what should a personal statement include for law school

Law School Personal Statement Dos and Don’ts

The personal statement, one of the most important parts of your law school application, is an opportunity to highlight your writing ability, your personality, and your experience. Think of it as a written interview during which you get to choose the question. What one thing do you wish the admissions evaluators knew about you?

To help you write a law school personal statement that best reflects your abilities as a potential law student, we have some recommendations below.

• Discuss possible personal statement topics with your pre-law advisor (or someone else) before you invest a lot of time writing.
• Choose a narrow topic. Offer details about a small topic rather than generalities about a broad topic. Focus on a concrete experience and the impact it has had upon you.
• Be yourself. Do not tell law schools what you think they want to hear — tell them the truth.
• Pay special attention to your first paragraph. It should immediately grab a reader’s attention. Reviewers are pressed for time and may not read beyond an uninteresting opener.
• Keep it interesting. Write with energy and use the active voice. You do not have to explain how your experience relates to your desire to attend law school. Tell a story. Paint a vivid picture. The most interesting personal statements create visuals for the reader, which make your personal statement more memorable.
• Keep it simple and brief. Big words do not denote big minds, just big egos. Choose your words with economy and clarity in mind, and remember that your reader has a huge stack of applications to read. A personal statement generally should be two to three double-spaced pages.
• Proofread. Ask several people to proofread your essay. Grammatical or mechanical errors are inexcusable.
• Include information from your background that sets you apart. If your ethnicity, family, religion, socioeconomic background, or similar factors are motivating you to succeed in law school, be sure to highlight them. You can do this in the personal statement itself or in a separate diversity statement. If you are writing a personal statement and a diversity statement, make sure the two essays address different topics.
• Consider your audience. Most admissions evaluators are professors, third-year law students, or admissions professionals not long out of law school. Therefore, you want to come across as an attentive student, interesting classmate, and accomplished person. Again, consider what you most want them to know, beyond the information provided in the rest of your application.
• Read the application carefully. Most law schools allow you to choose a topic, but some will require you to address a specific question. Follow whatever instructions are provided.
• Do not play a role, especially that of a lawyer or judge. And stay away from legal concepts and jargon. You run the risk of misusing them, and even if you use them properly, legal language may make you appear pompous.
• Do not tell your life story in chronological order or merely re-state your resume. Furthermore, resist the urge to tie together all of your life experiences. The essays that try to say too much end up saying nothing at all.
• Do not become a cliché. You may genuinely want to save the world. Maybe your study abroad experience transformed the way you look at the world. But these topics are overused. Before writing your essay, consider how your story is unique and highlight your individuality.
• Do not use a personal statement to explain discrepancies in your application. If your academic record is weak in comparison to your LSAT scores, or vice versa, address that issue in an addendum. Emphasize the positive in the personal statement.
• Do not offend your reader. Lawyers rarely shy away from controversial topics, but you should think twice before advocating a controversial view. You do not want to appear to be close-minded.
• If you are in the bottom of an applicant pool, do not play it safe. You have nothing to lose by making a novel statement.

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The Law School Personal Statement: Tips and Templates

Photo by Alejandro Escamilla on Unsplash

Published February 28, 2024

Editor's Note: This post was originally published in July 2019 and has been updated for accuracy and comprehensiveness.

The stress of cramming for the LSAT (or GRE) is behind you, and you survived the intolerably long wait for your score. You have researched schools, requested transcripts, secured recommendation letters, and updated your resume. Now only the dreadful personal statement is preventing you from hitting the submit button.

So, you might ask:  Does anyone even read the personal statement?  Yes .  Could it be a make or break deciding factor?   Definitely . 

While your standardized test score(s) and GPA are good law school success predictors, non-numerical factors such as your resume, recommendation letters and the personal statement give the Admissions Committee an idea of your individuality and how you might uniquely contribute to the law school. Most importantly, your personal statement is a sample of your writing, and strong writing skills are critically important to success throughout law school and in legal practice. 

If the thought of writing about yourself makes you cringe, adhere to these 5 tips to avoid disaster. 

BONUS :  Scroll down to review 5 law school personal statement samples. 

1. Make it personal

The Admissions Committee will have access to your transcripts and recommendation letters, and your resume will provide insight into your outside-the-classroom experiences, past and current job responsibilities, and other various accomplishments. So, the personal statement is your best opportunity to share something personal they don’t already know. Be sure to provide insight into who you are, your background and how it’s shaped the person you are today, and finally, who you hope to be in the future.

2. Be genuine

If you haven’t faced adversity or overcome major life obstacles, it’s okay. Write honestly about your experiences and interests. And whatever you do, don’t fabricate, or exaggerate—the reader can often see through this. Find your unique angle and remember that a truthful and authentic essay is always your best approach.

Tip: Don’t use big words you don’t understand. This will certainly do more harm than good.

3. Tackle the “Why?”

Get creative but remember to home in on the why . Unless the personal statement prompt has specific requirements, it is recommended you include what influenced you to pursue a legal education. Consider including what impact you hope to make in the world post-graduation.

4. Keep it interesting & professional

The last thing you want to do is bore the reader, so keep it interesting, personable, and engaging. A touch of humor is okay, but keep in mind that wit and sarcasm can be easily misinterpreted. Demonstrate maturity, good judgment and tact and you won’t end up offending the reader.

5. Edit & proofread

The importance of enrolling and graduating strong writers cannot be stressed enough, so don’t forget the basics! Include an introduction, supporting paragraphs and a closing. Write clearly, concisely, and persuasively. Take time to edit, proofread--walk away from it--then edit and proofread again before submitting. 

Tip :   Consider consulting a Pre-Law Advisor or mentor to help you proofread and edit. Sound easy enough? It is if you take it seriously. Don’t think you have to craft the “best” or most competitive personal statement, just the most “genuine” personal statement. Remember, there is nobody with your exact set of life experiences, background, or point of view. Just do you.

Guest blogger  Lindsay Gladney  is the Vice Dean for Admissions at UB School of Law. 

Office of Admissions University at Buffalo School of Law 408 O'Brian Hall, Buffalo, NY 14260 716-645-2907 [email protected]

Learn more about the law school admissions process and School of Law community through an individual meeting with one of our staff members.

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Submit this form to receive an application fee waiver.

Additional Resources:   

• Law School Application Checklist: Everything You Need To Know
• Law School Application Advice to Ignore
• When Should I Submit My Law School Application: Timeline & Tips
• 5 Benefits of Attending a State Law School

Bonus: 5 Law School Personal Statement Samples

1. this applicant writes about their experience hiking a mountain peak, what it taught them, and how it reaffirmed their affinity for the natural environment..

As I trudged my way up the path, only about a mile from the peak, I could not escape the creeping sense of self-doubt entering my mind. That day I had willingly accompanied my best friend on a hike up a “fourteener” (a mountain peak in Colorado with at least 14,000 feet of elevation). With a false sense of bravado, I jumped at the idea because I considered myself to be an avid hiker and in decent physical condition despite my inexperience at that altitude. Nearingthe top, with my head pounding and my knees weakening, my confidence had been shaken by the altitude sickness that started to take hold of me. I began asking myself questions like, “Will I finish?”, “Why did I even agree to this?”, and “Is this even worth it?”. However, as I took a sip of my water to rest and collect myself, it registered that the opportunity to encounter such natural wonder might not strike again. I knew that if I turned back, I would regret it and possibly never have the chance again. Accordingly, I decided to do my best to finish the trek.

Even though I was still in considerable discomfort, that sensation seemed to fade away when I finally reached the peak. I became enamored with the magnificence of the surrounding mountain range and the epic view it had to offer. The peaks extended out forever, some stretching high enough to look as though one could reach up and touch the clouds themselves. Crisp green alpine forests totally engulfed the surrounding valleys and eventually led down into the crystal blue water of the lakes and rivers below. Cliché though it may be words truly cannot do justice to such a surreal experience.

As I reflect on the experience, I am proud to have accomplished such a physically challenging adventure, but perhaps more grateful for what the hike taught me about myself. First, I gained a sense of confidence in my ability to persevere despite difficult circumstances and especially when faced with self-doubt. Indeed, I have drawn from the experience on numerous occasions to remind myself that I am capable of enduring whatever challenges life may throw at me. Secondly, I believe this hike to have been a defining moment that reaffirmed and strengthened my affinity for the natural environment. I developed this fondness from an early age where much of my childhood was spent outdoors, whether it was fishing and camping with my father or hiking and playing sports with my friends. However, the wonder I felt on that peak in the Rockies was something I seldom experienced growing up in Buffalo, New York. It is a feeling that I hope all can feel at some point in their lives and partly why I believe it to be so important that we do all we can to protect and preserve the environment. The importance of conservation is greater now than ever amid the challenges posed by issues such as pollution and global climate change.

During my undergraduate coursework, I was able to take a class in Environmental Law, where I learned about state and federal statutes that regulate water, soil, air pollution, resource conservation and recovery, and actions of the Environmental Protection Agency. For example, we studied the Clean Air Act and how it is applied during legal disputes to enforce national air quality standards. Participating in this course showed me that there is an opportunity to apply my enthusiasm for the environment into the legal profession as it is my eventual goal to represent those damaged by pollution. I believe studying at the University of Buffalo School of Law will allow me to pursue my goals and make a positive contribution towards environmental problems by serving those who have been affected in the local and global community. Although the experience will be challenging, I am excited for the opportunity, motivated by a passion for the environment and knowing that I possess the ability to persevere in the face of doubt.

2. How one applicant’s experience interviewing incarcerated individuals shaped their understanding of our justice system and influenced them to pursue policy work.

Above me, in a giant watchtower, stood a large man holding a semi-automatic rifle while staring down at me. I heard the echoing clink of a prison lock, allowing me to pass through a massive barbed-wire fence. Although I begged and pleaded for the opportunity to interview an inmate at a maximum-security prison, I have never felt more intimidated than I did in this moment. I was only seventeen years old, sitting in a visitation room filled with orange-suited men. An overwhelming sense of fear crowded my thoughts. In fact, I was nearly paralyzed by the environment I had found myself in. I could hardly conduct an interview, but thankfully, my interviewee, Mr. Thomas Gant, had about twenty years of stories to tell. He ambitiously shared

first-hand accounts of prison fights, housing raids, gang activity, and injustices that he has endured during his sentence of twenty-five years to life. His stories were captivating and filled with raw emotion. It was evident that he too, felt a similar sense of fear each and every day.

Fast forward to my last semester of undergrad, where I spent four months at the Ingham County Jail working with incarcerated men and women to prepare them to transition into our communities. I interviewed dozens of orange-suited men each week and loved every second of it.

I was eager to contribute to a program that helped break the vicious cycle of incarceration and confront the plethora of barriers to reentry. I often think about Mr. Gant and how his stories ignited a passion within me that still drives my ambition to this day. If I had the chance, I would thank him for inspiring me to pursue every opportunity to help incarcerated men and women, such as those at the Ingham County Jail. I would share with him the knowledge from my academic and professional experiences, in hopes of keeping his life on track upon release, and most of all, in hopes of protecting him from the fear we shared on the day I met him.

My variety of field experiences and my success with academic rigor has surely prepared me for law school. I have completed several other justice-related internships which have provided me with a comprehensive understanding of how our justice system operates in practice, which often deviates from how our justice system operates in textbooks. These field experiences led me to pursue a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice, where my classes focused on the history of corrections and how other countries are utilizing confinement to successfully rehabilitate offenders. Academia quickly taught me that the majority of people simply accept our prison system for what it is, and very few question its punitive and unjust nature. Fortunately, my bachelor’s degree in social relations and policy allowed me to challenge conventional wisdom and confront policy issues as they relate to factors of class, race, ethnicity, gender, and religion – all of which exist in our prison system. My professors constantly pushed me to find ways that the American corrections system could change the course of its future. I spent countless hours researching the topic of injustice behind bars, writing numerous analytical essays and policy proposals, and presenting interdisciplinary conclusions to rooms filled with aspiring politicians. I look forward to perfecting these skills, sharing my experiences to enhance classroom discussions, and engaging in additional field experiences and clinics while in law school.

Ultimately, I am confident that my career fulfilment will lie in policy making and advocacy for those who have faced injustice within our prison system and in the free world. My interest in studying law and my decision to apply to University at Buffalo School of Law are a result of my longstanding enthusiasm to advocate for and to improve the lives of people impacted by incarceration. The University at Buffalo will provide me with both the necessary education as well as the hands-on experience to ensure that I will confidently enter the legal world prepared to contest the many issues of justice reform.  

3. How one applicant found their voice, and why a stale piece of toast is displayed alongside their college diploma.

Growing up, I was nonplussed by the idea of awards. While other friends entered cut-throat competitions over grades and the attention of our coaches, I cared more about preserving my friendships with people than beating them on any field or test. Whenever I found myself winning, I tended to remain quiet about my victories. Most of the time.

In the waning weeks of my junior year of high school, my tireless U.S. History teacher – Mr. Welgoss– kept us showing up to class each day by breaking us into debate teams and having individuals from each side square off against each other around designated topics. The winner would take away a most delicious reward: A single slice of white bread toast. Pun intended. This was when I learned that I was to define the best Supreme Court Cases in U.S. History and then defend my stance in front of the entire class. Alone. I was completely terrified.

This is the perfect place to share just a bit about high school me. You likely knew me well. I was that kid curled into a corner at the back of the classroom in an effort to make myself smaller. During the first week of each school year, I sized up my teachers, figured out which of them was into cold calling on students, and positioned myself within the room accordingly. While I was a dedicated student and history geek who loved to read, I was not a particularly extroverted one. There was no part of this assignment that I was excited about.

To make matters worse, I was assigned Marbury v. Madison, perhaps one of the most boring cases in the eyes of a bunch of fresh faced politically active 16-year-olds who had just spent an entire year learning about the societal gravity of cases like Brown v. Board of Education and Roe v. Wade. Still, I did careful research. I composed a meticulous claim. I didn’t want to embarrass myself, so I did the work that I needed to.

Along the way, I fell in love with the assignment. This was the first time I experienced that rare moment as a researcher when everything seems to click. I’d never had that moment as a research and argument writer before, and I have been chasing that feeling since. I love leaning into knotty problems, following research, and learning processes that help me untie them, and then, showing others how to unscramble crossed lines themselves, when they need to.

So, you likely know how this story ends. I won the debate. That piece of toast, miraculously mold free after six years, sits on my bookshelf alongside my college diploma, reminding me of the moment I not only found my passion, but my voice.

Since the moment I won that single slice of super processed food that still looks as fresh as the day I brought it home, there have been other moments that solidified my decision to study law. As a freshman at Nazareth University, my newfound interest in the law inspired my decision-making as I chose my major and began coursework that I inevitably fell in love with. When I started my internship at a local non-profit during undergraduate, I saw how my research and application of the law could help me to advocate for marginalized communities. My desire to

practice law was again upheld when I began paralegal work for Berardi Immigration Law the day after I earned my degree. My dedication to this work has taught me that there are often a variety of solutions for complicated problems. Many assume that creativity is something you’re born with. Experience has taught me it's not quite this simple, though. Constraint often inspires creativity, and to me, this is what makes the law the most wonderful muse.

I’m the daughter of a writer and the sister of a designer. My great grandfather owned a hobby shop. I never enjoyed most of these things, and try as I might, any attempt to practice arts and crafts always ended badly and left me feeling like the least creative bird on my family tree. Imagine my surprise then, as the last few years of learning, work, and a piece of toast began revealing the creative nature of the law to me. Imagine my delight when I realized that I have certain strengths here, too.   

4. This applicant writes about their never-ending pursuit of knowledge and how pursuing law provides a practical outlet for their curiosity.

There are very few things in life that are more important to me than learning. I have been driven by curiosity, and the never-ending pursuit of knowledge has always been a great source of joy for me, both inside and outside of the classroom. I finished my undergraduate studies in December of 2019, with plans to work in France as a teacher that coming fall. I was beyond excited that I had been afforded an opportunity to pursue such a dear intellectual passion. The intervening pandemic meant that I had to make difficult decisions about the direction my future would take, and ultimately this meant setting aside some of my own ambitions in order to take care of my loved ones.

While my immediate post-graduation plans did not work out, I have never set aside my curiosity. If anything, the challenges of post-collegiate life have reaffirmed to me the vital importance of learning as a constant and on-going part of living. As a student of history and languages, many of my college peers nurtured plans of attending law school, and the idea of studying law has long interested me.

In June of 2022 I began working as a legal assistant at a small law firm in Queens. I hoped that job would give me a chance to learn about the legal field, while pushing me to grow as a professional. Being confronted with the vast complexity of the law has been a humbling experience, but also an endlessly intriguing one. At work, I relish any opportunity to learn more about the law, and I have found that the field is perfectly suited to the academic skills that I have spent my entire life building.

What is perhaps most exciting to me about the prospect of studying law is the idea of having a practical, real-world outlet for all the curiosity and scholarly instincts that I have nurtured throughout my life. Studying case law, building arguments based on evidence and legal research, using language itself as a tool; all these skills that I have seen to be so vital to the successful practice of law feel like natural extensions of the skills that I’ve developed across my life. Performing research was of course integral to my studying history, and combing through Westlaw as a legal assistant has often reminded me of the time I would spend searching through university archives as a student, looking for information to help me build my arguments. Having studied both History and French, I am very comfortable with interpreting language that feels unfamiliar or archaic, which is certainly a necessary skill to have when studying and practicing law.

The challenges of post-graduation life have led me to do a great deal of reflecting. I’ve been forced to ask myself what makes me feel fulfilled, and at the same time have had to evaluate my own strengths and weaknesses. I’ve found that there are no simple answers, but I can affirmatively say that I have the self-confidence, motivation, and ability to be an excellent law student.

5. How a Unified Basketball program inspired this applicant to pursue education law.

I never realized how great of an impact one policy could have on so many people until I was in high school. I knew how far-reaching the law was, but it became so much more apparent and personal when it began to impact the lives of my friends and classmates in the Unified program.

When I began high school, I was still a little shy, but I was sure that I wanted to get involved in things that made a difference in other people’s lives. It was through my involvement in Student Council that I was asked by the athletic director to help start up a program called Unified Basketball. I remember being called down to the Athletic Office one day out of the blue. I felt extremely confused. I had not previously played any school sports and I never would have expected to be asked to speak with the athletic director. I also wouldn’t have expected a meeting that lasted maybe fifteen minutes to serve as a great turning point in my life.

The Unified Basketball program is a cooperative team combining students with and without intellectual disabilities, run by the Special Olympics and New York state high school sports. From that first season, the Unified program quickly grew to become one of the best experiences of my life and it continues to shape me every day. In the second year of the program, we added a Unified Bowling team, and I helped create a Unified Club so that those who might also have physical limitations that would keep them from playing sports, could still benefit from the family created in the program.

Through this program I created connections with the members of the team and our coaches, and we effectively created a family and a community greater than ourselves. Because of these friendships which I had grown to value so much, it only hurt that much more when I learned from my coach that New York’s eligibility rules for high school sports would cause some of my teammates to be ineligible to play. Although they could remain in school until the age of twenty-one, they would not be able to play after they reached a certain age or had played for a certain amount of time. One of my friends was the first on our team to age out due to these guidelines and as a team we were devastated. These policies did not line up and although the original guidelines were intended to prevent unfair advantages in competition, this really wasn’t an issue with the Unified program. Thankfully, this policy was eventually changed by the state Board of Regents to allow my teammates to play once again.

There have been two indelible legacies created through the Unified program. First, I have been able to see the impact that the program has had on students in our district’s special education program. I saw this happen for one of my teammates, who was first introduced to me by his aide as being nonverbal. He was initially very shy but as he grew more comfortable with the game and his teammates, he came out of his shell. From that first season on his confidence grew and even when I see him now, over five years later, he will rush over to give me a high-five or a fist-bump and say “Hi!” Second, is the impact the program has on my district and the community at large. During my junior year of high school, our team performed the dance “The Wobble” at our pep rally, marking the first time that our special education students were included in the homecoming event. Even years later, this tradition has continued and the response from the school and community has been extraordinary.  

This experience shaped me as a person and shifted my interests in terms of career goals. I have had an interest in education and the social sciences since I was little, but being involved in the Unified program allowed me to better understand how these interests could connect and how I can make an impact. I want to pursue a law school education and become an attorney so that I can practice education law. I want to support students, faculty, and staff to create the best possible educational environments for our future generations.

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How to Write a Personal Statement for Law School

Your personal statement is your opportunity to showcase your writing ability and stand out from the other applicants. It should highlight something unique about you that would add value to a law school student body. This article will offer tips for writing a personal statement for law school to help you get that coveted acceptance letter from the top school on your list.

Reality Check: The Law School Admissions Process

More students are applying to law schools in recent years, but schools are not increasing the size of their incoming classes. With more students  competing for the same number of seats, law schools can be more selective in the admissions process. According to an analysis of data from the American Bar Association by Spivey Consulting, the  average national acceptance rate was 45.1 percent  in 2019.

Law schools want students who can master class material, pass the bar exam, and ultimately succeed in the practice of law. LSAT or other entrance exam scores and GPAs play an important role in that assessment, but they’re not the only indicators of a student’s potential. Admissions counselors are looking for individuals with the discipline and stamina to withstand the rigors of law school and bring outside interests and passions to the law school experience.

That’s why law schools ask for a personal essay. Admissions counselors will never meet most applicants; therefore, the admissions package must tell the student’s story. And with increasing numbers of applications to wade through, admissions counselors are looking for a compelling story that will help them identify students who will be successful.

What to Include in Your Personal Statement

Because there are no specific prerequisites or undergraduate degrees required for law school, applicants tend to come from a wide range of educational backgrounds. The personal statement is meant to add depth and insight into the courses, extracurricular activities, and other information in your admissions package. But don’t just brag or rehash your resume. Instead, show how your personal experience will translate well into the law school experience.

Specifically, your personal statement should explain:

Why you want to go to law school and what do you hope to do with your degree (it’s okay if you don’t know for certain what your career plans are)

What personal strengths will help ensure your success in law school

How you plan to approach the task of learning new ways of thinking and meeting the challenges of a rigorous program

Your personal statement should also convey that you possess the qualities of a good lawyer:

A strong ability to communicate

Critical thinking skills

Problem-solving

With these basic concepts in mind, carefully read the prompt provided by the law school. Some prompts are very broad, but others are more individually tailored. Make sure your personal statement is responsive to the prompt and conforms to length limits. If you write a generic, boilerplate statement, the admissions committee will be able to tell.

How to Frame Your Personal Statement

Your personal statement should answer the questions provided in the prompt, ideally by telling a story. Think about something unique in your personal experience that would add color and specificity to your responses. Some options for framing the personal statement include:

An event or circumstance that shaped you as a person

A cause that you are passionate about

Difficulties that you have overcome

Personal accomplishments that you’re particularly proud of

How you’ve always dreamed of a career in law, or how your career ambitions have changed and why

Remember that this is a personal narrative—don’t lead with a discussion of a law-related topic but rather with an anecdote or story about yourself with vivid details to hook the reader’s interest. At the same time, however, make sure that your narrative is clearly linked to the legal field and that any personal details are relevant to characteristics that would be valuable to success in law school and the legal profession. Try to convey your unique voice, but avoid extreme positions or content that may offend some readers.

Tips for Getting It Right

The most important thing to remember is that  you  must write your personal statement. If you don’t feel you’re a strong enough writer to compose your personal statement, perhaps law school isn’t the right path for you. Also, another person will not be able to convey your narrative with the same perspective, insight, and passion.

That doesn’t mean you have to sit down and write it all in one go. Just be sure to allow enough time to let the first draft sit for at least a day before reviewing. Read your personal statement critically, with an eye toward clarity and flow. And remember that revising is as important as writing—if it doesn’t work, don’t be afraid to rewrite any portion of it.

At this point, you can engage the assistance of another person. Ask a trusted individual to critique your first draft and provide constructive feedback. Continue to polish your narrative, referring back to the prompt to ensure that you’ve answered all the questions thoroughly.

Once the copy is final, proofread carefully—read it aloud front to back and then back to front. Make sure the finished piece adheres to the specifications provided by the law school, if any.

The Final Analysis

The law school admission process is serious business. However, that doesn’t mean you can’t relax and have some fun while writing your personal statement.

The personal statement allows you to go beyond dry numbers and tell your unique story. Approach it as an opportunity to shine and show how you’ll be a successful law student and, ultimately, a great lawyer.

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Law School Personal Statement Tips

In your personal statement for law school you want to present yourself as intelligent, professional, mature and persuasive. These are the qualities that make a good lawyer, so they're the qualities that law schools seek in applicants. Your grades and LSAT score are the most important part of your application to law school. But you shouldn't neglect the law school personal statement. Your application essay is a valuable opportunity to distinguish yourself from other applicants, especially those with similar LSAT scores and GPA.

How To Write a Personal Statement for Law School

1. be specific to each law school ..

You'll probably need to write only one basic personal statement, but you should tweak it for each law school to which you apply. There are usually some subtle differences in what each school asks for in a personal statement.

2. Good writing is writing that is easily understood.

Good law students—and good lawyers—use clear, direct prose. Remove extraneous words and make sure that your points are clear. Don't make admissions officers struggle to figure out what you are trying to say.

Read More: Find Your Law School

3. Get plenty of feedback on your law school personal statement.

The more time you've spent writing your personal statement, the less likely you are to spot any errors. You should ask for feedback from professors, friends, parents, and anyone else whose judgment and writing skills you trust. This will help ensure that your statement is clear, concise, candid, structurally sound and grammatically accurate.

4. Find your unique angle.

Who are you? What makes you unique? Sometimes, law school applicants answer this question in a superficial way. It's not enough to tell the admissions committee that you're a straight-A student from Missouri. You need to give them a deeper sense of yourself. And there's usually no need to mention awards or honors you've won. That's what the law school application  or your resume is for.

Use your essay to explain how your upbringing, your education, and your personal and professional experiences have influenced you and led you to apply to law school. Give the admissions officers genuine insight into who you are. Don't use cliches or platitudes. The more personal and specific your personal statement is, the better received it will be.

Applying to law school? Use our  law school search to find the right program for you or browse our  law school ranking lists .

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The Ultimate Guide to Writing an Outstanding Law School Personal Statement

Dazzle admissions with your legally awesome personal story, introduction.

Let's face it: you've spent countless hours studying and acing the LSAT, and now it's time for the pièce de résistance – the law school personal statement. This is your golden opportunity to showcase your personality, and put your best legal foot forward. But don't worry, this guide has got you covered. In no time, you'll be writing a personal statement that could put John Grisham's early drafts to shame.

If you're ready to convince law school admissions committees that you're the next Ruth Bader Ginsburg or Thurgood Marshall, then buckle up and get ready for a wild ride through the world of crafting the ultimate law school personal statement.

1. Know Your Audience: The Admissions Committee

First and foremost, remember that you're writing for the admissions committee. These are the gatekeepers of your future legal career, and they've read more personal statements than there are citations in a Supreme Court decision. To avoid becoming a legal footnote in their memory, keep the following in mind:

• Be professional, but also relatable. You don't want to sound like a robot that's been programmed to spout legalese.
• Avoid clichés like "I want to make a difference" or "I've always wanted to be a lawyer." Unless, of course, you've been dreaming of billable hours since you were in diapers.
• Consider what makes you unique. Remember, this is your chance to stand out among a sea of applicants with equally impressive academic records and LSAT scores.

2. Choosing Your Topic: Make It Personal and Memorable

When it comes to choosing a topic for your personal statement, think of it as an episode of Law & Order: Your Life Edition. It's your moment to shine, so pick a story that showcases your passion, resilience, or commitment to justice. Consider these tips:

• Use an anecdote. Admissions committees love a good story, especially one that shows your problem-solving skills or ability to navigate tricky situations. Just be sure not to end up on the wrong side of the law!
• Reflect on a transformative experience. If you've had a life-changing event that led you to pursue law, share it! Just remember to keep it PG-rated.
• Discuss a personal challenge you've overcome. Nothing says "I'm ready for law school" like demonstrating your resilience in the face of adversity.

3. Structure and Organization: Your Legal Blueprint

Now that you've chosen your topic, it's time to draft your personal statement. Like a well-organized legal brief, your statement should have a clear beginning, middle, and end. Consider the following tips for structuring your masterpiece:

• Begin with a strong opening. Start with a hook that will capture the reader's attention and make them want to keep reading. Think of it as your own personal Miranda warning: "You have the right to remain captivated."
• Develop your story in the body. This is where you'll expand on your anecdote or experience, and explain how it has shaped your desire to pursue a legal career. Remember to be concise and avoid meandering – this isn't a filibuster.
• End with a powerful conclusion. Tie everything together and reiterate why you're the ideal candidate for law school. Just like a closing argument, leave the admissions committee convinced that you're the right choice.

4. Style and Tone: Finding Your Inner Legal Wordsmith

When it comes to your personal statement, you want to strike the perfect balance between professional and engaging. After all, no one wants to read a 500-word legal treatise on why you should be admitted to law school. To achieve this delicate balance, follow these style and tone guidelines:

• Write in the first person. This is your personal statement, so own it! Using "I" allows you to convey your unique perspective and voice.
• Keep it conversational, yet polished. Write as if you were speaking to a respected mentor or professor. Avoid slang, but don't be afraid to inject a bit of your personality into your writing.
• Employ dry humor sparingly. A little wit can make your statement more enjoyable to read, but remember that humor is subjective. It's best to err on the side of caution, lest you inadvertently offend the admissions committee.
• Be precise and concise. Legal writing is known for its clarity and brevity, so practice these skills in your personal statement. Aim to keep it between 500 and 700 words, as brevity is the soul of wit (and law school applications).

5. Revision: The Art of Legal Editing

It's been said that writing is rewriting, and this is particularly true for your personal statement. Once you've drafted your masterpiece, it's time to don your editor's hat and polish it to perfection. Follow these tips for a meticulous revision:

• Take a break before revising. Give yourself some distance from your statement before diving into revisions. This will help you approach it with fresh eyes and a clear mind.
• Read your statement out loud. This technique can help you catch awkward phrasing, run-on sentences, and other errors that might not be apparent when reading silently.
• Seek feedback from others. Share your statement with trusted friends, family members, or mentors who can provide constructive criticism. Just remember, opinions are like law school casebooks – everyone's got one, but you don't have to take them all to heart.
• Edit ruthlessly. Don't be afraid to cut, rewrite, or reorganize your statement. Your goal is to make your writing as strong and effective as possible, even if it means sacrificing a clever turn of phrase or an endearing anecdote.

6. Proofread: The Final Verdict

Before submitting your personal statement, it's crucial to proofread it thoroughly. Even the most compelling story can be marred by typos, grammatical errors, or other mistakes. Follow these proofreading tips to ensure your statement is error-free:

• Use spell check, but don't rely on it entirely. Some errors, like homophones or subject-verb agreement issues, may slip past your computer's watchful eye.
• Print your statement and read it on paper. This can help you spot errors that you might have missed on-screen.
• Enlist a second pair of eyes. Sometimes, a fresh perspective can catch mistakes that you've become blind to after multiple revisions.

Crafting an outstanding law school personal statement may seem daunting, but with the right approach and a healthy dose of perseverance, you can create a compelling and memorable statement that will impress even the most discerning admissions committee. So go forth and conquer, future legal eagles! And remember, as you embark on your law school journey, may the precedent be ever in your favor.

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How to Write a Great Law School Personal Statement

Are you ready to tackle your law school personal statement? Clear and concise writing is a vital skill for law students, but writing about yourself can be daunting. It's hard to winnow your life experiences down to a couple of pages or find one topic to focus on. 

Yet, your personal statement is a critical part of the application process . When combined with your resume, application, and LSAT score, it forms a complete picture of who you are and why you're a perfect fit. 

With these steps, you'll overcome obstacles while developing prose that supports a favorable application decision. 

Does a personal statement matter for law school?

Yes, your personal statement for law school is vital. It provides insights that aren't apparent on your transcripts. Engaging prose helps you stand out in a competitive space resulting in acceptance at your most-desired schools. 

For the 2020-2021 academic year, the number of applicants to law schools rose by 1.6%, with 63,206 applicants submitting 381,698 applications, according to the Law School Admission Council . You're competing with students who may have similar LSAT scores , grade point averages, and professional experience. When facing identical transcripts from hardworking students, often the only differentiator is the personal statement. 

After all, admissions officers want to know the person behind the hard data. That's where your law school personal statement comes into play. With a standout essay, you capture admissions officers' attention and an amazing narrative sticks in their heads. Your story should emphasize valuable traits, such as: 

• Intelligence
• Professionalism
• Persuasiveness
• Thoughtfulness
• Seriousness

How do you write a good law school personal statement?

Writing a great law school personal statement doesn't come without hard work. Although you've written plenty of essays during your college experience, a strong narrative requires genuine reflection. You need to dig deep to uncover an aspect of your life that led to a significant change or put you on your current path.

Of course, intelligent prose doesn't always come out in the first draft. So prepare to spend a good chunk of time building your narrative and adjusting your statement for flow. Starting is often the hardest part of writing. Fortunately, you can follow these steps to nail your law school personal statement. 

Review law school personal statement requirements

Begin by scouring the application packet materials and college websites. Look for key information about the length and page format of your personal statement. The guidelines should answer important questions like:

• How long should your personal statement be for law school? 
• What is the maximum word count for a personal statement?
• How do you format a personal statement?

Next, write down any required prompts to answer in your essay. For instance, some schools may ask why you're applying or why you want a JD degree. Organize program details using a spreadsheet or project management software like Trello. Create a card or row for each program, then list important facts about its mission, goals, and community. 

Also, check to see if any programs offer law school personal statement examples. Read through samples to get an idea of what admissions officers expect. Lastly, some colleges accept other types of statements as well, such as a diversity statement or an addendum. For best results, complete all options.

Diversity statement for law school 

A diversity statement defines what makes you different. It sounds or looks similar to your law school personal statement. But, it differs because you don't need to tie up your narrative into a neat package that ends with an epiphany. Instead, it may cover an experience that explains your values or desire to work towards inclusivity.

Law school application addendum

An addendum is a way to overcome lower scores, a gap in education, or other concerns where you fall short in your official papers and transcripts. Addendums are short, concise, and honest. Explain your reason and demonstrate that you've met and overcome your challenge. 

Brainstorm potential personal statement topics 

Some people prefer to jump right into writing. However, your life story is pretty lengthy, so it's essential to narrow down your subject matter. Focus your attention by reflecting on your life and coming up with some topics to write about. Consider ideas like: 

• Personal challenges, hardships, or completed goals
• A turning point in your life
• Unique hobbies or personal interests
• Special achievements or awards, not listed in-depth on your initial application
• A situation or environment that changed you or your values
• A project that got results and you're passionate about
• Your upbringing, culture, education, or a personal or professional experience

While brainstorming, go through your transcripts, application, and resume. Are there any gaps or missing details that your personal statement could cover? Perhaps you listed volunteer work with a local animal shelter on your application. Could you delve into this topic further? Aim to share a unique story where your personal growth is the main focus. 

Explore your subject for clarity and insights

Sure, your chosen topic may be fresh on your mind. However, your personal statement for law school is more than describing an event. You need to show admission officers how this experience shaped you. It's vital to dig into how it impacted your values, traits, and feelings. 

Many students report spending hours or days considering their topic, digging through memories, and compiling their subject matter. If you have access to photos, documents, or other things that'll jog your mind, then now is the time to pull them out. Sometimes even listening to your favorite songs can help you remember the moment. 

Uncover a unique angle

Mark Twain once said that no story ideas are original. That holds true for personal statements as well. Plenty of law school applicants face difficult decisions, adversity, or enlightening experiences. Your essay isn't a retelling of an event. It focuses on your feelings and growth. And the story of you is unique, as no one shares your exact emotions or reactions. 

Your goal is to explore an angle that sets your story apart from others. Overcome obstacles by taking a break during brainstorming. Come back to your topic with fresh eyes and hammer out your main idea. 

Sum up your idea and start writing

Now you're looking at your topic, an angle, and you've pulled up those old memories. Do your best to sum it up and conclude it with a few sentences. This is your main point, and what every paragraph should lead the reader back to. Use these sentences as a reference point while writing. 

Some students prefer to create a general outline before writing. Others produce a few key sentences and start typing. All personal statements for law school use a narrative arc with a clear beginning, middle, and end. Include:

• A captivating introduction that draws the reader into your life
• Body paragraphs that naturally flow towards a conclusion
• A decisive conclusion that delivers a lasting impression

During the rough draft, forget about length, grammar, or other specifics. Instead, just write. Get everything out on the pages. You'll have plenty of time later to refine, clarify, and structure your personal law school statement. Once you're done, read it over, make a few edits, and walk away. 

Turn a draft into your personal law school statement 

With a rough draft in hand, assess every word to ensure your story meets your objectives. Your goal is to recreate the moment and invite the reader into your account. Mold your rough draft into a final piece by focusing on a coherent structure. 

Flow. A logical progression of ideas, with a clear arc, is essential. Your reader should glide through your personal statement naturally. 

Length. Eliminate wordy phrases, overly difficult words, and descriptions that don't support your conclusion. 

Personalization. Pay attention to subtle differences in law schools, from their communities to purpose. If you can genuinely work this into your personal statement, then do so.

Character decisions. It's okay to include other characters in your personal statement, but ultimately you want to return the focus to yourself. 

Revise and edit several times

Few applicants write a stellar personal statement the first time. Get the best results by putting your draft through a comprehensive editing and revision process. This goes beyond using your word processing spell checker. Invest in human and technical tools to ensure the best results. Take steps such as: 

• Double-check that your essay meets formatting and length requirements. 
• Make sure you've answered any writing prompts.
• Personalize your statement to the specific school and program. 
• Use a tool like Grammarly or ProWritingAid to correct grammar and style issues. 
• Run your document through the Hemingway App to catch hard-to-read sentences and more.

Lastly, it’s essential to get help editing your personal statement. Fresh eyes and unbiased opinions allow you to refine your narrative. Obtain assistance from law school forums, writing centers, and social media communities. Or, ask fellow students or mentors to review your essay.

Create an impressive law school personal statement

Make your application packet stand out with a genuine and captivating personal statement for law school. Although writing your essay may seem like a challenging task, once you break it down into steps, it'll be easier to develop a cohesive statement that's sure to win admission officers’ attention.

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22 Law School Personal Statement Tips

How to write an outstanding law school personal statement.

Learn how to write an outstanding law school personal statement, one of the common law school requirements , using our top tips! Moreover, you will learn the differences and similarities between law school personal statement and law school statement of intent. Continue reading to learn more!

>> Want us to help you get accepted? Schedule a free strategy call here . <<

Article Contents 8 min read

Before we begin discussing some law school personal statement tips, we need to clarify the differences, and highlight the similarities, between a “Personal Statement” and a “Statement of Intent” for law school , as there are common misunderstandings about what is expected from each. At times, some schools may use these terms interchangeably.

The overall purpose of asking for either a law school Personal Statement or for a Statement of Intent is to provide the admissions committee with information about:

• Who you are;
• Why you want to be admitted to the particular program, and;
• Other unique, interesting, and relevant information that cannot be found in your transcripts or from your references.

Essentially, writing a law school Personal Statement or a Statement of Intent presents an opportunity for you to stand out from the rest of the applicants by making your story heard.

The law school Personal Statement has a wider scope than a Statement of Intent. Here, you want to highlight the following:

• Individual, personal experiences that have influenced your decision to apply to the particular program
• How your personal experiences, along with your future education, will shape your short-term and long-term career goals
• When you became interested in the field and developed your career goals, and what have you done to reinforce your conviction that you are well-suited for the field.

Personal experiences can stem from events that have occurred in your personal life including you and your family/extended family; history; education; employment; work experience; volunteer experience; travels; special athletic abilities; or other facet of life that is relevant. Perusing  law school personal statement examples can be useful in understanding how to organize and draw on these different kinds of experiences.

Statement of Intents are tailored toward your specific field of study and career goals. In this case, you want to address questions such as:

• What field of law you would like to specialize in and why?
• What have you learned about the field (through formal and informal education, and work experience, for example), and how that experience has contributed to your growth in the field?
• What courses would you like to take to meet your career goals?
• After you complete the program, what do you plan on doing with the knowledge and skills you developed?
• What soft skills (e.g., compassion, persistence) do you hold that will help you be successful in the profession?

22 Tips for Making Your Law School Personal Statement or Statement of Intent Stand Out

Check out our law school personal statement tips video below!

Law School Personal Statement Tips: #1 

If the school you are applying to does not clearly specify whether they are looking for either a Personal Statement or a Statement of Intent, email or phone the admissions office to clarify their expectations.

Law School Personal Statement Tips: #2 

Research the law school inside and out. Understand their mission and values, as well as the key qualities they seek in prospective students. This understanding will help tailor your Personal Statement of Statement of Intent to the specific school and program.

Law School Personal Statement Tips: #3

Ask yourself, and write down your response to, the following question: “Why do I want to go to law school?” You should have a clear and precise reason for your choice in profession. Addressing this will take time and patience so this is one reason why you need to start thinking about your application early. After you have thought about this response, you should be able to write the following: “I want to pursue this profession because of reasons X, Y, and Z”.

Law School Personal Statement Tips: #4

Ask yourself, and write down your response to, the following question: “What are my short- and long-term career goals?” You should have a clear idea about what you would like to do. Although this may change as you progress through your education and gain more personal experiences, you need to understand what you want at that point of time. After you have thought about this response, you should be able to write the following: “My short- and long-term career goals include X, Y, and Z”.

Law School Personal Statement Tips: #5

Before writing your law school Personal Statement or Statement of Intent, reflect on your past experiences and key aspects of your experiences and personality that will make you stand out.

If you are re-applying, do not use the same Personal Statement or Statement of Intent as you did from the previous year's law school application. A lot changes in a year in terms of your writing ability and in terms of the aspects of your experiences and personality that you would like to highlight. Also, note that you were not accepted based on your previous application, so re-writing your Personal Statement or Statement of Intent will be beneficial as it will more than likely be improved. Using a law school Personal Statement or Statement of Intent from an unsuccessful application just doesn't make sense (though plenty of re-applicants do precisely this!).

Law School Personal Statement Tips: #7

Start early. I cannot put enough emphasis on the need to begin writing your application early. No matter how strong a writer you are, it will take you several revisions before your law school Personal Statement or Statement of Intent is ready for submission. It does not matter how talented you are with regard to writing, you need to edit, edit, edit; revise, revise, revise. Also, when people rush to finish this application, they can forget important details that could have gotten them an acceptance. You do not want to be one of those people!

Law School Personal Statement Tips: #8 

Write your law school Personal Statement or a Statement of Intent so that it reads like a story book filled with evidence that you are an excellent candidate for the program. It should be easy to read, clear, engaging, and memorable, with a good sense of flow and direction. Avoid making clichés, jokes, or references to popular media. You may want to consider writing your story in chronological order to showcase your growth and development.

Law School Personal Statement Tips: #9

Write specific details and use action words to allow the reader to visualize your story.

Law School Personal Statement Tips: #10

Skills and characteristics you want to highlight in your law school Personal Statement or Statement of Intent:

• Leadership skills (can you delegate tasks and work with a team?)
• Organization and time management skills
• Communication (additional languages, verbal, written) skills
• Research and scientific inquiry
• Interpersonal and teamwork skills
• Self-motivated and goal oriented
• Perseverance
• Easily adapt to new situations
• Hardworking, trustworthy, and dependable
• Confident and enthusiastic
• Ability to deal with people, problems, and situations tactfully and professionally
• Enjoy new challenging and willingness to learn
• Community involvement

Law School Personal Statement Tips: #11 

Do not regurgitate facts or quotes that are already known. The admissions committee does not want to read an academic paper or essay - they want to learn about you!

Law School Personal Statement Tips: #12

Show your enthusiasm for entering the profession via your writing. Don't simply tell them that you're enthusiastic. Show that energy through narrative and prose, selecting anecdotes and experiences that put your excitement and dedication on display.

Law School Personal Statement Tips: #13

Do not speak negatively about other candidates to make yourself look good. Doing this makes you look like a bad team player. For example, do not say statements such as: “Unlike other candidates, I have X, Y, and Z education and work experience”. True professionals will demonstrate their strengths through their actions, not through putting others down. 

Do not be shy to humbly highlight your attributes and accomplishments that make you unique and a strong candidate. 

Law School Personal Statement Tips: #15

Do not summarize your resume, CV, or transcripts. This is an opportunity to discuss what makes you unique, and why you should be accepted. They already have your resume/CV and transcripts, so they don't need a dry recitation of this information in your Personal Statement or Statement of Intent.

Law School Personal Statement Tips: #16

Write in first-person ("I").

Law School Personal Statement Tips: #17

Adhere strictly to the word, page, or character limit. If not, this may cause you to be rejected because you didn’t follow the instructions. No one wants to read a 2-page Personal Statement of Statement of Intent if it is supposed to be a maximum of 1 page.

Law School Personal Statement Tips: #18 

Do not try to write like a lawyer. Be genuine, optimistic, enthusiastic, and honest, and show the admissions committee who you are and why you should be accepted.

Law School Personal Statement Tips: #19

Focus on your strengths, not your weaknesses.

Law School Personal Statement Tips: #20

Have a strong introduction and strong conclusion. Sometimes, the introduction and the conclusion will be the only aspects of your work that the reader will remember. If your introduction or conclusion is weak, it may set a negative tone for the rest of your paper, regardless of how great it is. A strong introduction will draw your reader in, and a strong conclusion will leave them wanting more (and them wanting more means you getting an interview!).

Law School Personal Statement Tips: #21

A common mistake is to repeat exactly what you said in the introduction for the conclusion. Do not do this - your conclusion should be memorable. It should pull together the main ideas by creatively selling yourself to the reviewer to be admitted.

Law School Personal Statement Tips: #22

An excellent Personal Statement and Statement of Intent will include how you have had a tangible impact on an organization, community, body of literature, or institution, for example, and how that impact provides background and context as to why you are pursuing the profession. Past actions often indicate future potential, so compose impact statements with this in mind. 

Want to see some law school personal statement examples from top law schools?

• Harvard law school personal statement examples
• Columbia law school personal statement examples
• Cornell law school personal statement examples
• Yale law school personal statement examples
• UPenn law school personal statement examples
• Cambridge law school personal statement examples

To conclude our tips about how to make your law school application stand out, you need to ensure that your Personal Statement or Statement of Intent is believable and convincing as to why you should be admitted. We suggest having multiple friends, family members, colleagues, professors, and BeMo consultants review your statements prior to submission. Check out our blog on law school acceptance rates to find out the admission stats at schools you may be interested in applying to. 

Dr. Sarah Lynn Kleeb is an admissions expert at BeMo. Dr. Kleeb holds a doctorate degree (Ph.D.) from the University of Toronto where she examined the connections between Critical Theory and Liberation Theology. She brings 10 years of experience teaching, advising, and mentoring undergraduate students to her role as an admissions expert, having taught extensively at UofT.

To your success,

Your friends at BeMo

BeMo Academic Consulting Inc.

Like our blog write for us >>, have a question ask our admissions experts below and we'll answer your questions.

Ian Musinguzi

How much of a narration should a personal statement be?

BeMo Academic Consulting

Hello Ian! Thank you very much for your question. Each law school has its own length requirements for personal statements, but in general, you should aim for about 2 pages. Please check with the programs of your choice to make sure if they list their individual length requirements.

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Law School Personal Statement

An effective personal statement.

Personal statements should provide a reader with a sense of who you are beyond your test scores and transcript, and demonstrate that you have a distinct voice to contribute to the incoming class. In the same way that each individual is unique, there is no one-size-fits-all approach to writing an effective personal statement. Your content will be driven by your life experiences, your perspective, and the reasons you chose to apply to law school. Remember, however, that you typically will not interview with an admissions committee before receiving a decision on your candidacy. You should, therefore, aim to provide the reader with a window into who you are as a person through your personal statement.

The information provided on this page is meant to help you think about, and then write, an effective personal statement. Having an interesting story to tell is not enough; the presentation of your information is just as important.

Do You have any tips before I write?

You should be the subject of your personal statement. To ensure that your writing has an appropriate focus:

• First, consider your defining qualities and strengths. Specifically, what would your family, colleagues, or friends say about you? Think in terms of adjectives.
• Second, consider the experiences through which your qualities have been developed and/or demonstrated. For example, do you love to tutor, work with kids, solve computer problems for your friends, or run marathons?
• Finally, tell a story through a cohesive narrative. Your most difficult task, and the most important task, in writing your personal statement is tying your abstract qualities with instances that demonstrate them.

Remember, you should connect your experiences logically to your interest in applying to law school, but do not dedicate your entire personal statement to this information. There are thousands of applicants with a similar interest in law school, but there is only one of you.

What should I write about?

While there is a broad range of topics that can be discussed in an effective personal statement, below are some common examples that are appropriate and relevant:

How do I know my topic is on track?

Don’t write your resume in paragraph form. As you select your topic, take special care to avoid speaking about information that is already described on your resume. Your personal statement is not meant to merely reiterate your resume in narrative form.

Focus on the present and the recent past. Admissions Committees are inerested in the adult version of you, as opposed to the child you once were, even if you had formative childhood experiences. With that in mind, prioritize relatively recent activities or experiences.

Find the appropriate depth and breadth. Although it is tempting, try to avoid writing a mini-autobiography or a chronological narrative of your life. Describing the event, activity or experience that you ultimately choose should take no more than one-half (usually about one-third) of your personal statement. The remaining portion should demonstrate how your anecdote(s) impacted you and shaped the person you are today.

Things to Do for an Effective Personal Statement:

Revise and reflect: Do not rush to finish your personal statement without taking the time to understand yourself. Personal statements are about critical self-examination, and Admissions Committees know when essays only begin to scratch the surface. Reflecting on your first draft is just as important as the self-reflection you did in considering your topic.

Focus on yourself: Use the first-person “I” when discussing yourself throughout the essay.

Ensure that your narrative is cohesive: The ideas you present in your personal statement are connected by a common thread (or threads). For example, your conclusion should refer back to your introductory paragraph and restate your main thesis in a slightly different way.

Proofread carefully: Edit and spell-check your personal statement multiple times, with the caveat that the spell-check tool is not perfect. You typically have only two double-spaced pages to make the strongest case possible for your candidacy. Do not let the small details distract from your big picture.  Sometimes it helps to have someone you trust proof-read your finished product.

Check each law school’s requirements and instructions: While most law schools ask for an open-ended essay, the prompt may differ by school. You should also check each law school’s page length or word/character specifications. Generally, a two-page, double-spaced essay is the standard.

Things to Avoid for an Effective Personal Statement:

Try to sound like a lawyer: You should not include legalese or complex language in your statement because you are applying to law school! Avoid rhetorical flourishes and language that you think sounds sophisticated. Clarity and concision of presentation are valued in both your personal statement and in the practice of law.

Forget that you’re applying to a professional school: Try to avoid cliches or overly colloquial phrasing. Law school admissions committees will be put off by informal language in your application materials. You should consider this as one of your first professional exercises in your law school career.

Include direct quotations: Avoid using other people’s quotations (and direct quotes in general).  As stated, the purpose of your personal statement is to demonstrate your own voice. Instead of quoting, try to paraphrase using explanatory details. Even when quoting yourself, you probably will not remember the exact words or phrasing you used.

Title your personal statement: The theme of your narrative should be apparent to the reader through the content of your statement. Including a title is distracting and a waste of valuable space.

Use your personal statement to justify your other application materials: The personal statement is not an appropriate place to provide context for a poor GPA or standardized test score. If you are concerned about your “numbers,” and if you believe that additional information would help the reader to understand your performance, include a separate “supplemental statement” or addendum. This information is important to the Admissions Committees, but it should not be the focus of your personal statement.

Remember: be yourself, tell your story, and let the best version of you be reflected on the pages!

Please visit the Scheduling page to review the guidelines for requesting a document review.

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Everything You Need to Know About the Law School Personal Statement

Padya Paramita

February 10, 2021

Law school admissions committees can see your numbers and extracurricular activities on paper, but have absolutely no idea about who you are as a person and what makes you unique. This is where your personal statement comes in. Your law school personal statement is the place to reflect on your interests and background to help set you apart from the rest of the candidates in a tough law school application pool.

While you may have similar grades, extracurriculars, and LSAT score as the other applicants, your law school personal statement should stand out as your chance to show JD programs your unique story. Take this opportunity to discuss your interests, your travels, or how your cultural identity made you the person who should be admitted. A strong personal statement combines a carefully chosen topic with well-crafted prose. 

You might have guessed by now that writing your law school personal statement isn’t something you should take for granted. This essay can make a difference even if your GPA and LSAT score aren’t quite up to the mark. To help you understand the process more clearly, we will take a closer look at the law school personal statement prompts from the T-14 schools, talk more in detail about the importance of your personal statement, go over how to pick the right topic, discuss common mistakes people make when writing, as well as review tips for editing your personal statement before submitting your law school application.

Requirements from School to School 

It wouldn’t be the wisest decision to submit the same personal statement to all law schools because they’re not identical at all! When you apply to law schools via the Law School Admission Council (LSAC), each school has its own personal statement requirements and prompt. The word or page limit varies from school to school as well - it’s usually somewhere between two and three pages. So, writing one essay to send to every school won’t suffice. 

While you can write a barebones essay on one topic to serve as a skeleton, make sure to tweak and expand on it to suit each school’s specific question. Some of the prompts are more open-ended than others. All of them want to know you better, understand your personality, and see context and color within your law school application. Outlined below are the law school personal statement prompts for each of the T-14 schools.

Most of these prompts are open-ended, except the one for Duke. Duke’s personal statement has two requirements. First, that you reflect on opportunities you’ve pursued that aren’t mentioned in your resumé, and second, that you discuss your personal career ambitions. 

While the others may be broad, some prompts encourage you to choose specific routes when considering your topic. For example, UChicago emphasizes that you should not reiterate your resumé, and your essay should be about something not already covered. On the other hand, Columbia wants to know by the end of the essay why you’re interested in going to law school - specifically to Columbia. Similarly, the UPenn admissions committee also wants to know why you’ve decided to pursue a JD, and how UPenn will help you. For the UC Berkeley essay, you are encouraged to discuss any diversity factors - whether in your interests or your background. Northwestern recommends that you reflect on your personal and professional goals. 

As you can see, while one draft reflecting on a particular interest or story could respond to most of these law school personal statement prompts, you cannot - and should not - submit the same essay for all law schools. Make sure your essay is geared toward answering the question each institution asks. Mention the school specifically as well, if applicable. 

The Importance of the Personal Statement in Your Application

You’re going to have to write - all the time - while you’re in law school. Your personal statement gives law school admissions committees an idea of your writing style and how you would fare in a writing-intensive curriculum. Like we’ve mentioned, the law school  personal statement presents an opportunity for the program to get to know you better, and learn something about you that is not apparent from your transcript or resumé. It’s crucial that you highlight a story that is your own - not your parents’ or your friends’ - and one which helps admissions committees understand you beyond your LSAT score and your professional experience. 

If your GPA or your LSAT score aren’t up to par with the school’s median, a strong personal statement can combat the weaknesses in your application. Remember: your personal statement is not the place for you to explain why you have shortcomings in your application. Rather, if your topic and writing are stellar enough, admissions committees might overlook the lower numbers. 

There is no typical law student. Law schools don’t want their classes to be full of the same type of applicants. The personal statement helps law schools determine how diverse, in terms of race, gender, sexuality, class, and professional and extracurricular background an incoming class will be. So your personal statement is crucial in helping admissions committee members understand who you are, what you value personally and professionally, and where you come from. 

Picking Your Topic

It might feel like a lot of pressure to find the perfect topic. How do you know what will set you apart? Which part of your identity do you talk about? Or, should you talk about your extracurriculars instead? The perfect topic won’t come to you immediately. Look at the prompts for the schools that interest you, and then try asking yourself a few questions. This can get you a handful of ideas that might be worth expanding upon.

Some questions you could ask yourself are:

• How has your upbringing shaped you? Has your geographical or cultural background made an integral contribution to the way you think or the career path you’ve chosen?
• What is the most unique or unusual thing about your family?
• Do you have any hobbies that most people don’t? What have they taught you?
• What has been your proudest non-academic achievement?
• Where do you excel?
• What is your dream career?
• What kind of law do you wish to pursue?
• What current issues are you most passionate about?
• If you weren’t going to law school, what would you be doing?
• When did you first know you wanted to become a lawyer?
• How did your extracurriculars shape your decision to apply to law school?
• What kind of jobs have you worked? Which has been the most memorable or meaningful?
• Did a significant event impact your decision to become a lawyer?
• What has been the greatest challenge you’ve faced?

When brainstorming topics, take a trip down memory lane. Think about your childhood, your interests, your goals, and your background. Jot down events and parts of your life that stand out - topics don’t always have to be about your culture or background. Something that might feel minute like your coin collection or your backpacking trip during a gap year can spark some inspiration. Once you’ve picked a few topics that bring out your best storytelling and writing skills, go ahead and write a first draft. Remember to show not tell!

Mistakes to Avoid

Rewriting your resumé: We cannot emphasize this enough: do not repeat the information on your transcript and resumé. They exist as separate components for a reason. 

Writing about someone else: Never fall into the trap of writing about someone else. Sure, you could dedicate a sentence or two to someone who inspired you, but your own personal story should be at the core of the essay. 

Straying away from the prompt : The schools have a set of questions for a reason. If Duke asks you to talk about your career ambitions , don’t go off on a tangent about what you’ve done in the past. You have limited space. Don’t waste it.

Using pretentious language: Don’t sound like a robot ! It’s your personal statement, and you undoubtedly want your personality to shine through in your writing. Don’t use too many long words that may not fit with the rest of your essay, or might not reflect your usual writing style. Taking a dictionary and throwing every other long word you find won’t help show who you are - you’re not a poet or an SAT tutor, you’re trying to get into law school! Flowery language can make you sound ingenuine. 

Trying to finish too fast: Don’t rush through and then skip the time to revise. The last thing you want is to turn in your first draft! There’s always room for editing. Errors can be easily avoided through some careful proofreading. Of course, make sure your spelling and grammar are all correct. 

Exaggerating adversity: The applicant pool contains people who have experienced abuse, homelessness, natural disasters, and serious losses. If your adversity is not as grave in comparison to these powerful stories, don’t write about adversity. If you suffered from chicken pox, there’s no need to write lines and lines about the pain you experienced. Or if your friend was bullied in high school and you were simply a witness, you should not be writing about all the torment you suffered and how you grew from the experience!

Discussing academic inconsistencies: Your law school personal statement is NOT the place where you talk about why your junior spring grades fell drastically due to an emergency. Law schools usually have an addendum section for cases such as this. Don’t waste your page limit focusing on bad grades when you can be writing a glowing, positive essay instead!

Living in the past: You’re an adult now. There’s no way your biggest accomplishment to date is an award you won in high school. You’ve been through at least four years of college since, seen more places, met more people, and gained much greater knowledge and experiences. Your character has grown a lot, and law school admissions officers want to see that. Don’t write about your love for your high school debate club or how you led your high school Model UN team to multiple championships. 

Mixing up schools: Don’t send the wrong letter to the wrong school. Your Harvard Law essay cannot have the word “Yale” all over, or in fact anywhere. Make sure you’ve checked and double checked that you’re sending the essays to the right school, and maintained each of their word or page limits. 

Editing Your Personal Statement

Once you’ve got that first draft out of your system, it’s time to edit and polish your work. It wouldn’t hurt to take a couple days away from your essay, and then come back and review it again. Read it out loud. That way, you can spot errors or sentences that don’t flow as well as you might have thought they did the first time around. Have a parent, friend, or coworker read it. Another set of eyes and opinions is a great way to improve and catch silly errors. 

When checking for typos, don’t rely on spell checkers. They don’t always catch similar-sounding words, such as where vs. were. Make sure your sentences aren’t too long. Transitions between paragraphs should also be smooth. Remember, the quality of your writing will be evaluated alongside the content of your personal statement. Check back with the prompt to ensure that you’ve answered what they’ve asked, and not gone off on a completely separate tangent. The editing process is just as important as the writing, and taking the time to sit down and go through multiple drafts goes a long way toward helping your personal statement stand out.

Your law school personal statement is your chance to showcase your individuality and provide more information on how your upbringing, activities, and interests can not only contribute to an esteemed law school, but also make a difference in the world after you graduate. No matter what you decide to write about, use your personal statement as a chance to go beyond your grades and work experience. Let the admissions committee get to know what makes you tick, and help them realize why you would be a wonderful asset to their institution. 

Tags : applying to law school , law school personal statement , law school essay , law school essay prompts , jd essay prompts

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How to Format Your Law School Personal Statement

How do you write your law school personal statement? Well first of all, let’s make sure that we’re on the same page about what your personal statement is. Your personal statement is the one part of your law school application package and law school requirements that you have complete control over, so you’ll want to put your best foot forward. A personal statement will often focus on why you want to go to law school (or transfer law schools ), but it can also focus on a personal story or aspect of your life.

It shows what makes you unique and why a school should admit you. The personal statement should focus on you, your background, and your goals more broadly. Make sure that it adds something new to your application materials – the school already has your transcript, resume, etc. Think about what you really want the application committee to know about you.

Before anything else, a quick clarification: the law school personal statement is different from an optional essay , which can take on a variety of forms. This could include diversity statements, addendums, or other essays. Here are some examples of law school personal statements that may help you understand the task at hand better.

How do you format a law school personal statement?

In brief, here’s what your law school personal statement will need in terms of format:

• Overall : No title, 11- or 12-point Times New Roman font, one-inch margins.
• Header : Your name, your LSAC number, and “Personal Statement” with a page number, formatted as either one or three lines. Check with your school’s requirements.
• Body : Double-spaced, left-aligned (or justified), paragraphs indented 0.5 inches and not separated with an extra line, single space after periods.
• Ending : End as you would a normal essay. This isn’t a letter; no signature is needed.

Personal Statement Header

The header of the personal statement deserves a closer look. There are two ways of formatting this: either on one line, or on three. One line gives you more space on the page, but can look busy. Three lines have the opposite effect. Weigh the pros and cons based on the length of your statement, then format accordingly.

If you choose the one-line format, be sure to space your information out equally or separate it with punctuation (commas, dashes, and slashes work well) so that it reads clearly.

If you use a three-line format, separate information by line like this:

Name, Page Number LSAC # Personal Statement

Law School Personal Statement Format: FAQs

What should be included in a law school personal statement.

• Who you are. Show readers that you’re an interesting person who brings experiences and skills that will benefit not only the campus community, but the larger legal community.You’re applying in a pool of thousands of candidates, so be sure to highlight what makes you stand out from your peers.  
• Your true voice. There’s a reason why the personal statement isn’t just called a statement or an essay. Sometimes applicants feel that they should write pieces about public policy or social issues, but these too often fall short of showing an applicant’s true voice. Have someone you know well review your personal statement objectively. If they can’t tell you were the one who wrote it, it’s probably time for a rewrite .  
• Specific information about that school. It’s not sufficient to say that you want to attend Santa Clara Law School for its good curriculum, strong faculty, and numerous clinic opportunities. Notice how you could replace “Santa Clara Law School” with any other law school’s name, and the sentence could still make sense? That tells Santa Clara admissions officers that you don’t know very much about their school. Which leads us to our next point…  
• Research on the school itself. Figure out what makes the schools you’re applying to different from others. This is a great opportunity to reach out to alumni, and talk to the admissions staff! You can also use the Internet, visit your local bookstore and check out some guide books, or search around on online forums. Some schools are known for their strength in a certain area of law (think international law or intellectual property law ). Some schools are known for their commitment to pro bono work . Some schools’ faculty are renowned for their research in a specific discipline. Others offer distinctive programs or fellowships to their students. Identify what really interests you about the school, and tie that back to the academic and career interests you discuss in your personal statement.  
• Reflections on the school’s environment. Perhaps you’re looking for a collegial law school environment that mirrors your own undergraduate experience at a small liberal arts school. Or perhaps you’re looking for a large law school so you can take advantage of the network and breadth of resources and alumni that a law school of that size can offer. And don’t forget about the environment outside the school building! Is it important that you have access to hiking trials? Or a ski slope to enjoy over winter break? Environment is often a key factor students consider when deciding on a particular law school, so don’t forget to mention it as a way to express your interest!  
• Concise writing. Check your school’s website to determine how long your personal statement can be, and take it seriously. Law schools are not only looking at whether you can write concisely and effectively, but also whether you can follow posted instructions. Most schools only allow 2-5 pages for personal statement submissions. As a lawyer, you’ll need to write briefs and be able to clearly present client cases. Now’s the time to show that you are capable of honing your communication skills.  
• Authenticity. Law schools aren’t asking you to establish your own NGO or be an Olympic athlete. Rather, they’re looking for candidates who help round out a class and contribute positively to their school. Plenty of people get admitted to law school each year who aren’t superhuman, so don’t feel a need to pretend you’re more accomplished than you are (or stretch the truth). Be yourself – and view this as part of helping the reader understand who you are.  
• Correct writing. Maybe for class assignments, you’ve been able to submit the first draft you write as final. Or maybe one edit is typically sufficient for you to call an essay complete. For the law school personal statement, you want to commit at least two rounds of edits to perfecting your writing. Not only should you review your work, you should also ask both a friend and a fully objective reviewer (like a career center counselor or a campus writing tutor) to give feedback. Once you have at least two rounds of edits, read it out loud to yourself. This will help you identify any awkward phrases and typos. The more time you spend editing your writing, the more confident you’ll be in the strength of your personal statement.

What should you not write in a personal statement for law school?

• Repetition . If your resume shows that you were vice president of your college’s botany club, general secretary of Basket-Weavers Anonymous, and founder of a campus-wide Pizza Appreciation Day, your personal statement need not repeat these things. Now, if founding Pizza Appreciation Day was such a transformative experience for you that you need to highlight it in your personal statement, be sure you’re telling admissions officers something new that your resume doesn’t already tell.  
• Your autobiography . Admissions officers don’t need a play-by-play of your entire life’s events from day one. Autobiographies become long and rambling – two things your personal statement shouldn’t be. Focus on aspects of your life that truly differentiate you from others in a meaningful way.  
• Academic issues . Law schools offer you space in a separate essay to explain academic discrepancies. Your personal statement is your chance to focus on the positive and show admissions officers you’d be an asset to their school. Don’t use your personal statement to go into detail about how your dog’s unexpected chronic migraines prevented you from getting a good GPA during your first year of college.  
• Legal jargon . No, you’re not a lawyer yet – and law school admissions officers are not going to be impressed by legal jargon that’s used incorrectly or used as a way to show off. Keep your tone and language simple. Remember that your personal statement is meant to show your own voice.  
• Cliches . Don’t be the student who bores admissions officers with another essay about how you want to be a lawyer because you like to argue. Avoid clichés – by definition, they’re overused and don’t add value. They make your personal statement generic, and you’ll fall flat when compared with other candidates.  
• Other people . Your personal statement should keep the focus on you. It’s great if you want to write about how your famous lawyer uncle inspired you to join the legal profession, but make sure the essay remains true to your story – not your uncle’s.  
• Slang . Admissions officers view the personal statement as a showcase of your best writing – so slang and casual English are best left behind. While you want your tone to be friendly, you don’t want to sound like you’re chatting with a best friend on a Friday night. Keep things professional.

How do I write a statement for law school?

There are three main steps to the writing process, and they’re no different here! Namely: brainstorm, write, and edit. In this case, though, we’ll add a fourth step: format and proofread.

• Brainstorming is one of the most crucial things you can do for your personal statement. You want to make sure your ideas are strong, following the guidelines above. It can be helpful to spend a little quiet time alone or in a cozy coffee shop to start brainstorming. Check out some of our law school personal statement examples to spark ideas!  
• Once you’ve brainstormed and organized your ideas, the writing itself will go pretty quickly. After you’ve written the first draft, leave the personal statement aside for a day or two (a week or more is better!). Then, come back. What parts don’t flow well? What ideas need more (or less) elaboration? Cut—and add—brutally! Editing is not the same as proofreading; this is the point at which you ensure the ideas themselves are sound.  
• Now, it’s time for the final line edit-format-proofread. In a line edit, you’ll work to make sure you’re using the best possible words correctly, rephrasing and rewriting as needed. Then, use the law school personal statement format discussed above to organize the writing. Finally, read through for errors in spelling, grammar, and formatting.

Voila! Your law school personal statement is now ready. If you’re planning to send it off to a T14 law school, check out our post on the top law schools for more tips and information. And no matter what, check out our post on how to get into law school !

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Rachel is one of Magoosh’s Content Creators. She writes and updates content on our High School and GRE Blogs to ensure students are equipped with the best information during their test prep journey. As a test-prep instructor for more than five years in there different countries, Rachel has helped students around the world prepare for various standardized tests, including the SAT, ACT, TOEFL, GRE, and GMAT, and she is one of the authors of our Magoosh ACT Prep Book . Rachel has a Bachelor of Arts in Comparative Literature from Brown University, an MA in Cinematography from the Université de Paris VII, and a Ph.D. in Film Studies from University College London. For over a decade, Rachel has honed her craft as a fiction and memoir writer and public speaker. Her novel, THE BALLERINAS , is forthcoming in December 2021 from St. Martin’s Press , while her memoir, GRADUATES IN WONDERLAND , co-written with Jessica Pan, was published in 2014 by Penguin Random House. Her work has appeared in over a dozen online and print publications, including Vanity Fair Hollywood. When she isn’t strategically stringing words together at Magoosh, you can find Rachel riding horses or with her nose in a book. Join her on Twitter , Instagram , or Facebook !

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The University of Chicago The Law School

Program info, faqs: personal statement, what is the admissions committee looking for in the personal statement.

The Admissions Committee is primarily looking for two things in the personal statement:

• Who are you: Will this applicant be a likeable and interesting addition to our community? Are you thoughtful and reflective? Will our professors and your classmates enjoy working with you and learning from your perspective?
• Writing and communication ability: Can you communicate your thoughts effectively? Are you able to present information in a clear, organized, and concise manner (much like you will be required to do in law school and as an attorney)?

What should I write about in my personal statement?

Our application does not provide a specific topic or question for the personal statement because you are the best judge of what you should write. Write about something personal, relevant, and completely individual to you. This may include writing about a significant aspect of your background, a quality or trait you believe defines you, a transformative experience, or the things that interest and motivate you. Don’t worry so much about selecting a unique or novel topic. Just be yourself. Your personal statement will be unique if you are honest and authentic. See these examples of personal statements .

How does the personal statement fit into the rest of my application?

Think about the personal statement as the fun and interesting part of your application. This is where we get to learn more about who are you as a person and go beyond the transcripts, test scores, and resume. Let each part of your application speak for itself and do what it is intended to do - you don't need to worry about selling us on your credentials in the personal statement.  

Do I need to tell the Admissions Committee why I want to go to law school?

Not necessarily. We request a personal statement; it is not a statement of purpose. You are welcome to discuss your reasons for applying to law school, but please make sure we will still get to know you as an individual. Law schools have different views on this topic, so please consult each school to which you are applying. 

What are some tips for a successful personal statement?

There are few rules that apply to every applicant because of the individual nature of the personal statement, but here are some tips based on our experiences that all applicants should follow:

• Be straightforward. Do not make it more complex than it is. We simply want a candid, well-written essay that helps us learn about you, your story, and your background.
• Proofread, proofread, proofread. Your personal statement should not have errors - this is a sample of your writing and it should be a strong reflection of your written communication skills. Edit extensively and make sure to remove tracked changes.
• Be concise and organize your thoughts. Remember basic writing skills and essay structure. You want to present your ideas in a logical, clear manner.
• Make sure your personal statement is about you . Keep the focus on you with any topic you choose. Focusing too much on a family member or family history, a social or legal issue, or stories about others is a very common mistake. Even if you tell a moving and interesting story, it will not be a successful personal statement if it does not allow us to get to know you.
• Be yourself. We are confident every one of our applicants is unique. Be honest. Do not write about something you think you are supposed to write about or rely too heavily on sample topics or model statements. A topic will not be effective unless it is appropriate for your specific application and background. Don’t try to fit your personal statement into a defined category or box.
• Write in your own voice. This makes your personal statement believable and authentic. Don’t use phrases and vocabulary that you wouldn’t normally use in writing and conversation. It is usually not a good idea to lead with a quote. We are looking for clarity and honesty.
• Make it personal. If someone else could write your personal statement, it probably is not personal enough. We often see this happen when applicants discuss a social issue or area of the law. Remember you are not trying to educate the Admissions Committee about the law or any particular issue.  Your goal should be to educate the Admissions Committee about you.

What are some of the common mistakes I should avoid?

While what works for one individual will not work for another because the personal statement is so individualized, here are some common mistakes we see from applicants: 

• Restating your resume. Resume restatements are one of the most common errors. We will read your resume in detail. We want the personal statement to tell us something new about you.
• Listing your qualifications.  Don't try to overtly sell yourself to the Admissions Committee. This isn't the place to convince us how qualified you are. Your qualifications will shine through in other parts of your application. Remember, this is the part where we get to know you as an individual.
• Typos and “tracked changes”. Make sure to upload the correct version of your personal statement into CAS. If you plan to reference law schools by name, please reference the correct school for each application. 
• Legalese or Latin phrases.   Avoid using legal terms or Latin phrases if you can. The risk you are incorrectly using them is just too high.
• Extensive discussions of the law and attorneys. It is not necessary to discuss the law, tell us what type of law you want to practice, or convey the extent of your legal experience. Legal experience is not a factor in admission.  It is not the place to demonstrate your knowledge of the law or the role of attorneys. These personal statements do not tell us much about the applicant as an individual.
• Telling us you'll be a good lawyer because you like to argue.
• Name-dropping. It is not necessary to cite the names of our faculty and programs from our website in your personal statement unless you are placing the reference in a meaningful context. It detracts from your authenticity. However, if one of our faculty members or something about our community has genuinely inspired you, you are more than welcome to tell us about it.
• Covering too much information. You don't have to cover your entire life story. Use your discretion - we know you have to make a choice and have limited space. Attempting to cover too much material can result in an unfocused and scattered personal statement. 

Is there a page limit on my personal statement? 

There is no page limit, but we generally find 2-4 pages to be sufficient. If it is longer, make sure it is absolutely necessary and really interesting. We do not have any formatting rules with respect to spacing, font type, font size, or margins. 

May I submit additional essays?

You may submit additional essays to highlight particular topics you wish to bring to our attention. Please remember you want to be concise and genuine.

Examples of types of additional essays include Diversity Statements and explanations of undergraduate and/or standardized test performance. 

• UChicago aims to train well-rounded, critical, and socially conscious thinkers and doers. Describe how your background or experiences will contribute to the UChicago Law and Chicago Booth communities. Example topics include: lessons you have learned; skillsets you have developed; obstacles you have overcome based on your background or upbringing; or topics you have become passionate about studying in law school based on your lived or educational experiences.
• Undergraduate and/or Standardized Test Performance: If you do not think that your academic record or standardized test scores accurately reflect your ability to succeed in law school, please tell us why.

The Admissions Committee typically finds one page or less is a sufficient length for most additional essays. 

Application Toolkit: Written Statements

On this webpage, you will find our advice and guidance for approaching the two written statements in the application.

Beginning with the application for Fall Term 2024 enrollment, we now require that all applicants submit a Statement of Purpose and a Statement of Perspective. Although it is no longer an application component, much of the advice we shared about the personal statement may still be useful to applicants as they develop their Written Statements. We have preserved that information on this toolkit for your reference.

Changes to the J.D. Application Components

Instructions

Every applicant must submit both a Statement of Purpose and a Statement of Perspective, responding to the prompts below. Each Statement must be one to two pages in length, using double-spacing, one-inch margins, and a font size that is comfortable to read (no smaller than 11 point). We expect every applicant to use at least one full page for each Statement.

Statement of Purpose : What motivates you to pursue law? How does attending law school align with your ambitions, goals, and vision for your future?

Statement of Perspective : The Admissions Committee makes every effort to understand who you are as an individual and potential Harvard Law School student and graduate. Please share how your experiences, background, and/or interests have shaped you and will shape your engagement in the HLS community and the legal profession.

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Changes to the J.D. Program Application Components

August is here, and that means the J.D. Admissions Office is finalizing our application for the 2023–2024 cycle before it opens on September 15. One exciting change for this year: we have reworked our essay requirements and prompts.

August 4, 2023

Should you include a “why Harvard” statement in your application?

Each year at this time, we receive questions about how applicants should express interest in Harvard Law School. Include a “Why Harvard” essay? Talk about HLS in the personal statement? Maybe an addendum on this topic? The answer to all these questions is the same: no, that’s not necessary.  Let’s start with the separate “why

December 2, 2022

Overrated/Underrated Part 3

Continuing our Overrated/Underrated series, this week, we shift our focus to highlight some of the overrated approaches that we recommend applicants avoid as they craft their applications. 

November 17, 2021

Overrated/Underrated Part 1

The J.D. Admissions team recently came together to offer their thoughts on some underrated and overrated approaches that applicants might take towards their HLS application. We hope you’ll find some of these nuggets useful.

September 9, 2021

Real Talk: The Personal Statement

For our first entry in the Real Talk series, Associate Director Nefyn Meissner shares advice on approaching the personal statement.

August 6, 2020

Personal Statement Advice

The personal statement is “an opportunity to give the Admissions Committee a better sense of who you are as a person and as a potential student and graduate of Harvard Law School.” But what does that mean to us?

November 6, 2018

Podcast Advice

Navigating law school admissions with miriam & kristi.

Miriam Ingber (Associate Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid at Yale Law School) and Kristi Jobson (Assistant Dean for Admissions at Harvard Law School) provide candid, accurate, and straightforward advice about law school admissions — direct from the source. They will be joined by guest stars from other law schools to discuss application timing, letters of recommendation, personal statements, and more.

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Written Statements Workshop

Our Statement Workshop provides applicants with straightforward advice on how to craft essays with a reflective activity and guiding questions to consider.

We do understand mistakes happen. You are more than welcome to upload an updated document through your status checker. We will review the new material alongside what has been previously received.

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Harvard law personal statement: how to write + example.

Reviewed by:

David Merson

Former Head of Pre-Law Office, Northeastern University, & Admissions Officer, Brown University

Reviewed: 03/03/23

‍ If you’re applying to Harvard Law School, it’s essential to write an impactful personal statement. Read on to learn how to write a Harvard law personal statement that sets you apart from the crowd. 

The Harvard Law personal statement is an important part of the application process. It provides an opportunity for you to showcase your unique qualities and experiences to the admissions committee. You can communicate your motivations, passions, and goals for pursuing a legal education at Harvard Law School through the personal statement.

To have a good chance of getting into Harvard Law , you need to stand out from the thousands of other applicants. By presenting a compelling personal statement, you can make a positive impression on the admissions committee and increase your chances of admission.

Keep reading to learn how to write a personal statement that distinguishes you from other applicants and demonstrates your fit with Harvard Law School's values and culture. 

This guide will cover the requirements and tips you need to know to write a well-crafted Harvard Law personal statement. We’ll also go over a successful Harvard Law personal statement example and why it works!

Harvard Law School Personal Statement Requirements

To write a successful personal statement that demonstrates your value as an applicant, you need to ensure you stick to the requirements. The admissions committee is looking for applicants who show they care about the application process and pay attention to detail. 

Not adhering to the requirements could suggest a lack of attention to detail and negatively impact your chances of being admitted. Following the requirements ensures that your personal statement is well-organized and focused so that you can effectively communicate your message to the admissions committee.

Here are the requirements for the Harvard law personal statement:

Length: Your personal statement must be no more than two pages in length, double-spaced, with a font size no smaller than 11-point, and one-inch margins. 

Content: It should provide insight into who you are as a person and as a potential law student. Use this space to tell a story that illustrates your strengths, passions, and goals. You can also discuss any challenges you’ve overcome or experiences that have shaped your unique perspective.

Format: Your personal statement should be saved as a PDF and uploaded to the application portal . Your name and LSAC account number should be included on each page of the personal statement.

Additional Information: In addition to the personal statement, you may also choose to submit a supplementary statement about any factors that may have affected your academic performance or a diversity statement that describes your unique perspective and experiences. 

Paying attention to these requirements is key, as failing to do so can result in an incomplete or disqualified application. Adhering to the guidelines and word count ensures that your personal statement is concise and tailored to the expectations of the admissions committee. 

It's also important to note that while the personal statement is a crucial component of your application, it's not the only factor that Harvard Law School considers. Your academic record, test scores, letters of recommendation, and other factors will also be evaluated.

Crafting a Winning Personal Statement for Harvard Law School

Harvard Law is one of the most prestigious law schools in the world. So, it’s important to make sure every element of your application is top-notch. A well-written personal statement can make you a memorable candidate and increase your chances of getting in. 

To put your best foot forward, it’s helpful to learn what’s worked for other applicants. So, refer to this guide when you need to brush up on the Harvard Law personal statement requirements or need a bit of inspiration. It’s been designed to help you write a personal statement you can be proud of. Let’s get started. 

Start by Brainstorming

Before you begin writing your personal statement, take some time to brainstorm your ideas. Consider your experiences, accomplishments, and goals, and think about how they relate to your desire to attend Harvard Law School.

Brainstorming helps generate ideas, clarify thoughts, and identify key themes or concepts. It’s a process of free-flowing, non-judgmental thinking that allows for creative exploration and problem-solving. It can help you organize and prioritize ideas and content. 

By brainstorming, you can uncover unique and compelling aspects of your experiences or qualifications that might have gone unnoticed. It also provides a foundation for the writing process and can help to streamline and focus your message. Overall, brainstorming can bring a lot of value to a Harvard Law personal statement.

Develop a Thesis Statement

Once you have a sense of the main ideas you want to convey in your personal statement, develop a thesis statement that encapsulates your main message. This should be a single sentence that highlights the central theme of your personal statement.

A strong thesis statement is essential for your personal statement because it serves as the central message or argument that you’re trying to convey in your writing. It should be concise and clear, and highlight the main theme you want to communicate to the admissions committee.

A thesis statement helps to focus your personal statement and gives it a clear sense of direction. It also helps to ensure that your writing is coherent and organized, which is important for making a strong impression on the admissions committee.

In addition, your thesis statement can help you to stand out from other applicants. It allows you to demonstrate your unique perspective and approach to the law and helps to highlight what makes you a strong candidate for Harvard Law School.

Overall, having a well-thought-out thesis statement provides a sense of direction throughout your personal statement, helps to make your writing more focused and organized, and allows you to communicate your unique perspective and strengths as a law school candidate.

Tell a Story

Rather than simply listing your accomplishments, use your personal statement to tell a story that illustrates your strengths, passions, and goals. Use specific examples and anecdotes to bring your story to life.

Storytelling can have a powerful impact on a personal statement for Harvard Law School. By telling your story, you can help the admissions committee get a better sense of who you are as a person and as a potential law student.

When done effectively, storytelling can help your personal statement stand out from the thousands of other applications that the admissions committee receives each year. It can make it more memorable, engaging, and can help create an emotional connection with the reader.

Storytelling can also help demonstrate skills and qualities that law schools are looking for, such as critical thinking, problem-solving, and effective communication. Using examples from your experiences to illustrate these skills, you can show the admissions committee why you would be a valuable addition to their community.

Storytelling can be a powerful tool in a personal statement for Harvard Law School. By using concrete examples and narratives to illustrate your strengths and goals, you can create a compelling case for why you would be a strong candidate for admission. 

Show, Don't Tell

Instead of simply stating that you're a hard worker or a great leader, demonstrate these qualities through specific examples and anecdotes. Use descriptive language and imagery to paint a picture of who you are and what you've accomplished.

Showing qualities through the lens of your experiences makes your writing more engaging and memorable. Using specific examples to illustrate your qualities and achievements will ultimately make your Harvard Law personal statement more impactful.

Keep It Brief and On Point.

Remember that your personal statement should be no more than two pages long, so stick to your point. Remember that the admissions committee receives thousands of applications each year, and they typically have a limited amount of time to review each one. 

Ensure that your personal statement is clear and easy to read by using simple language and staying focused on your main thesis. You want to write just enough to make a strong case for why you are a strong candidate for admission to Harvard Law School. 

By focusing on your most important experiences and qualities and avoiding unnecessary tangents, you can demonstrate your value as a potential law school student and make a compelling argument for why you should be admitted.

Edit and Revise

Once you've written a draft of your personal statement, take some time to edit and revise it. Pay attention to grammar, punctuation, and spelling, and make sure your writing is clear and concise. Ask someone else to read your personal statement and provide feedback. 

A well-written and error-free personal statement can make a positive impression on the admissions committee, while a poorly edited statement can detract from your qualifications. 

Editing allows you to refine your message, eliminate errors and inconsistencies, and ensure your personal statement is crystal clear. Careful editing helps to demonstrate attention to detail and professionalism, qualities that are highly valued in the legal profession.

Pay Attention to Formatting

Finally, be sure to follow the formatting requirements for the Harvard Law School personal statement. Save your personal statement as a PDF and include your name and LSAC account number on each page.

A well-formatted statement is not only aesthetically pleasing but also shows that you took it seriously. It can make the statement more readable and easier to navigate for the admissions committee. A well-organized statement can also help to structure your thoughts and ensure that you’re effectively conveying your message.

By following these steps and putting in the time and effort to write a strong personal statement, you can increase your chances of being admitted to one of the most prestigious law schools in the world.

What to Avoid in a Harvard Law Personal Statement

When writing a personal statement for Harvard Law School, it's important to know what to avoid. Read on to learn everything you need to know.

Avoid using clichéd phrases or overused quotes in your personal statement. The admissions committee reads a ton of personal statements every year, so it's important to try to make a unique impression.

Clichés can often be vague and lack specificity, which can make it difficult for the committee to understand your message and qualifications. By avoiding cliches, you can demonstrate your individual perspective and voice. Remember, there’s only one you .

Rambling or Tangential Writing

Your personal statement should be focused and concise, with a clear thesis statement and supporting examples. 

Rambling or going off-topic can detract from the overall impact of your personal statement. It can suggest a lack of organizational skills and attention to detail, qualities highly valued in the legal profession.

To avoid rambling when writing, it is important to stay focused on the topic at hand and stick to a clear structure. Start by outlining the main points that you want to make and the supporting evidence or examples that you’ll use to illustrate those points. Use concise language and avoid unnecessary tangents or repetition.

It’s also helpful to read through your writing regularly and ask yourself if each sentence and paragraph is contributing to the overall message you are trying to convey. Finally, consider having someone else review your work to provide feedback and help identify any areas where you may be straying off topic.

While it's essential to showcase your strengths and accomplishments, avoid coming across as cocky or entitled in your personal statement. Instead, focus on demonstrating your passion for law and your commitment to making a positive impact in the legal field.

Admissions committees are looking for candidates who are not only academically qualified but who also possess the emotional intelligence and interpersonal skills necessary for success in the legal profession. 

By being humble, you show your capacity for growth, willingness to learn from others, and commitment to serving the greater good. 

Avoid focusing on experiences that paint you in a negative light. Instead, pay attention to the positive lessons you've learned and how you've grown and developed as a person and as a potential law student.

Being negative may raise concerns about your ability to work collaboratively with others. Highlighting negative events or attitudes can take away from the overall message of your personal statement, which is an opportunity for you to promote your talents, experiences, and qualifications. 

The legal profession requires the ability to work effectively with others and to maintain a positive and professional demeanor even in challenging situations. By maintaining a positive tone, you can demonstrate your resilience, adaptability, and ability to work effectively in a team-oriented environment.

It should go without saying, but be sure to avoid any form of plagiarism in your personal statement. This includes copying and pasting from other sources, using quotes without attribution, or hiring someone to write your personal statement for you.

Presenting someone else's work or ideas as your own is a form of academic dishonesty. Your personal statement is meant to express your unique background, experiences, and qualifications, and plagiarism undermines its authenticity.

Additionally, plagiarism is a violation of Harvard Law School's code of conduct and can result in serious consequences, including rejection of your application or even revocation of an already awarded admission. 

By submitting an original and authentic personal statement, you can demonstrate your honesty, integrity, and professionalism, qualities that are highly valued in the legal profession.

By avoiding these pitfalls and focusing on crafting a unique personal statement, you can increase your chances of being admitted to Harvard Law School. Remember, the personal statement is an important opportunity to show who you truly are and why you're a strong candidate, so take the time to do it right.

Harvard Law Personal Statement Example

It can help to read a Harvard law personal statement example to get a good understanding of what the admissions committee is looking for. Reading through successful examples can provide insight into what constitutes a strong Harvard law personal statement.

The following personal statement , written by Dasha Wise, is an example of a successful Harvard Law School application essay.  

"The large room was beginning to feel like a cramped interrogation chamber as we stood anxiously awaiting the next set of difficult questions. We did not have to wait long. Why were there discrepancies in our numbers? Wasn’t the retreat expense unnecessarily large? Not to mention that the submitted documents were not only late but incomplete! 

I could not help but steal a glance at the out-going treasurer standing next to me—as a newly elected executive board treasurer for Community Impact (CI), Columbia’s largest service organization, I had been invited to accompany her to CI’s annual presentation to request funding from the student councils. 

There was no doubt that she had stayed up most of the night completing this presentation, attempting to patch up holes in the financial records. 

I could not blame her for the mistakes—everyone at CI was overworked and stretched well beyond their capacity, too busy keeping up with the activities of each day to step back and tackle the organization’s underlying problems.

As she became visibly more flustered, I knew that I needed to assume responsibility for the remainder of the presentation. Standing there in defense of the organization that I had come to love, I managed to remain calm, elding critical questions to the best of my ability while swallowing the all-too-well-founded criticism along with my pride. 

As the presentation came to a close, I began to understand the systematic change that was necessary and that I would be responsible for making this change a reality.

I began immediately that summer. 

Learning as much as possible about the current system and its laws enabled me to discover that CI’s largest impediments were operational inefficiency and improper communication, the combination of which was contributing to internal frustration, ineffective resource management, and a tainted reputation. 

To establish both scale accuracy and efficiency, I reconstructed treasury procedures and devised an automated budget-tracking and request-processing mechanism that would be administered through CI’s online platform. 

Working closely with our webmaster, I designed a treasury section for CI’s website that would enable coordinators to request funding, monitor their budgets, and access key forms as well as the instructional manuals that I had written over the summer. 

To reposition CI’s public image, I insisted on transparency, persuading the staff of its importance and holding a board meeting to update important documents such as our constitution and spending guidelines. Reacting CI’s core principles and procedures, they would now be publicly displayed on our website.

In pushing for large-scale change, I knew in advance that over-seeing the process would be no easy task and that I would need to hold numerous trainings, respond immediately to student inquiries, and continue to work throughout the year to make further corrections based on feedback and my own observations. 

All this I was prepared for, and with input from my peers and CI’s staff along the way, I arrived at a product that would provide the CI treasury with structural support for years to come. 

CI’s records were accurate, and we were able to cut costs, monitor our spending, and receive approval from our volunteers, for whom the elusive red tape had now given way to simplicity and predictability. 

A system that responded to the needs of students, board members, and staff alike eliminated needless frustration, established procedural efficiency, and improved both internal and external communication. 

‍ When I found myself in front of the student councils exactly one year later, I was not met with the same mistrust and quizzical expressions. 

Our presentation, whose supporting documents had this time been submitted well in advance and verified multiple times, resulted in open gratitude for the effort that we had put in to establish scale accuracy and procedural transparency and to maintain open communication with the councils, informing them of the changes that we were making in light of their concerns. 

Unlike the previous year’s penalty and subsequent funding shortage, this time we received precisely what we requested. Yet perhaps most importantly, we received respect, not only from our own coordinators, volunteers, and other constituents but from the university as a whole. 

Although I had encountered numerous difficulties throughout my life, what I had decided to tackle at CI last year was my most significant challenge yet—not merely for the amount of effort that it required, but for the fact that my decisions now affected whether directly or indirectly, hundreds of others, from CI’s staff and student executives to our nine hundred volunteers and the nine thousand individuals that they served. 

In some quantifiable sense, this was my biggest accomplishment, the most rewarding, and among the most memorable, but it was not the first and it will not be the last. I would not have it any other way. 

To survive difficulties is one thing, but to excel in spite of them is another. Overcoming the most seemingly insurmountable yet worthy challenges is, for me, the primary means of obtaining respect from the one person that truly matters and is, at the same time, the most difficult to please— myself. 

Why this essay works: This Harvard law personal statement example checks every box. It’s personal, concise, impactful, and clearly communicates the qualities that would make Dasha an excellent lawyer. If it helps to get the creative juices flowing, reading sample personal statements can be a great source of inspiration for your writing.

FAQs: Harvard Law School Personal Statement

The Harvard Law personal statement is an important part of your law school application and needs to be carefully thought out. It makes sense to have questions, so keep reading to learn more about the Harvard law personal statement. 

1. How Long Should My Personal Statement Be for Harvard Law?

The length of your personal statement for Harvard Law School should be no more than two pages, double-spaced. Harvard recommends that applicants aim for a length of 750 to 1,500 words, which should provide enough space to effectively communicate your message while still remaining concise and focused.

2. How Important Is the Harvard Law School Personal Statement?

The Harvard law personal statement is a crucial component of the law school application and is given significant weight in the admissions decision-making process. 

The personal statement allows applicants to showcase their unique experiences, qualifications, and motivations for pursuing a legal education and to demonstrate their fit with Harvard Law School's values and culture. 

A well-written personal statement can make a positive impression on the admissions committee and increase an applicant's chances of being admitted to this highly selective law school.

3. What Should I Include in My Personal Statement for Harvard Law?

In your personal statement for Harvard Law, you should include information about your background, experiences, and achievements, as well as your motivations for pursuing a legal education. You should also highlight your skills and abilities relevant to the legal profession, such as critical thinking, problem-solving, and communication skills. 

Additionally, you may want to discuss any challenges or obstacles you’ve overcome and how these experiences have shaped your goals and aspirations. Finally, it is important to showcase your fit with Harvard Law School's values and culture and to explain why you are a strong candidate for admission.

Final Thoughts

Hopefully, you now have a good understanding of how to write a solid Harvard law personal statement. Remember to stay true to your voice and experiences, be authentic and sincere, and take the time to edit and revise your statement to ensure it’s polished and professional. 

By following the tips and guidelines outlined in this blog and reviewing the Harvard Law personal statement example provided, you can craft a compelling personal statement that stands out to the admissions committee and increases your chances of being admitted to Harvard Law School. 

Once you’ve written a strong personal statement, you can focus on the next steps, such as collecting letters of recommendation , prepping for a possible Harvard Law interview , or brushing up on legal terms . Good luck on your application journey!

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