Every applicant is supposed to be faced with the question of how to write a personal statement while applying to the educational institution of their dream. This article is for you to understand some features of preparing your best essay.
A personal statement essay is your chance to state your achievements and qualifications in a manner that will be compelling to the admissions committee. Other components of your application are mostly numbers (test scores, GPA, etc.) or out of your control (letters of recommendation). Your admissions essay is your one chance to set yourself apart from all other applicants with the same grades and the same test scores. You need to think very carefully about what information in your essay will make the committee take notice and say: “This person should attend our school!”
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What is Personal Statement?
The role of the personal statement is to make one candidate stand out from other applicants. Countless applications list many similar qualifications, experiences, and goals. Creating a personal statement that is notable for its content requires a great deal of preparation and planning. Personal statements need to be meticulously organized, well-written and focused on setting the applicant apart from the larger group. Whether a personal statement includes an effort to disclose or explain a misstep along the way or to communicate the applicant’s all-encompassing passion for the degree program or specialty, the content must be clear, the ideas must flow well, and it must be in the applicant’s own voice and words.
Things To Think About Before You Write Your Personal Statement
It can make or break your chance of admission. The role of a personal statement is to provide the admissions committee a reason to offer you a seat in the class or degree program. If you can convince the committee of your great passion for the field or your longtime desire for this degree, then your personal statement will accomplish its purpose.
A personal statement should include a specific story or anecdote that “shows” the reader your commitment and abilities, rather than just “telling” them. A creative or moving story will be remembered by the reader if it tells the story in a way that explains the applicant’s desire to pursue a degree in the field to which they are applying. The story could be personal, based on family experience, or it could be an account of a significant encounter with a friend, acquaintance, or stranger. The personal statement’s story should reveal a candidate’s inspiration to pursue the degree program.
The principal role of the personal statement is to provide the admissions committee with a personal representation of the candidate. The committee wants to learn about an applicant beyond the standard details of application materials. A personal statement provides insight into an applicant’s reasons for pursuing a degree program, including long term goals, motivation, and commitment.
How to Write A Personal Statement
As a rule, personal statements are written on a particular theme. Remember, however, that the focus is on you. You’ll need to use personal events from your life and what you’ve learned to craft a compelling story. What do you feel strongly about? What provides you with your inner drive? Also, you want to show that you know how to think. How do you think about the world? What events from your past have influenced your mindset? Where are you headed? Nobody expects you to have all the answers to have the next fifty years of your life charted out but it’s worth your while to think hard about where you want to be in five or ten years, and to articulate how the program you’re applying to can help you get there.
There are four common types of Personal Statement themes. You can click on the links below to see more information about common personal statement themes.
- Describe a significant experience or achievement
- Discuss an issue that is important to you
- Describe a person who has influenced you
- Why is our school right for you?
Above all, be sincere. Too many applicants write what they think an admissions committee wants to hear. Admission officers have read it all – they know the difference between a sincere, honestly expressed personal statement essay and the one that is made-up fluff.
How to format a personal statement?
There is no secret that your essay must have certain formatting requirements. Personal statement format is a very important point as it makes a visual impression of your essay. Before writing it, think about the points that must be mentioned and the way on how they should be presented. We have several tips for you on how to deal with the formatting obligations :
- STEP 1: Don’t use the title for your essay
It is pretty obvious for the admission committee what they are reading so that you do not need to use any headers. - STEP 2: Use a readable font
Nobody wants to spend their precious time understanding the specific letters in your text, even if it looks nice. - STEP 3: Double-space your personal statement
And again, it is about the ease of reading the text you write. - STEP 4: Don’t use a lot of returning to the things mentioned before
You can return to the information that is already written only in the case of necessity. Remember that it is not interesting to read the same facts several times.
All in all, the success of your essay depends on a number of factors. You need to think carefully about the visual part of your essay as it makes the first impression of your writing. Don’t be afraid to try different approaches to preparing your essay. You may look through some blogs, articles, and other materials on how to format a personal statement. If the university you apply to demands special requirements, be sure that your writing sticks to them.
Don’t be afraid of using personal statement examples
After you have started writing your essay you may confront the thought of not being sure whether you started making it in the right way or not. In this case, it is helpful to use personal statement examples. This action might help you to understand what structure you are supposed to use for your essay, which format is appropriate, and you will see the example of the successful job done. You may look through the experience of other people, you may get to know what features the admitted applicants used to make this personal statement an excellent one.
While reading the sample essay you can distinguish your weak points, find inspiration, and improve the text you have already written.
Remember that it is just an example, don’t use vicarious ideas and personal experience while writing personal statement.
Feel free to write the information relatable to you, be honest, and describe your real thoughts and feelings. The admissions committee isn’t interested in general topics that are related to every student. Try to rely only on your personal experiences and specific facts from your biography and achievements.
Even if after all the actions you feel that everything is not clear with your essay, you can use personal statement editing service to improve your essay. No matter if it is your master’s or college admission essay. In all these cases you are supposed to present the written form of your best sides. As your personal statement is an important part of the admission process, you have to be conscious of all information written there. To be sure that your writing is the most appropriate one, you can use college essay editing from our editors.
Professional editors at EssayEdge can transform your personal statement into something that will stand out among the flood of essays from similar candidates. Whether you’re off to college, graduate school, an MBA program, medical school, or law school, we’ve got the right editor for you at an affordable price who will help you to cope with all the difficulties on how to write a personal statement.
