Truth in the Law: A Personal Statement: College Admission Essay Sample

I had written and fully intended to submit one of “those” personal statements: the personal statement that says how noble the legal profession is, that goes on and on about the importance of selfless attorneys fighting injustice, and the one where I describe my father’s stroke and how that singular event forever changed my life. But as I reread the statement, it seemed distorted and exaggerated. I was writing what I thought admission officers would want to hear, not what I really felt. And it occurred to me that attorneys must be fully honest with themselves if they are to be honest with clients about their cases, to do everything within their legal means to fight for their clients. Thus instead of submitting a statement that exaggerates one event, my statement is a more honest self-reflection in keeping with my desire to practice a profession that holds other people’s life, liberty, and property in the balance every day.

Throughout my undergraduate studies I sought to be not just a successful student, but also a part of my community. I didn’t follow the traditional route of future law students by just studying political science in a classroom setting. Although I enjoyed my political science classes, there is only so much you can learn in a classroom. Instead, the practical experiences I gained working in state politics brought me closer to the reality of law. Actually delving into the middle of a campaign taught me more than I could have hoped to gain by taking a hundred campaign and election classes.

My interest in learning by doing has also informed my search for the right law school. Nearly everyone I know who is planning to attend law school is hoping to go to the school three miles down the road. I was one of those students, until I did my research. The lack of variety in clinical options and seemingly single-track internship options made me look for law schools that aren’t as comfortably close to home but offer what I believe matters in any education: experience. New England School of Law and its Center for Business Law clinic are the kind of practical applications of the law I’ve been looking for.

I don’t want to graduate from law school with only a piece of paper that allows me to sit for the bar examination. I fully expect to put countless hours into studying for class, but I also want practical experience: law school should an active endeavor. It is this type of practical experience that makes me excited about the prospect of getting a 3:03 certification my 3L year. I’m confident that having interacted with real clients and cases will allow me to truly feel that I have more than a piece of paper in my hands – that I have become a member of a profession, not merely someone with a job. In four years I hope I can begin to become a successful attorney because of my ability to honestly and fully represent my clients, not because I’ve simply added the words Juris Doctor to my list of educational credentials.