Diversity Statement orrrr?

jack.igoe

Hey 7Sage fam,

I had a quick question regarding a Diversity Statement. So as a little background, I had a really hard time deciding between writing my personal statement on a specific moment that made me consider doing something other than corporate law or a more general essay about my determination to practice law and the steps that I took to get there effectively. I ultimately decided on the former.

However, a big part of the 2nd essay was that I chose my undergraduate school based on my law school aspirations (cheaper in-state school as opposed to expensive out of state). I was also able to complete my undergrad in 2 years in order to get to an education in law earlier.

With that being the case, I will only be 19 years old when I go to apply for law school this cycle. Is this a diverse enough characteristic to write a personal statement about? I know that the average age is about 7 years older and I thought this could be an interesting topic to write about. Do you think it's worth it or would it come across as opportunistic?

Brazil020511

Yes. Plus I think the admission committee would want to solidify that you are really interested in law since you are young. I think this would be a great way to address the issue head on especially since the average age is so much older than your age.

Paul Caint

Yeah! I think you should make sure your personal statement, diversity statement, or any letters of rec can attest to your maturity though, as that may be a concern for admissions officers.

studyingandrestudying

Are there more factors you could tell them about for the diversity statement? For example, maybe there's an obstacle you overcame?

jack.igoe

@Brazil020511: Yes, that's exactly what I was thinking as well! I feel like it gives me an opportunity to get in front of it.

@"Paul Caint" : I think that's kind of why I want to write the diversity statement. I think it could give me a way to turn a potential negative into a positive. E.g. I've known I wanted to do this for awhile and have taken concrete steps to get there in a timely fashion.

@lsatplaylist: There are a few general motifs that I can think of. I took higher level courses pretty early on and was thus thrown into some more intimidating environments that I was able to overcome. Do you think that could work?

Alex

I say if you can craft a compelling statement showing why your age will give you a unique perspective, go for it! I think it's impressive that you'll be starting law school so young.

Paul Caint

@"jack.igoe" You could mention something about when you were taking those advanced courses how your professors raised their eyebrows at such a young person doing them, but that you shined and proved their skepticism wrong.

Idk just spitballing

Seeking Perfection

@"jack.igoe"

I wouldn't do it. The average age is 7 years older because law schools systematically prefer applicants with more experience in the real world, not because there is an under abundance of young applicants. The schools actively select older applicants with slightly inferior numbers over those of us straight out of college.

I'll start law school at 21(less unusual than 19, but still young enough to face an admissions disadvantage) and I definitely will not be emphasizing my age.

The law schools' supposed rationale for why we make inferior applicants is that we don't have real wotld experience overcoming obstacles beyond the friendly walls of an academic institution. How can answering this with a diversity statement stating that the most unique thing about you is that you are young and driven to do things quickly going to benefit your application?

Find a diverse aspect of yourself that law schools don't actively try to avoid admitting and write about that.

jack.igoe

@"Seeking Perfection" said:
@"jack.igoe"

I wouldn't do it. The average age is 7 years older because law schools systematically prefer applicants with more experience in the real world, not because there is an under abundance of young applicants. The schools actively select older applicants with slightly inferior numbers over those of us straight out of college.

I'll start law school at 21(less unusual than 19, but still young enough to face an admissions disadvantage) and I definitely will not be emphasizing my age.

The law schools' supposed rationale for why we make inferior applicants is that we don't have real wotld experience overcoming obstacles beyond the friendly walls of an academic institution. How can answering this with a diversity statement stating that the most unique thing about you is that you are young and driven to do things quickly going to benefit your application?

Find a diverse aspect of yourself that law schools don't actively try to avoid admitting and write about that.

Yeah I totally get what you're saying and that gets at the heart of my conflict with this. The way I think of it is a little different though. I figure that they'll know my age either way so maybe this would be a good way to address it proactively instead of having the committee draw their own inferences based on generalities.

jack.igoe

@"Paul Caint" said:
@"jack.igoe" You could mention something about when you were taking those advanced courses how your professors raised their eyebrows at such a young person doing them, but that you shined and proved their skepticism wrong.

Idk just spitballing

That's what I was thinking too. One of my professors who ended up writing me a letter taught two upper level civil liberties classes where we briefed cases a lot so I thought I could reference those classes in a similar context to what you just suggested. Thanks!

jack.igoe

Thank you! I'm pretty set on my personal statement so this seems to be the last piece to consider. @"Alex Divine"

tylerdschreur10

@"jack.igoe" said:

@"Seeking Perfection" said:
@"jack.igoe"

I wouldn't do it. The average age is 7 years older because law schools systematically prefer applicants with more experience in the real world, not because there is an under abundance of young applicants. The schools actively select older applicants with slightly inferior numbers over those of us straight out of college.

I'll start law school at 21(less unusual than 19, but still young enough to face an admissions disadvantage) and I definitely will not be emphasizing my age.

The law schools' supposed rationale for why we make inferior applicants is that we don't have real wotld experience overcoming obstacles beyond the friendly walls of an academic institution. How can answering this with a diversity statement stating that the most unique thing about you is that you are young and driven to do things quickly going to benefit your application?

Find a diverse aspect of yourself that law schools don't actively try to avoid admitting and write about that.

Yeah I totally get what you're saying and that gets at the heart of my conflict with this. The way I think of it is a little different though. I figure that they'll know my age either way so maybe this would be a good way to address it proactively instead of having the committee draw their own inferences based on generalities.

I think this is the best approach. You're right, they'll know youre 19, so if you can prove that you're a 25 year old head on 19 year old shoulders, awesome. Eliminate their fears regarding a young applicant so they can focus on your qualifications.

studyingandrestudying

@"jack.igoe", I do think that overcoming adversity is something they'd want to hear more about, so yes, probably.

NotMyName

@"Seeking Perfection" said:

@"jack.igoe"

I wouldn't do it. The average age is 7 years older because law schools systematically prefer applicants with more experience in the real world, not because there is an under abundance of young applicants. The schools actively select older applicants with slightly inferior numbers over those of us straight out of college.

I'll start law school at 21(less unusual than 19, but still young enough to face an admissions disadvantage) and I definitely will not be emphasizing my age.

The law schools' supposed rationale for why we make inferior applicants is that we don't have real wotld experience overcoming obstacles beyond the friendly walls of an academic institution. How can answering this with a diversity statement stating that the most unique thing about you is that you are young and driven to do things quickly going to benefit your application?

Find a diverse aspect of yourself that law schools don't actively try to avoid admitting and write about that.

Yeah I totally get what you're saying and that gets at the heart of my conflict with this. The way I think of it is a little different though. I figure that they'll know my age either way so maybe this would be a good way to address it proactively instead of having the committee draw their own inferences based on generalities.

I never thought about this (I'm NT). If that is the case, then maybe you should consider addressing this in an addendum and not in the DS. It's my understanding that DS are meant to address how you may contribute in a positive way to the incoming class. But if yo're actually trying to defend against bias with positive spin, I think an addendum is more appropriate.

http://www.top-law-schools.com/how-to-write-an-effective-addendum.html

^(old article but seems relevant nonetheless)

"Many people applying to law school have “extra” issues they need to address on their application. These are issues which they don't want to waste precious space writing about in their Personal Statement (PS) or Diversity Statement (DS) and which usually involve boring and dry details that would kill their PS anyway. If these issues are serious enough to warrant mention, then discuss them in a separate one-page addendum that briefly states the issue and lets the law school know in clear terms what happened. It can sometimes even allow you to turn a negative into a positive and quite possibly help convince a school to take you."

jack.igoe

@jkatz1488 said:

@"Seeking Perfection" said:

@"jack.igoe"

I wouldn't do it. The average age is 7 years older because law schools systematically prefer applicants with more experience in the real world, not because there is an under abundance of young applicants. The schools actively select older applicants with slightly inferior numbers over those of us straight out of college.

I'll start law school at 21(less unusual than 19, but still young enough to face an admissions disadvantage) and I definitely will not be emphasizing my age.

The law schools' supposed rationale for why we make inferior applicants is that we don't have real wotld experience overcoming obstacles beyond the friendly walls of an academic institution. How can answering this with a diversity statement stating that the most unique thing about you is that you are young and driven to do things quickly going to benefit your application?

Find a diverse aspect of yourself that law schools don't actively try to avoid admitting and write about that.

Yeah I totally get what you're saying and that gets at the heart of my conflict with this. The way I think of it is a little different though. I figure that they'll know my age either way so maybe this would be a good way to address it proactively instead of having the committee draw their own inferences based on generalities.

I never thought about this (I'm NT). If that is the case, then maybe you should consider addressing this in an addendum and not in the DS. It's my understanding that DS are meant to address how you may contribute in a positive way to the incoming class. But if yo're actually trying to defend against bias with positive spin, I think an addendum is more appropriate.

http://www.top-law-schools.com/how-to-write-an-effective-addendum.html

^(old article but seems relevant nonetheless)

"Many people applying to law school have “extra” issues they need to address on their application. These are issues which they don't want to waste precious space writing about in their Personal Statement (PS) or Diversity Statement (DS) and which usually involve boring and dry details that would kill their PS anyway. If these issues are serious enough to warrant mention, then discuss them in a separate one-page addendum that briefly states the issue and lets the law school know in clear terms what happened. It can sometimes even allow you to turn a negative into a positive and quite possibly help convince a school to take you."

That's an interesting idea! I never thought of doing an addendum for it. Thanks for the idea!

Seeking Perfection

@jkatz1488
@"jack.igoe"

An addendum might be perfect. First of all, it would automatically let them know you are aware they normally see your age as a negative and then you could immediately and concisely get to the spin (that you have known what you have wanted to do for a long time and pursued your undergraduate degree quickly as a cost saving device). This might also be a subtle way of letting them know scholarship offers might sway you (since you are conscious of money spent on education).

Additionally, it leaves room for you to say something else about yourself in a diversity statement, perhaps something more desirable. You never want personal statements or to a lesser extent diversity statements to be taken over by addendum-like topics instead of making the affirmative case for you.

I don't think it would be a good idea for everyone. At 21 applying straight from undergrad, I'm just going to avoid calling undo attention to my age, but if you know your age is literally going to grab their attention I think an age addendum makes some sense.

CurlyQQQ

I'd like to add to the sentiment that @"Seeking Perfection" shares. I don't see this as a diversity statement. It would take a lot to pull that off as a diversity statement. I mean I honestly think brainstorming alternatives might be a good idea. But hey if this is the one thing you can't get out of your head then go for it. I've heard some really beautiful pieces from prospective J.D. students and for me personally I'd think an admissions committee would rather your maturity be expressed through your personal statement than simply being about your maturity. You simply telling them isn't as compelling.

I have to admit that the most compelling PSs are those that use a particular experience to illustrate a strength, or reason, passion etc. If you can do that in terms of the overall theme of your essay then you could hit it out of the park! But simply saying, "Hey I'm 19, but I'm mature" doesn't ring compelling to me.

Haha now I feel bad for writing this.