Can I reapply to law school with the same personal statement?
Asked by: Miss Telly Bogisich | Last update: October 11, 2025Score: 4.9/5 (54 votes)
At a minimum, you should write a more compelling personal statement. There is no formal requirement to rewrite your essay, but admissions officers will have access to your previous applications, and recycling the same personal statement would appear lazy.
Is it okay to reuse a personal statement?
You can, but ideally you'd want to rewrite the PS and any 2nds to incorporate new experiences, etc...
Do I need to rewrite my personal statement if I reapply?
Your personal statement don't have to change a whole lot since you cannot change as a person in one year. The main thing to discuss is what has changed in the last year since applying. That should be just one paragraph. Aside from that you don't have to change much .
Can you send the same personal statement to more than one school?
If you're applying to multiple graduate school programs, you should tailor your personal statement to each application. Some applications provide a prompt or question. In this case, you might have to write a new personal statement from scratch: the most important task is to respond to what you have been asked.
Can I reapply to law school in the same cycle?
Yes, and you should. However, you need to make sure you improve your application the next time around. That means a better LSAT score, better essays, a better resume, and better recommendations. If you submit the same application they rejected, you'll most likely be turned down again.
Law School Expert: Reapplying to Law School
Can you submit the same personal statement twice to law school?
Revising Your Law School Application
At a minimum, you should write a more compelling personal statement. There is no formal requirement to rewrite your essay, but admissions officers will have access to your previous applications, and recycling the same personal statement would appear lazy.
Do law schools care if you reapply?
It will not count against you to you reapply to a law school that previously rejected or deferred you, as long as your application shows positive changes, additions, and growth. This can be in the form of additional course work and improved grades or continuous employment or internship experience.
Can you have 2 personal statements?
Although you can apply for up to five courses on your UCAS application, you can only submit 1 personal statement. So it needs to cover all your course choices.
What not to write in a law school personal statement?
- Overused Quotes. Your first sentence has to hook your reader enough to urge them to continue reading. ...
- Focusing On Someone Else's Success. ...
- Vague Descriptions. ...
- Focusing Too Much On Your Anecdote. ...
- Humor.
Can I submit the same essay twice?
This is because admissions officers are too busy reading their own schools' applications to compare the essays with other schools. Therefore, a college will not reject an applicant for using the same essay for multiple college applications.
Can you reapply to a college and use the same essay?
Yes! It's perfectly okay to use the same essay for both the Common App and Coalition Application. In fact, you can use the same essay for any application that requires a lengthy personal statement—like ApplyTexas—since the prompts are broad.
What happens if someone copies your personal statement?
If they copy parts of your statement in their own then you could both get in trouble. Remember you can't control what other people do with your personal statement, so be careful about who you send it to.
What is copycatch?
Copycatch finds statements that show similarity, works out how much of the statement may have been copied, and reports the findings. This helps admissions staff at universities and colleges judge applications, and it is the providers who decide what action, if any, to take regarding notified cases.
Do colleges know if you reuse essays?
While colleges don't have a system in place to check if you've reused an essay across multiple applications, it's important to ensure that each essay you submit is tailored to the specific college and question being asked.
Do all law schools have the same personal statement?
DO NOT Use the same personal statement for every law school. The majority of law schools have relatively broad writing requirements, but they often differ. Even though the prompts may seem similar, 99% of the time they are different in a way.
Do I need to rewrite my personal statement?
So if you are reapplying, you must 100% write a new personal statement. This is the same thing with secondaries and letters of recommendation. It's a new application. Rewrite your personal statement and don't be lazy.
What makes a strong law school personal statement?
Well-written personal statements should not only demonstrate that you are proficient in your use of the English language but should also demonstrate that you can be logical, persuasive, engaging, and concise. Second, at most law schools, the personal statement is a proxy for an interview.
Do law schools fact check personal statements?
Finally, this may go without saying, but don't stretch the truth (ahem) in your personal statement. We can tell. And we will check.
What if I have a typo in my law school personal statement?
If you notice a mistake that could potentially jeopardize your chances, try to contact the law school as quickly as possible. Time is of the essence, since law schools are only likely to let you substitute a document with a new version if your application has not yet been reviewed.
Can I reuse the same personal statement?
It's OK to reuse your previous statement if you have applied before. However, if you are now applying in a different name, make sure you fill in the 'Previous Name' box in UCAS Apply.
Can I edit my personal statement after submitting?
First, the bad news. Once you've submitted your personal statement to a given school, there is no going back. This is why it is absolutely critical that you make sure your essay is exactly what you want it to be before you press submit.
Is 3,000 characters enough for a personal statement?
Personal statement – practicalities
4000 characters (not words, so includes spaces) or 47 lines of text, whichever comes first. No formatting such as bold, underline or italics.
Can I apply to law school after getting rejected?
Reapplying will in no way disadvantage you. In fact, as long as you didn't reject a school, you will likely get a small boost for reapplying to a school, especially if you were waitlisted there. It shows how committed you truly are. I also recommend reapplying over appealing a law school rejection letter.
Does a gap year look bad for law school?
The good news is, a gap year usually does more good than harm. Law school admissions boards love a well-rounded applicant, and any applicant who takes a year or two off to learn a little bit about life will stand out in most applicant pools.
What are valid reasons to defer law school?
Most schools review deferral requests on a case-by-case basis. However, U.S. News states unexpected circumstances that make it difficult for a student to attend law school immediately or once-in-a-lifetime academic or professional opportunities are the two main reasons to defer law school.