Helping your child write their personal statement
This is your child's chance to tell the university about themselves, their academic interests, and their reasons for applying to the chosen course.
What is a personal statement?
A personal statement is written by your child to explain their suitability for the course they are applying for. The UCAS personal statement must follow a new set structure which breaks the text down into three sections. Each section answers a distinct question and must be a minimum of 350 characters. The whole personal statement should be a maximum of 4000 characters, which is about 47 lines.
The personal statement sums up your child’s academic achievements and personal qualities, expresses their passion and knowledge about their chosen subject, and allows them, to talk about any transferable skills and relevant experience they may have. It accompanies the rest of the UCAS application and reference.
As a parent, you can play a vital role in helping your child write a great personal statement. Here are some top tips:
Encourage your child to start early
Your child needs to make their personal statement stand out from the crowd and that can take time. Starting early gives your child time to plan.
Help your child to identify their strengths and weaknesses
A personal statement that highlights skills and achievements will demonstrate why your child is a strong candidate. Including some weaknesses demonstrates self-awareness and a willingness to learn and improve.
Brainstorm ideas together
Brainstorming is a key part of the writing process. It will help your child generate ideas, organise their thoughts, and develop a structure.
Make it authentic
This is your child’s opportunity to say a bit about themselves and why they’re interested in the subject they’re applying for. It needs to be authentic so encourage your child to avoid cliches and make it unique to them.
Follow the guidance
The new format of the UCAS personal statement means rather than writing one long text, you will be guided by the three questions so that you can structure your answers correctly. It will be easily to write concisely and ensure you include exactly what universities are looking for. The three questions are as follows:
- Why do you want to study this course or subject?
- How have your qualifications and studies helped you to prepare for this course or subject?
- What else have you done to prepare outside of education, and why are these experiences useful?
Each answer needs to be unique and all three texts should read well together and flow.
It needs to be concise and punchy. Universities will receive many applications, so it needs to grab someone’s attention from the get-go.
Provide feedback and support
Once your child has written a first draft you can help them identify areas that might need amends and give suggestions on how they can make their statement more impactful.
Proofread carefully
Our brains tend to correct mistakes as we read them so do check your child’s statement carefully and if possible, ask someone else to read it through too. Top tip: reading out loud helps!
Get feedback from others
Encourage your child to get feedback from other people too. For example, teachers or tutors might suggest ways to make the statement more effective and friends could share tips based on their own experience of writing a personal statement.
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