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Yeah I want to know this true. What about non-trad applicants? I wasn't really planning to write a diversity statement because I'm like the whitest of white bread and I've faced no adversity ever. But I do have an engineering degree and I am 112 years old.

Depends, do you guys feel like wasting time?

I probably wouldn't.

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So, you're asking if white guys who go to college are uncommon enough among law school applicants to merit an essay?

bcastel1 wrote:I also play quarterback here at Notre Dame. Could I twist this into a diversity statement? I'm just looking for something to show admissions that I am "diverse" without being Hispanic, etc.

You don't need to show diversity. Definitely include playing QB at ND in your personal statement though.

bcastel1 wrote:I also play quarterback here at Notre Dame. Could I twist this into a diversity statement? I'm just looking for something to show admissions that I am "diverse" without being Hispanic, etc.

It doesn't surprise me that ND QB's are looking at alternate career paths these days.

The admissions people are not stupid. They will be able to tell a "forced" DS. Plenty of people get accepted without writing a DS - I would think that an obviously fake one would be more detrimental to an application than not having one at all.

D. H2Oman wrote:Depends, do you guys feel like wasting time?

We want to go to law school, don't we?

If this isn't a flame, telling u you are the ND QB and an aerospace engineer totally outs who you are.

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bcastel1 wrote:so in short.. neither the aerospace major nor the football card warrant a diversity statement? are the diversity statements typically used for ethnic purposes then?

Mostly.

Also walk on ND QB should have a pretty decent personal statement story to tell. Don't worry about.

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I would say DO NOT write a diversity statement about being an aerospace engineer or a QB. First of all, it does not make much sense. If these traits qualify a diversity statement, then so does being a red head, or being a dance major, or being drum major of your school's band. Just b.c. it is unique does not mean it qualifies as the type of diversity that law schools want to know about. After all, everyone has something unique about them.

Most importantly, it could actually be a negative thing. Adcoms could see you as ignorant of what it actually means to be of a diverse or under-represented background.

Being a non-traditional student on the other hand, is definitely worthy of a diversity statement. Age is a "social identity" and not a "personal identity". I think that's what makes it worthy of a diversity statement.

FWIW I wrote a DS about being an engineer and it certainly didn't hurt me last cycle. If the DS is well-written and adequately conveys how your engineering background will add to the diversity of the law school, I say it's worth a shot.

Feel free to PM me if you have any questions.

BioEBear2010 wrote:FWIW I wrote a DS about being an engineer and it certainly didn't hurt me last cycle. If the DS is well-written and adequately conveys how your engineering background will add to the diversity of the law school, I say it's worth a shot.

Feel free to PM me if you have any questions.

I agree with this guy. I see nothing wrong with highlighting things in a diversity statement that are uncommon among law school applicants, and I would imagine that being a D-I QB or aerospace engineering major qualify as uncommon. Just don't write a shitty one.

Desert Fox wrote:If this isn't a flame, telling u you are the ND QB and an aerospace engineer totally outs who you are.

Um, the name the guys posting under doesn't hurt either.

Eh. Depends on what the school's prompt is for the DS and what you have to say. For example, if the school is specifically asking for ethnic/socioeconomic traits, or if you're not going to say much more than "I don't suck at math," then at best it won't help and it could probably hurt. If there's a more general prompt and you have substantive things to say about what the prompt is looking for and what you'll add to the school's next class, sure, go for it, I doubt it will hurt. Just don't force it, if it won't be appropriate.

Same thing for QB.

As mentioned, this all would likely by useful in your PS though.

I think this depends on if you incorporate engineering into your PS at all (IP Law?). If so, the DS is kind of pointless. If not, I think you could spin a great one about being an athlete in Aerospace Engineering - the engineering alone won't make you too unique, since there are actually a decent amount that apply and the academic experience/result is generally not that dissimilar between applicants (whereas different URMs may have different stories, etc). I can think of at least 4 Aerospace Engineers on TLS alone that are applying to T14s in the 2010-2011 cycle.

you can probably write an intellectual diversity statement on engineering, but you'll probably sound like a douche. no one cares that you played football.

I would only write a diversity statement if you have some interesting experience to talk about. I wrote one talking about my time in the military and it was well received.

I think these are things that could make good themes to touch on in your PS, but don't really warrant a separate DS. Things like being an aerospace engineering major or a Div I quarterback are great sifts because they're rare things among applicants and can show positive attributes, but they're the kind of attributes your PS itself should be about. What were you going to write your PS about that this stuff won't fit in it? The QB thing at least seems like a great thematic thing.

vanwinkle wrote:I think these are things that could make good themes to touch on in your PS, but don't really warrant a separate DS. Things like being an aerospace engineering major or a Div I quarterback are great sifts because they're rare things among applicants and can show positive attributes, but they're the kind of attributes your PS itself should be about. What were you going to write your PS about that this stuff won't fit in it? The QB thing at least seems like a great thematic thing.

Not to piggyback on OPs thread (okay, I'm piggybacking) but if an Aerospace Engineer were to write a PS about something that doesn't really mention AEng, would that confuse adcomms? In that case, would a DS be helpful?

czelede wrote:Not to piggyback on OPs thread (okay, I'm piggybacking) but if an Aerospace Engineer were to write a PS about something that doesn't really mention AEng, would that confuse adcomms? In that case, would a DS be helpful?

I think if it's not interesting enough to even mention in your PS then you should just leave it on your resume. They're going to see on your resume that you were an aerospace engineering major. Writing a DS just to say "Hi, I'm an aerospace engineering major and that makes me unique" is in that sense redundant to your resume and a waste of paper to talk about anymore.