UCLA essay Forum

[mz253]

hey, i'm reading UCLA's essay questions and I have a question about what type of essays they are looking for.

UCLA PS topic: In this essay you may discuss any matters relevant to your ability to suceed in law school and the practice of law and any attributes, experiences or interests that would nable you to make a distinctive contribution to the law school and/or the legal profession.

It sounds like a grey area between personal essay and professional essay (well, as anne ivey's guide goes). I have the impression that they want you to write some stories and then link to my interest/desire to pursue a legal education and discuss my qualities for being a good law student and a good attorney after i'm done with law school.

my PS is completely personal, talking about my personal growth, and have NO EXPLICIT TOUCH about how I become interested in law (except in the last sentence I mentioned why i want to go to law school), I wonder if that's enough for this sort of "grey" topic?

[TonyBender]

I would go with the profession statement. It seems pretty clear after reading that question that they want the essay to apply specifically to your abilities as a law student and your choice in their law school. Just my opinion though

[mz253]

Thanks for the input. I really hate professional essay since I have no idea why I'm going to law school anyways. bummer!

I would go with the profession statement. It seems pretty clear after reading that question that they want the essay to apply specifically to your abilities as a law student and your choice in their law school. Just my opinion though

[jjlaw]

My $0.02: I don't think it needs to be professional necessarily because of this part:

any attributes, experiences or interests that would enable you to make a distinctive contribution to the law school and/or the legal profession.

I think you could go with the professional essay, but a personal essay emphasizing any positive attributes through some sort of experience could also work. You basically want to show that you can contribute to law school and the legal profession, and essentially be an effective member of the community. So, any statement that shows you can be a make a meaningful contribution to school and the profession should work, whether or not you talk about why you want to go into law.

[lennonist]

regardless of how the prompt is worded, they want to know why YOU and not someone else deserve to fill a spot in their freshman class. The best way is to reveal your prof. aspirations via personal experiences. That's why it's taking me forever to start mine (anyone can write an auto-bio, after all).

[Xnegd]

Make sure you pay attention to the fact that it can only be two pages.

[mz253]

yea, i think most schools i'm applying to has this 2 page limit and i really hate it!

Make sure you pay attention to the fact that it can only be two pages.