How much of it has to relate to the Law or why you want to go to law school Forum

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rachelql

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How much of it has to relate to the Law or why you want to go to law school

Post by rachelql » Thu Sep 17, 2015 11:05 am

I have been reading Uchicago sample essays and most of them do not mention the interest in law to any significant extent.
However, others say that "why law" should take over at least half the essay.
My rough draft is barely related to the law. Just a personal experience.
Does anyone know if application essays should include the development of interest in law? and to what extent?

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Companion Cube

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Re: How much of it has to relate to the Law or why you want to go to law school

Post by Companion Cube » Thu Sep 17, 2015 11:17 am

I say only make it about your interest in the law if, and only if, you have a genuine AND interesting story about why you want to pursue law. Otherwise, your PS is an opportunity for two things that are more important:

1) showcase your writing ability

2) show the admissions committee something unique about yourself so you stand out from the crowd

Scalvert

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Re: How much of it has to relate to the Law or why you want to go to law school

Post by Scalvert » Thu Sep 17, 2015 11:50 am

Many consultants will tell you that the better, more interesting essays are the ones that showcase what you can add an to an incoming class (a different perspective, unique experience, sense of humor, etc...) without mentioning law school at all. Most people do mention LS, though, because it's the safer route, much easier to write, and if well-written, is more than adequate to get the job done.

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MistakenGenius

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Post by MistakenGenius » Thu Sep 17, 2015 12:36 pm

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Last edited by MistakenGenius on Sun Dec 13, 2015 9:11 am, edited 1 time in total.

Scalvert

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Re: How much of it has to relate to the Law or why you want to go to law school

Post by Scalvert » Thu Sep 17, 2015 3:19 pm

MistakenGenius wrote:
Scalvert wrote:Many consultants will tell you that the better, more interesting essays are the ones that showcase what you can add an to an incoming class (a different perspective, unique experience, sense of humor, etc...) without mentioning law school at all. Most people do mention LS, though, because it's the safer route, much easier to write, and if well-written, is more than adequate to get the job done.
First of all, who the hell cares what a consultant says about anything? Some of them seem like nice, honest people, like Spivey and Buttenbaum, but the vast majority are complete shills who have no clue about anything. You can get better advice on these forums than you can from 99% of the "consultants" out there.

Just pointing out that either route she decides to take would be widely agreed upon as being perfectly acceptable. (not trying to suggest anything else. OP, do not spend $$ needlessly!)

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ms9

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Re: How much of it has to relate to the Law or why you want to go to law school

Post by ms9 » Fri Sep 18, 2015 2:54 pm

rachelql wrote:I have been reading Uchicago sample essays and most of them do not mention the interest in law to any significant extent.
However, others say that "why law" should take over at least half the essay.
My rough draft is barely related to the law. Just a personal experience.
Does anyone know if application essays should include the development of interest in law? and to what extent?
You are fine. Unless a school specifically asks in an optional essay for "Why Law," their default is that if you are applying to law school you actually have a reason to be interested in law. As a practical matter, as much as I appreciate the kind words of MistakenGenius, I also would not write a "Why Hitler" essay. "Why Kittens" would be a hit with Karen Buttenbaum, for sure, as someone's cat once interview-bombed her Skype when she was interviewing at HLS and she loved it.

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