Law School Admissions Advice: Jeanette Leach on Applications, Personal Statements, and Choosing a Law School

^{Last Updated: September 2026}

Applying to law school requires more than submitting grades and an admissions test score. Admissions committees may consider an applicant's academic history, writing ability, recommendations, experiences, accomplishments, judgment, and reasons for pursuing a legal education.

Jeanette Leach, former Dean of Admissions at Santa Clara University School of Law, discussed many of these factors in an interview with Top-Law-Schools.com. Although admissions procedures and individual school requirements evolve, much of Leach's advice continues to offer useful guidance for prospective law students.

Applicants should always verify current requirements, deadlines, testing policies, and application procedures directly with the law schools to which they plan to apply. However, the larger principles discussed here—including presenting a complete application, writing a genuinely personal statement, selecting strong recommenders, and thoughtfully addressing weaknesses—remain valuable when preparing a competitive application.

For additional background, applicants can review the Top-Law-Schools guide to law school personal statements and LawCrossing's discussion of how law schools determine whom to admit.

How Law School Admissions Committees Evaluate Applicants

One of the most important lessons from Leach's admissions experience is that an application should be considered as a complete package rather than simply a collection of numbers.

Undergraduate grades and admissions-test results can be important because they provide admissions committees with standardized measures for comparing applicants. But numbers may not tell the entire story.

Admissions officers may also examine:

The rigor of an applicant's undergraduate coursework
Academic trends over time
Graduate-level academic work
Work and professional experience
Extracurricular activities
Personal achievements
Writing ability
Recommendations
Personal statements and supplemental essays
Significant challenges or circumstances
Evidence of maturity, motivation, and judgment

This broader approach is often described as holistic admissions review.

Applicants therefore should not assume that one element of the application will automatically determine the outcome. Instead, every part of the file should contribute to a coherent picture of who the applicant is, what the applicant has accomplished, and why pursuing a legal education makes sense.

LawCrossing provides additional insight into this process in What Law Schools Look For.

GPA, Academic Performance, and Admissions Test Scores

Leach emphasized the importance of an applicant's undergraduate academic record because it represents performance over a substantial period of time.

A cumulative GPA can reveal more than a single number. Admissions committees may consider the difficulty of the undergraduate program, the courses taken, and whether the applicant's performance improved over time.

An upward academic trend may therefore provide useful context when an applicant had difficulty early in college but later demonstrated stronger performance.

Graduate work can provide additional evidence of academic ability, although applicants should understand that undergraduate and graduate records may be treated differently in the formal admissions process.

Admissions tests can also be significant. Applicants should research each school's current testing requirements rather than relying on historical policies because schools may differ regarding which standardized tests they accept and how multiple scores are evaluated.

The larger lesson is that applicants should understand how their academic record and test performance fit together and be prepared to provide meaningful context where appropriate.

Should You Explain a Low GPA or Test Score?

Applicants sometimes have a legitimate reason for a period of weak academic performance or an unusually low test score.

Leach advised applicants to consider providing an explanation when there is meaningful context that an admissions committee would not otherwise know.

In many cases, an application addendum is a better place for such an explanation than the personal statement.

A strong addendum generally should:

Identify the relevant issue clearly
Provide necessary factual context
Avoid excuses or excessive defensiveness
Explain unusual circumstances when genuinely relevant
Describe subsequent improvement when appropriate
Remain concise and focused

The goal is not to persuade the admissions committee that poor results did not occur. Instead, the applicant should provide information that allows the committee to interpret those results more accurately.

An applicant whose grades improved substantially during the final years of college, for example, may want to explain the circumstances surrounding an earlier difficult period while drawing attention to the stronger academic trend.

Work Experience and Graduate Education

Applicants do not necessarily need to apply to law school immediately after college.

Professional experience can add useful context to an application, particularly when it demonstrates maturity, responsibility, leadership, communication ability, or a clearer understanding of why the applicant wants to study law.

Applicants who have been working for several years can use their résumé, personal statement, and recommendations to show how their professional development has prepared them for legal education.

Graduate education can similarly strengthen the overall picture of an applicant when it demonstrates advanced academic performance or expertise.

However, neither work experience nor an advanced degree should be treated merely as an admissions credential. The strongest applications connect previous experiences to a larger story about the applicant's development and future goals.

How to Write a Strong Law School Personal Statement

Leach placed considerable importance on the personal statement.

The personal statement gives applicants an opportunity to communicate information that grades, test scores, and a résumé cannot fully capture.

A successful statement should help the admissions committee understand the person behind the application.

Applicants can find more detailed guidance in the Top-Law-Schools resource on law school personal statements and LawCrossing's guide to submitting law school essays.

Make the Statement Personal

A common mistake is spending too much of the essay discussing somebody else.

An applicant might explain how a parent, professor, attorney, employer, or mentor inspired an interest in law. That person can be part of the story, but the admissions committee ultimately needs to learn about the applicant.

After reading the statement, the reader should understand something meaningful about the applicant's:

Experiences
Motivations
Character
Accomplishments
Perspective
Goals
Development

If the reader finishes the essay knowing far more about the applicant's mentor than about the applicant, the statement has missed an important opportunity.

Get to the Point

Leach also emphasized the importance of focus.

Applicants sometimes believe that complicated structures, unusual formats, or elaborate introductions will distinguish their essays. In practice, clear and effective writing is often more persuasive.

Admissions readers review many applications. An effective statement should therefore establish its central idea without forcing the reader to search for its purpose.

Avoid Simply Repeating Your Résumé

A personal statement should not be a prose version of the résumé.

If the résumé already identifies an internship, leadership position, academic award, or volunteer experience, the personal statement should add meaning rather than simply repeat the fact.

For example, instead of listing several internships, an applicant could discuss one experience that changed how the applicant understood advocacy, responsibility, public service, business, technology, or another issue related to future goals.

Be Specific Rather Than Generic

Generic statements about wanting to "help people," "make a difference," or "pursue justice" tell admissions committees little without supporting details.

Specific experiences are generally more memorable.

Applicants should ask:

What happened?
What did I do?
What did I learn?
How did the experience change my thinking?
Why does it matter to my decision to pursue law?

Concrete answers create a stronger personal narrative.

Proofread Carefully

Errors can undermine an otherwise strong application.

Applicants should check:

Grammar
Spelling
Punctuation
School names
Program names
Formatting
Word or page limits
Application instructions

Sending one school a personal statement that names another institution is an avoidable mistake that may suggest a lack of attention to detail.

LawCrossing's article on developing a strategy for law school applications offers additional guidance on presenting application materials professionally.

Choosing Strong Letters of Recommendation

A powerful recommendation usually comes from someone who knows the applicant's abilities well.

Prestige alone does not make a recommendation valuable.

A detailed letter from a professor who taught the applicant, evaluated the applicant's work, and observed the applicant's intellectual development can be far more useful than a generic letter from a prominent person who barely knows the applicant.

For applicants who are still in college or who graduated recently, academic recommendations may be particularly helpful because professors can discuss skills relevant to law school, such as:

Analytical reasoning
Research ability
Writing
Classroom participation
Intellectual curiosity
Reliability
Ability to complete demanding assignments

Applicants who have been in the workforce for several years may also seek recommendations from supervisors who can provide detailed examples of their professional performance.

The key question is not, "Who is the most impressive person I know?"

It is, "Who can provide the strongest firsthand account of my abilities?"

Applicants can help recommenders by supplying a résumé, transcript, description of their goals, and sufficient time to prepare a thoughtful letter.

What to Do If You Are Waitlisted

Being placed on a law school waitlist does not necessarily end an applicant's chances of admission.

Leach's advice emphasized patience and meaningful updates.

Applicants should first follow the school's instructions. Different law schools have different policies concerning additional materials.

If a school permits updates, useful new information may include:

Improved grades
A meaningful new academic accomplishment
A promotion or significant professional achievement
An important award
A new publication
Relevant new responsibilities
Another substantial development that strengthens the application

Applicants may also consider sending a letter of continued interest when the school's policies permit it.

Top-Law-Schools provides an extensive guide to letters of continued interest, including strategy and examples.

The purpose of continued communication is to provide useful information and demonstrate sincere interest—not to overwhelm the admissions office with repetitive emails.

Should You Apply to More Than One Law School?

One of Leach's most practical recommendations was simple: applicants should generally consider multiple schools rather than putting their entire admissions strategy into one application.

A balanced application list might include:

Schools that appear highly competitive based on the applicant's credentials
Schools where the applicant appears reasonably competitive
Schools where the applicant's credentials compare favorably with typical admitted students

Applicants should also evaluate schools based on much more than the likelihood of admission.

Relevant factors can include:

Employment outcomes
Geographic placement
Tuition and total cost
Scholarships
Debt
Academic programs
Clinics
Faculty
Bar passage
Alumni networks
Class size
Career services
Areas of legal specialization
Personal and geographic preferences

The objective is not simply to receive an acceptance. It is to identify schools that can reasonably support the applicant's educational and career goals.

Does Applying Early Help?

Submitting applications earlier in an admissions cycle can have advantages, particularly at schools using rolling admissions.

However, speed should not come at the expense of quality.

Applicants should avoid submitting an unfinished or poorly reviewed personal statement simply to apply several days earlier.

A better approach is to prepare application materials well in advance, understand each school's deadlines, and submit a polished application as soon as the applicant is reasonably ready.

Applicants should also confirm that all required components have been received and that their file is complete according to the school's current application system.

Transfer Admissions and First-Year Law School Performance

Students sometimes begin law school at one institution and later consider transferring.

Leach explained that performance during the first year of law school can become particularly important in transfer admissions because it gives another law school direct evidence of how the student performs in a J.D. program.

Prospective transfer applicants should investigate each target school's current requirements carefully.

Factors schools may consider can include:

First-year law school grades
Class standing
Courses completed
Academic rigor
Recommendations from law professors
Reasons for transferring
Personal statement
Undergraduate academic history
Other application credentials

Students should also weigh the potential benefits of transferring against considerations such as scholarships, cost, relationships with professors, journal opportunities, class rank, recruiting access, and geographic goals.

Choosing a Law School for Intellectual Property or Technology Law

Santa Clara Law has long attracted students interested in intellectual property and technology because of its location in Silicon Valley.

For applicants interested in fields such as patent law, copyright, trademarks, privacy, cybersecurity, technology transactions, or emerging technologies, specialized academic opportunities can be worth considering.

However, applicants should avoid selecting a school solely because of the name of a specialty program.

Consider the complete professional picture, including:

Overall employment outcomes
Employers recruiting from the school
Geographic placement
Relevant clinics and experiential opportunities
Faculty
Alumni working in the target practice area
Opportunities with technology companies and law firms
Total attendance cost
Scholarship conditions

Specialization can matter, but it should be evaluated alongside the broader value of the J.D. program.

What Makes a Successful Law Student?

Admissions committees are ultimately trying to identify applicants who are prepared to succeed in a demanding academic environment.

Strong law students often demonstrate:

Discipline
Intellectual curiosity
Strong reading comprehension
Clear writing
Analytical thinking
Time management
Resilience
Willingness to accept feedback
Preparation
Professional judgment

No application can guarantee how someone will perform in law school. But applicants can use their previous academic, professional, and personal experiences to provide evidence that they have developed these qualities.

Key Lessons from Jeanette Leach's Admissions Advice

Treat the application as a complete package. Grades and test scores matter, but admissions committees may also learn about applicants through their writing, experiences, recommendations, and accomplishments.

Make the personal statement genuinely personal. It should help the reader understand something meaningful about the applicant rather than merely repeating the résumé.

Use an addendum strategically. Significant weaknesses or unusual circumstances can sometimes be explained more effectively in a concise supplemental statement.

Choose recommenders who actually know you. Specific firsthand observations generally provide more value than a prestigious signature attached to a generic letter.

Proofread everything. Attention to detail matters.

Provide meaningful waitlist updates when permitted. Substantial achievements or new academic information can provide legitimate reasons to contact a school.

Build a balanced law school list. Applicants should consider several institutions and evaluate each school according to their academic, financial, geographic, and professional goals.

Research current requirements. Historical admissions advice can provide useful principles, but testing policies, application procedures, deadlines, and program offerings can change.

Frequently Asked Questions About Law School Admissions

What Do Law School Admissions Committees Look For?

Law schools can consider academic performance, admissions-test results, coursework, personal statements, recommendations, résumés, professional experience, extracurricular involvement, accomplishments, and other information contained in the application. The importance assigned to each factor varies by institution.

How Important Is GPA When Applying to Law School?

Undergraduate GPA is an important part of the admissions process because it reflects academic performance across multiple semesters. Admissions committees may also consider trends in grades, course difficulty, undergraduate institution, and other academic context.

Can a Personal Statement Help a Law School Application?

Yes. A strong personal statement can help admissions readers understand an applicant's experiences, goals, character, and perspective beyond quantitative credentials. Applicants should use the essay to add information and context rather than repeat their résumé.

Should I Explain a Low GPA or Admissions-Test Score?

Applicants may consider an addendum when legitimate circumstances provide important context for an academic or testing weakness. The explanation should be factual, concise, and focused on information that helps the admissions committee understand the record.

Who Should Write a Law School Recommendation?

A recommender should ideally know the applicant well enough to discuss specific abilities, accomplishments, work habits, or academic performance. For current students and recent graduates, professors can be particularly valuable. Applicants with substantial work experience may also benefit from recommendations from supervisors who know their work well.

What Should I Do After Being Waitlisted?

Follow the law school's instructions first. If additional materials are permitted, applicants can consider providing significant updates and a thoughtful letter of continued interest. Avoid sending repetitive communications that do not contain meaningful new information.

Does Work Experience Help with Law School Admissions?

Professional experience can strengthen an application when it demonstrates maturity, responsibility, skills, accomplishments, or a well-developed reason for pursuing law. Its importance varies depending on the applicant and the school.

Is It Better to Apply to Law School Early?

Applying earlier can be beneficial at schools with rolling admissions, but applicants should not sacrifice application quality simply to submit sooner. A complete, polished application is more important than rushing an unfinished application.

What Matters Most for Law School Transfer Applicants?

First-year law school performance is often especially important because it demonstrates the student's ability to succeed in a law school academic environment. Transfer requirements vary, so applicants should research each school's current policies.

Additional Law School Application Resources

Related Top-Law-Schools Forum Discussions

The TLS forums offer additional perspectives from applicants, students, graduates, and members of the law school community. Forum discussions represent individual experiences and opinions, so readers should independently verify current admissions requirements and employment information.

Law School Admissions Forum – Discussions about applications, admissions strategy, recommendations, school selection, and related topics.
Law School Acceptances, Denials, and Waitlists – Applicant discussions about admissions decisions and waitlist experiences.
Letters of Continued Interest Forum Discussion – Community discussion about when and how applicants use LOCIs.
LOCI Article and Samples Forum – Examples and discussion concerning letters of continued interest.
Is Santa Clara Worth It for IP Law? – A historical forum discussion about Santa Clara Law, intellectual property, scholarships, and school-selection considerations.
Santa Clara Law Transfer Discussion – Discussion of transferring from Santa Clara Law and weighing career, scholarship, and school options.

Editor's Note

This article is based on a historical Top-Law-Schools interview with former Santa Clara University School of Law admissions dean Jeanette Leach. Admissions requirements, testing policies, deadlines, programs, statistics, and administrative practices change over time. Applicants should consult the current official policies of Santa Clara University School of Law, LSAC, and any other law school to which they intend to apply.