The college applications process is mostly cut and dried. Students fill out information about classes, grades, standardized test scores, and other honors and accomplishments. And on much of the application, their achievements must speak for themselves.
The personal statement, on the other hand, is a student’s only chance to let their voice be heard. The personal statement also has the reputation of being the toughest part of the college application process – possibly because it needs to convince the admissions officer that the writer has the right skills for the course and is enthusiastic about learning. A strong, well-written personal statement improves the student’s chances of being picked for the course.
This article helps students learn more about the personal statement, how to choose a great topic, and write a creative statement that impresses colleges.
More about the Personal Statement
The personal statement is one of the few opportunities for students to market themselves during the application process. Personal statements are used in both undergraduate and graduate admissions. When used for undergraduate admissions, they consist of essays that students submit along with their main admission. These are generally not school-specific and are sent to a wide range of schools – usually every school that a student applies to. Personal statements that are specifically written for a school are known as supplemental essays.
For graduate school admissions, the personal statement generally falls into one of two categories:
1. The General, Comprehensive Personal Statement
With this kind of personal statement, students have complete freedom to write what they want. The general comprehensive personal statement is usually prepared for law school or medical school applications.
2. Response to Specific Questions
Graduate and business school applications generally require prospective students to respond to specific questions; the personal statement should therefore be pertinent to the question being asked. Some business school applications ask for multiple essays as responses to three or more questions.
Purpose of the Personal Statement
For students, the personal statement is an opportunity to share their unique experiences, beliefs, or qualities that are not represented elsewhere on the application. It allows admissions committees to go beyond the data that defines students on paper and catch a glimpse of who they really are.
While scrutinizing personal statements, colleges are actually looking for something that sets a student apart. Does the student write about something truly unique? Do they write about something commonplace in a new and interesting way? Do they write about an aspect of their application that required further explanation? All of these are great ways of writing a stellar personal statement.
Apart from the obvious purpose of getting to know prospective students, personal statements also help admissions committees evaluate their writing skills. Good writing skills are important in college and in life – is the student able to write clearly and succinctly? Can they tell an interesting story? Is their grammar and syntax up to scratch?
Choosing a Topic for the Personal Statement
Most schools give students a number of prompts to choose from. Common prompts for personal statements include:
- Activities, interests, talents, background
- Example of showing leadership or rising to a challenge
- Overcoming failure
- A significant experience or life lesson
- A topic or idea that fascinates the student
- A problem the student would like to solve
For some students, the writing prompt immediately triggers an idea they can base their statement on. Others face a certain amount of initial uncertainty. For such students, experts recommend thinking about aspects of themselves they want to highlight, rather than thinking about the exact wording of the prompt. This advice is particularly useful when students are allowed to pick a topic of their choice. Those who have an interesting story to tell, an experience that shaped their beliefs, a unique voice, or a different perspective are in a great position to write an engaging and insightful personal statement.
Students must also consider the rest of their application while choosing a topic. If, for example, they participated extensively in something they are passionate about, returned from a gap year, or failed a class during sophomore year, the personal statement is the perfect forum to address these issues. The admissions committee wants to get to know applicants and understand who they really are, and these topics enable them to do so.
The Personal Statement as a Creative Writing Exercise
The personal statement requires a different approach when compared to other high school writing tasks. Most high school students are used to writing analytical papers or academic reports and are likely to be unfamiliar with creative essays that tell a story. Personal statements work out better when the writer chooses a topic that is meaningful and inspiring and allows them to compose an enjoyable narrative. This is not a test of students’ academic skills and does not have to showcase their intellectual abilities. Rather, a great personal statement is an expression of the writer’s personality and provides an engaging reading experience to admissions officers.
As such, students are free to eschew the conventional five-paragraph format with a clear thesis. While the personal statement should have a message that shines through the story, it should do so organically without being stated explicitly. The writing should feel natural, like a friendly conversation with a favorite teacher or mentor, not stuffy or contrived.
Students running out of inspiration would benefit from reading memoirs, personal essays, or podcasts of personal stories. What do these writers and storytellers do to make their stories interesting? What makes some stories boring or unappealing? Analyzing real stories can help students identify techniques that they personally resonate with.
One of the worst things a student can do is to bore the admissions committee. If their story is fresh, original, and interesting, they will be putting themselves ahead of the pack. Students who distinguish themselves through their personal statement make themselves memorable.
