| This is a real personal statement written by a student for their university application. It might help you decide what to include in your own. There are lots more examples in our collection of sample personal statements. |
Fascinated by the human body, I admire the automatic coping mechanisms of various conditions. This with my keen interest in Biology has drawn me to seek an understanding of the chemistry of life at a higher level of education. The pursuit of biomedical sciences is the absolute choice for me. To study university in the UK has always been an aspiration of mine. Having relatives who studied in the UK I have always viewed education offered there to be of great quality. Since I am learning in an international school, I have been taught all my subjects in the English medium. Although it is my second language I am confident in its use. A very memorable trip for me was one to Menagesha State Forest. The aim of the field trip was to survey different areas of the forest to compare areas of biodiversity and to complete a forest profile. During our expeditions I encountered abundant tree, plant and animal species for the first time. With such biodiversity around me I was compelled to appreciate nature’s variety and wonder at the essential units. Progressing in my Biology classes I covered the topic nucleic acids and proteins, an additional higher level topic. Intrigued by the complex nature of DNA I developed extra enthusiasm for this topic and achieved an exceptional mark. With further reading and critical thinking I was able to answer my question and devise new ones. Captivated by the vital sub-units of DNA I have read and understood more than I had expected about the basic building blocks of life. During a holiday, I was able to visit a hospital laboratory and even though I wasn’t permitted to carry out any tests, I gained much knowledge observing basic procedures, laboratory equipments and chemicals. During my visits it became obvious the relevance of many factors of one’s health. I was enthralled to expand my current knowledge in this area of education. As a part of my IB diploma I chose to do my extended essay in Biology on the relationship between altitude and stomatal density. Physics, another one of my higher level subjects along with Biology, has also enabled me to acquire certain analytical and manipulative skills within the laboratory. The numerous experiment conducted in both subjects have developed my appreciation of the laboratory. The write ups included discussions, designing an experiment, collecting and processing data and finally concluding with an overall evaluation. Studying Maths apart from assisting with rigorous calculations, has made possible the expansion and scope of my understanding. This develops a systematic problem approach in subjects as well as in life. Theory of Knowledge is an enjoyable subject and learning it enables me to view situations from different areas of knowledge and reason with the different ways of knowing. I participate in a variety of sports like football, basketball and volleyball. These team sports demand that we work together and reflect positive roles as ambassadors of our school when playing against others. I was also the girl’s football team coach, which taught me the quality of communicative and leadership skills. Such extracurricular participation helps improve and build upon joint effort and achievement, constructive dialogue and reliability. I am also active as a member of a Rotaract group, which is a sub-unit of Rotary International. During my membership I was promoted to Secretary of the group and have organised and still take part in numerous voluntary projects. I also tutor children of ages 5-13 in areas which they are having difficulties. I surely believe that I have gained much from my academic studies and extracurricular activities to prepare me for the challenges of university life and beyond.
