An LR Question and a Personal Statement (Ep. 278.5)
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The guys pick up where they left off last episode and kick things off with an LSAT LR question from practice test 65. They discuss the importance of reading comprehension skills even while unpacking an LR argument. And they show how you can use your own real-world knowledge to help ground you while you’re reading, even if the argument differs wildly from what you know to be true in real life. Plus, the guys critique a law school personal statement from Vancouver, British Columbia.
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00:38 – LSAT LR Question from PT65, Section 4
The guys continue their trek through LR section 4 of prep test 65. In this episode, Nathan and Ben tackle Question 15, which poses some questions about copyright law. The guys walk you through each line of the argument and share how they make predictions about the answer choices with every new bit of information gathered from the passage. Then, they walk through each answer choice and unpack how well it aligns or departs from those predictions.
18:38 – Personal Statement Review
A writes in and asks the guys to take a look at his personal statement. The essay portrays A as someone who has overcome great adversity to stand at the gates of law school. The statement also describes how A’s experiences have inspired him to provide counseling and support services for indigenous populations in urban Canada—and that he wants to continue this public service as a lawyer. The guys agree that the statement would work best as a diversity statement and that A needs to make some major changes to get it into shape for college admissions staffers. The essay yo-yos back and forth between grand high-level statements, and quick, more granular snapshots of A’s actual life. While it’s written well, the personal statement doesn’t abide by the guys’ guidelines for a great essay:
- Make the essay about you and your actions, not about your feelings, your opinions, your dreams, or your childhood.
- Law schools want to see you being a badass at work because that’s what you’re going to have to be when you’re a lawyer. So share a story of an accomplishment—or a track record of accomplishments—through your work.
- Use a direct writing style with plenty of “I” statements that show, not tell, you doing things.
- Probably don’t use semi-colons.
Hear the guys rip A’s to shreds so that A can take the best parts and build it back up stronger than ever.