Personal statement law school

Question: If there is anything in your transcripts that you feel needs an explanation, do so here in 400 words or less:

I used to believe that having a family of achievers was the saddest thing that could happen to anyone unfortunate enough to not share the same brain-wavelength. I have such a family. My parents are both accomplished and reputable experts in their chosen fields. My father was a child genius from Japan who migrated to the States at the age of six so that his IQ could be handled properly. He specializes in computer engineering but used to be a television actor in his younger days. My mother on the other hand, is a geneticist and teaches in college. I have an older brother who follows after my father in terms of having a well-rounded personality. He has inherited our father’s acting chops and has just earned for himself a PhD suffix on his name. I wish I could say that I have earned the same accolades for myself, but my accomplishments are only numbered compared to that of my family.

I have always felt daunted by the achievements of my family as I believed I couldn’t live up to their level. I took it upon myself to earn distinctions that were in a different league from theirs, hence my scholastic records in high school and college are not exactly anything that I worked hard for. I was content with earning average grades, because then I didn’t have to try hard. There were the little regrets of not having used my full potential just because of the angst and resentment I bore towards my family in my younger years. Now that I am applying for admission to an institute of higher learning, I finally see the error of my immature ways. But instead of dwelling on the past and what I should have and could have done, I decide to look forward to a future full of possibilities. I no longer look at my parents or my brother as competition but rather as a real family who supports me in every way that they can. I am currently studying for my Master’s and yes, I am finally giving it my all. Thankfully, despite the fact that I am also working full time, I will be graduating with top honors. I realize now that I also have it in my genes to succeed and that I should take full advantage of my capabilities and direct it towards the practice of law and jurisprudence in the future.

Photo Credit : orangeacid

“A diamond cannot be polished without friction, nor the person perfected without trials.”

–Chinese Proverb

I believe myself to be like a gemstone, weathered down by recent events and challenges as harsh as a diamond cutter, and I am thankful too for the velvet bed of familial support that awaits me at the end of each day.  To say that I have led a charmed life would be off the point by only a few degrees,  I had no worries as a child of modest background with a family and an environment that shaped the better part of my character.  The possibility of the rug being pulled from under my feet all of a sudden never dawned on me. I had a loving family, and dark clouds on their investments never really loomed large.  My parents have provided me with all that I needed to make a better future for myself.

In my adolescence, I had the chance to broaden my horizons by helping out in a family friend’s law firm. Although the practice wasn’t as prestigious as the bigger law firms were, it was there that I learned to appreciate the workings of jurisprudence from a man whom I now consider my mentor by inspiring me to look beyond what can be easily seen. He treated me not like a child sent out on an errand, but as a protege, a fledgling in the art and science of law. A childhood spent playing tennis with my father gave me the reflexes and quick thinking that helped me perform my duties satisfactorily within the law firm that I emerged from that summer with the idea of undertaking the same profession. Believing that I had the drive, the skills, and the financial and emotional support of my family, I had no qualms about setting forth in earning a law degree.

College changed and challenged me in more ways than I can imagine, as I was used to getting high grades in high school without exerting much effort.  No matter how hard I tried to study and perform, I found myself floundering in a field that I used to excel in. I decided to shift from physics and took up a  course in communication research. Although it was a different field of study, I found it easier to get back on track and my academic record was revitalized. I strived hard to excel in this new field and I found new areas of interests in the field of communications that encouraged me to be more than what I can. Eventually, my efforts were recognized and despite having an unimpressive first year in college, I made it to the top percentile of the class.

I sailed on through the next two years in my new course and law school was once again in my horizons. It was at this point that challenges beyond my academic scope blocked my view of the finish line. My family’s finances took a sudden turn for the worse when my father passed away due to cancer. Expensive treatments and medications left my parents’ savings almost depleted, and I had a younger sibling who was set for college on the same year. I decided to take off from school for a year to help with the finances and worked full-time to support my family and my mother who was emotionally devastated by the events. I soon got back on track and although I have been set back a year from studies, I feel ready to take on law school as soon as I graduate.

Rather than look back with regret, I see the past years as milestones in my life. I am thankful for having been able to go through those challenges and that I have come out as a better person in more ways than one. I see no shame in having had to drop out of school to work as a receptionist at a hotel, as it was the right thing to do for my family. That year of working in a hotel has been as educational and uplifting as a year in school.

I plan to follow the exploits of my former mentor who specialized in corporate law as I have adequate grounding on this field thanks to him and to my undergraduate studies in communication research and I do hope that I can pursue higher legal learning from ______ University.

Photo credits:  DanieVDM