Hello! I have gotten conflicting advice on how to write my personal statement. I have seen LSAT tutors say to write it about a specific story and how that taught you something that drives you to go to law school. I talked with my Pre-Law advisor at school and she gave me opposite advice. She told me to briefly talk about the moment I realized I wanted to go to law school and then for the rest of the essay talk about skills that I have that make me a good candidate for law school. Which of these is a better style? I can put a brief overview of the two different kinds that I have written that may give a little more context. Which of these options are stronger?
Option 1: I start off talking about a TikTok where a nurse doesn't believe older people should receive life saving care like resuscitations. I then go into how this TikTok upset me because I have first hand seen how the healthcare system has failed my loved ones due to discrimination based on age and preexisting conditions. I then dive into how seeing medical malpractice first hand showed me I needed to not be complacent and pursue a career in law.
Option 2: I start off talking about the TikTok and the instance of medical malpractice I have witnessed in a much shorter and more objective manner. I then state I want to go into law so that I can help to change systems for the better. I then talk about experiences and qualities that I have that would make me a good lawyer. I talk about my fundraising experience, internships with law firms, and a research paper I did on a social issue and the solution I proposed.
I think my first option is stronger but my advisor said the second one is better. I also would ideally like to start my career working in corporate law and then do elder and healthcare law on the side as more pro bono work. Should I mention that or would that harm my admissions chances?
3 comments
I'm not an AO or anything, but I would not mention the tiktok at all. I don't feel like it really adds anything to your argument that you couldn't introduce in a much better way.
From the perspective of an admissions officer, I kinda want some aspects of those options but ultimately something else entirely. Really, I want to know why you want to go to law school and what your professional plan is for after law school. That's the purpose of the PS - I promise! How you can best present that is up to you. But imagine that the "here's what I want to do as a lawyer" is the grand finale of your PS. The information you provide in the beginning / middle of your PS should lead up that concluding point.
And to say this out loud - you don't have to explicitly discuss your skills and qualities. That's because I'll intuit a lot of that from your transcript and from your resume. For example, you don't need to tell me that you're good at research and writing because I'll see your grades and I have a sample of your writing in the form of your PS.
Just my opinion as a former admissions officer!
Hi I'm also a healthcare law interested gal! I do agree that Option 1 is stronger, especially since some schools explicitly state in their instructions, not to restate your resume in your personal statement. I think your personal statement kind of delivers the impetus for your decision to pursue law, while optional/diversity/perspective statements gives you room to explain why you and your experiences are fit for law schools/law in general/advocacy/etc. It's kinda the 'show don't tell' advice that a lot of tutors give!
I also think that if your personal statement revolves around social advocacy and elder/healthcare law, it may make more of a compelling narrative to say that you are interested in those fields (instead of saying that you want to do corporate now, healthcare law later).
To elaborate, if your loved ones were personally mistreated by the healthcare system, you have a strong incentive to pursue a career advocating for others like your loved ones. Unless there is another transitioning line, it may be a bit of a jump to say my loved ones were personally mistreated, so that's why I want to pursue corporate law or environmental law or entertainment law. You could alternatively phrase it like you saw your loved ones being failed by healthcare workers and legal advocates, which gave you the impetus to pursue law in general (without mentioning a specific area of law).
Also if you mention that you want to do healthcare law in your essay, you are not legally bound to your decision. You're allowed to change your mind! But if healthcare law or elder law is what first motivated you to pursue law, then it would make an appropriate personal statement topic.
I'm not an admissions expert or tutor by any means full disclosure! Wishing you luck!