Okay, I understand that applying to law school can be a scary proposition and you’re looking for all the help you can get, and that’s why you’re searching the internet and bookstores for samples of law school personal statements.
Well, stop.
You don’t need samples to show you how to write your law school personal statement. Each and every application you are filling out tells you exactly what you need to know. The school has defined rules, including the length of the law school personal statement, what topics should be addressed, and frequently what topics should be avoided.
But, many ask, shouldn’t I look at what others have done to get an idea of how to do it? While this is usually good advice, and is something I do frequently in my legal practice, I strongly believe that it is something to be avoided when it comes to the law school personal statement.
The main reason you should avoid reading law school personal statement samples is that they all look the same, and you run the real risk of looking the same if you follow those samples. In every area of life, the great reward goes to the outstanding people, not the good ones, or even the excellent ones. To stand out, you need to do things differently from others.
The problem is that everyone is afraid of screwing up their law school application by not giving the admissions committee what they expect. This kind of thinking probably won’t hurt you, because 99% of the personal statements the law schools review are exactly the same. However, such thinking will definitely not help you because you cannot stand out if you look like others.
Let’s face it, if you’re shooting for the moon and trying to get into a law school that won’t accept you based on your grades and LSAT scores alone, then handing in a bland personal statement isn’t going to do anything for you. You have to do something to set yourself apart, and the personal statement is one of the few areas where you have the opportunity to do so.
I am not recommending that you go crazy and break the rules set by the school, but I recommend that you use those rules as your limits and create something truly personal and different. By avoiding the same samples everyone else is reading, you have a better chance of going down with the sheep you’re competing with.
Your goal is to get into a good law school and it is my job to help you achieve that goal. One of the most important pieces of advice I can give you is to encourage yourself to stand out, so make that personal statement your own and not someone else’s.
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