When you apply to law school you need to submit your college transcripts, an admissions application accompanied with your personal statement, resume, and your LSAT score.  Laws schools interview prospective students through a student’s personal statement.  This is your opportunity to showcase your special attributes, which are not represented in your GPA or LSAT score.  Therefore, it’s important that you make a great impression with the admissions faculty through your personal statement. 

Before you get started, read each law school admission’s application for instructions on essay length and other requirements, such as word count and page limits, spacing requirements, and possible restrictions on topics, if applicable.   

Usually, law schools are interested in personal statements which show your unique characteristics, or why you want to attend law school, or how you have overcome adversity or tragedy.  It’s a good idea to have your personal statement tell a story which showcases your personal characteristics, rather than just spelling them out for the reader (e.g. “I am hardworking, I am willing to learn, etc.”).

Your personal statement should be free of grammatical errors, misspelling or typos.  In addition, your personal statement should not be a summary of your resume, by simply rewording it.  Personal statements should have a strong tone and not focus on your weaknesses.  Also, don’t try to impress the reader with “legal jargon” or modeling your personal statement after a legal brief.  Therefore, make your personal statement personal.  A well thought out personal statements can set you apart for your competition and seriously increase you chances of gaining admission to law school.