Sample Law Personal Statement
My ambition to study for a degree in Law has its inspiration in my own strong sense of justice and a powerful belief in the value of human rights, combined with a keen enjoyment of debating. Work experience and involvement in charity work have informed the practical and ideological aspects of my enthusiasm for the subject, and school experience has made me aware of my own ability as a leader and as a persuasive speaker. The diversity of Law as a profession makes it extremely attractive. There are almost endless varieties of legal specialization, from Financial Law to Environmental Law, but at present my strongest interest is in the Criminal Law, largely because of my commitment to the principle of justice. I am eager to explore questions of criminological enquiry, the relationship between evidence and argument in criminological debate, and the historical context of present-day principles of punishment, and I am interested in methods of socio-legal research, and how to use legal concepts in the real world. My plan is to combine my legal studies with Spanish, largely because I enjoy it and am good at it, but also because I truly believe that languages are of immense importance in an increasingly international world.
I have undertaken a work experience placement with a Law firm, where I had the opportunity to work in a number of different areas, including conveyancing, Family Law and Criminal Law. I worked in the office, writing initial writs and wills, and also spent some time in the courts, observing a range of cases, and it was this experience which led to my enthusiasm for the Criminal Law. I completed my placement thoroughly convinced that this was where I wanted to spend my career. During my summer vacations I have also worked for a teacher recruitment agency which specializes in finding positions for Irish teachers in the English school system. It is a busy organization and the pressure of work is considerable, but it is very satisfying to meet deadlines and to manage my time efficiently. It has also helped me to develop and refine my skills of communication in ways that will be very useful in a career in Law. The agency also supplies teachers to work with the charity Aiming Higher in Malawi, which aims to improve the lot of women in southern rural Malawi, where girls are often denied education and married off even before puberty. The charity works to improve teaching and learning for these women and offer them models of a better, more fulfilling way of living.
My involvement with this is an extension of my charity work at school, where I am president of the a group, coordinating weekly meetings and discussing the projects the group plans to run. I am also a member of the Mary’s Meals Backpack Appeal team, raising funds for deprived children.
At school I hold positions of responsibility and leadership. I am a senior prefect and house captain, organizing competitions and encouraging my fellow house members to participate, while respecting their points of view. I am the school captain in debating and I shall be the main speaker in an inter-school competition in January, and I hold Public Speaking Certificates from the Glasgow Music Festival.
I have pursued my interest in Law through following stories in the media, and attending University open days and several law lectures. I am academically strong, as my examination performances have demonstrated. I am a well organized and very approachable person, but I am also very independent and capable of highly focused concentration on the work I am set. I resisted the considerable pressure from peers to subscribe to Facebook until I had completed my Highers, so that no distraction would disturb my preparation for the examinations. I am hard-working and very ambitious and my commitment to my goal is total, and I believe I have the necessary personal qualities to become a very successful undergraduate.
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