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Carr Saunders Halls, LSE
London School of Economics
London

Is it true that LSE cares more about your PS than your grades?

Or is it a myth

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Reply 1
Avatar for Xarao
Xarao
20
Grades are the main entry point. If you don't do good on those, they won't care about your PS at all (unless it's EC).

Only after your grades are on point, is your PS checked out but even then, I highly doubt many universities care about personal statements unless it's to choose the final remaining students for a limited course.

Not to say they are not read at all, but most likely skimmed very very quickly.
Carr Saunders Halls, LSE
London School of Economics
London
Reply 2
Avatar for MJlover
MJlover
21
Yeah but a lot of students who apply to LSE have high grades, so I don't know how they would discern between them other than a close read of the PS.

I am sure it was my PS that got me into LSE as my GCSEs were kinda on the low side of average. A Levels showed a big improvement and my PS was stronger than other LSE applicants with high grades at my sixth form.
Original post by Xarao
Grades are the main entry point. If you don't do good on those, they won't care about your PS at all (unless it's EC).

Only after your grades are on point, is your PS checked out but even then, I highly doubt many universities care about personal statements unless it's to choose the final remaining students for a limited course.

Not to say they are not read at all, but most likely skimmed very very quickly.
(edited 4 years ago)
Original post by Xarao
Grades are the main entry point. If you don't do good on those, they won't care about your PS at all (unless it's EC).

Only after your grades are on point, is your PS checked out but even then, I highly doubt many universities care about personal statements unless it's to choose the final remaining students for a limited course.

Not to say they are not read at all, but most likely skimmed very very quickly.


That is true for the majority of universities, but not LSE. Because LSE is such a tiny university with so few places compared to most other unis (LSE has 4000 undergrads; somewhere like Birmingham has 22,000), it cannot make offers to pretty much everyone with the right grades. Personal statements are therefore key to deciding who gets a place.
Original post by Anonymous
Or is it a myth


Your personal statement certainly isn't *more* important than your grades, but it is extremely important.

If your grades aren't good enough, you won't even be considered. But once you have good enough grades, the personal statement is key to deciding who gets a place. LSE takes the personal statement extremely seriously.

This is the advice I have posted on the 2020 applicants thread regarding writing a good personal statement for LSE...

https://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/showthread.php?t=5841890

"Personal statements are extremely important for LSE admissions - LSE receive applications from far more highly qualified applicants than they have places available, and they don't interview, so your personal statement is a key factor on which your application will be judged. Every year people with straight A*s get rejected on the basis of a personal statement that isn't quite what LSE is looking for. With that in mind, this is my advice for writing a strong personal statement:

1) Quality not quantity, analysis not listing - A personal statement is not a list of all your achievements, extra-curriculars and every book you've ever read. Don't namedrop a book you read or a talk you went just for the sake of mentioning it - instead, find an aspect or fact from it that you find really interesting, and talk about it. Try to draw connections with your other reading/extra-curriculars. Where possible, show how one talk sparked your interest in - e.g. decolonisation/American politics/global financial markets - and so you developed that interest by reading more about it, or listening to a podcast/watching a documentary about it. Show your learning process, and the way your mind draws connections between things.

2) Explain WHY something interested you - DON'T say "attending maths sessions after school furthered my interest in mathematics." DO say "in after-school maths sessions, I first learnt about *theory/phenomenon X* - this inspired me to explore it further by reading Author Y's book on *topic X*; what most stood out to me from this book was *fact Z*."

3) As far as possible, tailor your personal statement to the LSE course - LSE like personal statements that are written about the LSE course. They are not impressed when your personal statement talks about subjects that you have not applied to study at LSE.
For example, you may be planning on applying to Politics and International Relations at 4 unis, and Government at LSE, because it has a higher acceptance rate than LSE Politics & IR. However, as the Government course contains *no IR*, if your Personal Statement is half-focused on why you love IR, this will not please the Government academics who will be assessing your application."
hey, if you don’t mind me asking what did you get for your gcses? idk if mine are good enough to apply to lse even with a*aa as predicted grades for a levels?
Original post by emansabir
hey, if you don’t mind me asking what did you get for your gcses? idk if mine are good enough to apply to lse even with a*aa as predicted grades for a levels?

It doesn’t matter what grades you got; what matters is how you performed in relation to the environment you were in.

If you got 5As and 3Bs and 2Cs at a private school, you realistically don’t have a chance of getting into LSE.

But those same grades from a struggling state school would be absolutely fine.
I know this is slightly off topic, but I was wondering how important your personal statement is in relation to your reference. Thanks
Reply 8
Avatar for Vinny C
Vinny C
20
What, who? LSE... PS? Too many acronyms. London School of Economics?
(edited 4 years ago)
Definitely.
It's not a myth.
Well like @LeapingLucy said, assuming you already have good grades.

I'm currently studying Computing in Imperial but 2 years ago, I applied to Mathematics courses.
Applied to two Math courses in LSE and was rejected from both. Got an offer from Imperial.
My personal statement was more tailored toward Mathematics and a bit of Computer Science.

The feedback we have received from the Admissions Selector indicates that your application was unsuccessful as a consequence of your personal statement.

That's straight from my rejection emails.

I should've shown more interest in Finance and Economics if I really wanted to get an offer.
I didn't believe LSE took personal statements that seriously.
I applied with predicted A*A*A*A for your information.
(edited 4 years ago)
Original post by MadClown
Definitely.
It's not a myth.
Well like @LeapingLucy said, assuming you already have good grades.

I'm currently studying Computing in Imperial but 2 years ago, I applied to Mathematics courses.
Applied to two Math courses in LSE and was rejected from both. Got an offer from Imperial.
My personal statement was more tailored toward Mathematics and a bit of Computer Science.

The feedback we have received from the Admissions Selector indicates that your application was unsuccessful as a consequence of your personal statement.

That's straight from my rejection emails.

I should've shown more interest in Finance and Economics if I really wanted to get an offer.
I didn't believe LSE took personal statements that seriously.
I applied with predicted A*A*A*A for your information.


Hi,
I am going to apply for Maths at Imperial and Oxford and Financial Maths at LSE. What advice would you give me on writing a personal statement that fits all the Universities requirements?
Wow - you'd have thought LSE with its mountains of international student cash would be able to afford a better selection process than the personal statement!
Original post by nexttime
Wow - you'd have thought LSE with its mountains of international student cash would be able to afford a better selection process than the personal statement!


Tbf tho pretty much all unis apart from like the top use predictions and ps which most likely is written by their teachers, so it isn’t that unusual
Original post by Anonymous
Tbf tho pretty much all unis apart from like the top use predictions and ps which most likely is written by their teachers, so it isn’t that unusual

I agree its not unusual. Just thought with its income from its ~70% international students it might be aspiring to be, as you put it, "like the top".
Original post by Mathsislove
Hi,
I am going to apply for Maths at Imperial and Oxford and Financial Maths at LSE. What advice would you give me on writing a personal statement that fits all the Universities requirements?


If you're going to apply for Financial Mathematics, I suggest you to write your personal statement about your interest in the financial world, financial mathematics, and of course talk about your academics i.e. Senior Maths Challenge, Senior Kangaroo, BMO.
Original post by MadClown
If you're going to apply for Financial Mathematics, I suggest you to write your personal statement about your interest in the financial world, financial mathematics, and of course talk about your academics i.e. Senior Maths Challenge, Senior Kangaroo, BMO.


So should I lean it towards the LSE Course rather than Oxford and Imperial?
Original post by Mathsislove
So should I lean it towards the LSE Course rather than Oxford and Imperial?

Oxford and Imperial doesn't look at your PS as much as LSE does. Of course, I wouldn't write the entire PS about Finance and Financial Math. I'd say 40% is enough. Then you can talk about a book you read, and academic achievements in and out of school.
For both Oxford and Imperial, the most important factor of getting in is doing well on the MAT (and the interview for Oxford).
Original post by MadClown
Oxford and Imperial doesn't look at your PS as much as LSE does. Of course, I wouldn't write the entire PS about Finance and Financial Math. I'd say 40% is enough. Then you can talk about a book you read, and academic achievements in and out of school.
For both Oxford and Imperial, the most important factor of getting in is doing well on the MAT (and the interview for Oxford).


Thanks a lot
Reply 18
Avatar for Rosielu
Rosielu
6
Original post by MJlover
Yeah but a lot of students who apply to LSE have high grades, so I don't know how they would discern between them other than a close read of the PS.

I am sure it was my PS that got me into LSE as my GCSEs were kinda on the low side of average. A Levels showed a big improvement and my PS was stronger than other LSE applicants with high grades at my sixth form.


Hey congrats :smile: May I ask what u had for gcses??? most ppl say mine r good but rlly they’re average amongst lse applicants I’d say they’re low but I rlly like lse’s course...
Original post by MJlover
Yeah but a lot of students who apply to LSE have high grades, so I don't know how they would discern between them other than a close read of the PS.

I am sure it was my PS that got me into LSE as my GCSEs were kinda on the low side of average. A Levels showed a big improvement and my PS was stronger than other LSE applicants with high grades at my sixth form.

What's your ps about? What kind of ps do you think LSE prefers? I'm still correcting my ps now...

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