Is my resume activities enough?

[mm2549]

So i have kind of a tricky situation. I used to be premed and the medical admissions value volunteer experience and public service a lot more than paid work experience. And its easier to get your foot in the door by volunteering than getting a job so these past three years ive been doing a lot of volunteering but not much paid work experience. I've had trouble finding a job in my field while also caretaking for my mom. Is that okay? Iv'e been doing research in stem, non profit work, and soup kitchen volunteering. Should that be enough?

[Dave Killoran]

It's fine! Being active and involved is the key here. What they don't want to see is dead time where nothing happened

Thanks!

[abdi12]

hello. I don't have much work experience, and the work I do have has nothing to do with law or public. I do have leadership and a bit of volunteer experience but that's pretty much it. I have been taking summer school or not been in the country during the summer so no internship experience there. i have a mid gpa but really high lsat score, good personal statement, and good letter reccs. how badly is my resume gonna hurt me?

[Luke Haqq]

Hi abdi12!

I think the answer to your question comes down to the quality of your personal statement, and it sounds like you already have a good one. A compelling personal statement will convince the reader that law school is the best next step for you. Many personal statements fail at achieving that goal, though. For example, they might spend the statement focusing on an experience of personal significance, but not one related to the law. In that situation, the reader will likely be unclear why the applicant is applying to law school after reading the statement, in which case it can be helpful to look to a resume, which might paint a clearer picture of interest in the law that didn't come across in the personal statement. In short, if you've already written a compelling personal statement, then I don't think your resume will hurt you much at all. This is especially true for schools in your safety range.