Personal Statement Advice
*let me amend that title to âsome quick tips for writing personal statements that I have accumulated, but donât take my word for it because I have no idea how good mine is!â
give yourself time - it takes a while to write your personal statement, what with drafting, editing, sending to other people, and having time to sit on it before going back to work on it. You canât cram a personal statement! Especially for early entry apps, people tend to do a first draft over the summer of Year 12. I really wish I had because I started in early September and was quite stressed out
keep it 100% focused - admissions tutors want to hear about 2 things:Â
motivation:Â why you love your subject and want to study it for 3+ years
suitability:Â why should they choose you? What skills do you possess that mean you will cope well with studying at university level and succeed in your field
before you start, do your research
know which universities youâre applying to - different unis want to see different things in a personal statement. The classic example is that Oxbridge donât really care about your extra-curriculars, and just want to know about your academic interest in the subject. Itâs worth researching this before you apply so you can try to tick the boxes for all your unis
balancing different unis - if youâre applying to Oxbridge, generally the guideline is to make your personal statement 80% academic at least. Donât get too hung up on that though - they only look at it at the interview stage, whereas other unis use it to shortlist, especially if they donât interview!! So ironically itâs more important to try and appeal to your other unis
structure for each paragraph - okay this may sound a bit basic and take you back to the horrors of gcse english, but a really useful way of making sure you fully explore all your points is using the PEE paragraph. I appreciate this is too formulaic for some people, but it doesnât have to be in this exact order. I just used it as a guide to make sure each paragraph I wrote covered these elements
Point: motivation (why subject) or suitability (why me)
Evidence: thing youâve done (list of examples below)
Explanation: what you learned and link it back to your point. Be reflective!!
okay now on to content - letâs split this into academic and extra-curricular
academic - this is the example section of your PEE, where you get to talk about all the amazing things youâve done that demonstrate your passion for the subject
reading youâve done, podcasts youâve listened to, lectures you went to, work experience you did, societies / clubs youâre part of that are relevant to your subject, summer schools etc
extra-curricular - okay so you definitely can include extra-curriculars, but always link back to the skills youâve learned from them (and possibly why that will help you in your subject area) e.g. being a captain of x team sport has helped me develop both my leadership and team work skills, because I must raise the morale of my team and delegate roles efficiently
here I have tried to give some examples of things that this person does in their role to develop the skills they mention
also, if you talk about an interest / hobby, try to quantify it - if you do a team sport, are you captain? If you play an instrument, what grade have you reached? If you run, have you done any significant distances e.g. a 10K? It just gives some evidence that you genuinely do your chosen hobby
where to start - I found it really difficult to start writing that first draft, and essentially only got going when I had a school deadline to meet in early September⊠I was really freaked out by that blank Word document, but my dad basically sat me down and we did a huge messy plan to create a structure
by the way for me the struggle wasnât âomg idk what to write i have nothing to sayâ but more âomg i have so much to say but no idea how to express itâ. If you fall into the former category I recommend making a list of all the academic experiences you have (see list above). Once you get brainstorming youâll realise youâve done more than you thought!
the first draft - use your plan to attempt your first draft. Completely ignore the character/line limit! It doesnât matter if itâs rubbish, just focus on getting it all out - keep going until you finish writing everything you want to say
feedback - itâs really important to get a fresh pair of eyes to read your personal statement. When youâve read it so many times it can be hard to spot errors and see where things donât flow etc. The 3 most important things to remember when asking for feedback:
1. do it at intervals - my head of year read my first draft, then I asked a doctor I had shadowed to read my 4th draft, my head of year re-read it at my 5th draft, and then I finalised it with my parents for the 6th and final drafts (yep I did 7 drafts)
2. re-draft (lots ugh) after you get feedback - decide which bits to incorporate, but donât be afraid to disagree with the advice you are given! Itâs your personal statement
3. donât ask too many people - they may give you conflicting views which will just confuse you rather than help. As you can see, I stuck to 2Â âoutsidersâ and my parents
the beginning - most people find this the hardest part. The best advice Iâve heard is basically not to start with the start! If youâre struggling, do the middle paragraphs first, and these might give you inspiration for your intro. Try to think of a moment, an experience, or a person youâve met that really influenced your decision to study your subject, or encapsulates why you love your subject
the ending - okay youâve given all your evidence so donât introduce anything too new. Try not to repeat yourself but this is essentially a summary of 1) motivation / why subject and then close it off with 2) suitability / why me
UCAS Personal Statements by @briefblazeunknownÂ
Top Tips for Your Personal Statement by @muststudyÂ
How to Write a Bomb Ass Personal Statement by @joolshallieÂ
A Guide to UCAS Personal Statements by @jenniestudiesÂ
How to Ace the UCAS Process #4: Personal Statement by @penandanotebook (the rest of this series is really good too so definitely check it out!)
How to Make Your Personal Statement Suck Less by @hstudies
Good Vocabulary to Use in Your Personal Statement by meÂ
Top Tips for a Medicine Personal Statement by @help-im-a-medstudent (I actually requested this post and Iâm so grateful because itâs amazing!)
Applying to Medicine: How to Write Your Personal Statement by @quilavastudyÂ
Writing Your Medicine Personal Statement by @conquertheuniversityÂ
Personal statement advice and qualities that Medical Schools are looking for by @dxmedstudent Â
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