Writing your UCAS Personal Statement

1
Writing your UCAS Personal Statement

2

• 1
• THE ADMISSIONS TUTOR

3
WHAT IS AN ADMISSIONS TUTOR?

• When you submit your UCAS application for your
  chosen course at university, it will usually be
  read by an admissions tutor.

4
The Admissions Tutor is a gatekeeper. He or she
chooses whether or not to let you in.
5
THE ADMISSIONS TUTOR

• may let you in by giving you
• an offer such as AAB, BBC, CDD
• may not let you in they decline to give you an
  offer
• often starts providing offers as soon as
  applications are received
• is more likely to look favourably on early
  applications

6
WHY MIGHT THEY OFFER YOU A PLACE?

• because you have the required grades
• because of the positive
• comments in your
• reference
• because of your
• personal statement

7
Admissions Tutors were asked WHEN DO YOU USE
THE PERSONAL STATEMENT?

• 1. to select candidates for an offer or
  rejection for UCAS
• 2. to select candidates for an interview
• 3. to plan interview questions
• 4. to help occasional consideration of
  borderline cases (e.g. course requires grades
  BBB, you are predicted grades BBC)
• 5. if a candidate misses the required grade in
  August there are spare places, the personal
  statement might decide it

8
WHAT ARE ADMISSIONS TUTORS LOOKING FOR?...

• Work experience (if its relevant)
• Wider skills such as teamwork (if its relevant)
• Numeracy or Communication (if the applicant is
  yet to pass GCSE Maths or English)
• Future career if relevant and known
• Any interesting hobby (especially if relevant)

9
Admissions Tutors ask

• Do we want this student on the course?
• Do we want this student at our university?

10
Admissions Tutors said they were looking for

• Interest in the course (most important) most of
  the statement could deal with this, in some cases
• A motivated student
• No mistakes in spelling or grammar
• A clearly written piece
• A balance of academic study with life
• An interesting person
• Dont cut paste one off the internet theyve
  seen them (and rejected them) all before

11
ADMISSIONS TUTORS WERE ASKED WHAT SHOULD
APPLICANTS AVOID?

• Waffle
• Swallowing a dictionary
• Statements with no examples or evidence
• Very ordinary interests such as going down the
  pub
• Lying (remember the interview!)
• Lack of conviction honesty trying to be
  someone you are not
• Rushing - producing a poorly written statement
• Reducing all experiences to skills stacking
  shelves in a supermarket provides an honest
  income dont sell it for anything else

12
You need a section about YOU
13
Remember, be selective
14
Making sure you dont get in

• Sex. I love it. Thats why I want to study
  human biology.
• I'd like to attend a university where I can
  expose myself to many diverse people.
• I have an extensive knowledge of the value of
  intelligence.
• Their were too things the experience taut me its
  important to be accurate and precise.

15
A useful lesson

• The assumption that the admissions tutor
  shares your sense of humour is a risky one

16

• A more impressive and less risky way to sell
  yourself is to convince an admissions tutor that
  you are really passionate about the course so.
• do your course research

17
Persuading an admissions tutor that I am
genuinely keen to study their course

• Be motivated and interested in the content of
  the course
• Write about any relevant books or articles you
  have read (even writing about a short article in
  a chapter or journal is going to have more of an
  impact than simply stating you want to study the
  course)

18
Persuading an admissions tutor that I am
genuinely keen to study their course

• Write about experiences that relate to the course
  
• Conferences, residential courses, trips,
  people you have met, something you have read,
  hobbies, future plans, something you have seen
  anything relevant that will convince the
  admissions tutor that you have given serious
  thought to the choice of course

19
Paragraph Headings for Personal Statement

• 1) Why I want to study that course
• 2) How my studies relate to the course
• 3) Work experience how it relates to the
  course
• 4) Wider school involvement responsibilities
  I have held
• 5) Other interests, experience and
  qualifications held
• 6) Conclusion a summary of the main reasons I
  want to study the course
• 42 lines in Times New Roman font

20
What should I do do next?

• Make a start on your statement. Get loads of
  information down and then edit it.
• The sooner you do it, the sooner you can get your
  application off.
• You can ask for help (but only if youve got
  something worth refining no-one writes it for
  you)
• Ask nicely
• DONT LEAVE IT UNTIL THE LAST MINUTE!!!

21
And for the future

• Make keep a list of all your qualifications
  youll still need it when youre really old(like
  30)
• Every time you do something good, attend a
  course, get an awardwrite it down.