Placing "X LAW SCHOOL" in the PS Forum

[Anonymous User]

Hey guys, I haven't seen any topics on this so I was wondering what you all think!

I know that in general saying "And this is why I would like to attend [X Law School]" is frowned upon. At that point you might as well just say law school and avoid mistaking school names (or sounding disingenuous).

My question is whether or not it's worth it to take up 2-3 lines at the end of your personal statement to say something like "And this is why I know [X Law School] is the school for me. Aside from your awesome [program / club / clinic], I'm also excited about your emphasis as a school on [what school focuses on]." Obviously you could right it better than that, but you get the idea.

For schools that you truly want to attend, is it worth showing you did the research, or would that space be better used for an extra couple lines in your personal statement about you?

[lymenheimer]

Hey guys, I haven't seen any topics on this so I was wondering what you all think!

I know that in general saying "And this is why I would like to attend [X Law School]" is frowned upon. At that point you might as well just say law school and avoid mistaking school names (or sounding disingenuous).

My question is whether or not it's worth it to take up 2-3 lines at the end of your personal statement to say something like "And this is why I know [X Law School] is the school for me. Aside from your awesome [program / club / clinic], I'm also excited about your emphasis as a school on [what school focuses on]." Obviously you could right it better than that, but you get the idea.

For schools that you truly want to attend, is it worth showing you did the research, or would that space be better used for an extra couple lines in your personal statement about you?

Depends on what you're going for. Your PS doesn't have to touch your desire to go to law school or your desire to go to X law school. Also, some schools suggest that you do a Why X separately. So essentially, it depends on the substance of your PS and the schools to which you are applying. In general, it'll have little/no effect unless you do it poorly. Schools can probably assume you're interested based on the fact that you're applying. I wouldn't say it's frowned upon, as long as you segue appropriately.

edit: 0L with no inside admissions knowledge...Just what I've gathered from my TLS research and research on LS admissions.

[TheodoreKGB]

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[Scalvert]

Just make an outline for a Why X essay and then personalize that towards each school you write one for. It's only one page, so unless you're writing one for like twenty schools, it won't take that much time. You do want to research each school though, don't make it so generic that all you have to do is plug in the school name.

[CanadianWolf]

Depends upon your theme & your specific reasons for applying to that particular law school.

[debdeb2]

It depends on the type of applicant you are, oftentimes. If you are someone who is putting yourself forth as an applicant who is interested in a specific area of law, such as Immigration, public interest, animal law, etc, you really do need to research to ensure that the schools you are applying to have some sort of offerings in those areas. Ex: Sending an application that indicates you'd like to help immigrants and not verifying and acknowledging in your application that you have established you are a "fit" for the school in the area of immigration is a missed opportunity. Show the school you did your homework. They want to feel special, too.

What schools dislike is the final sentence of "X law school is one of the best and I know I can succeed there, blah etc blah." That's a data-free pander - it doesn't establish "fit," so it's an empty effort. You're better off not including it -

[rnoodles]

I think it'd be alright if it ties into your personal statement. E.g., a statement exemplifying public service coupled with a Berkeley tag.

If it's just an add-on to your statement, then I'd say don't do it.

[Judgeasaurus_Rex]

Maybe include more than a few lines, perhaps a paragraph at the end. Make sure that you did your research and can mention things that interest you and are specific to each school.