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How to write a UCAS personal statement
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Writing a great personal statement
Read our guide on what it is, what to include, how to start, length and what makes a good personal statement
Once you've decided which universities and courses to apply for, completing your application is pretty simple – until it comes to how to write your UCAS personal statement.
This guide covers everything you need to know about how to write a personal statement for university. We look at what it is and how you can start your personal statement. We've also got questions to guide you and a suggested personal statement structure you can use so you know what to put in it.
If you'd like even more resources, support and UCAS personal statement examples, you can sign up to access our personal statement hub .
What is the UCAS personal statement?
How universities use your ucas personal statement, how to start a ucas personal statement.
- Get feedback on your UCAS personal statement
The personal statement is part of your UCAS application. It's how you show your chosen universities why you'll make a great student and why they should make you an offer.
Your personal statement also helps you think about your choice of course and your reasons for applying, so you know you’ve made the right decision.
Get feedback on your personal statement
Sign up to our personal statement hub to get feedback on your draft. You'll also get access to videos, help sheets and more tips.
Sign up now
UCAS personal statement word limit
Your personal statement length can be up to 4,000 characters long.
This may sound a lot, but it's a word limit of around 550–1000 words with spaces and only about 1 side of typed A4 paper.
You need to keep it concise and make sure it's clear and easy to read.
Applying for multiple courses
Although you can apply for up to 5 courses on your UCAS application, you can only submit 1 personal statement. So it needs to cover all your course choices.
If you really want to show your commitment to applying for different courses, we will accept a second personal statement from you to reflect your application e.g. if you are applying for Law elsewhere, but Criminology and Criminal Justice with us.
Lots of students who apply to university have achieved the basic entry requirements and many more students apply than there are places available. Admissions teams can use your UCAS personal statement to get to know you and decide why you're more suitable than other applicants.
Some universities read every personal statement and score them. Then they use them alongside your qualifications and grades to decide whether to offer you a place or interview. Other universities put less emphasis on the personal statement and use it with students who have borderline entry requirements.
Universities might refer to your personal statement again on results day if you don't get the grades you need. So a good personal statement could clinch you a uni place even if your grades aren't what you hoped for.
Starting your personal statement can seem scary when you're staring at a blank screen. But, things will seem less daunting once you start.
- Set aside some time in a place where you're comfortable and won't be disturbed. Grab a notepad or computer.
- Write down anything and everything that's influenced your decision to go to university and study your chosen subject. Jot down your skills and experience too.
- Use the questions below to guide you. Don't worry about the personal statement length at this point – you can cut things out later.
When to start your UCAS personal statement
Ideally, you want to leave yourself plenty of time – a few weeks or even months – to plan and write your personal statement.
Try not to leave it to the last minute, as tempting as this may seem when you've got so many other things to think about.
Questions to guide you
Your motivation.
- Why do you want to study at university?
- Why do you want to study this subject?
- How did you become interested in this subject?
- What career do you have in mind after university?
Academic ability and potential
- How have your current studies affected your choice?
- What do you enjoy about your current studies?
- What skills have you gained from your current studies?
- How can you demonstrate you have the skills and qualities needed for the course?
- What qualities and attributes would you bring to the course and university?
Your experience
- What work experience (including part-time, charity and volunteer work) do you have and what have you learnt from it?
- What positions of responsibility have you held? (For example, prefect, captain of a team or member of a committee)
- What relevant hobbies or interests do you have and what skills have they helped you develop?
- What transferable skills do you have, such as self motivation, team working, public speaking, problem solving and analytical thinking?
Research and reading
- How do you keep up with current affairs or news in your chosen subject?
- What journals or publications relevant to your chosen subject do you read?
- Which people have influenced you, such as artists, authors, philosophers or scientists?
Now it's time to write your personal statement using your notes. It's best to draft it on a computer, and remember to save it regularly.
You can copy and paste it into your UCAS application when you're happy with it.
Personal statement structure
While there's no set template for a personal statement, you may find it useful to follow this personal statement structure when you decide what to put in your statement.
What to include in a personal statement
- Reasons for choosing this subject(s)
- Current studies and how these relate to your chosen subject(s)
- Experiences and how these relate to your chosen subject(s)
- Interests and responsibilities and how these relate to your chosen subject(s)
- Your future after university
- Summary including why you'll make a great student
Further tips for a good UCAS personal statement
- Use information on university websites and the UCAS website. This often includes the skills and qualities universities are looking for in applicants
- Ask friends, family and teachers to remind you of activities you've participated in. They might remember your successes better than you do
- Don’t include lists in your application, like a list of all your hobbies. Focus on 1 or 2 points and talk about them in depth to show their relevance to your application
- Explain and evidence everything. It’s easy to say you have a skill, but it's better to demonstrate it with an example of when and how you’ve used it
- Avoid clichéd lines such as ‘I've always wanted to be a teacher’ as it says nothing about your motivations or experiences
- If you’re applying for a joint degree or different subjects, give equal time to each area and try to find common aspects that show their similarities
- Never lie or plagiarise another statement – you'll be caught and it could result in your application being automatically rejected
- Proofread your personal statement by reading it out loud and ask friends, family or a teacher to check it for you
Sign up to our personal statement hub
Watch videos, get top tips and download our help sheets – that's what our personal statement hub is for. It's for you to write your story, so you can show your strengths, ideas and passion to your chosen universities.
You'll also be able send us your draft, so you can get feedback and feel confident about what you've written.
We are aware that this form may not be fully accessible. If you are experiencing technical issues which mean you cannot read the form, please contact [email protected] and we’ll provide a copy within 10 working days. Please also read our Website Accessibility Statement .
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Writing a UCAS Personal Statement
How to write a ucas personal statement.
A personal statement is part of your application to study at a UK university . In a personal statement, the student writes about what they hope to achieve on a UK university course , what they hope to do after it, and why they are applying to this particular university. It is your first chance to show a demonstrable passion and understanding of your chosen subject away from exam results.
If you wish to begin studying in the UK in 2025, you must complete a personal statement. If you plan on studying in the UK from 2026, a new format of personal statement is being introduced by UCAS. See below for more details.
SI-UK will edit your personal statement and ensure the English is clear and grammatically correct. Arrange a free consultation with SI-UK London to learn more.
What do I include in my Personal Statement?
- Your career aspirations
- How did you become interested in studying the subject
- What, if any, relevant work experience you have undertaken that is related to the course or subject
- What aspects of your previous education you have found the most interesting
- What attracted you to the particular university
- Other relevant academic interests and passions which display positive character and personality
Genuine experiences of extracurricular clubs, work experience, or knowledge around a subject are much more likely to make your personal statement stand out. Admissions officers are also looking for positive evidence of your character, which will make you a productive member of the university.
How long should my Personal Statement be?
The length of a personal statement varies depending on the university, but generally, the average length for an undergraduate application is between 400 and 600 words, around one side of A4 paper or a maximum of 47 lines. Certain postgraduate programmes may require a 1000-word personal statement, but this will be specified.
Try not to exceed the given character limit. Admissions officers have many personal statements to review, and a clearly written and concise personal statement is more likely to stand out.
What are common Personal Statement errors?
- The personal statement is too short/long
- The personal statement does not include important information/includes negative information
- The personal statement has a confusing structure
It is also important not to lie about any aspect of your personal life and education history or even exaggerate. Admissions officers will question you about almost all aspects of your application and will be able to see through any lies.
Tips for writing a Personal Statement
- Express a passion for your subject
- Start the statement strongly to grab attention
- Link outside interests and passions to your course
- Be honest, but don’t include negative information
- Don’t attempt to sound too clever
- Don’t leave it until the last minute; prepare ahead of the deadline
- Have friends and family proofread it
- Don’t duplicate material from your CV/resume
In terms of presentation, attempt to create five clear paragraphs of text in a clear font such as Arial or Times New Roman, with a maximum size of 12.
Personal Statement Changes
Starting from September 2025, the traditional UCAS personal statement will be replaced by three mandatory questions. The new questions will be:
- Why do you want to study this course or subject?
- How have your qualifications and studies prepared you for this course or subject?
- What else have you done to prepare outside of education, and why are these experiences helpful?
If you have any questions about how the changes may affect your application to study in the UK, do not hesitate to contact the SI-UK team today.
Personal Statement Editing with SI-UK
Once you have completed your personal statement, arrange a free consultation with SI-UK London. We can edit your personal statement and ensure the English is clear and grammatically correct. Once this process is complete, we will return it within 1-3 working days.
Contact SI-UK about your application
Personal Statement FAQ
What should you avoid in a ucas personal statement.
Applicants should avoid misspellings and grammar errors and discuss topics unrelated to their application and character.
Do universities read personal statements?
Yes, universities read UCAS personal statements, and they play a major factor when shortlisting candidates.
What happens if you lie in your personal statement?
If you lie on your UCAS personal statement, your application will be rejected, and any offers will be revoked.
What happens if UCAS detects similarities in your personal statement?
If UCAS detects similarities in your personal statement, it will be flagged for review, and your university choices will be notified while it is under review.
Does UCAS tell you if you've been rejected?
UCAS will notify you if your UCAS application has been rejected. You may also receive an email from the university stating why your application has been rejected.
What happens if you make a mistake on your UCAS application?
Once your UCAS application has been submitted, it cannot be changed. So, before submitting, make sure you proofread your application or get it proofread by someone else to make it error-free.
Personal Statement Example
Please see below for an example of a personal statement to a Development Studies course.
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Personal statement
2020 Undergraduate Application
Make sure your personal statement is your own work
We'll carry out checks to verify your personal statement is your own work.
Provided it is your own work, you can use your personal statement from your application last year. If it appears to have been copied from another source, we'll inform the universities and colleges to which you have applied. They will then take the action they consider appropriate. We'll also contact you by email to tell you this has happened.
My Application example pages
- Centre link – Buzzword, school or college
- Centre link – Buzzword, terms and conditions
- Centre link – Buzzword
- Centre link – Buzzword, confirm school
- Centre link – Centre preferences
- Centre link – Wrong school
- Choose & Send – Choices
- Choose & Send – Overview 01
- Choose & Send – Overview 02
- Choose & Send – Contact details
- Choose & Send – Course cards
- Choose & Send – Education
- Choose & Send – Education – Add qualification
- Choose & Send – Education – Add qualification details
- Choose & Send – Education – Add qualification with modules
- Choose & Send – Education – Add qualification with modules 02
- Independent reference – sign in
- Independent reference – accept/decline
- Independent reference – predicted grades
- Independent reference – reference
- Independent reference – thank you
- Choose & Send – Personal details
- Choose & Send – Personal statement – preview
- Choose & Send – Personal statement
- Receive & Review – Overview
- Receive & Review – Substitute choice 01
- Receive & Review – Substitute choice 02
- Receive & Review – Withdraw choice
- Receive & Review – Personal statement
- Receive & Review – Application details
- Receive & Review – Personal details
- Receive & Review – Contact details
- Receive & Review – Education
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UCAS Personal Statement and Examples
What is the ucas personal statement .
The Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS) Personal Statement is the main essay for your application to colleges and universities in Great Britain. UCAS gives a nice explanation here , but in short, this is your chance to stand out against the crowd and show your knowledge and enthusiasm for your chosen area of study.
You’ve got 4,000 characters and 47 line limit to show colleges what (ideally) gets you out of bed in the morning. How long is that, really? Use your “word count” tool in Google or Word docs to check as you go along, but 4,000 characters is roughly 500 words or one page.
HOW IS THE UCAS PERSONAL STATEMENT DIFFERENT FROM THE US PERSONAL STATEMENT?
Think they’re the same? Think again. Here are some key differences between the UCAS and the US Personal Statement:
When you apply to UK schools, you’re applying to one particular degree program, which you’ll study for all, or almost all, your time at university. Your UCAS personal statement should focus less on cool/fun/quirky aspects of yourself and more on how you’ve prepared for your particular area of study.
The UCAS Personal Statement will be read by someone looking for proof that you are academically capable of studying that subject for your entire degree. In some cases, it might be an actual professor reading your essay.
You’ll only write one personal statement, which will be sent to all the universities you’re applying to, and it’s unlikely you’ll be sending any additional (supplemental) essays. Your essay needs to explain why you enjoy and are good at this subject, without reference to any particular university or type of university.
Any extracurricular activities that are NOT connected to the subject you’re applying for are mostly irrelevant, unless they illustrate relevant points about your study skills or attributes: for example, having a job outside of school shows time-management and people skills, or leading a sports team shows leadership and responsibility.
Your personal statement will mostly focus on what you’ve done at high school, in class, and often in preparation for external exams. 80-90% of the content will be academic in nature.
A QUICK STEP-BY-STEP GUIDE TO WRITING THE UCAS PERSONAL STATEMENT
This may be obvious, but the first step to a great UCAS Personal Statement is to choose the subject you’re applying for. This choice will be consistent across the (up to) five course choices you have. Often, when students struggle with a UCAS personal statement, it’s because they are trying to make the statement work for a couple of different subjects. With a clear focus on one subject, the essay can do the job it is supposed to do. Keep in mind you’re limited to 47 lines or 4000 characters, so this has to be concise and make efficient use of words.
To work out what information to include, my favourite brainstorming activity is the ‘Courtroom Exercise’. Here’s how it works:
The Courtroom Exercise
Imagine you’re prosecuting a case in court, and the case is that should be admitted to a university to study the subject you’ve chosen. You have to present your case to the judge, in a 47 line or 4,000 character statement. The judge won’t accept platitudes or points made without evidence–she needs to see evidence. What examples will you present in your statement?
In a good statement, you’ll make an opening and a closing point.
To open your argument, can you sum up in one sentence why you wish to study this subject? Can you remember where your interest in that subject began? Do you have a story to tell that will engage the reader about your interest in that subject?
Next, you’ll present a number of pieces of evidence, laying out in detail why you’re a good match for this subject. What activities have you done that prove you can study this subject at university?
Most likely, you’ll start with a class you took, a project you worked on, an internship you had, or a relevant extra-curricular activity you enjoyed. For each activity you discuss, structure a paragraph on each using the ABC approach:
A: What is the A ctivity?
B: How did it B enefit you as a potential student for this degree course?
C: Link the benefit to the skills needed to be successful on this C ourse.
With three or four paragraphs like these, each of about 9 or 10 lines, and you should have the bulk of your statement done. Typically two of these will be about classes you have taken at school, and two about relevant activities outside of school.
In the last paragraph, you need to demonstrate wider skills that you have, which you can probably do from your extracurricular activities. How could you demonstrate your time management, your ability to collaborate, or your creativity? Briefly list a few extracurricular activities you’ve taken part in and identify the relevant skills that are transferable to university study.
Finally, close your argument in a way that doesn’t repeat what you’ve already shared. Case closed!
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
What if I’m not sure what I want to study? Should I still apply?
There are a number of broader programs available at UK universities (sometimes called Liberal Arts or Flexible Combined Honours). However, you should still showcase two or three academic areas of interest. If you are looking for a broader range of subjects to study and can’t choose one, then the UK might not be the best fit for you.
What if I haven’t done much, academically or via extracurriculars, to demonstrate that I’ll be able to complete the coursework for my degree? Should I still apply?
You certainly can, but you will need to be realistic about the strength of your application as a result. The most selective universities will want to see this evidence, but less selective ones will be more willing to account for your potential to grow in addition to what you’ve already achieved. You could also consider applying for a Foundation course or a ‘Year 0’ course, where you have an additional year pre-university to enable you to develop this range of evidence.
If I’m not accepted into a particular major, can I be accepted into a different major?
It’s important to understand that we are not talking about a ‘major,’ as what you are accepted into is one entire course of study. Some universities may make you an ‘alternative offer’ for a similar but perhaps less popular course (for example you applied for Business but instead they offer you a place for Business with a Language).At others, you can indicate post-application that you would like to be considered for related courses. However, it’s not going to be possible to switch between two completely unrelated academic areas.
What other information is included in my application? Will they see my extracurricular activities, for example? Is there an Additional Information section where I can include more context on what I’ve done in high school?
The application is very brief: the personal statement is where you put all the information. UCAS does not include an activities section or space for any other writing. The 47 lines are all you have. Some universities might accept information if there are particularly important extenuating circumstances that must be conveyed. This can be done via email, but typically, they don’t want to see more than the UCAS statement and your school’s reference provides.
Now, let’s take a look at some of my favourite UCAS personal statement examples with some analysis of why I think these are great.
UCAS PERSONAL STATEMENT EXAMPLE FOR CHEMISTRY
When I was ten, I saw a documentary on Chemistry that really fascinated me. Narrated by British theoretical physicist Jim Al-Khalili, it explained how the first elements were discovered and how Chemistry was born out of alchemy. I became fascinated with Chemistry and have remained so ever since. I love the subject because it has very theoretical components, for example quantum Chemistry, while also having huge practical applications.
In this introduction, the student shows where his interest in Chemistry comes from. Adding some additional academic detail (in this case, the name of the scientist) helps guide the reader into more specific information on why this subject is interesting to him.
This aspect of Chemistry is important to me. I have, for example, used machine learning to differentiate between approved and experimental drugs. On the first run, using drug molecules from the website Drug Bank, I calculated some molecular descriptors for them. I started with a simple logistic regression model and was shocked to find that it had apparently classified almost all molecules correctly. This result couldn’t be right; it took me nearly a month to find the error. I accidentally normalized the molecular-descriptor data individually, rather than as a combined data set, thereby encoding the label into the input. On a second run, after fixing the error, I used real machine learning libraries. Here I actually got some performance with my new algorithm, which I could compare to professional researchers’ papers. The highest accuracy I ever saw on my screen was 86 percent. The researchers’ result was 85 percent; thanks to more modern machine learning methods, I narrowly beat them. I have also studied Mathematics and Physics at A Level and have been able to dive into areas beyond the A Level syllabus such as complex integration in math and the Schrödinger equation in Physics.
This paragraph outlines a clear case for this student’s aptitude for and interest in Chemistry. He explains in detail how he has explored his intended major, using academic terminology to show us he has studied the subject deeply. Knowing an admissions reader is looking for evidence that this student has a talent for Chemistry, this paragraph gives them the evidence they need to admit him.
Additionally, I have worked on an undergraduate computer science course on MIT Opencourseware, but found that the content followed fixed rules and did not require creativity. At the time I was interested in neural networks and listened to lectures by professor Geoffrey Hinton who serendipitously mentioned his students testing his techniques on ‘Kaggle Competitions’. I quickly got interested and decided to compete on this platform. Kaggle allowed me to measure my machine learning skills against competitors with PhDs or who are professional data scientists at large corporations. With this kind of competition naturally I did not win any prizes, but I worked with the same tools and saw how others gradually perfected a script, something which has helped my A Level studies immensely.
Introducing a new topic, the student again uses academic terminology to show how he has gone beyond the confines of his curriculum to explore the subject at a higher level. In this paragraph, he demonstrates that he has studied university-level Chemistry. Again, this helps the reader to see that this student is capable of studying for a Chemistry degree.
I have been keen to engage in activities beyond the classroom. For example, I have taken part in a range of extracurricular activities, including ballroom dancing, public speaking, trumpet, spoken Mandarin, and tennis, achieving a LAMDA distinction at level four for my public speaking. I have also participated in Kaggle competitions, as I’m extremely interested in machine learning. For example, I have used neural networks to determine the causes of Amazon deforestation from satellite pictures in the ‘Planet: Understanding the Amazon from Space’ competition. I believe that having worked on projects spanning several weeks or even months has allowed me to build a stamina that will be extremely useful when studying at university.
This penultimate paragraph introduces the student’s extracurricular interests, summing them up in a sentence. Those activities that can demonstrate skills that are transferable to the study of Chemistry are given a bit more explanation. The student’s descriptions in each paragraph are very detailed, with lots of specific information about awards, classes and teachers.
What I hope to gain from an undergraduate (and perhaps post-graduate) education in Chemistry is to deepen my knowledge of the subject and potentially have the ability to successfully launch a startup after university. I’m particularly interested in areas such as computational Chemistry and cheminformatics. However, I’m open to studying other areas in Chemistry, as it is a subject that truly captivates me.
In the conclusion, the student touches on his future plans, using specific terminology that shows his knowledge of Chemistry. This also reveals that he aims to have a career in this field, which many admission readers find appealing as it demonstrates a level of commitment to the subject.
UCAS PERSONAL STATEMENT EXAMPLE FOR VETERINARY MEDICINE
This next statement has to accomplish a number of tasks, given the subject the student is applying for. As a vocational degree, applicants for veterinary medicine are committing to a career as well as a subject to study, so they need to give information demonstrating they understand the reality of a career in this area. It also needs to explain their motivation for this interest, which quite often is demonstrated through work experience (something which is often a condition for entry into these programs). Finally, as this is a highly academic subject to study at university, the author should include a good level of academic terminology and experiences in the statement.
There is nothing more fascinating to me than experiencing animals in the wild, in their natural habitat where their behaviour is about the survival of their species. I was lucky enough to experience this when in Tanzania. While observing animals hunting, I became intrigued by their musculature and inspired to work alongside these animals to help them when they are sick, as a veterinarian.
In an efficient way, the applicant explains her motivation to become a vet, then squeezes in a bit of information about her experience with animals.
As a horse rider and owner for nearly ten years, I have sought opportunities to learn as much as I can about caring for the animal. I helped around the yard with grooming and exercise, bringing horses in and out from the fields, putting on rugs, and mucking out. I have also been working at a small animal vet clinic every other Saturday for over 2.5 years. There, my responsibilities include restocking and sterilising equipment, watching procedures, and helping in consultations. Exposure to different cases has expanded my knowledge of various aspects, such as assisting with an emergency caesarean procedure. Due to a lack of staff on a Saturday, I was put in charge of anaesthesia while the puppies were being revived. I took on this task without hesitation and recorded heart and respiration rate, capillary refill time, and gum colour every five minutes. Other placements following an equine vet, working on a polo farm, and volunteering at a swan sanctuary have also broadened my experience with different species and how each possesses various requirements. During pre-vet summer courses, I was also introduced to farm animals such as pigs, cows, sheep and chicken. I spend some time milking dairy cows and removing clustered dust from chicken feet, as well as tipping sheep in order to inspect their teats.
In this paragraph, she synthesizes personal experience with an academic understanding of vet medicine. She demonstrates that she is committed to animals (helping in the yard, regular Saturday work, assistance with procedures), that she has gained a variety of experiences, and that she understands some of the conditions (caesareans, clustered dust) that vets have to deal with. Note that she also briefly discusses ‘pre-vet summer courses,’ adding credibility to her level of experience.
I have focused on HL Biology and HL Chemistry for my IB Diploma. I was particularly excited to study cell biology and body systems because these subjects allowed me to comprehend how the body works and are applicable to animal body functions. Topics like DNA replication as well as cell transcription and translation have helped me form a fundamental understanding of genetics and protein synthesis, both important topics when looking into hereditary diseases in animals. Learning about chemical reactions made me consider the importance of pharmaceutical aspects of veterinary medicine, such as the production of effective medicine. Vaccines are essential and by learning about the chemical reactions, I f developed a more nuanced understanding about how they are made and work.
Now, the statement turns to academic matters, linking her IB subjects to the university studies she aspires to. She draws out one particular example that makes a clear link between school and university-level study.
I have also written my Extended Essay discussing the consequences of breeding laws in the UK and South Australia in relation to the development of genetic abnormalities in pugs and German shepherds. This topic is important, as the growing brachycephalic aesthetic of pugs is causing them to suffer throughout their lifetime. Pedigree dogs, such as the German shepherd, have a very small gene pool and as a result, hereditary diseases can develop. This becomes an ethical discussion, because allowing German shepherds to suffer is not moral; however, as a breed, they aid the police and thus serve society.
The IB Extended Essay (like an A Level EPQ or a Capstone project) is a great topic to discuss in a personal statement, as these activities are designed to allow students to explore subjects in greater detail.
The first sentence here is a great example of what getting more specific looks like because it engages more directly with what the student is actually writing about in this particular paragraph then it extrapolates a more general point of advice from those specificities.
By choosing to write her Extended Essay on a topic of relevance to veterinary medicine, she has given herself the opportunity to show the varied aspects of veterinary science. This paragraph proves to the reader that this student is capable and motivated to study veterinary medicine.
I have learned that being a veterinarian requires diagnostic skills as well as excellent communication and leadership skills. I understand the importance and ethics of euthanasia decisions, and the sensitivity around discussing it withanimal owners. I have developed teamwork and leadership skills when playing varsity football and basketball for four years. My communication skills have expanded through being a Model U.N. and Global Issues Network member.
This small paragraph on her extracurricular activities links them clearly to her intended area of study, both in terms of related content and necessary skills. From this, the reader gains the impression that this student has a wide range of relevant interests.
When I attend university, I not only hope to become a veterinarian, but also a leader in the field. I would like to research different aspects of veterinary medicine, such as diseases. As a vet, I would like to help work towards the One Health goal; allowing the maintenance of public health security. This affects vets because we are the ones working closely with animals every day.
In the conclusion, she ties things together and looks ahead to her career. By introducing the concept of ‘One Health’, she also shows once again her knowledge of the field she is applying to.
UCAS PERSONAL STATEMENT EXAMPLE FOR AERONAUTICAL ENGINEERING
Standing inside a wind tunnel is not something every 17 year old aspires to, but for me the opportunity to do so last year confirmed my long-held desire to become a mechanical engineer.
This introduction is efficient and provides a clear direction for the personal statement. Though it might seem that it should be more detailed, for a student applying to study a course that requires limited extended writing, being this matter-of-fact works fine.
I enjoy the challenge of using the laws of Physics, complemented with Mathematical backing, in the context of everyday life, which helps me to visualise and understand where different topics can be applied. I explored the field of aeronautics, specifically in my work experience with Emirates Aviation University. I explored how engineers apply basic concepts of air resistance and drag when I had the opportunity to experiment with the wind tunnel, which allowed me to identify how different wing shapes behave at diverse air pressures. My interest with robotics has led me to take up a year-long internship with MakersBuilders, where I had the chance to explore physics and maths on a different plane. During my internship I educated young teenagers on a more fundamental stage of building and programming, in particular when we worked on building a small robot and programmed the infra-red sensor in order to create self-sufficient movement. This exposure allowed me to improve my communication and interpersonal skills.
In this paragraph, the student adds evidence to the initial assertion that he enjoys seeing how Physics relates to everyday life. The descriptions of the work experiences he has had not only show his commitment to the subject, but also enable him to bring in some academic content to demonstrate his understanding of engineering and aeronautics.
I’m interested in the mechanics side of Maths such as circular motion and projectiles; even Pure Maths has allowed me to easily see patterns when working and solving problems in Computer Science. During my A Level Maths and Further Maths, I have particularly enjoyed working with partial fractions as they show how reverse methodology can be used to solve addition of fractions, which ranges from simple addition to complex kinematics. Pure Maths has also enabled me to better understand how 3D modelling works with the use of volumes of revolution, especially when I learned how to apply the calculations to basic objects like calculating the amount of water in a bottle or the volume of a pencil.
This paragraph brings in the academic content at school, which is important when applying for a subject such as engineering. This is because the admissions reader needs to be reassured that the student has covered the necessary foundational content to be able to cope with Year 1 of this course.
In my Drone Club I have been able to apply several methods of wing formation, such as the number of blades used during a UAS flight. Drones can be used for purposes such as in Air-sea Rescue or transporting food to low income countries. I have taken on the responsibility of leading and sharing my skills with others, particularly in the Drone Club where I gained the certification to fly drones. In coding club, I participated in the global Google Code competition related to complex, real-life coding, such as a program that allows phones to send commands to another device using Bluetooth. My Cambridge summer course on math and engineering included the origins of a few of the most important equations and ideologies from many mathematicians such as, E=mc2 from Einstein, I also got a head start at understanding matrices and their importance in kinematics. Last summer, I completed a course at UT Dallas on Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning. The course was intuitive and allowed me to understand a different perspective of how robots and AI will replace humans to do complex and labour-intensive activities, customer service, driverless cars and technical support.
In this section, he demonstrates his commitment to the subject through a detailed list of extracurricular activities, all linked to engineering and aeronautics. The detail he gives about each one links to the knowledge and skills needed to succeed in these subjects at university.
I have represented Model UN as a delegate and enjoyed working with others to solve problems. For my Duke of Edinburgh Award, I partook in several activities such as trekking and playing the drums. I enjoy music and I have reached grade 3 for percussion. I have also participated in a range of charitable activities, which include assisting during Ramadan and undertaking fun-runs to raise money for cancer research.
As with the introduction, this is an efficient use of language, sharing a range of activities, each of which has taught him useful skills. The conclusion that follows is similarly efficient and to the point.
I believe that engineering is a discipline that will offer me a chance to make a tangible difference in the world, and I am certain I will enjoy the process of integrating technology with our everyday life.
UCAS PERSONAL STATEMENT EXAMPLE FOR ECONOMICS AND SOCIAL POLICY
Applying for a joint honours course presents a particular challenge of making the case that you are interested in the first subject, the second subject and (often overlooked) the combination of the two. In this example, the applicant uses her own academic studies and personal experiences to make her case.
I usually spend my summer breaks in Uttar Pradesh, India working at my grandparents’ NGO which produces bio-fertilizers for the poor. While working, I speak to many of the villagers in the nearby villages like Barokhar and Dharampur and have found out about the various initiatives the Government has taken to improve the production of wheat and rice. I understand the hardships they undergo and speaking to them has shown me the importance of Social Policy and the role the government plays in improving the lives of people and inspired me to pursue my university studies in this field.
In the introduction, this applicant explains where her interlinking experiences come from: she has personal experiences demonstrating how economics impacts the most vulnerable in society. In doing so, she shows the admissions reader that she has a deep interest in this combination and can move on to discussing each subject in turn.
My interest in these areas has been driven by the experiences I had at high school and beyond. I started attending Model United Nations in the 9th grade and have been to many conferences, discussing problems like the water crisis and a lack of sustainability in underdeveloped countries. These topics overlapped with my study of economics and exciting classroom discussions on what was going on how different events would impact economies, for instance how fluctuations in oil prices will affect standards of living. Studying Economics has expanded my knowledge about how countries are run and how macroeconomic policies shape the everyday experiences of individuals.
Unusually, this applicant does not go straight into her classroom experiences but instead uses one of her extracurricular activities (Model United Nations) in her first paragraph. For students applying for subjects that are not often taught at school (Social Policy in this example), this can be a good idea, as it allows you to bring in material that you have self-studied to explain why you are capable of studying each subject at university. Here, she uses MUN discussions to show she understands some topics in social policy that are impacting the world.
By taking up history as a subject in Grade 11 and 12, I have seen the challenges that people went through in the past, and how different ideas gained momentum in different parts of the world such as the growth of communism in Russia and China and how it spread to different countries during the Cold War. I learned about the different roles that governments played in times of hardships such as that which President Roosevelt’s New Deal played during the Great Depression. From this, I gained analytical skills by scrutinizing how different social, political and economic forces have moulded societies in the past.
In this paragraph, she then takes the nearest possible class to her interest in Social Policy and draws elements from it to add to her case for Social Policy. Taking some elements from her history classes enables her to add some content to this statement, before linking to the topic of economics.
To explore my interest in Economics, I interned at Emirates National Bank of Dubai, one of the largest banks in the Middle East, and also at IBM. At Emirates NBD, I undertook a research project on Cash Management methods in competitor banks and had to present my findings at the end of the internship. I also interned at IBM where I had to analyze market trends and fluctuations in market opportunity in countries in the Middle East and Africa. I had to find relations between GDP and market opportunity and had to analyze how market opportunity could change over the next 5 years with changing geo-political situations. I have also attended Harvard University’s Youth Lead the Change leadership conference where I was taught how to apply leadership skills to solve global problems such as gender inequality and poverty.
Economics is explored again through extracurriculars, with some detail added to the general statement about the activities undertaken during this work experience. Though the level of academics here is a little thin because this student’s high school did not offer any classes in Economics, she does as well as she can to bring in academic content.
I have partaken in many extra-curricular activities which have helped me develop the skills necessary for this course. Being a part of the Press Club at school gave me an opportunity to hone my talent for the written word and gave me a platform to talk about global issues. Volunteering at a local library taught me how to be organized. I developed research and analytical skills by undertaking various research projects at school such as the sector-wide contribution of the Indian economy to the GDP in the previous year. As a member of the Business and Economic Awareness Council at school, I was instrumental in organizing many economics-based events such as the Business Fair and Innovation Mela. Being part of various Face to Faith conferences has provided me with an opportunity to interact with students in Sierra Leone, India and Korea and understand global perspectives on issues like malaria and human trafficking.
The extracurricular activities are revisited here, with the first half of this paragraph showing how the applicant has some transferable skills from her activities that will help her with this course. She then revisits her interest in the course studies, before following up with a closing section that touches on her career goals:
The prospect of pursuing these two subjects is one that I eagerly anticipate and I look forward to meeting the challenge of university. In the future, I wish to become an economist and work at a think tank where I will be able to apply what I have learnt in studying such an exciting course.
UCAS PERSONAL STATEMENT EXAMPLE FOR HISTORY OF ART & PHILOSOPHY
This applicant is also a joint-honours applicant, and again is applying for a subject that she has not been able to study at school. Thus, bringing in her own interest and knowledge of both subjects is crucial here.
At the age of four, I remember an argument with my mother: I wanted to wear a pink ballerina dress with heels, made for eight-year-olds, which despite my difficulty in staying upright I was determined to wear. My mother persistently engaged in debate with me about why it was not ok to wear this ensemble in winter. After two hours of patiently explaining to me and listening to my responses she convinced me that I should wear something different, the first time I remember listening to reason. It has always been a natural instinct for me to discuss everything, since in the course of my upbringing I was never given a simple yes or no answer. Thus, when I began studying philosophy, I understood fully my passion for argument and dialogue.
This is an unusual approach to start a UCAS Personal Statement, but it does serve to show how this student approaches the world and why this combination of subjects might work for her. Though it could perhaps be drawn out more explicitly, here she is combining an artistic issue (her clothes) with a philosophical concern (her debate with her mother) to lead the reader into the case she is making for admission into this program.
This was first sparked academically when I was introduced to religious ethics; having a fairly Christian background my view on religion was immature. I never thought too much of the subject as I believed it was just something my grandparents did. However, when opened up to the arguments about god and religion, I was inclined to argue every side. After research and discussion, I was able to form my own view on religion without having to pick a distinctive side to which theory I would support. This is what makes me want to study philosophy: it gives an individual personal revelation towards matters into which they may not have given too much thought to.
There is some good content here that discusses the applicant’s interest in philosophy and her own motivation for this subject, though there is a lack of academic content here.
Alongside this, taking IB Visual Arts HL has opened my artistic views through pushing me out of my comfort zone. Art being a very subjective course, I was forced to choose an opinion which only mattered to me, it had no analytical nor empirical rights or wrongs, it was just my taste in art. From studying the two subjects alongside each other, I found great value, acquiring a certain form of freedom in each individual with their dual focus on personalized opinion and taste in many areas, leading to self- improvement.
In this section, she uses her IB Visual Arts class to explore how her interest in philosophy bleeds into her appreciation of art. Again, we are still awaiting the academic content, but the reader will by now be convinced that the student has a deep level of motivation for this subject. When we consider how rare this combination is, with very few courses for this combination available, the approach to take slightly longer to establish can work.
For this reason, I find the work of Henry Moore fascinating. I am intrigued by his pieces, especially the essence of the ‘Reclining Nude’ model, as the empty holes inflicted on the abstract human body encouraged my enthusiasm for artistic interpretation. This has led me to contemplate the subtlety, complexity and merit of the role of an artist. Developing an art piece is just as complex and refined as writing a novel or developing a theory in Philosophy. For this reason, History of Art conjoins with Philosophy, as the philosophical approach towards an art piece is what adds context to the history as well as purpose behind it.
Finally, we’re given the academic content. Cleverly, the content links both the History of Art and Philosophy together through a discussion of the work of Henry Moore. Finding examples that conjoin the subjects that make up a joint-honours application is a great idea and works well here.
Studying Philosophy has allowed me to apply real life abstractions to my art, as well as to glean a deeper critical analysis of art in its various mediums. My IB Extended Essay examined the 1900s Fauve movement, which made a huge breakthrough in France and Hungary simultaneously. This was the first artistic movement which was truly daring and outgoing with its vivid colours and bold brush strokes. My interest expanded to learning about the Hungarian artists in this movement led by Henri Matisse. Bela Czobel was one of the few who travelled to France to study but returned to Hungary, more specifically Nagybanya, to bestow what he had learned.
Again in this paragraph, the author connects the subjects. Students who are able to undertake a research project in their high school studies (such as the IB Extended Essay here, or the A Level Extended Project or AP Capstone) can describe these in their UCAS personal statements, as this level of research in an area of academic study can enliven and add depth to the writing, as is the case here.
As an international student with a multicultural background, I believe I can adapt to challenging or unfamiliar surroundings with ease. I spent two summers working at a nursery in Hungary as a junior Assistant Teacher, where I demonstrated leadership and teamwork skills that I had previously developed through commitment to sports teams. I was a competitive swimmer for six years and have represented my school internationally as well as holding the school record for 100m backstroke. I was elected Deputy Head of my House, which further reflects my dedication, leadership, teamwork and diligence.
As in the previous examples, this statement gives a good overview of the applicant’s extracurricular activities, with a mention of skills that will be beneficial to her studies at university. She then concludes with a brief final sentence:
I hope to carry these skills with me into my university studies, allowing me to enrich my knowledge and combine my artistic and philosophical interests.
UCAS PERSONAL STATEMENT EXAMPLE FOR LIBERAL ARTS
A good range of UK universities now offer courses called ‘Liberal Arts’ (or similar titles such as ‘Flexible Combined Honours’), which allows students to study a broader topic of study–perhaps combining three or four subjects–than is typically available in the UK system.
This presents a challenge in the personal statement, as within the 47 line / 4000 character limit, the applicant will have to show academic interest and knowledge in a range of subjects while also making the case to be admitted for this combined programme of study.
As a child I disliked reading; however, when I was 8, there was one particular book that caught my attention: The Little Prince. From that moment onwards, my love for literature was ignited and I had entered into a whirlwind of fictional worlds. While studying and analysing the classics from The Great Gatsby to Candide, this has exposed me to a variety of novels. My French bilingualism allowed me to study, in great depth, different texts in their original language. This sparked a new passion of mine for poetry, and introduced me to the works of Arthur Rimbaud, who has greatly influenced me. Through both reading and analysing poetry I was able to decipher its meaning. Liberal Arts gives me the opportunity to continue to study a range of texts and authors from different periods in history, as well as related aspects of culture, economy and society.
Here we have a slightly longer than usual opening paragraph, but given the nature of the course being applied for this works well. A personal story segueing from literature to modern languages to history and cultural studies shows that this student has a broad range of interests within the humanities and thus is well-suited to this course of study.
Liberal Arts is a clear choice for me. Coming from the IB International Baccalaureate Diploma programme I have studied a wide range of subjects which has provided me with a breadth of knowledge. In Theatre, I have adapted classics such as Othello by Shakespeare, and playing the role of moreover acting as Desdemona forced me to compartmentalise her complex emotions behind the early-modern English text. Studying History has taught me a number of skills; understanding the reasons behind changes in society, evaluating sources, and considering conflicting interpretations. From my interdisciplinary education I am able to critically analyse the world around me. Through studying Theory of Knowledge, I have developed high quality analysis using key questions and a critical mindset by questioning how and why we think and why. By going beyond the common use of reason, I have been able to deepen greaten my understanding and apply my ways of knowing in all subjects; for example in science I was creative in constructing my experiment (imagination) and used qualitative data (sense perception).
Students who are taking the IB Diploma, with its strictures to retain a broad curriculum, are well-suited to the UK’s Liberal Arts courses, as they have had practice seeing the links between subjects. In this paragraph, the applicant shows how she has done this, linking content from one subject to skills developed in another, and touching on the experience of IB Theory of Knowledge (an interdisciplinary class compulsory for all IB Diploma students) to show how she is able to see how different academic subjects overlap and share some common themes.
Languages have always played an important role in my life. I was immersed into a French nursery even though my parents are not French speakers. I have always cherished the ability to speak another language; it is something I have never taken for granted, and it is how I individualise myself. Being bilingual has allowed me to engage with a different culture. As a result, I am more open minded and have a global outlook. This has fuelled my desire to travel, learn new languages and experience new cultures. This course would provide me with the opportunity to fulfil these desires. Having written my Extended Essay in French on the use of manipulative language used by a particular character from the French classic Dangerous Liaisons I have had to apply my skills of close contextual reading and analysing to sculpt this essay. These skills are perfectly applicable to the critical thinking that is demanded for the course.
Within the humanities, this student has a particular background that makes her stand out, having become fluent in French while having no French background nor living in a French-speaking country. This is worth her exploring to develop her motivation for a broad course of study at university, which she does well here.
Studying the Liberal Arts will allow me to further my knowledge in a variety of fields whilst living independently and meeting people from different backgrounds. The flexible skills I would achieve from obtaining a liberal arts degree I believe would make me more desirable for future employment. I would thrive in this environment due to my self discipline and determination. During my school holidays I have undertaken working in a hotel as a chambermaid and this has made me appreciate the service sector in society and has taught me to work cohesively with others in an unfamiliar environment. I also took part in a creative writing course held at Keats House, where I learnt about romanticism. My commitment to extracurricular activities such as varsity football and basketball has shown me the importance of sportsmanship and camaraderie, while GIN (Global Issue Networking) has informed me of the values of community and the importance for charitable organisations.
The extracurricular paragraph here draws out a range of skills the student will apply to this course. Knowing that taking a broader range of subjects at a UK university requires excellent organizational skills, the student takes time to explain how she can meet these, perhaps going into slightly more detail than would be necessary for a single-honours application to spell out that she is capable of managing her time well. She then broadens this at the end by touching on some activities that have relevance for her studies.
My academic and personal preferences have always led me to the Liberal Arts; I feel as though the International Baccalaureate, my passion and self-discipline have prepared me for higher education. From the academics, extracurriculars and social aspects, I intend to embrace the entire experience of university.
In the final section, the candidate restates how she matches this course.
Overall, you can see how the key factor in a UCAS statement is the academic evidence, with students linking their engagement with a subject to the course of study that they are applying to. Using the courtroom exercise analogy, the judge here should be completely convinced that the case has been made, and will, therefore issue an offer of admittance to that university.
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How to write your personal statement
It can be hard to know where to begin when writing your UCAS personal statement. We've put together some top tips and advice to help you make the most of your personal statement.
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As part of the UCAS application process, you'll need to complete a personal statement. Your personal statement might be the only chance you have to ‘speak’ directly to an Admissions Tutor so it’s important to get it right. Many people find it difficult to write about themselves, so don’t worry if you’re struggling for ideas. You can use this guide to help you write a great personal statement.
Personal statements are changing. This will affect students applying to start university in September 2026. Read our guide on personal statement changes .
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Guide to writing your personal statement
Discover how to write a great personal statement with our handy guide. It covers everything you need to know from structuring to tips on what to include.
Your personal statement questions answered
What is a personal statement.
A personal statement is a short written account used to support your university application. It is your opportunity to ‘sell’ yourself to universities. And to show how and why you are a good candidate for your chosen course. A well-written application may convince a university to make you an offer or invite you to an interview.
How to start a personal statement?
It’s never too early to start work on your personal statement. In fact, we’d recommend you give yourself as much time as possible.
Before you begin it’s important you have an idea of the course or subject area you want to study. Your personal statement needs to be specific so knowing what course you’re interested in will make it easier to start writing. It’s a good idea to check out the course descriptions in university prospectuses or on their website. This way you can find out the skills and experience that you’ll need. You can then reflect on how these relate to your own interests and qualities.
Where to begin?
- Start with an engaging and positive introductory sentence which makes the admissions Tutor want to read on.
- Make it different. The most overused opening phrases are: “From a young age I have always been interested in…” and “For as long as I can remember I have been fascinated with…”
- State your reasons for applying to your chosen course and what it is that motivates you.
What makes a good personal statement?
The great thing about a personal statement is that it’s exactly that - personal. This is your chance to stand out from the crowd and explain why you’re the right choice for your chosen course.
It’s important that the statement reflects you, so you need to write in your own individual style. However, there are certain facts Admissions Tutors will be expecting to see. So it's important that you include these to ensure you give the best account of yourself, your skills and your experience.
Everything that you write should be relevant and linked to the course(s) you are applying for. Whilst you will only submit one personal statement it will be seen multiple times by all the universities and courses you have applied for.
Here are some questions to think about to ensure your statement stands out:
- Why do you want to study the course? You need to show that you have a genuine interest in the subject area and the motivation to immerse yourself in it.
- What makes you suitable? This is your chance to show how your experiences have prepared you to meet the demands of the course.
- What makes you stand out? Think about what you can offer outside of the lecture theatre and how you will contribute to the university community as a whole.
Download our guide to writing your personal statement for more top tips.
How long should a personal statement be?
Your personal statement needs to stay within the 4000 character limit set by UCAS. This includes spaces and blank lines. This might seem like a lot, but it's only around 1 side of typed A4 paper. So you need to keep it clear and concise. Use the UCAS personal statement tool to help you keep within the limit as well as tips on how to structure your statement.
How to structure a personal statement?
There is no set layout for your personal statement. But here are some style and structure tips to help you along the way:
- Make sure you sound interested in the course. Admissions Tutors will recognise applicants who aren’t totally committed.
- Don’t use bullet points. A personal statement is a chance to show how you can make a reasoned argument in continuous writing.
- Avoid repetition.
- You need to show rather than tell the Admissions Tutor that you are a good candidate. So don’t just list all your skills and achievements. Pick the most relevant, explain them carefully and provide examples.
- Check your statement for spelling and grammar. And then check again.
- Ask your parents, friends and/or teachers to read through your finished statement. They can help to make sure it flows and that you’ve not forgotten anything.
What are the personal statement changes?
Personal statements are changing. This will affect students applying to start university in September 2026.
New personal statements will include 3 questions:
- Why do you want to study this course or topic?
- How have your qualifications and studies helped you to prepare for this course?
- What else have you done to prepare outside of education, and why are these experiences helpful?
Find out more about personal statement changes , including our tips for answering these questions.
When will personal statements change?
The personal statement changes will affect students applying to start university in September 2026. Students applying for September 2025 entry will not be affected.
Personal statement dos and don'ts
Read it out loud., check it’s all there., do some practice., be well prepared., don't be negative., don't complicate it., don't copy or paraphrase., don't include irrelevant facts..
![how many words for personal statement for ucas group of students sat in a lecture theatre using laptops, main focus is a student wearing a black denim jacket and grey turtle neck - smiling and looking away from the camera](https://www.uclan.ac.uk/image-library/content/student-life/lecture-theatre.x98b8eb20.jpg?f=webp&q=75&w=3840)
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Hear from our students
Writing about yourself in a personal statement can be difficult, I’ve put together some tips that I found useful when writing my own personal statement.
![how many words for personal statement for ucas portrait of Annelise](https://www.uclan.ac.uk/image-library/content/student-life/aefurniss.xc683aaae.jpg?f=webp&q=75&w=80&h=80&fit=crop)
Hi, my names Parsa, I am a 4th year pharmacy student. Writing a personal statement can be stressful and time consuming, but it doesn't need to be. Read my tips to help you to write the very best statement.
![how many words for personal statement for ucas campus tours](https://www.uclan.ac.uk/image-library/content/top-10/campus-tours.xd47a1678.jpg?f=webp&q=75&w=80&h=80&fit=crop)
University application dates
Completing and submitting your UCAS application
Start your UCAS application
You will need to start your UCAS application around September in the year before you want to apply to university. For example, if you want to start in September 2025, start your application in September 2024.
You can start you application as early as May, but you won't be able to submit until September.
You'll need to submit your form to college so they can add your reference.
Apply by the deadline
Make sure you submit your UCAS application online by the deadline. Deadlines vary each year and are different depending on the course you want to study.
Scroll or swipe on small screens to see all table columns
September 2024 entry | Deadline for applications to medicine, dentistry and veterinary courses and to Oxford and Cambridge Main application deadline. Some art and design courses have a March deadline, please check UCAS for details. |
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September 2025 entry | Deadline for applications to medicine, dentistry and Veterinary courses and to Oxford and Cambridge Main application deadline. Some art and design courses have a March deadline, please check UCAS for details. |
After you apply
Once you submit your application through UCAS, they will send you an acknowledgement. They will then forward your application to your chosen institutions.
Getting a decision on your application
Once you've submitted your application, you may have several stages before you find out if you have an offer.
Institutions will look at a number of things to make their decision. This includes your personal statement, reference and predicted grades.
Interviews and auditions
You might be invited to interview or audition to see if you're right for the course. This is also your chance to see if it's the right place for you.
Receiving an offer
If you submitted your application by the January deadline, you should receive all of your offers by March. Some courses and late applications may not receive responses until later in the cycle.
You can receive a conditional or unconditional offer, depending on whether you already have your grades or not.
Offer holder days
Some universities might invite you to an offer holder or applicant day . This is a great opportunity to get a taste for your course and meet your tutors.
Accepting your offer
Usually, you'll need to reply to any offers you have received by May. This depends on when you submit your UCAS application.
If you have conditional offers, you'll be able to choose one university as your firm choice, and one as insurance .
If you've used all five choices on your application, and you're not holding any offers, then you can add extra choices to your application - free of charge.
Wait for your results and prepare to enrol
If you're waiting for your results, you should receive these in either July or August. This depends on what qualification you have taken.
Your offer will either be confirmed or rejected based on your results.
If you don't receive the results you expected, or you apply after July, you will be entered into UCAS Clearing . This helps match you to university places that haven't yet been filled.
Once you've confirmed your offer at your chosen university, you will receive information about how to enrol .
Writing a personal statement for your UCAS application
It’s likely that writing a personal statement will be a new experience – we share our advice on what we look for.
![how many words for personal statement for ucas Female student on campus carrying a laptop](https://d3bpgcke55gfwt.cloudfront.net/rails/active_storage/representations/proxy/eyJfcmFpbHMiOnsibWVzc2FnZSI6IkJBaHBBdk1XIiwiZXhwIjpudWxsLCJwdXIiOiJibG9iX2lkIn19--731e8d48f74cbaa47887f57bb5600e525c2b5df6/eyJfcmFpbHMiOnsibWVzc2FnZSI6IkJBaDdDRG9MWm05eWJXRjBTU0lJYW5CbkJqb0dSVlE2RkhKbGMybDZaVjkwYjE5c2FXMXBkRnNIYVFKWUFta0NMQUU2Q25OaGRtVnlld2s2RTNOMVluTmhiWEJzWlY5dGIyUmxTU0lIYjI0R093WlVPZ3B6ZEhKcGNGUTZEbWx1ZEdWeWJHRmpaVlE2REhGMVlXeHBkSGxwVUE9PSIsImV4cCI6bnVsbCwicHVyIjoidmFyaWF0aW9uIn19--42754237235ba1e6f9325deaf83c5a2657141cd3/ecaf7bc4-2e63-4ea1-9d03-7dc7e26699b0.jpg)
What is a personal statement?
When I read your personal statement, the first thing I look for is enthusiasm about the subject. Your statement should paint a picture of why you want to study your degree. If you know what you want to do after the course, that is great but it is not essential.
Your outside interests and work experience can show more about you – which topics have already engaged you and which books have you read? Have you been a trusted person at work? Have you volunteered to help others learn at school? Have you trained people in a sport? Any of these things makes you a stronger applicant.
Dr Martin Lavelle, Associate Head of School and Admissions Tutor (School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics)
You can only write 47 lines and a maximum of 4,000 characters
The form does not have spell check, remember to be honest, map out your ideas, 75% of your statement should cover your academic strengths, motivation and interests, the remaining 25% should cover skills not directly related to your course .
![how many words for personal statement for ucas Student aboard a marine vessel](https://d3bpgcke55gfwt.cloudfront.net/rails/active_storage/representations/proxy/eyJfcmFpbHMiOnsibWVzc2FnZSI6IkJBaHBBMk1SQWc9PSIsImV4cCI6bnVsbCwicHVyIjoiYmxvYl9pZCJ9fQ==--a294a2114caf904c1524021d55a71888e7dd6b93/eyJfcmFpbHMiOnsibWVzc2FnZSI6IkJBaDdDRG9MWm05eWJXRjBTU0lJYW5CbkJqb0dSVlE2RTNKbGMybDZaVjkwYjE5bWFXeHNXd2RwQW9BQ2FRS0FBam9LYzJGMlpYSjdDVG9UYzNWaWMyRnRjR3hsWDIxdlpHVkpJZ2R2YmdZN0JsUTZDbk4wY21sd1ZEb09hVzUwWlhKc1lXTmxWRG9NY1hWaGJHbDBlV2xhIiwiZXhwIjpudWxsLCJwdXIiOiJ2YXJpYXRpb24ifX0=--f63c9d05d862cc298db2e5c473f12bcf5e99101d/67d2ef4b-7a52-49bc-b2a7-9ee704cb2abe.jpg)
Your personal statement checklist
J Look at course descriptions and identify the qualities, skills and experience required – you can use these to help you decide what to write about.
J Tell the reader why you’re applying – include your ambitions, as well as what interests you about the subject, the course provider and higher education.
J Think about what makes you suitable – this could be relevant experience, skills or achievements you’ve gained from education, work or other activities.
J Include any clubs or societies you belong to – sporting, creative, or musical.
J Mention any relevant employment experience or volunteering you’ve done.
J If you’ve developed skills through the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award, ASDAN, National Citizen Service, the CREST Awards or Young Enterprise, include them in your statement.
J If you took part in a higher education taster course, placement, summer school or something similar, include it.
![how many words for personal statement for ucas logo](https://www.christs.cam.ac.uk/themes/custom/christs_college/assets/img/CCC_2-line_rgb.png)
UCAS personal statement
What is a personal statement.
The personal statement is one part of your UCAS application. You are given 4,000 characters and 47 lines to describe your interest in the subject you are applying for and what skills and experience you possess that show your passion for your chosen subject.
What you need to know
Your UCAS personal statement will be read by all UK universities you apply to, so should not be overly tailored to any one institution, unless you are applying only to one.
Tip: If you are applying to multiple institutions, but have specific information that you'd like to give to Cambridge, such as your reasons for applying for a course different from the ones you have chosen elsewhere, this can go in My Cambridge Application (additional questionnaire) where there's an opportunity to add a further personal statement that only Cambridge reads.
![how many words for personal statement for ucas Ultimate frisbee](https://www.christs.cam.ac.uk/sites/default/files/Ultimate%20frisbee.jpg)
As a general rule, top UK universities tend to be less interested in extracurricular activities than their US counterparts, and you should not devote more than 20-25% of the personal statement to interests such as sport, drama, and music, unless these are directly relevant to the subject you wish to study, or can be used to demonstrate vocational commitment. The rest of the personal statement should be academic in orientation, and describe the intellectual journey you have been on.
It is not enough to say, “ I took x classes ”: you should also explain where taking those classes took you (“ in the course of my project on x, I became interested in y, and this led me to read/start a blog on/join a discussion group on/set up a student society on z ”).
Reading is important, as are super-curricular activities that develop your course interests, such as science Olympiads, mooting, internships, and relevant volunteering.
Extra-curricular activities | Super-curricular activities | |
---|---|---|
Relation to your course | Not relevant | Relevant |
Examples (not comprehensive...) | Football, knitting, being head girl at your school. | Relevant reading (and thinking about what you're reading!) or use of skill-development websites; science Olympiads, essay competitions, mooting, relevant work placements or volunteering. |
You can find lots of tips on personal statements online, and they may “tip the balance” at other universities, so it is important not to be too self-deprecating. However, do remember that the personal statement is only one part of your application, and since Christ's, at least, interviews 80%+ of undergraduate applicants, you may well get the chance to explain yourself further!
“Being passionate about your field of study it not just a major advantage in applying – it is absolutely necessary in both succeeding in it and thriving here afterwards.”
How the personal statement is used
![how many words for personal statement for ucas Three students sitting on grass](https://www.christs.cam.ac.uk/sites/default/files/FxjDNnxXgAAK1Vt.jpg)
Your personal statment will be read by both subject specialists in the course you have applied for and our Director of Admissions. If you are invited for interview, you may be asked questions relating to things you wrote in your personal statement or it may not be mentioned at all.
Later in the process when decisions are made, if you are not selected for a place at Christ's College but your application is thought to be strong, then you may be selected for the Winter Pool. This means that your application would be considered by other Cambridge Colleges, who may have had weaker direct applicants. If you are selected for the Winter Pool then your personal statement will also be read by staff from other Colleges, who may be considering you for a place.
What should be included?
![how many words for personal statement for ucas Personal Statements webinar poster](https://www.christs.cam.ac.uk/sites/default/files/Personal%20statements_1.jpg)
We mentioned above that we are interested in academic criteria , and that what we are asking you to do is very different to a college essay for applications to US universities.
Although there are lots of opportunities to get involved in extra curricular activities and hobbies when you are a student here, it is important to be clear that we do not assess you at all on your achievements in other areas during the admissions process (even f they are considerable) - we only assess you on your ability and potential to acheive highly in your chosen subject.
In the personal statement, we therefore want to read about your academic interests at this stage. We would like you to:
- explain your reasons for wanting to study the subject at university
- demonstrate enthusiasm for and commitment to your chosen course
- express any particular interests within the field
- outline how you’ve pursued your subject interest in your own time.
You can be very specific if you want to and mention particular projects / books / authors / articles / experiences that have made an impression on you and why. You can mention things you have done at / for school as well as things you have done on your own initiative. We are not looking for a list, however - we want to know what you got out of your work or research, rather than just the fact that you did it.
Positive approach: make the process work for you
Another difference from applications to US universities is that we ask you to apply for one course at Cambridge, and although there is a lot of flexibility within the courses (more than it looks at first glance), this is quite different to the approach in, for example a Liberal Arts degree in the US.
![how many words for personal statement for ucas Student reading in the library](https://www.christs.cam.ac.uk/sites/default/files/study11.jpg)
We won't hold you to what you said in your personal statement - a couple of years down the line your interests are likely to have developed quite a bit and that's fine. Some students even change courses during their degree (normally at the end of a year) if an emerging interest in an adjacent area is particularly strong. Think of the personal statement as a snapshot, explaining where you are in your understanding of your academic interests at the point of application .
Using your resources
![how many words for personal statement for ucas Sign in Christ's library](https://www.christs.cam.ac.uk/sites/default/files/_CGR0230.jpg)
Further sources of information
- UCAS Personal Statement information
- How to write a great Personal Statement (Cambridge article)
- Cambridge Admissions UCAS application page
- Cambridge SU Guide to Personal Statements (written by Shadab !)
Back to international students applying page
- Admissions Tests
- The UCAS application
- The UCAS personal statement
- The UCAS reference and predicted grades
- My Cambridge Application
- The Transcript
- The Results Breakdown
- Disability, learning difference or long-term illness
![how many words for personal statement for ucas Student working on laptop](https://www.christs.cam.ac.uk/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/2023-09/in_room_10.jpg.webp?itok=BejHKd_d)
How to apply
UCAS Personal Statement Length Checker
Please note: The line count may differ than the number of lines in the textbox above but when copy and pasted will match the line count on the UCAS application.
UCAS Personal Statement Requirements
- No longer than 4000 characters.
- No longer than 47 lines.
- Each line can be no longer than 94 characters. (Our character counter above already has a max line length of 94 characters unless otherwise noted.)
- Characters include spaces, carriage returns, and punctuation.
To see additional features including word count, paragraph count, space count and more use the character counter on our home page.
How to write your UCAS personal statement
The UCAS personal statement scares most high school students. Writing a perfect personal statement is a strenuous and unavoidable process. With roughly about 6 million university applications each year, officials need a method for filtering stronger applicants from everyone else.
As challenging as this task may appear, it is also your only chance to share your personality and eligibility for the degree program you have chosen. Follow our practices given, and you can absolutely make your personal statement up to the mark.
Start with a plan
Each year thousands of applications are received for the best degrees in the world and are best focused on the goal of making their application stand out from the rest.
Thus, planning out what you want to say prior to writing your UCAS statement makes it easy to write a convincing personal statement. Start off by making a rough draft, answering some questions like
- What subjects do you want to study?
- Why have you particularly chosen this path for yourself?
- What makes you think that you are best suited to study this degree program at the college?
Some of these points will form the backbone of your personal statement, so write them in a manner that makes sense to you.
Sometimes you want to create simple bullet points or use mind maps. No matter what you decide; your goal is the same. You want to clarify why the university should provide you with a spot.
Bigger Picture of the Degree
Talk about the course that you have applied to. How did you learn about it in the first place? What means did you use to deepen your interest and knowledge in this area?
It would be a huge plus to list the books you read and the meetings you have attended regarding the subject.
Please elaborate on your academic attitude towards the degree. What are your goals after graduating? What role will it play in helping you achieve your greatest ambitions? What sort of vocation plans do you have after graduation?
Write about your work experience and achievements
Your previous achievements are an essential part of your personal statement. Think about all the accolades you have received and the contests you have participated in. These can be in-school, national or international. Both academic and sports awards can greatly help emphasize your commitment.
Write about the important skills and experiences acquired elsewhere (such as hobbies) that can be chained to the degree of your choice.
Remember, you are searching for experience that shows why you need to study the subject that you have chosen. You are not just writing an essay about what you are doing in your high school syllabus.
Extracurricular Activities
Your extracurriculars ought to likewise be included in the personal statement. Whether it be a MUN or a cross country race, they pass on the message that you love participating in different events.
Likewise, it is really smart to discuss any expertise you have acquired through extracurriculars.
Discuss any leadership roles you could have held, as they improve your capacity to appreciate people on a profound level and put you across as a pioneer.
Community service is a plus in the UCAS statement as it shows a promise to a reason bigger than oneself.
You can link all these activities to your selected course in the best case. Be careful not to elaborate too much on extracurricular activities.
UCAS Character Count
There are some specific instructions for your personal statement that you can never ignore.
First, it must not exceed 4,000 characters or 47 lines of text (including blank lines), whichever comes first. If you do exceed this, the university will not get your entire statement.
So make sure your personal statement has a solid and decisive ending. It will look bad if you cut it off in the middle of a sentence after realizing that you have exceeded the text limit.
Instead, give each section proper attention, time, and character to plan your essay thoroughly.
However, while you are getting everything rolling, you ought to overlook these restrictions.
Tips for reducing the character count
From the get-go, you simply need to jot down all that you feel is significant. You will probably wind up with something very lengthy, but that is okay.
This is where you get to do some polishing and trimming. Maintain the focal point of your piece on the course you are applying for, why you want to do it and for what reason you are impeccably fit for it.
Glance through what you have composed until now - do you have the right balance? Cut off whatever continues a little to far, as you want to keep each point crisp and concise.
It is a difficult process to try to keep as much content as possible while keeping the character count low, so here are some simple ways to make it easier for you.
Avoid quotes
Read your personal statement and eliminate platitudes if there are any - for instance, 'I've wanted to study psychology since I was young'…The same goes for the quotations: except if they increase the value of your statement (which they don't most of the time!), it is really the best practice to remove them.
Make sure everything is concise
For each sentence in your piece, use the "so what?" rule. Does this sentence appear to be more reasonable for the course? If not, cutting it is best. This frequently happens when individuals write too much about their extracurriculars in a frantic endeavour to fit everything in. For extra analysis, feel free to use our sentence counter to calculate the average length of your sentences.
Colleges, notwithstanding, need to see a reflection and what you have extracted from your encounters; this implies it is normally better to simply discuss a few extracurriculars than to list many things that the reader is likely to skim.
Also, note that you don't have to use hospital or volunteer location names. This further allows you to remove the last few characters from the count.
Use colour coding
An easy way to see where you are losing most of your characters is to highlight the sections of your statement with different colours.
Check your language
We frequently invest a great deal of energy looking up big words with the expectation that it will make our work impressive. However, this isn't generally the best practice. It is, in many cases, best to cut these words for fundamental and engaging sentences.
I hope the process will now be transparent, and it will be more exciting for you as you embark on your writing.
How to use our UCAS personal statement checker
To use our tool simply copy and paste your personal statement into the text-box above.
At the top, you will see two metrics displayed. The first metric on the left is the total characters you've typed out of the limit of 4,000 characters.
The second metric on the right is the number of lines your text contains out of the max of 47 lines. The UCAS allows a maximum of 94 characters per line, which our line count feature already takes into consideration.
To make it easier you can click the green "copy text" button to copy the text in the text box. You can also click the red "clear text" button to delete all the text in the text-box.
Why use an online UCAS personal statement checker?
Reason number one: The character count feature in Microsoft Word will not give you an accurate reading. The reason is that Word does not count the carriage return (also known as the enter key) as a character while UCAS does count it as a character.
The problem is that this will cause Word to underestimate the character count. This could cause your essay not to be able to submit when you try to upload it. If anything it would be better to overestimate the word count on Word that way it will fit.
Our personal statement checker however will give you the same character count as UCAS unlike the Microsoft Word character count.
It can be helpful to see the character count in real-time as you are typing your personal statement. This way you are constantly reminded of how long your essay is.
If you are not paying attention it can be easy to lose track of how long your essay is and go over the limit.
Our tool makes it easier to be aware of the length and easy to cut back if necessary.
How many characters in a personal statement?
UCAS requires 4,000 characters in their personal statement. Use our personal statement checker above to see if your essay meets the requirements.
How many words in a UCAS personal statement
UCAS has a character limit of 4,000 characters. This equates to about 615 to 800 words.
How many words is 4000 characters?
4,000 characters is about 615 to 800 words. For more Characters to Words conversions, check out our Characters To Words Converter .
Does the personal statement character limit include spaces?
Yes, it does include spaces as well as carriage returns. Check your statement with our personal statement checker above.
Thanks for using our UCAS personal statement checker!
We appreciate you taking the time to check your personal statement using our webpage. As you know, this is a very important college application essay to get into British universities. UCAS stands for Universities and Colleges Admissions Service and is what the UK uses for the college application process. Good luck on your personal statement!
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- The Ultimate UCAS Personal Statement Guide
Last Updated: 31st May 2022
Author: Rob Needleman
- Getting started
Table of Contents
When it comes to completing your UCAS application, the Personal Statement is one of the most important parts to consider.
While your grades show your academic ability and Admissions Tests assess your knowledge and capabilities, a Personal Statement is all about you. Tutors want to see the person behind the application and understand why you’re a suitable candidate for your chosen course.
Although each university will have its own unique way of shortlisting applicants, your Personal Statement is your opportunity to demonstrate your strengths and let your personality shine through.
However, over 20,000 students apply for Oxbridge every year which is a lot to compete with. As such, you need to stand out from the crowd and really get across your reasons for wanting to study your topic, which can make the prospect of writing one and including all the right things pressurising. To help you, we have written this ultimate Personal Statement guide. Let’s get started.
How to write a Personal Statement
Your Personal Statement isn’t a long monologue of your life so far, nor a gigantic list of all your achievements. Think of yourself as a storyteller. Start at the beginning with how you developed an interest for your chosen subject and end with where you see yourself after university.
![](http://sektorel.online/777/templates/cheerup/res/banner1.gif)
Before You Start
How to get started.
Before you sit down to write your UCAS Personal Statement, the first thing we recommend is to research the courses you want to apply for. This will help you prepare your statement as courses vary from university to university, and your content should reflect these. Bear in mind, you are only able to send one Personal Statement to all your chosen universities, so you can’t overly cater to one. Look at all of the details, including the structure, modules and examination methods, as well as what they’re looking for from a student. This will support your first draft, though bear in mind you’ll redraft a few times before it’s perfect.
For example, Oxford lists the personal characteristics that they look for in applicants to their Medicine degree:
How many words should a Personal Statement be?
Personal Statements can be up to 4,000 characters long (615-800), and no more. This might sound like a lot, but it’s just one side of A4 paper. There’s plenty of information to include, so make sure it’s concise, clear and easy to read.
When to start writing it
It’s never too early to start thinking about your Personal Statement and what you’re going to write about. But there is a deadline : October 15th for all Oxbridge courses including Medicine and Dentistry, and January 25th for other undergraduate subjects. We suggest you begin preparing at the start of the year, as this gives you plenty of time to plan, draft and rewrite until it’s perfect for submission.
Your Personal Statement is the first thing Oxbridge Admissions Tutors will see about you. It’s imperative you get it right.
Our Oxbridge Premium Programmes help you write a successful Personal Statment that ticks all the Admission Tutor’s boxes. Our proven support is implemented through various mediums including Personal Statment Intensive Courses, Personal Statment Marking and Personalised Reading Lists.
Discover our Oxbridge Premium Programmes by clicking the button below to enrol and triple your chances of success.
What To Include
Your Personal Statement is a glimpse into your passion, how keen you are to learn and what you already know about your chosen subject. Express your interest by commenting on the areas that fascinate you most. For example, is it helping people that draws you into Medicine, or is it the fascinating human anatomy?
Another great way to show your enthusiasm is through your previous experience in the subject. Demonstrate why you’re suitable for the course by providing evidence of any relevant skills and qualities that relate to this. What are you good at? What have you done that proves it?
- Answering Your Personal Statement Questions
Mention any additional projects, work experience or extra-curricular activities you’ve got involved with that further demonstrate you’re an ideal candidate. Reflect on the skills you’ve gained from these (as long as they’re transferable to your studies). Admissions Tutors will be looking for such information, as well as your unique selling points — give examples of things you’ve done that show you have a wider interest in learning.
You should also try to link your interests, skills and qualities to your university research. However, Oxbridge are not interested in sports, hobbies or if you play any musical instruments — keep it academic.
Show you’re an interesting person and have a true passion for your subject, and your Personal Statement should be a winning one. Your enthusiasm is what will make your statement stand out, so don’t shy away from expressing your love for your chosen subject, though you don’t need to say you’ve dreamed about doing the course your entire life.
Aim to include things like:
- Personal attributes, such as adaptability, problem-solving and organisation
- Employment experience and volunteering work
- Personal interests in your subject
- Relevant extracurricular activities, like any clubs or societies you belong to
- Your future after university
The Structure
The key to writing a good UCAS Personal Statement is getting the structure right, as this can have a huge effect on the message it delivers. Often, students get caught up in the content and forget that presenting information effectively is just as important as the words included.
Each section of your statement needs to be crafted correctly so that Admissions Tutors can digest the information easily. While there are no strict rules on how to structure it — since it’s personal to you — there are a few rules of thumb to use to find the right balance. In general, though, remember to consider the format, structure and content equally, and you’ll write a great Personal Statement.
- Personal Statement Cheat Sheet
Here is a breakdown of how we recommend students to split up their essay:
- Introduction - About six lines
- Academic abilities - 22 - 27 lines
- Extra-curricular information - 10 - 12 lines
- Conclusion - No more than four lines
Personal Statement Introduction
Rightly or wrongly, it is highly likely that your UCAS Personal Statement will be remembered by its opening sentence. It must be something short, sharp, insightful, and catch the reader’s attention. It sets the precedent for the rest of your statement and unfortunately, decides whether your statement is paid particular attention to when read.
- Avoid using overused words like “passionate”, “deeply fascinating”, and “devotion”.
- Avoid using clichéd quotes like the infamous Coco Chanel’s “fashion is not something that exists in dresses only”.
- If you are going to use a quote, then put some effort into researching an obscure yet particularly powerful one – don’t forget to include a reference.
- Draw on your own personal experiences to produce something both original and eye-catching.
Once that’s out of the way, you need to answer the most important question:
The introduction does not need to be very long. It is generally a good idea to open the statement with something that sets the context of your application. For example, someone who is applying to study History may open: ‘History is all around us’, rather than ‘I have always been interested in History because…”
By the end of the introduction the reader should clearly know:
- What subject you are applying for
- What motivated you to apply for this subject
Make sure you keep it personal and honest! The exact phrase: “from a young age, I have always been interested in” was recently used more than 300 times in Personal Statements in a single year, and substituting “young” for “early” gave an additional 292 statements – these phrases can quickly become boring for Admissions Tutors to read!
Personal Statement Main Body
In the rest of your text, your aim should be to demonstrate your suitability for the course by exemplifying your knowledge of the course structure and its requirements through personal experience. Again, there are no rigorous guidelines on how to do this and it is very much down to your own writing style. Whereas some prefer a strict structure, others go for a more synoptic approach, but always remember to be consistent to achieve a flowing, easy to read Personal Statement.
Here’s the structure we recommend:
Paragraph #1: This should cover why you are suited for your subject. This will include your main academic interests, future ambitions (related to the chosen degree), and what makes the course right for you. This should be the academic side of why you want to study this subject.
Paragraph #2: This should still cover why you are suited for your subject. However, it can be less focused on academic topics. If you’ve had to overcome any significant challenges in life and wish to include these in your Personal Statement, this is normally the best place to do so. Similarly, any work experience or relevant prizes & competitions should be included here.
Paragraph #3: This is the smallest part of the main body and is all about extra-curricular activities. It is easy to get carried away in this section and make outrageous claims, e.g. claim to be a mountain climber if all you have ever climbed is a hill at the end of your street etc. Lying is not worth the risk, given that your interviewer may share the same hobby that you claim to be an expert in. So, don’t be caught out!
What you should include in your Personal Statement main body:
- Sports and other hobbies
- Musical instruments
- Work experience
- Personal interests in the field of study
- Personal attributes
What you shouldn’t include in your Personal Statement main body (or anywhere!):
- Negative connotations – always put a positive spin on everything
- Lack of reflection
- Controversy in whatever form it may come
- Generic/stereotypical statements
- Listing things
Personal Statement Conclusion
The conclusion of your Personal Statement should be more about leaving a good final impression rather than conferring any actual information. If you have something useful to say about your interest and desire to study your subject, you shouldn’t be waiting until the very end to say it!
A good conclusion should not include any new information, as this should be in the main body. However, you also need to avoid repeating what you have said earlier in your Personal Statement. This would be both a waste of characters and frustration for the tutor. Instead, it is better to put into context what you have already written and, therefore, make an effort to keep your conclusion relatively short – no more than four lines.
For more inspiration, take a look through our other successful Personal Statement a nalysis articles:
Successful Personal Statement For Law At Cambridge
Successful personal statement for economics & management at oxford, successful personal statement for natural science (physical) at cambridge, successful personal statement for economics at cambridge, successful personal statement for land economy at cambridge, successful personal statement for chemistry at oxford, successful personal statement for geography at oxford, successful personal statement for classics at oxford, successful personal statement for law at oxford, successful personal statement for classics at cambridge, successful personal statement for engineering at cambridge, successful personal statement for philosophy at cambridge, successful personal statement for veterinary medicine at cambridge, successful personal statement for psychological and behavioural sciences at cambridge, successful personal statement for psychology at oxford, successful personal statement for history at oxford, successful personal statement for physics at oxford, successful personal statement for cambridge mathematics and physics, successful personal statement example for computer science at oxford, successful personal statement for english at cambridge, successful personal statement for oxford english language and literature, successful personal statement for modern languages at oxford, successful personal statement for engineering at oxford, successful personal statement for natural sciences (biological) at cambridge, successful personal statement for ppe at oxford, successful personal statement for dentistry at king’s college london, successful personal statement for medicine at cambridge, our personal statement do’s.
1. Show passion for your subject
Admissions Tutors aren’t going to pick a candidate who doesn’t seem particularly interested in their field. Show your passion and eagerness to learn and succeed. Why do you love your subject? Why have you chosen it? What do you find most interesting and why?
2. Talk about you
This is your chance to talk about you, your interests and skills. It’s no good saying you’re passionate if you don’t prove that you are. Write in a natural style to show off your personality, making sure it’s genuine, relevant and specific.
3. Use appropriate language
Re-read your Personal Statement multiple times and check that the content is academic, engaging and clear.
4. Provide evidence to back up your claims
It’s all well and good saying you love medical science, but this is going to fall flat if you can’t back it up. Talk about your school subjects and results, any wider reading and relevant work experience. Perhaps you attended a lecture on your subject — this would be good evidence.
5. Link your activities outside of education to your course
Tell tutors why these activities are relevant and what you have learned as a result. Focus on transferable skills gained too, such as time management or organisational abilities.
6. Spell check and look for grammatical mistakes
Poor spelling and grammar makes for a terrible first impression, so ensure you triple-check it’s written to the highest standard before submitting it.
Our Personal Statement dont’s
1. Write a clichéd beginning
Don’t waste time thinking of a catchy opening. The best Personal Statements get to the point quickly, so avoid starting with phrases like “From a young age”, “I am applying for this course because”, and “Throughout my life I have always enjoyed…”. Go straight into why you are interested in your course subject.
2. Use cringe-worthy language and cheap gags
This is not impressive and can indicate that you’re not a serious student. It’s essential you don’t come across as verbose or pretentious too, as Admissions Tutors will spot this immediately. They are well-versed in the ramblings of students who think this tone makes them seem more intellectual.
3. Overcomplicate things
Say what you need to, be specific and don’t waffle too much — you’ll run out of characters fast.
4. Go overboard with extra-curricular activities
Talking about these is good, but the truth is, Admissions Tutors have very little interest in what you do outside of education unless you can find a way to directly link them to your subject.
5. Plagiarise content
You can read Personal Statement examples online for inspiration but avoid copying and pasting them. During your interview, you’re likely to be asked about specific parts of your statement, and if you’re caught off-guard, you’re going to look silly. This could ruin your chances of being accepted. Use a plagiarism detector to ensure your essay is unique.
6. Mention universities or specific courses by name
You can only write one Personal Statement, so it’s the same for each course you apply for. Avoid mentioning specific unis by name or detailing exact specifics of a module, for example. Keep it general.
Now you know what to include in your Personal Statement and the best practices for doing so, we hope you feel more confident writing it. We have plenty of guides and successful personal statement examples to go through in our Free Personal Statement Resources page. Good luck submitting your UCAS application!
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Personal statement FAQs
We've gone through some of the most commonly asked personal statement questions and put all the answers in one place
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Your personal statement is a big part of your uni application. It's where you can show universities why they should give you a place on your chosen course. Read on for quick tips on writing your personal statement. We'll cover what sort of things to include, along with answers to some of the most commonly asked questions that crop up over on our sister site The Student Room . If you can't find an answer to your question here, try posting it to the personal statements forum on The Student Room .
The university application personal statement is changing in 2025 |
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University admissions service Ucas has announced that a new style of personal statement will be launched in 2025. This will affect anyone making a university application from autumn 2025 onwards. . |
When should I start writing my personal statement?
It’s never too early to start thinking about it! However, you'll need a good idea of what course you’re going to apply for before you launch into writing it. On the other hand, don’t leave it too late as it's quite a long process and you're likely to have a few drafts before reaching your finished product.
Remember: your referee will need to see your personal statement before they can write your reference. If you get yourself organised over the summer, you can start by jotting down a few ideas over those few weeks - ready to start writing it when you arrive back to school or college in September.
The Ucas application deadline for most undergraduate uni courses starting in September 2024 is 31 January 2024. If you're applying to Oxbridge or for medicine, dentistry or veterinary science courses to start in 2024 there's an earlier deadline – 16 October 2023. You can find all the key Ucas deadlines and application dates for 2024 entry in this article .
- Read more: universities reveal all about personal statements
How long can the personal statement be?
Statements are limited to whichever is shorter of either:
- 4,000 characters (including spaces) OR
Be aware that software such as Microsoft Word may not give a character or line count that completely matches what the Ucas form says. The character count should be reasonably accurate, but the line limit is more difficult because lines may wrap at different points depending on the software you're using.
The only way to be 100% sure what the character and line counts are is to copy your draft statement into your online Ucas form (but be careful not to submit it unless you're sure it's the final version). You can edit and save your personal statement without submitting it as many times as you like, and you'll only be able to mark the section as complete when you're on the preview screen.
If testing out your personal statement draft on your Ucas form still feels too risky, you can get a good indication of where you're at by using the Courier New font, size 10, with the default margins, to get a reasonable estimate how many lines your personal statement will be. If you've left a line between paragraphs, then you will probably reach the line limit before the character limit.
- Read more: how to write an excellent personal statement in ten steps
Where do I start?
Most people won’t be able to just start writing the statement off the top of their head – so it’s a good idea to jot down a few notes first. The main things to think about are:
- What do I want to study? (if you can't answer this, you should probably concentrate on working it out before writing your personal statement).
- Why do I want to study it?
- What personal qualities, interests and experience do I have which show I am suited to this subject, and to study at university?
Many people have trouble writing about themselves and their personal qualities. If you’re struggling with this step, it can be helpful to look up some information on writing a CV - there are a lot of parallels in how to put yourself forward effectively.
- Read more: five practical tips to help with your personal statement
What sort of structure should I use?
Most people write their personal statement in an essay style, starting off with the course, and why they want to do it, then talking about their relevant work experience and skills and finishing off with extracurricular activities.
As a guide, spend around two thirds of the space talking about your course and how you’re suited to it, and one third on your work experience and other activities. Exactly how you write your statement depends on your subject – generally people write more about work experience for vocational subjects like medicine and law than they would for subjects like maths or English where work experience is less important.
- Read more: avoid these ten biggest personal statement mistakes
No formatting of any type is allowed in your personal statement (except using capital letters), so any bold, italic, or underlined words will disappear in the preview.
Tabs and multiple spaces will be condensed to a single space, so it is not possible to indent lines. Single spaces at the beginning of lines will also be removed.
You have a very limited set of special characters. Common symbols that aren't allowed are € and the special quote characters “ ‘ ’ ” which will simply be removed from your statement, so remember to replace quotes with " and '.
Backslashes (\) are also not allowed, but will be replaced with forward slashes (/) and curly brackets will be replaced with normal ones.
What’s the most important part of the personal statement?
Write about your aspirations in a meaningful way. The crucial bit about a personal statement is where you talk about the subject you are applying for and why you want to do this at uni. Admissions tutors will always focus on this bit – so make this interesting and not just a list of books. Your personality should emerge here – they should be able to understand what is driving you to apply for this course, as well as getting a sense of your energy and enthusiasm.
- Read more: how to write your university application
Should I talk about what I want to do after university?
You could, but only if you have a good idea of what you want to do. If you sound sure about what you want to do after uni it gives the impression that you’ve thought carefully about your course and what you want to do with it. It's also a nice way to round off your statement, rather than finishing on less important stuff like extra curricular activities. If you don’t have any future plans, then leave this bit out – you don’t want to be asked about them at interviews.
Should I talk about my qualifications?
No. There’s already a section on the Ucas form for this, so don’t waste the space on your personal statement. If you have something important which doesn’t go in the qualifications section, ask your referee to put it down in your reference – it will sound better if it comes from them than from you. This goes for module marks as well. Some people are told they should try to link each A-level to the course they are applying for. It can be far more effective to focus your time and space on talking about the subject you are applying for – that is what matters.
How do I write it for two different courses?
There’s no easy way to write a personal statement for two totally unrelated courses. If the courses are similar you may find you can write a statement relevant to both, without mentioning either subject by name. If the courses are completely unrelated, it may be impossible to write for both subjects without your personal statement sounding vague and unfocused. Instead you will need to concentrate on just one subject and just ignore the other – it sometimes works!
What are admissions tutors looking for?
Different admissions tutors are looking for different things, but in general they will be thinking things like: “Do we want this student on this course?” , and “Do we want this student at this university?” And most will be looking for an interest in the subject you are applying for that goes beyond simply your A-level syllabus/reading list.
Remember, most universities and departments now publish information on applications and writing personal statements, so reading the subject section of their website might list more specific information on exactly what they’re looking for. If in doubt, google the name of the university along with the subject/course and admissions statement.
- Read more: 6 steps you need to take to apply to university
Is it worth doing loads of extracurricular stuff to make it sound good?
There’s no point doing extra things just to try and make yourself look good to universities – you won’t enjoy it and it probably won’t help much either. An interest and aptitude for the course is likely to be more important to admissions tutors than lots of extracurricular activities. If you do want to do something to boost your application, read relevant books or do work experience related to the subject instead.
What happens if I lie on the personal statement?
If you aren't confident that the universities will accept you based on your predicted grades or something else, you might reconsider applying.
It's best not to write anything which you can't back up in interview if necessary. Interviewers can and do bring up nearly anything in a personal statement as a basis for questions.
Any last tips?
What have you done that's relevant to your subject, that is unique, and that it's likely no one else is going to write about in their personal statement? Many people have similar interests and work experience, so you need something to separate you from the crowd. For example, everyone who applies for economics seems to read The Economist, The Financial Times, and The Guardian. So if you put down those, don't expect them to be amazed by your reading around the subject. Have a deeper think – what makes you special?
- Read more: how to write your personal statement in an evening
And the most important thing?
Finally, remember that it’s your personal statement, and you can write whatever you want on it. If everything in this guide conflicts with what you’ve got already, but you think you still have a killer personal statement, then use that. A personal statement is about you , and you shouldn’t let anyone tell you what to put – sticking blindly to a formula will just stop your true personality showing through.
Tricks to squeeze more in
- Remember it's a personal statement, and leave out anything unnecessary.
- Don't repeat yourself.
- Cut out the waffle – be concise!
- Get rid of pointless words, such as very specific details or unecessary adjectives
- Ask your referee to mention some stuff that you cannot
- Get some structure to your statement
- If you can't get it under the line/character limit, you may just have to chop whole sentences
What should I do once I’ve written it?
Get people's opinions on it! Show it to your friends, parents, teachers, career advisors and so on and note down their comments. The most useful comments are likely to come from your teachers in the subject and the people at your school or college who handle Ucas applications. If you have enough time, leave your personal statement for a couple of weeks to a month and come back to it – if you’re not still happy with what you wrote, it’s time to start redrafting.
Definitely do not post it on an internet forum or discussion board. If your personal statement is published online before your application is complete, it may get picked up by Ucas' plagiarism detection .
You may want to look at these...
The ucas personal statement is changing in 2025.
A question-based personal statement will be required as part of university applications from autumn 2025 onwards
Teacher secrets for writing a great personal statement
Writing a personal statement is one of the most important things you will do when applying to university. Here is some useful advice and insider knowledge from Mrs Kinetta, who has more than 25 years of experience as a sixth form tutor.
How to write an excellent personal statement in 10 steps
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Writing a Personal Statement for UCAS: The 10 Big Mistakes Students Should Avoid
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- Writing a UCAS Personal Statement for a subject that isn’t the right fit
- Spelling & grammar mistakes
- Avoid pointless cliches
- Endlessly listing extracurriculars
- Over-using quotes or taking them out of context
- Telling the reader something they already know
- Ignoring word limits
- Unnecessary origin stories
- Making things up
- Controversy
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Writing a UCAS Personal Statement requires a student to convey a lot of information in a short space of time. Mistakes are easy to make. Read our run down of the most common ones and how to avoid them
Writing a Personal Statement for UCAS is, in many ways, like asking a student to tell the story of their life in 4,000 characters or less.
And if that sounds hard, it’s because it is.
The UCAS Personal Statement is the cornerstone of a UK university application . Students need to write a genuine, authoritative and compelling account of who they are and what they want from a UK university degree. They need to quickly grab the attention of the university admissions officer reading their Personal Statement, and they need to make sure they stand out from the hundreds of other applications that will be crossing that admission officer’s desk.
In order to do this, the Personal Statement will require a student to master form, structure and content in such a way that makes their writing stand out.
Understandably, students might feel an inordinate amount of pressure to get their Personal Statement right first time.
Indeed, more often than not, it’s not a case of students being lazy when writing their UCAS Personal Statements. The problem is often that students will have a lot to say and will have put a lot of thought into their Statement, but may make some simple stylistic mistakes that could cost them when they finally submit their application.
But if these mistakes are easy to make, they’re also easy to avoid.
So we’re going to take you through the 10 most common (and potentially costly) mistakes that a student might make in their UCAS Personal Statement, and give you some tips on how to help your students avoid them.
Bonus Resource – To help your students avoid any major mistakes before they begin, our Personal Statement worksheet helps them to plan and write a truly compelling account of themselves. Click here to download
1. Writing a UCAS Personal Statement for a subject that isn’t the right fit
If students have done their research carefully and considerately, then this shouldn’t be a problem. Ideally, in the year leading up to the submission of the Personal Statement, your students will have shortlisted their university and course preferences to the point where they’re applying for a subject area they’re truly passionate about.
But this first, major mistake is the natural conclusion of a student being pressured into a subject or career path by family, parents or even school peers. Hopefully this won’t happen – but if a student is writing their UCAS Personal Statement for a subject they’re not truly passionate about, then this should set off alarm bells. It will ultimately affect the quality of the Personal Statement.
And, most importantly, admissions staff will easily spot a Personal Statement where the student’s heart isn’t in it.
Top tip: We at BridgeU are big fans of students finding their best-fit universities and courses (after all, it’s why we built our platform!). Students need to put a lot of time into making sure the UK course they are applying for is right for them. Starting a Personal Statement without having thoroughly researched university and course options is one of the most fundamental mistakes a student could make.
2. Spelling & Grammar Mistakes
This may seem like a rather obvious mistake, and one your students hopefully shouldn’t be making.
But the tight time frames associated with a UCAS Personal Statement will make spelling and grammar mistakes more likely, especially if your students aren’t taking the time to proof-read their personal statement before submitting it.
Spelling and grammar mistakes can really count against students, and can make their writing appear sloppy or poorly thought through. It’s an especially bad look if your students are applying for humanities or social sciences courses, or indeed any degree that requires a lot of extended writing!
Top tip: Encourage your students to print out their Personal Statement. Whilst we know that a lot of students do more things digitally these days (and BridgeU is an online platform after all!), reading a UCAS Personal Statement back as a living, printed document can really help students hone their eye for detail!
3. Avoid exuberant language and pointless cliches
“My love of Physics began when I used to look up at the night sky as a child, and found it simultaneously breath-taking and awe-inspiring.”
“I’ve been passionate about the works of William Shakespeare since seeing my first production on stage. I’m fascinated by how Shakespeare remains relevant for today.”
Can you see what’s wrong with these two examples?
Whilst they are very positive and well-worded statements about why a student might want to study astrophysics, or Shakespearian literature, both these Personal Statement examples tip very quickly into cliche and generalisation.
We’re not suggesting you shouldn’t encourage your students to use positive language when writing a UCAS Personal Statement, but this positive language needs to be backed up with clear, specific examples and rigorous analysis.
Remember – the key to an excellent Personal Statement is showing, not telling.
So why is Shakespeare still relevant to today? What specific examples could a student writing about a 16th century author use to demonstrate their relevance to the 21st century?
Likewise, proclaiming a love for the wonders of the night sky is all well and good, but why did it make our example student want to study Physics?
Top tip: Encourage students to set a limit on the number of adjectives or descriptive phrases they use in their writing. It’s important to remember a Personal Statement has to accomplish a lot in a relatively short number of words. If students over-use words like ‘passionate’, ‘breathtaking’ and ‘awe-inspiring’ they’re just going to end up repeating themselves.
4. Endlessly listing extracurricular activities
Extracurricular activities are a vital part of any Personal Statement. If used in the right way, they can help a student to stand out, and seem like a more well-rounded person. Extracurriculars can also help to showcase valuable soft skills that universities value in their students.
But there’s no point using extracurriculars like a grocery list. Students endlessly describing their extracurriculars will mean nothing if they don’t link them back to the overall narrative of the Personal Statement.
Again, it’s about showing, not telling. Saying ‘I have captained my school football team for three years’ means nothing if the writer doesn’t explain this activity within the context of the Personal Statement.
Top tip: When planning their Personal Statement, students need to think about the extracurricular activities that can demonstrate soft skills. What did they learn from doing this particular extracurricular activity? Do they think it will set them apart in their overall application? If the answer is no, then it’s best not putting it in.
5. Over-using quotes or taking them out of context
Remember what we said about exuberant language and cliches?
It’s the same with the use of quotes.
Quotes can be a powerful tool to back up any argument, be it in a UCAS Personal Statement or any other kind of essay.
But quotes used clumsily can often have the opposite effect, and make the writer of a Personal Statement seem pretentious or just quoting for the sake of it.
Many students may feel tempted to open their Personal Statement with a quote from Mahatma Gandhi, or Martin Luther King. A student who is submitting an application for psychology may feel it necessary to begin their Personal Statement with a quote from Sigmund Freud.
The trouble is that many UK university admissions tutors have probably seen the same quotes again and again. Again, if quotes aren’t used in context, or don’t serve the overall narrative of the Personal Statement, then it may be worth not putting them in.
It’s also important to remember that universities want to hear from the student, not Sigmund Freud! If in doubt, a student writing a Personal Statement should use their own thoughts and insights, not someone else’s.
Top tip: Encourage students to use less well-known quotes in their Personal Statement. Quotes from less well-known, specialist thinkers within a subject discipline are more likely to show that a student is widely read and has a deep and rich knowledge of the subject they’re applying for.
6. Telling the reader something they already know
Demonstrating subject knowledge and background reading is vital for a UCAS Personal Statement. But this must fit in with the student’s overall story of why they want to study that particular degree.
What students shouldn’t do is explain academic or scientific theories at length, or regurgitate existing arguments that have already been made by other writers in their chosen field of study.
Students writing a UCAS Personal Statement need to operate from the assumption that the person reading it is probably an expert in their field. It’s only worth students talking about their wider reading, or their take on another piece of academic writing, if they can demonstrate its relevance to them.
Top tip: Students should avoid going into depth about other academic or scientific theories unless they have a bearing on the student’s own worldview, and can tell the reader something about why they want to study for that particular course.
Video: Tips from UCAS on starting a Personal Statement
7. not paying attention to word/character limits .
It’s pretty hard to literally ignore the word/character limit for the UCAS Personal Statement, as there will come a point where students will simply run out of space.
But some students can fail to pay attention to word/character limits to the extent that they don’t plan the form and structure of their UCAS Personal Statement properly.
Planning the overall structure and flow of the Personal Statement before writing it is absolutely essential if students are to make the most of the space that UCAS allocates. Half finished thoughts and hastily written conclusions will do more harm than good when someone reads the Personal Statement.
Top tip: Run one class/workshop with students where they brainstorm and plan the overall structure of their UCAS Personal Statement. Break the components of a good personal statement down into chunks, and get students thinking about the optimal structure for making their Personal Statements as good as they can be!
8. Unnecessary origin stories
Everyone loves an origin story (why else would film studios keep remaking Spiderman?). But origin stories in UCAS Personal Statements can sometimes be a waste of time (this is in sharp contrast to an application like the Common App in the USA), where they love to hear a student’s origin story)
Remember our physics student from Tip no.3 who loved to gaze at the night sky? Childhood anecdotes are great, and can certainly add character to a student’s application. But they’re not always necessary to showcase a student’s devotion to their chosen subject.
In fact, it’s fair to say that admissions tutors at UK universities are more interested in an applicant’s more recent contributions or achievements in their chosen field of study than snippets of their biography.
Yet it remains the case that students sometimes feel the need to profess their lifelong devotion to a subject they’re hoping to study at university. It’s really not necessary.
In fact UCAS themselves once published a list of the most commonly used opening lines in a Personal Statement . Three of the most frequent openings were
“I have always been interested in…” (used 927 times)
“For as long as I can remember I have…” (used 1,451 times)
“From a young age I have always been interested in/fascinated by…” (used 1,779 times)
Not only does drawing on childhood memories risk losing sight of more relevant information, it’s also something that lots of universities have seen before.
9. Making things up
We hope that none of your students would ever lie in their Personal Statement. But if someone feels the pressure to stand out from the crowd and really impress a university, then it could happen.
Even small, believable exaggerations could come back to haunt a student if they were hypothetically invited to an interview further down the road. It could be as small as pretending to have read a particular book, or quoting/discussing a piece of research in their chosen subject field and not having fully engaged with it.
Top tip: When it comes to putting anything untruthful in a Personal Statement, we can only offer you one piece of advice to give to your students.
Don’t do it! It’s not worth it, students will probably get found out and there’s likely plenty of achievements and skills that students can talk about in their Personal Statement. They just need to think long and hard about what it is!
10. Being controversial or contrarian for the sake of it
Being controversial or argumentative can seem like a good way to sit up and get the reader’s attention – but it’s not worth a student doing it unless they’ve really got the evidence and the argument to back it up.
For example, arguing against a famous essay or piece of research in a student’s chosen subject might seem like a good way to score some brownie points. But why does a student take issue with this particular piece of research? And is it really wise to try and tackle it in the space of a 4,000 character Personal Statement.
Top tip: Students should definitely be independent and analytical when discussing their degree subject in their Personal Statement – after all, it’s the most surefire way to stand out. But taking a contrarian position, or trying to make an explosive new contribution to academic discourse in the course of one Personal Statement probably isn’t a good idea.
Writing a Personal Statement for UCAS – final tips to avoid mistakes
What do these mistakes all have in common?
The answer is they are the natural consequence of students forgetting some of the core principles of UCAS Personal Statement writing.
- Students need to ensure their Personal Statements are well-structured and well-planned – so as to avoid spelling mistakes and/or falling foul of the character limit.
- Students need to keep their Personal Statements as unique to them as possible – this means staying truthful to their own ambitions and worldview, and avoiding generalisations or cliches.
- A good Personal Statement needs to be rooted in strong analysis and writing that makes good use of evidence and specific examples to back up an argument.
- A standout Personal Statement needs to be compelling account of a student’s suitability for a course with a good story at the heart of it – it needs to show, not tell.
Our Personal Statement template is a great resource if you want to help your students plan and write a truly individual Personal Statement, and avoid some of the mistakes we’ve listed here. Download it below!
Bonus Resource!
How to write a Personal Statement Worksheet & Template
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- Mature Student Personal Statements
- Personal Statements By University
- Personal Statements By Subject
- Personal Statement Editing Service
- 10 Personal Statement Don'ts
- Analysis Of A Personal Statement Example
- Frequently Asked Questions
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- How To Write A Personal Statement
- How To Start A Personal Statement
- Submit Your Personal Statement
- Personal Statement Questions 2025
Personal Statement FAQs
Our personal statement FAQs will help ease the pain of writing a personal statement for your UCAS form . More advice can also be found on our blog .
- When to start writing a personal statement
- Personal statement length
- How do I begin writing?
- What are the admissions tutors looking for?
- Most important part of a personal statement
- Writing a statement for two different courses
- Your plans after university
- How to structure a personal statement
- Extra-curricular activities
- Qualifications
- Personal statement examples
- After you've written your statement
- Posting your statement online
- Asking for feedback
- Further advice
- Mature students
- International students
1. When should I start writing my personal statement?
It's never too early to start thinking about it! Unfortunately, UCAS deadlines have a tendency to creep up on most students, especially if you are applying to Oxbridge where the deadline is much earlier than other universities ( 15th October ).
However, you probably want a good idea of what course you're going to apply for before you launch in to actually writing the thing .
Check out Choosing A Degree if you're still deciding what subject to take.
On the other hand, don't leave it too late - you'll probably need a few weeks to write it and a week or so to get a reference written.
As a general guide we would say start writing it when you come back to school or college after the summer, though it might be worth jotting down a few ideas during the holidays.
We know some people are extremely organised and get at least their first draft done by the end of the summer!
2. How long can the personal statement be?
There is no actual word limit - instead, you have a maximum of 47 lines or 4000 characters to work with.
This is all the space UCAS give you on their online system, Apply . You can check that your statement will fit in the area provided by using our handy Personal Statement Length Checker .
3. How do I start writing my personal statement?
Most people won't be able to just start writing their personal statement off the top of their head - so it's a good idea to jot down a few notes first.
The main things to think about are:
- why do you want to study your chosen course?
- how do your skills, experiences and interests prove you are passionate about and committed to taking this course?
These are the two main things to start with, and if this still doesn't help you can look at a few more detailed starting points .
Many people have trouble writing about themselves and their personal qualities.
So if you're having trouble pop down to a library or bookstore and get a book on writing CVs that will go into this process in much more depth.
4. What are admissions tutors looking for?
Usually the sort of things you've written about for the part above!
Obviously the things admissions tutors are looking for will differ but in general: "Do we want this student on this course?" And "Do we want this student at this university?".
The idea of your personal statement is to show this - so once you've written it, have a read through and see if it answers these questions.
Individual universities and departments often publish information on applying and writing personal statements, so surfing the admissions scetion of their website should turn up more specific information on exactly what they're looking for.
Our blog post, 8 Things Not To Put In Your Personal Statement , will help you avoid making any obvious errors. Then check out What You Should Include In Your Personal Statement to make sure you don't miss anything important.
Read through our Personal Statement Writing Tips and How To Write A Personal Statement Guide for more comprehensive information and advice.
5. What's the most important part of the personal statement?
From our days of GCSE English, we would say either the beginning or the end.
A good first sentence will get the reader interested and ensure they actually read your statement rather than skim it.
A good ending will ensure the reader remembers your personal statement, though it also helps to have a good middle section as well.
The first line is probably the most important thing to work on. Most people put their reasons for studying the subject at the top, and this is generally regarded to be the most crucial part of the statement, as you need to hook the reader and make them want to read more.
However, the rest of your statement should make you shine as a candidate too, so there isn't really a definite answer to this question!
Just try to make your personal statement as interesting and polished as you can.
6. How do I write a statement for two different courses?
There's no easy way to write a personal statement for two totally unrelated courses.
If the courses are similar (i.e. Business Studies and Economics ) you may find you can write a personal statement that is relevant to both subjects without mentioning either subject by name.
If the courses are totally unrelated it may be impossible to write for both subjects without your personal statement sounding vague and unfocused.
Instead, you will need to concentrate on just one subject and just ignore the other, although you may want to question whether it's a good idea to apply for such different course, and re-think your subject choice .
7. Should I talk about what I want to do after university?
You could, but only if you have a good idea of what you want to do.
If you sound sure about what you want to do after university , it gives the impression that you've thought carefully about your course and what you want to do with it.
It is also a nice way to round off your personal statement , rather than just finishing on less important stuff like extra curricular activities.
If you don't have any future plans then leave it out - you don't want to be asked about them at interviews .
8. How should I structure my personal statement?
Most people write their personal statement in an essay style, usually starting off with the course and why they want to do it, then talking about their relevant work experience and skills, and finishing off with extra curricular activities.
However, you can use any style that you feel works best for you.
As a guide, spend around 50% of the space talking about your course and how you're suited to it and 50% on your work experience and other activities.
Exactly how you write your personal statement depends on your subject - generally people write more about work experience for vocational subjects like Medicine and Law than they would for Maths or English , where work experience is less important.
9. Is it worth doing loads of extra-curricular stuff to make my statement sound good?
There's no point doing extra things just to try and make yourself look good to universities - you won't enjoy it and it probably won't help much either.
From what we've seen, an interest and aptitude for the course is more important to admissions tutors than lots of extra curricular activities.
If you do want to do something to boost your application, read relevant books or do work experience related to the subject instead.
10. Should I talk about my qualifications?
No. There's already a section on the UCAS form for this, so don't waste space talking about them on your personal statement.
If you have something important that doesn't go in the qualifications section, ask your referee to put it down in your reference - it will sound better if it comes from them than from you.
11. Where can I see some example personal statements?
We have loads of free personal statement samples that you can browse through, broken down into subject categories so you can hopefully find what you are looking for quite easily!
Looking at what other students have written and submitted on their application is a useful way of seeing what makes a great personal statement (and what doesn't!).
Just make sure you don't copy sentences or whole chunks of these examples though, as UCAS has plagiarism detection software and your application will be rejected if it's found you've cheated!
12. What should I do after I've written my statement?
Ask for opinions on it!
Show it to your friends, parents, teachers, career advisors, etc and note down their comments.
The most useful comments are likely to come from your teachers in the subject and the people at your school or college who handle UCAS applications.
If you have enough time, leave your personal statement for a couple of weeks or a month and come back to it - if you're not still happy with what you wrote, it's time to start redrafting.
13. Should I post my personal statement online?
It's generally not a good idea to post it on an internet forum or discussion board before you've started university.
Anyone can steal information off a website and pass it off as their own, and with something as important as a personal statement, you don't want that to happen.
You should be OK sending it to people you trust by email - see the next question for a better way of getting people to look at it.
14. Where can I ask for feedback on my personal statement?
To get people to look at your personal statement without the risk of plagiarism visit the personal statement review section.
You can also get your personal statement professionally edited and reviewed here at Studential, through one of our very popular personal statement editing and critique packages.
We offer a range of services covering a variety of prices, so there's bound to be a package suited to you.
15. I'm still stuck with my personal statement - where can I find more in-depth advice?
Some people say writing a personal statement is easy – maybe it is, but it’s difficult to write a personal statement well. As this is such a big topic to cover, we suggest taking a look at our personal statement examples to help give you some inspiration for what to write, and then read through our personal statement writing guide when you’re ready to put pen to paper. Browse through the other information and advice we have in our personal statements section, and if you still feel you need a little extra help, you can always get your personal statement professionally edited and reviewed by one of our editors. We offer a range of UCAS personal statement editing and critique services , so there’s bound to be one suited to your needs. Don’t forget to ask your family, friends, teachers and careers adviser to look through your personal statement drafts, and incorporate any feedback they give you until you are 100% happy with it. Remember - it doesn’t matter how many times you have to redraft your personal statement – the most important thing is you get it right so you give yourself the best possible chance of being offered places by your chosen universities/colleges.
IMPORTANT: When writing your personal statement, it’s vital you remember not to copy from anyone else’s personal statement (not even just a sentence!). Not only is it wrong and unfair, but any plagiarism will be detected by the Copycatch Similarity Detection Software. If UCAS discover you have plagiarised your personal statement, whether you have copied someone else’s entirely or parts of it, they will cancel your application.
You can also try looking through our personal statement guide for extra guidance.
This takes you through how to write a personal statement step-by-step, and goes into far more detail than this FAQ does.
If you feel you need more help, check out our personal statement editing and critique services where our professional editors will review your statement to make it a success.
16. How do I write a personal statement if I'm a mature student?
Don't worry if you're a mature student applying to university - your qualifications, skills and extra experience will count as an advantage! Universities want to take on students from all walks of life, and this includes mature ones with more life experience.
Focus on what you can bring to the university if they offered you a place on the course, and how your degree fits into your future plans.
Read through some of our Mature Student Personal Statement Examples for inspiration.
17. How do I write a personal statement if I'm an international student?
As mentioned previously, universities want students from a range of backgrounds, and this includes those who want to study at their institution from abroad.
Again, try to convey how your experiences in your own country will benefit you on your course, and how they make you a valuable asset to the university.
To give you an idea of what other international students have written in the past, read through some of our International Student Personal Statement Examples for inspiration (but please remember not to copy them, or your application will be penalised!).
A few last tips
What have you done, relevant to your subject, that is unique and no one else is likely to put down?
Many people have the same old boring interests and work experience - you need something to separate you from the crowd, and while it's a gamble to make an individual personal statement, anything individual you do related to your chosen field can only look good.
Have a think - what makes you so special? If you can't think of anything then you can't complain if you get rejected! Finally, remember it's your personal statement, and you can write whatever you want in it.
If everything in this guide conflicts with what you've got already but you think you still have a killer personal statement, then use that.
A personal statement is about you, and you shouldn't let anyone tell you what to put in it - sticking blindly to the formula mentioned here will just stop your true personality showing through.
Further information
For more tips and advice on writing your personal statement, please see:
- The 15th January UCAS Deadline: 4 Ways To Avoid Missing It
- Analysis Of A Personal Statement
- Personal Statement Editing Services
- Top 10 Personal Statement Writing Tips
- Personal Statement Advice From A Teacher
- Personal Statement Writing Guide
- What To Do If You Miss The 15th January UCAS Deadline .
Best of luck with your personal statement!
Has lots of valuable
Mon, 19/09/2011 - 05:17
Has lots of valuable information
Thu, 06/10/2011 - 20:30
very good site!! Helped a lot!!!!
Wed, 12/10/2011 - 17:21
Great info, i appreciate it.
Fri, 14/10/2011 - 14:35
i wana apply for a science
Tue, 25/10/2011 - 10:22
i wana apply for a science faculty but what i did in the past were only related to English (eg:joining competitions in sos verse speaking,public speaking;volunteered to teach english;being chairman of english society at school./) and seems almost nth for science.... so should i write those experience also?but how can i link them to the content.... thanks
Wed, 26/10/2011 - 22:56
Excellent website, I have searched high and low for a website like this. Very impressed.
wow this has just simply
Fri, 28/10/2011 - 21:15
wow this has just simply saved my life:)
Sun, 30/10/2011 - 11:11
Thank you for the guidance, its very simple and straight forward
Disabilities
Fri, 04/11/2011 - 06:38
I have Aspergers should I include this in my PS because it has affected my involvement in extra curricular activities
like to point out that it is
Wed, 09/11/2011 - 15:13
like to point out that it is 47 lines and not 37 :) that aside, very helpful - thanks!
The best site I have found to
Fri, 02/12/2011 - 22:29
The best site I have found to help with personal statements, got so much useful infomation and straight to the point, will definately recommend to others in my class who are in the middle of their personal statments!
I have read that you should
Tue, 06/12/2011 - 14:57
I have read that you should write about why you wish to study at university and what inspires you to, and i want to but the real reason i want to study at uni is because of a very personal reason and im not sure wether to mention it as i feel i may come across as an attention seeker? the real reason i want to go is because of a very abusive relationship with an ex boyfriend that made me realise i should make the most of my life and do exactly what i want and never let anyone bring me down... do u think it would be too much if i said this - I was very unsure whether to write about the real reason I want to pursue what I’m passionate about, because its very personal. The truth is that is wasn’t a good experience. A traumatising abusive relationship with an ex boyfriend woke me up and made me see I should make the most out of my life.
Tue, 06/12/2011 - 15:03
Tue, 06/12/2011 - 15:08
Amazing Stuff
Mon, 13/02/2012 - 13:06
I'm so glad I found this site
Thu, 01/03/2012 - 15:46
I'm so glad I found this site. It's helped alot.
I'm so glad I found this site. It's helped alot. :)
Thu, 01/03/2012 - 15:47
Lying on your personal statement
Tue, 10/07/2012 - 20:27
I was very disappointed to see this included in your FAQs. Even more to see it answered in the way it was. If someone can lie and "get away with it" does that not suggest we could potentially have a generation of useless, brainless, incompetent potential lawyers, doctors, politicians heading our way? Oh, wait...how long have you been giving this advice out?
do we have to write about our
Tue, 31/07/2012 - 19:13
do we have to write about our interests and hobbies???
if yes what if we dont have enough space and gone over max line limit??
thx a lot for the post..lots
Thu, 13/09/2012 - 23:21
thx a lot for the post..lots of info :)
you get 47 lines not 37 as it
Thu, 20/09/2012 - 11:35
you get 47 lines not 37 as it says
Wed, 17/04/2013 - 11:16
Some of the universities I'm applying to offer different courses to other unis I'm also applying to. Is it possible to send two different personal statements depending on which uni? For Edinburgh and Manchester, I want to apply for English Literature, but for Aberystwyth, East Anglia and Manchester Metropolitian they offer English Lit and Creative Writing.
Any advice would be great, thanks!
Wed, 24/07/2013 - 03:11
Say, you got a nice article.Much thanks again. Awesome.
Wrong information
Thu, 25/07/2013 - 16:15
The maximum on UCAS for personal statements is 47 lines and 4000 characters, not 37 lines as stated on this page.
This is really helpful and
Fri, 27/09/2013 - 14:15
This is really helpful and informative but I'm fairly sure the number of lines allowed is 47, not 37 as written here.
Retaking year 12
Sun, 29/09/2013 - 12:22
I have recently retook year 12 and I am now in the process of writing my personal statement. Having gathered differing opinions on this matter i was wondering for your input on whether or not its worth putting it down on my personal statement.I have changed subjects, left one out for a year and returned to it and retaken a subject. This now leaves me with 5 As levels.
Mon, 30/09/2013 - 20:06
"Have a think - what makes you so special? If you can't think of anything then you can't complain if you get rejected!"
As if we're not under enough stress already!
Previous Work
Tue, 29/10/2013 - 20:33
can I put links in to websites I have professionally made
wow very good much
Fri, 15/11/2013 - 09:25
wow very good much informative
Very informative. I really
Wed, 15/01/2014 - 14:57
Very informative. I really appreciate your site.
Not required
Mon, 30/06/2014 - 14:27
Comment Content
- How To Write Your Postgraduate Personal Statement
Postgraduate study
- Qualification types
- What are the differences between an undergraduate and postgraduate personal statement?
- Why study postgraduate?
What's on this page?
What is a personal statement, preparing to write your personal statement, opening your personal statement, work experience and future plans, ending your personal statement.
Your postgraduate personal statement is your chance to get noticed for your expertise and experience you’ve gathered. It’s an important part of the application process as it allows you to talk about yourself and your passions and prove the value you can bring to your chosen university.
In this article, we’re going to talk you through how to write a postgraduate personal statement that stands out and gives you the best chance of being offered a place on the master’s programme you’re applying for.
Shona Barrie – Director of Admissions, University of Stirling
You’ll have already written a personal statement for your undergraduate study, so you’ll know the importance of preparation. There are two things to think about when you’re planning:
- The practical and factual information you need to get across.
- Then, the more emotional, human parts of you that make you different to everyone else.
Before you start writing, take some time to think about the key things you’d want your chosen university to know about you, and get them down on paper.
Questions to focus your mind
- Why have you chosen this master’s programme?
- Why are you passionate about this subject matter?
- How has your undergraduate study influenced your decision to apply?
- Have you got any work experience that might help you?
- What life experiences have you had that you could talk about?
- What achievements can you talk about to support your application?
- Why do you want to study at this particular university?
- What plans and ambitions do you have for your future career?
![how many words for personal statement for ucas how many words for personal statement for ucas](https://www.ucas.com/sites/default/files/styles/content_panel/public/media-brightcove/6312298270112.jpg?itok=MPz_dtre)
Three top tips
Be specific.
Remember that a postgraduate personal statement needs you to talk specifically about the university you’ve chosen.
Demonstrate experience
Universities will be looking for postgraduate students who are able to demonstrate expertise in a particular subject – so include that.
Show what you've learnt
Tell the university about your university life as an undergraduate and include any clubs or societies you were involved in.
Admissions tutors will be reading a lot of personal statements so it’s important to grab their attention right from the start.
You can find a full guide on How to start a personal statement: The attention grabber but here are the main things for you to think about.
- Don’t overthink the opening . Just start by showing your enthusiasm for the subject, showcasing your knowledge and understanding, and sharing your ambitions of what you want to achieve.
- Avoid cliches . Remember, this opening part is simply about introducing yourself, so let the admissions tutor reading your personal statement get to know you.
- Keep it relevant and simple . You’re limited on how much you can include so avoid long-winded explanations. Why use 50 words when ten can make your point?
Talking about the course
Now you’re ready to start talking about the course and subject you’re applying for.
There are four main areas you’ll need to cover in this section of your personal statement.
- Why are you applying for this master’s? Think about your undergraduate study and how this master’s will develop your expertise further. Do you have career aspirations this course will help you achieve?
- Why does the subject interest you? This is your chance to show your passion and really demonstrate who you are. If you have work or volunteering experiences related to the subject, include them here.
- Why do you think you’ll be an asset to the university? Your personal and practical skills combined together create a unique picture of who you are and why you’ll be a successful postgraduate student, so include both.
- How does your previous undergraduate study relate to the course? Showcase your enthusiasm for your current study and take the opportunity to demonstrate your skills and knowledge now, and how you want to build on that.
Next, you’ll need to write about your personal skills and achievements.
Universities like to know the abilities you have that’ll help you on the course, or generally with life at university. Don’t forget to include evidence to back up why you’re so passionate about the programme you’ve chosen.
Your personal skills and achievements
Be bold and talk about the achievements you’re proud of., include positions of responsibility you hold, or have held, both in and out of school., what are the things that make you interesting, special, or unique .
Your work experience and future plans are important to include in your personal statement. You should share details of jobs, placements, work experience, or voluntary work, particularly if it's relevant to your course.
- Try to link any experience to skills or qualities that’ll make you successful on your course.
- If you know what you’d like to do after as a career, explain how you plan to use the knowledge and experience you’ll gain.
It’s always good to connect the beginning of your statement to the end and a great way to reinforce what you said at the start. You want to see the ending as your chance to end in a way that’ll make the university remember you.
This final part of your personal statement should emphasise the great points you’ve already made and answer the question of why you should be offered a place on the course.
Read our full guide on How to finish your statement the right way .
Aakriti Labra – MSc Occupational and Organisational Psychology, University of Surrey
Now you’ve written your postgraduate personal statement, you’ll need to do a couple of final things before you submit it.
- Have you proofread your personal statement? Don’t just rely on spellcheckers. We’d recommend reading it out loud as that’s a great way to spot any errors as well as checking it sounds like you.
- Have you asked for feedback? Ask friends, family or your undergraduate university tutors to have a read through your personal statement and take their feedback on board.
- Check out our personal statement dos and don'ts Have a look at the common pitfalls against your final draft to make sure you haven't made any obvious errors!
Postgraduate
More advice.
Use the UCAS’ personal statement tool alongside this guide to help you structure your ideas.
Do you want to understand the differences between an undergraduate and postgraduate personal statement? Take a look at our guide here.
Why study a postgraduate course? Find out here.
What funding is there for postgraduate courses?
Sponsored articles UCAS Media Service
Five reasons to sign up to the ucas newsletter, how to find a job, student finance for postgraduate loans.
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Just start by showing your enthusiasm for the subject, showcasing your knowledge and understanding, and sharing your ambitions of what you want to achieve. Avoid cliches! Remember, this opening part is simply about introducing yourself, so let the admissions tutor reading your personal statement get to know you. Keep it relevant and simple.
Don'ts. Don't be modest or shy. You want your passions to come across. Don't exaggerate - if you do, you may get caught out in an interview when asked to elaborate on an interesting achievement. Don't use quotes from someone else, or cliches. Don't leave it to the last minute - your statement will seem rushed and important ...
How to write a personal statement for a conservatoire. The personal statement is your opportunity to talk about you, and why you want to enrol on a particular course. You should describe the ambitions, skills, and experience that'll make you suitable for the course.
The character limit which UCAS sets for the personal statement is very strict - up to 4,000 characters of text. This means that students have to express themselves in a clear and concise way; it's also important that they don't feel the need to fill the available space needlessly. Planning and redrafting of a personal statement is essential.
UCAS personal statement word limit. Your personal statement length can be up to 4,000 characters long. This may sound a lot, but it's a word limit of around 550-1000 words with spaces and only about 1 side of typed A4 paper. You need to keep it concise and make sure it's clear and easy to read. Applying for multiple courses
Type your personal statement in a cloud-based word processing program, such as Google Docs or Microsoft Word and don't copy and paste it into Ucas Hub until it's finished. ... The Ucas personal statement is changing in 2025. A question-based personal statement will be required as part of university applications from autumn 2025 onwards. 5 ...
The length of a personal statement varies depending on the university, but generally, the average length for an undergraduate application is between 400 and 600 words, around one side of A4 paper or a maximum of 47 lines.
future, small or big, it's the beginning. step of something great. Be authentic. No one knows you better than you know yourself, so show your interests, achievements, goals and personality. Be real. Don't get stuck in cliches like "I've always wanted to…". It's not about the goal — your ambition is real and important.
Your personal ID is: 153-354-8461. Your personal statement is too long to be saved. Click 'save' within 19 minutes so that your work is not lost. Your statement is 1 line (s) over the 47 limit, based on the preview. Your completed statement must be between 1,000 and 4,000 characters (maximum 47 lines) including spaces.
Mastering the UCAS Personal Statement. When applying through UCAS, your personal statement is your singular opportunity to impress multiple universities. It's more than just an essay—it's a strategic tool to make a memorable impact. With a strict limit of 4,000 characters, or about 600 words, every sentence must count.
The UCAS Personal Statement will be read by someone looking for proof that you are academically capable of studying that subject for your entire degree. In some cases, it might be an actual professor reading your essay. You'll only write one personal statement, which will be sent to all the universities you're applying to, and it's ...
A personal statement is a short written account used to support your university application. It is your opportunity to 'sell' yourself to universities. And to show how and why you are a good candidate for your chosen course. A well-written application may convince a university to make you an offer or invite you to an interview.
The personal statement builder in the UCAS Hub is designed to help you think about what to include in your personal statement, and how to lay it all out. It also counts how many characters you've used, so it's easy to see when you're close to the 4,000 character limit. All you have to do is sign up for the UCAS Hub and then you'll be ...
The personal statement is your opportunity to tell your admissions tutor why you're the right student to be offered a place on your chosen course. We don't interview all our applicants so this is your one chance to sell yourself for courses that don't require an interview. If you do apply for a course that does invite candidates to ...
The personal statement is one part of your UCAS application. You are given 4,000 characters and 47 lines to describe your interest in the subject you are applying for and what skills and experience you possess that show your passion for your chosen subject. What you need to know .
How many words in a UCAS personal statement. UCAS has a character limit of 4,000 characters. This equates to about 615 to 800 words. How many words is 4000 characters? 4,000 characters is about 615 to 800 words. For more Characters to Words conversions, check out our Characters To Words Converter.
The best Personal Statements get to the point quickly, so avoid starting with phrases like "From a young age", "I am applying for this course because", and "Throughout my life I have always enjoyed…". Go straight into why you are interested in your course subject. 2. Use cringe-worthy language and cheap gags.
Important changes to the UCAS personal statement: Note that all students applying to university for 2023, 2024 or 2025 will still be required to submit a UCAS personal statement as normal. However, from January 2025 onwards (October 2024, for Oxbridge applicants), there will be changes to the UCAS application process and students will no longer ...
The university application personal statement is changing in 2025. University admissions service Ucas has announced that a new style of personal statement will be launched in 2025. This will affect anyone making a university application from autumn 2025 onwards. Find out more about how the Ucas personal statement is changing in 2025 here.
Top tips on how to write your statement opener. We spoke to admissions tutors at unis and colleges - read on for their tips. 1. Don't begin with the overkill opening. Try not to overthink the opening sentence. You need to engage the reader with your relevant thoughts and ideas, but not go overboard. Tutors said: 'The opening is your chance ...
Writing a UCAS Personal Statement requires a student to convey a lot of information in a short space of time. Mistakes are easy to make. Read our run down of the most common ones and how to avoid them. Writing a Personal Statement for UCAS is, in many ways, like asking a student to tell the story of their life in 4,000 characters or less.
English personal statement pitfalls to avoid. A boring opening - avoid 'I have always loved literature/reading' or 'I have always had a passion for literature…'. Irrelevant context - talking about the Beatrix Potter book you were given when you were six probably won't impress. Overblown language - English applicants need a strong ...
Our personal statement FAQs will help ease the pain of writing a personal statement for your UCAS form, with information on when and what to write, and more. ... We offer a range of UCAS personal statement editing and critique services, so there's bound to be one suited to your needs. Don't forget to ask your family, friends, teachers and ...
Just start by showing your enthusiasm for the subject, showcasing your knowledge and understanding, and sharing your ambitions of what you want to achieve. Avoid cliches . Remember, this opening part is simply about introducing yourself, so let the admissions tutor reading your personal statement get to know you. Keep it relevant and simple.