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You will see below some advice from UCAS regarding personal statements. There are also various links for you to explore further.
You want to stand out from the crowd by showcasing who you are and what you can bring to a university as you begin your undergraduate journey.
Writing a personal statement
This is the only part of the application where you can write in your own style – it’s your chance to tell universities and colleges why you’d like to study with them, and what skills and experience you have.
It’s got to be at least 1,000 characters long – but you have up to 4,000 characters/47 lines – whichever comes first.
The recommendation is that you start in Microsoft Word (or something similar) and paste it into your application as the application doesn’t have a spell check. While you are in your application, hit save regularly to avoid losing your work. As you would with any important piece of work read and re-read and preview it before you mark this section as complete.
Preparation
Preparation
You’ll have heard the saying preparation is key, and that’s no different when you’re tackling your personal statement.
There are two things to think about when you’re planning.
The practical and factual information you need to get across
The more emotional, human parts of you that make you different to everyone else.
Before you start writing, take some time to think about the key things you’d want an admissions tutor to know about you, and get them down on paper. Don’t worry too much about making your notes perfect – this is more about making sure you know why you should be offered a place.
You can also look at the course description as this’ll help you with what to include and give you a good idea of what each uni is looking for.
Here are a few questions you can answer to help you get started:
Why have you chosen this course?
What excites you about the subject?
Is my previous or current study relevant to the course?
Have you got any work experience that might help you?
What life experiences have you had that you could talk about?
What achievements are you proud of?
What skills do you have that make you perfect for the course?
What plans and ambitions do you have for your future career?
How to start a personal statement
Admissions Tutors will be reading a lot of personal statements so it’s important to grab their attention right from the start.
Remember, it can only be 4,000 characters, which is about two sides of A4. So, you’ll need to use your words wisely to fit everything in.
Here are the main things to think about.
Don’t overthink the opening. Just start by showing your enthusiasm for the subject, showcasing your knowledge and understanding, and sharing your ambitions of what you want to achieve.
Avoid cliches! Remember, this opening part is simply about introducing yourself, so let the admissions tutor reading your personal statement get to know you.
Keep it relevant and simple. You’re limited on how much you can include so avoid long-winded explanations. Why use 20 words when 10 can make your point?
How to end a personal statement ...
It’s always good to connect the beginning of your statement to the end and a great way to reinforce what you said at the start.
You want to see the ending as your chance to finish in a way that’ll make the admissions tutor remember you.
This final part of your personal statement should emphasise the great points you’ve already made and answer the question of why you should be offered a place on the course. For example, if you started with an interesting line about what’s currently motivating you to study your chosen degree course, you could link back to it at the end, perhaps with something about why you’d love to study this further at university.
Be positive and remember concluding your personal statement is a reminder to the admissions tutor on why they should choose you over someone else.
If you’re struggling with the ending, take a break and come back to it.
Even though you might want it off your plate, it’s important not to rush the ending.
Re-reading what you’ve got so far may also help you see what you’d like to reiterate in (or leave out of) the conclusion.
In the middle ...
In the middle ...
Your personal skills and achievements
Next, you’ll need to write about your personal skills and achievements. Universities like to know the abilities you have that’ll help you on the course, or generally with life at university.
Don’t forget to include evidence to back up why you’re so excited about the course(s) you’ve chosen.
Be bold and talk about the achievements you’re proud of.
Include positions of responsibility you hold, or have held, both in and out of school.
What are the things that make you interesting, special, or unique?
Your work experience and future plans are important to include. You should share details of jobs, placements, work experience, or voluntary work, particularly if it's relevant to your course.
Try to link any experience to skills or qualities that’ll make you successful.
If you know what you’d like to do after as a career, explain how you plan to use the knowledge and experience that you’ll gain to launch your career.
Work experience and future plans
Your work experience and future plans are important to include. You should share details of jobs, placements, work experience, or voluntary work, particularly if it's relevant to your course.
Try to link any experience to skills or qualities that’ll make you successful.
If you know what you’d like to do after as a career, explain how you plan to use the knowledge and experience that you’ll gain to launch your career.
Regardless of the subset of maths you love, demonstrating your motivation and enthusiasm for the subject is key to an impressive maths personal statement.
Showing your mathematical motivations
'Maths is like Marmite : you either like it or you don’t' : an opening line from one student's maths personal statement, which, while not really revealing anything concrete about that applicant's motivation, does help to illustrate how tricky it can be explaining what exactly you enjoy about the subject.
With a subject like maths at university, motivation is 90% of the battle – so anything that demonstrates your motivation and enthusiasm for the subject will go down well.
Here are a few tips from admissions tutors to help with your maths personal statement:
'We love to see anything that shows the depth or breadth of your interest in maths, and especially your interests in the subject beyond the A level (or equivalent) syllabus – like any maths books you’ve read, maths clubs you’re part of, or especially any maths challenges you’ve been involved in'.
The University of Bristol looks for applicants who can show participation and success in mathematical competitions: 'there are many of these competitions, whether local, national, or international, and the more recent your participation and the greater the success you attained, the more weight it carries.'
'We like to see a bit of spark and originality. For example, what first inspired your interest in maths, or better still, what currently inspires it ? '
'Give us a sense of which aspects of maths you especially like and why. Is it algebra, calculus, statistics, or something else ? '
How polished your statement needs to be will vary from uni to uni because it’s your mathematical ability and potential that matters most – but as the London School of Economics’ says, 'an original and interesting personal statement which outlines your enthusiasm and motivation is expected.'
What else to include in your maths personal statement
Your extra-curricular activities: tutors want to know about your sporting, cultural, or community involvement, or anything else you do outside your studies that demonstrates drive, commitment, enthusiasm, and your potential to excel.
What you'll contribute: uni isn’t just about studying – universities are also communities, and it's great if you can show how you'll contribute to university life.
Your personality: try to give tutors a sense of your personality through talking about any outside interests that offer an insight into who you are. Bristol, for example, is looking for students who 'stand out from the crowd' and are upbeat in their statements.
Try not to be too quirky, but do get your personality across if you can. And most of all, explain why you love maths.
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