What are “softs” and what role do they play in URM Admissions?
“Soft” factors, with regard to the law school admissions process, apply to those compelling components of an applicant’s package that fall outside of the objective LSAT/GPA formula. Soft factors permit admissions committees to look beyond the numbers of an applicant to get a more definitive and complete picture. Additionally, in the case of someone who has overcome socioeconomic, physical, or personal hardship, softs can put the rest of the applicant’s application in context. For example, a student who battled cancer during their undergraduate career is likely to have missed a few classes during that time which might have affected their GPA. If that student chooses to share that in a personal statement or addendum, the lowered GPA would be viewed in a more complete context. “Softs” seem to play an even more important role for URM applicants, perhaps because their previous experiences allow URM’s to stand out among from others with similar numbers. Additionally, within the URM forum on
