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Personal statement about mental illness

Christina WaltonChristina Walton Member
in Law School Admissions 769 karma

The 7Sage law school admissions site says you probably shouldn't write about mental illness and I am wondering why. If the purpose of a personal statement is to share something that happened and how you learned from it, why would mental illness be off the table? Surely schools can't reject you on the basis of you identifying as mentally ill right?

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  • MichaelJM1989MichaelJM1989 Core Member
    64 karma

    The reason you shouldn't is most states prohibit bar applicants from becoming attorneys if they have a documented illness. As an example it was only earlier this year (2020) that New York removed its mental illness question from its bar application. Thus, as far as essay topics go just to be cautious it might be worth avoiding as the profession is only coming around to this sort of topic. I can see why too, traditionally attorneys are individuals with sound mind and judgment and represent others so volunteering you have documented depression, ADHD, bipolar disorder, or schizophrenia, doesn't really bode well with the professional requirements of the job. Hope this helps: https://www.abajournal.com/news/article/new-york-removes-mental-health-questions-from-state-bar-application

  • Christina WaltonChristina Walton Member
    769 karma

    @MichaelJM1989 said:
    The reason you shouldn't is most states prohibit bar applicants from becoming attorneys if they have a documented illness. As an example it was only earlier this year (2020) that New York removed its mental illness question from its bar application. Thus, as far as essay topics go just to be cautious it might be worth avoiding as the profession is only coming around to this sort of topic. I can see why too, traditionally attorneys are individuals with sound mind and judgment and represent others so volunteering you have documented depression, ADHD, bipolar disorder, or schizophrenia, doesn't really bode well with the professional requirements of the job. Hope this helps: https://www.abajournal.com/news/article/new-york-removes-mental-health-questions-from-state-bar-application

    That sounds pretty ableist. What about the diversity statement? Would it be okay for Massachusetts law schools since the mass bar doesn’t ask mental health questions?

  • lexxx745lexxx745 Alum Member Sage ⭐
    3190 karma

    It would probably technically be "okay" but idk if most states prohibit it id be pretty careful. Yea it sucks.

    Ive also heard the same thing about diversity statement. Ive heard it can be a pretty taboo topic, and it raises a lot of questions about your ability to perform in a high stress environment. This was from my prelaw advisor at my undergrad

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