Personal Statement Advice and Guidance NEW 2026 format - Ask your questions here!

Is it ok for me to mention my law work experience in question 1 if i feel that made me want to do law ? and then talk about what i learnt of course.

Hi, sorry I got confused. Where would work experience fit in a speech and language therapy personal statement?

Hi. Where would supercurricular learning go? Could I put it in question 2 since it is learning, or should it be question 1?

Would I mention a subject-related MOOC in Q2 or Q3? (I'm auditing it, if that matters, so won't get a certificate at the end.)
I have been largely using St Andrews University's guide on writing your PS as that's my top choice of university and they seem to suggest it would fall into Q3 but I wanted to get someone else's opinion on it. (Page here, if relevant.)

I'm honestly stuck with my personal statement. I'm home educated and self-taught, so for Q2 I'd been planning to write a paragraph on how this has taught me time management skills, discipline, organisation skills etc etc, but apparently that's too generic? I feel so lost now, because I'm not sure how to phrase this without talking about these sorts of skills I'd really appreciate any advice.

What course are you applying for and what have you done academically towards your interest in that subject?

Chemistry (with medicinal chemistry)
So far I've done two mini courses, one on drug design and the other on the use of metals in medicine. I've also watched a few MIT Opencourseware lectures on the principles of chemistry.

Find ways that those things connect to each other and that's your Q2 content done. Depending on how competitive your unis are you may want to try getting some more academic content in there e.g. a book or article you've read as a result of something in one of your mini courses

Is it okay to start off my statement with "My interest in chemistry began..." or "I realised I wanted to study chemistry when..."? These are along the lines of what I had in mind, but I've seen people online saying that this sort of opening is overused/generic/boring

They are both cliches and I'd recommend to avoid them if possible. They won't lose you any points, but they are not a terribly inspiring start. Could you find a way to begin with your example/experience itself?

Instead, tell them about what really excited you about chemistry now. Not when you were 12.

Yes, I think I can do that. I'd been planning to start off with how I'd been interested in chemistry since IGCSE etc etc, and then move on to writing about a topic in chemistry that interests me. Would it be okay to jump straight in with something like "An area that particularly interests me is..."?

Also, I've seen people include broad, sweeping sentences in the first paragraph of their statements; things like "(chemistry) really is a central subject that supports most of biology and medicine and shapes many contemporary ideas from global warming to anti-cancer drugs" or "Chemistry is fundamental to several vital processes in our world that we can take for granted: the development of medicine, the sourcing of energy and the cultivation of crops are some of the essential actions from which we benefit in our everyday lives". Is it a good idea to include something like this or not? My first thought was no, because it's not personal, but I just wanted to ask to make sure.

Thank you so much

First bit, yes, absolutely.
Second bit, meh, you could. But it's just waffle and the kind of thing I skim past to get to the relevant stuff. You're not writing an essay on the subject, so you shouldn't really need to dazzle the reader with some assertion about it.