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[Lawsome]

 

[sheltron5000]

I don't think it has to come accross as revenge, so long as you make it clear you were just looking to see what kind of recourse you had, and along the way found yourself fascinated with the topic. Or you could go the route of "this happened to me, and I'd like to work to make sure it doesn't happen again"

But you do have to be sensitive about the revenge issue, you don't want adcomms to think you are an angery person out to use the law to get satisfaction.

This seems like a good topic for a PS, but you might also have too much, maybe you need to split things up into PS/DS (child support enforcement law/personal experience).

I might also caution you that you may be running into the issue of TOO much honesty. You clearly had a difficult experience growing up, but you can't only write about your childhood or it looks like a desparate cry for sympathy.


The best advice I saw was "PS shows WHO you ARE; DS shows WHERE you CAME FROM." and "Show, don't tell."


Good luck

[Blair180]

I like it and think its a very empowering story. I don't see it as revenge, but maybe you can just be sure to send the message about how you've grown from this and how these circumstances have shaped you and omit anything that may hint that you're bitter.

[JeNeSaisLaw]

I agree that you need to be cautious, but it sounds like you're off to a decent start. Definitely write a draft and come back here for more opinions.

[AlisaGreenstein]

It can be frustrating when people reading your personal statements only give you negative feedback rather than constructive criticism.

I think you definitely have something on which you can build a great statement.  You might want to use your personal statement to show the committee how you have overcome a negative experience and it has helped you to reaffirm your desire to pursue a career in law. You always want to use the opportunity to emphasize your strengths whenever possible, to emphasize the skills you have gained along the way and how confident you are that you will use those skills to make a contribution to the law school.  While you can describe bad things that have happened in the past, don't accentuate them as much as the central theme of the statement, which should be how you have turned such experiences into your driving force to do x or y and that law school will help you do that.  Best of luck!

Alisa Greenstein | Veritas Prep Admissions Consultant | www.VeritasPrep.com/law

[Stole Your Nose!]

I think when people try to include too much of the law in their personal statement it comes across as though they are playing up the law aspect to get to the conclusion "AND HERE IS WHY I WANT TO BE A LAWYER!",  and it seems very weird. Even if it's true and that's why you want to be a lawyer, it comes across as contrived.

I think it would be much better to tell your story, keep the "I looked up the law!" aspect to a minimum, and drop the crap about "I found myself fascinated by OSHA!"