How do you write a strong PS if you've led a normal life? Forum

[Anonymous User]

Nothing extraordinary has happened in my life that has led me to choose law as a career path. I've gave it some real thought and I can't think of anything unique that would dazzle the admissions committee. What should I write about if I haven't really had to overcome any "real" obstacles/adversity in life?

[rinkrat19]

Here's my standard "I don't know what to write my PS about!" advice:

Don't worry so much about starting with an intro and writing straight through to a conclusion. Start writing with the interesting bits--something funny or startling or exciting or sad. Think of a specific instance, subject, situation or event that you can speak engagingly about, even if you can't immediately think of how it would relate to law. If your closest friends were asked about you, what would they say first? What makes you even slightly different than the next applicant in the pile? Pound out some paragraphs--don't worry about where it would go in an essay or how they fit together. Just get words on the page. From there, you may be able to take 'this', discard 'that', and add a little bit more about 'the other thing' to develop an overall theme or topic.

As an example, I started with a quote from a hockey coach I had, and wrote about pushing yourself to failure, and how I'd never really pushed myself that hard. I ended up using almost none of that. Then I started writing about sports more generally; why I like hockey and snowboarding. A few sentences of that actually made it into my final. Then I tried to write 'why I want to go to law school,' but it was mostly whining about how I hate my job. Obviously that wouldn't work, so I toned some of it down (from "I hate my job" to "my job is rewarding, but not something I'm passionate about"). I related that to things I actually am passionate about (snowboarding and hockey, from before), and how so few people are lucky enough to have jobs they love as much as their hobbies.

Just to show how several false starts came together in the end.

[BeenDidThat]

Tacking on with the above (which I think is helpful): they're trying to see if you're reflective, if you can write, and if you have an interesting mind, not that you're a special snowflake. Take something in your life that you care about, connect it with why you want to be a lawyer (you best have something better than "idk what else to do w/myself" or "money money money"), and write intelligently about it.

[bulinus]

Do you really think an admissions committee wants to read another, "I overcame this hardship, so now I know I want to and can be a lawyer" essay?

Be different. Take calculated chances.