Guide to Writing Personal Statements

INTRODUCTION
Writing your personal statement will take time and perseverance. Your tutor will give you lots of support and guidance. This process can be anxiety provoking, but the right attitude will help - expect to re-draft your personal statement many times. Do not expect to get it right first time. inalising the completion of the !ersonal "tatement often delays the submission of the whole application. #arly applications are desirable as some universities seem to operate on a $first come first served% basis, and many give more careful consideration to the first applications. &eceiving offers ' interviews in (ctober is very motivating. )otivation early in the year will help you to maximise your grades in the *anuary examinations.

TIMETABLE
Your personal statement informs the tutor reference + the references should complement and endorse each other. ,f you are slow to complete your statement it will delay the tutor reference. ,f an entire tutor group does this there will be a long delay between students finishing their form and it being sent to -./". )edical "chool, dentistry, 0eterinary and (xbridge applications must be complete by 12th (ctober. (ur internal deadline for the rest is the end of (ctober. The final deadline is 12th *anuary.

W AT ARE ADMISSIONS TUTORS LOO!ING "OR#

When you submit your -./" application it is copied and sent to the admissions tutor for your chosen course. The admission tutor must make sure that the best candidates are selected. ,f they make mistakes there may be too few students on the course, which will mean the university losing money. ,f they choose badly and students drop out there are similar negative conse3uences. The admissions tutor chooses whether to offer an -nconditional place 4very unlikely5, a .onditional place 4where they offer you a place as long as you achieve specified grades5 or &e6ect your application. -niversity departments usually have in mind the number of students they want ' can cater for. This is often mentioned in prospectuses, as $intake%. ,n general, a $good student% is considered to be7 ,ntellectually able 4more likely to do well5 (f a similar intellectual ability to other students on the course 4will fit it and maintain standards5 )otivated 4more likely to complete course and do well5 8ave reasons for choosing sub6ect ' university 4more likely to complete course5 !eople who make contributions to their school ' community 4this makes it more likely you will contribute to the university5 The ability to make commitments 4will finish course and be loyal to university5 The ability to take responsibility for yourself and others 4will cope with being away from home5 ,f the students will be interesting to teach 4good for staff5 /wareness of nature of course 4have done appropriate research and still self-selected for course5 #vidence of skills needed to succeed in this particular course Where students are interviewed the personal statement is often used as a starting point for discussion. The personal statement is important because it is only part of the application form where you have a chance to select and emphasis points about yourself. / good personal statement helps you to $see% the real person behind the application.

GETTING STARTED $ TOP TIPS

1'9 enrichment to :'9 academic #nrichment ideas7 evidence of skills gained from activities, for example teamwork from the .hallenge of )anagement .onference; problem solving; leadership; any master classes for <ifted and Talented programmes; give details of any skills you have that are not included in the -./" Tariff + for example music grades, Duke of #dinburgh; Young #nterprise, /rmy ' =avy cadets "ay why the sub6ect appeals to you, and if you have done it at / level, why you want to continue with it; what aspects of the course you have found particularly interesting 4check this maps to the course on offer5; <ive evidence of interest in the sub6ect4s5 you propose to study 7books read; relevant taster ' revision courses ' conferences' trips; a professional in the area that you have interviewed; related hobbies; ,dentify any relevant work experience, and what you gained from it7 state the skills gained from the duties undertaken Why you want to go to university 8ow you have taken advantage of opportunities through school and outside interests ,f you are creative say so + e.g. art, music; say why it is relevant to your application ,f you are a sportsman say so; say why it is relevant to your application + and which ones you hope to continue whilst at university )ake sure your statement is easy to read and there are no grammar, punctuation or spelling mistakes ,f you have planned a gap year, why, and what you hope to gain from the experience + try to make it directly relevant to the course you are applying for "how evidence of being able to balance academic and non-academic demands >e positive about yourself, but try not to be arrogant ,f you are going for a 6oint course + explain why, otherwise you may look indecisive &emember to write a conclusion "how it to relevant sub6ect staff as well as your tutor, but only show it to one person at a time / suitable order might be7 choice of sub6ect and reason for choice; why you are suited to studying that sub6ect; skills gained in school that are

relevant; skills gained out of school that are relevant; summary and what you can offer the university "ave each draft as a different file, sometimes you change your mind and want the first version of something .heck the number of characters and lines + when you cut and paste it into the form it is auto-formatted + you are only allowed ?@@@ characters Be trut%&ul ' e(aggeration and lies usuall) *ome out at inter+ie, Ne+er *o-) an)one else.s statement/ -lagiarism so&t,are is used 0) UCAS to identi&) *o-)ing &rom t%e ,e0

RESEARC

TAS!S T AT WILL ELP 1OU WRITE 1OUR PERSONAL STATEMENT

&ead the prospectuses thoroughly, looking for skills and attributes the universities consider to be important. Aook at the -./" website entry profiles (pen day visits

USE"UL P RASES
Blooking forward to.C Bstudying at a higher levelC Bbeing taught by specialistsC )eeting people with similar interestsC Bmore independent life styleC Bexploring sub6ect in more detailC

E2AMPLES ' -lease note t%at t%ese are 3ust to stimulate ideas/ t%e) are not -resented as -er&e*t o-tions
#.(=(),." #conomics lies at the core of both modern and ancient societies and , am keen to extend my knowledge of this interesting sub6ect by studying economic theories at university level. To date, my experience of the sub6ect has been through my <."#, /" and current /: level studies and, although , am aware that the sub6ect will be very different at -niversity, , am convinced that this is the sub6ect area for me and ultimately one , would like to follow as a career. / financially based sub6ect is of particular interest to me because of the fundamental relevance it has to everything in the modern world, from the performance of the corner shop to the efficient operation of the largest multinational companies. Trade and financial transactions underpin all societies and it is for this reason that , would like to study in this field at -niversity. , am particularly interested in )athematics, which comprises half of my / Aevel sub6ect matter. /lthough my -./" form only shows three sub6ects at /" level , have completed seven modules of )athematics at /" level and, by summer, will have completed twelve modules, or two full /: grades. /lthough , have not studied econometrics, given my interest in mathematics , am looking forward to studying this aspect of the sub6ect. ,n my opinion mathematics is key to everyday life and the knowledge and application of it is fundamental to all economic studies and theories. , believe the relationship between mathematics and economics, and the fact that a large proportion of my / levels are mathematically related, can only help me in my studies in this area at -niversity. , have recently read DThe .ode >ookD by "imon "ingh, which , found very interesting. ,t demonstrates how important mathematics is in everyday life, often determining the outcome of important historical events. The book cites the example of the ongoing DbattleD between code makers and cryptanalysts with some very fascinating stories. ,n particular, the "econd World War ended much earlier than originally anticipated due to the considerable success of the code breakers, individuals who, in my opinion, were 6ust as important as those fighting on the battlefields. This links in with computing, which is at the heart of such topics. , have been very interested in the sub6ect for many years and

have considerable experience in designing and maintaining websites, my most successful one receiving over 1,2@@ hits a day. , am interested in how computers work and how they can be used to address complex tasks and am now in the process of learning !8!, having already mastered 8T)A. .omputing, as with mathematics, is extremely important in everyday life and conse3uently is at the forefront of the worldDs leading economies. "port is also a particular interest of mine. , very much en6oy playing football and other sports, including badminton and roller-blading. &ecently , successfully completed and was awarded with The Duke of #dinburghDs "ilver /ward. (verall, , found the exercise both physically and mentally demanding, but thoroughly en6oyed participating in the programme and feel that, on a personal basis, , gained a lot from the experience. / key part of the pro6ect was the voluntary service component. ,n this , elected to spend an hour a week for six months visiting an old lady. "he greatly appreciated the opportunity to talk to a member of Dthe younger generationD. rom my side, , found it interesting to learn how things have changed over the last E@F years - sometimes it seems for the worseG )usic is another of my interests. , have played the piano for many years and currently play to a grade six standard, despite having only attained /ssociated >oard of )usic <rade ?. , believe myself to be a self-motivated, hard-working person, who can successfully meet deadlines. , en6oy expanding my horiHons in terms of learning, and am eager to extend my knowledge of particular areas and tackle any problems , may encounter on the way.

#nglish !ersonal "tatement )y $/% Aevel #nglish studies have introduced me to a more academic teaching style with an emphasis on the need for independent work, in order to gain the very best grades. , en6oy seeking more depth and insight, whether for school texts of private reading and study. , have often made use of Aeach "cragg%s BDiscovering "hakespeare%s )eaningC when studying B&omeo and *ulietC, B)acbethC, BTwelfth =ightC and BThe )erchant of 0eniceC to help me to read and understand the plays more thoroughly. /nthony 8olden%s biography has given me a basic understanding of "hakespeare and his world. , have recently purchased BAiterary Theory7 /n /nthologyC, edited by &ivkin and &yan to support my developing interest in critical theory.

,n my studies to date , have looked at the modern novel but have recently become interested in learning more about the 0ictorian novel as the precursor to modernism. , am exploring the concept of the didactic, omniscient narrator and how 0ictorian authors dealt with issues of contemporary social change. , have read Dickens%s B<reat #xpectationsC and am currently reading #liot%s B)iddlemarchC. / theme that interests me is that of religious faith and doubt also expressed at the time through 0ictorian post-romantic poetry, such as /rnold%s BDover >eachC and .lough%s BThe Aatest DecalogueC. )y reading of modern literature, exploring the theme of Bteenage angstC has included works by *.D."alinger, =icky 8ornby and "ue Townsend. , have also en6oyed the monologue art form of /lan >ennett%s BTalking 8eadsC. Through his artless narrators , feel that >ennett successfully reveals the comic aspect of the too often tragic human condition. 4This tragedy is explored further in the darker, BTalking 8eads TwoC5. )y other studies have broadened my knowledge but , have been keen to incorporate literary aspects. ,n art, , am currently writing a critical and analytical study on B"tuckismC and last year , completed a piece of work based on the .anterbury Tales. rench, apart from providing me with a second modern language, has given me the opportunity to sample foreign literature i.e. !agnol%s B*ean de loretteC and B)anon des "ourcesC. , have also found that having to communicate in a foreign language has given me the skill of revising my thinking before , speak or write. =ext summer , am going to stay with rench friends in the "outh of rance and am then hoping to considerably improve my fluency. )y vocational $/% Aevel in B)edia7 !roduction and .ommunicationC has fuelled an interest in linguistics that , have furthered by reading BThe "tate of the AanguageC by !hillip 8oward. This $/%Aevel has helped me to appreciate the richness of the #nglish Aanguage with its 6argon, slang, dialects, argot, clichIs, and foreign influences. ,t has given me the opportunity to edit and write for BThe JJJJJJJJC and the ambition to be involved in campus publications in the future. , en6oy going to the theatre and have seen productions by the &"., our local T(/Ds theatre company as well as televised productions such as B/ Day in the Death