5 THINGS TO INCLUDE ON AN EFFECTIVE PERSONAL STATEMENT WHEN APPLYING TO LAW SCHOOL

Law School Personal Statement Tips

• Use a Conversational Tone
• Write More Than You Need
• Don't Duplicate Your Resume
• Skip Your Childhood
• Don't Stand Out Too Much

You may have just sat down in anticipation of writing your law school personal statement for your law school application. You got completely stuck and now you're here, reading about different things to include in your statement. Some people hate writing about themselves, while other people just can't seem to put their thoughts together in a way that really presents themselves in a good light. It can be tough to find the right balance between being informative too boastful. Let's take a look at five things you should include on an effective personal statement when you are applying to law school.

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1. Use a Conversational Tone

You don't want to sound too formal or stuffy in your personal statement so try to write how you would speak. In your head, tell your story and as you are writing it down, pretending you are having a conversation with someone. Your spelling and grammar might not be on point when you do this, but you should be editing your work later on anyway.

2. Write More Than You Need

Typically, a law school will require you to submit two to three pages for your personal statement. When you begin writing, aim to complete about four pages or more. This will give you extra material, and later on you can edit some of it out. You would rather have too much and have to decide how to cut rather than trying to fill in empty space when you don't have anything more to say.

3. Don't Duplicate Your Resume

Your resume will stand on its own and it serves its own purpose. When it comes to this statement, use different information rather than just reiterating what is on your resume. You don't want to sound too redundant. Use this space as a way to elaborate on your life with more information. You want to focus more on the lessons you have learned in your life rather than on your accolades.

4. Skip Your Childhood

While you do want to include some information about your younger years and how you have become the person you are today, it is wise to skip some of those really younger years. You don't have to provide a warm-up for your story. Just get into the years that you want to talk about and this will make you more likable and make your story easier to read.

5. Don't Stand Out Too Much

This is your chance to shine as a student and a professional, but you don't want to seem too unique in your situation. You want to fit into the mold of a promising prospective law student. If you lived a privileged life, don't be afraid to say that. If you had challenges, don't be afraid to say that either. But don't embellish the truth; just stick to the facts.

Maybe you've gone through some tough times in your life and you came out on top. You may have lived a very privileged life and don't want to sound too snobby. Just be honest about yourself in your law school personal statement and why you want to move into law school. You aren't going to be judged on your life, but rather your intentions and your experience.