Question 1

What is a personal statement?

Accepted Answer

A personal statement is an essay written by a student applying to a university. All universities will require them as part of a student’s UCAS application. A personal statement is generally a short description of the student and their interests. It will also detail their interest in the subject they are applying for.

Question 2

When should I start writing my personal statement?

Accepted Answer

You can start writing your personal statement whenever you want. You’d be surprised how quickly deadlines, especially UCAS ones, can roll around. It is also worth remembering when certain applications need to be in. For example, those applying to ‘Oxbridge’ (a portmanteau of the University of Cambridge and the University of Oxford), your application needs to be in by the 15th of October. Equally, those applying for specific degrees such as medicine courses, veterinary medicine courses, veterinary science courses and dentistry courses.

Question 3

How long should a personal statement be?

Accepted Answer

A personal statement can be no more than 4,000 characters. This is generally between 570 and 1,000 words. Your statement can only be 47 lines long. Your statement will only be accepted if it is within the character count set forward by UCAS.

Question 4

How do I start writing my personal statement?

Accepted Answer

Writing your introduction for a personal statement can be complex for some students. The best thing to do is decide on the structure you want your statement to take and then go from there. Decide whether to start talking about yourself or your love of the subject. Generally, students start off talking about the subject they’re applying for and why they love it, but this varies from student to student.

Question 5

What are UK universities looking for in a personal statement?

Accepted Answer

Admissions tutors want to know what makes you, you. They also want to know what it is about the course or subject area that intrigues you so much. The main goal of the personal statement is to see if you would be an addition to their student society. Will you fit in with the rest? Do your views, values, and behaviours complement the broader student body? All these aspects are important for a university to consider.

Question 6

What’s the most important part of the personal statement?

Accepted Answer

There isn’t a most important part, as they are all important in their own way. Some people will tell you that the opening is the most important, while others will say a strong finish is best. It varies depending on who you ask. Overall, a personal statement is greater than the sum of its parts. Good introductions, good outros or a strong middle mean very little if the statement does not flow together.

Question 7

Can you submit two personal statements on UCAS?

Accepted Answer

It depends on how related the courses are. If you are looking at either English language courses or English literature courses, then your statement probably won’t need to change too much, even if they are separate subjects. However, if the courses are different, we recommend picking just one. You are only permitted to upload one personal statement at a time, and trying to make an application for a business degree sound similar to a forestry degree is going to be near-impossible, no matter how good a writer you are.

Question 8

Should I talk about what I want to do after university?

Accepted Answer

You can, but you don’t have to. You’d be surprised how few students go to university and know what they want to do when they leave. If you have an idea, then mentioning it’s a good idea. It gives insight into your end goal and maybe explains some of your prior choices. That being said, the final verdict on a student seldom comes down to their post-university aspirations.

Question 9

Is it worth doing many extra-curricular activities to improve my personal statement?

Accepted Answer

Don’t do something just because it would look good on your personal statement. There are several reasons for this. The activities you’ve done probably won’t make a difference. Your passion and interest in the course are infinitely more important to universities than anything else. Why would you want to do something if you didn’t want to do it? If you enjoy it, you’ll be miserable and resentful.

Question 10

Should I discuss my qualifications?

Accepted Answer

You can, but we wouldn’t recommend it. Your UCAS application will already have all your grades on there. UCAS is automatically updated when your results are released, so you don’t need to mention them in your personal statement. Also, from a practical side of things, you probably won’t even know yet. Unless you are writing your personal statement after A Level results day or BTEC results day, you won’t know what grades you have, so mentioning them will be a waste of time at that point.

Question 11

What should I do when I’ve written my personal statement?

Accepted Answer

Don’t submit it just yet. Speak to people you trust and ask them to give it a once-over before you do anything. Speak to parents or guardians, teachers and friends just to get a feel for how it sounds and flows before you do anything else. Sometimes it’s a good thing to come back to it later. If you have enough time, return to your statement after a few weeks or months and see how you feel about it. Distance is often helpful for written work.

Question 12

How do I write my personal statement as a mature student?

Accepted Answer

You don’t need to approach your statement differently if you are a mature student. The statement still has the same structure and basic principles as a personal statement written by anyone else. The main thing to focus on with a mature student's personal statement is what experiences you have. What sets mature students apart from usual undergraduate students is life experiences, work experiences and general industry and sector knowledge. Don’t be afraid to mention these things.

Question 13

How do I write a personal statement as an international student?

Accepted Answer

As with mature students, international students don’t really need to differ too much from the norm. Universities love to pick applicants from different backgrounds and countries, so you don’t necessarily need to do anything special to your statement. Just make sure you hit the key points. Whether you're a mature student, an international student or an undergraduate student from right around the corner of the university, all they want to know is how much you love the subject and who you are.

Question 14

Should I mention the name of the university I want to apply to in my personal statement?

Accepted Answer

You can, but it is not recommended. In so doing, you will alienate your chances of being able to attend any other university. Your personal statement is more of a “one size fits all” statement. It is part of your UCAS application and is automatically sent to any university you select for your choices, so mentioning a specific university as your desired choice isn’t a smart move, even if they are your only choice.

Question 15

What should I do if I have no work experience?

Accepted Answer

Work experience isn’t essential for a university application. Of course, it does help if you have some, even if it isn’t in the sector you are applying to, but don’t be worried if you don’t have any. Mentioning work experience is a good way of showing universities your work ethic. With no work experience, you will likely be able to find other potential examples of your work ethic and drive.

Question 16

How do you start off a personal statement?

Accepted Answer

Honestly, there isn’t a right or wrong way to write your personal statement introduction. You can see from previous personal statement examples that most students tend to tailor their approach to their writing style and the subject they are applying for. As strange as it may sound, write the other bits first. Your introduction needs to be strong and capture the imagination and attention of the reader, so sometimes going back and writing it last can be an excellent way of doing that, that way you can combine all the disparate elements of the statement to form a cohesive and guiding introduction or your reader.

Question 17

How should I format my personal statement?

Accepted Answer

There are no formatting options for a personal statement. You can’t write the statement in a different colour or with italics, bold or strikethroughs. Your statement is uploaded digitally. You cannot hand your personal statement in in-person.

Question 18

Will the university know if I lie on my personal statement?

Accepted Answer

Generally, yes, they will. There are certain things that the university cannot check up on, but for the most part, they can tell. There are many ways this can happen. For example, if you mentioned in your statement that you read a book by a specific author and that you love their work, don’t be surprised if you are asked about that book/author in a university interview or during your initial Clearing call. As with a student CV, don’t lie. Exaggeration is common, though still not accepted. Flat-out lying will almost always be caught out by any admissions tutor, especially if you have to evidence your claims.

Question 19

Is UCAS getting rid of personal statements?

Accepted Answer

Personal statements are changing. Under the new changes, students must now answer questions in six key areas. These changes will be introduced in 2024 for 2025 applicants. So you will have plenty of time to prepare for the changes. The areas of questions will be: Motivation for course, Preparedness for course, Preparation through other experiences, Extenuating circumstances, Preparedness for study, Preferred learning styles. All of these areas may change depending on user feedback.

Question 20

Can I go over the 47 lines on my personal statement?

Accepted Answer

No, you can’t. You must remain within the specified limit of 4,000 characters and 47 lines. If you have over 47 lines but under 4,000 characters, you need to shorten it, unfortunately.

Question 21

Do blank lines count in a personal statement?

Accepted Answer

You must have blank lines between paragraphs to make the statement easy to read. Blank lines are included as part of the character count.

Question 22

Do universities read personal statements?

Accepted Answer

It ultimately depends on where you are applying. Most universities will have their specific subject tutors read the statement, while others may have their admissions team read them. Some universities will do it differently. Some universities have even been known to not read them and base their decision on whether or not you have the required UCAS tariff points, but this is rare.

Question 23

Do universities know if you copied a personal statement?

Accepted Answer

Yes, they do. While it may seem like an intelligent move to copy the text of a previously submitted personal statement and then upload it to UCAS, they will always know. UCAS uses a similarity detection system called Copycatch. Most universities use Turnitin to catch copied essays, as it has a plagiarism detector implemented with it. UCAS will know. If your statement is caught, then the university you applied to is informed, and they, along with UCAS, will make any further decisions from there.

Question 24

Does UCAS check your qualifications?

Accepted Answer

Not, usually, no. They will have access to your A-Level, BTEC and T-Level results but may not have total access to your GCSEs. That said, you won’t be able to lie about your qualifications. Universities have been known to ask for certificates for qualifications, even GCSEs, so you won't be accepted if you can’t produce them. Make sure your qualifications are accurate.

Question 25

How do you end a university personal statement?

Accepted Answer

Much like your introduction, there isn’t a right or wrong way to end your statement. Some have suggested that summarising your key points is an excellent way to end your statement. Talking about the future is a good way to end too. You don’t necessarily need to speak about your plans for a career afterwards, but you can talk about your plans for university.

Question 26

Should a personal statement have a title?

Accepted Answer

No, it shouldn’t. There’s no point adding one either, as it will simply take up characters in the statement. You do not need a title. Add to that, you also do not need to use quotes in the statement either. They can be used, but they aren’t a requirement.

Question 27

Should I indent paragraphs in my personal statement?

Accepted Answer

No, all indentations are formatted out by UCAS. If you indent, you may be costing yourself precious characters, so there is no need to indent.

Question 28

What font size should I use for my personal statement?

Accepted Answer

You can choose whatever font size you like. That being said, many universities ask students to write their personal statement in 12-point font size, for ease. Writing in 72-point font size isn’t a good idea.

Question 29

What characters are not allowed in the UCAS personal statement?

Accepted Answer

Some characters are automatically filtered out by UCAS. Backslashes are not allowed, and neither are curly brackets. As for accented characters, such as é, à, è, ù, etc, they can also be filtered out. The UCAS form will automatically remove these elements.

Question 30

What should you not do in a personal statement?

Accepted Answer

There is a long list of things that you should not do in a personal statement. Some range from the obvious through to the not-so-obvious. The most common things to avoid in a personal statement are: Not having evidence to support your claim, Irrelevant skills or extracurricular activities, Poor grammar, Failures or regrets, Quotes that have nothing to do with the statement, Lies.

Question 31

Can I use ChatGPT for my personal statement?

Accepted Answer

You cannot use ChatGPT or generative artificial intelligence to write your personal statement. It may seem tempting to ask ChatGPT, “Write me a personal statement”, but UCAS and universities know when you’ve used it. That isn’t to say that ChatGPT and other AI bots can’t be helpful. You can use them as grammar checkers or as a means of clarifying points, or to give you ideas, but it cannot write it for you. UCAS is starting to take out its own AI-detection bot to find out whether or not a statement was written with AI, so probably best not to risk it.

Personal Statement FAQs

What is a personal statement?

When should I start writing my personal statement?

How long should a personal statement be?

Is a personal statement 4000 characters or 47 lines?

What makes a good personal statement?

What if I don't have anything to write about?

I really don't like writing about myself, how do I do it in my personal statement?

What is an example of a strong personal statement?

What is a good opening for a personal statement?

Can you submit two personal statements on UCAS?

Should I mention the name of the university I want to apply to in my personal statement?

How should I format my personal statement?

What tips do you have for writing personal statements?

Can I use ChatGPT for my personal statement?

Is UCAS getting rid of personal statements?

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