Anna: Hello and welcome to Status Check with Spivey, where we talk about life, law school, law school admissions, a little bit of everything. I'm Anna Hicks-Jaco, Spivey Consulting's president, and today we have another episode in our Deep Dive series. We did a deep dive on personal statements, one on resumes, one on experience/perspective essays or "E/P essays," one on addenda—we're going to be linking all of these in the description if you want to check them out—and today, we are diving deep on "Why X" essays. What are "Why X" essays, why do law schools actually ask for them, good reasons and bad reasons to include in a Why X essay, places to research and get content for Why X essays that you might never have considered before, why you should be writing more about yourself and less about the school than you might think in a Why X essay, plus weighing in on some common mistakes, myths, and misconceptions.
I'm joined today by two Spivey consultants, both of whom worked in admissions at the highest level, as deans of admission, running the office and making the final decisions. We have here Derek Meeker, former Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid for the University of Pennsylvania Law School, and Shannon Davis, former Assistant Dean for Admissions and Communications at Lewis & Clark Law School. Both of those schools, Penn and Lewis & Clark, have, and had at the time that they were there, Why X essay prompts as a part of their application. So they've both read thousands of Why X essays from the admissions dean point of view, plus they've been working with Spivey Consulting clients for years and years, working with applicants on their Why X essays and seeing some of the common questions and pitfalls that they encounter. So let's get into it. I'll let them introduce themselves first.
Derek: Hi, everyone, I'm Derek Meeker. I'm happy to be back on the Spivey podcast. I have been working at Spivey Consulting for 9 or 10 years now. I've been working in law school admissions and recruiting for what I just realized has now been 25 years. I served as the Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid for the University of Pennsylvania Law School. I also worked as a recruiting manager in biglaw. I think that about covers it.
Shannon: I'm Shannon Davis. I have been working at Spivey Consulting for seven years, and like Derek, I've been doing law school admissions for a long time. I've been doing it for 24 years. Prior to that, I worked in undergraduate admissions for a brief time, as well as running a college and career center at a private high school in California. So I've been in higher education, admission, access to college and higher education, for a long time. I also was the Dean of Admissions and Marketing at Lewis & Clark Law School in Portland, and we required a why essay for our applicants, so I'm excited to talk about this topic and why it's important in an application.
Derek: Yes, I completely forgot to mention that I think Penn was the OG law school that had a why essay, so I'm very excited to talk about this topic as well.
Anna: And Derek, you helped develop that prompt, is that right?
Derek: Okay, so that's actually an interesting question. I will give a little bit of a history. When I arrived at Penn in the early 2000s, it actually already existed; it was simply, "Why are you interested in pursuing your education at Penn Law School?" So it was a very simple, very direct question. My recollection is the undergraduate school actually had it first, and the law school thought, "Oh, that's a great idea; let's do that too," so they added it. But how it has evolved—and we'll get into this in a little bit more detail, obviously, when we talk more about what a good "Why X Law School" essay looks like—but over the years, other schools started also having a "why us?" prompt as part of their application. Penn's has evolved, and it is now a "core strengths" prompt, which I have found that many people feel intimidated by. But I actually think it's a better version, and I think part of it is because Penn had that "why" question for so many years before many other law schools did. What we were finding is that many of the essays were incredibly generic and all sounding the same. And so the "core strengths" essay was really an attempt to make the prompt more specific and to essentially compel applicants to write about what we really wanted to hear. It's more of a "Who are you? What are your goals? What is motivating you to do this?" And, "How does Penn align with that? Or, why are you interested in this school?"
Anna: Yeah, that makes sense, and we'll talk more about this. I tend to think that if you are approaching a "Why X" essay that is not for Penn and you're having trouble writing it, take a look at that Penn prompt. Maybe it can be helpful for you—not necessarily the things it's saying specifically about Penn as a law school, but the way that it asks you to talk about yourself and think about yourself, I think can be really useful for any "Why X" essay.
But let's start a little bit earlier. Let's get to the foundations. What is a "Why X" essay? Because this is something that if you are an applicant and you're doing some research online, you know, you're talking to other applicants, you're going to see this terminology, "Why X" essay, a good amount. But then you'll be looking at your actual applications, and you probably won't see the words "Why X" anywhere. So what is a "Why X" essay? Why do people call it a "Why X" essay? And why do law schools not call it a "Why X" essay?
Shannon: I remember when I started working as a consultant, we used the "Why X" or "Why Essay" as just the term for an essay explaining why you want to go to that law school, but when I was in admissions, we never called it that. We never called it a "Why Essay" or "Why X" essay. When I was working with clients, if you're going to say that to a law school, they're not necessarily going to call it that same thing. So you have to talk about it in a way a law school would. "Why am I interested in applying? Why am I interested in attending?" Nowadays, I feel like it's more common, because more law schools have these essays as prompts, as optional statements. It is more common for a law school to call it a "Why X" essay, but originally that wasn't the case.
I think that there's different reasons why schools are looking for people to answer this question. Obviously, one of them is that they're curious about what interests applicants in their school, right? It helps them with marketing and providing what people are looking for in a law school, and it's data gathering for them. But more appropriate for the applicant, the law school also wants to know how serious you are about them. If they're going to offer a spot, it helps them gauge whether you might actually attend. And when law schools are getting thousands of applications and applicants are applying to more and more law schools, it makes it harder to make the choice as to who to let into your school.So it's a way for a school to gauge fit and likelihood of attendance.
Derek: I'll just add, I think from a very sort of broad perspective, it's another example of an applicant's writing in an essay that is unique to the school. So it's not just the personal statement that you're submitting to every other law school. I think that was something that we at Penn certainly thought about when adding that to the application.
And I also think that it's really, you know as Shannon was saying, it's an opportunity for them to learn more about not just why you're interested in the school, but why you're applying to law school generally. The thing is, most personal statements are about two pages, sometimes a little longer than that, but in those essays, you don't often have a lot of space to talk about in detail why you're going to law school, right? Your personal statement ideally should at least briefly address what's motivating you to go to law school and maybe generally talk about your goals, but I find that most people don't provide much detail. So this is an opportunity to talk more specifically about that more general "why" question, what your academic interests are, what you see as your career goals, how you hope to engage as a law student. And I think really importantly, this allows you to show self-awareness, professionalism, and to articulate what your vision or goal is for your future, and that conveys to admissions employability, which is a huge factor for admissions, especially as that is now the most heavily weighted metric in the U.S. News rankings—outcomes. That, to me, is one of the most important reasons for the essay as well, beyond just fit.
I also think, Shannon alluded to this a little bit too, but schools want to admit people who are genuinely interested and enthusiastic about their school. When I think about every job interview I've ever done, whether it was for a university or for a law firm, a business, or a government organization, they all ask, "Why are you interested in working here? How does our organization or this position align with your professional goals?" It's really similar in that aspect. They want to know that you've given it thoughtful consideration and that you have awareness around why you're doing this and how that school is going to align with your interests, your priorities, your goals.
Shannon: I was actually going to say the same thing. I mean, if you think about it as though you're applying to a job, this is a place you're going to spend three, sometimes four years. You need to have an answer as to why you would work there or why you would go to school there. That's just an obvious thing. You have to be able to express that to the place that you want to be. And while some law schools don't ask, you should still have an answer.
Anna: Yeah, I mean, as we're talking about job interviews, this episode is about the written "Why X" statement, but a lot of what we're going to be talking about is also going to be relevant for when law schools ask you why you're interested in their law school in an interview. Even if you're not necessarily writing an essay about this, it's a good idea to think about it before any interviews that you do. And just a good idea to think about it generally.
Thank you both for going over some of the opportunities that a "Why X" essay gives you as an applicant and why law schools are looking for them, what they're looking for. I'd love to get into some more specifics. Baseline level, this is an opportunity for you to tell the law school why you're interested in attending. There are all sorts of reasons that one could give in terms of why they're interested in attending that law school. What sorts of reasons are law schools actually looking for? What sorts of reasons are ideal. things that you want to be including in a "Why X" essay, things that you definitely want to include if they're relevant to you? And then maybe what are some less effective reasons that you sometimes see in "Why X" essays?
Shannon: I think what's really important to remember is that there's usually a combination of things that make somebody interested in a law school; it's not just one thing. And it's that combination that makes a school work for somebody. So you have to think about, what is that combination of factors that are really important to you in finding the right school? So probably the most important or most highest-ranked reason why people choose a law school is location. Where do you want to be now? Where do you want to be long term? Location is a very obvious reason why people will choose where they want to go to law school, but it's very relevant. And it's not just about the state or the city. It's about maybe the region, maybe it's even the campus itself, facilities, and what you want in your environment. That's kind of one that I think a lot of people will just go to right away.
There are other factors. We've talked about outcomes. It's important for people to look at the outcomes the school might have. That's what law schools are also really focused on. So "outcomes" would be bar pass rates, placement, graduation rates, and one that I really like students to think about is retention. How many students are staying after their first year?
Other things are the opportunities. Like a job, what opportunities would an employer give somebody? So what opportunities would that school have for you in terms of clinical opportunities, externships, moot court experiences, journals, pro bono programs, curriculum? All of those things can be very tangible reasons why you might choose a law school.
We talked about fit, of course. These are sometimes a little bit less tangible, but what's the feeling? What's the environment? What's the personality of that school? And that's something that's harder to gauge unless you have visited a campus or you've talked to a lot of people. You have to do some research, and I'm sure we'll talk about how to do research on writing these strong statements.
And of course, there's also things like personal situations, right? We sometimes have personal reasons why one school is going to be a better option for us. Those are all, I feel like, really strong things to look at and research. You don't have to mention every single one of those things. It's not a bullet list. But the best combination of those factors can make a really compelling reason why to apply to and attend a law school.
Derek: Yeah, I'll just add a little bit, because most of what Shannon said I totally agree with and is what I was going to talk about. I do think that knowing yourself, right? Knowing what your goals are and what you're looking for, because I do think that one's career goals and academic interests are one of the most important factors that you should be talking about, because schools have strengths in different areas. They are placing more heavily in certain geographic regions. They are placing more heavily in certain sectors, whether it's biglaw or whether it's public service and government, or whether it's smaller law firms. So those are important things to think about. I also think that a positive interaction might be a good reason to be applying to a school, so a positive interaction at a recruiting event or during a visit or if you met with a professor or alum, that might be something that would lead you to want to apply and to talk about. If there's a connection to the school itself, if you were an alum of the undergraduate school or a graduate program, or a family member attended and had a positive experience, that might be a good reason and certainly effective to talk about. It could be practical or logistical too, right? Maybe you want a part-time or an evening program, or there are schools that have unique programs like summer start and two-year programs, or if you're a joint degree, someone who's interested in pursuing a joint degree, there might be limited schools that offer the program that you're looking for. Some have three-year joint degree programs, and so you can save time by doing it at a certain school versus one where maybe you'd have to go four years. So there are also some very specific reasons, too, that would be good to mention.
Shannon: You had also asked, Anna, about reasons that aren't good, right?
Anna: Yes!
Shannon: So one thing I really dislike reading about in statements is the mention of the school's ranking. And I think certainly that is often a very important factor for people in putting a school on their list. They're trying to get into the best schools they can, so they're looking at their LSAT and GPA and their likelihood of admission, and they're trying to target schools that they can get into or that are their dream schools, that kind of thing—but you should never choose a school because of the ranking. Schools know that, and they don't want to be on your list because they have a certain rank. So I would just avoid that altogether. I think you can talk about things like reputation, rigor, prestige to an extent, but really, I would avoid mentioning a school's ranking.
The other things that I sometimes find, these aren't really good reasons to pick that school, is something that's very common across all schools. I often find applicants will write about, "Oh, you have this student group," maybe it's a business law society or a women's law caucus or something like that, and I think, really, almost every law school has a student organization that is focused on this. If you're really going to write a lot about that, make sure that you know a lot about that society. Maybe you know how active it is. Maybe you know that there's a lot of leadership opportunity there. Maybe you've engaged with the students who are active in that organization. It's fine to mention it, but it shouldn't be like the main thing, right?
Similarly, I find a lot of students who are, I would say maybe more coming right out of undergrad, are looking for a study abroad experience in law school. And I find that if it's just because they want to go abroad and have that experience, maybe they didn't have it as an undergrad, they see a school has a program say in Europe, and they're really excited to do that, that's not a great reason to list—unless, again, the program itself really aligns with the kind of law that you want to practice, and it also correlates with some of your prior experience, so it's backed up by stuff you've studied or other things you've worked on, and it makes sense that you would want to go to that study abroad program. Otherwise, there are a lot of study abroad programs out there where you can go through another law school's program, and you don't have to necessarily go through your law school's study abroad program. There are programs that are really open to people applying from other schools, so I don't want to go too far down that road, but that is one that I see that's really common that I feel like maybe isn't the reason or a main reason to choose a school.
I have a couple of others, but I want Derek to jump in here too with his thoughts.
Derek: You covered all of mine.
Shannon: Oh, all of them?
Derek: I don't think I have any. Yeah, you talked about all the ones I was going to say. I mean, I don't think people talk about costs really. I don't remember really seeing that much, but that could be one, right? And look, cost is certainly an important factor for many people in choosing a law school, right? But it's not something that you want to be talking about in an interview or in a "Why X" essay. Get the offer first, and then you can talk about cost, or, you know, that can be a determining factor.
Shannon: That's a really good point. I just had a couple others, really quick, nothing major. But sometimes an applicant will talk about a faculty member that they're really excited about. I think that's great if they maybe engaged with that professor at some point, you know, had a conversation, this professor is clearly committed to that school. But occasionally, faculty move, and if a faculty member is like a visiting professor who's only taught a year there or a couple of years, or their class is offered once every three years, maybe don't pick that professor to talk about. Or if you want to talk about faculty, maybe pick three professors that you're interested in, because you never know what's going to happen in their future, and they might not be at that law school when you are there, they might not be teaching that class when you want it. So that can be a little bit risky.
And then I do find that when people don't have a lot to say, they start to talk about the sports teams, you know, that they're real fans of that sports team. And I think that is okay. It's not my favorite; you know, you're not going there to go to the football games. But if you've been a lifelong fan and you have just a lot of that school spirit, I think that's okay to mention, but I wouldn't harp on it too much. I don't know how you guys feel about that.
Derek: I agree. That's a really good one that I totally forgot about, but I see it so often, and it's so cliché for one thing, right? But I totally agree. I think that if it is something that you're really passionate about, I think maybe the best is just as a one-off line in the essay. But that's about it.
Shannon: Yeah, I don't think it's going to convince the law school to let you in because you're a big fan.
Anna: Thank you. All of those were very helpful. One thing I noticed was, Derek, you brought up personal connections to a law school or to a university. You brought up practical, logistical types of reasons. And neither of you brought that up in the list of reasons that are not ideal. So I'm talking about this specifically because it's something that I've seen some applicants have misconceptions about in the past when they're discussing these things online. There's often a question of, "Is it appropriate for me to mention," for example, "that my wife’s family all lives in that city and it would be convenient for me to live near her family?" Or, "my partner has a job opportunity in the city and so it would be really great for me to be able to go there"? This is something that I often see sort of mixed responses to when people ask about this online, and there's this notion of, "Oh, it's not appropriate to mention anything that is sort of outside of the curricular and academic aspects of the law school." So I would love to just highlight for everyone that you absolutely can bring in these sorts of personal connections. They should not be in lieu of talking about the law school's actual opportunities and academic offerings and substantive law-related and law school-related reasons that you want to go there. But certainly it is relevant if you have a significant personal connection to a law school or to the city where the law school is, there's some logistical reason that it would be really beneficial for you to attend that law school—definitely let them know! That is something that is very differentiating from a bunch of other "Why X" essays that are going to only talk about the academics. I'm seeing you both nodding. Agreement? Agreed on that?
Derek: Absolutely. Especially if it's a spouse or a partner, that only indicates to the school that there's a very high likelihood that you're going to accept an offer, right? And admissions, this is a very human process. There are human beings who are reading these applications and ultimately making the decision. If an admissions person can keep a couple together in the same city, that makes them feel good, quite honestly. So I loved hearing those things, and I was happy when we were able to make an offer to someone who had family or a significant other in the city.
Shannon: Yeah, I actually was just speaking with one of my clients whose brother is applying to a school, a graduate program in the same city as the school where my client's law school is located. And I think that's also something to mention. "My brother's also applying to graduate school in X city, and it would be amazing for us to be together in the same place." That is a personal reason that makes some sense, and one or two lines about that isn't that much space in your why essay. I also think that if you have that personal connection and it’s a little harder for the school to understand maybe how they got on your radar or what compelled you to apply, that's maybe not super obvious, sometimes these little personal mentions can make the school go, "Oh, okay. Maybe they do know more about us than I thought." Maybe their best friend goes to undergrad there, or their cousin is a grad student. Those things are ways for the law school to understand how you've come to, you know, land at their doorstep.
Derek: Yeah, having a personal network in the city in which the school is located is really a positive. Law school, of course, can be really stressful, and that's just another thing, I mean, that just strikes me as something really positive, right? When I know that the applicant is going to have a personal support network because they have family members that are already there in the city.
Anna: Yeah, definitely. Definitely. There's another misconception that I see sometimes among applicants online, and this has to do with when someone is thinking of mentioning someone who they know, who either is currently attending the law school or they recently graduated from the law school. And that's great; that's wonderful if in your "Why X" essay you can talk about someone who, you’ve talked to them about the law school, and they love their law school, and that made you really excited about the prospect of attending. That's wonderful; that's great.
But one thing I see often people questioning is, "Should I say that person's name? Should I name them specifically, or should I just say, you know, generally, 'I have a friend who's a 2L,' you know, 'I had a coffee with a recent alum'?" And this is something where I sometimes see answers that surprise me and that I think would probably surprise both of you also. I see sometimes people saying, "No, don't mention that specific name." What say you, former admissions officers?
Derek: I think you should absolutely mention the person's name. Anyone can write in an essay, "Oh, I talked to a 1L, and they said this or that." It only adds credence when you're actually sharing the people that you connected with. I think that it adds substance to the essay. I don't see any reason why you wouldn’t.
Shannon: Yeah, I agree with that, too. I mean, I actually always enjoyed reading the names in the essays. Sometimes they mentioned me or meeting me, or mentioning one of my colleagues. But sometimes it was an alum that we knew really well or a current student that we knew, and we thought, "That's so great that they're out there speaking very highly of their experiences." I agree, I don't really see a reason why you wouldn’t include the name unless... I'm sure there's some rare circumstance out there, but just for the common public, say the name.
Derek: Make sure you spell it correctly, right? I guess that would be a reason not to mention it if you really can't remember it.
Anna: Very lawyerly to carve out the possible exception for the tiny little scenario that we can't even necessarily imagine.
Shannon: I mean, that is a point, Derek. You're not always going to remember the name of the person you spoke with, and that's okay. But if you do know the name, don’t avoid providing it.
Anna: Yeah, it is not seen in a negative way by admissions offices. They're not going to think, "Oh, this person is just trying to drop names," or whatever it might be. You're just getting specific, and you're letting them know the specific reasons that you're interested in their law school, and that's not going to be taken in a negative way.
So, Shannon, you earlier brought up research, and I think that's an important component of this process. How do you research the reasons that you might want to attend a law school? I think everybody knows they can go to a law school's website and look at their pages, but beyond that, and even if you have advice specifically for that, how do you advise people look into some of the reasons that they want to talk about in a "Why X" essay?
Shannon: Sure. I talk with my clients about this a lot. Obviously, attending recruiting events, attending information sessions, law fairs and forums, that's accessible for almost everybody, especially because a lot of them are online. There are a lot of Q&As, panels, info sessions that law schools host online throughout the year, but mostly in the fall, for you to gather information directly from the law school itself. Visiting is the most ideal way to really feel out a school, but we know that that's not accessible for everybody. It's expensive. It's time-consuming. The websites are, as you mentioned, Anna, the kind of go-to place for research.
But there's actually a lot of other resources out there for people to pursue and look at that they might not think about initially. Networking is really key. We talked already about, you know, if you're able to talk to people, hear about that school and their experiences directly, that's really helpful. But, you know, you don’t just have to try to find somebody you know who went to that law school or who goes to that law school. You can use your networking skills. You can reach out to the alumni office at the law school you're applying to and see if they have anybody to speak with. You can reach out to your pre-law society at your undergrad. You can use LinkedIn and look for people who are sort of connected to you and do some cold reach out if you need to. There are so many ways to find somebody to talk to, right?
Having worked in law school communications and marketing, there are so many stories in an alumni magazine about what's going on at a law school that it doesn’t always make its way to the prospective student. I encourage my clients to go out, read those alumni magazines. They’re often available in PDF versions on a website. And you can read about what alumni are doing. Read about what current students are up to. Read about what the faculty has going on. What's happening at the law school? There's so much information there.
The other place I would send people to is social media. The law school's admissions Instagram page, often there can be some good information there too, but there are student groups that have very active social media platforms where their website is, you know, you go to the law school's student group website, there's hardly anything there. But if you find their Facebook group or their Instagram page, you can learn about events and all kinds of things that are happening. You can go to a clinic's Twitter—or not Twitter, I guess, no more, "X" page...
Anna: I still call it Twitter.
Shannon: Yeah, obviously I do too. And, you know, find out what's going on at that clinic or a faculty member. Some faculty are very active on social media. So these are other places to look deeper, dive deeper, look through these arteries that aren't super common.
Derek: Such great advice. Yeah, I agree with all of that. I have those same conversations. You have to look beyond your immediate network. Don’t just, "Well, I don't know anyone who's a student or an alum," but you went to college, right? So, yes, you can easily do searches on LinkedIn to find people from your college who went to a certain law school.
Like Shannon was saying, there's so many other places on the website, too. I think most people's instinct is they’ll look at the admissions page, they'll look at the academic page, courses, and that will be the end of it. But beyond the alumni page, there's also the news page. A lot of law schools have a news page on their website where they’re posting things that are happening—a clinic maybe that's in the news because of a case they won for a client. So that's always a great place to look, is the news.
Any other publications that the law school might put out, there are sometimes centers or institutes within the law school that have their own publicatiob. I would say read the mission statement. Not all law schools have them, but some do. The deans at some law schools have a page where they have a message. What are they saying? What are the buzzwords they’re using? Pay attention to the things that you keep seeing across these different sources too. How are they marketing themselves? Is the dean talking about the same things that you're seeing on the alumni page and on the admissions page? What are the things that seem to matter the most to them? The other thing is, as Shannon was saying, since the pandemic, there's so much more online content now, and they’re doing so many more virtual sessions, and some of these are recorded. So even if you can’t attend at the time, you might be able to watch a recording of it. So there’s a ton of information out there that I feel like so many applicants aren’t utilizing.
Anna: That was great. I feel like there are so many resources that you both just mentioned that I think applicants can immediately go take and go do their research, and it's going to be immediately much stronger than it might have been before. So thank you both, wonderful advice.
So let's say you're an applicant. You have been to the webinar, you had coffee with an alum from your undergrad who's going to the law school, you've looked at their clinics, you've done all the research, you have your list in your mind or on a spreadsheet or something of all the reasons that you are interested in attending this law school. And now you're sitting down to actually write the essay. How do you actually talk about these things? Shannon, you mentioned, you know, you're not just putting bullet points on a page. Derek, you mentioned when you were talking about Penn's prompt, tying it into the person who you are and your specific goals. How should people go about actually writing this essay?
Derek: Ooh, it’s a hard question, right?
Anna: It's a big question.
Derek: I know, it's a big question. Obviously, it's going to vary. I think an obvious one is, if there is any sort of personal connection, whether that's because you went to the school as an undergrad or you spent time in the city, you lived there, you're from there, whatever—if there’s some sort of personal connection, that's always a good place to start. How did you first become introduced or acquainted with the school? It’s a nice way to start the essay and to establish that there is some sort of connection. And then you can get into the more specific things about career goals or academic interests. I think another way to approach it is, where does your personal statement end? You can think of this as a continuation of the conversation. If your personal statement has a wonderful personal story about some very informative experience that has somehow shaped reasons that you're applying to law school, and so you sort of end on that, and "this is why I'm applying to law school," you can start your why essay as a continuation of that conversation, elaborating a bit more on what your career goal is or what's motivating you to law school and tying it specifically to that law school. That’s a great starting point. Those are the first few things that come to mind. What do you think, Shannon?
Shannon: Listen, these are hard to write. It is really hard to write a super interesting "why essay." It's possible for sure, but it’s not a creative writing exercise a lot of the time. Sometimes you just have to get straight into it. "I'm applying to your law school because." That’s fine. As long as your reasons are genuine and legitimate, it's going to be a strong essay. There are ways to make it more interesting, but don’t try too hard. I would find that when I was reading these, I was sometimes just skimming—"What is it that’s important to you? And does this seem to match?" So I would say, do your best, be genuine, and just write from the heart, really. Like sometimes I get clients really struggling with this, and it seems very formal, and the wording in there is almost copied and pasted from the website, and it’s just very stiff. And I say, "Okay, let’s—clean slate. Just tell me, tell me why are you applying to this school? Just so you take the pressure off what it's going to sound like to a law school." And it just comes out way more naturally that way. I'm like, this is what you should say, because it feels natural. It feels really true to your reasons, and it just comes across easier and better and smoother. And so sometimes I just say, "Just write from your heart and go from there." It doesn’t have to be the shining example of how to write a why statement; it just has to be genuine.
Derek: Such a great point, Shannon. We talk about that so much, right? Especially in terms of the personal statement and best practices for putting together one's application in general, authenticity is the most important thing. So, authenticity goes a long way. And it is a very straightforward prompt. That's the thing. So you're absolutely right. You don’t have to try so hard to be creative. It's not open-ended like the personal statement. It is a very specific prompt. So you can be straightforward. And I do think that's where sometimes people do get into a little bit of trouble with it, and when they start pulling out the sports mascot, or I can’t even tell you how many times I read something in a Penn essay about Philly cheesesteaks. Or, right, like—
Shannon: Totally.
Derek: Or something about Quakers. It's just like, if you're really struggling, Shannon’s absolutely right. Just be straight.
And I would say too, I think another tip that I always give along those lines is to think of the rule of threes. What are the three main points? What are my three main reasons that I'm interested? I think that also helps too because a lot of these essays are one page. I mean, some schools allow more, but I don’t think you need to write a full two pages, even if they allow it. I think generally one to one and a half pages is fine. But the point is, it’s better to, I think, pick a few main things and go into some depth on those as opposed to just trying to, like you said, have a list or throwing a bunch of things out there.
Shannon: It’s funny, Derek, I'll have somebody write, "There are several reasons why I'm applying to your law school," and then they only talk about one.
Anna: So you should probably have more than one.
Derek: Two to four.
Anna: I think that’s a good rule of thumb. Yeah.
Shannon: Yeah, substantive. You know, if it’s two, they should be substantive.
Derek: Right. If it’s a one-page essay, that’s sometimes limiting, right? And two substantive points can certainly be enough.
Anna: So, I'm hearing a lot of good advice. No need to get creative with it. No need to come up with some interesting spin on the essay or some dramatic narrative opening, nothing like that. It can be very straightforward. Derek mentioned thinking about opening with any sort of personal connection you have. That's usually going to be the most differentiated, if you do have a personal connection to the law school or to the city. We talked about being authentic, which has come up, I think, in every single one of these deep dive episodes, which is great because it’s absolutely important in the law school application process.
How to write this essay when you’re sitting down to write this essay. What are some other best practices generally for "Why X" essays?
Derek: I touched on this a little bit, but I will reiterate it. The essay should be as much about you as it is about the school. Maybe even more, right? This theme has come up a lot, but anyone could look up things on a school's website and write a very general essay that talks about X program or concentration or courses and throw in some faculty names, and that's the end of it. And a lot of these essays, that's exactly what they do, and they're not very effective. Specificity really is the key here. And again, I think it just gets back to knowing yourself. You have to know who you are and what you want to know why you want to go to a certain school. The clearer that you can be on why you're going to law school, what is motivating you, what academic areas or legal interests you want to explore, what some of your short-term and long-term career goals are, the type of academic environment that you thrive in—the more clear you can be on those things, the more specific your research on the school will be, and then the more specific ultimately that your essay is going to be. And the other thing is, and I think Shannon touched on this earlier, but you want to be able to back up whatever it is you're saying, right? So whatever points you're going to talk about—so again, if you have your three points, you should always be asking and answering the "why" question for each of those points. In other words, if you're going to talk about the school's "interdisciplinary education" or opportunities as something that appeals to you, explain why that appeals to you and back that up from your prior academic or professional experiences. You don't want to talk about things in a vacuum. There should always be context—personal, academic, extracurricular, professional experiences that you've had that inform the reasons you're giving as to why you're interested in particular aspects of a school.
Shannon: On that note, Derek, I would say that a lot of the pitfalls I see people going into with that, they'll say, "I'm interested in this program because it will give me this or because it does this. I want to work in this clinic. The clinic helps the disadvantaged, and they take clients to aid them in a certain area," and they spend a lot of time describing the program or describing the clinic, and that stuff is obvious. The law school knows that, right? They're not connecting it to their own experiences; they're just describing what that clinic or program does. And so that's the difference, I think, where you're going with this, Derek. You have to connect it to your own experiences and your own goals and not just reiterate what the program does or what it can do for you. Right?
Derek: Absolutely, because then if you're doing that, then you only have to briefly mention the clinic, right? Because like you said, they already know what it does. So it's more about what Anna was saying, is sometimes maybe look at the Penn prompt and approach it that way, even when you're thinking about other schools, right? Because the Penn prompt is, "What defines you? How do your goals and values align with Penn’s strengths," right? So what are your experiences that have informed this interest? And if you tell me that, then I understand, right? And then all you have to say is "this clinic aligns with exactly what I want to do."
Shannon: Right. "I've already told you about my interest. You have a clinic for that," right? That's the thing is, you also need to know that they're not just reading the why statement by itself; they're reading it with your whole application. And so it has to be cohesive with what else you've said. If you've talked about really being interested in public interest law, maybe it's immigration, maybe it's human rights or something like that, and then your why essay is about their corporate law program or their tax law program, that's a total disconnect. It's like, "Oh, did you just lie to me about why you want to go to law school, and now you're talking about all the stuff you want to do here that does not mesh with what you've already said?" So yeah, make sure it's all cohesive and it all makes sense.
Derek: I see that so often. It’s just like, all of a sudden there's this mention of criminal law, and you know, a criminal law journal or clinic, and I'm like, there's nothing on your resume or personal statement that explains where is this coming from. Cohesiveness is so important. Connecting the dots, right?
Shannon: Connecting the dots, yeah.
Derek: That's what we'll often talk about, connecting the dots of your application.
Shannon: I also think a best practice is to read the prompt. Penn’s is very specific; it's way more, I would say, thought-provoking than most of the prompts you're going to get. But sometimes a prompt will say something a little extra, like, "How does your interest in our law school fit our motto?" or "How does our school meet your academic, professional, and personal goals?" Answer that question. Make sure you are addressing those factors. So I think that’s just general good practices.
And then another is to know the school’s name. I know that sounds weird.
Anna: Not to anyone who’s worked in admissions.
Shannon: I know. Not every law school is "X Law School." Sometimes it’s a "College of Law." Sometimes they’ve got a benefactor's name that they use frequently as part of the way they describe themselves. Sometimes they have a certain way that they like to have their name out there; for example, Lewis & Clark, the school itself uses the ampersand. But a lot of people will spell out the ampersand, and they’ll say Lewis "a-n-d" Clark. That’s not the way the school uses their name. So I always liked reading essays where they use the ampersand; I’m like, "Oh, they’re paying attention. This is how we use our name."
Derek: Yeah, it seems like a minor point, but obviously, when it’s the school that you work at, yeah, you pay attention to that. So yes, some are School of Law, like you said, some are Law School. And the thing is, all you have to do is look at the website, because I think most schools do a really good job of that, right? Consistency, because that’s part of branding and marketing. They’re going to be consistent. Penn does not refer to itself simply as "Carey Law," and I’ve seen that in some essays that I've gotten, I'm like, it's always "Penn Carey Law." And same with other schools; you do have to pay attention to that. And along those lines, if we’re going into common pitfalls and mistakes...
Anna: Yeah, we've kind of transitioned into that naturally.
Shannon: Yeah, let's just go down that road now.
Derek: So, but similar to what you were saying as far as following the prompt, also—make sure that you’re using language that the school uses. Is it "interdisciplinary" or "cross-disciplinary"? Because again, the schools know what they’re using and they know what other schools are using, so they're going to know if you’re simply repurposing another essay.
Just another example is, I’ve had students who’ve talked about "interdisciplinary education," for example, and for certain schools that made sense. And then they'll use that in another school’s essay, and I actually did a Google search for a particular school—there was nothing about interdisciplinary education on their website at all. Like it just wasn’t something that they marketed. So you have to be very intentional, and again, it gets back to doing your research and just making sure that you are using language and actually talking about the points or the programs that the school actually does offer. I mean, it seems obvious, but I can’t tell you how many times I see these sorts of things where I'm like, "They’re going to look, read that, and know that this essay was from another school."
Shannon: I agree. That’s something I was going to bring up. We talk about, this is an obvious one that comes up, is make sure that if you’re using a template and you’re replacing a school’s name—there's always the mistake that somebody attaches the wrong essay to the wrong school, right, so that’s a problem—but if you’re replacing the name, it’s not just the name you need to be paying attention to; you need to be paying attention to the content. If you wrote an essay for one law school and you talked about maybe the small size, the "world-renowned faculty" at that school, and then you just replace the name with another law school, and that law school has a big class size, or that law school is maybe not as selective, and maybe their faculty aren’t known around the world, that’s going to sound very odd to the school that you are just replacing the name of. You shouldn’t use a template, really; you should write the essay new for each school. And I know that's really hard to do, but you really should do it that way.
Derek: That doesn't mean that you can't repurpose some of the content, right? Because your goals are your goals.
Shannon: Right.
Derek: And as we've talked about, that is often an important component of these essays, right? Talking about why you're going to law school generally and what you hope to do and how you hope to engage. And so that obviously isn’t going to change as far as where you’re going to law school. But they're going to know if all you’re doing is replacing certain names of programs or courses.
The clients that I've worked with that have had, I would say, the greatest success in terms of the number of admissions offers received, they researched each school thoroughly and treated each school as a top priority, right? Individually and as a priority. It's a lot of work for sure, but it will yield better results.
Anna: Lots of great advice there. I think we've pretty much covered the broad strokes of what makes for a strong "Why X" essay, what makes for a less strong "Why X" essay. I'd love to get into some smaller, more detail-level questions.
We talked a little bit right at the very beginning about how you'll see people talking online, and we're going to title this podcast about "Why X" essays, but law schools typically don't use that terminology in terms of, "Here's the slot for your 'Why X' essay." They might say, "Here's the slot for my 'Why Princeton Law' essay." What should you be titling this essay when you submit it to the law school?
Derek: It just needs to align with the prompt. I think it’s as simple as that, right? I mean, some of them actually have what they call the essay—"Core Strengths," and then they'll have the prompt, or "Why Cornell Law School," and then they’ll have the prompt, right? And if it’s just the prompt, use whatever words make sense based on the prompt. That’s it.
Shannon: Yeah, or the slot that you upload the document into, for a school that requires it, is going to have that title that you can use. Otherwise, I would say "Interest in X Law School" could be a pretty general title for law schools that aren't necessarily asking. They don't have a prompt, but you're still submitting an essay.
Anna: Along the lines of what Derek was saying with "use the language they use," your "Why X" essay might very well be for a certain school "Optional Essay #4." That is fine. It doesn't need to be "why that law school" in the title.
Shannon, along the lines of what you were saying about submitting a "Why X" essay to a school that doesn't necessarily ask for it, that is one of the questions that I was going to ask pretty quickly, was, if a school does not have a prompt for this type of essay, does it still sometimes make sense to submit one? And how would you go about evaluating whether it makes sense to submit one in a given situation?
Shannon: Yeah, I think there's three categories here. There are schools that require the essay and so you have to write something. Then there are schools that give it as an option; you can write it if you want to, or it's one of, maybe there's five different prompts, and that’s one option you can choose if you want. For those optional schools, write one if you have good reasons to express to them or there's a lot that you could say about why you want to go there. You have genuine enthusiasm for it, and it doesn't sound like it could be any school you're talking about. So that is a compelling reason to write one of those optional statements.
And then the third category here is a school that doesn't mention anything about a why statement. There's no prompt. There's no optional essay. There's no prodding from them on their end. And then I think you have to be a little judicious about where you would send one. I think, again, if you have a lot to say and you're super enthusiastic, why not? You know, you can really have the opportunity to express it. It's not like they're going to reject your application because you submitted a good why essay, right? But if you don't have a lot to say, and they’re not asking for it, I wouldn’t submit one. Maybe they have an interview, or maybe it's just not that important to them. Maybe they're a really elite school, and they know everybody wants to go there, so they don't really need you to tell them why. For whatever reason, they're not looking for it. So I think that's one that you really don't have to put a lot of time into researching and submitting something.
On that note, there is an exception sometimes that I sometimes encourage my clients to consider if a school doesn't ask. And that is, if there's really no way for that school to figure out why they're on your list, it might actually help them realize that you really are serious about that school. One scenario is that, let's say you live in New England and you went to school in the Midwest, but the school you're applying to is like in the Southwest, a totally different region. It's a selective school, and they don't ask for a why essay, but there’s really nothing in your application that indicates why that school would be on your list. And if you have a good reason why it is, I say go ahead and tell them even if they’re not asking. And here's the other thing. If you’re not sure, reach out to the law school and ask them, "Would it be appropriate for me to submit a why statement to your school? I have a lot of reasons why I'm interested, but I'm not sure if that's something that you guys are looking for." They'll tell you. "Yeah, go ahead," or "No, that's not really that important to us." When in doubt, you can ask the law school themselves.
Derek: I largely agree with what Shannon said. I probably, maybe lean a little more toward less is more. I would say "very" judicious.
Shannon: Not a little, but very.
Derek: I mean, I just think if a school's not asking for it, then they generally don't want it or expect it, and there’s already so much work you have to do in putting together applications. Don't create more work for yourself. But I do agree, if there is a very specific reason—but I don't think just generally because, "Oh, I'm just really interested in this school," or "It’s a top choice," I don't think that's enough. I think if there’s a personal reason for you to be in the city, or it’s a very niche area of law that you're interested in and that the school happens to have one of the few or best programs or something, maybe.
Shannon: I agree. I don’t think we’re that misaligned there. I think when I say you have a lot to say, I don’t mean just a lot of volume. I mean really specific, very tailored reasons why that school is a particular fit. I wouldn't just go out and write one because it's a top choice or it's a reach schools and you want to convince them to let you in.
Derek: Yeah, and I’m only fine pointing it because I feel like, in my experience, applicants want to write more. Like there's a tendency to feel like more is better. They just want to do more, and they often want to write "Why X" essays for every school, and it's just many times not a good practice or a good idea to do.
Shannon: And on the flip side, sometimes it’s a relief that you don’t have to write one.
Derek: Yeah, embrace it!
Shannon: Yeah.
Anna: Does this advice change if you are looking at a school where someone is well below both medians versus a school where someone is maybe well above both medians?
Shannon: I think it does. You know, if you're well below both medians and the school isn't asking for a why statement, you really don't need to write one. If they’re going to let you in, then they know that they’re a reach school for you, and you might be lucky and thrilled to get in, and I don't think you really have to lay down a case for that. If you're above both medians, that law school might think, "Why would they come here?" And I think if you have a really compelling reason why that school actually is kind of at the top of your list, even if you're well above their medians, I think that is sometimes helpful for that school to know.
Derek: Also on that point, many top law schools, I guess maybe many law schools in general, award merit scholarships. It's largely driven by GPA and LSAT, but they do consider soft factors such as leadership or service and, again, just wanting someone who comes across as professional and very mature and self-aware. So I think, to just elaborate a bit more on that point, someone who is maybe well above both medians and if they're questioning your interest, this could be an opportunity for you to stand out as a great scholarship candidate, because this is an opportunity for you to elaborate more on your goals and how you will engage potentially and contribute to the school.
Anna: So I have sort of a more... I'm going to call it a "philosophical" question, as opposed to an applicable question for when you're sitting down to write your "Why X" essay. How much can a really strong "Why X" essay actually make an impact, make a difference, on your application?
Derek: I think it could make a big difference. If we're just even looking at just the top 15 schools, more than half of them now have a "Why X" type of essay, and several others of them have interviews as a component where they ask that question. And many other schools also now have it as part of their application, so it's become a more common thing. But I only started with the top 15 to make the point that they are among the most selective schools, right? There is no shortage of applicants who are qualified and interesting and have strong numbers. They're going to need to admit people who are splitters and reverse splitters, and they want to admit people, obviously, who come from diverse experiences and backgrounds. The point is, if you are someone who maybe is on the margins numerically, or if you are a splitter or a reverse splitter, this is really an opportunity to show your enthusiasm for the school, to really show how you're going to engage and contribute as a student, clearly communicate what your goals are. That's going to get the admissions readers excited about you and interested in you, and I think it can really make a difference, especially in those cases. But as Shannon just talked about, on the other hand, if you're someone with really high numbers, they might be questioning if you'd really go there or if you're really interested. There again, it could make a difference. So I think it could have a huge impact.
Shannon: Anna, your way you asked the question is you said, "Can a really strong why essay make a difference?" and absolutely, if it’s really strong, it can. But it doesn’t always make a difference. Sometimes it can make a little difference, sometimes it can make a lot of difference, sometimes not at all. Sometimes it can hurt if it’s not very good. That’s a caveat I'm just throwing it out there.
But there are also other ways to express interest in a school. It doesn’t have to be through a why essay. If you are attending their events and you've been really active in communicating with the school, some of that is tracked, and the law school will see that. If you are writing their other optional essays and those are also really compelling, you don’t have to choose the why essay over another optional essay that you’d rather write that would be a stronger one. You know, again, be judicious about that. The why essay can be persuasive, but it's not always critical to provide.
Anna: Yeah, that makes sense. I think that's a pretty good place to end. Do you both have some final parting advice for our listeners?
Derek: Yeah. I touched on this briefly earlier, but I'm just going to say it again. Be deliberate and thoughtful when making your school list, and if you're going to apply to a school that has a why essay as part of the application, then commit to giving it 100%. Treat every application as though it's your top choice or a top choice school. Just put in the time, do the research. I'll reiterate, the clients of mine that have the highest number of offers treated every school as a top priority, they went to information sessions, they did the online virtual sessions if they couldn't do it in person, they did extensive research beyond the surface level stuff, and it really paid off.
Shannon: Yeah, I would say on that note, Derek, if you don't have much to say about why you're applying to that law school, then you need to think about why it's on your list. Maybe just cross it off.
Derek: And that is totally fine, right?
Shannon: Yeah. And I think again just be genuine. Be genuine with telling them your reasons, although also be careful about the things that we mentioned in this podcast of maybe you don't want to talk about in your why statement. Be genuine with thinking about those exceptions, leaving out those ones that might not come across well.
Anna: Being genuine but also using your judgment. I think that's a good place to end. Thank you both. Thank you to our listeners. If you found this helpful, please feel free to subscribe. We'll be doing episodes on law school and law school admissions strategy all throughout the cycle. I hope this was helpful. Good luck to all, and I hope we'll see you next time.
Shannon: Thank you, Anna. Thank you, Derek.
Derek: Yes, thank you, that was great!
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