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Personal Statement:Italian and SpanishTSR Wiki > University > Applying to University > Personal Statement Library > Italian and Spanish
Italian and Spanish Personal StatementLanguages have been my strength ever since I was first introduced to basic French in primary school. When given the opportunity to take up Italian as a second foreign language in year 8, I found myself engaging with the subject and wanting to learn about the culture, even though I had not yet visited the country. I pay interest to Italy’s current affairs, having become a fairly frequent visitor to the language office’s collection of foreign magazines; and also to the magazines that are in the school library. I particularly enjoy the magazine Panorama, as it covers a wide range of topical issues from the Papacy to Italian fashion. Likewise, Spanish has been an interest since I began learning Italian. This was due to a combination of listening to Spanish music and recognising the similarities between the two languages, and visiting Spain on holiday. I have since begun teaching myself Spanish as I think this will give me a good basis for starting university, enabling me to reach the standard of post-A-level students sooner than I would otherwise. My previous knowledge of Spanish proved advantageous when I attended a language taster course at a university recently, as I was able to identify and understand a lot of the text that we were looking at, despite never having studied Spanish. I opted for Spanish as my second foreign language as when I was in Spain, I found it interesting to observe the cultural differences - for example, a Spaniard’s typical daily routine, their diet, and the way they have been influenced by anglophone countries. I also found that the society in our country varies in different ways to the society of Spain, and this inspired me to read up on Spain more when I returned home. Over the past year, I have enjoyed the challenge of the transition from GCSE to A-level Italian and my tutors feel I have handled this well. Studying geography at A-level has added greatly to my knowledge of current affairs all over the world. At university I look forward to studying literature, something I hugely enjoy, the more so since reading Dante’s Inferno this summer. I have also started reading “Sei Personaggi in Cerca D’Autore” (which I am going to see performed in London) and “Volevo i Pantaloni”. This has inspired me to study literature in more depth, and I am hoping to be able to do so at university. I am also looking forward to the experience of living abroad for a year, as I feel that being immersed in the cultures of Italy and Spain will not only greatly improve my language and understanding skills, but also improve my confidence. I have recently been given the opportunity to tour in Italy with the school choir next summer. As this will be my first visit to the country, I feel that it will be an excellent chance to practise my language skills in the country itself and learn about the culture first hand. In future, I hope to become fluent in French as well as Italian and Spanish, as I love the variety and insight into another culture that learning a new language brings. Through attending university open days, I have learned that the job opportunities for language graduates are far more diverse than I had ever imagined. I have the drive and determination to succeed due to my ambition to be a translator, and in the meantime I look forward to the new challenges that university will bring. Universities Applied to:
Grades Achieved:A-levels
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