, making this mistake could cost you your admission to your top-choice law school. So, here it is…  The most common mistake students make is forgetting to show how they’ve changed, evolved, or grown. It’s easy for students to get wrapped up in writing about their past experiences, what they want to do in the future, and why they think the school would be such a great fit for them. But by focusing so much attention on these key points, they forget one of the most important points the law school personal statement should show: how they’ve overcome an obstacle. In other words, your law school personal statement needs to show that you have grit. Determination. Willpower.  Whatever you’d like to call it, it has to be there. The reason it’s so important is because it shows admission officers that you’re able to get past challenges. It shows them that you deserve to go to their law school, because you won’t give up if the coursework becomes difficult. In order to wow law school admission officers, your law school personal statement should do the same. You need to share an experience you overcame to become the student you are today.   If you’re struggling with getting started, I have plenty more tips I could share with you. My articles about getting started on your law school personal statement are a great place to begin. Until next time, Steve P.S. As I mentioned in the beginning of this article, the mistake I described here is only one of the possible errors you can make while writing your law school personal statement. While it’s the most common, there are other important errors to avoid. In fact, many of them are very easy to make. In my next article, I’ll share a few more law school personal statement mistakes to be on the lookout for. 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 personal statement myths

When you’re a junior or senior in college, there’s a lot of talk that goes around about law school admissions. Whether it’s your friends, teachers, or parents, it can start to seem like everyone has a different opinion on what law school admission officers are looking for. It can get confusing, and maybe even a bit overwhelming – which is why I’m here to help.

In my time helping students write law school personal statements, I’ve also met and spoken with dozens of admission officers from many different law schools (you can see our discussions on the LSAT Unplugged YouTube channel and podcast). Through my experiences, I’ve made some surprising discoveries. Most importantly, I’ve come to learn that there are a lot of myths about the law school personal statement. And, many of the students who come to me for help actually believe these myths to be true.  With so many different sources of information, it’s difficult to separate what’s true from what’s not.  Let me help by sharing some of the most common law school personal statement myths I hear: Myth #1: It’s a good idea to use big words Many students think the law school personal statement is a place to show off their vocabulary. In reality, the opposite is actually true. The more concise and straightforward you can make your law school personal statement, the better.  Why? Law school admission officers aren’t concerned with how many “big words” you know. They want to read an interesting story showing how you overcome obstacles and have a passion for learning. If you’re using too many big words, it will distract your reading from the true meaning of your law school personal statement. More importantly, many students tend to use big words where they don’t really fit. Just because you understand the meaning of a word doesn’t mean you need to use it to express yourself. If a simpler word choice fits, use that instead. Myth #2: The law school personal statement doesn’t matter much if you have great test scores This is a myth I hear fairly often. Students think that high LSAT scores and GPAs alone will be their ticket into the law school of their choice. This is absolutely false.  No matter how great your scores and grades are, law school admission officers still want to see how you’re different from other applicants. What is it about your personal journey that gives you unique value? What key characteristics do you provide that the law school would want? Your law school personal statement explains these factors, so no matter how well you’ve done on tests or in school, you still need to impress your reader through the written portion of your application. Myth #3: You can't use the same law school personal statement for each school you apply to There’s another false idea students tend to believe: you can't submit the same exact essay to every law school you’re applying to.  Not only can you start with the same general framework, you rarely need to adjust your law school personal statement for each school you’re applying to, if at all.  Always remember: not everything you hear about the admissions process is true. If something you’ve heard about the law school personal statement sounds “off,” it probably is. When in doubt, follow the instructions provided in the law school personal statement prompt, and if you’re unclear on anything, you can always reach out to me for help. Until next time, Steve P.S. Now that you’ve discovered some of the most common law school personal statement myths, don’t miss my next article. In it, I’ll share the most common law school personal statement mistake, and how I helped one student, Michelle, overcome it in her application essay.

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 phrases

Over the past few weeks, we’ve been discovering ways to write a more concise law school personal statement. My last article shared some things you should do. In this one, we’re going to focus on things not to do. Specifically, phrases you should avoid. These phrases aren’t necessarily “bad” to use, but they make your law school personal statement less concise. Since short, clear phrases are what we’re aiming for, it’s best to replace these phrases with better ones if you spot them in your law school personal statement. Make every word count.

So, when you’re editing your law school personal statement, look to see if you’ve included any of these phrases, and instead replace them with more concise choices: 1. First and foremost Did you know “first” and “foremost” actually mean the same thing? Choose one to make your transition shorter! 2. At the end of the day This is actually a figure of speech, so you might want to avoid it in your law school personal statement anyway. Use a single word like “ultimately” instead. 3. In order to Does the sentence still work if you take out “in order?” Usually, students say this when they could simply use the word “to” instead. 4. With that being said Instead of saying “with that being said,” a more concise option would be “nonetheless” or “however.” 5. Needless to say You might want to scrap this phrase from your vocabulary entirely – at least while writing your law school personal statement. If something doesn’t need to be said, you probably shouldn’t be saying it! These aren’t the only phrases you could swap out for shorter ones, but this list is a good starting point. You might even find some more on your own when you look closely! And, if you need additional help, you can always read through my additional advice for reviewing your law school personal statement. Or, reach out to me. I’d love to take a look at what you’ve written so far! Until next time, Steve P.S. Here’s another hint to help you make your writing more concise: wordy phrases are often used as transitions. So, you can usually find them at the beginning of paragraphs. The simplest way to make your law school personal statement more direct is by scanning your opening sentences in each paragraph, and replacing multi-word phrases with single-word transitions.

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 - keeping it concise

In my last article, I shared with you some reasons to make your law school personal statement as concise as possible. Now, I’d like to show you how to do that. It may take a bit of effort, but soon you’ll find that it’s easier than you think to shorten sentences and make your language clearer.

Also, keep in mind – it’s not easy to write concisely from the very beginning. Instead, I encourage many of the students I work with to write as they normally would for the first draft. Then, during the editing stages, they can make their language more precise and shorten up some phrases. Here are five tips to keep in mind to make your law school personal statement more concise: 1. Begin with the subject. Starting the sentence with the person doing the action will help you avoid adding unnecessary words. This will also help you make sure you’re using the active voice instead of the passive one, which brings us to our next point… 2. Use the active voice. Writing in the active voice instead of the passive voice always leads to shorter writing. Most writers also find the active voice easier to read and understand. Here’s an example of how they’re different: a. Passive voice: The test was failed by half of the students. b. Active voice: Half of the students failed the test. Do you see how the first sentence seems a little unnatural? A little awkward? Usually, students who write in the passive voice don’t even realize they’re doing it. This is one of the many reasons why editing your law school personal statement is so important. 3. Skip adverbs. These words end in “-ly” and are used to describe how something was done. Many readers and writers feel adverbs weaken a law school personal statement. 4. Replace with complex words with simple ones. The law school personal statement is not the place for showing off your vocab skills. Even if you fully understand how to use complex language, keep it simple. Your readers will appreciate it. 5. Avoid repetitive phrases. Don’t keep saying the same thing in different ways. State your point, then move onto the next one.  Sometimes, students repeat the same thought over and over to make their message more powerful. Unfortunately, it usually has the opposite effect. Your message will sound desperate ,and you’ll distract the focus from what you’re actually trying to say. Avoid sentences that are way too long. Remember, concise law school personal statements include short sentences. If you’re using lots of semi-colons and commas, you’re probably making your sentences too long! After reviewing this advice, have you found any areas in your law school personal statement where you could be more concise? It may take a few glances, but after some time, you’ll start seeing how you could shorten sentences to become clearer and more direct. And, the more direct your language is, the greater your odds of making a strong impact on your reader will be! Until next time, Steve P.S. Looking for even more tips on becoming more concise in your law school personal statement? My next article will have the best advice yet. I’m going to share some phrases you can avoid in your law school personal statement to make your language more precise.

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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