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8 Tips On How To Write A Personal Statement For College  | Examples

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  • March 22, 2024

A personal statement is your chance to demonstrate why the college you choose should grant you admission. Indeed, it is a big difference-maker in college application considerations. Writing a good statement is a very important step.

Therefore, we’ll give you some tips on how to write a personal statement for college in 2024.

Applicants often hire professional personal statement writers to do the job for them. A Schwartz study, carried out in 2004, totally backs up this statement in every degree and dimension. Hence, many schools have adopted other procedures to ensure they admit the best students.

Now I believe a personal statement is not esoteric to you, instead, it’s the contrary. So, in this article, you’ll get basic knowledge on personal statements, procedures, examples, and very important tips on how to write a personal statement for college.

Table of contents

What Is A Personal Statement? What is the purpose of a personal statement

A personal statement is generally a document a student submits to his college of choice in order to gain admission.

In this document, you precisely state the department you wish to enroll in and how it will impact your life and society positively.

A popular misinterpretation about personal statements is that personal statements are the major criteria used by admission councils to judge students.

Well, this is wrong and totally untrue. Instead, personal statements are important as they largely reflect the applicant’s pursuit.

Initially, many college applicants begin writing their personal statements until they probably bump into another one they consider better. Then, they gradually get discouraged and eventually hire a writer to help them out.

Although a writer will do well on your personal statement for college, the aim will be totally defeated.

Why? Because it’s called a “personal statement” for a reason.

The idea is basically for you to express yourself. And this is the reason behind the format of a personal statement for college.

What then is the format for a personal college statement?

There is no format. You write in the manner in which you best express yourself. Hence, your personal statement has to be unique and descriptive of your abilities.

How Do I Start A Personal Statement For College?

This is usually the hardest part as it can make or mar your statement.

The beginning of your personal statement for college has to totally capture the mind of the reader while encouraging him/her to keep reading.

You should use simple words which can be easily interpreted and understood. Additionally, your sentences should maintain a uniform length.

In summary, we believe the best method you can apply is a story depicting your continuous drive and commitment to become a better person.

Also Read: Scholarship Motivation Letter

How Long Should A Personal Statement For College Be?

A personal statement for college should not exceed 4,000 words and 45 lines. Basically, this is to avoid a very long and tiring read.

It may seem too much, but your perspective may change as you start writing and you need to summarize all these relevant thoughts, skills and experiences.

It is better to write and finalize your statement in a Word document, then copy it into the UCAS application system for submission instead of making changes later.

All your paragraphs will be generally separated by one blank line which makes readability easy. However, your spacing has to be uniform.

8 Tips On How To Write A Personal Statement For College

Personal statements are letters of intent focused on delivering the best reasons why you want to take particular actions. When it comes to college, there are certain differences hence there is no rule of thumb.

So, we have outlined 8 tips which will help you write an exceptional personal statement for college. Therefore, these 8 tips include;

  • Start Writing
  • Short paragraphs
  • Simple Use of English
  • Focus on strengths
  • Uniqueness
  • Grammatical construction
  • Storytelling
  • Length

1. Start Writing

Writing has been existing long before most of us were born. Indeed, it is an everlasting skill that individuals still use to make an income.

Many people have a misconception about writing; they believe writing is for a select group of people. Indeed, this is not true.

Writing is for everyone and can be done by everyone. It’s only a skill when you specifically develop a particular area in writing.

Today, innovations have improved writing greatly. Many manufacturing systems have been developed and have made it easier.

Writing long texts is no longer an issue as you can easily make corrections and necessary adjustments.

So, when writing a personal statement for college you shouldn’t think too long about a very perfect start. A perfect start comes after you have written and evaluated many times.

2. Short paragraphs

Short paragraphs spice up any time of writing. They make it easy for people to see and read too.

They also help you outline your thoughts in simpler ways which makes communication effective.

In addition, research has shown that people read writings with short sentences much more than those with long sentences.

When it comes to grasping a reader’s attention, a good rule of thumb is to abstain from writing more than five or six sentences in a paragraph before finding a logical place to break.

Therefore, remember that the idea behind a paragraph might be short and sweet or merit a deeper explanation.

Actually, there are no strict rules about how many words or lines your paragraphs should be, and there’s no need to lock your doors if you occasionally write long or short ones.

3. Simple Use of English

The use of complex words is unnecessary as it makes reading very difficult. Hence, your writing has to communicate simplicity.

Writing in simple terms has a lot of advantages. These advantages range from easier understanding to better interpretation.

Don’t make the mistake of believing that you need to express your use of “ambiguous” words in your personal statement.

Always stick to simplicity, simplicity rules.

4. Focus on your strengths

Your statement should primarily focus on your area of strengths. It’s not wise to state matters where you are not generally strong.

You have to properly outline your key areas of strength where you can do very well.

However, you must state how your strengths combine with your academic pursuits to help you succeed.

5. Uniqueness

We all in life don’t definitely have the same experiences and this is actually what makes us different.

This difference is immediately expressed in how we execute responsibilities and perform tasks.

So, your writing style should by all degrees be different from that of someone else. Your uniqueness has to be dominant.

Indeed, admission councils understand how professionals write and will easily detect a personal statement for college that was written by a professional. Hence, this should encourage you to write your statement yourself.

Most times, it generally doesn’t fall to punctuation and structure but the desire to study and affect lives.

6. Grammatical construction

Now, many college applicants fall into the trap of trying to impress the admission council with grammar. Indeed, this is contrary to the goal.

The general idea is to use intelligible words to communicate meaning and a desire to study.

You only need to use certain ambiguous words when they actually best explain your point in a few lines.

The best rule of thumb is to keep it simple, straight to the point, and most importantly; inspiring.

7. Storytelling

Stories have been constantly told from generation to generation. In fact, it is a cultural practice that can’t die.

Stories are a beautiful style of communicating your life in a way that appeals to people’s emotions.

Through stories, humans can actually fix themselves in your place and feel what you feel.

Therefore, when crafting a good personal statement, a good hack is to start with stories.

For example; You can draw the story from your childhood where you illustrate how you dreamt to become a pilot by building paper out of cardboard paper.

Stories sell and they will continually do so.

8. Length

Hey! It’s good to get to your point and state your mission but being too straightforward is boring.

Additionally, it will make your personal statement very brief and unprofessional, communicating laziness and unseriousness.

Hence, your personal college statement should have length – a minimum of 1,000 words is a great place to start.

Probably you might think it’s a very big challenge; it’s actually small. Because when you pick up your writing tools to begin, you will flow effortlessly.

Also Read: 4 Tips on Scholarship Letter Application with Samples

Personal Statement for College Examples

After you must have read these tips, you might still be a little confused about your statement journey. Don’t worry! We have taken research and gotten some great personal statements that can help you.

Hence, we will be giving you examples from goingmerry.

Essay: On why I want to study music

“My great-great-uncle Giacomo Ferrari was born in 1912 in Neverland, NY, the youngest of four sons. His parents had emigrated from Italy with his two eldest brothers in the early 1900s in search of a better life in America.

Their struggles as immigrants are inspiring, but the challenges they faced are undoubtedly similar to those that many other immigrant families had to overcome; because of this, the actions that my relatives embarked upon are much more extraordinary.

Giacomo’s oldest brother Antonio, my great-grandfather, decided to take a correspondence course in violin and to teach his youngest brother Giacomo how to play as well.

Giacomo Ferrari eventually became an accomplished violinist and started a free “Lunchtime Strings” program for all the elementary schools in the Neverland area, giving free violin lessons and monthly concerts.

As a native English speaker who has had the privilege of studying viola and violin with trained, private teachers, I can only imagine the perseverance it took for my great-grandfather and great-great-uncle to learn an instrument like the violin out of booklets and lessons that were not even written in their native language.

Their passion and dedication to learning something new, something not part of their lives as blue-collar, immigrant workers, and their desire to share it with others, has inspired me as a musician and a person.

This spirit has motivated me to pursue an MA at Composition at the University of XXX.”

Also Read: Cover letter for Scholarship

Essay: On why I want to study medicine

“My passion for teaching others and sharing knowledge emanates from my curiosity and love for learning. My shadowing experiences, in particular, have stimulated my curiosity and desire to learn more about the world around me.

How does platelet-rich plasma stimulate tissue growth? How does diabetes affect the proximal convoluted tubule? My questions never stopped.

I wanted to know everything and it felt very satisfying to apply my knowledge to clinical problems. distinct concepts together to form a coherent picture truly attracts me to medicine.

It is hard to separate science from medicine; medicine is science. However, medicine is also about people—their feelings, struggles, and concerns.

Humans are not pre-programmed robots that all face the same problems. They deserve sensitive and understanding physicians. Humans deserve infinitely curious doctors, constantly questioning new advents in medicine.

They deserve someone who loves the challenge of problem-solving and coming up with innovative individualized solutions.

I want to be that physician. I want to be able to approach each case as a unique entity and incorporate my strengths into providing personalized care for my patients.

Until that time, I may be found Friday mornings in the operating room, peering over shoulders, dreaming about the day I get to hold the drill.”

Essay: On living with depression

“Before I was diagnosed, I had been told it was a normal part of growing up. I was told that teens are moody. I would grow out of it. Sincerely, I couldn’t imagine anyone growing out of what I was feeling. I couldn’t imagine anyone surviving.

Diagnosis and medication have saved my life, allowing me to see the world as people without my brain chemistry would. […] what I found was a place of tiny kindnesses.

It might sound bad—as though kindness can only exist in the smallest forms. This is not what I mean. There are extraordinary people out there who devote their lives to doing very large, very important things for others.

I’m not talking about them, partially because they are extraordinary. They are not the norm.

What is normal are the tiny kindnesses. These do not cost a person much of anything. A slice of time, a moment of openness, and little else. They are a smile when you’re feeling down, a comforting hand on the shoulder, a moment to talk.”

What is the personal statement for college outline?

Your personal statement for college outline is what you create it to be. However, as we have earlier said, a statement is all about you.

We have listed all the tricks that can help you deliver an astounding statement.

In summary, the outline is just your title in addition to your explanation of your intention to study.

Also Read: Scholarship thank you letter

Conclusion

As a college applicant, your personal statement is the only biggest expression of your abilities apart from your results.

In fact, it tells more about your thinking capacity and communication intelligence.

There are no great statements by ranking. A great statement is one that comes from a desire to learn and grow demonstrated by the power of ink.

Don’t look down on yourself when it comes to writing, instead take initiative and watch your dreams come true.

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