personal statement yale law school

Sign up to our Newsletter

How to get into yale law school - acceptance rate & stats.

Reviewed by:

David Merson

Former Head of Pre-Law Office, Northeastern University, & Admissions Officer, Brown University

Reviewed: 12/8/23

If Yale is your dream law school, read on to learn about Yale Law School requirements, how to write admissions essays, admissions statistics, and more.

Yale Law School is a highly prestigious and respected law school, and as such, it’s very difficult to get in! This guide will cover everything you need to know about how to get into Yale Law School, including requirements, admissions stats, the application process, and much more.

Yale Law School Acceptance Rate: 5.5%

The Yale Law School acceptance rate is 5.5%. In the most recent admissions cycle, 246 students were offered admission out of 4,471 applicants.

To give you some more insight into Yale Law’s acceptance trends, here are the acceptance rates from the past few years:

Source: ABA Required Disclosures

How Hard Is It To Get Into Yale Law School?

It’s very difficult to get into Yale Law School. Only around 200 students are accepted each year out of thousands of applicants.

In comparison to the national average acceptance rate of 41% , Yale’s acceptance rate is incredibly low. But don’t lose heart; while it’s hard to get into Yale Law School, it’s not impossible. An excellent application can boost your chances.

Yale Law School Programs Offered & Ranking

Yale Law School offers several law school pathways for students. Take a look below for more program information.

Source: Yale Law School

Joint Degrees

Yale Law School also offers students the opportunity to pursue a graduate or doctorate along with a J.D. Some joint degrees include:

J.D.–M.A. (Master of Arts)
J.D. and MEM (Master of Environmental Management)
J.D.-MBA (Masters of Business Administration)

Yale Law School Ranking

Yale Law School is currently tied with Stanford Law as the #1 best law school in the nation , according to U.S. News. It also ranks #6 in Above the Law’s top 50 law schools.

Yale Law also ranks highly in many other categories, including:

#2 in Constitutional Law
#3 in International Law
#4 in Clinical Training
#9 in Business/Corporate Law

These rankings make Yale a very desirable and prestigious school to attend!

Yale School of Law Admissions Statistics

When applying to law school, it’s helpful to be familiar with the averages of the incoming class so that you can better prepare your application. Here are some stats from Yale Law’s most recent incoming class.

Yale Law School Average GPA: 3.96

Yale Law School’s median GPA for the most recent class was 3.96. This is incredibly high, so to be a competitive applicant, you’ll need to study hard during your undergrad!

Because there are no cutoffs for GPA, there are no actual Yale Law School GPA requirements. However, Yale does offer information about the undergraduate GPA distribution of its accepted students:

Bear in mind that the average GPA is likely higher than this because the low-end value is an outlier. For your best chance of admission, strive for an undergraduate GPA close to 4.0 or higher.

If you have a low GPA , focus on making the rest of your application as strong as possible!

Yale Law School Average LSAT Score: 175

The average LSAT score for Yale Law School admitted students is 175. Again, this is a very impressive score, so make sure that you put a lot of effort into studying for the challenging LSAT !

While Yale also doesn’t have any explicit test score cutoffs, the school released information on students who submitted LSAT scores for consideration:

Yale Law GRE

Yale Law School began accepting the GRE test in 2019, and admissions officers stated there is no preference for either test. That said, Yale did not publish data about students who submitted GRE scores.

However, the ETS has an online tool that you can use to predict LSAT scores based on your GRE scores. For example, obtaining a score of 169 in each GRE section would equal an LSAT score of 176, just one point over Yale’s median score.

Yale Law School Requirements

Getting into Yale Law School means you need to complete your LSAC application. Yale Law School admissions requirements are:

A bachelor’s degree (you must hold one or are expected to receive one before you apply)
Academic transcripts submitted to LSAC from every college/university you attended
Personal statement
A 250-word essay
An optional diversity statement or addenda
At least two recommendation letters, ideally from at least two professors
An activities section about what you did during your undergraduate education
LSAT or GRE scores
A dean’s certification (after you’ve been accepted into the program)
An application fee of $85 or a fee waiver, if applicable

Completing these Yale Law admissions requirements is imperative to your application’s success: remember to start the process early to collect all necessary documents!

Yale Law School Letters of Recommendation

Yale Law strongly recommends that you gather recommendation letters from people who can speak to your academic abilities and performance. Letters from professors are preferred. However, if you’re unable to obtain recommendations from professors, you can substitute letters from other sources, like employers.

According to Yale Law School’s recommendation tip sheet , your letters should focus on your skills that are relevant to success in law school. So, you should choose recommenders who can speak to your critical thinking, communication, research, and problem-solving skills.

two female students studying together outside

Yale Law School Personal Statement + Examples

Yale Law School essays are crucial to your application's success. They serve as an opportunity to show why you're an excellent candidate and delve deeper into your character and motivation to attend law school. You’ll have to write a personal statement for law school, whether you’re an incoming student or a transfer student .

The law school personal statement should help Yale admissions officers “learn about the personal, professional, and/or academic qualities an applicant would bring to the Law School community.”

Often, a personal statement you’ve crafted to send to multiple law schools (without school-specific information) will work for Yale. These tips can help your Yale Law personal statement stand out.

Answer 3 Main Questions : Jon Perdue , Yale’s Director of Recruiting and Diversity Initiatives, says that students should answer these questions: 1) Why me? 2) Why law school? And 3) Why now?
Share Your Story : Consider which anecdotes help uncover your personality and potential to succeed as a future lawyer.
Stick to the Standard Format : Keep your statement approximately two pages double-spaced, using a standard font, font size, and margins.
Choose Your Approach : Perdue says students tend to focus on either the past, present, or future, but the most successful statements have a sense of movement and touch upon more than one of these.
Maintain a Professional Tone : Keep your tone professional even if you decide to write about sensitive material. Do not victimize yourself or provide details or tragedy or other topics that might make your reader uncomfortable.

These personal statement example excerpts and feedback can help you guide your writing.

Personal Statement Example #1

“ During the summer of 2012, I worked at Company in my hometown of City. For three months, I calibrated the temperatures of furnaces that heated the steel to make it malleable, I fixed broken motors that rolled the steel into coils, and I balanced chemical compounds that were used to prevent the metals from rusting. At 19 this was my job, and I thought it would be for the rest of my life.

At the height of the Great Recession, my dad lost his job and we lost our home. During my senior year of high school, I began working graveyard shifts at Dollar Tree to help my family make ends meet. After working for a few months, I realized that if I went to college my family would struggle financially, so I withdrew all my pending college applications and decided to continue working after high school instead…

Although the work was interesting, I felt trapped. The mill is isolated in a dark and dangerous factory fenced off from the general public. Workers spend their entire lives working there never knowing a career outside the mill...During my first week interning at Company, a two-ton coil fell off a crane and crushed a worker to death. All of this made me uneasy. The idea of spending the rest of my life working in this environment seemed unimaginable.

This feeling of uneasiness was exacerbated when I was offered a full-time job at the steel mill as long as I completed my last year of night classes. I grew up in a working-class community where a job like this was like winning the lottery. This job would allow me to help my family get back on their feet and provide us with a comfortable life. However, I was not interested in living a comfortable life. Two months into the second year of night classes and after much deliberation, I dropped the apprenticeship and made the decision to pursue a bachelor’s degree.

…I thought I would never have the chance to go to college or leave my hometown. Working at Company made me realize that I was settling and not living up to my full potential. When my dad found employment during the end of my internship at Company, I saw an opportunity to change my career path and I took it.

I was fortunate to be able to leave my apprenticeship to pursue my bachelor’s degree. Many college bound students I went to high school with also had to work after their parents were laid off during the recession. They were also trapped…I knew when I made the decision to go to college, I had to push boundaries not just for myself, but for all my peers who had to trade in their dreams for financial security.

Although I faced backlash from my family for making the decision to go back to college, I was determined to get my bachelor’s degree to learn how to address the issues that plagued my community and others like it. As an undergraduate student, I studied, traveled, and worked with different organizations that provided me further insight into the issues that immigrant and working-class communities face. I took what I learned from my undergraduate experiences to the California State Senate to work on solving the most pressing issues facing Californians; from negotiating criminal justice reform and addressing the affordable housing crisis, to improving public transportation in the Bay Area and writing legislation that expands the social safety net.

It has now been over six years since I made the decision that changed the trajectory of my life. As grateful as I am for all the wonderful things that I have been able to do so since leaving the apprenticeship, my desire to continue pushing boundaries and advocating for low-income communities has only grown stronger. I am ready to exert this passion into my work in law school and in my career as a lawyer .”

What Made This Personal Statement Good

This personal statement answers the three main questions: why law, why now, and why them. The "why now" has the most weight in this essay: deciding to go to law school was all about timing in an otherwise tricky financial situation.

It also has the element of movement Perdue described as the hallmark of an excellent personal statement: the author mainly reflects on the past but weaves in elements of their current work and hopes for the future.

Personal Statement Example #2

“ In the stories I loved growing up, the world stood in black and white. There were always heroes and villains, Jedi and Sith, knights and dragons, and the ultimate triumph of good over evil. I recognized, of course, that in real life things weren’t always so clear-cut, but I also felt confident that I could still tell the difference. Heroes helped and villains harmed, heroes loved and villains hated, and in the end heroes would inevitably win and villains would inevitably suffer because they, by their nature, deserved to…

During the summer following my freshman year of college, I found myself tucked in the sunny office of a clinic at School, poring over an entirely different sort of story, one unlike any I had read before. To start, nobody had taken the time to write the story out. It was scattered across hospital records and report cards and interviews and old newspaper clippings and family photos…

I read about the boy’s father, who held a job and went to church, but sometimes drank and screamed and swung at his family, and who seemed to care more about his vintage car than his son. I read about the boy’s mother, an immigrant woman who worked long hours every day, who loved her son with every ounce of her soul and pleaded with him to stay in school. And of course, I read about the boy himself, who loved his mother back, and who was quiet in class but struggled to keep up. The boy sometimes ran with the wrong crowd but mostly kept out of trouble – until his beloved mother died when he was just fifteen, and he fell in with a gang that made him feel like he belonged, as long as he could prove he deserved to. And although I knew why I was reading this boy’s story, it was not until I saw the surveillance video of the boy shooting and killing a police officer during a robbery gone awry that I could come to terms with where his story went. The boy, now a young man, sat on death row several states away, and his case was one of the handful adopted by the Clinic at School to try and prevent his execution.

I didn’t find any heroes in the boy’s story…I grew frustrated and then furious with how many systems failed him, how many cracks he slipped through, how many times his life could have diverged from the path to this tragedy but did not.

But as much as I searched, I couldn’t find any villains, either. I was desperate to trace the root of all these evils, to identify the person at whose feet I could lay all this pain, but I came up empty-handed…More importantly, it became clear to me that the boy himself could not be the villain in his story, not after I realized how profoundly vulnerable and neglected and just plain human he was, and still is. The boy’s act, his panicked and instantly regrettable pull of a trigger, was terrible, but only the hardest of hearts could read his story and believe the boy was terrible, too.

I was left with a story without knights or dragons, without someone to blame or someone to admire…And yet, it was the most compelling story I had ever read, in no small part because its ending could still be shaped, still be turned toward redemption or hope or at the very least mercy, and away from the tragic, violent loss of another life. I had joined the Clinic out of a mostly abstract objection to capital punishment, but what I learned there resolved my motivations into sobering solidity. If I could help tell the boy’s story, and the stories of those like him, others might come to the same realization I had: those whom the news and the authorities branded monsters and villains were just people, in all their complexity and fallibility and endless capacity for growth.

Over the years since that summer, I’ve worked alongside capital defense attorneys and mitigation specialists to uncover the stories of our clients’ lives and to fashion those stories into shields against the violence of state power. In this pursuit, I find that triumphs are few and far between, and heroes even rarer. However, I also find the absence of that clarity increasingly and surprisingly welcome. Each and every narrative blurs and subverts the dichotomies I once relished, pushing me to consider each person on their own terms, to take in the totality of their pasts rather than solely their worst moments, and to exercise active and intentional empathy toward even those deemed irredeemable. It’s a practice I don’t always find natural or easy, but it’s one I hope to continue throughout my life and legal career. Rather than seeking to stand solely with heroes, to me it now matters far more to stand with those whom society may have written off, but whose endings are not yet written. ”

Despite focusing on one central anecdote, this personal statement still has that element of movement Perdue discussed. The story focuses mainly on the past but does illuminate snippets of the present and the applicant's hopes for the future.

This personal statement has an excellent narrative thread: although we're introduced to the author's love of heroes, villains, and stories, they make a point of referencing this main idea throughout their essay. This personal statement is successful with compelling imagery and a very human and compassionate perspective on justice.

student sitting on ground writing in notebook

Yale Law School 250-Word Essay + Examples

This short essay is not the same as your personal statement. You’ll be responding to a pre-given prompt, so you’ll need to be sure that you tailor your response to what Yale Law is looking for.

Yale’s 250-word essay prompt is as follows:

“The Law School is a vibrant intellectual community where students are expected to engage academically with faculty and fellow students. In no more than 250 words, applicants must write about an idea or issue from their academic, extracurricular, or professional work that is of particular interest to them. The idea or issue you choose does not have to be law-related; this is an opportunity for readers to learn more about how you would engage intellectually in the Law School community.”

Here are some tips to help you tackle this essay:

Understand the Prompt’s Requirements : Break it down into 2 parts; write about your idea or issue, and then connect the idea or issue to your experiences with a clear transition.
Understand the Essay’s Purpose : The admissions committee wants to learn more about you and topics that matter to you, as well as your thought processes and intellectual ability.
Choose Your Topic Wisely : It’s important to choose something that’s relevant and meaningful to you. Many applicants write about a thesis/major project, work issues, or ethical challenges faced at work/school/extracurriculars.
Keep It Concise : The prompt is intentionally broad, but the admissions committee will notice if you exceed the limit, so keep your writing tight!
Show Your Fit : Yale Law wants to see how you’d engage with academic life on campus, so be sure to approach your writing with sophistication and professionalism to show why you’re an excellent fit.

These are two past 250-word essay examples provided by Yale Law School.

Essay Example #1

“For the last 18 years, millions of U.S. armed forces servicemembers deployed to various combat zones across the Middle East and Africa to defeat conventional and unconventional enemies. I have personally known scores of these servicemembers (including many currently in harm’s way) and several friends and mentors who made the ultimate sacrifice on behalf of the people of the United States. In my view, one of the most egregious circumstances surrounding these combat deployments is the failure of policymakers to update and reaffirm the Authorization for Use of Military Force (AUMF) passed in 2001. This would officially put the weight of Congress and the American public behind the decision to send servicemembers to fight—and die—for their country in new conflicts.

Since 2001, the AUMF has been invoked several times to justify actions not only in Afghanistan and Iraq, but in Syria, Somalia, Libya, and other nations. While the nuances of an AUMF vis-à-vis a formal declaration of war may make one preferable to policymakers over another, I believe there is a significant gray area in the way the 2001 AUMF has been used, and that the constitutionality of its expanded use should be called into question. I hope to explore this issue as well as others related to congressional and presidential war powers in my future work at Yale Law. My personal connection to these national security issues and others will help bring a human perspective to policy discussions in the Yale Law classroom.”

What Makes This a Good Essay

The author has a personal connection to their main issue, clearly stated as policymakers' failures in updating and reaffirming AUMF. The author connects and expands on this issue by suggesting that it should be called into question, something they hope to explore in the Yale classroom.

Overall, this essay fulfills the two prompt requirements, shows passion and knowledge in this subject area, and shows the applicant will contribute to meaningful discussion at Yale; the author's personal connection fortifies the message.

Essay Example #2

“ Growing up, I was taught that Islam’s beauty is couched in its purity: the religion is perfect because it has never been tainted or influenced. When my Islamic Art professor, Professor, introduced us to the Gbain masking tradition, I was initially unsettled. The West African practice used in ritual dances evolved from the literal and cultural intermarriage between Muslim merchants, Berber armies, and local tribes within the 8th and 14th centuries. To my professor, the syncretism of indigenous tradition and Islam was the most fascinating aspect of Islam in West Africa. She showed us Islam-inspired half-moon inscriptions on a half-cow half-human Gbain mask and extolled the malleability of the religion in adapting to local customs. To me, however, “malleability” felt more like blasphemy. A core tenet of Islam is aniconism; masquerade and figurative dances both violated that principle.

For my term paper, I studied West African masquerade further—and encountered a new perspective. Muslim colonizers allowed tribes to continue their dances as a tool of assuagement when incorporating them into their political structures. As someone who seeks to decolonize my analysis of art and history in good faith, I had fallen victim to my internal predispositions and obviated the indigenous position. Islam was not the forcefully corrupted creed; it was the very vessel of colonial takeover. It was difficult to acknowledge that my convictions had clouded a fair judgment of the indigenous art. Sometimes decolonizing requires deconstructing our own beliefs—for that is what masquerade was to the Gbain. ”

What Makes This a Good Essay

The author introduces their idea with excellent background information and imagery. They connect this idea through their major term paper, in which they challenge their views and perspectives. This shift in perspective shows the author's ability to change positions based on new information, even concrete, lifelong beliefs.

This commitment to fairness in light of a challenging subject shows their candor and suitability for a law career.

Optional Essay

Optional Yale Law School essays include a diversity statement and addenda.

If you choose to write a diversity statement, it should teach the admissions committee more about you and show how you’ll contribute to Yale.

A diversity statement may not be necessary if you've touched upon your background and identity at length elsewhere in your application. These tips can help you write a compelling diversity statement:

Decide Whether You Should Write One : You may not need a diversity statement if you’ve already written at length about your identity/background. However, you may consider writing this essay if you feel you can offer more insight into your core identities.
Maintain Your Application Narrative : Explain how your identity impacted your passion for law school and show how you can contribute to the school and incoming class.
Reflect on Your Experiences : Think about transformative moments you’ve lived through, what you learned, and how they changed your path’s trajectory. Apply these reflections to your decision to become a lawyer.

Yale Law School Tuition & Scholarships

Yale Law School tuition costs $71,540 for the 2023-2024 academic year. However, with other fees and personal expenses, students can expect to pay roughly $100,000 per year to attend Yale School of Law.

See below for a full breakdown of the cost of attending Yale Law:

Yale Law Scholarships

If you’re intimidated by the cost of Yale Law School, don’t worry! Yale has financial aid policies in place that will help students afford their law degree. You can receive need-based assistance and can also apply for various outside scholarships .

Yale also offers the Hurst Horizon Scholarship Program , which covers full tuition for students pursuing legal education. It is designed to help students from all financial backgrounds afford law school.

Yale School of Law Application Deadlines

You need to submit your Yale Law School application by February 15, 2024. Bear in mind that there will be no admission-related advantage to submitting your application early, so take as much time as you need to put together a stellar application.

Here are some other important dates to know:

There are two main steps to apply to Yale Law School : you’ll need to subscribe to the Law School Credit Assembly Service (CAS) and create and submit applications through LSAC.

Yale Law School Bar Passage Rate: 95.77%

Yale Law School’s first-time bar passage rate in 2023 was 95.77%. This is significantly higher than the ABA average pass rate at 78.4%!

With a bar passage rate this high, it’s no wonder why Yale is a highly-respected law school.

How to Get Into Yale Law School: Tips to Improve Your Admission Chances

Getting into Yale Law may seem like an intimidating task, but don’t fret. Here are some tips to help you gain admission to Yale Law School!

Less is More : It’s okay to have fewer materials in your application if those materials are strong. This goes especially for recommendation letters -- Yale advises students to prioritize having only two strong letters over adding a third weak one to the mix.
Be Authentic : According to Yale Law’s personal statement tip sheet , authenticity really matters. Don’t exaggerate or dig for anecdotes that you think might be what Yale wants to hear. Just be true to yourself and your own experiences.
Study Hard : You’re going to need a very high GPA and LSAT score to compete with the other Yale Law applicants. Make sure you prioritize your schooling and dedicate lots of time to studying.

With these tips to get into Yale Law School, you’re sure to be a competitive candidate.

What Does Yale Law School Look For?

It’s important to make your application stand out, but how do you know what to focus on? To help you tailor your application to Yale, we’ve done some research.

Here are some qualities related to what Yale Law School is looking for in students:

Initiative : Yale Law seeks to encourage students to “ blaze their own path and effect positive change .” If you can show the admissions committee that you’re ambitious and innovative, you’ll be an impressive candidate!
Desire to Serve : Being a lawyer is about serving and helping others. Yale’s law programs are “ grounded in meaningful service .” They look for students who demonstrate empathetic hearts and a passion for public service.
Academic Excellence : Yale Law School seeks applicants who strive for academic achievements in all areas.

FAQs: How to Get Into Yale Law School

These FAQs can help you get additional information you may need on how to get into Yale Law School.

1. Can You Get a Full Ride to Yale Law School?

Yes, depending on your financial situation. The Soledad ’92 and Robert Hurst Horizon Scholarship Program was created to allocate full-tuition scholarships to 45-50 J.D. students who demonstrate the highest need annually. These scholarships are automatically awarded to students who meet eligibility requirements.

2. What Do You Need to Get into Yale Law School?

To get into Yale Law School, you must have a high GPA, stellar LSAT or GRE scores, expertly-crafted essays, and a differentiated profile demonstrating your fit and passion for law.

3. What GPA Do You Need for Yale Law School?

Although there are no GPA cutoffs for applying to Yale Law School, it’s in your best interest to achieve an undergraduate GPA as close to or higher than 4.0 for your best shot at acceptance.

4. Does Yale Law Prefer Yale Students?

While an older news article states that Yale College students were some of the best applicants, there is nothing to suggest that Yale Law School gives preference to Yale students. A varied profile and robust application will help you in the admissions process, no matter where you went for undergrad.

5. Is Yale or Harvard a Better Law School?

Based solely on rankings, Yale is the better law school. However, the best law school for you depends on program offerings, your goals, and preferences. Both Yale and Harvard are excellent institutions.

6. What LSAT Score Do You Need to Get Into Yale Law School?

Like GPA, there is no explicit cutoff for LSAT scores at Yale Law School. However, given that the median score submitted by students is 175, you should strive for at least that score or better for a better chance of admission.

7. What is the Lowest GPA Accepted to Yale Law School?

According to the most recent class profile, the lowest GPA accepted to Yale Law School was 3.25. However, it is unlikely that you’ll gain admission to Yale with a low GPA unless the rest of your application is outstanding.

Getting Into Yale Law Is Easy If You Know How

Yale Law School is highly selective, but knowing what you need to get in can make it easier and increase your chances of acceptance. With a high GPA, stellar LSAT or GRE scores, and the tips outlined above, you can make the most of your application and kickstart your law career!

Schedule A Free Consultation

Best Law Schools in Chicago: What You Need to Know

UC Law San Francisco Acceptance Rate & Requirements

How to Write a Compelling Personal Statement for Yale Law School

Learn how to craft a standout personal statement for Yale Law School with our comprehensive guide.

Posted May 12, 2023

Featuring Cian S.

Law School: Crafting a Compelling Personal Statement

Friday, april 19.

8:00 PM UTC · 45 minutes

As one of the most prestigious law schools in the United States, Yale Law School is a highly competitive institution that offers excellent opportunities for law students. When applying to Yale Law School, one of the most critical elements of your application is your personal statement. Your personal statement is your chance to demonstrate your unique qualities and experiences that make you an ideal candidate for the school. In this article, we will guide you through the process of crafting a compelling personal statement for Yale Law School.

Understanding the Purpose of a Personal Statement for Yale Law School Admissions

The personal statement is a crucial part of your application to Yale Law School as it offers the admissions committee a glimpse into your personality, achievements, and goals. It is an opportunity for you to showcase your writing skills, highlight your academic accomplishments and other experiences, and demonstrate your critical thinking abilities. Your personal statement is your chance to stand out from other applicants; it's an opportunity for you to express your motivation and passion for studying law.

Additionally, the personal statement allows the admissions committee to assess your fit with the Yale Law School community. They are looking for individuals who will contribute to the school's diverse and collaborative environment. Therefore, it is important to not only highlight your individual achievements but also how you will contribute to the community. This can include discussing your involvement in extracurricular activities, volunteer work, or any other experiences that demonstrate your commitment to making a positive impact on the world.

Crafting an Attention-Grabbing Introduction for Your Personal Statement

Your introduction is the first impression you make on the admissions committee, so it is essential to grab their attention right away. You can start by telling a personal anecdote or a story that illustrates your passion for law. Avoid clichés and overly broad statements in your introduction. Instead, aim to express your individuality and unique experiences that make you stand out.

One effective way to make your introduction stand out is to connect your personal experiences to your future goals in the legal field. For example, if you have a background in social justice advocacy, you can explain how this has motivated you to pursue a career in law and how you plan to use your legal education to make a positive impact on society. By making this connection, you not only showcase your unique experiences but also demonstrate your commitment to the field of law.

Highlighting Your Achievements and Experience in Your Yale Law School Personal Statement

When writing your personal statement, it's crucial to highlight your accomplishments and experiences. This could include any leadership roles you've held, academic or professional awards and honors, and any research publications. Also, mention any experiences that have contributed to your decision to pursue law, such as volunteer work or internships.

Another important aspect to consider when highlighting your achievements and experience in your Yale Law School personal statement is to showcase your unique perspective and background. This could include any challenges you've faced and overcome, cultural or socioeconomic experiences that have shaped your worldview, or any personal experiences that have influenced your decision to pursue law.

Additionally, it's important to demonstrate your passion for the field of law and your commitment to making a positive impact in the legal profession. This could include discussing any pro bono work you've done, your involvement in legal clinics or advocacy groups, or any specific areas of law that you're particularly interested in pursuing.

Showcasing Your Reasons for Choosing Yale Law School in Your Personal Statement

Make sure you have a clear understanding of Yale Law School's mission, values, and academic offerings and explain why you think Yale Law School is an ideal fit for you. Highlight any specific programs, faculty members, or research opportunities that align with your academic and career goals.

Additionally, you may want to discuss any personal experiences or background that have led you to choose Yale Law School. This could include your passion for social justice, your interest in a particular area of law, or your desire to work with a specific community. By sharing these personal insights, you can demonstrate your commitment to Yale Law School's values and mission.

Finally, it's important to show how your past experiences and achievements have prepared you for success at Yale Law School. This could include discussing your academic record, leadership roles, or relevant work experience. By highlighting your strengths and accomplishments, you can demonstrate to the admissions committee that you are a strong candidate for admission to Yale Law School.

Making Your Personal Statement Stand Out with Unique Perspectives and Experiences

{INSERT PARAGRAPH HERE}

When writing your personal statement, it's important to remember that admissions officers read hundreds, if not thousands, of applications. To make your statement stand out, consider including unique perspectives and experiences that showcase your individuality. This could include discussing a personal challenge you've overcome, a volunteer experience that impacted you, or a cultural background that has shaped your worldview. By highlighting what makes you different from other applicants, you can make a lasting impression on the admissions committee.

Writing a Cohesive and Well-Structured Personal Statement for Yale Law School Admissions

When writing your personal statement for Yale Law School admissions, it is important to showcase your unique experiences and perspectives. Admissions officers want to see how you have overcome challenges and how you have grown as a person. Additionally, it is important to demonstrate your passion for the law and your commitment to making a positive impact in the legal field. By highlighting these qualities in your personal statement, you can increase your chances of being accepted into Yale Law School.

Avoiding Common Mistakes When Writing a Personal Statement for Yale Law School

One common mistake that applicants make when writing a personal statement for Yale Law School is focusing too much on their academic achievements and not enough on their personal experiences and motivations for pursuing a legal career. Admissions officers want to see that you have a genuine passion for the law and a clear understanding of how a legal education will help you achieve your goals.

Tips from Successful Yale Law School Applicants: What Worked for Them?

One common theme among successful Yale Law School applicants is the importance of showcasing a unique perspective or experience in their personal statement. Admissions officers are looking for individuals who will bring diverse perspectives and backgrounds to the classroom, so highlighting what makes you stand out can make a big difference. Additionally, many successful applicants recommend reaching out to current students or alumni to gain a better understanding of the school's culture and values, and to tailor your application accordingly.

Editing and Proofreading Your Yale Law School Personal Statement to Perfection

Once you have written your Yale Law School personal statement, it is important to edit and proofread it thoroughly. This will help you to catch any errors or mistakes that may have been overlooked during the writing process. One effective way to edit your personal statement is to read it out loud. This will help you to identify any awkward phrasing or grammatical errors that may have gone unnoticed when reading silently.

Another important aspect of editing your personal statement is to ensure that it is well-organized and flows smoothly. You can achieve this by creating an outline of your personal statement and ensuring that each paragraph has a clear purpose and connects logically to the next. Additionally, you should pay attention to the tone and style of your writing, making sure that it is appropriate for a law school personal statement.

Navigating the Tone and Style Requirements of a Yale Law School Personal Statement

Expanded Text:

When it comes to writing a personal statement for Yale Law School, it's important to keep in mind the tone and style requirements. The admissions committee is looking for a candidate who can demonstrate their ability to think critically, communicate effectively, and write persuasively. Therefore, your personal statement should be well-written, concise, and engaging.

One way to achieve this is by using concrete examples to illustrate your points. Rather than making broad statements about your skills or experiences, provide specific examples that demonstrate your abilities. This will help the admissions committee get a better sense of who you are as a person and what you can bring to the Yale Law School community.

Another important aspect to consider is the tone of your personal statement. While it's important to be professional and articulate, you also want to convey your personality and voice. Avoid using overly formal language or jargon, and instead, write in a way that feels authentic to you. This will help your personal statement stand out and make a lasting impression on the admissions committee.

How to Incorporate Diversity and Inclusion into Your Yale Law School Personal Statement

One way to incorporate diversity and inclusion into your Yale Law School personal statement is to highlight your unique background and experiences. This can include discussing your cultural heritage, upbringing, or any challenges you have faced as a result of your identity. By sharing your personal story, you can demonstrate how your diverse perspective will contribute to the Yale Law School community.

Another approach is to discuss your commitment to promoting diversity and inclusion in your future legal career. This can include any volunteer work or advocacy you have done in the past, as well as your goals for promoting equity and justice in your future work. By demonstrating your dedication to these values, you can show the admissions committee that you are a strong candidate for admission to Yale Law School.

Understanding How the Admissions Committee Evaluates Personal Statements at Yale Law School

When evaluating personal statements at Yale Law School, the admissions committee looks for a few key elements. Firstly, they want to see that the applicant has a clear and compelling reason for wanting to attend law school. This could be a personal experience, a passion for a particular area of law, or a desire to make a difference in the world. Additionally, the committee looks for evidence of strong writing skills, as well as an ability to think critically and analytically. Finally, they want to see that the applicant has a clear understanding of what Yale Law School has to offer, and how they can contribute to the school's community. By addressing these elements in their personal statement, applicants can increase their chances of being accepted to Yale Law School.

Preparing Yourself Emotionally for the Competitive Landscape of Yale Law School Admissions

By following these tips and guidelines, you can write a compelling personal statement for Yale Law School that showcases your unique qualities and experiences.

Browse hundreds of expert coaches

Leland coaches have helped thousands of people achieve their goals. A dedicated mentor can make all the difference.

Browse Related Articles

May 12, 2023

How to Write a Compelling Personal Statement for University of Chicago Law School

Learn how to craft a winning personal statement for University of Chicago Law School with our comprehensive guide.

How to Write a Compelling Personal Statement for University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School

Learn how to craft a powerful personal statement that will impress the admissions committee at University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School.

How to Write a Compelling Personal Statement for Duke University School of Law

Learn how to craft a standout personal statement for Duke University School of Law with our comprehensive guide.

How to Write a Compelling Personal Statement for Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law

Learn how to write a compelling personal statement that will make your application stand out for Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law.

How to Write a Compelling Personal Statement for Georgetown University Law Center

Learn how to craft a personal statement that will impress the admissions committee at Georgetown University Law Center.

How to Write a Compelling Personal Statement for University of Southern California Gould School of Law

Learn how to craft a powerful personal statement that will make your application stand out to the University of Southern California Gould School of Law.

How to Write a Compelling Personal Statement for University of Minnesota Law School

Learn how to craft a powerful personal statement that will grab the attention of the University of Minnesota Law School admissions committee.

How to Write a Compelling Personal Statement for University of California, Irvine School of Law

Learn how to write a compelling personal statement that will impress the admissions committee at the University of California, Irvine School of Law.

How to Write a Compelling Personal Statement for Emory University School of Law

Learn how to craft a powerful personal statement that will impress the admissions committee at Emory University School of Law.

How to Write a Compelling Personal Statement for Ohio State University Moritz College of Law

Learn how to craft a powerful personal statement that will impress the admissions committee at Ohio State University Moritz College of Law.

How to Write a Compelling Personal Statement for William & Mary Law School

Learn how to craft a powerful personal statement that will impress the admissions committee at William & Mary Law School.

How to Write a Compelling Personal Statement for Indiana University Maurer School of Law

Learn how to craft a winning personal statement for Indiana University Maurer School of Law with our expert tips and advice.

Login to your account

Remember Me

Register for a Free Account

Access sample lessons, a free LSAT PrepTest, and 100 question explanations today!

Password (twice) * password strength indicator

Analytics Identifier

Excellent Law School Personal Statement Examples By David Busis Published May 5, 2019 Updated Feb 10, 2021

We’ve rounded up five spectacular personal statements that helped students with borderline numbers get into T-14 schools. You’ll find these examples to be as various as a typical JD class. Some essays are about a challenge, some about the evolution of the author’s intellectual or professional journey, and some about the author’s identity. The only common thread is sincerity. The authors did not write toward an imagined idea of what an admissions officer might be looking for: they reckoned honestly with formative experiences.

Personal Statement about a Career Journey

The writer of this personal statement matriculated at Georgetown. Her GPA was below the school’s 25th percentile and her LSAT score was above the 75th percentile. She was not a URM.

* Note that we’ve used female pronouns throughout, though some of the authors are male.

I don’t remember anything being out of the ordinary before I fainted—just the familiar, heady feeling and then nothing. When I came to, they were wheeling me away to the ER. That was the last time I went to the hospital for my neurology observership. Not long after, I crossed “doctor” off my list of post-graduate career options. It would be best, I figured, if I did something for which the day-to-day responsibilities didn’t make me pass out.

Back at the drawing board, I reflected on my choices. The first time around, my primary concern was how I could stay in school for the longest amount of time possible. Key factors were left out of my decision: I had no interest in medicine, no aptitude for the natural sciences, and, as it quickly became apparent, no stomach for sick patients. The second time around, I was honest with myself: I had no idea what I wanted to do.

My college graduation speaker told us that the word “job” comes from the French word “gober,” meaning “to devour.” When I fell into digital advertising, I was expecting a slow and toothless nibbling, a consumption whose impact I could ignore while I figured out what I actually wanted to do. I’d barely started before I realized that my interviewers had been serious when they told me the position was sink or swim. At six months, I was one toothbrush short of living at our office. It was an unapologetic aquatic boot camp—and I liked it. I wanted to swim. The job was bringing out the best in me and pushing me to do things I didn’t think I could do.

I remember my first client emergency. I had a day to re-do a presentation that I’d been researching and putting together for weeks. I was panicked and sure that I’d be next on the chopping block. My only cogent thought was, “Oh my god. What am I going to do?” The answer was a three-part solution I know well now: a long night, lots of coffee, and laser-like focus on exactly and only what was needed.

Five years and numerous emergencies later, I’ve learned how to work: work under pressure, work when I’m tired, and work when I no longer want to. I have enough confidence to set my aims high and know I can execute on them. I’ve learned something about myself that I didn’t know when I graduated: I am capable.

The word “career” comes from the French word “carrière,” denoting a circular racecourse. Perhaps it shouldn’t surprise me then, that I’ve come full circle with regards to law school. For two college summers, I interned as a legal associate and wondered, “Is this for me?” I didn’t know if I was truly interested, and I was worried that even if I was, I wouldn’t be able to see it through. Today, I don’t have those fears.

In the course of my advertising career, I have worked with many lawyers to navigate the murky waters of digital media and user privacy. Whereas most of my co-workers went to great lengths to avoid our legal team, I sought them out. The legal conversations about our daily work intrigued me. How far could we go in negotiating our contracts to reflect changing definitions of an impression? What would happen if the US followed the EU and implemented wide-reaching data-protection laws?

Working on the ad tech side of the industry, I had the data to target even the most niche audiences: politically-active Mormon Democrats for a political client; young, low-income pregnant women for a state government; millennials with mental health concerns in a campaign for suicide prevention. The extent to which digital technology has evolved is astonishing. So is the fact that it has gone largely unregulated. That’s finally changing, and I believe the shift is going to open up a more prominent role for those who understand both digital technology and its laws. I hope to begin my next career at the intersection of those two worlds.

Personal Statement about Legal Internships

The writer of this essay was admitted to every T14 law school from Columbia on down and matriculated at a top JD program with a large merit scholarship. Her LSAT score was below the median and her GPA was above the median of each school that accepted her. She was not a URM.

About six weeks into my first legal internship, my office-mate gestured at the window—we were seventy stories high in the Chrysler Building—and said, with a sad smile, doesn’t this office just make you want to jump? The firm appeared to be falling apart. The managing partners were suing each other, morale was low, and my boss, in an effort to maintain his client base, had instructed me neither to give any information to nor take any orders from other attorneys. On my first day of work, coworkers warned me that the firm could be “competitive,” which seemed to me like a good thing. I considered myself a competitive person and enjoyed the feeling of victory. This, though, was the kind of competition in which everyone lost.

Although I felt discouraged about the legal field after this experience, I chose not to give up on the profession, and after reading a book that featured the U.S. attorney’s office for the Southern District of New York, I sent in an internship application. Shortly after, I received an offer to work at the office. For my first assignment, I attended a hearing in the federal courthouse. As I entered the magnificent twenty-third-floor courtroom, I felt the gravitas of the issue at hand: the sentencing of a terrorist.

That sense of gravitas never left me, and visiting the courtroom became my favorite part of the job. Sitting in hearings amidst the polished brass fixtures and mahogany walls, watching attorneys in refined suits prosecute terror, cybercrime, and corruption, I felt part of a grand endeavor. The spectacle enthralled me: a trial was like a combination of a theatrical performance and an athletic event. If I’d seen the dark side of competition at my first job, now I was seeing the bright side. I sat on the edge of my seat and watched to see if good—my side—triumphed over evil—the defense. Every conviction seemed like an unambiguous achievement. I told my friends that one day I wanted to help “lock up the bad guys.”

It wasn’t until I interned at the public defender’s office that I realized how much I’d oversimplified the world. In my very first week, I took the statement of a former high school classmate who had been charged with heroin possession. I did not know him well in high school, but we both recognized one another and made small talk before starting the formal interview. He had fallen into drug abuse and had been convicted of petty theft several months earlier. After finishing the interview, I wished him well.

The following week, in a courtroom that felt more like a macabre DMV than the hallowed halls I’d seen with the USAO, I watched my classmate submit his guilty plea, which would allow him to do community service in lieu of jail time. The judge accepted his plea and my classmate mumbled a quiet “thank you.” I felt none of the achievement I’d come to associate with guilty pleas. In that court, where hundreds of people trudged through endless paperwork and long lines before they could even see a judge, there were no good guys and bad guys—just people trying to put their lives back together.

A year after my internship at the public defender’s office, I read a profile of Preet Bharara, the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, and my former boss. In the profile, he says, “You don’t want a justice system in which prosecutors are cowboys.” The more I saw at the public defender’s office, the more I rethought my experience at the USAO. When I had excitedly called my parents after an insider trading conviction, I had not thought of the defendant’s family. When I had cheered the conviction of a terrorist, I hadn’t thought about the fact that a conviction could not undo his actions. As I now plan on entering the legal profession—either as a prosecutor or public defender—I realize that my enthusiasm momentarily overwrote my empathy. I’d been playing cowboy. A lawyer’s job isn’t to lock up bad guys or help good guys in order to quench a competitive thirst—it’s to subsume his or her ego in the work and, by presenting one side of a case, create a necessary condition for justice.

Personal Statement about Cultural Identity

The writer of this essay was offered significant merit aid packages from Cornell, Michigan, and Northwestern, and matriculated at NYU Law. Her LSAT score was below the 25th percentile LSAT score and her GPA matched the median GPA of NYU.

By the age of five, I’d attended seven kindergartens and collected more frequent flier miles than most adults. I resided in two worlds – one with fast motorcycles, heavy pollution, and the smell of street food lingering in the air; the other with trimmed grass, faint traces of perfume mingling with coffee in the mall, and my mom pressing her hand against my window as she left for work. She was the only constant between these two worlds – flying me between Taiwan and America as she struggled to obtain a U.S. citizenship.

My family reunited for good around my sixth birthday, when we flew back to Taiwan to join my dad. I forgot about the West, acquired a taste for Tangyuan, and became fast friends with the kids in my neighborhood. In the evenings, I’d sit with my grandmother as she watched soap operas in Taiwanese, the dialect of the older generation, which I picked up in unharmonious bits and pieces. Other nights, she would turn off the TV, and speak to me about tradition and history – recounting my ancestors, life during the Japanese regime, raising my dad under martial law. “You are the last of the Li’s,” she would say, patting my back, and I’d feel a quick rush of pride, as though a lineage as deep as that of the English monarchy rested on my shoulders.

When I turned seven, my parents enrolled me in an American school, explaining that it was time for me, a Tai Wan Ren (Taiwanese), to learn English – “a language that could open doors to better opportunities.” Although I learned slowly, with a handful of the most remedial in ESL (English as a Second Language), books like The Secret Garden and The Wind in the Willows opened up new worlds of captivating images and beautiful stories that I longed to take part in.

Along with the new language, I adopted a different way to dress, new mannerisms, and new tastes, including American pop culture. I stopped seeing the neighborhood kids, and sought a set of friends who shared my affinity for HBO movies and Claire’s Jewelry . Whenever taxi drivers or waitresses asked where I was from, noting that I spoke Chinese with too much of an accent to be native, I told them I was American.

At home, I asked my mom to stop packing Taiwanese food for my lunch. The cheap food stalls I once enjoyed now embarrassed me. Instead, I wanted instant mashed potatoes and Kraft mac and cheese.

When it came time for college, I enrolled in a liberal arts school on the East Coast to pursue my love of literature, and was surprised to find that my return to America did not feel like the full homecoming I’d expected. America was as familiar as it was foreign, and while I had mastered being “American” in Taiwan, being an American in America baffled me. The open atmosphere of my university, where ideas and feelings were exchanged freely, felt familiar and welcoming, but cultural references often escaped me. Unlike my friends who’d grown up in the States, I had never heard of Wonder Bread, or experienced the joy of Chipotle’s burrito bowls. Unlike them, I missed the sound of motorcycles whizzing by my window on quiet nights.

It was during this time of uncertainty that I found my place through literature, discovering Taiye Selasi, Edward Said, and Primo Levi, whose works about origin and personhood reshaped my conception of my own identity. Their usage of the language of otherness provided me with the vocabulary I had long sought, and revealed that I had too simplistic an understanding of who I was. In trying to discover my role in each cultural context, I’d confined myself within an easy dichotomy, where the East represented exotic foods and experiences, and the West, development and consumerism. By idealizing the latter and rejecting the former, I had reduced the richness of my worlds to caricatures. Where I am from, and who I am, is an amalgamation of my experiences and heritage: I am simultaneously a Mei Guo Ren and Taiwanese.

Just as I once reconciled my Eastern and Western identities, I now seek to reconcile my love of literature with my desire to effect tangible change. I first became interested in law on my study abroad program, when I visited the English courts as a tourist. As I watched the barristers deliver their statements, it occurred to me that law and literature have some similarities: both are a form of criticism that depends on close reading, the synthesis of disparate intellectual frameworks, and careful argumentation. Through my subsequent internships and my current job, I discovered that legal work possessed a tangibility I found lacking in literature. The lawyers I collaborate with work tirelessly to address the same problems and ideas I’ve explored only theoretically in my classes – those related to human rights, social contracts, and moral order. Though I understand that lawyers often work long hours, and that the work can be, at times, tedious, I’m drawn to the kind of research, analysis, and careful reading that the profession requires. I hope to harness my critical abilities to reach beyond the pages of the books I love and make meaningful change in the real world.

Personal Statement about Weightlifting

The writer of this essay was admitted to her top choice—a T14 school—with a handwritten note from the dean that praised her personal statement. Her LSAT score was below the school’s median and her GPA was above the school’s median.

As I knelt to tie balloons around the base of the white, wooden cross, I thought about the morning of my best friend’s accident: the initial numbness that overwhelmed my entire body; the hideous sound of my own small laugh when I called the other member of our trio and repeated the words “Mark died”; the panic attack I’d had driving home, resulting in enough tears that I had to pull off to the side of the road. Above all, I remembered the feeling of reality crashing into my previously sheltered life, the feeling that nothing was as safe or certain as I’d believed.

I had been with Mark the day before he passed, exactly one week before we were both set to move down to Tennessee to start our freshman year of college. It would have been difficult to feel so alone with my grief in any circumstance, but Mark’s crash seemed to ignite a chain reaction of loss. I had to leave Nashville abruptly in order to attend the funeral of my grandmother, who helped raise me, and at the end of the school year, a close friend who had helped me adjust to college was killed by an oncoming car on the day that he’d graduated. Just weeks before visiting Mark’s grave on his birthday, a childhood friend shot and killed himself in an abandoned parking lot on Christmas Eve. I spent Christmas Day trying to act as normally as possible, hiding the news in order not to ruin the holiday for the rest of my family.

This pattern of loss compounding loss affected me more than I ever thought it would. First, I just avoided social media out of fear that I’d see condolences for yet another friend who had passed too early. Eventually, I shut down emotionally and lost interest in the world—stopped attending social gatherings, stopped talking to anyone, and stopped going to many of my classes, as every day was a struggle to get out of bed. I hated the act that I had to put on in public, where I was always getting asked the same question —“I haven’t seen you in forever, where have you been?”—and always responding with the same lie: “I’ve just been really busy.”

I had been interested in bodybuilding since high school, but during this time, the lowest period of my life, it changed from a simple hobby to a necessity and, quite possibly, a lifesaver. The gym was the one place I could escape my own mind, where I could replace feelings of emptiness with the feeling of my heart pounding, lungs exploding, and blood flooding my muscles, where—with sweat pouring off my forehead and calloused palms clenched around cold steel—I could see clearly again.

Not only did my workouts provide me with an outlet for all of my suppressed emotion, but they also became the one aspect of my life where I felt I was still in control. I knew that if it was Monday, no matter what else was going on, I was going to be working out my legs, and I knew exactly what exercises I was going to do, and how many repetitions I was going to perform, and how much weight I was going to use for each repetition. I knew exactly when I would be eating and exactly how many grams of each food source I would ingest. I knew how many calories I would get from each of proteins, carbohydrates, and fats. My routine was one thing I could count on.

As I loaded more plates onto the barbell, I grew stronger mentally as well. The gym became a place, paradoxically, of both exertion and tranquility, a sanctuary where I felt capable of thinking about the people I’d lost. It was the healing I did there that let me tie the balloons to the cross on Mark’s third birthday after the crash, and that let me spend the rest of the afternoon sharing stories about Mark with friends on the side of the rural road. It was the healing I did there that left me ready to move on.

One of the fundamental principles of weightlifting involves progressively overloading the muscles by taking them to complete failure, coming back, and performing past the point where you last failed, consistently making small increases over time. The same principle helped me overcome my grief, and in the past few years, I’ve applied it to everything from learning Spanish to studying for the LSAT. As I prepare for the next stage of my life, I know I’ll encounter more challenges for which I’m unprepared, but I feel strong enough now to acknowledge my weaknesses, and—by making incremental gains—to overcome them.

Personal Statement about Sexual Assault

The writer of this essay was accepted to many top law schools and matriculated at Columbia. Her LSAT score matched Columbia’s median while her GPA was below Columbia’s 25th percentile.

My rapist didn’t hold a knife to my throat. My rapist didn’t jump out of a dark alleyway. My rapist didn’t slip me a roofie. My rapist was my eighth-grade boyfriend, who was already practicing with the high school football team. He assaulted me in his suburban house in New Jersey, while his mom cooked us dinner in the next room, in the back of an empty movie theatre, on the couch in my basement.

It started when I was thirteen and so excited to have my first real boyfriend. He was a football player from a different school who had a pierced ear and played the guitar. I, a shy, slightly chubby girl with a bad haircut and very few friends, felt wanted, needed, and possibly loved. The abuse—the verbal and physical harassment that eventually turned sexual—was just something that happened in grown-up relationships. This is what good girlfriends do, I thought. They say yes.

Never having had a sex-ed class in my life, it took me several months after my eighth-grade graduation and my entry into high school to realize the full extent of what he did to me. My overall experience of first “love” seemed surreal. This was something that happened in a Lifetime movie, not in a small town in New Jersey in his childhood twin bed. I didn’t tell anyone about what happened. I had a different life in a different school by then, and I wasn’t going to let my trauma define my existence.

As I grew older, I was confronted by the fact that rape is not a surreal misfortune or a Lifetime movie. It’s something that too many of my close friends have experienced. It’s when my sorority sister tells me about the upstairs of a frat house when she’s too drunk to say no. It’s when the boy in the room next door tells me about his uncle during freshman orientation. It’s a high school peer whose summer internship boss became too handsy. Rape is real. It’s happening every day, to mothers, brothers, sisters, and fathers—a silent majority that want to manage the burden on their own, afraid of judgement, afraid of repercussions, afraid of a he-said she-said court battle.

I am beyond tired of the silence. It took me three years to talk about what happened to me, to come clean to my peers and become a model of what it means to speak about something that society tells you not to speak about. Motivated by my own experience and my friends’ stories, I joined three groups that help educate my college community about sexual health and assault: New Feminists, Speak for Change, and Sexual Assault Responders. I trained to staff a peer-to-peer emergency hotline for survivors of sexual assault. I protested the university’s cover-up of a gang-rape in the basement of a fraternity house two doors from where I live now. As a member of my sorority’s executive board, I have talked extensively about safety and sexual assault, and have orchestrated a speaker on the subject to come to campus and talk to the exceptional young women I consider family. I’ve proposed a DOE policy change to make sexual violence education mandatory to my city councilman. This past summer, I traveled to a country notorious for sexual violence and helped lay the groundwork for a health center that will allow women to receive maternal care, mental health counseling, and career counseling.

Law school is going to help me take my advocacy to the next level. Survivors of sexual assault, especially young survivors, often don’t know where to turn. They don’t know their Title IX rights, they don’t know about the Clery Act, and they don’t know how to demand help when every other part of the system is shouting at them to be quiet and give up. Being a lawyer, first and foremost, is being an advocate. With a JD, I can work with groups like SurvJustice and the Rape Survivors Law Project to change the lives of people who were silenced for too long.

📌 Further reading:

Six Law School Personal Statements That Got Into Harvard
Free admissions course

Join our newsletter

Writing Personal Statements for Graduate School

Share This: Share Writing Personal Statements for Graduate School on Facebook Share Writing Personal Statements for Graduate School on LinkedIn Share Writing Personal Statements for Graduate School on X

Personal Statements

Preparing a well-written and effective personal statement (sometimes referred to as statements of purpose or personal essays) that clearly articulates your preparation, goals, and motivation for pursuing that specific graduate degree is critically important. You will need to spend a considerable amount of time and effort in crafting these statements. The focus, structure, and length of personal statements vary from program to program. Some will have prompts or questions you need to answer, while others will leave the topic open-ended. The length varies widely as well. Read instructions carefully and make sure to adhere to all parameters laid out in the application guidelines.

Clear writing is the result of clear thinking. The first and most important task is to decide on a message. Consider carefully which two or three points you wish to impress upon the reader, remembering that your audience is composed of academics who are experts in their fields. Your statement should show that you are able to think logically and express your thoughts in a clear and concise manner. Remember that the reader already has a record of your activities and your transcript; avoid simply restating your resume and transcript. Writing your statement will take time; start early and give yourself more than enough time for revisions. If no prompts are given, you can use the questions below to begin brainstorming content to include in your statement; for more information, see our Writing Personal Statement presentation Prezi and our three-minute video on Writing Personal Statements .

What experiences and academic preparation do you have that are relevant to the degree you’re seeking?
Why are you choosing to pursue a graduate degree at this time?
Why do you want to pursue this particular degree and how will this degree and the specific program fit into your career plans and your long-term goals?
What specific topics are you aiming to explore and what does the current literature say about those topics?

After you’ve written a first draft, start the work of editing, refining, simplifying, and polishing. Provide specific examples that will help illustrate your points and convey your interests, intentions, and motivations. Is any section, sentence, or word superfluous, ambiguous, apologetic, or awkward? Are your verbs strong and active? Have you removed most of the qualifiers? Are you sure that each activity or interest you mention supports one of your main ideas? Spelling and grammatical errors are inexcusable. Don’t rely on spell-check to catch all errors; read your statement aloud and have it reviewed by multiple people whose opinion you trust. If possible, have your statement reviewed by a writing tutor. For individual assistance with writing your personal statement, consult with the writing tutor in your residential college or the Writing Center within the Yale Center for Teaching and Learning .

Office of Career Strategy

Visiting yale.

Application Toolkit: Written Statements

On this webpage, you will find our advice and guidance for approaching the two written statements in the application.

Beginning with the application for Fall Term 2024 enrollment, we now require that all applicants submit a Statement of Purpose and a Statement of Perspective. Although it is no longer an application component, much of the advice we shared about the personal statement may still be useful to applicants as they develop their Written Statements. We have preserved that information on this toolkit for your reference.

Changes to the J.D. Application Components

Instructions

Every applicant must submit both a Statement of Purpose and a Statement of Perspective, responding to the prompts below. Each Statement must be one to two pages in length, using double-spacing, one-inch margins, and a font size that is comfortable to read (no smaller than 11 point). We expect every applicant to use at least one full page for each Statement.

Statement of Purpose : What motivates you to pursue law? How does attending law school align with your ambitions, goals, and vision for your future?

Statement of Perspective : The Admissions Committee makes every effort to understand who you are as an individual and potential Harvard Law School student and graduate. Please share how your experiences, background, and/or interests have shaped you and will shape your engagement in the HLS community and the legal profession.

Blog Advice

Visit the Admissions Blog
View All Written Statements Blog Posts

Changes to the J.D. Program Application Components

August is here, and that means the J.D. Admissions Office is finalizing our application for the 2023–2024 cycle before it opens on September 15. One exciting change for this year: we have reworked our essay requirements and prompts.

August 4, 2023

Should you include a “why Harvard” statement in your application?

Each year at this time, we receive questions about how applicants should express interest in Harvard Law School. Include a “Why Harvard” essay? Talk about HLS in the personal statement? Maybe an addendum on this topic? The answer to all these questions is the same: no, that’s not necessary. Let’s start with the separate “why

December 2, 2022

Overrated/Underrated Part 3

Continuing our Overrated/Underrated series, this week, we shift our focus to highlight some of the overrated approaches that we recommend applicants avoid as they craft their applications.

November 17, 2021

Overrated/Underrated Part 1

The J.D. Admissions team recently came together to offer their thoughts on some underrated and overrated approaches that applicants might take towards their HLS application. We hope you’ll find some of these nuggets useful.

September 9, 2021

Real Talk: The Personal Statement

For our first entry in the Real Talk series, Associate Director Nefyn Meissner shares advice on approaching the personal statement.

August 6, 2020

Personal Statement Advice

The personal statement is “an opportunity to give the Admissions Committee a better sense of who you are as a person and as a potential student and graduate of Harvard Law School.” But what does that mean to us?

November 6, 2018

Podcast Advice

Navigating law school admissions with miriam & kristi.

Miriam Ingber (Associate Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid at Yale Law School) and Kristi Jobson (Assistant Dean for Admissions at Harvard Law School) provide candid, accurate, and straightforward advice about law school admissions — direct from the source. They will be joined by guest stars from other law schools to discuss application timing, letters of recommendation, personal statements, and more.

View All Episodes

Written Statements Workshop

Our Statement Workshop provides applicants with straightforward advice on how to craft essays with a reflective activity and guiding questions to consider.

We do understand mistakes happen. You are more than welcome to upload an updated document through your status checker. We will review the new material alongside what has been previously received.

Note that when you complete your application and hit “submit”, the information contained in your application may not be altered or deleted in any way by you as an applicant or by us as an admissions team.

Yes. Reapplicants will need to submit new written statements with their application.

We ask that transfer candidates also address the reason(s) for applying for transfer enrollment. Please visit our Transfer Applications Components for more information.

Modal Gallery

Gallery block modal gallery.

Graduate School

Yale Graduate School Personal Statement Examples

Don’t assume that Yale Graduate School personal statement examples are the same as Yale Law School personal statement examples or those for any other program because each one must be tailored to a program’s specific requirements. There were close to 11,550 applications to Yale graduate school in a recent year for over 70 different programs, so crafting a personal statement that truly reflects your goals and motivations to enter graduate school should be a priority.

This article will feature Yale graduate school personal statement examples based on the requirements set forth by individual programs at Yale and end with a few tips on what to include and what not to include.

>> Want us to help you get accepted? Schedule a free strategy call here . <<

Listen to the blog!

Article Contents 9 min read

Example 1. yale school of architecture phd program personal essay.

Requirements: Must not exceed one page

The cross cast a long shadow on our living room floor in the morning. The day the war started, my mother had taped that cross onto the windows for practical reasons, not divine ones. The thinking was, if any Iraqi shells or rockets reached our neighborhood in Tehran, the tape would keep the glass from shattering into tiny pieces – at least, that was the hope.

I learned in my first year Building Construction class at the University of Waterloo that taping windows is wholly ineffective. Letting a window shatter into thousands of pieces is better than keeping large panes of glass together, which the tape does not do anyway. But when my mother taped our windows, it did have one positive effect – it made me feel protected.

I have many memories of the war, but that was the first, and it’s one I had not revisited until that class. When my engineering professor talked about how taping windows is ineffective, I felt singled out. He reactivated that memory in my mind, which I had not thought about for some time. It was then that I realized I wanted to contribute something to making people safe in their homes or wherever they are. I wanted to research what I could do to protect them, from war or any other disaster, natural or man-made.

Are you preparing for your graduate school interview? Check out our top tips in this video:

I would argue that an architect’s role in building and rebuilding is central to how a people, nation, or society recover from trauma. The multifaceted role of architecture in times of upheaval and disaster is something I feel the Ecosystems in Architectural Sciences track at the Yale School of Architecture perfectly encapsulates. The multidisciplinary approach of this track is akin to the way I’ve always approached and thought about architecture and is the ideal track for me to bring other disciplines into my research, like psychology and economics.

I entered the master’s program at Waterloo after completing my undergraduate degree and based my thesis on the intersectionality of architecture, politics, disaster recovery, and culture. My paper was titled, “The Shelter of Crosses: On the Need for Trauma-Informed Architecture.” It is based on research I conducted into how the chaos of the First World War influenced European architects and architecture. I argued that the resulting new world order influenced architecture in turn by creating new, never-before-seen spaces like resettlement camps or temporary housing for displaced peoples.

I have only scratched the surface of how architecture, trauma, history, and identity have played a role in the reconstruction of physical spaces. But if admitted to the Yale School of Architecture program, I hope to explore how the collective psyche of a scarred population, and that of the individual, are rebuilt through architecture. Throughout history, disasters have led to societies adapting, from the Great Fire of London to Hiroshima and Nagasaki to earthquakes in Haiti and Nepal, and I feel like the Yale School of Architecture is the ideal place for me to pursue this type of investigation.

Would you like us to help you with your grad school applications? ","buttonText":"Free Strategy Call","buttonColor":"#ffffff","bannerUnderText":null,"belowButtonText1":null,"belowButtonText2":null,"trustpilot":false}" :url=""https:\/\/bemoacademicconsulting.com\/contact-schedule-free-strategy-call"" code="banner1" background-color="#000066" button-color="#ffffff" banner-image> Example 2. Yale Department of Political Science PhD Program

Requirements: none

My father was a principled, uncompromising man, and I’ve had a complicated relationship with his memory ever since he was killed. I was fourteen when he was murdered, and I remember my reaction to his death was pure anger – but anger toward him, not toward his killers. I understood why my father was killed. I knew what he was doing.

I understood how important he was to the copper miners he represented and, by extension, everyone else involved in legitimizing and supporting the socialist government of Salvador Allende. But I didn’t care about any of that. I wanted my father back, and I was angrier that he kept organizing strikes and protests, even after his life was threatened. I developed a deep-seated hatred toward any kind of activism or political action and decided to stay resolutely apolitical for the rest of my life.

After he was killed, my mother, my brothers, and my uncle, Patricio, all left Santiago for Lima, where we lived for two years until my family emigrated to Newark. My uncle continued with us to the US, and I was grateful for his presence, as he helped me process the trauma and anger I felt toward my father for letting his principles take priority over taking care of us, his family.

Patricio became a union steward at the local GM assembly plant where he worked. My uncle took me along to United Auto Workers meetings, whenever their collective bargaining agreement would be renegotiated. But I was still hesitant about taking up my family’s mantle of political action and organizing. Despite my hesitations, I spent summers working on the assembly line, even though I had at that point decided to go to law school.

I chose criminology as my undergraduate major at Rutgers and began taking pre-law courses in philosophy, political science, and sociology, still thinking my future lay in fighting for and protecting worker’s rights, even though I wasn’t sure that’s what I wanted. One of my sociology professors, Richard Helms, had also spent time as a labor organizer in Mexico, helping workers in the maquiladoras that sprung up in Northern Mexico post-NAFTA organize.

The first thing you should know about what to write about in your Yale graduate school personal statement is that not all graduate departments at Yale require them. The Yale Graduate School uses a centralized, online portal that all applicants, regardless of their program, must use to submit their application, similar to the way students applying to medical school use the AMCAS and AACOMAS services and must submit an AMCAS personal statement or read AACOMAS personal statement examples so that they can write and submit one with their main application.

Applicants specify on their application what program they are applying to and submit the necessary documentation, which includes the following:

A statement of purpose
Unofficial transcripts from all your previous colleges or universities
Three letters of recommendation
GRE test scores (program dependent)
CV or resume

The statement of purpose is mandatory for all programs, so you should review statement of purpose examples for graduate school to guide you when writing your own, but you should also know that all applicants must write their statement in response to the same prompt, as follows:

“Describe your research interests and preparation for your intended field(s) of study, including prior research and other relevant experiences. Explain how the faculty, research, and resources at Yale would contribute to your future goals.”

The required length of your statement of purpose is between 500–1000 words. You should also note that the statement of purpose does not fulfill any other personal statement requirements for the program you are applying to – if they even ask you for a separate essay. If your program does require a personal statement or graduate school cover letters , you must submit them as well.

Many programs require writing samples that are not necessarily personal statements. For example, the Department of Classics PhD program in Classical Philology asks for a writing sample between 10–15 pages, while applicants to the combined Classics and History PhD program are asked to write a two-page book review on any text that has shaped their academic interests.

Similarly, the PhD program in English asks applicants to submit writing samples of similar length that exemplify a student’s “best writing in a literary critical mode.” This writing sample is required, in addition to a separate personal statement, in which the applicant explains their motivation for pursuing a PhD in English at Yale.

If you must submit a personal statement to a graduate-level program at Yale, you can follow a very basic format and structure for personal statements to help you. But, again, you should always adhere to the formal requirements specified by the program on its website or in any official school handbooks or catalogs.

The structure suggested here is only a blueprint for your own statement, and if the program you are applying to does not have any specific requirements to follow, you can use this guide to help you craft your personal statement. Knowing how to write a myriad of different letters is a skill many people learn when figuring out how to get into grad school , as applying to grad school requires a lot of written documentation.

You should know how to write a personal statement, but to increase your chances of getting accepted, you should also know how to write an effective statement of intent , how to write a master’s thesis proposal , and how to write a CV for grad school , as a CV is one of the mandatory application requirements when applying to a Yale graduate program.

1. Start with a Story

A good opening is essential to any written piece of work, and you should apply the same thinking to your personal statement. The opening paragraph of your personal statement should include things about you that are not seen on your official transcripts, like your motivation to pursue a graduate degree and what events from your past led to your present.

Inviting the reader to keep reading is the goal of your introduction, so start with something evocative and emotional. You can talk about your childhood and upbringing if it has any bearing on your academic career and professional interests. You can talk about any inciting incident that made you realize you wanted to pursue this field and career and then transition to your accomplishments thus far in this particular field of study.

2. Show, Don’t Tell

You should devote a few paragraphs in the middle section of your personal statement to detailing what you’ve accomplished academically, professionally, or non-professionally. After explaining your motivations and writing about your personal history, you should demonstrate specific instances when you excelled, whether it was winning an academic prize or contributing to a research project or to a published paper.

3. Talk about the Future

After you’ve talked about what you’ve accomplished academically and professionally, you can discuss what you still want to accomplish in your field of study. You can present particular research goals or investigative questions that you feel are lacking in scholarship. Your concluding paragraph is also where you should talk about the program specifically and how it, unlike any other, can help you further your academic pursuits, while stating how you can contribute positively to the program.

Yale Graduate school personal statement examples are necessary for entry into any of the Ivy League schools’ many master’s and PhD-level courses. Every program has its own requirements, while some do not even require that you submit a statement. If your program does ask for a personal statement, you can follow a standard personal statement outline unless the program has its own requirements, which you should always follow.

Depending on the program, you could submit a standard personal statement (one or two pages, between 500 and 750 words) or one that responds to a specific prompt or question. But you may not even have to submit one, although the school does require that all applicants write a statement of purpose.

A personal statement is a letter or essay that showcases your motivations and goals when applying to an undergraduate, graduate, law, or medical program. A statement of purpose, which is a mandatory application requirement for all applicants to Yale Graduate School is where you’ll outline your research interests and what you hope to achieve academically if you are admitted, so you should review research interest statement samples to know how to write one.

You can include autobiographical information (hometown, family members) that relates to your academic pursuits, as well as anything relevant to your intellectual progression. You can write about obstacles you’ve had to overcome to complete your education as well as personal experiences, but only if they relate to your motivation for pursuing a graduate degree, which is somewhat similar to what to include in medical school personal statements .

You should not overindulge in describing incidents that have no bearing on your academic career. You should also avoid general, cliched statements that are often overused in personal statements, like “I’ve always wanted to be...” or “I enjoy writing and researching.” Humor is also a tricky subject, as a graduate school application requires more seriousness and formality.

It depends on the program. All applicants to the graduate school must write a statement of purpose outlining their research history and goals, but a personal statement can be an optional requirement based on the program. You may be asked to write one or not.

If you are required to submit an additional writing sample, like a personal statement, you should keep it as short as possible (one page, maximum 750 words).

Yale University, and all of its attendant schools and colleges, is one of the best Ivy League schools in the US, but it is also not one of the easiest Ivy League schools to get into . If you are wondering how to help your child get into an Ivy League school, Yale is a very competitive school, as it admits only 4.6% of applicants every year.

The school requires all applicants to submit: 1) a statement of purpose; 2) unofficial transcripts; 3) three letters of recommendation; and 4) a resume or CV. You may also need to submit GRE or other standardized test scores, but it depends on the program.

Want more free tips? Subscribe to our channels for more free and useful content!

Apple Podcasts

Like our blog? Write for us ! >>

Have a question ask our admissions experts below and we'll answer your questions, get started now.

Talk to one of our admissions experts

Our site uses cookies. By using our website, you agree with our cookie policy .

FREE Training Webinar:

How to make your grad school application stand out, (and avoid the top 5 mistakes that get most rejected).

Time Sensitive. Limited Spots Available:

We guarantee you'll get into grad school or you don't pay.

Swipe up to see a great offer!

Election 2024
Entertainment
Newsletters
Photography
Personal Finance
AP Investigations
AP Buyline Personal Finance
AP Buyline Shopping
Press Releases
Israel-Hamas War
Russia-Ukraine War
Global elections
Asia Pacific
Latin America
Middle East
Election Results
Delegate Tracker
AP & Elections
Auto Racing
2024 Paris Olympic Games
Movie reviews
Book reviews
Personal finance
Financial Markets
Business Highlights
Financial wellness
Artificial Intelligence
Social Media

News anchor Poppy Harlow announces departure from CNN

FILE - Journalist Poppy Harlow poses for photographers as she arrives at the annual White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner in Washington, Saturday, April 29, 2023. CNN says on Friday, April 26, 2024, that Harlow announced her parting from the cable news giant in an email to colleagues.(AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana, File)

Copy Link copied

ATLANTA (AP) — Anchor Poppy Harlow is leaving CNN, according to the network.

Harlow, who joined CNN in 2008 and most recently co-hosted “CNN This Morning,” announced her parting from the cable news giant in an email to colleagues.

She called her time at CNN “a gift.”

“I have been inspired by you and learned so much from you – who are (and will remain) dear friends,” Harlow wrote. “This place has shaped me as a leader, taught me resilience, shown me the value of perspective and how to make hard decisions.”

At CNN, Harlow reported on the 2013 Boston Marathon bombings and the 2015 Paris terror attacks, among other stories.

“I got to experience what makes this country great,” Harlow wrote in her email. “I sat with people in their best moments and in their hardest. They taught me about the human condition and what binds us.”

Earlier this year, CNN announced changes to the time slot for “CNN This Morning” and moved it to Washington.

CNN Chief Executive Mark Thompson lauded Harlow’s time at the network.

“Poppy is a unique talent who combines formidable reporting and interviewing prowess with a human touch that audiences have always responded to,” Thompson said.

Harlow previously worked as an anchor for the Forbes Video Network and was an anchor and reporter for NY1 News, according to her bio on CNN’s website.

She earned a bachelor’s degree in political science from Columbia University and a master’s degree in Studies of Law from Yale Law School.

Watch CBS News

Yale student demonstrators arrested amid pro-Palestinian protest

By Lucia Suarez Sang

Updated on: April 23, 2024 / 7:18 AM EDT / CBS News

Protesters demanding Yale University divest from military manufacturers and expressing "solidarity with Gaza" amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas were arrested Monday after officials said they refused to disband an encampment on campus . Demonstrations then spilled out into the streets of New Haven, Connecticut.

For the last several days, a pro-Palestinian protest group called "Occupy Beinecke" erected a 24-tent encampment outside of Yale's Beinecke Plaza. In a statement on Instagram , the group said the encampment was also in solidarity with the recent protests at Columbia University , which resulted in multiple arrests last week and this weekend. In Boston, MIT and Emerson College campuses also saw student protests.

At Yale, university and New Haven police officers removed the protesters camped outside the Schwarzman Center on Monday and blocked entry to Beinecke Plaza. The demonstration spilled onto the streets of New Haven, where Yale's campus is located, about 80 miles north of New York City.

Video posted on social media showed students marching down Grove and College Streets, changing and cheering.

Police arrested 45 protesters on Monday. In a statement to CBS News, a Yale spokesperson said the university repeatedly asked the protesters to vacate the plaza and when many did not leave voluntarily, they were arrested. The spokesperson said the students who were arrested will also be referred for Yale disciplinary action, which includes a range of possible sanctions including reprimand, probation and suspension.

In a statement, the New Haven Police Department confirmed it assisted the university police officers around 6:30 a.m. on Monday. It said the people arrested were charged with criminal trespass, a misdemeanor. They were taken to a Yale police facility, where they were processed and released.

The police department said as long as the protest at Grove and College Streets remains peaceful, there were no plans to make any additional arrests.

"It's ludicrous that students are being charged with criminal trespassing for peacefully protesting on their own campus," Chisato Kimura, a Yale Law Student, said, according to a statement released by Occupy Beinecke.

The ongoing demonstration arose after Yale's Advisory Committee on Investor Responsibility decided that military weapons manufacturing for authorized sales did not "meet the threshold of grave social injury, a prerequisite for divestment."

The group's so-called occupation of Beinecke Plaza, which was the location for Yale student protests during the divestment campaign against South African apartheid in the mid-1980s, began last week when students placed dozens of books outside the Schwarzman Center.

A university spokesperson said officials spent several hours with student protesters on Sunday, offering them the opportunity to meet with trustees, including the chair of the Corporation Committee on Investor Responsibility, but the offer was declined.

According to Occupy Beinecke organizers, they declined the meeting because they said it "would not be productive unless students and trustees had equal access to information on Yale's holdings."

"Administrators offered to disseminate already-public asset allocation reports, but refused to commit to any form of additional disclosure," the group said in a statement. "After being given only ten minutes to decide on the administration's final offer, students rejected and stated that they would stay in the encampment until demands were met."

On Sunday, Yale University President Peter Salovey issued a statement on the protests , saying that the university supports free speech and civil discourse and also must focus on campus safety and maintaining university operations.

"Many of the students participating in the protests, including those conducting counterprotests, have done so peacefully," Salovey said. "However, I am aware of reports of egregious behavior, such as intimidation and harassment, pushing those in crowds, removal of the plaza flag, and other harmful acts."

A Jewish Yale student reported over the weekend that she was struck in the eye by a flagpole wielded by a protester waving a Palestinian flag. Sahar Tartak, editor-in-chief of the Yale Free Press, said she was assaulted Saturday night while covering demonstrations on the campus.

"I wear a Star of David necklace," she told CBS New York . "One of them taunted me by waving a Palestinian flag in my face and jabbed me with it in the eye."

She said she was treated at a hospital and is recovering.

Yale police said they are investigating, saying in a statement, "The university does not tolerate violence, threats, harassment or intimidation of members of our community, and is providing support to a student who made the report."

Salovey said university leaders had spoken to protesters about the importance of following school policies and guidelines.

"Putting up structures, defying the directives of university officials, staying in campus spaces past allowed times, and other acts that violate university policies and guidelines create safety hazards and impede the work of our university," he said.

Columbia University
Connecticut
Yale University

Lucia Suarez Sang is an associate managing editor at cbsnews.com. Previously, Lucia was the director of digital content at FOX61 News in Connecticut and has previously written for outlets including FoxNews.com, Fox News Latino and the Rutland Herald.

More from CBS News

Pro-Palestinian protests spread, get more heated as schools' reactions differ

Violence breaks out at some pro-Palestinian campus protests

Protests continue at college campuses as graduation approaches

Blinken offers hostage families hope as he pushes for Israel-Hamas truce

latest in US News

Moment terrified kids flee as trans sex offender allegedly tries...

House COVID panel urges criminal probe over gain-of-function...

Outside agitators came to NYC campuses to radicalize students in...

Over 100 protesters arrested at Columbia as Eric Adams warns...

Wife of convicted terrorist seen hanging out at Columbia...

Cops raise the Stars and Stripes, toss away Palestinian flag in...

Inside Columbia's 'vandalized' Hamilton Hall, where pro-terror...

UCLA protests turn violent as fights break out and firecrackers...

Live updates, us colleges where students have been arrested over anti-israel protests.

View Author Archive
Get author RSS feed

Thanks for contacting us. We've received your submission.

More than 1,000 college students across the nation have been arrested during anti-Israel protests that have sprung up “tent cities” at some of America’s most prestigious universities.

The chaotic protests were spurred by the “Gaza Solidarity Encampment” born at Columbia University, which saw more than 100 demonstrators arrested on April 18 .

Since then, police have arrested demonstrators at more than 25 campuses nationwide, with several universities seeing more than 100 arrests.

Columbia University

Columbia’s Manhattan campus lawn has been occupied by protesters for about two weeks and saw NYPD officers called in to arrest 108 people during the initial attempt to clear out the encampment on April 18.

Finally, late on Tuesday, hundreds of pro-terror protesters were cuffed and hauled away from Columbia University — as one of the groups behind the violent anti-Israel demonstrations called for supporters to rally outside 1 Police Plaza where the perps were being processed.

Two-hundred thirty people were nabbed at the Ivy League campus after the NYPD stormed in to oust a destructive mob that had illegally taken over the Hamilton Hall academic building , police said.

New York University

A total of 120 people were nabbed at NYU on April 22 , with 116 protesters receiving summonses for trespassing and four given desk appearance tickets for charges that included resisting arrest.

Protesters at the "Gaza Solidarity Encampment" at NYU on April 26, 2024.

Cal Poly Humboldt

Three people were initially arrested at Cal Poly Humboldt last week before the university sent out its final warning for students to clear out the encampment by April 30.

By 2 a.m. on Tuesday, police were authorized to raid the encampment, making at least 25 more arrests, the Los Angeles Times reports .

Anti-Israel protesters dancing in a circle at Cal Poly Humboldt on April 23, 2024.

University of Southern California

Police arrested 93 protesters at the University of Southern California on April 24 after they were ordered to clear out the demonstrators.

While many chose to leave, those who remained sat in defiance and were arrested one by one without incident.

University of Southern California protesters carrying a tent near an encampment on campus on April 24, 2024.

Yale University

About 47 anti-Israeli protesters were arrested at Yale on April 21 after police stormed the campus with full riot gear.

Yale protesters sitting on a lawn after being forced to leave their encampment by officials on April 30, 2024.

University of Texas at Austin

A total of 57 protesters were arrested at the UT at Austin campus last week after students attempted to occupy the campus lawn and join the demonstrations against Israel’ war in Gaza.

On Monday, an additional 79 protesters were taken into custody, according to the Travis County Sheriff’s Office.

A state trooper pepper-spraying anti-Israel protesters at the University of Texas in Austin on April 29, 2024.

University of North Carolina

About 30 people were arrested at UNC-Chapel Hill on Tuesday morning after they refused to leave the encampment as ordered by police, the university said in a statement.

Amid the crackdown at UNC, students were seen in a viral video taking down the American flag at a campus flagpole and raising the Palestinian flag.

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Danielle Yablonka דניאל יבלונקה ✡︎ (@danielleyablonka)

University of South Carolina

The University of South Carolina confirmed that two students were arrested on April 23 during a small protest outside a dining area near student dorms.

The protesters had been disturbing a “Midnight Breakfast” event at the same venue.

Virginia Tech

A total of 82 protesters were booked at Virginia Tech on Sunday, including 53 active students on campus, Fox News reported .

Police raided the encampment on Sunday night and arrested resisting students with zip-tie restraints as they carried them away.

Virginia Commonwealth University

Police arrested 13 people at the Virginia Commonwealth University on Monday night, with the school confirming that six students were among the people detained.

Princeton University

Thirteen people were arrested on Monday night after a brief takeover at the school’s administrative offices where they held a sit-in, according to NorthJersey.com .

The students were booked for trespassing and have been barred from the campus, according to the university.

Students occupying the area outside Dickson Hall at Princeton University on April 25, 2024.

Indiana University

At Indiana University, 33 protesters were arrested Thursday and another 23 booked on Saturday in clashes with police at the campus encampment.

Emerson College

A total of 118 protesters were arrested at the Emerson College encampment on April 25, with Boston Police reporting that four officers suffered minor injuries in the clash with the demonstrators.

Northeastern University

Northeastern University saw 98 arrests over the weekend, including 29 people who were identified as students and another six who were staff members, NBC 10 reports.

Washington University

One hundred protesters were arrested on Saturday at Washington University, including 23 students and at least four employees, according to Chancellor Andrew Martin, who slammed the protests as a “dark, sad day for WashU.”

University of Washington students sitting in an anti-Israel encampment.

Arizona State

Arizona State Police arrested 69 people at the unauthorized encampment that was set up at the Temple campus on Saturday.

University of Colorado Denver

A total of 44 people were arrested at the University of Colorado Denver on Friday after the school said that the encampment at the Auraria Campus violated the college’s policy.

University of Illinois

Two men, neither students at the University of Illinois, were arrested and charged with mob action last Friday during the encampment protest on campus, WCIA reports .

The Champaign County State’s Attorney identified the men as George Vassilatos, 25, and Christopher Zelle, 37.

University of Minnesota

Eight students and a staff member were arrested at the University of Minnesota last week at the school’s encampment protest, according to the university.

Emory University

Emory University officials said 28 people, including 20 students, were arrested last week during a protest targeting the school and the Atlanta Public Safety Training Center.

University of Georgia

About 17 people were arrested at a joint protest held by students and members of the Athens community at the University of Georgia Campus on Monday, WSBTV reports .

University of Florida

Nine people were arrested on Monday at the University of Florida during an anti-Israel demonstration at the Gainesville campus.

The protesters were charged with resisting arrest and trespassing, with one demonstrator charged with batter after spitting on an officer, the Tampa Bay Times reports .

Ohio State University

A total of 36 people were arrested at an anti-Israel protest at Ohio State University last Thursday.

At least 16 of those arrested were OSU students, with the others not affiliated with the university in any way, according to the school.

Police at an anti-Israel protest at Ohio State University on April 25, 2024.

University of Mary Washington

At the University of Mary Washington, in Virginia, 12 people were arrested, including nine students, on Saturday after demonstrators invited outsiders to the encampment, against school policy, University President Troy Paino said in a statement.

University of Connecticut

About 23 students were arrested at an encampment protest at UConn on Tuesday morning, according to the Hartford Courant.

Police said it had given protesters four warnings to remove the tent before moving in on the encampment.

Share this article:

Police arrest pro-Palestinian supporters at encampment on Yale University plaza

Police officers Monday arrested protesters who had set up an encampment on Yale University’s campus in support of the Palestinian cause, one of a growing number of American universities where there have been demonstrations surrounding the ongoing Israel-Hamas war.

Protesters had been on their third night of camping out to urge Yale to divest from military weapons manufacturers, the Yale Daily News reported.

Officers gathered at the protest site at Beinecke Plaza shortly before 7 a.m. Monday and were seen approaching the encampment and “flipping up the entrances to the tents,” the school paper wrote on X.

Then officers issued a warning for students and journalists to leave or they’d be arrested. Minutes later, the school paper wrote on X that police were arresting people.

In total, 47 students were issued summonses, Yale said in a statement Monday.

After a third night of camping out, Police officers arrested protesters in support of the Palestinian cause on Yale University’s campus on April 22, 2024.

They were taken to a Yale police facility, where they were processed, charged with first-degree criminal trespass, a misdemeanor, and released, the New Haven mayor’s office said.

The arrests

The university said protesters were asked to leave and remove their belongings after officials had “notified protesters numerous times” that if they violated university policies about occupying outdoor spaces, they could face law enforcement and disciplinary action. Some left voluntarily Monday morning.

Those arrested will also be referred for Yale disciplinary action, “which includes a range of sanctions, such as reprimand, probation, or suspension,” the university said.

By 8 a.m., no students were left on the plaza, and all protesters remaining on the plaza had been arrested.

"The university made the decision to arrest those individuals who would not leave the plaza with the safety and security of the entire Yale community in mind and to allow access to university facilities by all members of our community," Yale said Monday.

A statement on the Instagram page for the Yale protest organizers under the handle “Occupy Beinecke” said Monday that police had given only one arrest warning and refused to allow protesters to collect medication and other necessities.

“When asked onsite what protesters were doing wrong, police refused to give an answer,” the group said. Organizers also said the summons for criminal trespassing charges was “contrary to all prior communication from administration about potential consequences.”

After the arrests, a crowd of over 200 protesters blocked the intersection of Grove and College streets on campus as organizers “announced that people arrested are being charged with Class A misdemeanors,” the school paper wrote on X.

Forty police officers were reported to be at the scene, blocking students from entering the Schwarzman Center Rotunda.

New Haven police said they had no plans to make "any arrests of non-violent protesters" at that demonstration, which was still ongoing at of 10 a.m. ET.

Yale police did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Protests unfolding at universities across the U.S.

Another Ivy League institution, Columbia University in New York City, held classes virtually Monday following a pro-Palestinian encampment and protest that also resulted in mass suspensions and arrests.

Three Boston-area universities, Tufts, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Emerson, also had protest encampments over the weekend, organizers said.

Meanwhile, Harvard restricted access to Harvard Yard — a grassy area enclosed by fences on campus — through Friday afternoon. The school paper, The Harvard Crimson , reported the decision was “in apparent anticipation of student protests.” A notice posted on Yard gates said that “structures, including tents and tables, are not permitted in the Yard without prior permission” and that “students violating these policies are subject to disciplinary action.”

The University of Southern California in Los Angeles was criticized last week after it canceled the speech of a valedictorian whose social media account had a link to a document expressing support for Palestinians in Gaza. USC said it decided to cancel the speech based on concerns over security and the possibility of disruption .

Protests call for Yale to divest from military weapons manufacturers

Yale has been under “months of sustained pressure” to disclose and divest from investments in military weapons manufacturers, Occupy Beinecke said.

However, on Wednesday, Yale said its Advisory Committee on Investor Responsibility would not recommend divestment because it had concluded that “military weapons manufacturing for authorized sales did not meet the threshold of grave social injury” and because “this manufacturing supports socially necessary uses, such as law enforcement and national security.”

University President Peter Salovey sa id in a statement Sunday that they understood the disagreement with the ACIR decision.

“The ACIR—a committee of faculty, students, staff, and alumni—arrived at this conclusion after hearing from student presenters and engaging in careful deliberation. This is part of a formal process and relies on the university’s guide to ethical investing that has served Yale well for decades,” the statement said. “There are available pathways to continue this discussion with openness and civility, and I urge those with suggestions to follow them.”

The statement Sunday said the protests in Beinecke Plaza and other parts of campus “have grown significantly over the weekend, and some members of the broader community have joined our students.”

While the school “supports free speech and civil discourse,” the encampment protest violated some university guidelines and policies, which school leaders warned participants about.

“Putting up structures, defying the directives of university officials, staying in campus spaces past allowed times, and other acts that violate university policies and guidelines create safety hazards and impede the work of our university,” Salovey wrote.

While many students participating in protests and counter protests “have done so peacefully,” the school was aware of reports of “egregious behavior, such as intimidation and harassment, pushing those in crowds, removal of the plaza flag, and other harmful acts,” the statement said.

Yale separately told NBC News on Sunday that university police were “investigating a report of an assault” during a protest on Beinecke Plaza, adding it was “providing support to a student who made the report.”

The officials stressed: “Yale does not tolerate actions, including remarks, that threaten, harass, or intimidate members of the university’s Jewish, Muslim, and other communities,” and school police are investigating such actions.

CORRECTION (April 22, 2024, 6:20 p.m. ET): A previous version of this article misstated who signed Yale University’s statement Sunday. It was signed by university President Peter Salovey, who is also the Chris Argyris professor of psychology. It was not also signed by Argyris, the late professor for whom Salovey’s endowed position is named.

Breaking News Reporter

Yale Daily News

Yale police arrest 47 student protesters for trespassing on Beinecke Plaza

After Yale police made morning arrests on Beinecke Plaza, hundreds of protesters moved to blockade the intersection of Grove and College Streets until rush hour, moving then to Cross Campus. The News followed the day live.

Samad Hakani, Photography Editor

Yale police arrested 47 pro-Palestine student protesters on Monday morning.

Shortly after 6 a.m, officers arrived at Beinecke Plaza, where protesters demanding that Yale divest from military weapons manufacturers had set up tents during the third night of their overnight encampment. Police detained protesters who refused to vacate the Plaza and had instead locked arms and circled around the flagpole, using zip ties to lead them through the College St. entrance of the Schwarzman Center onto Yale Shuttle buses.

The protesters were charged with trespassing, a Class A misdemeanor, before being released with a citation and an assigned court date of May 8. Yale Police Chief Anthony Campbell ’95 DIV ’09 said they had issued a warning to protesters on the Plaza last night at 11 p.m. and in the morning before 7 a.m. prior to arresting student protesters.

Arrested students will be referred for Yale disciplinary action — which could include reprimand, probation or suspension.

About 250 protesters rallied in support of the arrested individuals, flanking detainees and police officers as they boarded the buses.

Campbell estimated that 50 to 60 Yale police officers were on site, alongside 15 officers from the New Haven Police Department. Only Yale police officers were involved in arresting protesters, said New Haven police chief Karl Jacobson.

By 7:52 a.m., all remaining protesters on the Plaza had been arrested.

After dispersing and detaining pro-Palestine protesters, police officers and maintenance workers cleared tents, removed activists’ flyers from the plaza walls and power-washed chalk drawings from surfaces.

The crowd moved from the Schwarzman Center sidewalk shortly after 8 a.m. to form a large protest circle blocking the intersection of Grove and College streets. New Haven police officers diverted traffic away from the intersection, closing streets on three sides of the intersection.

As arrested students were released, several came to the intersection to join the blockade.

For nearly nine hours, pro-Palestine protesters — both Yale students and New Haven-based organizers — occupied the intersection, until around 5 p.m., when protesters began relocating to Cross Campus as New Haven police requested that the intersection re-open to traffic at 5:30 p.m.

On Cross, activists affiliated with the student organization Jews for Ceasefire led an outdoor Seder — the ritual meal for the Jewish holiday of Passover — which one organizer opened by saying that they were there to “stand in solidarity with Palestinians, not in spite of [their] Judaism but because of it.” A group later began to pray Maghrib, the sunset Islamic prayer, after the Seder.

An organizer announced at 10:07 p.m. that programming had concluded for the night, and unlike the Beinecke Plaza encampment over the weekend, organizers asked protesters to leave and continue protesting the following day.

The police did not have to issue a dispersal warning for the sit-in at Grove and College Streets, nor did they make use of two chartered commercial coach buses that were parked on Prospect Street — vehicles that would have been used to transport protesters after arrest if they had refused to clear the intersection by 5:30 p.m., according to assistant New Haven police chief David Zannelli.

Monday morning’s arrests took place after negotiations between University administrators and pro-Palestine organizers pushing for divestment broke down Sunday night. According to Yale College Dean Pericles Lewis, on Sunday night, administrators offered protesters a meeting with the chair of the University’s Corporation Committee on Investor Responsibility, no punishment for previous trespassing and a meeting with him — conditions they rejected.

“We told Dean Lewis that a meeting could not be productive without equality of access to information,” Patrick Hayes ’24, an organizer of the encampment, wrote to the News. “We told him we were willing to keep a peaceful encampment as Trustees assessed what, if any commitment could be made to disclosure, and that we understood this could take time. We negotiated in good faith, but with no commitment to even assess disclosure of any kind we could not accept the offer.”

Recent pro-Palestine demonstrators at other American universities have also faced arrest. At Columbia University, where over 100 pro-Palestine student protesters were arrested last week, classes were canceled for Monday, April 22 and off-campus students were encouraged to stay away from campus. And on Monday evening, New York police forces arrested over 150 pro-Palestine student protesters.

Six police vehicles continued to block the Alexander Walk entrance to Beinecke Plaza around 1 a.m. early Tuesday morning. Police tape still blocked off the Plaza as classes began on Tuesday.

The News followed the day live, as below.

— Giri Viswanathan, Sci-Tech Editor

______________________________________________________________

11:27 p.m.:

There are roughly 20 people left on Cross Campus, though it is quiet and protesters only seem to be talking among themselves. Protesters are also removing some of the art panels they had placed on Cross Campus earlier this afternoon.

At least five people are setting up sleeping bags.

“The numbers are going to fluctuate,” Ky Miller ENV ’25 told the News. “This is really intended to be an organic, community-centered space, so people are welcome to come and go as they please. We don’t have an exact count [of people intending to camp overnight] right now.”

Barring major developments, this will be the News’s last update for the night.

— Yolanda Wang, Staff Reporter, and Adam McPhail, Sci-Tech Editor

10:25 p.m.:

About 100 protesters remain on Cross Campus drumming and chanting “from the sea to river, Palestine will live forever.”

— Yolanda Wang, Staff Reporter

10:07 p.m.:

One speaker shared that the programming is done for the night.

“You can stay on your own volition,” a student leader said.

Organizers urged protestors to return tomorrow, as they plan to continue protesting.

— Natasha Khazzam, Staff Reporter and Khuan-Yu Hall, City Editor

“All our officers are tied up with the protest right now,” a receptionist at the Yale Police Department told the News.

There are currently no YPD officers on Cross Campus, though there are five Yale Public Safety cars and at least seven YPD officers on Alexander Walk and Beinecke Plaza.

Protestors announced that quiet hours shifted back to start at 10 p.m. Current university policy states that quiet hours begin at 11 p.m. In accordance with these changes, protestors stated that they plan to leave cross-campus shortly.

— Yolanda Wang and Natasha Khazzam, Staff Reporters

Organizers have announced that a Yale Law School professor will be speaking to the protesters in about 10 minutes. In addition, they announced plans to move from the grass of Cross Campus towards the plaza, space in front of Sterling Memorial Library. The protestors then chanted, “Palestine will be free, from the sea to the river.”

– Michael Willen, Copy Editor

An organizer is speaking over a megaphone to the pro-divestment protesters on Cross Campus, whose numbers have grown to around 200. The organizer pointed to the cardboard model missile with “BOOKS NOT BOMBS” painted on its surface.

“The radius of a missile this size would stretch from [Benjamin] Franklin College to Chapel Street,” the organizer said. She also compared the size of the missile, which stands about eight feet tall, to her own height.

YPD Liutenent Halstead told the News that YPD received reports of “tensions running too hot” and confrontations between protesters on Saturday night. To avoid conflicts tonight, Halstead said that YPD officers will be around to observe and respond as necessary. Halstead said there were no current plans for dispersing protesters on Cross Campus.

There are currently no officers stationed outside of Sterling or around Cross Campus.

– Khuan-Yu Hall, City Editor

Organizers have started to lead chants on Cross Campus again. Around 125 people are chanting “Say it loud, say it clear, liberation is here” and “Disclose, divest, we will not stop, we will not rest” as well as some chants in Arabic.

There are currently four Yale police officers standing in front of Sterling Memorial Library.

About 40 people have started to pray Maghrib on the upper half of Cross Campus. Around 100 more people are sitting on the lawn and looking on, though it is again difficult to discern whether they are protesters or passersby.

Yale Police Lieutenant Chris Halstead told the News that YPD does not have any plans to disperse the crowd on Cross Campus at this time. He told the News to refer to a 5:38 p.m. email from Vice President for University Life Kimberly Goff-Crews for more information on how the University would respond in the case that protesters set up another encampment or other structures on Cross Campus.

There are currently seven YPD officers standing in front of Sterling Memorial Library.

After the morning arrests and clearing of the Plaza, YPD officers gathered and removed the belongings left by protesters.

Halstead explained that there was a chance non-arrested protesters who retrieved their belongings from YPD could have their names recorded.

“Let’s say you’ve lost your phone,” Halstead said. “I take your phone, I write a report on it. I don’t know whose it is, but then you come and you claim it. Then because I documented the fact that I recovered it, I’m going to say that you came and picked it up, basically closing the loop and making sure it’s returned to the correct person.”

Halstead also said that he did not know whether YPD and University administrators would use cataloged information from non-arrestees who retrieved their belongings or video footage of protesters to identify and take disciplinary action against protesters.

On Monday, Yale College Council Vice President Maya Fonkeu ’25 and President Julian Suh-Toma ’25 wrote an op-ed in the News calling on administrators to recognize that “no amount of technicalities can justify silencing student voices.”

In the op-ed, they wrote that they have remained publicly silent for “far too long.”

“We sit here and humbly admit that, in this regard, we have failed, and we are sorry,” Suh-Toma and Fonkeu wrote in the op-ed.

On Monday night, Fonkeu further emphasized their support for free expression to the News.

“Throughout the course of this week students expressed themselves in more ways than one,” Fonkeu said. “Alongside the peaceful protests on Beinecke Plaza and on the Grove Street intersection, over 200 letters were sent to the Yale administration and the Board of Trustees. The students’ message is clear: they want Yale to do better.”

— Kaitlyn Pohly, Staff Reporter

Correction, 12:32 a.m.: This update has been amended to accurately reflect the views that Suh-Toma and Fonkeu articulated in their op-ed.

On Cross Campus, Shades of Yale began singing “We Shall Overcome” surrounded by seated protesters. It is quiet now relative to the full day of protest chants at the intersection of College and Grove streets.

–Zoë Halaban, WKND Editor

New Haven Mayor Justin Elicker released a statement affirming the students’ right to protest, but cautioning that the protest must be respectful of New Haven residents.

“Grove Street and College Street is one of New Haven’s busiest intersections, and it was important to have the area open and cleared in time for New Haveners’ evening rush hour commute and for first responders to be able to utilize those key corridors in responding to 9-1-1 emergencies across the city,” Elicker wrote.

Elicker commended the NHPD for their role in clearing the intersection safely without having to make arrests.

— Ariela Lopez, Staff Reporter

There are currently five Yale Police officers standing in front of Sterling Memorial Library while another patrols the paved area between Sterling Library and the Cross Campus lawn. A seventh Yale Police officer is patrolling the lower area of Cross Campus, closer to College Street.

— Yolanda Wang and Emily Khym, Staff Reporters

The Seder has ended, and organizers are distributing leftover food. Attendees of the Seder remain on Cross Campus and are especially concentrated around a model rocket made of cardboard with the message “BOOKS NOT BOMBS” painted on it. The rocket was erected shortly after the Seder began.

— Emily Khym and Yolanda Wang, Staff Reporters

Various student communities are responding to recent protests, as Yale Students for Christ will hold a prayer at 9 p.m. tonight at Dwight Hall. According to an email written by Kwaku Acquah ’23, a current student intern for Yale Students for Christ, a space for collective praying and processing is essential given the “recent escalation of events.”

“As followers of Christ, we believe it is important for us to gather together in times of uncertainty and difficulty, to pray for each other, for others around us, and for those across the globe who are suffering and in conflict,” wrote Acquah in an email to YSC students. “Tonight we’ll be gathering in Dwight Library from 9-10pm to pray, while also creating a space for us to process our own thoughts and feelings.”

– Jane Park, Staff Reporter

6:22 p.m.:

The incoming first-year counselors of all 14 residential colleges have drafted a preliminary “Letter of Support” for student protesters. The letter is addressed to Dean Lewis, Dean Lafargue, Dean Peck and Dean Boyd and demands that the Yale administration “fully and immediately disclose its investments and divest from any and all weapons manufacturing.”

In it, the writers “fully and unequivocally condemn the University administration’s decision to authorize the arrest of at least 47 peaceful student protesters on the morning of April 22, 2024.”

The protesters were charged with Class A Misdemeanors, which is the highest class of misdemeanors in Connecticut.

The letter cites the given responsibilities of first-year counselors by Yale College. FroCos wrote that they object to the arrests of protesters and found “this action fundamentally incompatible with what it means to be a student at Yale.”

The letter also cited the Guidance Regarding Free Expression and Peaceable Assembly at Yale , writing that the arrests go against the University’s commitment to free expression.

The incoming first-year counselors demanded “that Yale drop any and all misdemeanor or criminal charges and refrain from disciplinary action against peaceful student protesters and that the University substantively and sincerely engage with student protesters’ demands.”

Over 40 first year counselors across 12 colleges have signed the letter so far.

Update, 1:01 a.m.: A previous version of this live blog did not clarify that the letter incoming FroCos wrote was a preliminary draft. That draft has been evolving, and the 40 listed signatories did not necessarily sign on to the version the News obtained.

– Asuka Koda, Karla Cortes and Kenisha Mahajan, Staff Reporters

There are currently around 125 people gathered for the Jews for Ceasefire protest Seder — a dinner for the Jewish holiday of Passover — on Cross Campus, though it is difficult to tell who is part of the pro-divestment protests and who is a passerby.

The people gathered for the seder have finished pouring the first cup of wine and are now passing around foods that are part of the ritual, such as zeroa, beitza and charoset.

The protester leading the Seder asked the crowd to reflect on the Ten Plagues and asked “what is plaguing Yale university and the world this Passover?”

The crowd responded with “the policing of New Haven,” “bombs,” “Zionism” and “man-made famine.”

According to Jimmy Lê ’25, one of the protesters who was arrested earlier this morning, there has been no news regarding the academic disciplinary action that arrested protesters will face. Upon arrest, protesters’ Yale IDs were collected by the YPD, said Lê.

When YPD entered the plaza in the early morning, only half of the protesters were awake. Marshals awoke and alerted protesters through a speakerphone. After YPD officers closed on Beinecke Plaza with their police cars, Lê said that officers gave protesters 60 seconds to evacuate the premises or face arrest. Arrest took much longer, however, as Lê estimates that it took ten to fifteen minutes.

While Lê gave his phone away to a friend, there are some arrested protesters whose phones got confiscated and still has not received theirs back, according to Lê.

Officer Halstead told the News that the police are monitoring the scene to ensure that protesters remain safe and do not put up structures in violation of a 5:38 p.m. email sent to the Yale community by Kimberly Goff-Crews. The email reiterates that Yale policy bars students from placing structures on university outdoor spaces without pre-approval.

There are currently two Yale police officers on Cross Campus, and Halstead said that there are no plans to change that number unless the nature of the protest changes. He said that there are no plans to disperse the crowd.

-Josie Reich, Staff Reporter

As of 5:53 p.m., students have begun the Passover Seder. The crowd is sitting circled around a banner that reads “Jews for a free Palestine” and a painting of a seder plate. An organizer started the ritual by saying that they are here to “stand in solidarity with Palestinians, not in spite of [their] Judaism but because of it.”

Members of the Yale community are also holding banners that say “Another Jew for a Free Palestine” around the crowd. An online pamphlet titled “Freedom For All Seder” is being distributed.

– Emily Khym, Staff Reporter

As of 5:37 p.m., Harvard College has recently suspended the Harvard Undergraduate Palestine Solidarity Committee — one of several student organizations to stage a rally on Harvard Yard on Friday—according to a Harvard Crimson article .

This comes after the news that Harvard Yard will be closed to the public until Friday to “stay ahead of potential issues with non-Harvard recognized groups,” an announcement following large student protests at Columbia and Yale.

— Jane Park, Staff Reporter

Kimberly Goff-Crews, Yale’s secretary and vice president for university life, sent out an email echoing Salovey’s previous message, which called for compassion.

The email linked and summarized three University policies — relating to outdoor spaces, chalking and postering and structures.

The policy on structures mandates that students must obtain permission from appropriate administrators to set up any “structure, wall, barrier, tent, sculpture, artwork or other object” on university outdoor space. Structures that do not follow this policy will be taken down.

As of 5:30 p.m., there are around nine police officers stationed inside of Schwarzman Center, according to YPD officer Jay Jones. He told the News that officers are “wrapping up for the night” after a “long day.”

— Emily Khym and Jane Park, Staff Reporters

At a press conference outside the Schwarzman Center, Jacobson shared details of NHPD’s involvement.

According to Jacobson, 15 NHPD officers were deployed to the scene at YPD’s request this morning. He clarified that the YPD officers were the only ones arresting protesters this morning and NHPD officers were stationed on streets around the Schwarzman Center.

Jacobson said that he appreciated the organizers talking with NHPD so that the streets could be cleared for rush-hour traffic without arrests.

“We appreciate the cooperation,” Jacobson said.

— Yurii Stasiuk and Ariela Lopez, Staff Reporters

Protesters have moved from Schwarzman to Cross Campus. A total of 150 people, including both protesters and students already on Cross Campus, are on the grass. The protesters have taken up chants, including “Two, four, six, eight, Israel is a terror state” and “From the sea to river, Palestine will live forever.”

“We don’t need to be disrupting New Haven residents today, especially during rush hour. We need to be disrupting Yale today at a moment when the University is trying to scapegoat New Haven residents as inciters of violence, as ‘aggressors,’ per President Salovey’s email this afternoon,” a protest organizer, who spoke on the condition of anonymity due to fear of retaliation, said to the News.

— Jane Park, Emily Khym and Nora Moses, Staff Reporters

Officer David Zannelli, Assistant Chief of NHPD, told the News that they were pleased that the protesters moved peacefully to Cross Campus. Prior to the peaceful relocation, police were prepared with crowd control police and had chartered commercial coach buses to bring protesters who refused to move to detainment facilities.

– Zoë Halaban, WKND Editor, Giri Viswanathan, Sci-Tech Editor

Police officers have reopened College and Grove Streets to traffic. Most of the protesters have now cleared out of the intersection and moved to Cross Campus.

— Yolanda Wang and Asuka Koda, Staff Reporters, and Evan Gorelick, Print Managing Editor

Protesters are now relocating to Cross Campus from the intersection of College Street and Grove Street, which has been blocked to traffic by New Haven police since this morning.

Jacobson told the News that NHPD has been in conversation with protesters the entire day and wants to have the intersection clear for traffic by 5:30 p.m.

Jacobson noted that, despite the illegality of the protest, NHPD aims to protect protesters’ first amendment rights.

“We have to clean this up. … Let’s prove to people that we can be respectful and also say ‘Fuck Yale,’” an organizer announced to the crowd with a megaphone. The crowd yelled “Fuck Yale” in response.

The dispersal and subsequent move come after University President Peter Salovey sent a University-wide email describing the blocked intersection as a hazard. Since the protest is taking place on public property, it is under the jurisdiction of the NHPD.

“Today, a crowd—again, including our students and people not affiliated with Yale—assembled and blocked New Haven city streets,” Salovey wrote. “This is a safety violation and a disruption to the operation of the City of New Haven.”

NHPD Public Information Officer Bruckhart told the News that NHPD will not issue a dispersal warning because protesters are already vacating the intersection.

– Kenisha Mahajan, Staff Reporter, Zoë Halaban, WKND editor, Evan Gorelick, Print Managing Editor, and Giri Viswanathan, Sci-Tech Editor

University President Peter Salovey wrote an email to the University addressing today’s arrests and threatening disciplinary actions against protesters who remain at the intersection of College and Grove streets. Read more from the News here .

When an organizer, who stood in the center of the intersection, announced the email, protestors responded by booing. The organizer mentioned the insinuation of violence at the protest and affirmed that the protests are peaceful, stating, “This protest is and always has been committed to safety and care.”

Protesters cheered at the mention of peaceful protesting.

The organizer also described Salovey’s note as one employing “very dangerous rhetoric” towards members of the New Haven community, adding that Salovey’s message “painted these community members as dangerous and violent. ”

— Zoë Halaban, WKND Editor, and Chris Tillen and Yurii Stasiuk, Staff Reporters

4:04 p.m.:

Lewis wrote to the News regarding an email he sent to colleagues this morning at 9:59 a.m. which was circulated on social media. In the email, which was obtained by the News in full, Lewis attributed “greatly increased danger at recent protests” to “non-Yale protesters with a known history of violent confrontation with the police.”

“My email regarding the protest at Grove and Prospect was mistaken and I apologize for the suggestion that the protesters might turn violent,” Lewis wrote to the News. “I was repeating speculation I had overheard and I should not have done so.”

In the email, which was posted on the Occupy Beinecke Instagram account , Lewis attributed “greatly increased danger at recent protests” to “non-Yale protesters with a known history of violent confrontation with the police.”

“I hope that anyone who can do so will use their influence to encourage students to separate themselves from this outside group,” Lewis wrote in the email to colleagues.

The pro-Palestine protests, which started on April 15 , have largely remained peaceful throughout the week, including the three nights since protesters erected an encampment on Beinecke Plaza.

– Sarah Cook, University Editor, and Yolanda Wang, Staff Reporter

3:34 p.m.:

The News obtained a message sent to protesters who were arrested this morning on where to claim their belongings that were cleared off of Beinecke Plaza throughout the morning by Yale police and maintenance workers.

Yale police will hold “valuable items” — including medication, wallets and electronics — at 101 Ashmun St. for the next three to five days. After that time, all items will be transferred to New Haven police.

The message also says that “non-valuable items” can be picked up at the Office of Facilities at 150 York St. beginning in 24 hours. An organizer of the encampment, who requested anonymity due to safety concerns, told the News that tents, sleeping bags and blankets are non-valuable items.

Earlier in the day, the News spoke to two arrested protesters at 101 Ashmun St. — Nika Zarazvand ’20 and Chisato Kimura YLS ’25 — who described the process for claiming their valuables as frustrating and confusing.

— Nathaniel Rosenberg, City Editor

Yale police officers are still blocking the pedestrian entrance points to Beinecke Plaza via Alexander Walk. Eight police officers and two police cars block the opening at the southeast entrance across from William L. Harkness Hall. Another police car is parked directly on the walkway. No police cars remain on the northeast entrance by the Sterling Law Building but four Yale officers block the entrance. One officer told the News pedestrians are only permitted to enter the plaza if they have an appointment at Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library.

– Zoë Halaban, WKND Editor

Yale Gospel Choir has begun singing in the middle of the intersection. Twenty-one singers wear masks as they perform “This Little Light of Mine” and “Lift Every Voice and Sing.” At the choir’s request, the crowd has all stood for “Lift Every Voice and Sing.”

– Zoë Halaban, WKND Editor and Nathaniel Rosenberg, City Editor

A woman encouraged the crowd to sign up to testify at the ceasefire resolution hearing on May 1 at the New Haven Board of Alders. She told the crowd that New Haven police were directly related to the IDF, which makes passing the ceasefire resolution a New Haven issue.

According to the website of the Jewish Institute for National Security of America — or JINSA — former NHPD Chief Dean Esserman attended JINSA’s Homeland Security Program, an exchange program between “U.S. law enforcement community and expert Israeli counterterrorism practitioners,” in 2013.

Current YPD Chief Anthony Campbell attended an Anti-Defamation League–sponsored seminar titled “Leadership Seminar in Israel: Resilience and Counterterrorism” in which “U.S. law enforcement officials receive counterterrorism training from members of the Israeli National Police,” per an article from the Arts Council of Greater New Haven.

In the same article, Campbell told the Arts Council that the seminar he attended was “by far one of the most profound and life changing experiences [he has] ever had.”

Campbell also previously served as the chief of NHPD from 1998 to 2019.

Last December, pro-Palestine organizer Chloe Miller LAW ’25 proposed a ceasefire resolution to the Board of Alders. After a months long advocacy campaign , which included the disruption of the mayor’s state of the city address, alders moved the resolution to a committee in March, making a first step in the adoption process. Public hearing on it, scheduled for May 1, will be conducted over Zoom.

—Lily Belle Poling and Yolanda Wang, Staff Reporters

The News obtained an email from Rep. Rosa DeLauro with a statement on the protests.

DeLauro, who represents New Haven in Congress, wrote “People have a right to protest. We’re a democracy and freedom of speech is our founding principle. But inciting hatred and violence toward Jewish students and community members, as we have seen at other universities, is completely unacceptable and those responsible for violence must be held accountable. I am thankful that for the most part the protests at Yale have been peaceful.”

She continued by saying,“I am calling for an immediate ceasefire of at least six weeks, and I hope more after that, so we can free hostages and move additional humanitarian aid into Gaza.”

Justin Farmer, a former Hamden Town Councilor and local activist, is on-site in support of protesters’ demands. He told the News that he is angry with how Yale police shutting down the encampment on Beinecke Plaza has shifted the cost of the protest onto the city.

Farmer listed police overtime and accrued benefits as two costs the city would have to pay. Policing city streets, like the ones protesters are occupying, is the jurisdiction of NHPD, not YPD. Farmer also said that students are less physically safe in the intersection than they were in the plaza.

When asked how New Haven Mayor Justin Elicker should handle policing costs, Farmer suggested he bill Yale.

“I’d write a bill to the University and say ‘Okay, listen, this is a political issue that is costing the city money,” Farmer said. “You’re costing the city money because you won’t have legitimate dialogues with your students about your investments, which are supposed to be for education.”

Farmer also said he found it ironic that Yale recently apologized for its role in slavery but is pushing the costs of the protest onto a majority Black and Brown city.

– Nathaniel Rosenberg, City Editor

Marshals have surrounded the counter-protester in an effort to keep him back from the main circle. “Are you a provocateur?” a marshal asks. “I could be,” responded the counter-protester, who is accompanied by a small dog. Marshals are attempting to engage him in controlled, quiet dialogue.

– Miranda Wollen, University Editor

2:11 p.m.:

Four students performed tinikling — a traditional Filipino dance — in the middle of the protest circle, as the sole counter-protester heckled the dancers saying, “Idiots on the street. Do it right. Kill yourself.”

The crowd then chanted, “From Palestine to the Philippines, stop the U.S. war machine.”

The counter-protester replied with, “You can’t shut me up.”

The crowd drowned out his heckling with chants of “Free Gaza” and “Free Palestine.”

— Lily Belle Poling and Yurii Stasiuk, Staff Reporters

A man in a yarmulke and an Israel Defense Forces zip-up has begun a small counter-protest in front of the Schwarzman Center. He has a personal microphone and is chanting, “Stop attacking Israel,” and repeating “evil, evil!” and “stop supporting terrorism!” The central protest has picked up in response to drown him out. The protest remains peaceful.

According to an article published by The Harvard Crimson, Harvard Yard is closed to the public until Friday, to “stay ahead of potential issues with non-Harvard recognized groups.” This follows large student protests at Columbia and Yale.

At 11:56 a.m., Pauli Murray Head of College Tina Lu sent an email to her students regarding the protest. Lu said that she visited Beinecke Plaza several times in the past days, where she was able to share “some conversation, some hugs, and support” with students. In this email, Lu expressed her support for students and urged them to reach out.

“ I am more sorry than I can say that things have come to the pass they have,” wrote Lu in an email to students in Pauli Murray. “I know every HoC shares my sadness. We know how profoundly distressing this time has been for the whole community.”

Workers appear to be power washing the ground in Beinecke Plaza, which police officers have sealed off with tape. During the three-day encampment, pro-Palestine protesters wrote messages with chalk throughout the plaza.

The University’s postering and chalking policy states that “chalk may be used only on outdoor walkways that are open to the sky and the weather.” The policy also states that “chalk messages must use temporary materials … and may not exceed four feet by four feet.”

Organizers are currently encouraging protesters at the Grove Street and College Street intersection to continue drawing on the road with chalk and to expand the chalk drawings beyond the intersection.

— Yolanda Wang and Lily Belle Poling, Staff Reporters

1:15 p.m.:

New Haven Police Chief Karl Jacobson is standing at the center of the intersection. He told the News that there are between 10 and 15 New Haven officers stationed near the intersection.

As of 1:15 p.m., he said New Haven police had received no reports of violence from the protest today or at any point during the encampment.

He added that officers have not used riot gear but do have it accessible. At 10 p.m. on Friday, while over 400 people gathered on the Beinecke Plaza, the News reported that at least six New Haven police officers standing inside the Schwarzman Center were wearing riot gear.

For now, he said there are no plans to disperse the crowd unless protesters begin to set up tents. If tents are set up, Jacobson said, New Haven police will “immediately” disperse the entire crowd.

“I’d rather work with everybody here, not against,” he told the News.

– Sophie Sonnenfeld, Print Managing Editor

12:22 p.m.:

The female counter-protester approached the middle of the circle, chanting, “I am proud!” In response, protesters began singing and chanting, drowning the woman out. The two counter-protesters receded down Grove Street.

— Chris Tillen, Staff Reporter, and Miranda Wollen, University Editor

12:08 p.m.

New Haven community members share to the crowds of protesters various Jewish poems and pro-Palestinian chants.

Zachary Herring, a local Jewish New Haven activist, told the News that “It’s not just about divestment, it’s about investment as well and recognizing that Yale could have a huge role in revitalizing this city but instead folks are investing their money into weapons.”

At 7:06 a.m., 13 people had been arrested according to a Yale Police officer who told the News that at least some of the people arrested were students.

Herring also shared with the News that he was “not quite sure what their goals are by arresting 50 students, but then letting students block traffic in the middle of campus.” Organizers announced their intent to stay at the intersection of College and Groves at 10:50 a.m. and protesters remain here at 12:23 p.m.

— Karla Cortes, Staff Reporter

According to New Haven resident Shelly Altman, there will be a Seder to honor Passover held at 5:30 p.m. at the intersection of Grove Street and College Street. Altman is a leader with Jewish Voice for Peace who has been involved with protests for a cease-fire throughout the year. Originally, there was a plan to hold a Seder in Beinecke Plaza before the encampment was disbanded.

“Passover is a story of liberation and goes back thousands of years. But we need to bring the liberation story to our current day and to our current lives … today Grove and College Street are our liberation square,” said Altman.

— Chris Tillen, Staff Reporter

12:06 p.m.:

Two pro-Israel counter-protesters have entered the circle, one a man holding a sign that says “I HEART JEWS”, and the other a woman in a hand-decorated t-shirt that says “JEW” on the front and “ISRAEL” on the back. Both are filming the protest silently. Marshalls in yellow vests are attempting to keep the counter-protesters away from the circle’s center. All action remains peaceful.

— Miranda Wollen, University Editor

11:56 a.m.:

According to NHPD Officer Justin Cole, as long as the occupation of the intersection remains peaceful, NHPD has no plans to remove protesters. However, he said that they would have to “reevaluate” if anyone set up tents.

Cole told the News he was on his way to talk to the organizers of the protest and remind them to not set up tents.

— Khuan-Yu Hall, City Editor

11:52 a.m.:

Gov. Ned Lamont spoke at a press conference this morning regarding the ongoing protests and subsequent arrests on Yale’s campus. Lamont stated that he spoke to State Public Safety Chief Ronnell Higgins and that the situation seems “well managed.”

In regards to the arrest of approximately 47 students, Lamont seemed less informed. “You’d have to ask about the trespassing involved but if it interferes with other people and private property, that’s probably cause of arrest.”

Lamont encouraged the protestors to remain non-violent. On Saturday evening, a Jewish Yale made a series of unverified claims that she was jabbed in the eye with a Palestinian flag.

“Abuse of the law, hate speech and violence is wrong and illegal. It hurts your cause. In this instance, however, it is still to be determined whether this was accidental or purposeful”

– Kaitlyn Pohly and Mia Cortés Castro, Staff Reporters

11:48 a.m.:

Yale Hospitality announced in an email to students that “due to continuing protests,” the Schwarzman Center will be closed for dining for the day, including Commons, Elm cafe, the Ivy and the Bow Wow.

In addition, Trumbull and Grace Hopper dining halls will hold an extended lunch service until 3 p.m. The email did not say when the Schwarzman Center would reopen for dining services.

— Tristan Hernandez and Yolanda Wang, Staff Reporters

10:50 a.m.:

The American flag has yet to be raised back up the flagpole on Beinecke plaza. There are currently 25 police officers in the plaza, including one officer with a bomb squad patch on his uniform.

There are also three Yale Police officers in SSS.

— Yolanda Wang and Lily Belle Poling, Staff Reporters, and Khuan-Yu Hall, City Editor

At the intersection, organizers announced their intent to stay.

“We don’t need Beinecke to occupy,” a protester announced. “Let’s get performances going, let’s get speakers going.”

Members of Latin dance group Sabrosura, who canceled their planned performance at Salovey’s farewell dinner on Friday, are slated to perform today and hold a salsa workshop, an organizer announced.

10:49 a.m.:

Tyerin Gatling, a Yale Hospitality worker, told the News that Yale is “still figuring out what to do with the protesters.” He added that he anticipated that Commons would open in an “hour or two.”

The News also overheard YPD officers saying that Commons would remain closed for students but would open to feed officers.

— Yolanda Wang and Lily Belle Poling, Staff Reporter, and Khuan-Yu Hall, City Editor

10:47 a.m.:

According to a group of faculty representing Faculty for Justice in Palestine , the movement represents a learning experience for students.

“One of Yale’s slogans is ‘It’s your Yale,’ and students are demonstrating what that actually means. And we are proud to support this lesson in true belonging and community,” said four involved professors, to whom the News granted anonymity because of livelihood concerns. “There’s a great amount of research that has gone into this. This is a product of learning and scholarship. These students are fighting for Gaza but also fighting for the future of the university.”

10:46 a.m.:

A protester on the Plaza this morning provided the News with an account of police activity in the hour leading up to arrests. They were granted anonymity due to safety concerns.

The protester said that police officers began to gather inside the Schwarzman Center rotunda around 6 a.m. and then moved onto the plaza and taped off all exits at 6:15 a.m. without giving any warnings. According to the protester, police entered and blocked off the encampment around 6:30 a.m., still without making warnings. At this point, YPD officers denied both reporters from the News and protesters trying to retrieve their belongings entry to the Plaza.

It was not until 6:40 a.m. that the protesters said police, numbering about 30 in total, made a warning to the crowd to disperse. At this point, upwards of 45 protesters gathered around the flagpole and were arrested for trespassing.

10:33 a.m.:

Among protesters, many are forgoing schoolwork to attend the protest circle. Second-year master’s student Jiwoong Choi ’24 told the News that this protest comes before academics.

“Right now my master’s thesis is due in a week, basically. You know, fuck that. At the end of the day, what the fuck is a degree to a fucking people’s movement globally? Same with the faculty members who are attending this protest with us, same with advance Ph.D. students. They are putting so much more on the line than I am. So all I can do is just show up and say these chants and be part of this unified voice.”

10:30 a.m.:

A protester is waving a Palestinian flag outside of a window on a top floor of Sheffield-Sterling-Strathcona Hall, a building overlooking the intersection.

— Josie Reich and Yolanda Wang, Staff Reporters

10:26 a.m.:

“We’re going to be here all fucking day,” an organizer in the center of the circle told protesters through a megaphone.

— Josie Reich, Staff Reporter

10:25 a.m.:

New Haven police have blocked off traffic at the intersections of Wall and College Street, Prospect and Trumbull Street, and Grove Street and Hillhouse Avenue — the three intersections surrounding the protest where traffic could approach the protest circle. Yale Police Chief Anthony Campbell ’95 DIV ’09 told the News earlier on Monday that streets are the jurisdiction of NHPD, not YPD.

— Nora Moses, Staff Reporter, and Nathaniel Rosenberg, City Editor

10:05 a.m.:

Protesters have written and drawn with chalk in the Grove Street and College Street intersection. Messages include “disclose, divest,” “The people united will never be defeated” and “Black solidarity with Palestine.”

Protesters continue to shout chants, such as, “Salovey, you can’t hide, you’re funding genocide” and, “One, we are the people; two, we won’t be silenced; three, stop the violence now, now, now.” They also have begun to fill the intersection of Grove and College streets with writings in chalk calling for the University to “disclose and divest.”

In a speech to protesters, one organizer said,“We’ve got food, we’ve got coffee, we’ve got water and we are going to be here for a while.”

— Nora Moses, Staff Reporter, and Adam McPhail, Sci-Tech Editor

Patrick Hayes ’24, an organizer of the encampment, wrote to the News with a response to Lewis’ account of them refusing an offer of meetings with trustees, including one on the Corporation Committee on Investor Responsibility.

“With regard to negotiations, we told Dean Lewis that a meeting could not be productive without equality of access to information,” Hayes wrote. “We told him we were willing to keep a peaceful encampment as Trustees assessed what, if any commitment could be made to disclosure, and that we understood this could take time. We negotiated in good faith, but with no commitment to even assess disclosure of any kind we could not accept the offer.

9:44 a.m.:

The four NHPD motorcycles stations on Grove St. have departed. The road is still blocked by an NHPD car at the intersection of Temple and Grove.

Halstead told the News that there are no firm plans to proceed with the protestors occupying the intersection. He added that if or when the Schwarzman Center will be open is unclear, as its opening will be dependent on how the protest is handled.

9:41 a.m.:

When asked why the University cannot disclose investments, Lewis wrote that the University has a “number of contractual obligations” that prevent disclosure.

“I have no doubt that the students acted in good faith, but I think their leaders gave them bad advice,” Lewis wrote.

– Sarah Cook, University Editor

A University spokesperson told the News that 47 students have been arrested, based on the most recent report from Yale Police Chief Anthony Campbell. The spokesperson added that the students will be referred for Yale disciplinary action — which could include reprimand, probation or suspension.

“The university made the decision to arrest those individuals who would not leave the Plaza with the safety and security of the entire Yale community in mind and to allow access to university facilities by all members of our community,” the spokesperson wrote.

The spokesperson added that Yale provided detailed guidance on free expression , peaceable assembly and requesting the use of outdoor spaces and said that throughout yesterday’s negotiations, administrators offered protesters not only of meetings with the ACIR and trustees, but also opportunities “to avoid arrest if they left the plaza by the end of the weekend.”

The spokesperson also wrote that early this morning, the university again asked protestors to leave and remove belongings and had notified protestors numerous times that if they continued to violate Undergraduate Regulations, they could face both law enforcement and disciplinary action.

“Since the protest started, the university and the Yale Police Department worked to reduce the likelihood of confrontations and arrests,” the spokesperson wrote.

The university also spent several hours in discussion with student protesters yesterday, offering them the opportunity to meet with trustees, including the chair of the Corporation Committee on Investor Responsibility and to avoid arrest if they left the plaza by the end of the weekend. They declined this offer and continued to occupy the plaza. The university extended the deadline for a response to their offer to meet with the CCIR and trustees several times, with negotiations concluding unsuccessfully at 11:30 p.m.

– Yolanda Wang and Nora Moses, Staff Reporters, and Sarah Cook, University Editor

9:37 a.m.:

Lewis wrote to the News that he does not know what discipline students who were arrested might face but added that the Executive Committee normally administers reprimands, probation or suspension – “Or in extreme cases expulsion.”

Currently, officers at Rose Center cannot confirm how long confiscated property will be held. They instructed protestors to pick up “valuables” from YPD, while tents and blankets could be picked up from 150 York St. Officers described “valuable” items as those of considerable monetary value, such as “iPads and laptops.”

According to officers, they were able to seize and examine protesters’ personal belongings under the “Community Care Taking Function,” an exception to a search warrant, according to Officer Loesche. In this process, they looked through each bag, and the belongings were currently being logged.

Chisato Kimura YLS ’25, one of the protesters arrested, told the News that protesters have been receiving conflicting information about the process of finding personal belongings, leaving him frustrated.

“They dumped them into bags, now it seems like the cops and administration lost them because they have no idea where the belongings are. And that means medication is missing, people can’t reach out to parents, their families,” Kimura told the News. “The cops and administration had no plan. It’s so clear that they had no plans, they currently have no plans. It’s abysmal. I think it shows a complete lack of coordination and complete lack of care for students.”

— Jane Park and Lily Belle Poling, Staff Reporters

New Haven Police Officer Christian Bruckhart told the News that police currently have no plans to make arrests of protesters blocking the intersection.

“As long as there is no violence or threats or anything like that, the plan is to not make arrests,” Bruckhart said.

However, Lumisa Bista ’25, one of the protesters, told the News that Yale administrators had told protesters otherwise.

“A Yale administrator came to students advising that we clear the intersection because NHPD had planned to make arrests if the intersection was not cleared,” Lumisa Bista ’25 told the News.

Bista added that no time was given by which protesters must clear out.

“As far as I know, there are no plans to leave the intersection,” Bista said.

— Nathaniel Rosenberg, City Editor, and Yolanda Wang, Staff Reporter

9:21 a.m.:

Organizers and protesters are chanting about the policing relationship between the University and New Haven.

“[Police] try to keep Yale students safe from the residents of the city,” they chanted.

The protesters continued chanting “Ain’t no power like the power of the people cause the power of the people don’t stop.”

Officers stationed around the entrances to Beinecke Plaza have again closed off entrances with yellow caution tape tied to lampposts. They motioned to pedestrians to keep walking.

— Mia Cortés Castro, Staff Reporter

Yale police officer Halstead told a student that the tents inside and outside of Beinecke will all be disposed of after removal.

He said that all items on the Plaza were put into trash bags to be discarded, but have not been discarded yet.

More expensive items like laptops have been tagged and separated from the other items.

— Josie Reich, Staff Reporter

At the YPD substation at Rose Center on 101 Ashum Street , three protesters who were arrested are speaking to YPD officers about the seizing of their belongings. According to the protesters, some of the belongings were essential items, including medication, wallets, cell phones and IDs. Protesters on the plaza were told that they could speak to Chief Campbell if they went to the Yale Police Department headquarters.

According to Nika Zarazvand ’20, one of the arrested protesters, officers refused to escort her to retrieve her personal belongings from the tent — which included her cell phone and bag of medications. Zarazvand told the News that she needed to take her medication this morning to avoid negative side effects. The last time she took her medication was yesterday morning.

— Jane Park and Lily Belle-Poling, Staff Reporters

A protester who was arrested this morning and asked to remain anonymous was charged with “criminal trespass” in the first degree with a May 8 summons date, according to their citation, which was obtained by the News. This citation has the same charge and summons date as the one Craig Birckhead-Morton ’24, another protester who was arrested, received.

— Nora Moses, Staff Reporter, and Nathaniel Rosenberg, City Editor

There are 11 officers stationed at the entrance to Beinecke Plaza from Alexander Walk, though there is little pedestrian traffic.

Marshals and organizers have begun to give bread and fruit out to protesters in the circle.

Maintenance workers are returning all chairs and tables to their usual spot on the plaza, which has now been completely cleared of tents, signs, flags and banners.

— Ben Raab, Staff Reporter

Broadcast news outlets have arrived to cover the protest at the intersection. Reporters from NBC Connecticut, Fox 61, Channel 8 and Channel 3 are present on the scene.

At least 350 pro-Palestine protesters calling for military weapons divestment are still sitting in a circle blocking the intersection to College and Grove Streets. At least 40 protesters, organizers say 48, were arrested by Yale Police on Beinecke Plaza this morning and are being charged with trespassing in the first degree, a Class A misdemeanor. The protesters are currently chanting “We will free Palestine within our lifetime” and “Books not bombs.”

The yellow caution tape has fallen down in front of Beinecke Plaza at the Alexander Walk entrance, but two Yale police cars and officers remain stationed at the entrance and continue to restrict entry onto the Paza. Faculty and students heading to Beinecke Library are entering through an underground accessway.

Dean of Yale College Pericles Lewis wrote to the News that after over five hours of negotiations yesterday, he extended the deadline multiple times but “could not go past midnight.”

When asked what the deadline was for, he said, “the entire deal.” The final deal, he added, included a meeting with the chair of the CCIR, no punishment for previous trespassing, and a meeting with him. After rejecting this final offer, organizers were ultimately given until 6 a.m. this morning to leave without being arrested.

“There would have been [no] arrests and no disciplinary action except for instances of violence, threats, harassment, or intimidation,” Lewis wrote.

This offer was made after the offer of a meeting with two Yale Corporation members, which was made “early in the night,” per Lewis. He emphasized that this was the third night that administrators offered students the opportunity to de-escalate.

A group of around five demonstrators walking on Alexander Walk shouted “shame on you” and “useless pigs” to two police officers standing in front of Beinecke Plaza.

“Thank you,” one officer responded.

Staff and students at the Beinecke Library are entering the library through a tunnel underground, as the entrance through Beinecke Plaza is still restricted by police officers.

Protesters are now taping a poster reading “a united Korea for a free Palestine” to one of the columns of Schwarzman Center on its College Street side.

— Yolanda Wang, Staff Reporter

Yale Police Department officers inside the Schwarzman Center said that Commons is closed and they don’t know when it will open. Students and workers alike are not currently being allowed inside. The News saw at least one hospitality worker enter the Schwarzman Center.

Organizers have begun to move signs that were originally set up on Beinecke Plaza around the Schwarzman Center to the intersection at College Street.

Four police officers have left their post in front of Beinecke Paza on Alexander Walk. Two officers remain, alongside two police cars.

An apparent counter-protester is in the middle of the circle, raising a small sign with a picture of an Israeli hostage. She is shouting “Am Israel Chai” but is drowned out by the protesters’ chants.

Marshals have been using keffiyehs to block her from the other protesters.

— Nora Moses and Yolanda Wang, Staff Reporters

A maintenance worker on the Plaza confirmed they are not throwing out any personal belongings being picked up and placed into trash bags. All belongings will be stored and returned, they said.

Birckhead-Morton addressed the crowd sitting down in the College and Grove Street intersection.

“I was arrested by the Yale Police Department. Because of your support they couldn’t even take me out the back door. We have changed the landscape of the city and the country.”

After his speech, protesters chanted “disclose, divest. we will not stop, we will not rest.”

Craig Birckhead-Morton ’24, who was arrested at the flagpole on Beinecke Plaza this morning, said he was processed around 8 a.m. at a “secondary site” on Amistad Street near the School of Medicine and then was released. He was charged with trespassing in the first degree. He said his court date is May 8.

Birckhead-Morton was back on the sidewalk on College Street in front of the Schwarzman Center as of 8:40 a.m.

The final standing tent in front of the Schwarzman Center has been taken down. The Plaza is now completely clear except for a couple of bookshelves.

– Ben Raab, Staff Reporter

There are currently more than 350 protesters blocking the intersection of Grove and College Streets.

Most protesters have now sat down on the road. A protester is playing the drums in the center of the circle while some others dance.

— Yolanda Wang and Nora Moses, Staff Reporters

All signs, posters and banners have been removed from in front of the Schwarzman Center. All that remains on Beinecke Plaza are three tents and a couple of bookshelves, which workers are in the process of bringing into the Schwarzman Center.

Organizers wrote in their group chat that they are headed to where arrested protesters are being held to pick them up in cars.

Organizers also wrote that cops are inventorying the protesters’ belongings and they would have to call the police department to retrieve them.

All but four of the tents in front of the Schwarzman Center have been taken down by maintenance workers. There were more than 40 on the Plaza as of last night

— Ben Raab, Staff Reporter, and Nathaniel Rosenberg, City Editor

Two protesters who were arrested this morning after camping on Beinecke Plaza overnight told the News that they were taken by YPD officers in the first bus of arrested protesters to a mobile processing unit where they were charged with criminal trespassing to the first degree, then released 20 minutes later.

The two protesters requested anonymity due to concerns about retaliation.

Four New Haven Police officers on motorcycles are blocking off Grove Street at its intersection with Hillhouse Avenue and are directing traffic to turn onto Hillhouse.

Meanwhile, protesters at the intersection sing “from Yale to Columbia, we shall not be moved.” More than 100 pro-Palestine protesters have been arrested at Columbia over the past week.

There were more than 40 officers on the scene; they have now almost all entered the Schwarzman Center rotunda and are not allowing students inside.

— Yolanda Wang and Nora Moses, Staff Reporters, and Anika Arora Seth, Editor in Chief & President

NHPD Chief Karl Jacobson told the News that he spoke with University administration about removing protesters on Beinecke Plaza and said that NHPD was not given a set time until late last night or early this morning.

Jacobson also said that arrested students were, to his knowledge, being held at a park outside the Yale Law School.

– Jane Park, Staff Reporter, and Anika Arora Seth, Editor in Chief & President

A Yale police officer told the News he doesn’t expect Beinecke to be open “anytime soon,” but refused to provide an exact time.

New Haven Mayor Justin Elicker told the News that 15 to 20 officers from the New Haven Police Department are currently at the scene. The Yale Police Department requested support from NHPD ahead of today.

“People have a right to protest, but it has to be done in a safe way, by the rules of the law,” Elicker told the News in a phone call. “Our focus is on safety.”

Elicker said that he called President Peter Salovey last night to speak about the protest. He said that Salovey told him the city has been supportive. Elicker clarified that YPD, not the University, had reached out requesting support from NHPD.

Maintenance workers are beginning to take down individual tents and drag them off to the ground in front of the Schwarzman Center. Only maintenance workers and police officers are being allowed on the Plaza right now.

8:19 a.m.:

As police officers showed up on Grove Street on motorcycles, organizers instructed protesters in the street to link arms in the circle. The protesters are singing “We shall not be moved.”

— Lily Belle Poling, Staff Reporter

Yale Police Chief Anthony Campbell told the News that somewhere between 40 to 45 total protesters have been arrested and charged with trespassing, a Class A misdemeanor. He declined to tell the News where they have been taken for processing but said they would be released once processed.

He said they had issued a warning to protesters on the plaza last night at 11:00 p.m. and another this morning shortly before 7:00 a.m. before moving in for arrests.

Campbell estimated he had 50 to 60 officers on the scene, and said New Haven Police had a contingent as well.

When asked about the over 250 protesters blocking the intersection of College and Grove Streets, Campbell said that streets, and the decision of what to do with the protesters, fell under NHPD jurisdiction. NHPD Chief Karl Jacobson had previously said YPD was in charge. When informed of this difference, Campbell said he would talk to Jacobson.

— Nathaniel Rosenberg, City Editor, and Josie Reich, Staff Reporer

Around nine of the arrested protesters have been released and have joined the protesters blocking the street.

A protester at the center of the circle criticized the police over a megaphone for “coming at 6 a.m. when [protesters] were most vulnerable.”

“They knew we had power in our numbers,” the protester said.

She also said that 48 people in total were arrested and that “everyone is being released.”

When reporters asked police officers standing on the steps of the Schwarzman Center about protesters being charged with class A misdemeanors, officers said to reach out to the Office of Public Affairs. The Office has not responded to inquires from the News today. The News first called at 7:32 a.m.

— Jane Park and Josie Reich, Staff Reporters, and Anika Arora Seth, Editor in Chief & President

Maintenance workers have begun to take down all banners, flags and signs in front of the Schwarzman Center.

A team of around 15 maintenance workers is picking up trash around the tent encampments in front of the Schwartzman Center but has avoided touching tents, banners or flags thus far.

“It’s imperative that we block every single fucking street,” a protester said over megaphone.

A Yale Alert that came out at 8:12 a.m. said that police are responding to “an incident in the area of Grove St & Prospect St… due to protestors who are blocking the street.”

Police officers are instructing cars on Grove Street to back up from the circle of protesters in the intersection. They are backing them up to Hillhouse Avenue and diverting them that way.

– Lily Belle Poling, Staff Reporter

There are at least 30 officers gathered around the College Street entrance to the Schwarzman Center.

At least five additional police officers have been sent across College Street to the sidewalk in front.

– Josie Reich, Staff Reporter

8:09 a.m.:

Organizers blocking the intersection of Grove and College Streets announce that people arrested are being charged with Class A misdemeanors. “Do we look like criminals?,” they have asked the crowd of over 200.

Protesters encircling the College Grove intersection have locked arms and are chanting “get up, get down, we’re anti-war in this town.”

Protesters have circled around the intersection of College and Grove streets. No cars can pass through.

— Lily Belle Poling, Staff Reporter

More than 250 protesters on the College Street side of Schwarzman Center have now moved to block the intersection of Grove and College Streets.

Marshals in yellow vests are directing the crowd to create a large circle in the intersection in front of Schwarzman and instructing people to stay on the sidewalk. Protesters are chanting “whose streets, our streets.”

— Yolanda Wang, Josie Reich, Nora Moses and Ariela Lopez, Staff Reporters

A fifth shuttle has just left Schwarzman Center and driven west on Grove Street. According to legal observers, at least seven arrested protesters were in the shuttle.

Organizers and legal observers said that protesters are being arrested on Grove Street, by the facilities entrance to Schwarzman. The crowd marched from College Street to Grove Street to “observe.”

— Yolanda Wang, Nora Moses and Josie Reich, Staff Reporters

7:59 a.m:

The 200 protesters gathered around the College and Grove side of the Schwartzman Center are now moving around the building to a side door on Grove Street.

“We will continue to show up. We will continue to disrupt,” an organizer announced to the crowd after all protesters on the Plaza had been arrested.

Protesters on Alexander Walk are moving to the front of the Schwarzman Center on Grove Street.

— Lily Belle Poling and Jane Park, Staff Reporters

On Alexander Walk, Ezra Stiles Head of College Alicia Comacho is talking to protesters from behind the police line.

Protesters are asking to retrieve their belongings from the encampments, but the police are not allowing them to do so.

Comacho told the News that she arrived at the plaza before 7 a.m., after police had already moved in. She does not know where police vehicles are transporting students.

— Ariela Lopez, Staff Reporter

7:54 a.m.:

Posters continue to be removed from walls within Beinecke Plaza.

Protesters on the northeast side of Schwarzman Center are now chanting “YPD or KKK, IDF they’re all the same,” “Arab blood is not cheap, for the martyrs we will speak” and “Free free Palestine, free free free Palestine”

Remaining protesters remaining on the Plaza have been arrested. No students are left on the Plaza.

7:51 a.m.:

The circle of protesters on the Plaza has disbanded. Only three are still there.

A fourth shuttle has arrived at Schwarzman Center on College Street. At least 15 more protesters have been arrested and are boarding the shuttle.

— Yolanda Wang, Josie Reich and Nora Moses, Staff Reporters

Four more students were arrested at the Beinecke entrance to the Schwarzman Center.

Yale security members are picking up flyers and other materials off of the plaza and throwing them into trash bags.

Police officers picked up a tent and walked it into Commons. They are continuing to pick up tents and walk them into Commons via the side door. Yale employees are taking flyers off of the plaza walls.

Protesters on Alexander Walk began chanting “Salovey, Salovey you can’t hide, you’re committing genocide” and “YPD, you can’t hide, you’re protecting genocide.”

– Lily Belle Poling and Ariela Lopez, Staff Reporters

Another shuttle has just left from Schwarzman Center and drove west on Grove Street. At least three arrested protesters are inside.

Police removed two more protesters from the circle around the flagpole on Beinecke. Officers continue to disassemble tents on the plaza.

Yale Police officer Reech told three students that every officer has an active body camera.

On the Beinecke side of Schwarzman, protesters are chanting officers’ names and saying “you’re on the wrong side of history.”

Police officers have taken at least four more of the protesters circled around the flag pole into custody. The News counts approximately 10 people still circled around the flagpole but is not being allowed on Beinecke Plaza right now by Yale Police; cops earlier today threatened to News staffers and issued three warnings in less than two minutes.

At the corner of College and Grove Streets, protesters are now chanting “Free our prisoners, free them all, Zionism must-fall” and “Look your students in the eyes, you’re supporting genocide.”

There are at least four legal observers present from the National Lawyers Guild.

There are about 200 protesters on the side of Schwarzman Center facing the intersection of College and Grove Streets. They are chanting “One, we are the people. Two, we won’t be silenced. Three, stop the violence now, now, now, now” and “resistance is justified, when people are occupied.”

Yale Police Lieutenant Roosevelt Martinez told the News that students were arrested for trespassing.

He did not say how many were arrested and refused to say where protesters had been taken in Yale shuttles. Martinez said they were going somewhere for “processing.”

— Yolanda Wang, Staff Reporter, and Nathaniel Rosenberg, City Editor

Multiple police are disassembling tents on Beinecke Plaza.

The second van containing approximately six arrested protesters has driven away from Schwarzman Center and south up College Street. Sixteen total arrests have been made.

Lt. Vacino of the Yale Police Department, who drove the second van, confirmed to the News that the protesters were going to be written up and released.

About 150 protesters continue to stand with arms interlocked on the side of Schwarzman Center facing College and Prospect Streets. They are now chanting “YPD or KKK, I don’t know, they’re all the same” and “Officer, officer, can’t you see? You’re on the wrong side of history.”

On the other side of Schwarzman, on Beinecke Plaza, several heads of colleges have been seen, including the heads of Timothy Dwight, Trumbull and Branford Colleges.

Now, 13 people have been arrested, according to a Yale police office.

Eleven people have been arrested according to a Yale police officer. Organizers told the News that at least some of the people arrested have been students.

— Nora Moses, Staff Reporter

Six officers just told the six students — including two members of the News — who are perched on the Plaza wall that if they did not move immediately, they would also be arrested. An officer issued members of the News three warnings of arrest in less than two minutes.

— Anika Arora Seth, Editor in Chief & President

Of the roughly 16 cops inside the Plaza, it seems that two are flipping up the entrances to the tents.

About 40 protesters are walking toward the Plaza’s main exit, which is taped off. About 30 are still around the flagpole. Some officers are approaching the encampment’s tents.

Cops have gathered at Beinecke Plaza, where pro-Palestine protesters urging Yale to divest from military weapons manufacturers set up tents overnight — the third night of their ongoing encampment. More than 12 police officers have blocked off entrances to the Plaza.

IMAGES

FREE 20+ Sample Personal Statement Templates in MS Word
Law School Personal Statement Example
Law degree personal statement example (9)
Law School Personal Statement Examples
You should remember one thing, your law school personal statement needs
Writing a Perfect Personal Statement for Law School

VIDEO

Reading My Personal Statement
Write an Incredible Personal Statement: 3 Steps with Examples
Grad Acting: my Statement of Purpose (a dramatic reading)
Writing a Personal or Diversity Statement for Master’s or PhD Programs
How to write a Best Personal Statement in Law Admission Test
How to Approach the Yale 250 Essay (2021)

COMMENTS

PDF Personal Statement T he Law School
W hat t he personal statement is not: An all-encompassing statement of the multifaceted, complex person that you are A mandatory prompt for you to talk about "the hardest thing you have ever been through" A commitment to practicing a particular type of law Information that is communicated by other parts of your application (i.e.
Application Components
At Yale Law School, our goal is to enroll a talented, diverse, and engaged entering class each fall. ... Applicants must submit a personal statement that helps us learn about the personal, professional, and/or academic qualities they would bring to the Law School community and the legal profession. Applicants often submit the personal statement ...
PDF Personal Statement When I was 18 years old I found myself sleeping in
Personal Statement prosecutor. I want to attend The X School of Law because I want to be a change agent in my hometown of City X. The X School of Law has an endless commitment to training sound attorneys along with its rich practice friendly legal community. When admitted, I plan to
PDF Yale Law School Admissions Office Personal Statement Tip Sheet
Yale Law School Admissions Office Personal Statement Tip Sheet ... • Help us identify why law school is the next right step o YLS does not require a Why Yale Statement • Tells us who you are (for better or for worse) o Authenticity matters ... o Type of law that interests you and/or type of lawyer you want to be
Yale Law School Personal Statement Examples
Yale Law School personal statement examples are useful tools to understand the content, structure, and narrative flow of strong personal statements. The personal statement is only one component of how to get into Yale Law School, which also includes a 250-word essay and other, supplementary essays.
Everything You Want to Know about Yale Law School: Personal Statements
YLS Admissions Director of Recruiting & Diversity Initiatives Jon Perdue explains the role of the personal statement in the Law School application process. Watch More YLS Videos Friday, February 16, 2018
Free Resources for Applicants
Access to Law School Personal Statement Worksheet; Yale Law School Admissions Office: Personal Statement Tip Sheet; Resume. All law schools require that you include a resume with your application. A good resume should be clear, concise (never more than one page), and of course, proofread carefully (ask a friend or two to read it over for you ...
Law School Personal Statement: The Ultimate Guide (Examples Included)
Here's another Yale Law School personal statement, this one written by a student named Michael. "All of you men are alike!" a woman exclaimed from the back of the nursery. "Get away from my baby girl!" Rattled, I placed the yellow crayon next to the picture of the Easter Bunny I had been helping four-year-old Gabriela color. I smiled ...
Everything You Want to Know about Yale Law School: Personal Statements
YLS Admissions Director of Recruiting & Diversity Initiatives Jon Perdue explains the role of the personal statement in the Law School application process.
PDF Personal Statement Worksheet
Personal Statement Worksheet. This worksheet is intended to help you brainstorm ideas for your personal statement through the process of writing down and reflecting on your many varied experiences. Try not to self-edit yet—the following exercises are intended solely to help you start putting words and ideas on the page.
How to Write a Law School Personal Statement + Examples
The simplest way to get the reader involved in your story is to start with a relevant anecdote that ties in with your narrative. Consider the opening paragraph from Harvard Law graduate Cameron Clark's law school personal statement : "At the intersection of 21st and Speedway, I lay on the open road.
Law School
The Law School Personal Statement. ... The Office of Career Strategy works with students and alums of Yale College and Yale Graduate School of Arts and Sciences as well as Yale postdoctoral scholars from all disciplines. The Office of Career Strategy advisors help students, alums, and postdocs to clarify career aspirations, identify ...
How to Get Into Yale Law School: The Ultimate Guide
Yale Law School also requires a 250-word essay, known as the "Yale 250," in addition to a personal statement. Their application notes: "The 250-word essay is an opportunity to explore an idea or issue from your academic, extracurricular, or professional work that is of particular interest to you.
18 Law School Personal Statement Examples That Got Accepted!
Law School Personal Statement Example #1. When I was a child, my neighbors, who had arrived in America from Nepal, often seemed stressed. They argued a lot, struggled for money, and seemed to work all hours of the day. One day, I woke early in the morning to a commotion outside my apartment.
How to Get Into Yale Law School
The law school personal statement should help Yale admissions officers "learn about the personal, professional, and/or academic qualities an applicant would bring to the Law School community." Often, a personal statement you've crafted to send to multiple law schools (without school-specific information) will work for Yale. These tips can ...
Law School announces four new optional essay prompts for 2023-24 law
Applicants to Yale Law School must provide an academic transcript, an LSAT or GRE score, letters of recommendation and a personal statement. New this cycle, applicants can now also submit an additional optional essay, which the Law School announced just weeks after the Supreme Court's decision to strike down race-conscious admissions policies.. The new optional component, added in August ...
How to Write a Compelling Personal Statement for Yale Law School
The personal statement is a crucial part of your application to Yale Law School as it offers the admissions committee a glimpse into your personality, achievements, and goals. It is an opportunity for you to showcase your writing skills, highlight your academic accomplishments and other experiences, and demonstrate your critical thinking abilities.
Guide to the Yale 250 Essay
Law school application packages require a significant amount of writing, including personal statements, diversity statements, and essays. If you have more questions about Yale Law School's 250-word essay or other aspects of your application, the team at Barrier Breakers® Admissions Advising is here to support you through this law school ...
LL.M. Admission
Applications are accepted for the 2024-2025 academic year from August 15 to December 1, 2023, at 11:59 p.m., U.S. Eastern Time. The December 1 deadline should be understood as the date by which all applications to the LL.M. program should be submitted online through the Electronic Application Service of the Law School Admission Council (LSAC).
Excellent Law School Personal Statement Examples
Excellent Law School Personal Statement Examples - 7Sage LSAT. By David Busis Published May 5, 2019 Updated Feb 10, 2021. We've rounded up five spectacular personal statements that helped students with borderline numbers get into T-14 schools. You'll find these examples to be as various as a typical JD class.
Writing Personal Statements for Graduate School
Personal Statements. Preparing a well-written and effective personal statement (sometimes referred to as statements of purpose or personal essays) that clearly articulates your preparation, goals, and motivation for pursuing that specific graduate degree is critically important. You will need to spend a considerable amount of time and effort in ...
Application Toolkit: Written Statements
Application Toolkit: Written Statements. On this webpage, you will find our advice and guidance for approaching the two written statements in the application. Beginning with the application for Fall Term 2024 enrollment, we now require that all applicants submit a Statement of Purpose and a Statement of Perspective.
Yale Graduate School Personal Statement Examples
Don't assume that Yale Graduate School personal statement examples are the same as Yale Law School personal statement examples or those for any other program because each one must be tailored to a program's specific requirements. There were close to 11,550 applications to Yale graduate school in a recent year for over 70 different programs, so crafting a personal statement that truly ...
Law Schools and Universities Grapple With Protests Across Country
Law schools and universities across the country continued to grapple with pro-Palestinian demonstrations and protesters on Wednesday, with hundreds of students arrested and threatened with suspension.
Poppy Harlow is leaving CNN after more than 15 years
Accessibility Statement ... Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information Limit Use and Disclosure of Sensitive Personal Information CA Notice of Collection More From AP News. ... She earned a bachelor's degree in political science from Columbia University and a master's degree in Studies of Law from Yale Law School.
Yale student demonstrators arrested amid pro-Palestinian protest
In a statement, the New Haven Police Department confirmed it assisted the university police officers around 6:30 a.m. on Monday. It said the people arrested were charged with criminal trespass, a ...
US colleges where students have been arrested over anti-Israel protests
Yale protesters sitting on a lawn after being forced to leave their encampment by officials on April 30, 2024. ... the university said in a statement. ... A protester getting tasered by law ...
Police arrest pro-Palestinian supporters at encampment on Yale
In total, 47 students were issued summonses, Yale said in a statement Monday. Police officers arrest protesters in support of the Palestinian cause for trespassing on Yale University's campus ...
Yale police arrest 47 student protesters for trespassing on Beinecke
Yale police arrested 47 pro-Palestine student protesters on Monday morning. Shortly after 6 a.m, officers arrived at Beinecke Plaza, where protesters demanding that Yale divest from military weapons manufacturers had set up tents during the third night of their overnight encampment. Police detained protesters who refused to vacate the Plaza and had instead locked arms and circled around the ...

Sign up to our Newsletter

Yale Law School Acceptance Rate: 5.5%

How Hard Is It To Get Into Yale Law School?

Yale Law School Programs Offered & Ranking

Joint Degrees

Yale Law School Ranking

Yale School of Law Admissions Statistics

Yale Law School Average GPA: 3.96

Yale Law School Average LSAT Score: 175

Yale Law GRE

Yale Law School Requirements

Yale Law School Letters of Recommendation

Yale Law School Personal Statement + Examples

Personal Statement Example #1

What Made This Personal Statement Good

Personal Statement Example #2

Yale Law School 250-Word Essay + Examples

Essay Example #1

What Makes This a Good Essay

Essay Example #2

What Makes This a Good Essay

Optional Essay

Yale Law School Tuition & Scholarships

Yale Law Scholarships

Yale School of Law Application Deadlines

Yale Law School Bar Passage Rate: 95.77%

How to Get Into Yale Law School: Tips to Improve Your Admission Chances

What Does Yale Law School Look For?

FAQs: How to Get Into Yale Law School

1. Can You Get a Full Ride to Yale Law School?

2. What Do You Need to Get into Yale Law School?

3. What GPA Do You Need for Yale Law School?

4. Does Yale Law Prefer Yale Students?

5. Is Yale or Harvard a Better Law School?

6. What LSAT Score Do You Need to Get Into Yale Law School?

7. What is the Lowest GPA Accepted to Yale Law School?

Getting Into Yale Law Is Easy If You Know How

Schedule A Free Consultation

Best Law Schools in Chicago: What You Need to Know

UC Law San Francisco Acceptance Rate & Requirements

How to Write a Compelling Personal Statement for Yale Law School

Law School: Crafting a Compelling Personal Statement

Table of Contents

Understanding the Purpose of a Personal Statement for Yale Law School Admissions

Crafting an Attention-Grabbing Introduction for Your Personal Statement

Highlighting Your Achievements and Experience in Your Yale Law School Personal Statement

Showcasing Your Reasons for Choosing Yale Law School in Your Personal Statement

Making Your Personal Statement Stand Out with Unique Perspectives and Experiences

Writing a Cohesive and Well-Structured Personal Statement for Yale Law School Admissions

Avoiding Common Mistakes When Writing a Personal Statement for Yale Law School

Tips from Successful Yale Law School Applicants: What Worked for Them?

Editing and Proofreading Your Yale Law School Personal Statement to Perfection

Navigating the Tone and Style Requirements of a Yale Law School Personal Statement

How to Incorporate Diversity and Inclusion into Your Yale Law School Personal Statement

Understanding How the Admissions Committee Evaluates Personal Statements at Yale Law School

Preparing Yourself Emotionally for the Competitive Landscape of Yale Law School Admissions

Browse hundreds of expert coaches

Browse Related Articles

How to Write a Compelling Personal Statement for University of Chicago Law School

How to Write a Compelling Personal Statement for University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School

How to Write a Compelling Personal Statement for Duke University School of Law

How to Write a Compelling Personal Statement for Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law

How to Write a Compelling Personal Statement for Georgetown University Law Center

How to Write a Compelling Personal Statement for University of Southern California Gould School of Law

How to Write a Compelling Personal Statement for University of Minnesota Law School

How to Write a Compelling Personal Statement for University of California, Irvine School of Law

How to Write a Compelling Personal Statement for Emory University School of Law

How to Write a Compelling Personal Statement for Ohio State University Moritz College of Law

How to Write a Compelling Personal Statement for William & Mary Law School

How to Write a Compelling Personal Statement for Indiana University Maurer School of Law

Login to your account

Register for a Free Account

Excellent Law School Personal Statement Examples By David Busis Published May 5, 2019 Updated Feb 10, 2021

Personal Statement about a Career Journey

Personal Statement about Legal Internships

Personal Statement about Cultural Identity

Personal Statement about Weightlifting

Personal Statement about Sexual Assault

All Categories

Join our newsletter