Example personal statement: law

Not sure where to start on your law personal statement? In this guide we show you a personal statement written for 2026-entry, and break down what works to help you on your way.

Question 1: why do you want to study this course or subject? 

My interest in studying law stems from the significant moments in legal history that I’ve lived through, for example the reversal of Roe v Wade in the US, and the passing of the The Marriage and Civil Partnership (Minimum Age) Act in the UK. After exploring these in my citizenship lessons, I began to read up on how laws come into effect in different countries, and how laws can be changed. Reading into laws around the world on crime, safety, and families allowed me to see the impact of the legal system in different countries and question how we can make global, positive changes.

You don’t need to start with a definition or explanation of what the subject is. The idea is to demonstrate your passion for it, not to prove how much you know about it.

Your reason for studying law should be well-thought-out and mature, rather than hinge on a ‘lightbulb moment’. We can see that while the student points out a significant moment in time that influenced their decision, they explored the subject in more detail to help them come to the conclusion that this was the right subject for them.

It’s clear that our laws are created not just based on what is ‘right’ and ‘wrong’, but also on political events and ideologies, for example changes to laws surrounding people’s bodily autonomy. I’d like to study this in more detail to discover why certain laws are allowed to be put into effect for political gain, rather than for the safety of a country’s citizens – and even sometimes to the detriment of some citizens. Studying law at university level will help me develop my understanding of why so many grey areas exist, while expanding my research and analysis skills, and improving my ability to construct meaningful, well-thought-out arguments to support my ideas.

In this answer, you should pick out some key topics you’re interested in studying; alongside showing your interest, it also demonstrates that you’ve really thought about the courses you’re applying for. Read the course pages on your chosen universities’ websites and try to pick out common topics to avoid seeming to favour one over the other. As this student has, you should also pick out the skills you want to develop as a result of studying this subject; you can find relevant skills on your university course pages, or by using Unifrog’s Subjects library.

Question 2: how have your qualifications and studies helped you to prepare for this course or subject?

In my English literature coursework I studied Dickens’ satirisation of the judiciary system in Bleak House to explore law through time. I found that the Victorian era epitomised the correlation between a negative perception of the judicial system and increasing crime rates. I researched other Victorian novels to see how authors had used their everyday experiences with people to depict the negative perception of law at the time. Both Wilkie Collins and George Eliot used their novels to highlight the faults in the legal system and the public’s growing distrust in it. This led me to wonder if distrust in the law still has an impact on crime rates. 

In this paragraph, the student has highlighted how the subject they want to study is linked to subjects they’re currently studying. This is a great way of showing an admissions tutor that you can make interdisciplinary connections through the lens of your chosen subject. You can see their natural curiosity in law and how they’ve taken it upon themselves to explore the topic further; this shows off their research skills, as well as their critical thinking and ability to synthesise information. If you haven’t studied your chosen subject before, writing about other subjects like this is a great way of evidencing your interest.

I discovered the Stephen Lawrence riots and the 2011 Tottenham riots as clear examples of an increase in crime in response to what was deemed a failure of the legal system. I also found that distrust in the legal system can have a more indirect influence on crime rates, for example when women choose not to report domestic violence for fear that the legal system will fail them, incidents of domestic violence increase. This relationship between the public and the legal system is so interesting, and it seems that it’s easy to forget that laws passed at a national level affect individuals’ everyday lives so significantly. I look forward to developing my critical thinking skills with regards to the role of law in society in my degree.

In this paragraph, the student brings the focus back to law by extending on the topic they initially found interesting in English literature. Doing this solidifies their interest in law, while also showing that they did extra research in their own time to explore the subject further. The student has also picked out key events in recent history, which shows that they understand how their studies relate to the ‘real world’.

As part of my media coursework, I made a short film on the way the media impacts our perception of women in high-profile criminal cases. I used ‘Misjustice: How British Law is Failing Women’ and one of the most striking things I discovered was that because there is a higher proportion of male judges, judgements both for and against female criminals can be so heavily influenced by unconscious bias, even though the law is supposed to be applied impartially. Similarly, women’s sexual history is often used against them in court to damage their character, but men are not subjected to the same degradation. I want to use my studies to find a way to make the law more fair and impartial.

In this paragraph, the student has shown an interest in a different area of law, again linking it to one of their other subjects, which shows their interdisciplinary thinking – a helpful skill in law. Just as this student has done, remember to show what you learnt or got out of a piece of wider reading; don’t just mention the title of whatever you read, watched, or listened to.

Remember that you could be asked about any part of your personal statement in an interview, so make sure you’d be confident expanding on the points you’ve made.

Question 3: what else have you done to prepare outside of education, and why are these experiences useful? 

I have always been a highly active member of my school community and last year I was elected Student President. Campaigning for this position gave me the opportunity to develop my skills in forming persuasive and engaging arguments, and allowed me to recognise the importance of basing justifications in concrete fact. I was also able to identify key areas for development in the school to make informed and realistic promises for improvement.

Just like when you write about your wider reading, write about what you got out of any activities you’ve completed, even if they aren’t relevant to law. Make sure you link them to the skills or knowledge you developed as a result of doing them. If your activity influenced your studies in any way, mention this too.

You should write about your experiences even if you didn’t win an award or title; writing about a loss and what you learnt from it shows personal growth. If you did win or place in a competition or event, remember to write about what you got out of it or why it’s important to you.

This was an important moment for me as it showed me that with hard work, I can make positive changes in the world.

This student chose to end on a hopeful, profound note; you don’t have to do this, and you don’t have to have a conclusion. This conclusion works well as it links back to other parts of the student’s answers where they’ve written about their interest in making global positive changes. If you have a theme like this and want to write a conclusion, this is a good way to go about it.