Personal Statement Forum
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nguyenr22
- Posts: 9
- Joined: Wed Jan 06, 2010 6:19 am
Personal Statement
Anyone would like to swap personal statement??
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nguyenr22
- Posts: 9
- Joined: Wed Jan 06, 2010 6:19 am
Re: Personal Statement
“Four score and seven years ago,” as I was stumbling into Hoag chemical dependency center, frightened, I uttered these words to Nurse Greg, "Are you guys going to kick my butt in here?" "No, you kick your own butt in here!" he yelled. Little did I know then, that it was the day (July 7th, 2006) that I stopped kicking my own butt and began patting myself on the back. It was that day that I caught my first glimpse of a peak of the rainbow--a new life brought about not just ordinary rain. This rain quenched my decade-drought of drug addiction. “Everything happens for a reason.” So true. My drug addiction led me to snacking and napping at places beyond my imagination. It bonded me to individuals neglected and rejected by society and to those who shared similar dreams and fears as any average Joe. It showed me that food and safety are not guaranteed. Most ironically, however, it guided me to a career ambition. I learned that drug addicts and alcoholics deserve rehabilitation and not incarceration. We just strayed down a wrong road and needed to stop and ask for directions. “Why not, ”we asked, “help us out with a small map?” I want to go to law school because I really enjoy making a difference in people’s lives. I hope to be their “tour guide.” To me, an attorney should be well-equipped not just with knowledge but also with the compassion to serve the public. I have developed a strong foundation of both, yet there is always room for improvement.
I live my life abiding by two principles. One, most of my actions affect at least a friend and a stranger, thus I must constantly be proofreading my rhetoric. Two, with privileges come responsibilities; responsibilities require dedication; it follows, then, that dedication affords privileges.
My father once said, “Con hoc thi bo cho con.” That statement means my education benefits me. Sure. But my education not only benefits me, but it also benefits others. If I am educated, then in turn I can share my knowledge with others. Share is my favorite word of the English language. Mayor Foster of Long Beach, CA has said, “Community members are not interconnected just geographically, but also psychologically and mentally.” For most of my life, for example,I struggled with obesity. Having had too many lonely Friday nights lured me in joining a local gym. I began learning proper dietary and effective exercising regimens. Seeing me having lost 60lbs sparked Frank, a dear friend of mine, to adopt my practices. I shared with him that starving oneself and being a gym rat are not the bases of true nutrition. It is rather exercising in intervals and knowing that, on average,it is a 2000 calories deficit per pound of weight to be burned. Frank is now my workout partner thrice weekly.
My fitness education affected a friend. It also benefitted at least one stranger. Since my clothing size went from 2XL to a Medium, I donated my unused jackets to the homeless individuals on Fourth Street in Santa Ana. When it’s cold and it rains my heart goes out to them. I am humble that I helped six strangers stay warmer this cold winter. Mother Teresa said, “If you can’t feed a hundred people, then feed just one.”
The reason I want to go to law school is that I want to continue to make a difference in people’s lives. A couple years ago, while I was at a law forum in Cal State Long Beach, a UC Berkeley admission officer shared a Noblesse oblige that I today hold dear to my head and heart, “With privileges come responsibilities.” I am privileged. How dare can I claim otherwise after chatting with Joe, a middle age heroin-addicted Marine veteran. He told me that he felt worthless to society and drugs help him to escape momentarily. I shared with Joe that I too felt worthless when having failed to quit umpteenth of times and that I was privileged to know someone who showed me how to stay off drugs. Thus it was my responsibility to pave for Joe the same path. One can’t shake years of addiction over night, however. Nothing in life comes easy. I continued to take Joe to self-help meetings everyday for the first thirty days. We were dedicated to our sobriety, and it afforded us the privilege of a changed life.
In conclusion, this ant is not any better than its neighbor. I set goals for myself and work hard at them one day at a time. My experiences of life have led me to conclude that the strengths and disciplines accumulated in the process of achieving a goal are often more gratifying than the attainment of the goal itself.
I live my life abiding by two principles. One, most of my actions affect at least a friend and a stranger, thus I must constantly be proofreading my rhetoric. Two, with privileges come responsibilities; responsibilities require dedication; it follows, then, that dedication affords privileges.
My father once said, “Con hoc thi bo cho con.” That statement means my education benefits me. Sure. But my education not only benefits me, but it also benefits others. If I am educated, then in turn I can share my knowledge with others. Share is my favorite word of the English language. Mayor Foster of Long Beach, CA has said, “Community members are not interconnected just geographically, but also psychologically and mentally.” For most of my life, for example,I struggled with obesity. Having had too many lonely Friday nights lured me in joining a local gym. I began learning proper dietary and effective exercising regimens. Seeing me having lost 60lbs sparked Frank, a dear friend of mine, to adopt my practices. I shared with him that starving oneself and being a gym rat are not the bases of true nutrition. It is rather exercising in intervals and knowing that, on average,it is a 2000 calories deficit per pound of weight to be burned. Frank is now my workout partner thrice weekly.
My fitness education affected a friend. It also benefitted at least one stranger. Since my clothing size went from 2XL to a Medium, I donated my unused jackets to the homeless individuals on Fourth Street in Santa Ana. When it’s cold and it rains my heart goes out to them. I am humble that I helped six strangers stay warmer this cold winter. Mother Teresa said, “If you can’t feed a hundred people, then feed just one.”
The reason I want to go to law school is that I want to continue to make a difference in people’s lives. A couple years ago, while I was at a law forum in Cal State Long Beach, a UC Berkeley admission officer shared a Noblesse oblige that I today hold dear to my head and heart, “With privileges come responsibilities.” I am privileged. How dare can I claim otherwise after chatting with Joe, a middle age heroin-addicted Marine veteran. He told me that he felt worthless to society and drugs help him to escape momentarily. I shared with Joe that I too felt worthless when having failed to quit umpteenth of times and that I was privileged to know someone who showed me how to stay off drugs. Thus it was my responsibility to pave for Joe the same path. One can’t shake years of addiction over night, however. Nothing in life comes easy. I continued to take Joe to self-help meetings everyday for the first thirty days. We were dedicated to our sobriety, and it afforded us the privilege of a changed life.
In conclusion, this ant is not any better than its neighbor. I set goals for myself and work hard at them one day at a time. My experiences of life have led me to conclude that the strengths and disciplines accumulated in the process of achieving a goal are often more gratifying than the attainment of the goal itself.
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washed out
- Posts: 87
- Joined: Wed Jan 27, 2010 5:40 pm
Re: Personal Statement
It sounds like you have a real interesting story and have overcome a number of struggles.
Your PS is all over the place, jumping from one anecdote to the next without a smooth transition and your theme of "...my actions affect others..." tells us why you want to go to law school but nothing about why you deserve to go to law school.
What is your academic background and why do you completely ignore it in your PS? What is your ethnic background, and is English your first language?
Your PS is all over the place, jumping from one anecdote to the next without a smooth transition and your theme of "...my actions affect others..." tells us why you want to go to law school but nothing about why you deserve to go to law school.
What is your academic background and why do you completely ignore it in your PS? What is your ethnic background, and is English your first language?
