New Law School Diversity Statements FAQs

Spivey Consulting, New Law School Diversity Statements ("Life Experience/Perspective Essays"): FAQs:

Over the last year, as a result of the 2023 Supreme Court decision on race-conscious admissions, most law schools have changed their prompts for the essays that have long been known as “Diversity Statements.” These new prompts have many names, but two of the most common are Life Experience Essays and Perspective Essays, so we will refer to them as “E/P essays” moving forward. ...

Law School Life Experience/Perspective Essay FAQs

What’s the difference between Life Experience and Life Perspective essays, and how do they differ from what law schools wanted before?

For a bit of context, along with the required personal statement, law schools have traditionally offered the option of writing a diversity statement for applicants to share more about aspects of their identity, background, and overcoming hardships and adversity. In more recent years, but specifically, after the 2023 SCOTUS decision to remove race-conscious admissions practices, diversity statement prompts have evolved to encompass broader life experiences and perspectives—hence the new names and titles for these optional statements.

In many ways, both types of these new essay prompts are asking about the understanding you have developed and the insights you have gleaned on issues important to you. For some people, those insights will come from personal experience, and for others, it may be from study. Regardless of how you came to these experiences or perspectives, there should be a clear articulation of why your insights would be valuable in the study and practice of law, whether it’s how you engage with others or the questions you may raise that wouldn’t occur to others. Here is a quick diagram to illustrate the differences a bit more.

As more relevant hot topics and burning questions come our way, we will update this post. For now, we hope these FAQs are helpful as you navigate the best strategy, topics, and story to share in your E/P essays. ...

This blog post comes from our consultants Anne Dutia, Danielle Early, Paula Gluzman, and Tom Robinson. You can read their full bios here.