Law Personal Statement Example 97

In Egypt, where I spent my early childhood, the law rarely applies. Instead, there are other rules that matter, and they depend on who you are. A great many de facto rules apply to the average Egyptian; fewer apply to Western expats; and very few rules apply to the elite.

I grew up in an English family in Cairo, slightly confused about what the law was and why it did not seem to apply to my schoolmates’ families. Upon being plucked from my warm and dusty existence and deposited in Denmark at age ten, I realised that in some places, people do act according to the law.

This is one of the things that fascinates me about law: the way in which it structures human behaviour into a functioning society and interacts with the real world. Experiencing three different attitudes to the law and legal authority – the Egyptian, the Danish, and the English – has shown me a variety of ways in which this can be done, and helped me appreciate the complications of each.

As secretary of the board of my school’s student council for two years, I learned how difficult structuring behaviour through rules can be, even on a comparatively tiny scale. Through my study of History in the IB, I have developed a greater understanding of the extent to which the law is important. One research project I carried out explored how agrarian and church reforms implemented in Spain in the 1930s later led to the Civil War.

Law seems to me to be so fundamental a part of everyday life, and so integral to society, that it needs to be studied in order to achieve a deep understanding of how societies work and of the differences and similarities between them. I am looking forward to spending the coming years developing this understanding by studying law in detail. I intend to follow a career in law or in an international organisation. For one, knowledge of the law is essential, and for the other it can be a great advantage.

As well as fully immersing myself in the course, I also look forward to contributing to extra-curricular activities. Having always enjoyed political discussion and debate, I established a Model United Nations group at my school last year. We have attended three MUN conferences so far, at one of which I was awarded a prize for best delegate, and are going to Belfast to participate in a university-level MUN conference in November. This has helped to develop my public speaking and debating skills.

I also very much enjoy writing, and am a regular contributor to The Young Post, an international youth news start-up, writing current affairs and op-ed in the Europe bureau. Having experienced how one challenge of globalisation is the integration and support of minorities, I gave weekly tutoring to students aged five to fifteen who needed academic support for the Danish Refugee Council.

My IB education has allowed me to learn in an environment that encourages curiosity, independent research and international understanding. It has taught me to analyse sources thoroughly, and to synthesise well-reasoned arguments from multiple vantage points.

I hope to continue my education being held to these high standards: I want to study law at a world-class university where I am constantly challenged, as well as to widen my understanding of the world, by studying in the UK. In turn, I hope that I can return the favour and contribute to a focused, stimulating and vibrant student body.