Top Tips for Writing your Personal Statement

Hello everyone! :smile:

As we approach the last couple of months to submit your UCAS application before the UCAS Equal Consideration Deadline, many of your schools and colleges may be wanting you to submit your personal statement soon.

Our wonderful ambassadors are going to be sharing their top tips and experiences when they wrote their personal statements, and if you have any questions they can answer them below in this thread.

Best of luck with writing your personal statement!

- Izzie (Global Recruitment Team UK)

Reply 1

UniofReading

Official Rep

Original post

by UniofReading

Hello everyone! :smile:

As we approach the last couple of months to submit your UCAS application before the UCAS Equal Consideration Deadline, many of your schools and colleges may be wanting you to submit your personal statement soon.
Our wonderful ambassadors are going to be sharing their top tips and experiences when they wrote their personal statements, and if you have any questions they can answer them below in this thread.
Best of luck with writing your personal statement!
- Izzie (Global Recruitment Team UK)

Hello,

If you are reading this, it's great you are considering applying to university!

When writing your statement, it is difficult to fit lots into it, as you have a limited word count. Therefore, it is great to prioritise the hobbies you love to do and what will be most relevant to the degree you are applying to.

I will list a few ideas below which you could do, but make sure you don't do all of them; maybe find 3 to 5 things you enjoy, and try to link them to your course, as this will show you are dedicated to that subject.

My recommendations, which I know students have included over the years:

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Lunchtime clubs, e.g. biology or geography clubs- something related to what you are applying for.

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online seminars

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, school/college competitions

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Academic books, or reading based on the degree you want.

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Visit a museum that you can show a connection to.

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Any afterschool clubs, e.g. swimming, netball, judo etc... Anything you might have done since you were little

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Girl Guides or Scouts

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Duke of Edinburgh ( any stage)

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Online competitions- e.g. biology society photography competitions.

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A musical instrument.

I highly recommend you ask your teachers what to add to your personal statements, as they always have superb tips and tricks that might help you.

Furthermore, I have written a blog about my Top tips for a personal statement, which will provide further help.

Please let us know if you have any questions; we will be happy to help.

All the best,
Ella 😀
BSc Ecology

Reply 2

UniofReading

Official Rep

Original post

by UniofReading

Hello everyone! :smile:

As we approach the last couple of months to submit your UCAS application before the UCAS Equal Consideration Deadline, many of your schools and colleges may be wanting you to submit your personal statement soon.
Our wonderful ambassadors are going to be sharing their top tips and experiences when they wrote their personal statements, and if you have any questions they can answer them below in this thread.
Best of luck with writing your personal statement!
- Izzie (Global Recruitment Team UK)

Hi everyone!

It feels like a long time since I had to write my personal statement, but I remember that it is something I spent a very long time thinking about. It can feel like a bit of an impossible challenge trying to fit everything you want to say into such few words, but here are some of my top tips!

The most important thing is always to show how passionate you are about your chosen subject. Your grades are able to capture some of your ability, but these cannot show how much you care. Include details of how you have demonstrated your enthusiasm for your subject. This could be volunteering, extra reading, an extended project, shadowing/work experience or employment. Try and explain how these opportunities have helped you to learn and allowed you to develop your knowledge and skillset relevant to your subject.

A great idea is to make your first sentence really impactful and memorable. Perhaps consider the moment you decided to pursue this subject, or something really exciting you have done relevant to the degree. Make yourself stand out from the very first sentence, and this will really make your statement stand out!

My next tip is a really important one, and this is to not be afraid to big yourself up! It is easy to feel like you should sound modest in your personal statement, but this is the perfect moment to talk about how great you are! Sell yourself as much as you can.

Another challenge with personal statements is keeping to the word count, without omitting details which you feel are relevant and important. I would recommend asking those around you to read through it to see if they can recommend rewording any sentences, or shortening a few sections in order to keep it as concise as possible. It is great if you can ask a few different people to do this as then you will have lots of ideas about where you can cut it down.

I hope these tips have been helpful! If you have any more questions, just put them in this thread and one of us will try and answer.

Hattie😊
4MSci Speech and Language Therapy

Reply 3

UniofReading

Official Rep

Original post

by UniofReading

Hello everyone! :smile:

As we approach the last couple of months to submit your UCAS application before the UCAS Equal Consideration Deadline, many of your schools and colleges may be wanting you to submit your personal statement soon.
Our wonderful ambassadors are going to be sharing their top tips and experiences when they wrote their personal statements, and if you have any questions they can answer them below in this thread.
Best of luck with writing your personal statement!
- Izzie (Global Recruitment Team UK)

Hi everyone! 🙂

Writing your personal statement can feel overwhelming, but it is also a great opportunity to showcase your passions for studying your chosen degree programme. Here are some of my top tips from when I wrote mine:

•I would 100% suggest starting strong with your opening line (but avoiding cliches!). You may want to consider starting with a unique insight or experience that led you to your chosen subject. For example, I zoomed in on a real-world issue that inspired my interest in International Development.

•I would also focus on 'showing not telling'! For example, instead of saying 'I am passionate about International Development', share a specific example, or experience that demonstrates your passion and interest!

•I would also recommend highlighting why you have chosen your course, what makes you connect to it and what excites you about it! Looking into the university course details and referencing specific modules or opportunities that appeal to you can be a really great stepping stone to do this.

•Make sure to talk about your skills and experiences. You may want to touch on your extracurricular activities, volunteering or work experience that relate to your chosen degree programme. Even if they are not directly related, make sure to highlight and focus on the transferable skills you have gained, such as teamwork, communication or problem-solving etc!

•I would also emphasise making sure what you are writing is authentic. Be genuine and don't feel pressured to use overly complex language or phrases. The university will want to hear your personality and values shining through, rather than trying to work out lots of complex language!

Once you have finished your personal statement, make sure to proof read and edit it! You may want to leave it for a day or two, so you can read it with a fresh mindset and so you aren't so critical of yourself. I made sure to ask my friends, family and teachers to read it so that they could check my spelling, grammar and ensure that the statement flowed nicely!

If you have any questions make sure to ask below! We are more than happy to help. Best of luck writing your personal statement - you have got this! 🙂

Millie 🙂
BSc International Development