2. Whatto includeona personalstatement
What subject you are applying for- Bear in mind you can only write one personal statement for your application so you can’t make it too
general too one subject. Avoid this by applying to courses that are somewhat similar, such as Media and film.
What motivated you to apply for that subject- Avoid using overused and cliché lines and words such as ‘from a young age’, ‘as far as I can
remember’ and ‘ever since I was young’. This makes the statement tedious to read and will not help you stand out to the admissions
department.
What makes you suitable for the course- Include your ambitions for the future in this answer and how this degree will help you obtain
them. Convince the person reading your statement that the course is right for you and you are right for the course. Focus on your
academic achievements in this segment.
What else makes you suitable for the course- In this section you should focus less on you academic achievement and focus more on your
extra curricular activities, work experience, personal goals. Include any awards you may have won and competitions you have entered.
Hobbies and extra curricular activities- This should be a short segment and should outline who you are outside of education and how
these tie in to the course you are applying for. Show that you are a well rounded person who has a lot of passions and interests.
Conclusion of your statement- Avoid repeating anything you have previously mentioned and introducing any new information. Touch up
on things previously said in your statement and leave whoever is reading your statement with a goof impression of you. Do this by adding
personal sentiments such as ‘thank you for your time and consideration’ and ‘I am looking forward to the future and what this university
can do for me.
A personal statement is a short piece of writing which supports you application to University and is required to apply for any course through UCAS. It is your
opportunity to explain and justify to the University why you should be selected for the course and why you are best suited. You can talk about your specific skillset,
hobbies interests and passions. You can only submit one personal statement for your application which means you can not be too broad or specific and can not
mention the name of any one course or university. This is why it is important to apply for subjects that have overlapping content and require a similar skill set.
The UCAS website only has the capacity to support a 4000 character, 47 line long personal statement so you need to decide what parts of the personal statement
are the most important and allocate a high number of characters to that segment than the less important parts.
3. How to structure a personal statement
Main body
This should be
Around 6 to 8
lines long
Introduction
- What are you applying for
- What motivated toy to apply for this course
This should be
Around 32 to 37
Lines long
- What makes you suitable for the course
- What else makes you suitable for the course
- Hobbies and extra curricular activities
Conclusion
This should be
Around 6 to 8
Lines long
- Conclude what you have said
- Don’t repeat yourself
- Don’t bring in any new information
