application on LSAC vs. school's own application Forum

[yunjh1066]

Hi I have a general question:

If I apply via LSAC, are their personal statement topics different from each school's own application? For instance, UCI's personal statement on their own website seems to be different from the one from LSAC.


Thanks in advance.

[ChemEng1642]

Huh I've never heard of that before. I would go with the prompt on the LSAC website - the one on the law school website may not be up to date.

But also the personal statement is a very general topic anyway so it shouldn't matter.

[yunjh1066]

hmm maybe I misread it or got mixed up with other school's ps! thanks anyways!

So can I just write one personal statement and submit it to all law schools via LSAC? Or are all topics different for each school...

apologize if this is a dumb question!

thanks!

[blueberrycrumble]

hmm maybe I misread it or got mixed up with other school's ps! thanks anyways!

So can I just write one personal statement and submit it to all law schools via LSAC? Or are all topics different for each school...

apologize if this is a dumb question!

thanks!

Pretty much. You might have something different to say for a particular school (although there's always Why X Law School essays, if appropriate). If I had to write a personal statement for each school, I'd just sit and cry.

[ChemEng1642]

If I had to write a personal statement for each school, I'd just sit and cry.

Although all these optional essays are killing me...

[blueberrycrumble]

If I had to write a personal statement for each school, I'd just sit and cry.

Although all these optional essays are killing me...

I actually find the Why X Law School essays come pretty easily to me. Are you doing additional ones too (diversity, addendums, etc.)?

[ChemEng1642]

I actually find the Why X Law School essays come pretty easily to me. Are you doing additional ones too (diversity, addendums, etc.)?

Yep! Yeah most of the Why X essays that came easily but there are a few that I haven't written that are giving me some trouble. I might just not write them...

[yunjh1066]

thanks all for the info. so i can just access essay topics from each school before starting my application on lsac, right?

another side question: when is a safe deadline for law schools in general. I heard before thanksgiving. Is this true?

[ChemEng1642]

If the application is open on LSAC I would definitely access the essay topics from there. The topics can change from year to year and the LSAC application is the only place where they are guaranteed to be the correct topics. You don't need to pay anything to start an application on LSAC. Just find the school from their list, add it to your list, and then pick the right application cycle! You can skip around in the application itself so you can jump right to the optional essay prompts to write those first if you want. For every school though you will have a general:

1) Personal Statement
2) Resume

that may have to be tweaked based on the specific school requirements (page length, specific resume information, etc.) but will most likely be the same for every school you apply to. You can get started on those now (assuming you haven't already) without really looking up any essay topics.

As to your second question - I'm not really sure. I've heard that historically before Thanksgiving is "safe", but I've also heard that applying before the September LSAT results come out gives you an advantage at some schools. I am aiming for before Halloween if that helps!

Good luck!

[hillz]

thanks all for the info. so i can just access essay topics from each school before starting my application on lsac, right?

another side question: when is a safe deadline for law schools in general. I heard before thanksgiving. Is this true?

I believe that generally, applications before Thanksgiving are considered early, applications before Christmas on time, and applications after Christmas are late. Of course, it varies depending on the schools to which you apply, as less selective schools continue to accept and give out scholarships throughout the spring.