We Submitted a ChatGPT-Written Law School Admissions Essay. Here's What the School Had to Say About It

Law.com typed “admission essay for law school” into ChatGPT's prompt and then submitted the essay to the Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law at Arizona State University for review. Amy Beier Best, ASU Law's assistant dean of Admissions and Financial Aid, spoke to Law.com to provide feedback on the essay and to discuss more broadly the potential (and potential pitfalls) of using AI tools for personal statements.

Law.com: Why do you think so many are concerned about the use of AI tools in admissions?

ABB: It’s a tool like any of those other tools, [but] it’s new, so it’s less tested, so I think sometimes you think about it differently, like maybe will it be better than other tools that you already have had at your disposal.

Law.com: What do you see in personal statements? Are they formatted in a certain way, like the AI-generated essay Law.com submitted?

ABB: We see really everything in a personal statement and I think definitely. You will see some stories structured, almost more like a cover letter, like selling your skills and experiences versus really sharing a personal story. [Like the one submitted by Law.com.]

Because a personal statement is designed to be open-ended, it can take many different forms, and as a law school admissions officer, you’ll see that in every version of [how] that story could possibly be told.

And because it is so open, it’s one of the best ways for an applicant to really shine. So having a personalized detailed essay really does enhance an applicant’s application.

Law.com: Because personal statements are so open-ended, how helpful can AI tools be?

ABB: One thing that I think has been noted by people who have used AI more frequently is that you really need to know what the prompt is and a personal statement doesn’t really have a prompt. Even if some schools have more guidelines or give you a specific topic, it’s designed to be open-ended, and for the applicant to really share their story with law schools.

So that doesn’t necessarily give AI a strong prompt to be working with. It’s pulling from what’s out there. It’s like it doesn’t know you—even if you have a big social media profile or you’re a published author so there is more out there on the internet about you—but otherwise the internet doesn’t really know your full personal story.

Law.com: The AI-generated personal statement that Law.com submitted has pretty flowery language. What do you think about that?

ABB: Language is tough in the personal statement because it’s a personal essay, I definitely think there should be authenticity, and language is absolutely part of that. Some applicants tend to write personal statements that are more stream of consciousness and you will kind of end up with some of that more flowery language. Then some personal statements are kind of very down to earth telling it like it is, so there’s a lot of variation there to begin with.

Law.com: The Kaplan survey talked about concerns about plagiarism. How can AI tools result in plagiarism?

ABB: The personal statement isn’t necessarily citing things, so it’s not in the area of what you think of as traditionally for potential plagiarism, but to the extent that you are not telling your story or are not being truthful to the admissions committees.

But if someone [or something] is actually helping you write it, the language might not be all their own. You still want to make sure that you are telling your story and that they are conveying your story in a way that is true and accurate to yourself.

At ASU Law, because we are allowing the use of AI in the application process, we’re also asking applicants to certify that not only is information entirely in their application true and accurate, but as part of that, [asking whether] they’ve used any tools, whether AI or others, responsibly and ethically in creating their application materials.

Law.com: What are other ethical concerns about the use of AI tools?

ABB: It’s still on the applicant and their responsibility, of course, to use those tools wisely and effectively and ethically in creating their application—whether you are using AI, or another tool that you have available to you for editing or generating ideas. It’s still the applicant’s responsibility to then turn that tool into a personal statement that they feel is effective for them.

Law.com: What is one way AI tools can be particularly helpful for writing personal statements?

ABB: We know one of the hardest parts of the personal statement is just getting started writing, getting ideas down on paper and forming that into an essay, so I certainly think that people or online tools can be useful in that regards.

Law.com: What makes a personal statement really bad?

ABB: It’s usually pretty clear if a personal statement is better or worse, and it’s only really terrible if there’s glaring mistakes or because you say a different school from the one you applied to—those types of very obvious [errors].