is there any relevant things I can put on my Personal statement for politics + IR
I want to study IR at either Aberdeen, Strathclyde, Glasgow, Edinburgh or st andrews. this would be either IR by itself or with politics or even middle east studies at st andrews. my dream job would be to become a diplomat and I was just wondering if there was any relevant things I could do like experience or extra curriculars I could mention that would be helpful for that subject specifically. I was thinking I could mention visiting my family abroad, and being part of a multi-ethnic/cultural family? but I'm not too sure. I've done French Spanish politics modern studies history and English at higher and I'm doing a social science course later on in the year for 7 weeks.
Reply 1
I'd say that work experience specifically within Politics is not always interesting, specifically if you were just helping an MP (I'm not entirely sure how relevant that is to study International Relations). Its fantastic that you've done so much but it would probably be beneficial to focus on the experiences where you felt you learnt something. That "something" would need to be either relevant to IR or being a Diplomat.
I say this because its better to express the value of the of the things you've done, whether personal (your multi-ethnic/ cultural family) or educational (the languages you've studied), rather than list all of the things you've done. It shows how deeply you care for your subject and why you wish to achieve your aspirations of being a Diplomat.
I was lucky enough to go to Talks, Debate club and other super-curricular events but I found myself writing about how my race, art, Political books, Podcasts and Political shows had deepened my desire to study Politics.
To reiterate my point for the last time, it is a good thing to widen your experience for IR but it is better to focus on deepening it. Why are you choosing these subjects, courses? Why are you mentioning your identity or your skills? Why does it matter beyond just getting into a good university?
I say this because its better to express the value of the of the things you've done, whether personal (your multi-ethnic/ cultural family) or educational (the languages you've studied), rather than list all of the things you've done. It shows how deeply you care for your subject and why you wish to achieve your aspirations of being a Diplomat.
I was lucky enough to go to Talks, Debate club and other super-curricular events but I found myself writing about how my race, art, Political books, Podcasts and Political shows had deepened my desire to study Politics.
To reiterate my point for the last time, it is a good thing to widen your experience for IR but it is better to focus on deepening it. Why are you choosing these subjects, courses? Why are you mentioning your identity or your skills? Why does it matter beyond just getting into a good university?
Reply 2
Original post by Gabriel salam
I want to study IR at either Aberdeen, Strathclyde, Glasgow, Edinburgh or st andrews. this would be either IR by itself or with politics or even middle east studies at st andrews. my dream job would be to become a diplomat and I was just wondering if there was any relevant things I could do like experience or extra curriculars I could mention that would be helpful for that subject specifically. I was thinking I could mention visiting my family abroad, and being part of a multi-ethnic/cultural family? but I'm not too sure. I've done French Spanish politics modern studies history and English at higher and I'm doing a social science course later on in the year for 7 weeks.
Reply 3
that's actually super helpful and makes a lot of sense, thank you for the response!
Reply 4
Original post by robynpollock
hey! i got 4 unconditionals for politics/IR from strathclyde, stirling, glasgow and st andrews, and an unconditional for social anthropology from st andrews. in my personal statement i started off writing about why i want to study IR and wrote about 2 books i read which influenced my outlook and further encouraged me to study this. i then wrote about work experience which i did with my local MSP, this definitely helped my application stand out and i would reccommend contacting your own local MP/MSP to arrange your own work experience! at the end i wrote about competitions, clubs, awards etc i had participated in and any other relevant things. the highers you’ve done sound very strong for IR, so as long as you meet the entry requirements and really show why you’d love to study IR then you’ll be fine
That makes perfect sense, congrats on the offers by the way, ill take that advice on board thank you!
Reply 5
Original post by Gabriel salam
I want to study IR at either Aberdeen, Strathclyde, Glasgow, Edinburgh or st andrews. this would be either IR by itself or with politics or even middle east studies at st andrews. my dream job would be to become a diplomat and I was just wondering if there was any relevant things I could do like experience or extra curriculars I could mention that would be helpful for that subject specifically. I was thinking I could mention visiting my family abroad, and being part of a multi-ethnic/cultural family? but I'm not too sure. I've done French Spanish politics modern studies history and English at higher and I'm doing a social science course later on in the year for 7 weeks.
Hi Gabriel,
Thank you for your enquiry. We are delighted to hear of your interest in the University of Glasgow.
UCAS have a good guide on how to write personal statements - https://www.ucas.com/undergraduate/applying-university/writing-personal-statement/how-write-personal-statement.
In the personal statement we are looking to find out more about you - you can tell us about why you would like to study international relations, any relevant school projects/external projects you have taken part in and any work experience/volunteering you have. We are looking for enthusiastic students who are passionate about studying at University.
If you have any further questions, please do get back in touch!
Ewan, 2nd Year
MA (Hons) Philosophy/Politics
Reply 6
Original post by Gabriel salam
I want to study IR at either Aberdeen, Strathclyde, Glasgow, Edinburgh or st andrews. this would be either IR by itself or with politics or even middle east studies at st andrews. my dream job would be to become a diplomat and I was just wondering if there was any relevant things I could do like experience or extra curriculars I could mention that would be helpful for that subject specifically. I was thinking I could mention visiting my family abroad, and being part of a multi-ethnic/cultural family? but I'm not too sure. I've done French Spanish politics modern studies history and English at higher and I'm doing a social science course later on in the year for 7 weeks.
Hi Gabriel,
Thank you for your enquiry. We are delighted to hear of your interest in the University of Glasgow.
UCAS have a good guide on how to write personal statements - https://www.ucas.com/undergraduate/applying-university/writing-personal-statement/how-write-personal-statement.
In the personal statement, we are looking to find out more about you - you can tell us about why you would like to study international relations, alongside any relevant school projects/ external projects you have taken part in and any work experience/volunteering you have.
We are looking for enthusiastic students who are passionate about studying at University.
If you have any further queries, please do get back in touch!
Ewan, 2nd Year
MA (Hons) Philosophy/Politics
Reply 7
Original post by robynpollock
hey! i got 4 unconditionals for politics/IR from strathclyde, stirling, glasgow and st andrews, and an unconditional for social anthropology from st andrews. in my personal statement i started off writing about why i want to study IR and wrote about 2 books i read which influenced my outlook and further encouraged me to study this. i then wrote about work experience which i did with my local MSP, this definitely helped my application stand out and i would reccommend contacting your own local MP/MSP to arrange your own work experience! at the end i wrote about competitions, clubs, awards etc i had participated in and any other relevant things. the highers you’ve done sound very strong for IR, so as long as you meet the entry requirements and really show why you’d love to study IR then you’ll be fine
Great you got so many unconditionals - what were your grades?
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What should I include in my personal statement to show my interest in the course?
