What makes a personal statement memorable to a law school admissions committee?
In Episode 3 of Behind the Decision, Dean of Admissions Cristina Gapasin Tortal and Admissions Director Erin Preston explain how Vanderbilt Law reads personal statements, what applicants should (and should not) include, and how to tell a compelling story without forcing it into a predictable “why law” narrative.
They also discuss lived experience statements, legal interests, challenges and trauma, resume repetition, AI, and the importance of using every part of the application strategically.
The following is an excerpt from the episode:
Preston: So for us, our very specific prompt is, “you may write about any topic that you feel helps the readers of your application get a sense of you as a person and as a prospective law student. This could be things such as your motivation to pursue law, your personal and professional goals, interests, your thoughts on engaging the intellectual, experiential, and professional resources and opportunities that the law school and the legal profession have to offer.”
So, what does that actually mean? Our personal statement definitely leans a little bit more towards why law. While the prompt does say understanding “you as a person,” we do want to see your personality, but we do want you to focus on kind of the latter half of that of the prompt and tell us about yourself in the context of law in law school.
Gapasin Tortal: One of the things that I always recommend to people who are starting off on their journey is to keep a journal….and the prompt that I suggest that you use is what inspires or what excites you, and you don’t have to necessarily write every single day. This isn’t like dear diary, you know. Today I went and got coffee, but more so as you navigate through your day, and or you watch the news or see something possibly on social media. Hopefully, that’s not your only source of news. That you write down those things that inspire and excite you, because what you will find is that there’s going to be a pattern, and what’s going to emerge is possibly your guiding light to opportunities that you should avail yourself of in terms of internships or volunteer opportunities, or what’s been a common theme already through your work, and that could be a launching board for your personal statement or other materials that you submit.
Watch Episode 3: How Do I Write a Law School Personal Statement? below or on our YouTube Channel.
Behind the Decision is an ongoing series from the Vanderbilt Law admissions team that gives prospective students a real look at how applications are read and decisions are made. Email us at admissions@law.vanderbilt.edu, or DM us on Instagram or TikTok to have your questions answered.