The Ultimate Guide To Law School Application
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Page 9
-Addendum- Glaring Mistake #8: Leaving the Interpretation Up to Them
As marvelous a writer you are, your application may not adequately help the admissions officers interpret some of the gapping holes or mysteries behind the dip in your school grades, the fluctuations in your LSAT scores, or the criminal record(s) on file.
To put it bluntly, it's pretty arrogant to think that "they'll just get it" and give you the benefit of the doubt. To the contrary, law schools are known to actively seek out reasons to shoot you down and reject you. |
If there's something admissions officers don't understand about your application, they'll likely assume the worst and just throw your application out. It's not because admissions officers are nasty people (actually, they are probably the nicest and most down-to-earth people you'll ever meet). It's because they're simply doing their job. They're reading through thousands of applications and putting together the best possible law school class.
If you too had the duty and pressure of reading thousands of applications and putting together an awesome class, you would also be super critical and throw away any applications that require too much interpretation.
This is where an addendum enters the scene.
If you too had the duty and pressure of reading thousands of applications and putting together an awesome class, you would also be super critical and throw away any applications that require too much interpretation.
This is where an addendum enters the scene.
Pardon Me, Permit Me To Explain
Addenda (= plural form of Addendum) are additional documents you attach to explain, fill-in the gap, and help admission officers interpret your application.
Keep them short and simple. And when possible, attach supporting documentations to help substantiate your explanation. Here's a sample addendum of a student that had three LSAT scores on record:
Keep them short and simple. And when possible, attach supporting documentations to help substantiate your explanation. Here's a sample addendum of a student that had three LSAT scores on record:
First and foremost, thank you for reviewing my application. I would like to bring your attention to my LSAT scores and submit additional background information to help you understand why there was a sudden increase in my score. As you can see, I sat for the LSAT on three separate occasions: |
Good addenda are polite. They aren't forceful and certainly not entitled.
One final tip regarding addenda. It's a BAD idea to write too many addenda. For example, you shouldn't write both an addendum for your GPA and an addendum for your LSAT score(s). That's essentially asking them to discount two very important hard numbers that demonstrate your academical potential.
Now that that’s off my chest (phew), there’s another thing I need to address. It is, without a doubt, one of THE biggest mistakes that everyone makes when applying to law school, and could be the single largest factor in admissions:
Forgetting That Admissions are About COMPARISON, and NOT about Absolute Value
One final tip regarding addenda. It's a BAD idea to write too many addenda. For example, you shouldn't write both an addendum for your GPA and an addendum for your LSAT score(s). That's essentially asking them to discount two very important hard numbers that demonstrate your academical potential.
Now that that’s off my chest (phew), there’s another thing I need to address. It is, without a doubt, one of THE biggest mistakes that everyone makes when applying to law school, and could be the single largest factor in admissions:
Forgetting That Admissions are About COMPARISON, and NOT about Absolute Value