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which one to go with. I've written several different statements, but I'm not sure which is the best portrayal.

They each emphasize certain aspects, but I'm not sure which aspects I should - ultimately - choose to focus on.

1. Focuses on the mechanisms and circumstances that drove my decision to pursue a JD/PhD
2. Focuses on the non-traditional route I took to get where I am
3. Focuses on my diversity, in terms of my SES and upbringing as the first educated person in my family

I feel like the first one is the most genuine, but the others would probably be more captivating. While I can certainly "pull it off", I don't want to approach this from a "poor me" angle and ask them to find favor with me. I want to confidently show who I am, in order to show why they should take me.

What do you think the most important message is?

Whichever topic has the most concrete detail and most lends itself to a coherent narrative that has a more-than-tenuous relation to why you want to go to law school.

I have no idea what an SES is.

SES = Socio-economic Status

I've been working on it a bit and I feel a strong narrative of why I want to go to law school would be best. Then, I figured out a way to succinctly mention details about the other aspects.

Thanks for the post.

Read the article on TLS about deciding what to write about. It's a little long, but it helped me to feel MUCH more confident in what I ulitmately decided to write.