PERSONAL STATEMENTS GUIDE
A personal statement is a time to demonstrate to the selection committee who you are as a person. Specifically, it will share your story, values, interests, aspirations and compellingly provide an explanation for why you are a perfect fit for a particular opportunity. Before you start writing, think through the goals of your statement, review these tips, utilize the handouts to organize your thoughts, and solicit/incorporate feedback from trusted advisors and professors. Notably, however, this statement is not the place for creative writing or a colloquial tone, but rather a place to showcase yourself as an interesting and thoughtful person with a unique set of experiences, and a strong potential contributor to the graduate program, organization, or fellowship to which you are applying.
Personal Statement Tips
Start early! Personal statement writing can take a significant amount of time.
Include your qualifications, motivations, and aspirations, but do NOT just write a narrative form of your resume or CV. Choose 1-3 qualifications or experiences relevant to the program for which you’re applying, or link 2-3 experiences under one overarching lesson about who you are, what you want to do, and why. "Show" instead of "tell" your story.
Research the program, attend information sessions, and connect with participants or alumni so you can write about specific faculty, scholars, or professionals you want to work with and how you intend to maximize the program’s resources and opportunities.
Stay focused. If you are required to respond to specific prompts, address each aspect of each prompt.
If the application doesn’t outline a specific length, aim for approximately 500 words (two pages double-spaced or about 5300 characters including spaces).
Use the first person. You are expected to use "I" frequently in a personal statement.
When writing about obstacles you’ve faced, focus more on the personal qualities and strengths (“asset-based language”) that helped you overcome them rather than on the obstacles themselves. That is, highlight your resilience, creativity, and excellence.
Keep your audience in mind and demonstrate your fit with the program.
Remember the old writing adage "Show, don't tell." Use concrete examples.
Be unique: Find an interesting angle and avoid cliched phrasing.
If you incorporate humor, keep it subtle. Offending the search committee is the last thing you want to do!
GET HELP! See the resources section of this guide for some support options.
Brainstorming & Outlining Your Statement
Crafting personal statement.pdfGetting Started
Check out these slides on creating your personal statement from Davidson's Writing Center to help get you started.
Accessible_Writing_Personal_Statements_Handout (2).docxMap Out Your Thoughts
Use these helpful documents to brainstorm areas of focus and outline your statement. Remember, the personal statement is not the place to recap your experiences, but rather highlight a few under a unifying theme that demonstrate who you are.
Watch These Videos
The Betty and B. Frank Matthews II '49 Center for Career Development has developed a short video series to help you learn more about Personal Statements. The series includes four parts:
Writing Personal Statements Part 1: Purpose
3.5 minutes – WATCH HERE
Writing Personal Statements Part 2: Characteristics of Strong Personal Statements
4 minutes – WATCH HERE
Writing Personal Statements Part 3: Getting Started
2 minutes – WATCH HERE
Writing Personal Statements Part 4: The Writing Process
4.5 minutes – WATCH HERE
Other Resources
In addition to the video series and , review the following resources on personal statements and writing. If you’re applying for a fellowship program, meet with the Fellowships advisor to find out if there are any resources specific to that program. We also encourage you to meet with a career advisor for your industry to discuss your personal statement when you’re applying for graduate school. You should consider asking faculty mentors and recommenders to review your statement and offer suggestions.
A Guide to Writing a Personal Statement for Grad School Applications (Grammarly)
Davidson Writer: Resources for Writing Arguments
Davidson College Writing Center: Schedule an appointment with a Writing Center tutor and review the resources on their website.
Purdue Online Writing Lab (OWL)
If you struggle with writing concisely, review the OWL’s Paramedic Method resource.
UNC Chapel Hill Writing Center Revision Checklist
Writing Personal Statements Online: Includes samples and a chapter on personal statements for fellowship applications.
LinkedIn Learning: Writing with Impact