How to Write a Stellar Personal Statement: Our Insights

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What is a Personal Statement?

A personal statement is the centrepiece of the application process for any undergraduate course at a UK university. Submitted through University and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS), the personal statement provides the opportunity to convey to the university those traits and attributes that make an applicant stand out from the crowd.

What makes a good personal statement? The broad view

On UCAS, an applicant may submit a personal statement of no more than 4000 characters and 47 lines, which is approximately 600-700 words. Though this may sound like a lot, condensing a lifetime of interest, experience and super-curricular activities into such a word limit is a challenge. Personal statements should be concise, with each sentence pregnant with meaning and forming part of a larger schema. The main focus, perhaps unsurprisingly, is on academics. Although discussing subjects studied at A-Level is by no means without value, the more that one’s interest can be tied to super-curricular activities situated outside the classroom, the better.

For instance, an English candidate will write a much better personal statement if they focus on books they have read in their spare time, rather than books that they have studied as part of their GCSE or A-Level curricula at school. It demonstrates that the applicant is intellectually curious, and able to form their own opinions outside of those taught to them more prescriptively by classroom teachers. 

Do universities care about extracurricular activities?

Extra-curricular activities are certainly of value. They demonstrate broader ‘soft skills’ which can be an asset on undergraduate courses. However, since space is limited and each sentence should be a perfectly fitting piece in an emergent pattern, it is crucial to tailor each experience to the course applied for. The experience, in and of itself, is insufficient: it is the reflection and insight that the experience brings that has value. 

Example: ‘Captaining my school football team taught me the value of leadership and communication skills, which are crucial in the world of medicine’.

Non-example: ‘In addition, I was the captain of my school football team’.

Hooking your reader

A personal statement should feature an introductory paragraph which hooks the reader and convinces them of the interest and enthusiasm the candidate has for their chosen course of study. There is certainly a degree of flexibility when it comes to the hook’s approach. In some cases, the hook may be based on an experience the applicant had which fostered their interest in the subject. Let us call this the Experiential hook. Another, somewhat different type of hook, relates to the candidate’s insights as to the nature of the subject being applied for. This is the Topical hook. Below are examples of each approach:

Experiential: Witnessing the birth of a calf whilst working on a farm during the summer holidays was foundational to my long-term ambition of becoming a vet. It struck me that veterinary medicine is a unique profession which caters to my specific interests in animal welfare, scientific enquiry and problem solving. VetMB, Veterinary Medicine, University of Cambridge

Topical: Both Ancient and Anglo-Saxon history are characterised by uncertainty rather than conclusive evidence, leaving room to speculate on the relation between history and legend. BA Anglo-Saxon, Norse and Celtic, University of Cambridge. 

The substance

Having hooked the admissions officer, the main challenge is to pithily and concisely convey an idea of the specific topics or concepts within the subject that the applicant is interested in. The ideal personal statement should reference subjects studied at school or college, but thicken them with super-curricular activities. Paragraphs should, ideally, be tied to ideas, concepts or observations which display both curiosity and capacity for independent thought. It is here that extra-curricular activities, provided that they are relevant and tailored to the application, can be included.

Avoid ‘dead ends’, where experience is merely described and the applicant does not adequately convey to the admissions officer the potential for the student’s academic development. The focus should be on pitching a number of avenues for further reading and research within the subject, not on ‘informing’ the reader and purporting to demonstrate ‘expert’ knowledge.

Example: I am particularly excited by the prospect of studying Anglo-Saxon history, as I did not get the chance to study it in depth at AS. Having read the early chapters of James Campbell’s ‘The Anglo-Saxons’, I was struck by the fluidity of power in early Anglo-Saxon England; none of the petty kingdoms of England could maintain primacy over the others for more than a generation or two at a time until the reign of Alfred. BA Anglo-Saxon, Norse and Celtic, University of Cambridge.

Non-example: The Friedman Doctrine is also referred to as the Shareholder Theory. American economist Milton Friedman developed the doctrine as a theory of business ethics that states that “an entity’s greatest responsibility lies in the satisfaction of the shareholders.” Therefore, the business should always endeavor to maximize its revenues to increase returns for the shareholders. I have learned a lot about Milton Friedman through reading several books, such as Why the Government is the Problem. BA Economics, University of Oxford.

Tying it all together

Having written the main bulk of the personal statement, the final task is to tie the different strands together. At the end of the personal statement, as with an essay, the applicant should summarise their interest, skills and capacity for learning in one punchy and succinct paragraph. Hearkening back to the initial hook of the personal statement can be a good way of achieving an organic unity, but it is not essential. 

A good concluding paragraph should leave the reader with an indelible impression of the applicant’s overall suitability for the course as well as, in certain cases, their plans beyond university. As such, introducing new ideas or being descriptive in the last paragraph may risk obscuring the essential takeaway. It should not be seen as a glorified footnote for throwing everything you haven’t mentioned in the body of the text into a disjointed jumble. 

Example: Looking ahead, I am excited to pursue my passion for chemistry at university and continue to explore the many possibilities that this field has to offer. I am particularly interested in the development of cleaner fuels and the role that chemistry can play in addressing global energy challenges. Ultimately, I hope to have a career related to chemistry, either in research or analysis, as I am eager to contribute to scientific knowledge and innovation. BSC Chemistry, University of Oxford.

Non-example: In addition to my school subjects, I do dance classes and like to read in my spare time. I also play tennis and would like to continue this at university. I want to study Philosophy because I like an academic challenge. I particularly want to study Bertrand Russell because I find his ideas about logic interesting. I have done well in school and I am sure I can continue to do the same at university. BA Philosophy, University of Cambridge.

Personal statement building at Chapkin Edwards

Chapkin Edwards are distinguished in the field of undergraduate admissions. Our team of expert consultants is on hand to structure, shape and perfect your personal statement to make a candidate truly stand out. Get in contact here.