Pre-Law Advising

Additional Essays

You should expect to write a number of essays in addition to the personal statement. Some are mandatory, some are optional. Don’t fall into the trap of writing an essay just because it’s permitted. Consider whether an additional essay will fit well with your application’s themes and whether it will add important information, or just add time to the reader’s review.

Showcase a different style appropriate to the prompt

Don’t make your additional essays “second personal statements.” The personal statement is, typically, an introspective story-like essay. Additional essays are opportunities to demonstrate your ability to write in different ways. Often the prompts will suggest a more straightforward expository style; sometimes the essay will be limited to fewer words. Be thoughtful about your stylistic decision.  

Choose material with a purpose

Whatever you write about, make a thoughtful choice. Your application should have some thematic consistency. As you think about what to write in response to additional essay prompts, think about how the essay fits with the rest of the content. Are you reinforcing a theme, adding a new wrinkle, or deliberately providing contrast or counterpoint? Try to write in a way that helps the reader understand how this information fits with the rest of your application.  

Diversity statement prompts invite you to discuss how specific traits or aspects of your identity have shaped you and will shape how you contribute to the law school community. Many prompts specifically invite students to discuss issues of race, ethnicity, national origin, religion or sexual orientation, but an identity or diversity statement may focus on any trait or experience that has been particularly impactful in your life. 

  • Consider not writing one – you don’t have to submit a diversity statement. You may not want to be defined by your race, national origin, religion, or sexual orientation; that identity trait may have been the subject of your personal statement. Consider the impact of not writing one.
  • Read the prompt – Not all diversity statement prompts are the same. Read the prompt carefully and be sure that your essay is responsive.
  • State your thesis at the beginning – As with any good essay, you should have a very clear statement at the outset of your diversity statement articulating the ‘identity’ issue you are writing about and summarizing what you will say about its effect on you.
  • Focus on the impact of your identity – even before the Supreme Court made race-conscious admissions unlawful, the right emphasis of a diversity statement was on the way your identity has shaped you and how that will affect your contribution to the law school environment. How did being bullied make you stronger? Has discrimination made you sympathetic to others? Being a musical prodigy were you forced to develop time management skills? How did being disabled affect your outlook?