Transcript Document

UCAS PERSONAL STATEMENTS FOR
COMPETITIVE COURSES
Reflections on things to include … and avoid
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15 slides designed to give a flavour … please don’t take them as gospel
Some quotes have been edited or paraphrased for clarity
Messages for specific subjects are often transferable across other disciplines
© Alan Bullock, for University of South Wales #USWTAC
January 2015
www.alanbullockcareers.com
“If there’s one place left on a
competitive course, it will go to
the applicant with the best
personal statement.”
(Paul Teulon, Director of Admissions,
King’s College London)
OXBRIDGE
 Demonstrate that you read and think critically and analytically
 They are especially interested in the SUPER-CURRICULAR (your
wider reading or academic engagement beyond the syllabus)
“The worst personal statements are polished but boring”
(Oxford admissions tutor)
“We would love to know what you want to question about your
chosen subject, what concerns you about it or maybe what worries
you about the way you saw an aspect of it reported”
(Cambridge admissions tutor)
LAW
 Get your motivation across – why do you want to study the subject +
what will you bring? Any insight gained through experience would be
great, but this can be in a diverse range of settings… (Birmingham)
 … like reflecting on how you’ve seen the law in action at your local crown
or magistrate’s court … (Aston)
 … or you could show motivation by demonstrating an interest in current
affairs and reflecting on the legal implications of a topical news story …
(Cambridge)
 Good written English essential – “law is a discipline of precision” (Aston)
 Avoid quotations: “I don’t care what Locke thinks, I want to know what
you think!” (Reading)
 Build a reasoned, coherent case for your application (Queen Mary)
 Less is more (Cardiff)
ENGLISH
WHAT THEY LIKE:
 Well-written, correct grammatically, at least 70% academic, drawing out your wider
reading or theatre-going and demonstrating your energy and voice (York)
 A statement that talks about the kind of books you enjoy and why (Aberystwyth)
 Genuine passion and detail – it will always catch our eye (Goldsmiths)
 Engaging the reader by being specific from line 1 (UCL)
WHAT THEY DISLIKE:
 Deep philosophical statements, overlong sentences, baroque syntax, incorrect
punctuation (Aberystwyth)
 Convoluted phrasing that’s difficult to read (York)
 10 lines about English & 37 lines about rugby/clarinet/your job at Waitrose (Warwick)
 “My love for English started when mum gave me a Beatrix Potter book when I was 6”
i.e. opening with “the whimsical approach” (UCL)
 “I was encapsulated by To Kill a Mockingbird” / “my achievements are vast” (Soton)
see www.southampton.ac.uk/english/undergraduate/ucas_application.page
HISTORY
Some thoughts from Bristol, Cambridge, Durham, Goldsmiths & others:
 Make it personal and convey some breadth in your history interests
 Engage us by discussing what you think about some of your recent
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work, not “it started when I went to Rome and saw the Colosseum”
(or “History is vital to understanding the world we live in”)
Your lateral engagement with history could also be museum visits,
documentaries or talking to your grandparents
Don’t try to be flash - we’re more interested in your thoughts on the
books you’ve read or what you think it means to be a historian
Our course starts in 1500 - so don’t write about Ancient Rome
Write in clear/accurate English, showing reflection/analysis/insight
Engaging with historiographical questions would impress
Extra-curricular activities are much less important, so be brief
ECONOMICS
Do: (LSE)
 Reflect on aspects that interest you + your wider reading or
engagement or links to any of your other subjects (especially Maths)
 Show you can express an opinion, solve problems, cope with pressure
and that you’re up for a challenge
Do: (Warwick …. and note the slightly different twist)
 Demonstrate superb motivation and an interest in economics as a
social science, not just as a numerate discipline
Don’t: (UCL)
 Skim the surface or make sweeping claims (instead, be specific)
 Give them a shopping list of what you’ve done
 Waste space with irrelevant detail, however impressive
 Mention Freakonomics: “if I hear it one more time, I’ll scream!”
PSYCHOLOGY
Tips from Bristol*, Goldsmiths & UCL (*Bristol has an admissions statement for every discipline):
 We want to know you understand the importance of statistics,
experimentation and scientific elements of the course
 We like to hear what you’ve learned from books, publications, journals,
websites, podcasts, lectures or anything that shows independent
learning – not standard texts like Freud, Milgram or Zimbardo, but what
you’ve researched for yourself beyond the classroom, like the latest
research on the psychology of fear you read up on the BPS website…
 Reflect on any relevant work experience or observations from a p/t job
 Avoid using sophisticated language that you don’t fully understand –
“straightforward language is never a bad thing”
 Don’t just say you want to “help people”
STEM SUBJECTS
ENGINEERING
 “We don’t want to know that you played with lego as a child or that the first
word you ever uttered was hydraulics” (Durham)
 Demonstrate why it interests you; relevant reading or experience; what you
do that demonstrates technical aptitude, problem-solving or teamwork skills;
extra-curricular achievements or activities that show time management or
self-organisation (Dundee)
MATHS
 “Motivation is 90% of the battle, so anything that demonstrates your
motivation and enthusiasm for the subject is great; we’re also interested in
your outside interests - we like people who have a life and who can think
outside the box” (South Wales)
 Include your participation and success in maths competitions (the more
recent/successful, the better); what you find exciting about the subject;
outside interests that demonstrate drive, commitment, enthusiasm and your
potential to excel (Bristol)
MEDICINE: DO’s
Most want experience in clinical settings or any kind of HANDS-ON CARE SETTING
Tips from King’s, Keele, Hull/York and Birmingham:
 Give us a rationale for why you want to study Medicine
 Whatever environment you’ve been in, what did you spot or learn from what
happens there, or what have you observed about how the qualities exhibited by
professional staff help them engage effectively with patients/service-users?
 Show what you learned about teamwork/bedside manner/paperwork/how they
dealt with the drunks in A&E/how a GP receptionist managed a difficult patient/
how you saw doctors look at patients holistically or balance lots of demands
 It’s not the techniques you saw but what you saw about the realities of medicine
 Evidence the qualities you have demonstrated like commitment, compassion,
teamwork, resilience, problem-solving, leadership, creativity, responsibility…. or
critical thinking (like how you took the lead in your D of E expedition)
 Keep your conclusion punchy, maybe 3 lines, and use it to add something
 Be aware that the interview will test whether what you wrote in your statement
can be justified and substantiated
“We tell you what we want on our webpage, but most applicants don’t look at it”
MEDICINE (& DENTISTRY): DON’T’s
Tips from King’s, Keele, Queen Mary and Brighton & Sussex:
 Don’t give us any flannel
 Don’t over-elaborate about Grade 8 flute – what we want is more
subtle than that (although maybe it would help evidence dexterity for Dentistry…)
 Don’t give the impression that you hero-worship doctors
 Don’t use out-of-date examples or interests
 Don’t give the impression that you might get bored by patients - we
need people who are truly motivated to treat patients
 Don’t use humour inappropriately
 Don’t give a list of every procedure you saw - we would much rather
hear what you learned from observing one filling (Dentistry)
HEALTH SECTOR IN GENERAL
“We want to know what you understand
about the profession/field and
your reflections on what it is about you
and your experience that makes it
the right career for you.”
(Nursing, Midwifery, Physiotherapy
at Southampton)
PHYSIOTHERAPY
You must be 100% committed, not “I want to be in a caring profession”
Research uni websites or else! Some explain their selection criteria +
some score the statement against those criteria
Experience/observation/contact with physios (pref in different settings) +
research/open days/wider care experience = highly desirable
Then write reflectively about:
 your insights into the role (eg how did they change your perceptions?)
 the breadth of the profession
 the challenges and skills/qualities required
Evidence how you have demonstrated some of the skills you’ll need +
your ability to engage with people across the social spectrum
(NB - elderly people more relevant than over-emphasising sport??)
SOCIAL WORK
Some thoughts from Leeds, Portsmouth, Anglia Ruskin & Sheffield Hallam:
Demonstrate:
 A realistic understanding gained through researching the profession
(publications/websites/documentaries/issues in the media)…
 …then link it to your own work/voluntary experience
 What your academic learning has taught you about social work or
how it has given you relevant insights or skills
 Values of non-discriminatory behaviour or an understanding of the
effects of disadvantage in society
Avoid:
 Jokes, exaggerated claims, lists, applying for courses other than
social work, bland clichés like “I have a passion for helping people”
or “I am a people person” - people skills aren’t enough!
FINALLY…
SPORTS SCIENCE
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All sport and no science will not impress (Bath)
PHARMACY
 Demonstrate your knowledge of the science and practice of pharmacy, evidenced by
your background reading or work experience (Cardiff)
 Show you interact well with people from diverse backgrounds (Portsmouth)
PPE
 You need to engage with P,P and E in your statement (Oxford)
JOURNALISM
 It needs 100% dedication, no matter how intense the workload: demonstrate this (DMU)
VETERINARY SCIENCE (& more)
 see my articles at www.university.which.co.uk/getadvice
MIDWIFERY!!
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If you mention Call the Midwife or One Born Every Minute … you won’t even get an
interview! (Bournemouth)
TOMORROW – HOW TO HELP YOUR STUDENTS GET THE BEST OUT OF THEIR P/S