How to Write a Great Addendum For Your Law School Application
Although a law school addendum may be as brief as a few sentences, it may be the thorniest writing challenge you face when you apply to law school. After all, your addendum may concern something you feel sensitive or embarrassed about, which can be hard to encapsulate sincerely, succinctly, and engagingly.
In my work with clients from all walks of life, I have seen many addendum drafts that come across as so long-winded, self-pitying, or one-sided that they do more harm than good.
Fortunately, the only draft that matters is the final one that you send to a law school. As an admissions coach, I love transforming messy drafts into persuasive and professional arguments. Even more, I love helping clients reframe an addendum from a source of shame into a critical element of their case for admission.
With the right approach, an addendum can support your case for law school admission by providing missing context that answers potential questions or misgivings an admissions officer might have about accepting you to their law school.
No one should feel judged solely based on their worst mistakes. Every client can turn potential weak points in their application into opportunities to reveal character.
A well-written addendum shows that you are forthright, growth-oriented, and ready to handle whatever curveballs life throws your way, from a disastrous grade to a tangle with the law.
What is the Law School Addendum?
An addendum is a short, objective explanation for any potential discrepancies or complications in your application. It should be under one page, typically one to three paragraphs in length. An addendum might proactively address a potential red flag or simply provide the context necessary to understand something confusing in your record.
Law school addenda are used in a range of cases to explain an issue arising from another part of your application. Common situations include:
A complicated transcript. For example, you might include an addendum to your transcript if you attended multiple undergraduate institutions or institutions with nonstandard grading systems.
Anomalously low grades. If you had a bad semester or a course that went poorly that lowered your grade point average, you might write an addendum to explain what happened.
Withdrawal from classes or leave of absence. Does your transcript shows a course withdrawal or leave of absence? Use an addendum to explain what spurred your departure.
LSAT Increases. A big LSAT score bump is great, but it requires explanation if it spans more than ten points. Some law schools ask for an explanation of any increase over 5 points.
Crimes, disciplinary issues, or academic misconduct. If there are any criminal or behavioral blips on your record, be sure to address them in an addendum. Some law schools will want to know every detail about your past run-ins with the law. Ditto for academic honesty.
Gaps in your resume. Been out of work for a year? Spend months dealing with a medical or family emergency? Took an overseas vacation that turned into a six-month tour? Use an addendum to address what your resume leaves out.
When Not to Write an Addendum
Addenda should only be written about significant events or factors in your life and application.
They should be noteworthy. For example, an occasional “B” or “B-” grade is par for the course, but a “C” grade or lower may be an outlier worth writing an addendum about, only if you have a good reason. If you lack a compelling explanation for what happened—say you bombed the LSAT because you neglected to study hard enough—you may risk coming across poorly in an addendum.
You also don’t need an addendum to elaborate on a life event or issue that is already covered somewhere else in the application, like in the personal essays or the resume, unless specifically requested in a character and fitness question.
[Next Read: Mastering the Law School Transfer Application]
How to Approach Writing an Addendum
An addendum is a statement of relevant facts, not an essay. Simply write what happened, including contributing factors and consequences.
You should be straightforward and honest in your description of minor issues. Write with a professional tone that shows appropriate remorse for your past actions without being self-pitying, overdramatic, or dissembling. Use the addendum as an opportunity to showcase your ability to take responsibility and express yourself succinctly.
If the addendum is about something positive, like an increased LSAT score, there is no need to sound guilty or self-justifying. Present the facts in a straightforward and upbeat way.
If the addendum is about something negative, like a family tragedy, try to let the facts speak for themselves. Self-pity or anger can sound unprofessional or one-sided.
If the addendum is about something you regret, accept responsibility for your role in the situation and explain why it won’t happen again. Avoid blaming others, making excuses, or overdramatizing the situation. It is also important to make clear the situation is resolved and will not affect your studies or legal career. Try to end with a silver lining to the situation, like a personal lesson or resultant behavioral change.
Approach the addendum as an opportunity to provide missing context and showcase your professionalism. It is not a place for lengthy justifications. Time that an admissions officer spends reviewing your addendum may be taken away from reading your personal statement, resume, or letters of recommendation. Ultimately, those materials make a better case for your admission.
Addressing Your Transcript or Resume
A transcript or resume addendum should be succinct, professional, and straightforward. Provide a specific reason for poor performance, like a family crisis or health challenge, and explain why it will not affect your performance in law school.
For instance, imagine that you had a rough semester because you took on too many responsibilities. Don’t provide a long-winded, self-aggrandizing explanation of how busy you were and how unfair your teachers were. Simply craft a careful explanation of how you rose above the situation and took charge of your life, showcasing your grit, resilience, and maturity.
If you find yourself giving unnecessarily long explanations, take a step back and reevaluate whether the addendum adds to your application or simply highlights your weaknesses.
Finally, note that poor performance in the first year of college rarely requires an addendum. Most college students stumble at first, and progress is a positive sign.
One test I suggest to clients is to imagine a reader’s best guess as to what happened. For example, if you started college as a potential premed, got a “C” in biology, and then never took another science class, that will be pretty obvious from your transcript. Trust me, admissions officers have seen applications from many former premeds! On the other hand, if you got a “C” one semester because you were dealing with a health or family crisis, an addendum can provide additional context that admissions officers need to accurately assess your transcript.
Addressing Disciplinary Issues
Disclosing past disciplinary encounters on your law school application without undermining your chances of admission can seem challenging and confusing. Severe violations of trust might make it impossible to secure admission to the bar or a seat in law school, especially if the incident reflects negatively on your character. For instance, incidents of abuse of power, fraud, sexual misconduct, ethical violations, or plagiarism can prevent candidates from admission.
Fortunately, plenty of criminal and disciplinary issues do not jeopardize your ability to practice law, including minor infractions like traffic violations, disciplinary matters, or juvenile infractions that have been cleared from your record. Law school applications require varying degrees of disclosure, so be sure to read each application carefully to see what each law school wants to know about.
To an admissions officer, the objective facts of the incident matter more than your subjective feelings. You should offer a brief recall of the incident, mentioning how it got resolved and the lessons you learned. If you do not trust your recollection of the events, try to get your hands on relevant documentation like police records or disciplinary documents from your school before deciding whether and what to disclose.
It might feel odd to mention a long-gone speeding ticket, but it is better to err on the side of disclosure. Law schools do background checks on accepted applicants, and the risk of appearing untruthful outweighs the awkwardness of oversharing. A failure to disclose past issues may lead law schools to revoke an admissions offer.
Unless these incidents are severe, they are unlikely to hurt your chances of admission. You should address any incident forthright instead of trying to minimize it or explaining it away in unclear terms that raise more questions than answers.
Finally, if you have a concern about such incidents, I’d also recommend speaking with a lawyer specialized in disciplinary issues. States and law schools vary on where they draw the line, and this article is not meant to replace any necessary legal advice or clarification.
Situations That Require More Than an Addendum
What about an incident that isn’t as cut and dry as a speeding ticket? Some incidents can be hard to relate to without providing the full context. Even thinking about them may trigger feelings of trauma and shame.
If you feel like you need more space to tell the story fully, perhaps because it marked a turning point in your life, you should consider making it the subject of your personal statement or an optional diversity statement. Examples might include life-threatening substance abuse, police misconduct, or an abusive relationship. In such cases, it makes more sense to explain your feelings related to the incident, but avoid self-pity or egoism.
No one deserves to have their darkest moments define their whole lives and close doors in their professional careers. Law schools appreciate applicants who own up to their mistakes and are determined to improve their future. If your journey to the legal field involved a few missteps, remember those stumbles when future clients need your help to get their lives back on track.
[Next Read: Law School Addendum Example]
