I really hate writing about myself for others—putting myself out there and trying to figure out what others will be interested in is something that I just don’t like to do. And this is a big problem when the whole point of the law school admission essay is not only to sell your academic accomplishments, but yourself as a person as well. For me, this is where Ann stepped in.
I had no problem talking about what I did academically. But when it came to anything personal—motivations or feelings towards volunteer work and college activities—I glossed over and outright ignored it, unsure how to talk about those things or if they were even important to admissions offices. It was Ann’s questioning and prodding that helped me understand that I was presenting a two-dimensional caricature of myself.
Ann asked about non-academic things I had placed on my resume and suggested that I use the space I had in my personal statement to expand on what I liked about those activities, what drove me to participate in them, and what I got out of them. In other words, she wanted me to talk about me the person, not me the student. Looking back at what I first intended to put in my personal statement, I can only cringe. The improvement in the content—thanks to Ann’s guiding influence—is obvious. She helped me present myself — my full self, not just my academic accomplishments — to the best of my advantage. Thanks Ann!