How to end your personal statement?

summarise why you want to pursue this particular course and how you would be an asset to their university.

Reply 4

scamoosh

say some crap about how you are looking forward to uni, cant wait to get involved with the clubs etc. youfeel you would be a valued member to the course and the student community etc etc BADDABING

Or... DON'T

If you do that, two things will happen:

1. When you submit your PS to our PS helper forum, we will tear apart your final paragraph

2. Admissions tutors will think "another load of bull" and all the good stuff you've written earlier on will be wasted.

If you cant think of a good ending, dont write one. The best endings are just a very brief summary of the rest of the statement. In fact some of the best PSs i've reviewed dont even have an ending - they just end!

Reply 5

vixky!

13

recneps

Or... DON'T

If you do that, two things will happen:

1. When you submit your PS to our PS helper forum, we will tear apart your final paragraph

2. Admissions tutors will think "another load of bull" and all the good stuff you've written earlier on will be wasted.

If you cant think of a good ending, dont write one. The best endings are just a very brief summary of the rest of the statement. In fact some of the best PSs i've reviewed dont even have an ending - they just end!

oh dear, mine will be torn apart then! :frown:

i thought my ending was good as well.... dayum.

Reply 6

recneps wouldn't you agree that sometime conclusions are good? - I too have read many statements, and I agree on that endings are best when they are spontaneous and not pre-planned, but there are many statements which follow a series of paragraphs that follow the traditional mannerisms of a PS.

Reply 7

username102860

Oops, mine has no ending and I'm applying for English Literature! Pah, seems rather pointless to waste space on an ending if you've already covered everything previously, why spell it out for the admissions tutor? They surely should already have gathered all the information from the rest of the PS?

Reply 8

It really depends on how it reads. If it flows well then perhaps a conclusion is not necessary, but for some statements, because they are so paragraphed and sorted, it seems quite abrupt when there is no conclusion.

Reply 9

wackysparkle

recneps wouldn't you agree that sometime conclusions are good? - I too have read many statements, and I agree on that endings are best when they are spontaneous and not pre-planned, but there are many statements which follow a series of paragraphs that follow the traditional mannerisms of a PS.

A conclusion can be good, if someone is intelligent enough to make up a conclusion that isnt the typical

"i beleive that i am a good student"
"i feel that i would be a credit to your institution"
"i will give 110%"

Or any of the other cliches that a lot of people put out!!

Reply 10

lol - agreed on that. Normally I recommend that they speak of something that was an inspiration to them. Usually works out.

But yea, have read far too many statements that end off in that manner. I reckon the worst of the worst though is when you start saying that you are valuable because.....

Reply 11

Juno

20

"Thank you for reading this"
"I would love to be accepted by your prestigious university"
"I really love socialising and want to join all the clubs"

Reply 12

"If you give me the chance to study at your great institution i feel that i would be a credit to the profession of ..." AARGH

Reply 13

Echolife

15

Is including a bit of humour in a PS a good idea?

Reply 14

er.... that really depends on what you are going to say :confused:

- usually it would be a bad idea.. but hey... I'm willing to see it before I judge.

Reply 15

- if you're going to do it i suggest you get it checked by our PS helpers rather than just thinking "thats funny" and subnmitting it to UCAS - remember not everyone has the same PS.

Reply 16

strawberry_wise

13

I used like a framing device with my PS. I started it by talking about a really awful film which made me want to become a filmmaker because it was so terrible and I knew I could do better. I went on to the main body of the PS and then revealled the name of the film in the final sentence. Tied everything in nicely I think.

Any way you could do something similar...refer back to something significant that has come before.

Reply 17

username102860

recneps

remember not everyone has the same PS.

That would defeat the purpose of having a PS. :biggrin:

I wish I hadn't read this thread, I'll probably start to fret about it! Really though, I doubt (hope) that a sudden ending won't actually damage your chances of getting into your chosen university. The chances of someone having an ending that grabs an admission tutor's attention is quite slim really; most are likely to be pretty stereotypical bull**** (hence why I went for the sudden ending).

Reply 18