Personal Statements?

Hello!
My name is Nadia and I'm currently studying A-Level Art, Geography, English Lit and EPQ.
For the personal statements for uni, what should I write about? I know these happen later in the year but if you have any suggestions on things I could do now to include in my personal statement it will be much appreciated!

Hi Nadia!

It's never too early to start working on your PS I reckon. Do you have an idea yet on what course you would want to study at University? The best personal statements are the ones tailored to a course specifically. What I like to do after that is to survey some course descriptions on university websites, and see what they say. Course websites say surprisingly a lot about the qualities they seek for in a student! And I would tailor and write your experiences in relation to your course.

Getting voluntary or paid experience is fantastic as well! You usually can apply most experiences to most courses, though I'd recommend if you're applying for a course where you need to be "caring" (such as healthcare courses), doing supportive volunteer roles is helpful.

Doing extra reading in relation to the course you are interested in is also quite good! In addition to the EPQ, I'd say it'd make a strong personal statement

Let me know if you had any other questions,

~ Fatiha, Cardiff University Student Rep

There is a Personal Statement hub on TSR here with lots of advice here:

https://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/university/personal-statements/

I’m thinking of studying geography at uni! And thank you so much for the suggestions! I will definitely continue to read more and look for volunteering/ work experience! 😊

Hello!
My name is Nadia and I'm currently studying A-Level Art, Geography, English Lit and EPQ.
For the personal statements for uni, what should I write about? I know these happen later in the year but if you have any suggestions on things I could do now to include in my personal statement it will be much appreciated!

I’m thinking of studying geography at uni! And thank you so much for the suggestions! I will definitely continue to read more and look for volunteering/ work experience! 😊

Hi Nadia,
In a geography personal statement, it could be good to include what sparked an interest in the subject eg. was it some volunteering, work experience or a field trip you went on, as universities want to see that your passionate about the subject. You could also maybe include which part of geography your most interested by, and if you have done any extra research into this area like reading a book, or articles online in your spare time or an EPQ.
Also feel free to include any hobbies or part time work you've done, as these all demonstrate your ability to multitask study and things you enjoy.
Also if you have any questions about what studying geography at university is like, feel free to ask!
-Jasmine (Lancaster student ambassador, 3rd year Physical Geography)

Hi there,

It's great you are already starting to think ahead! In terms of what to write - you want to show yourself off to the university ad show that you are interested and passionate in what you are applying for.

If you are able to get any experience, whether paid or voluntary this would be great to write about! It doesn't always have to be exactly the thing you want to study but anything that could have transferrable skills to your course is a good start. You can also do some reading around your subject and talk about what you learnt to show that you are interested in your course.

Try not to talk to in depth about extra hobbies and activities - e.g., if you do music lessons this shows discipline however it is not necessary to go into so much depth about it if its unrelated to your course.

Good luck ,
Sophie

That's great! Volunteering for local wildlife trusts or any conservation-type volunteering is a great way to gain relevant experience. I would also say that MOOCs (Massive Open Online Courses) can be quite good to mention in your personal statement, to show that you're interested in geography further to your A-Levels. They are quite nice if you want to read further to your subject in a more interactive way. They are usually free and I've seen some really interesting geography based ones!

~ Fatiha, Cardiff University Student Rep

That's great! Volunteering for local wildlife trusts or any conservation-type volunteering is a great way to gain relevant experience. I would also say that MOOCs (Massive Open Online Courses) can be quite good to mention in your personal statement, to show that you're interested in geography further to your A-Levels. They are quite nice if you want to read further to your subject in a more interactive way. They are usually free and I've seen some really interesting geography based ones!

~ Fatiha, Cardiff University Student Rep

Hi there,

It's great you are already starting to think ahead! In terms of what to write - you want to show yourself off to the university ad show that you are interested and passionate in what you are applying for.

If you are able to get any experience, whether paid or voluntary this would be great to write about! It doesn't always have to be exactly the thing you want to study but anything that could have transferrable skills to your course is a good start. You can also do some reading around your subject and talk about what you learnt to show that you are interested in your course.

Try not to talk to in depth about extra hobbies and activities - e.g., if you do music lessons this shows discipline however it is not necessary to go into so much depth about it if its unrelated to your course.

Good luck ,
Sophie

The other key thing to do to prepare a good geography PS is the thoroughly research the detail of the course content at the universities that you are applying to.

Geography is a degree where the same course title can cover vastly different content so it’s really important to find out what topics are covered at each university (and then to make sure that your PS isn’t talking about moocs or further reading into topics that aren’t covered at one or more of your choices).

Look at the module options at every single one of your choices and possible choices. Especially the compulsory and core module topics.

This is far more important than work experience or soft skills for an academic degree like Geography