University Personal Statements

A huge part of your UCAS application is the personal statement. This is your chance to explain to your chosen universities why they should offer you a place. All of this needs to be condensed into 4000 characters which is around 500 words. 

So what exactly should you write about?

Your personal statement should begin with an explanation of why you are interested in studying this particular course. The next sections should talk about your school life, extracurricular activities and about you as a person i.e your skills and qualities. Let’s consider these 3 areas in more detail:

School Life

• Which subjects are you studying and how can university help build upon your knowledge? 
• Do you take part in any clubs or activities? What have you gained as a result of taking part?
• Are you involved with any leadership roles such as head pupil or house captain?

Extra-curricular Activies

• Do you attend any clubs or organisations outside of school? What is your role and what skills have you developed as a result? 
• Do you have any hobbies or interests? (ideally these should relate to your chosen degree)
• Are you employed in any part time work or have you undertaken work experience? Did this help you learn more about your chosen degree?

You as a person

• What are your main skills and qualities? How did you develop these and how could you apply to them to your degree?
• Have you any other achievements?
• What are your career goals?

A strong personal statement will:

• Offer examples to back up any claims. If you claim to have a specific skill explain how you gained this and why it is useful. For instance, if you are a member of a club explain why this is beneficial and how it impacts you personally. 
• Avoid the use of quotes. The university wants to hear from you and not a famous philosopher or business mogul. 
• Demonstrate how you will make an ideal student. Try to convince the university that you will apply yourself and make a valuable contribution to the university. 
• Explain why you are interested in studying at that particular university as well as the specific course you are applying for. 
• At risk of stating the obvious but your personal statement should contain zero spelling errors. Be sure to ask someone else to proof read it.

Read more about writing your personal statement here

Should you look at sample personal statements?

Having a look at samples of previous personal statements can help you see how your statement should be structured and condensed into 4000 characters. 

However, try to avoid the temptation to copy any of the content you read (not even one or two sentences). Remember, your personal statement will be checked for plagiarism once submitted and the slightest hint of copying from examples will be flagged up.

Your school may have copies of personal statements from older pupils you can look at. Perhaps friends and family who are currently attending or have graduated from university will still have a copy of theirs. 

Also, it is very easy to find example personal statements online. Just make sure the statements you look at are good quality.

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