Annotated Bibliography

Blogs, Menu SLS |SLS, and Faye Deal. “Getting To Know You, Getting To Know All About You….” Stanford Law School, law.stanford.edu/2012/12/09/admissions-2012-12-09-getting-to-know-you-getting-to-know-all-about-you/. Accessed 14 July 2017. This was an article written by a faculty member at Stanford Law School. This was another interesting article as it gave insight as to what a reader of these personal statements is looking for. The author of this article explained how instead of thinking of it as a personal statement, applicants should think of it more as a personal statement. By doing this, applicants should refrain from writing about how great, or qualified they are for law school. Rather, they should the law school a look into how their brain works and how they process things. This was another great source to use for my research paper as it gives a look into what readers are looking for in these personal statements.

DeVito, Sofia Carmela. “Project Number Two Interview Number One.” 11 July 2017. I interviewed my sister, she is going into her second year at Stetson Law School in Saint Petersburg, Florida. My sister was an excellent college student, she graduated with above a 3.5 GPA from the University of South Florida with a degree in Political Science. Upon admittance into Stetson Law School she received a substantial scholarship. My sister spoke about the difficulties associated with having to write about yourself in a flattering matter. She also addressed topics on whether her undergraduate studies prepared properly for writing such an important personal statement. My sister strongly relates to my topic, because she finished writing her personal statement for law school approximately a year ago. My sister does not relate to some of my other current sources, because I received a raw and unfiltered interview from her, whereas my other current sources come from academic and refined statements. Through interviewing my sister, I was able to gain insight to how writing a personal statement can effect a young person during a turbulent time in their life. However, my sister has only gone through a single year of law school and her opinion on her personal statement could change as she discovers more about herself during her time in law school. I found that interviewing my sister was interesting, because as my sister I thought I could predict her answers to my questions. To my surprise, many of her answers contradicted my predictions.

“In Their Own Words: Admissions Essays That Worked.” In Their Own Words: Admissions Essays That Worked | University of Chicago Law School, www.law.uchicago.edu/alumni/magazine/spring11/intheirownwords. Accessed 14 July 2017. This source was actually an assembly of personal statements by students admitted into the University of Chicago's Law School. This article showcased the great poise and composition shown in these applicants personal statements and gives readers an inside look as to what an excellent personal statement looks like to the University of Chicago's Law School. The examples displayed in this article are an extremely helpful tool in learning how to write about overcoming an obstacle and writing about this event with grace and dignity. This was a very distinct source as it exhibited successful personal statements, whereas many of my other sources simply just listed tips and advice for writing a personal statement. This was an extremely strong, source not just for my research paper, but for my future endeavors of writing my personal statement as I will be able to look back on these examples for inspiration.

“J.D. Admissions.” Berkeley Law, 10 Apr. 2015, www.law.berkeley.edu/admissions/jd/. Accessed 14 July 2017. This was an article published by The University of California at Berkeley's Law School. This is one of the most prestigious universities and law schools in the nation. This article covered what many readers of personal statements are looking for in each paper. An interesting fact about this article is that it was written by a former admissions committee member. It gave a true inside look as to what these readers generally search each paper for. This source was distinctly different from my other sources as it was an informative article written by a former faculty member as to he and his colleagues were looking for, instead of just listing tips for writing a personal statement. The most interesting piece of information that I extracted from this article was that the author explained to not make the opening paragraph too dramatic. Many reader grow tired of dramatic openings and regardless on the introductory paragraph they have to read each paper.

“Law School Personal Statement Dos and Don'ts.” Cawley Career Education Center | Georgetown University, careercenter.georgetown.edu/graduate-law-school/law-school-application/law-school-personal-statement-tips.html. Accessed 13 July 2017. I found this source on the Georgetown Law School Application Website. It provides recommendations as to what an applicant should include in their personal statement, and more importantly what not to include. This was an excellent source for me to use considering the prestigious reputation the Georgetown Law School holds. This source was different from many other websites I found on writing a personal statement for law school as it was more humanistic and wasn’t so formal. This source actually focused on not writing about yourself and a personal struggle as many of my other sources advised the reader to focus on. The most interesting piece of information from this article was the fact that it said to try to entertain the reader of your personal statement. They have a tedious job and fine details can help amuse the reader.

“Northwestern Career Advancement.” Writing the Law School Personal Statement : | Northwestern Student Affairs, www.northwestern.edu/careers/explore-careers/applying-to-law-school/personal-statement/index.html. Accessed 13 July 2017. This was an article published by Northwestern University's Career Advancement. This article mainly discusses how long of writing a personal statement for law school is, and that it can be a very time consuming process. It also speaks about editing a personal statement and some of the most common mistakes found in personal statements. This was another very informative source for advice regarding a personal statement. This source did not provide as much information as some of the other articles I have found published by law schools. However, one interesting piece of information that I picked out from this article was that it discussed writing a draft of your personal statement and then letting it sit for a while. The article explained that letting your personal statement sit for a while and then going back to it and revising it can add a new and interesting perspective to your personal statement.

“Personal Statement.” Personal Statement | University of Chicago Law School, www.law.uchicago.edu/prospectives/jdfaq/personalstatement. Accessed 13 July 2017. This was a rich source I found while searching the internet. This was an article written by the University of Chicago Law School which is another nationally renowned law school that is infamously difficult to gain acceptance into. This article focused nearly entirely on making the personal statement, personal. The institution explicitly stated that they are requesting a brief statement to allow them to gain a better understanding of the applicant is and their story. Differing from my other sources, this source focused on making the personal statement as personal as possible and elaborating on who you are and how you came to this point in your life. By far, the most compelling piece of information I read in this source was the fact that the University of Chicago’s Law School advises applicants to write their application in their own, unique voice.