How to write a personal statement

By Eleanor Doughty

In the five or so years that comprise the labour of A-levels and the culmination of an undergraduate degree, most people will write two important documents. The first, a personal statement. The second, a dissertation. 

The pair have some elements in common: for me, they were the two most pored-over, rewritten documents saved on my laptop. The former was the gateway into university, the latter, the security key card that let me out. 

The other thing they have in common is that plenty of unsolicited advice is doled out as to how to write them. This can be condensed into “start early, and take it seriously”. The third similarity is that if you want to complete a university degree, they are necessary evils. 

I look back fondly at writing my personal statement, so I asked my flatmate what she thought about writing hers. The first world that came to mind? “Annoying.” The second: “Embarrassing.” Why? “Because I had to write about myself.” Had you ever done that before? “Never.” 

According to the Ucas website, “Course tutors use personal statements to compare applicants, so try to make yours stand out.” Sadly, this tip excludes creativity: you can’t colour it in, or hand it in on a PowerPoint presentation. It has to be submitted via the Ucas website, which doesn’t lend itself well to graphic design. So the individuality is all down to the writer. 

Ucas also suggests that applicants “avoid mentioning universities or colleges by name, and ideally choose similar subjects”. Ucas is warning here about the dangers of applying for two different subjects at two different universities, and trying to make one personal statement fit both. Tutors reading the statements may well sniff this out. 

“If you’ve made the subject you’re applying for ambiguous, then on interview day, tutors might question your dedication,” postgraduate student Lauren Cantillon points out. “Writing a personal statement is, in some ways, an exercise in working out whether you have a real interest in your subject.” All the more reason to get on with it in good time. 

The first hard and fast rule of personal statement writing is not to lie. Natasha Daniels, an English & Linguistics graduate from the University of Sheffield, explains to me exactly why. 

“Writing my application, I said I was really interested in other languages (not true) and that I was currently learning Japanese (not true). Once I’d got in, my personal tutor, who had studied our personal statements to get to know us better, put me up for a module on Japanese morphophonology. I had to confess when I had spent two hours in complete and utter bafflement.” 

But lying isn’t the only big “no” in the writing of personal statements. Another is dropping in potentially interesting items without substantiation. According to Joyce Connell, the Ucas and Oxbridge Specialist at Holland Park Tuition & Education Consultants: “The worst examples emphasise an interest or understanding in particular subject areas without explaining why.” 

But there’s more to the personal statement – more that makes it important – than just pleasing an admissions officer. It is also a personal challenge – a focused task in which you are allowed to write exclusively about yourself. 

The document gives you a chance to pat yourself on the back for your extra-curricular activities, and is a space where you can be honest about why you love your chosen subject. 

No one, your parents and teachers aside, is likely to read it apart from someone with a pronounced interest in the subject you are applying for. So if you love calculus, for example, tell them: chances are they love calculus, too, and they will want to hear why at your interview. 

I wonder whether the application to university puts extra-curricular activities “up for auction” a bit. Cantillon agrees: “From the age of about 14 or 15 the thought was put into my head to ask, 'What can you do to make yourself appealing to universities?’ It turns your hobbies into bait – you pursue them so that you can look good on your applications, which can make you resent the whole process.” 

I did a quick straw poll among my friends, and many confirmed that their primary motivation for “suffering” to attain bronze, silver and gold Duke of Edinburgh’s Awards was for university interviews. 

So how should the personal statement actually read? 

“Each sentence should explicitly explain and specifically demonstrate why the candidate would make an excellent student in his or her chosen university subject,” Connell says. 

But don’t overdo the verbal finesse, advises Anne-Marie Canning, Head of Widening Participation at King’s College London. “Often, applicants will use a thesaurus to spruce up their personal statements with more complicated language. There’s no need to do this – we simply want to hear your voice and your reasons for choosing the subject.” 

It does no harm to express your hopes and ambitions for the future – at least as far as they apply to your chosen subject. “In hindsight, I would have talked more about my reasons for choosing the subject – my plans on how I wanted to use it after my degree,” young entrepreneur Will Roberts, 20, tells me. 

“The reality is, though, that most students just don’t know [what they want to do] aged 17. But I think it gives the admissions tutor a deeper understanding of the person.” 

Although the writing of the dreaded personal statement might seem old-fashioned and clunky in the modern age, it is a useful task for life, as well as university. “I’ve had to write personal statements in job applications, and for my Master’s degree,” Cantillon says. “A covering letter sent with a CV is essentially a personal statement – only it’s for a job rather than a university place. 

"It is a valuable experience; I remember my father saying, 'you’re going to be applying for things for the rest of your life’, so it’s really good practice in a controlled environment where you can have someone to look at it and help you before you hand it in.” 

The timing of the personal statement writing counts for a lot, too. “Even if you’re not applying for Oxbridge or medical school [as these applications are required earlier than the rest], just get it handed in,” LSE graduate James Deacon insists. 

“There’s no point fussing over it – you have to do it if going to university is what you want. It seems a big ask, but it is ultimately your ticket through the door.” 

Personal statements 101 

Don’t copy anyone, or the Internet. This is good practice for university, where essays can be checked with anti-plagiarising software 

Don’t lie, even if you consider it “Just an exaggeration” 

If you are passionate about something, say so – don’t be afraid of sounding geeky 

Check your spellings – especially names which Spellcheck might miss 

 Avoid clichés 

Get on with it! /Telegraph