UCAS: within character limit; over line limit

So basically, my personal statement has 4000 characters (pretty proud about this) but I am over the 47 line limit (51 lines).

Is my personal statement still feasible or do I need to shorten it (though I really don't want to do this)?

Thank you

well the limit is 47 lines I believe ucas will not submit it if it's over

What I had to do was cut out the lines in between the paragraphs.... I was at 3996 but 52 lines so just had to cut the gaps between paragraphs. It should look fine as the last line of each paragraph (at least in my case) didn't take up the whole line so could be easily distinguishable.

You’ll lose anything over the limit, so yours would only submit the 47 lines and you’d lose everything else. I’d remove the lines in between, and see if you can reword the paragraphs to have each final line end early, as mentioned before.

I also had 4,000 characters dead 😂 I had to get rid of the spaces between paragraphs so mine was a big chunk. Admissions tutors won’t think it looks bad; they know you have a line limit & I’m sure they’d rather read 4,000 characters of good stuff in one chunk than a version with pretty gaps between paragraphs but less actual information.

I’m not meaning have a wall of text; you should still hit enter after each paragraph. I just mean if you can’t quite have a whole line’s space, then don’t. Surely if whether or not your paragraphs are neat is the deciding factor in getting an offer, your actual PS content must be appalling.

If you present your PS poorly because you didn’t edit it down then you risk important points being missed.

As I said I have never seen a PS that wouldn’t be improved by editing down the content.

Your PS won’t make a difference in whether you get an offer for well over 90% of courses. That doesn’t mean it’s not worth doing a good job.

Surely if whether or not your paragraphs are neat is the deciding factor in getting an offer, your actual PS content must be appalling.

do I need to shorten it

it quite clearly doesn’t matter.

It isn't a question of neatness, it is a question of being fit for purpose in the context of the process.

Put yourself in the position of an admissions tutor (who is the most important figure in the process fas far as the candidate is concerned), forced to read hundreds of statements. How would your eyes and head feel at the end of a day of reading slabs of text? How well-disposed would you be to reading the fine detail?

How would you react to seeing the odd gem amongst the dross, clearly paragraphed, well presented and clearly written? Even after a day of reading drivel that has given you a headache?

Each candidate should be striving to make sure their application has as few weaknesses as possible, as nobody is perfect and this is a competitive process. This means having good results to report, a good PS and a good reference. At this stage the only factor you can influence is the PS - so make sure it is as good as possible, just in case you are not quite as perfect as you think you are. This includes presenting it well.

I have never spoken to an admissions tutor who didn't bemoan his/her fate at reading slabs of text, and who didn't express pleasure at finding a clear, well presented one - with lines between paragraphs.

Yeah well I guess I was given incorrect advice by my school or I just had more to say for myself than some applicants. I cut and cut and cut to be as concise as possible and I was damn proud of my final statement. I had some quite complex academic stuff to articulate and I needed all the characters I could get so forgive me if I didn’t care about having beautiful paragraphs. I’m sure admissions tutors appreciate paragraphs; I’ll bet they also like statements that are actually half decent.

Yeah, that’s basically what I ended up doing: no lines between paragraphs.

I’m sure admission tutors have read hundreds of ps that don’t have clear paragraphs. Yes, I can see the argument as to why you should have them but it is part of their job to read ps and therefore somewhat used to see both types of paragraphing.