blew off writing sample Forum

[DoubleChecks]

my understanding of the writing sample has always been that it wont help your application in any way, but if you just don't do it, make no sense, write illegibly, etc. it can certainly hurt your chances.

most schools probably don't look at it, but its really not hard to write a few semi-coherent paragraphs to satisfy any adcomms that feel the need to dig into your file beyond the numbers.

How would you even know that? This site is so funny sometimes. Do you have experience or evidence where it have hurt someone? I spent no more than 10 minutes on it and substituted my GF's name for the LULZ when it came out on the pdf. My applications weren't hurt at all.

How nice to know you're willing to take that kind of risk based on word of mouth. All I'm saying is it's 35 minutes, a pencil, and some paper. It's not something to fret over, but why shouldn't you take it seriously? It's like assuming the kids on the playground are right about a rattlesnake actually being dead, and then playing with it.

i dont think its worth the risk really, no matter how small. that being said, i know for HY at least, adcomms have explicitly told me that some on the review board read the writing samples and put some weight into it..maybe those adcomms (on separate occasions) all lied to me, maybe not. if you did it and applied there, maybe you got a reviewer who didnt care about it, but maybe there's someone out there who had the numbers and got dinged/WL and is still wondering why...none of us will really know, but all arrows point to the reasonable assumption that at best it does nothing for you, at worst it hurts you

[Ragged]

my understanding of the writing sample has always been that it wont help your application in any way, but if you just don't do it, make no sense, write illegibly, etc. it can certainly hurt your chances.

most schools probably don't look at it, but its really not hard to write a few semi-coherent paragraphs to satisfy any adcomms that feel the need to dig into your file beyond the numbers.

How would you even know that? This site is so funny sometimes. Do you have experience or evidence where it have hurt someone? I spent no more than 10 minutes on it and substituted my GF's name for the LULZ when it came out on the pdf. My applications weren't hurt at all.

Says a 174/4.0 Harvard reject.

[gbpackerbacker]

My question about the essay was whether Little Wang would fit in at the 2nd camp. Most summer camps that fit the description of that one are extremely expensive and almost 100% Jewish (I've been a counselor before, not pulling this out of my ass) and would Little Wang really fit in?

I hope you included this generalized borderline anti-semitism in your essay...

[Ragged]

My question about the essay was whether Little Wang would fit in at the 2nd camp. Most summer camps that fit the description of that one are extremely expensive and almost 100% Jewish (I've been a counselor before, not pulling this out of my ass) and would Little Wang really fit in?

I hope you included this generalized borderline anti-semitism in your essay...

how is that anti-semitism?

[Pleasye]

My question about the essay was whether Little Wang would fit in at the 2nd camp. Most summer camps that fit the description of that one are extremely expensive and almost 100% Jewish (I've been a counselor before, not pulling this out of my ass) and would Little Wang really fit in?

I hope you included this generalized borderline anti-semitism in your essay...

how is that anti-semitism?

It's not.

[bergg007]

My question about the essay was whether Little Wang would fit in at the 2nd camp. Most summer camps that fit the description of that one are extremely expensive and almost 100% Jewish (I've been a counselor before, not pulling this out of my ass) and would Little Wang really fit in?

I hope you included this generalized borderline anti-semitism in your essay...

How is this anti-semitism?All he is a saying is that in a camp of 100% Jewish kids an Asian id might feel ostracized. This isn't anti-jewish. Over-sensitive much?

[2014]

My question about the essay was whether Little Wang would fit in at the 2nd camp. Most summer camps that fit the description of that one are extremely expensive and almost 100% Jewish (I've been a counselor before, not pulling this out of my ass) and would Little Wang really fit in?

I hope you included this generalized borderline anti-semitism in your essay...

I spent all of last summer as a counselor at a summer camp that matched the one from the prompt to the T. Out of our 500 campers, 498 were Jewish. They were not embarassed to be Jewish, they were not discriminated against because they were Jewish, but that didn't change the fact that they were Jewish.

When other camps came for athletic competitions with ours, they were entirely Jewish, and the kids would be the first to tell you that.

When I was hired for the job in the spring, the very first thing that the camp director told me on the phone was "While we are not religiously affiliated, you should know this camp is 98% Jewish"

Hell you could call it a positive statement toward Jews in that they are successful enough to afford camps with such high price tags while others cannot.

So while you sit on your politically correct throne calling anything that so much as mentions a prevalent social group anti-semitic, I will say that you are extremely ignorant and need to get off your high horse.

[Anomaly]

Anti-semitism is so much easier to argue against though.

[gbpackerbacker]

I was referring to the assumption that it was expensive and Jewish. The conclusion that the camp is almost 100% Jewish from the prompt seems like quite a jump. I don't know, maybe I'm the one making assumptions. I'm not saying I am offended, because I am not. It just struck me funny..

[2014]

Fair enough, maybe it is an unreasonable assumption, but the vast majority of your stereotypical "Summer camps" are overwhelmingly Jewish and Round Lake matched the description pretty well.

Obviously I didn't write any of that in my essay though as it would have been outside of the information given.

[Flips88]

but the vast majority of your stereotypical "Summer camps" are overwhelmingly Jewish and Round Lake matched the description pretty well.

Your stereotyping makes me lolz.

[Columbia Law]

my understanding of the writing sample has always been that it wont help your application in any way, but if you just don't do it, make no sense, write illegibly, etc. it can certainly hurt your chances.

most schools probably don't look at it, but its really not hard to write a few semi-coherent paragraphs to satisfy any adcomms that feel the need to dig into your file beyond the numbers.

How would you even know that? This site is so funny sometimes. Do you have experience or evidence where it have hurt someone? I spent no more than 10 minutes on it and substituted my GF's name for the LULZ when it came out on the pdf. My applications weren't hurt at all.

Says a 174/4.0 Harvard reject.

Applied after Dec LSAT. So January.

[2014]

but the vast majority of your stereotypical "Summer camps" are overwhelmingly Jewish and Round Lake matched the description pretty well.

Your stereotyping makes me lolz.

Go check em out, it's an accurate stereotype

[WhatSarahSaid]

my understanding of the writing sample has always been that it wont help your application in any way, but if you just don't do it, make no sense, write illegibly, etc. it can certainly hurt your chances.

most schools probably don't look at it, but its really not hard to write a few semi-coherent paragraphs to satisfy any adcomms that feel the need to dig into your file beyond the numbers.

How would you even know that? This site is so funny sometimes. Do you have experience or evidence where it have hurt someone? I spent no more than 10 minutes on it and substituted my GF's name for the LULZ when it came out on the pdf. My applications weren't hurt at all.

Obviously, when people here talk about what admissions offices do, it's mostly speculation, but there is some data that supports the original claim. From the Dean Pless interview:

TLS: What effect, if any, does the LSAT writing sample have on your decisions? Is there a specific reason you might use the writing sample as a factor in admissions?

The LSAT writing sample has almost zero impact on my decision. The reason it is not absolutely zero is that occasionally someone will goof off on the writing sample, draw a picture, make some odd statement, etc. Typically I will deny someone who does that. I also look at it more when the LSAT is administered outside of the US. However, I don't think it is possible to come up with a good metric to score writing ability. I want a writing sample, but I want to see your best work, not what you come up with in timed conditions after 3 hours of testing. That is what we use the personal statement for. Some people worry that personal statements aren't a true reflection of a student’s ability, because they could have been edited by someone else. I certainly understand that concern, and that is one reason the LSAT writing sample is still around.

[DoubleChecks]

my understanding of the writing sample has always been that it wont help your application in any way, but if you just don't do it, make no sense, write illegibly, etc. it can certainly hurt your chances.

most schools probably don't look at it, but its really not hard to write a few semi-coherent paragraphs to satisfy any adcomms that feel the need to dig into your file beyond the numbers.

How would you even know that? This site is so funny sometimes. Do you have experience or evidence where it have hurt someone? I spent no more than 10 minutes on it and substituted my GF's name for the LULZ when it came out on the pdf. My applications weren't hurt at all.

Says a 174/4.0 Harvard reject.

Applied after Dec LSAT. So January.

my point is you also dont know what could have tipped it in either direction lol; unsure what the benefit was, i mean, besides the obvious LULZ

and once again, a good number of adcomms have said that at least SOME of them read it and that SOME of those that read it put above avg emphasis on it (relative to the PS)

maybe in 9/10 cases it wouldnt affect anyone, but id hate to be that 1/10...esp. since all i got out of it as consolation was...nothing

[Flips88]

but the vast majority of your stereotypical "Summer camps" are overwhelmingly Jewish and Round Lake matched the description pretty well.

Your stereotyping makes me lolz.

Go check em out, it's an accurate stereotype

I'm going to go out on a limb and say you're from the east coast, probably northeast.

[lifeaway1985]

So many people got Little Wangs... I thought it was designed for Asian students...

[angua]

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[angua]

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[FlanSolo]

Was anyone else annoyed that they purposefully left it gender netural i.e. "their ten year old child"? when i was writing I was annoyed I had to stay mindful of pronouns, use the phrase "the child" a lot, and in any possessive sentence about the child write "its".

Yeah, I know for sure I'm not the only person who did this, but I wrote "little Wang" at least three times. If LSAC didn't want us to do that, they shouldn't have named the family Wang, not specified gender, and not given a first name. It was my only recourse and I'm sticking to it.