The document provides guidance for writing an effective personal statement for university applications. It discusses that the personal statement is crucial for admissions tutors to identify the most meritorious students. It emphasizes showing both academic focus and non-academic attributes. Admissions tutors are looking for well-rounded students who can develop both intellectually and personally. The personal statement will be read only by the academic department you are applying to, so it should be tailored to their priorities. Finally, applicants should highlight their unique skills and experiences, as tutors will look for reasons to accept rather than reject students.
The document provides guidance for writing an effective personal statement for university applications. It discusses that the personal statement is crucial for admissions tutors to identify the most meritorious students. It emphasizes showing both academic focus and non-academic attributes. Admissions tutors are looking for well-rounded students who can develop both intellectually and personally. The personal statement will be read only by the academic department you are applying to, so it should be tailored to their priorities. Finally, applicants should highlight their unique skills and experiences, as tutors will look for reasons to accept rather than reject students.
The document provides guidance for writing an effective personal statement for university applications. It discusses that the personal statement is crucial for admissions tutors to identify the most meritorious students. It emphasizes showing both academic focus and non-academic attributes. Admissions tutors are looking for well-rounded students who can develop both intellectually and personally. The personal statement will be read only by the academic department you are applying to, so it should be tailored to their priorities. Finally, applicants should highlight their unique skills and experiences, as tutors will look for reasons to accept rather than reject students.
The document provides guidance for writing an effective personal statement for university applications. It discusses that the personal statement is crucial for admissions tutors to identify the most meritorious students. It emphasizes showing both academic focus and non-academic attributes. Admissions tutors are looking for well-rounded students who can develop both intellectually and personally. The personal statement will be read only by the academic department you are applying to, so it should be tailored to their priorities. Finally, applicants should highlight their unique skills and experiences, as tutors will look for reasons to accept rather than reject students.
With many students applying to the University with very strong academic results and predictions, the personal statement is crucial in helping admissions tutors identify students with the greatest merit and potential. Investing time into making sure your personal statement is as strong as it can be is therefore time well spent.
At Durham University we particularly value personal statements that combine both an academic focus and consideration of your non-academic attributes and achievements. Other universities may be more interested purely in your academic achievements and potential. We are interested in recruiting students able to develop both academically and personally within an environment that is attractive to and supportive of an increasingly diverse and international student population.
Who reads your Personal Statement?
Your personal statement is likely to be the only opportunity you have to directly influence the Admissions tutor on the course you want to study. Admissions tutors are experts in their field and will be actively involved in both the research and teaching that takes place in the department to which you are applying. At Durham ensuring that we admit the very best students is one of the most important things that we do, so we ask our academic staff to make admissions decisions; they will not be made by staff not actively involved in teaching. It is therefore vitally important that you make this statement as effective as possible.
Your personal statement will be considered by the Academic Department you are applying to only. The Departments decision dictates whether or not students will be made an offer to study at the University. Therefore, constructing the statement in line with what the department looks for should be your priority in order to secure an offer from the University.
Finally, dont forget that everyone has special skills, experiences or achievements to mention. Admissions tutors will judge every application on its own merits; they will be looking for reasons to accept you, not reject you.
The Substitute Personal Statement
We understand that submitting one personal statement in the UCAS application can create problems for some applicants, such as those who want to apply to slightly different courses or want to apply to universities that have different preferences for the academic and non-academic content of a personal statement. You can submit a 'substitute personal statement' directly to us by uploading a Microsoft Word document which would replace the personal statement in your UCAS application (your original personal statement will not be read) to Durham. Our admissions tutors are required to use this substitute personal statement in place of the original statement submitted with your UCAS application. However, there is no requirement for an applicant to submit a substitute personal statement to us, nor will providing a substitute personal statement give any automatic advantage to an applicant. ACCESS AND STUDENT RECRUITMENT
Advice from Admissions Tutors
The following advice has been provided by Admissions Tutors from various departments. Most of the guidance is applicable to a wide variety of courses and departments, and not just to the department that provided the information.
It is not possible to give exact criteria for being "outstanding", as not all candidates have the opportunity to do the same things. We therefore evaluate the application as a whole. Examples of the kind of things which we look for are successful participation in competitions, winning school or external prizes, a strong position in class (or nationally), strong UMS marks, or participation in subject-specific projects. This is by no means an exhaustive list.
Where applications are closely
balanced we would sometimes What we are really interested to know is look at extra-curricular activities whether the candidate has a fast mind, can as a measure of successful work independently, can assimilate new time management and work concepts quickly, is good at project work, is a ethic. good communicator, has imagination and dynamism, is well organised, has maturity, etc.
What I am looking for is a sense of intellectual
passion and excitement, an applicant who is clearly engaged with their subject and has gone the extra Applicants seem to worry mile in learning as much as they can about it. I am about their lack of work also looking for someone who has developed interests experience; well, it is and skills beyond their academic work whether it be in simply not easy to arrange music or sport or any hobby that demonstrates chemical work experience commitment and breadth. communicator, has and I don't worry about imagination and dynamism, is well organised, has that. maturity, etc.
The personal statement
is a place to demonstrate breadth, I want to see a balance between academic depth and dynamism interests and extra-curricular. Lots of academic content and little or no extra-curricular content suggest a candidate who may not contribute to University or College life, whilst lots of extra- curricular information and a lack of academic means they may not work hard enough.
Dont worry if you dont have a clear
career plan in mind. Most people dont at the age of 17 or 18. Enthusiasm for Dont worry if you dont have a clear the proposed course of study is the career plan in mind. Most people dont at most important thing at this stage the age of 17 or 18. Enthusiasm for the proposed course of study is the most important thing at this stage
