Religion/Political Beliefs on a Personal Statement Forum

[alexandra123]

Hello! I was wondering if anyone knew whether or not it is a good idea to include religious beliefs or political views on a personal statement. I am applying to Belmont School of Law in Nashville, and they are a religious school, but I am not sure if mentioning religion would be a turn-off. Thank you for your time!

[MachineLemon]

Hello! I was wondering if anyone knew whether or not it is a good idea to include religious beliefs or political views on a personal statement. I am applying to Belmont School of Law in Nashville, and they are a religious school, but I am not sure if mentioning religion would be a turn-off. Thank you for your time!

Nothing wrong with citing the school's religious affiliation as a motivator, but you should have other reasons for wanting to attend and to practice law.

On that subject, don't you think it seems inadvisable to attend an unaccredited law school in one of the worst legal job markets of recent memory? Do you think $32k/year is a fair price for a law degree that's mostly worthless in TN and totally worthless everywhere else. Please, do not attend this law school. You will almost certainly not find legal employment or any employment that makes the debt manageable. I say this for your own good.

If you'd like some advice on where/whether to apply, feel free to send me a message with your gpa and lsat. Otherwise, these forums have a lot of useful information if you dig a bit.

[alexandra123]

Thank you for your opinion. I do have many others reasons for desiring to study law. I was just wondering if mentioning religious or personal beliefs would be considered a "plus" or if it would be looked down upon. Belmont is on track to accreditation I believe... and I'm planning on settling in Nashville regardless.

[MachineLemon]

Thank you for your opinion. I do have many others reasons for desiring to study law. I was just wondering if mentioning religious or personal beliefs would be considered a "plus" or if it would be looked down upon. Belmont is on track to accreditation I believe... and I'm planning on settling in Nashville regardless.

As I said, I wouldn't worry about mentioning it, but combine that with your other reasons for attending.

Also, there is currently a significant controversy in the legal world about new law schools due to the extreme scarcity of jobs. The ABA may very well crack down on new accreditations, and Belmont may not receive accreditation. Here is a ABA journal article slamming Belmont for its shady portrayal of employment figures. (Note: The ABA is responsible for accrediting law schools)

http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/ ... op+Stories

There are plenty of other schools that would place better in Nashville. I am not an expert on the area, but you should start a thread on this in under "Choosing a Law School." Here: http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/viewforum.php?f=1

Attending this school will not give you reasonable odds of finding legal employment sufficient to pay back your loans. This is an extremely poor decision. For your own sake, do not attend. You are applying to a disreputable school in a terrible job market for new lawyers.