Management and Human Resources Personal Statement

Why do you want to study this course or subject?

A Human Resources degree incorporates the skills I possessed from an early age, with the key elements of my A Level subjects, thus making it obvious that this would be the perfect degree opportunity for me. Growing up, I had a natural inclination to organise; be it planning games in the playground at six years old, to ensuring everything was in place for group success in school and college. I pride myself in achieving a high standard, and enjoy working in an environment with people who are as dedicated and eager to succeed as myself. I aspire to do a Human Resource degree that includes a year working in an industry as I believe that practical experience is just as vital as theory based learning. Having a year of experience would allow me to widen my skills, and give me a true understanding of Human Resources, whilst applying both my academia to my physical work, and vice versa.

How have your qualifications and studies helped you to prepare for this course or subject?

I am currently studying A-levels in English Language, Religious studies and Law. These subjects contain key aspects relating to a Human Resource degree; understanding emotions through paralinguistic features, having the ability to construct linguistically perfect letters and documents, being able to identify the ethically and morally right action in a situation, and the concepts of law. As well as this, all of these subjects developed my essay writing skills; a key attribute for success at University. As another chance to widen my study, I completed an A-level in Creative Writing outside of the curriculum. This allowed me to develop my independent learning skills, and focus on the finer detail of a piece of writing. Interpreting situations was a key element to this course, and I believe this would help me in my degree as Human resources requires you to understand the different interpretations of an event, and deduce the most likely or best explanation.

What else have you done to prepare outside of education, and why are these experiences useful?

My first experience of Human Resources was working for a Human Resource team at Foxes Biscuits. This gave me an insight into the generalist side of HR, as it was factory based and dealt with issues that were found in a factory environment. I had the opportunity to have one-on-one meetings with all levels of a Human Resource team, as well as meetings with the manager of Training and Development, and the Occupational Health team. Meeting these people allowed me to not only gain knowledge and experience of the duties of someone in or related to HR, but it also allowed me to ask a team of people who employ people in HR their opinion on what to do regarding my university degree, and the specialisms and qualifications that would help me into employment after my degree. I also did work experience with a specialist Human Resource team in the Two Sisters shared services centre. This showed me an alternative side to Human Resources that dealt with the issues of thousands of people, rather than a small number of people. I was able to see the work that went into the technology used by the smaller factories, and also saw the payroll and reporting sides too. This was a completely different side to Human Resources, and it was a very enriching experience to know that my degree could take me down so many different paths. In July 2018, I will be taking part in a volunteering project with my college, in which I will be helping to build a school in Nepal, and supporting less fortunate children. I had to go through 3 separate interview stages, and competed with 136 other applicants to be given this opportunity, and I look forward to seeing the world from another perspective, and making a difference. I believe this trip to Nepal will help not only with my social skills, but also academically. Human resources requires you to give help to people in need, and this will be a skill I am able to understand and perfect from this opportunity. I am an extremely driven student who strives for success. I look forward to joining many different societies, pursuing my passions and representing the University with pride.