Which theme is better?

[Patrick Bateman]

A few topics have come to mind for my PS and I would like your opinions about which one I should pursue.

1. Because of the history of alcoholism in my family, and the lack of education that was largely result of this history, I think about law school as a process of familial self discovery (ie. figuring out what we're good at).  Two of my uncles have worked as cops at the DA office in Manahattan and I might try to conclude with a paragraph about my desire to work there as a DA.  This would wrap the PS up nicely. 

2. A discussion of my experience working at a civil engineering firm for the past 4.5 years.  This essay would describe some of the reading and writing skills that I honed as a proposal writer, describe my feeling of being an outsider in the field (I graduated with a B.A. in English), discuss the value of a J.D. in the field (the president and CEO are lawyers not Engineers) and note some of the ways that I have seen the law intersect with civil engineering.  The problem with this essay is that I'm not really interested in working in the field after I get my J.D.

Any opinions you have would be greatly appreciated!!       

[Burhop]

well, what you've got here is the stuff for the "last half" of the PS--where you relate your storyline to your ambitions.

Watch out for the alcoholism, tho--too much sob-story stuff won't help get you into law school, esp. if it's more about your family than you. We've seen a lot of family drama come through here, and we're beginning to suspect adcomms may get completely overwhelmed with super-sad stories. That's not to say don't mention it if it's an important part of the story--but three-four paragraphs of sadness...ooof. There's been a lot of that!

What's going to be important for you is finding something immediately memorable--some anecdote to open up with.

best of luck

dani

[Terabithia]

being completely honest here, but neither of these sound the way to go to me.

[Patrick Bateman]

being completely honest here, but neither of these sound the way to go to me.

thanks for your input.  could you tell me, specifically, why you would avoid both topics?

[justGem]

I'd go with the second topic over the first.

[Jontor]

I'd go with the second topic over the first.

Me too

[Terabithia]

Alcoholism in family isn't really a positive and the spin isn't so great, hey I beat the odd's i'm not an alcoholic. I mean that is great, but nothing that is GREAT.
 The second topic just sounds a little boring and you don't seem to have much interest in it either. Think up some more and we will let you know.

[redemption]

I don't understand either of the two topics, so it's hard to get specific about what's wrong with them. A wild stab, though:

1. "familial self-discovery" to find out what "we" are good at? It is a personal statement, not a group statement. i can't see - even if law-school was an effective forum for self-discovery of that kind, even if they would want to hear that you're applying to, and want to attend their law school, to find out if you (singular or plural) would be good at it.. Why should they let you in over someone who is passionate about the law? It would sound like the PS of someone who can be predicted to drop out after the first semester, after they've discovered that well maybe they're not so good at it (1L, by all acounts tests your commitment to studying law) ... Surely there's a better PS theme than that?

2. I want to study law because I want to head up a civil engineering firm? Why don't you get an MBA - that's the first thought that wold sping into my head. Plus, that's not even what you want to do and would therefore write about it without the required level of sincerity.

Write about yourself; write about something that's mportant to you. Don't force the "why I want to go to law school" essay on them when you don't have to. That way you have better odds of writing something nice, something that will make you semm likeable and interesting..

[Patrick Bateman]

Thank you for your input.  I did not intend to write an essay about how I beat alcoholism.  I drink quite a lot actually (hahah).  My father quit drinking shortly before I was born.  He came from nothing.  For my entire life we climbed the social ladder and have achieved a solidly upper middle class life.  I was the first male in my family to go to college.  I'll be the first to go to law school.  I feel compelled to write about this topic because I feel that it is something that I care about.  I understand that it is a risky topic though, mainly because it doesn’t address why I want to study law. 

My reasons for going to law school are really very practical.  I’ve been working for four years now and have found out that English Majors have very little to leverage in the work force.  I think I would enjoy legal research and writing.  The skills that I have (reading, writing, analytical thinking) are valuable skills in the field of law.  I think law is the most suitable way for me to make the kind of living that I want to make. 

I don’t think I’m capable of writing a genuine intellectual piece about why I love the law.  What did you write about?  Anyone?

[redemption]

I wrote about my summers fighting wildfires. I did not make any link to the practice or study of law.