Top Law Schools

..

I think you could write a diversity statement about your background, but definitely do not try to focus on how knowing Spanish/ spending time in another country makes you "unique." I am sure there are plenty of unique things about you, but knowing how to speak Spanish is not one of them.

.

Hmm, maybe my sample is biased, but almost everyone I know studied abroad and learned a second language. I really don't think that is a good topic for a diversity statement. Also, I would imagine that a large proportion of applicants have some experience volunteering in impoverished areas.

Your background growing up in a rural area definitely brings a different perspective than many applicants. I believe this is a common diversity statement topic, and I think it would be more effective than trying to argue your experiences with other cultures is unique. (Sorry, it isn't.)

.

caminante wrote:I think you could write a diversity statement about your background, but definitely do not try to focus on how knowing Spanish/ spending time in another country makes you "unique." I am sure there are plenty of unique things about you, but knowing how to speak Spanish is not one of them.

First, I think what you talked about should be written in a PS. I think diversity statements are geared towards people who are a religious or ethnic minority.

However, I don't agree with the above statement. I have studied abroad, but its not very common. I go to a small school (about 5000) and only about 50 study abroad every year. That's only about 1%, which makes it unique. Very few people study abroad, and even less can leave saying that they can actually "speak" the language. I studied abroad last semester and can speak Spanish, and I'm convinced that that is one of the main reasons that I got a full tuition scholarship to 3 schools already (my numbers are only average). I definately think that you should write about this (but maybe not as a diversity statement). Every professional that I talk to about it is really impressed, and I know very few people who have studied abroad.

.