The personal statement is probably the aspect of the application that is the most feared. Applicants fear it because it is a crucial element of the application. But it also requires us to do something many international lawyers are not familiar with: to write about ourselves in a way that makes us look interesting. Here are three points of guidance as you think about writing your personal statement.
Well Written
The single most important thing about the personal statement is that it be well written. The personal statement will double as a writing sample for most U.S. law schools. To that end, the personal statement should reflect that you can write a mature, serious, formal piece of writing. It should have a theme that you develop throughout the piece and write about in a coherent, well-organized fashion. You should edit your statement through the process of critical revision. Schedule your time so that you can leave at least one day between readings; you will be amazed at how some distance between readings can improve your editing process.
Specific to School
The personal statement should be specific to the law school for which you write it. You should talk about why you want to do the LL.M. in general and why this particular law school and program is of interest to you. How does this school and this program fit your overall academic, professional and personal goals?
Personal
The personal statement should be personal. This means that it is impossible to follow firm rules about what will work for your statement. But the goal is to see you as a person, not just a professional. Combine aspects of your personality with your academic and professional persona and include things that make you unique as an individual. Your personal statement should not simply repeat what is on your resume in narrative form; the resume serves one function and the personal statement another. There is no reason to describe every program you studied in, every job you have had or deal you have worked on. These are all in your resume. The personal statement is different, so you should avoid the common mistake of simply converting your resume into paragraph form and calling it a personal statement. The personal statement is your opportunity to present yourself differently and give the admissions committee information about you that it will not get from your resume. Don’t waste that opportunity — use it to show something about who you are as a person that is not apparent from the more objectively written resume.
Desiree Jaeger-Fine is a writer and author of Pursuing Happiness: One Lawyer’s Journey, A Short & Happy Guide to Networking and A Short & Happy Guide to Being Hired.
