Reapplying this cycle: What about essay from last year? Forum

[things fall apart]

I applied really late last cycle and got WL at most of my places. In the time since I have made some positive strides and hope to apply very soon on EA to make it in these places.

What should I do about my essays though? Should I scrap and remake, slightly touch up, resubmit, or something else?

I would imagine it pretty stale to turn the same essay in, meanwhile I think my DS was a strength of my application. I dont have a whole lot to add, though maybe a paragraph or two updating my progress with what I address. Due to its specialty im fairly confident a AO would recognize it again if they had to read it again, and I'm wondering what looks best in my situation

[Mr. T]

I'd re-write them personally although other more experienced TSL's might disagree.

[gdane]

Rewrite new essays. Dont submit the same ones. It screams laziness. If you have nothing new to report since you last applied, that sucks for you. Have you dont anything productive? Volunteer work, a job? Schools want to see that youve kept busy.

Good luck!

[things fall apart]

I'd re-write them personally although other more experienced TSL's might disagree.

Ok so basically I opened my old essay, and im slicing and dicing while still large excerpts from my previous essay. I am changing the lead, the tone, and updating it a bit, however this is very similar to my previous essay.

If I were turning this essay in, the professor would figure I plagirised it from my first but it would definitely not be a copy and paste with my name at the top. It has giant excerpts from the first while changing around some wording and positioning, adding a bit more info.
If you were to compare the two, you'd probably find a direct match on 40% of the words, and similarities on another 20%. Is the 40% of new material sufficient?

[trudat15]

I'd re-write them personally although other more experienced TSL's might disagree.

Ok so basically I opened my old essay, and im slicing and dicing while still large excerpts from my previous essay. I am changing the lead, the tone, and updating it a bit, however this is very similar to my previous essay.

If I were turning this essay in, the professor would figure I plagirised it from my first but it would definitely not be a copy and paste with my name at the top. It has giant excerpts from the first while changing around some wording and positioning, adding a bit more info.
If you were to compare the two, you'd probably find a direct match on 40% of the words, and similarities on another 20%. Is the 40% of new material sufficient?

There's a question in all the apps asking if you've applied to their school before. They keep files of old applicants and can pull up your old app (from what I'm told by an adcomm at a fair) - which would be bad news for you if they saw two virtually identical essays.
I would say just write something new, though others might disagree.

[JOThompson]

Depends on the content of the first essay. If you feel you can't adequately describe your character and motivation to attend law school with an entirely different topic, I'd stick with the essay you have although you should still heavily revise it.

[SilverE2]

Its a tough question, I'm reapplying to a combination of new schools and schools I applied to last cycle. I reworked my personal statement, but its largely the same. I wrote an addendum of what I've been up to since last time I applied to those schools to which I reapplied, but the way I figure it is I wrote my big "personal statement", I really don't have another personal statement to write unless I write a generic "why I want to go to law school statement". So whatever, I'll take my chances but I think for the most part it will be ok.

[r6_philly]

It depends on the topic too. I rewrote mine to give it a different start, lead in, later 1/3 and ending. But the middle portions are still the same, I just reworded and rearranged a bit. It is not avoidable - it is about my life progression and I can't change it but so much.

I was waitlisted by most of the schools for applying so late last year, so I don't know if you should treat it differently than having been rejected. My application as a whole also had many new components as well including grad school, jobs, activities, LORs.

Add: I remember reading if it wasn't successful the first time, then don't think it would do much better this time, but I don't know if being waitlisted is failure or not since they pretty much stopped admitting when I applied in March.

[things fall apart]

It depends on the topic too. I rewrote mine to give it a different start, lead in, later 1/3 and ending. But the middle portions are still the same, I just reworded and rearranged a bit. It is not avoidable - it is about my life progression and I can't change it but so much.

I was waitlisted by most of the schools for applying so late last year, so I don't know if you should treat it differently than having been rejected. My application as a whole also had many new components as well including grad school, jobs, activities, LORs.

Add: I remember reading if it wasn't successful the first time, then don't think it would do much better this time, but I don't know if being waitlisted is failure or not since they pretty much stopped admitting when I applied in March.

Im in the same boat. I have largely reworked my essay, Id say about 30% will be exact wording. The thing is, like you, its scenery and background info so unless I word it differently theres no way around repeating myself.

I think I will continue to do a good job of modifying it, but I got WL at this school up until 2 weeks after I started working my job now, and that was after applying in Feb while I intend to apply before the first week of Nov via EA this time around. I think if nothing else my essay is what worked in my total body of work.

[r6_philly]

You should be fine, especially you reworked it. Good luck!

[things fall apart]

Rewrite new essays. Dont submit the same ones. It screams laziness. If you have nothing new to report since you last applied, that sucks for you. Have you dont anything productive? Volunteer work, a job? Schools want to see that youve kept busy.

Good luck!

Yeah I'm largely reworking my first essay. Actually very little of it will be similar even though I am going to base it loosely on the same topic.
And I have done a lot recently, however I put that in a separate 1 page essay as I think my DS is still a much stronger topic/esssay.

Ca va?

[octneedy]

I'm in a similar situation. I figured as long as I edit the paper and resubmit something that's reworked it'll be fine. Maybe include an additional essay if it's relevant.

Kinda think that b/c I was applying so late in the cycle most ad coms just dinged me if my scores weren't good enough w/out really reading my PS.