Anyone started theirs yet? I'm freaking out here!

I also have a mental block and can't think of a single 'new' way to start the statement!

Call me stupid...but what's a personal statement?

Whatever you do, don't start it with what A-levels you're studying, it neve rgoes down well. Try something like "I've liked.......subject for a long time and find <this specific module> really interesting..." or something. Something which shows the reader you're enthusiastic about your subject.

A personal statement is part of the UCAS application to apply to unis in the UK.

Try to sell yourself but don't sound too eager at the same time... apparently it puts off examiners when people write about "I can do this and I can do that". Also, try to avoid starting every sentence with "I..."; vary your sentence construction. I've heard that you've got a much more limited space for your statement than a few years ago, so be succinct and don't write on about things like your work experience, because you can do that in your interview (if you have one). Another thing is to ask your teachers... they will undoubtedly have some guidance and perhaps writing frames that could help you.

That's the advice people gave my sisters when they were applying for uni.

What are you aiming to study? Try and tailor your statement to show why you would be good at being a ..... or an asset to wherever you're applying to.

I finally finished mine! Woohoo! I would start with how you became interested in your chosen subject area.

done half of it now - thanks for all the advice.(hoping to study maths)

I am half way through doing mine for my P.G.C.E aplication...it is really hard. It is taking me days (no joke) to get done. Keep thinking of different ways to say things and different things to say!

[[QUOTE]QUOTE]quote=rhiannon,Sep 25 2005, 09:39 PM]
done half of it now - thanks for all the advice.(hoping to study maths)

[/quote][/QUOTE][/QUOTE]

Hi Rhiannon
My son is hoping to study maths too (and yet to start his personal statement!!). Do you know of the best universities for maths? We don't know where to start looking!
Thanks

Hi Rhiannon
My son is hoping to study maths too (and yet to start his personal statement!!). Do you know of the best universities for maths? We don't know where to start looking!
Thanks

I remeber i spent few months in writing the personal statement! I started planning and thinking in June after A-levels, and finished in early September -- and then corrected by lots of people. The application was submitted at the end of September.

I wrote about 630 words and that's nearly the maximum. Good luck and enjoy...



The Times Good University guide is a good book. They rankings are divided by univiersity and by subject too.

Matthew

Hi trio,

My son is also hoping to do maths, and has not been very pro-active in whittling down his possible universities to the six needed.

He is definitely applying to Nottingham and Warwick (who happen to have the highest entry requirements), but it's difficult to know which other ones to put down (bearing in mind he may not get an offer from Nottingham or Warwick).

I went through the paper on the day the results came out and wrote down all the unis that had clearing places for maths. We're hoping that these might be more likely to give offers than the ones who were completely full.

He has, however, handed the first draft of his personal statement to his tutor.

I did my personal statement in a rush - I was applying to Cambridge, and you have to apply a lot sooner. Fortunate that I grew up in a wordy home so it wasn't the hardest bit for me, but I do remember pulling my hair out trying to make it sound good...

The only problem I found with that, is that it is completely different to the others, e.g. The Guardian and the like. For example, one I looked at was ranked at number 5 in the Times, and 17 or something in the Guardian!

Hmm, helpful...

Yes, this is absolutely true. I don't know any "reliable" sources. The reason that they are different is their methods of adding up the marks are different. Oxford comes first in the UK and Cambridge the second -- the reason is only becos the faciliy spendings in oxford is lots more than that in cambridge. So the actual teaching might not be that good.

This is just what i could observe when reading the times good uni guide more carefully. And also, the ranking of unis differ from year to year -- but at least you will have a rough idea whether the uni is generally good or not.

I have heard from my career officer in school saying that the times uni guide is a better one and a more reliable one. Most of my friends have bought the times. However, this is just my personal experience, you may ask other people or consult the teacher for more detailed advice.

Matthew

To be honest this is a bit of a mine-field and the rankings take into account all sorts of irrelevant things that technically make this department better than any other. My advice to anyone choosing a university is to go and look around the places and find somewhere you can stand to live for three years, this is the most important thing.

If you're not too fussed by that and want the most impressive degree I wouldn't bother with generally how good the department is just go for the university that people generally consider the best, this will be the most prestigious, after all employers won't be reading these tables to find out how good your degree is. For example, when I was at Durham the physics department was ranked number one in the country, but no doubt a Cambridge physics degree would be held with more prestige and this is where most of the best physicists would go. Incidentally when I was at Durham all the best students (coming top of the exam rankings) were the people who chose to go to Durham who were streets ahead of the Oxbridge rejects.

Another good guide is what offers the place gives, if a university can command high grades for that subject it usually means that the department has a good reputation. At post graduate research level who you studied with is far more important than where you studied though: it's an entirely different matter.

According to my timetable book(the times - good university guide - newest edition) the best universities for maths are
1. Cambridge
2. Bath
3. St. Andrews
4. Bristol
5. Birmingham
6. Univercity College London
7. Oxford
8. Nottingham
9. Warwick
10. Newcastle

Hope this helps!

http://spaces.msn.com/members/joybelina/Pe...c02_owner=1&_c=

There's mine, not all entirely interesting but hey its me lol

All the ones I expected to see are there Go Birmingham!

As for where to go, it depends on your aims. Some rankings are done by employ-ability after degrees, some by the amount of research done, etc. One of the things I looked at (applying for medicine) was what the other students thought. The best I found was a book Virgin's real university guide which I recently contributed to as a student! It tells you for various courses how many hours of contact time a week, the tutor/support set-up, and more importantly, the price of a pint in the best local pubs and the union bar. Can't find a website for it though...

Thanks for the list Rhiannon. I will get the Time Uni Guide.

Hi Andante in C
Well my son has still not started his personal statement!
He doesn't see beyond next week most of the time! I will get the Times Uni Guide today and maybe poke him into action.
I will be interested to hear how your son gets on.
Trio

Well, we sat down with a few league tables and made the decision.

He's applying to Warwick, Nottingham, Imperial, Birmingham, Sussex and Reading. His personal statement has been through his tutor a couple of times and he assures me it is nearly done. Phew!

Ah yes, the personal statement. Such a tedious invention, if you ask me! I agree with whoever said that it's difficult to find an original opening! I'm really struggling with mine (as I've said in other threads a couple of times) because I think I sound totally arrogant. I know it's all about selling oneself and modesty would hurt more than help, but it's really difficult to sound genuine when you have to impress someone! I'm not even half finished yet! HELP!!!

I had to re-do mine about 27 times and re-arrange bits! But we did have quite a lot of help like sheets with hints on and things. I dont think mine was very good at all, but i got the place so it cant have been that bad!

My PS was dreadful - I read the it the other day and thought how on earth did I get in!

Mine was 593 words long. Mine just turned into a long list of everything i play and play in! Be careful its not like that though!

I had to do mine really quickly as I didn't realise when it had to be done by, but in the end I think it almost made it easier, as I didn't *have* the time to sit and think "could I put that better" or agonise over it - it just got done!

I think with the numbers applying to unis it gets more difficult to stand out from the crowd each year...