How to Write an Excellent Personal Statement in 10 Steps

Step	Description
1	Plan what you want to cover
2	Show off your experience
3	Be bold about your achievements
4	How to start your personal statement
5	Focus your writing on why you’ve chosen that subject
6	How long should a personal statement be?
7	Keep it simple
8	Smart ways to end your personal statement
9	Make sure your personal statement has no mistakes
10	Don’t think about your personal statement for a whole week

For more detailed guidance, visit UCAS.

1. Determine Your Topic Priorities

Producing an impromptu personal statement is no easy feat. First things first, jot down some notes and figure out the answers to these questions:

• Is there a specific field of study that interests you?
• Could you tell me why you’re interested in studying it?
• In your opinion, what makes you an ideal candidate to pursue this major in college?
• Additional areas of expertise and interests of yours?

Write these points in a way that makes sense to you because they will form the spine of your personal statement. You could go for a minimalist bulleted list or go all out with a mindmap. The choice is yours.

2. Highlight Your Background

You should include some things in your personal statement and leave out others. Your qualifications firmly fall into the second category. “What have you done?” is the question they really want answered. I get it; you’re highly qualified, but so are a lot of other candidates. In contrast to other applicants, what have you done to demonstrate your enthusiasm for the field to which you are applying?

Think about everything you’ve learned and done related to that field. Direct work experience could be on the horizon if you’re fortunate. However, university staff are aware that some students may find it easier to secure desirable work experience placements than others; thus, they advise students to broaden their search when reflecting on their accomplishments.

3. Take Pride in Your Accomplishments

Being modest about your accomplishments will not help you get into college. It’s high time you said “I am the greatest” in your writing like Muhammed Ali. Make sure it remains precise and focused. Always speak in a businesslike manner. However, you should not put on an air of false modesty to cover up your greatness.

4. A Personal Statement Outline

Before you paste your completed personal statement into Ucas Hub, type it in a cloud-based word processor like Google Docs or Microsoft Word. The ability to run spell check with ease is one advantage of doing it this way. Express yourself clearly in the first sentence. You should tell me why you want to take this class. Stop going on and on about your childhood fantasies. You were only five years old.

5. Write Primarily About the Subject You’ve Chosen

Now that you’ve finished the introduction, it’s time to really shine with the body. Include any relevant work experience after the first two paragraphs. Include any activities outside of school that are relevant to the course, such as hobbies, interests, and volunteer work. Mention your long-term professional goals; specifically, where do you hope to go with this degree?

6. What is the Recommended Length of a Personal Statement?

When crafting your personal statement, you must adhere to strict guidelines. Although the line count is more likely to impose a restriction, in theory you are free to use up to four thousand characters. Given this, 3,500 characters seems like a reasonable cap.

However, these limitations shouldn’t be considered at all when you’re first beginning. In the beginning, all you want to do is write down all the things you think are important. The end product will likely be excessively lengthy, but that’s alright. You have the opportunity to perform some trimming and polishing here.

7. Make It Easy

Changing your statement is about more than just meeting a word limit. Additionally, check that your writing effectively conveys your motivation for enrolling in the course and your qualifications for it. Keep things as simple as possible. Choose phrases that are brief but effective in conveying your ideas. Do not forget that you are not composing an academic essay.

8. Effective Conclusions for Your Personal Statement

It can feel just as challenging to write a satisfying closing line as it did to write an engaging introduction. A strong and memorable conclusion is what you should aim for here. In this area, you should make it crystal clear to the reader why their university would be lucky to have you.

9. Check Your Personal Statement For Errors

Be sure to double-check everything before moving on to the next step. Then have another set of eyes look it over after you’ve finished. If your personal statement is full of typos and grammatical mistakes, you are severely shortchanging yourself. Please don’t submit anything that appears to have been rushed; you have months to complete the project.

10. Don’t Spend an Entire Week Deliberating on Your Personal Statement

If you’ve been following along with this guide, you’ve already gotten a head start on writing your personal statement. Great work! You have plenty of time to submit it—months actually. Put your personal statement on pause for one week and do something else entirely. You should wait a full week before returning to the document and giving it a second look.

FAQ

How Do I Craft an Effective Personal Statement?

Highlight your enthusiasm for the subject, any applicable work experience, the qualities and abilities needed for the position, and any additional interests or hobbies that may be pertinent to the application.

What is the Recommended Length of a Personal Statement?

No more than forty-seven lines (or four thousand characters) may be used in your personal statement.

What Are Some Ways That I Can Make My Statement Of Purpose Pop?

Make your points clearly, highlight your experiences and accomplishments, and demonstrate your passion for the course.

Do I Need to Highlight My Experience?

You get to go into more depth about your qualifications in a different part of your personal statement.

Where Can I Find Assistance with My Personal Statement?

Absolutely! Get some eyes on your personal statement from people you trust, like teachers and friends.