UCAS: Personal Statements

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UCAS Personal Statements

• Dr Julia Moore
• Anaesthetist, parent, UCAS survivor!

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The personal statement

• Understand its purpose
• Collect data and plan your statement
• Polished and effective product

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Purpose

• Thousands of applicants
• See me
• both academic and rounded
• Why me
• why are you ideally suited to accountancy?
• why will you make more of a place than anyone
  else?
• Introduce interview topics

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Marketing yourself

• What is the university looking for?
• Show you can provide what they need
• Add value
• Skills, attitude, knowledge, experience
• Achievements - not just responsibilities

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Planning

• Start early
• finish by Sept for mid Oct, by Oct for the rest
• lots of revision and polishing
• Blank sheet 3 sections
• Academic basis of your subject
• Experience and understanding (work exp)
• Skills and achievements (extracurricular)

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Academic basis

• Prospectuses and course literature
• Insights from work experience
• Read around the subject critically find a
  topic that interests you, and include it
• Demonstrate academic abilities eg prizes

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Experience and understanding

• Work experience
• Voluntary work
• 3 x 3 table
• What you did (where)
• What you did or learned
• Why is it important?

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Skills and achievements

• Draw up a CV sports, hobbies, music, drama,
  responsibilities, academic
• Include difficult things that did not go
  perfectly
• So what ?
• For all areas, work through
• what it meant to you
• what you have learned from it
• how this affects your suitability for the course

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Analyse what you offer

• Separate piece of paper or mind map for each
  area sport, work experience, school roles etc.
  List items in each area first eg sport hockey
  team, swimming, hill walking. Music singing,
  instrument, band
• Detail skills, attitudes and achievements for
  each cluster eg teamwork, independence,
  reliability
• Insight into your key skills and attitudes ask
  others own research

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So what?

• Junior school prefect (1999) school 2nd XI
  hockey (2001 05). Took part in House Drama
  competitions, annual Science Fairs, 6th form
  Young Enterprise (treasurer), Duke of Edinburgh
  (Silver). Grade VI saxophone (2003) play bass
  guitar in student rock band. Saturday job to pay
  for driving lessons leaves little extracurricular
  time, but I have undertaken one weeks work
  experience with an accountancy firm.
• What skills and attitudes might these demonstrate?

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Experience / achievements

• Young Enterprise (Treasurer)
• Action words (past tense)
• I analysed, coordinated, directed, devised,
  researched, re-designed, expanded, increased,
  wrote, secured, negotiated

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A few more action words

• Achieved
• Arranged
• Designed
• Ensured
• Exceeded
• Improved
• Launched

• Modernised
• Organised
• Resolved
• Stimulated
• Supervised
• Taught
• Wrote

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Now start drafting

• UCAS advice
• Why you have chosen the course
• Why you are interested in the subject
• Job, work experience, placement, particularly if
  relevant
• Key skills gained eg through GNVQs
• Other achievements eg D of E
• Particular interests in current studies
• Future plans
• Subjects you are studying which dont have an
  exam
• Sponsorship or placements undertaken or applied
  for
• Plans for a year out
• Social, sports and leisure interests

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Dos and donts

• This means focus on tangible things, hard
  facts, examples and information
• It does not mean write 11 tiny paragraphs!
• Structure
• 3 main paragraphs
• introduction and conclusion
• Decide what to leave out

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What goes in - what stays out?

• Know your market
• What to put in
• Subject/universitys priorities are the most
  important
• What to leave out
• Irrelevant to the course
• Negative
• Lies or good intentions

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Cutting and editing

• Organise into three main paragraphs
• Logical flow
• Cut out unnecessary words
• Read aloud, for flow and punctuation
• A fresh eye
• Revise, revise, revise

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Wordy and woolly

• Multiple opportunities for my workgroup to
  interface with students and staff were generated
  by the Young Enterprise programme although
  unfortunately the complexity of project we
  devised meant we were not successful and we were
  unable to capitalise on our vision.

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Active sentences, action words

• Multiple opportunities for my workgroup to
  interface with students and staff were generated
  by the Young Enterprise programme although
  unfortunately the complexity of project we
  devised meant we were not successful and we were
  unable to capitalise on our vision.
• Young Enterprise as elected Treasurer, I
  analysed market research, developed the business
  plan, wrote the spreadsheet and delivered
  accurate and timely accounts. I reviewed
  financial progress regularly and initiated a
  mid-term project review which ensured we broke
  even.

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Achievements?

• I am working towards my Duke of Edinburgh Gold
  Award and we are planning to go hiking in the
  Peak District. This has taught me a lot of
  teamwork skills.

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So what?

• I am working towards my Duke of Edinburgh Gold
  Award and we are planning to go hiking in the
  Peak District. This has taught me a lot of
  teamwork skills.
• everyones doing D of E, no proof of
  achievement, no evidence of teamwork skills

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So what?

• I am working towards my Duke of Edinburgh Gold
  Award and we are planning to go hiking in the
  Peak District. This has taught me a lot of
  teamwork skills.
• During my Duke of Edinburgh Silver trip in the
  Vale of Glamorgan my team ran short of
  provisions. As a result I have assumed
  responsibility for food and water for our
  forthcoming Gold Award trip to the Peak District.
  I have developed a spreadsheet which details our
  precise requirements and I am confident that my
  organisation will enable the team to perform at
  its peak during the challenge.

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So what?

• During my Duke of Edinburgh Silver trip in the
  Vale of Glamorgan my team ran short of
  provisions. As a result I have assumed
  responsibility for food and water for our
  forthcoming Gold Award trip to the Peak District.
  I have developed a spreadsheet which details our
  precise requirements and I am confident that my
  organisation will enable the team to perform at
  its peak during the challenge.
• not afraid of responsibility, organised,
• team player

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Introduction and conclusion

• Write them last
• Avoid My passion for English literature
• Never plagiarise
• Conclusion reflects introduction
• Final fanfare to remind reader you have
  demonstrated necessary skills and attributes

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Crisp easy to read

• Logical flow
• I am (key features) .
• Accountancy needs (academic and skills) .
• My skills, attitudes and experience
• Prioritise
• Teaser for them to ask you about
• Closing summary focused on the future

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Perfect presentation

• Crisp and well organised
• Corect spelling and grammer
• Watch out for spell chequers
• Neat layout, plain font, line between paragraphs
• Easy to read short, active sentences
• Use bullets or précis to avoid I

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Summary

• A lot more to offer than you may think
• Start now
• Revise, condense, sleep on it, get help
• Know your PS thoroughly before interview
• Practice discussing your PS

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Reading

• The perfect CV Max Eggert
• Random House Business Books 2003
• ISBN 978-1-84-415144-0
• (action words, presentation)
• Write it right John Peck Martin Coyle
• Palgrave Study Guides 2005
• ISBN 1-4039-9487-0
• (presentation, structure, grammar, précis)