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Did you lie in your personal statement?

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Okay so... here is my dilemma. I am applying for Primary Education and sent letters to every primary school in my area asking for at least a weeks worth of experience. Nowhere have got in touch with me about anything yet! D:
My teacher wants our full drafted personal statements in ready to send off in 2 weeks time... I don't know how I am supposed to find experience between then and now but I am going to keep trying. Should I write that I have gained experience within the primary school setting (crucial for application) on my personal statement and explain to my tutor that I don't have experience yet. I know I will eventually have experience but this might not be until say Christmas time - January. So would I write I have set up experience or? I don't wanna lie on my PS at all :frown:

My friend does Primary Education at Chester (she's second year now) and when she was applying she was in the same position as you. She just wrote that she'd done 28 days experience and then got the experience at a later date. Only do this if you're sure that you can get the experience later though because you have to get a form signed from the headteacher at the school you did experience at (you do to get into Chester anyway). Good luck : ).

Reply 81

~MiserableLogic~

Original post by Muscovite

Well you only got into Salford so don't let's not pretend your superior in some way eh

People have got into much grander establishments with no lies or exaggerations too. I am applying to Cambridge and other top universities and I will easily get 3 A grades for the other universities. Lying is immoral and exaggerating is just pretentious. Much like you I dare say.

Reply 82

username225218

Only as far as saying I had already read books I was intending to read before any interviews would be held - it wouldn't be a lie when it came to it... Not about anything important, or anything that wouldn't be different at the time.

I would have been far too scared about getting caught... it would be so embarrassing... and you can pretty much guarantee you wouldn't be given a place then! Not worth it, in my opinion...

Reply 83

Bulbasaur

Exaggerated a little about my musical abilities. But who really cares about that, right?

Reply 84

Mollymod

Going to have to revise my 'extra reading' a little bit more...
and read up on the famous Biochemist I mentioned before my interviews..
Little bit of exaggeration on the charity work, but no lies.

Otherwise, pretty truthful.
Bit difficult to outright lie, though exaggerations are common.
You have to do what you have to do to stand out from the crowd. Any extra achievement is always good.

Reply 85

ashtoreth

nope, didn't lie. it would have been suicide for what i'm doing but, i think you really have to know how to sell yourself, or learn how pdq.

ie, when you are selling yourself...it can feel as tho u are exaggerating (tho i'm not suggesting to the point of lying!)

(edited 11 years ago)

Reply 86

Bulbasaur

Original post by Tullia

Do your universities interview though? You don't want to have claimed to be able to play the ukulele, to then have the interviewer pull out their ukulele.

Cambridge does, if they give me an interview that is. Well, I didn't go silly xD I basically made myself sound like I'm a lot more dedicated than I am. Nothing major. Obviously nobody is gonna put a negative spin on their statement when it won't even make a difference :tongue:

Unfortauntely I don't play a ukulele :tongue:

But with the 25 minutes they have with me I think they might have more important things to test me on.

Reply 87

Id and Ego seek

I didn't exaggerate per se; I was just really vague and rarely specified (time, quantity, etc.)

Leave that to their imagination :tongue:

Reply 88

Joinedup

Original post by Tullia

Do your universities interview though? You don't want to have claimed to be able to play the ukulele, to then have the interviewer pull out their ukulele.

'Let's jam!!!'

Reply 89

lukas1051

There's a difference between being insincere and straight up lying, but no I didn't do either. When I said I'm passionate about science and I like the subject I study, I was being honest. If you're going to university for the reason your friend is then you're going for the wrong reason. I mean, it's not like the admissions tutors can tell, but you'll know when you're there and you're having a bad time.

Reply 90

Bulbasaur

Original post by Tullia

Ah, what course is this? Are you just waiting on Cambridge, or are you yet to hear from others as well? When did you send your application off?

Yeah, I'm sure you'll be fine. However, I do know someone that applied for engineering and ended up discussing cricket for the most part of their interview, purely because the person interviewing them had a keen interest in cricket. This is far from ordinary, but it is worth bearing in mind.

Geography - waiting on Cambridge, Durham and LSE, the last two I'm sure don't interview. Sent it off about 3 weeks ago, on 11th October.

Wow, that's bizarre. They must've gotten an offer then xD. I don't think music is as easy to discuss as cricket though. Was it at Cambridge?

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