The Student Room Group

Personal Statement

Hi Guys,

Just need some help, its come to the time that the personal statement drafts need to be done. But knowing how to begin it seems to act as a huge barrier and i have no idea of what is needed to be written.

My main aim is to direct it towards dentistry, pharmacy and bio med. Seems a bit too much but still not 100% sure of desired choice.


Any ideas and tips would be appreciated.

Thanks
I'm in the same position in you (just starting to right my personal statement today :b). Anyway, I found a pretty nice guide on the student room for writing a good personal statement for law - http://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/wiki/Writing_a_Personal_Statement_for_Law. I suggest looking around at some basic structures for medicine. Then after you've got a decent idea of the kind of structure your looking for, write it up! After, search online for really good personal statements. Then start comparing and contrasting what you thinks makes there personal statement good and try infusing it in with your own statement - I don't mean copying. Do this with several personal statements, till you can read your personal statement and it just seems excellent and highlights 2 things : 1. What you are like 2. Illustrating your motivation for the subject you wish to study.

After you feel you have perfected it (I recommend getting it done before going back to school) starting showing it to parents - I'm thinking smart people like teachers or a smart mum/dad. They should probably give you some things you should fix up. Overall, I think writing a personal statement just takes a lot of re-drafting, till perfection.
Reply 2
Yeah i've heard from quite a few people that they've done like 15-20 odd drafts before they submitted their final piece to ucas.
Looking around trying to find them and seeing the main ideas and points that is written is a good idea, getting a feel for what med students have done in the past.

Only problem is with the growing competition is that your personal statement really has to shine above all the others and that just takes a lot of time and practise to be done.

I've got a school deadline for the 9th of July to hand it in so defiantly need to get cracking on.
Reply 3
Pick a subject first, then you can write it specifically for your course rather than trying to write something which covers three courses. They want you to show passion and dedication for your subject so it really is your best bet.

Good luck :smile:
Original post by UntouchableNB
Yeah i've heard from quite a few people that they've done like 15-20 odd drafts before they submitted their final piece to ucas.
Looking around trying to find them and seeing the main ideas and points that is written is a good idea, getting a feel for what med students have done in the past.

Only problem is with the growing competition is that your personal statement really has to shine above all the others and that just takes a lot of time and practise to be done.

I've got a school deadline for the 9th of July to hand it in so defiantly need to get cracking on.


9th of July? Why so early? Don't worry too much. I think if you starting doing your personal statement like once in the morning and once in the afternoon when you come home, you will eventually create the perfect personal statement. I think the main problem why people find it so hard is because they attempt to rush it and get it done quickly. It's possible to produce something decent, but it never tends to be that great.
Reply 5
Yeah my schools really keen on getting it done asap.
Consistency with keeping on top of it will be the best thing to do.
Only problem is the opening sentence of how to attract and engage the reader.
Original post by UntouchableNB

Only problem is the opening sentence of how to attract and engage the reader.


Read my profile and the wiki. Start off by telling them why you want to study the subject (and ignore the other subjects you mentioned if you are applying for dentistry).

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