Many guidelines in writing a personal statement can be found everywhere. They come in a wide range that some of them can contradict others. Still, almost all of them are based on the guide UCAS gives. You should give your best to be able to write one because this is the most crucial component of your application. You can do so by knowing and following some important guidelines given by the admission service agency.
According to UCAS based on the guide they have given, personal statements should be 4,000-word summaries of the students’ motivation for studying the courses they have chosen. The writing should be about the student’s explanation of the reason why they want to study the subject. However, in giving this “why,” you should use information about yourself, specifically your character and experience. This is the overview of the whole task.
The UCAS guide says that it is the admissions tutors of the universities who read the personal statements of the students applying to their courses. The admissions service agency specifically says this because they want you to focus and bear this in mind when you write so that you will be guided on what information about yourself will the admissions staff find relevant, you will include and how you will do so.
Showing interest or enthusiasm is very crucial, more so if the predicted grades you have are poor. Your writing about how motivated you are for the course should be concretised by references from your tutors. Another instance where your predicted grades could be poor but you truly have the interest and the potential for success in the subject is when there are mitigating circumstances that can justify the grade prediction. This should also be supported with evidence.
UCAS also reminds applicants that they should always remember that in courses which application process involves an interview, the basis for such are the applicants’ personal statements. Again, it is the interest and motivation of the applicants which the interviewer will look for in the writings and will ask the students about.
Further, UCAS highly advises applicants to do their writing with the most amount of time possible so that it they can still review them with the help of their tutor or referee before submission. Aside from the motivation and personal information, writing style is very important because this writing component of the application is a sample of that will be shown to the admissions tutor on the writing ability of the applicant.
So, to summarise the true meaning of the personal statement based on the guidelines given by UCAS is to say that it is a writing that shows the students’ interest in the course which is done by giving personal information and it is a sample of the writing skills of the applicant.
Effective Academic Writing 