Preparing your UCAS
personal statement
Useful URLs
These handy websites will
help you to compose the
perfect personal
statement:
http://bit.ly/ucaspersta
http://bit.ly/studeps
http://bit.ly/cifeperst
Sue Thompson helps you get yourself noticed
A first draft
An excellent mind map to
help channel your
thoughts can be found at:
Now put this together but remember, you have limited
space – 47 lines or 4000 characters.
Use language which makes you sound enthusiastic
and interesting.
Be concise and be yourself – don’t use long words
you would not usually use.
Steer clear from trying to be funny – admissions tutors
may not share your sense of humour!
When discussing your experience say why you did it
or what you have learned from it.
Be honest and specific – only write things that you
would be prepared to discuss in an interview.
http://bit.ly/ucasmap
(pdf)
Polishing off
1. Up to half of the statement
can be reasons for your choice
of course.
2. Don’t use repetitive language
eg ‘I like’.
ISTOCKPHOTO
Handy tips
Good spelling and grammar is essential – don’t rely on
a spellchecker.
Structure is important. Begin with why you want to
study your subject and finish with why you want to go
university, or your career aspirations.
Show your statement to other people you trust and
make changes.
Expect to produce a number of drafts!
It can seem quite daunting to sit down to write your
UCAS personal statement. Don’t worry, if you write it in
stages and follow these guidelines, you should make a
positive impression on any admissions tutor who reads
it. Remember, the golden rule is quality, not quantity.
3. Avoid using clichés.
Getting started
4. No formatting is allowed by
UCA S (except capital letters) so
any bold, italic or underlined
words will disappear!
Write your statement offline in Microsoft Word and
save it regularly. When you are finished, paste it
into the online UCAS form. The form times-out after
35 minutes, so this will help to avoid losing any of your
precious work.
The aims of a personal statement are to show the
admissions tutor why you should be accepted on your
chosen course.
Read some examples of good personal statements, but
do not copy them as UCAS uses a plagiarism checker.
Make a rough list in three sections:
1. Reasons for choosing the course
2. Personal achievements and relevant experience
3. Hobbies and interests that show your skills
and abilities.
5. When working online
remember to regularly save
your work as UCA S Apply
will time -out after 35 mins
of inac tivit y.
6 | The Mole | July 2012
0412MOLE - Pages 4-11.indd 6
Choosing your chemistry course
The university you choose to study chemistry at is
important. It needs to be an informed choice and suit
what you hope to achieve. Check university and college
prospectuses, websites and entry profiles. These will
tell you the criteria and qualities universities want their
students to demonstrate. Finding the answers to these
questions should help you to focus:
If the course is not pure chemistry how much chemistry
is there relative to the other subjects throughout the
degree? Eg is there a difference between ‘Chemistry
and....’ and ‘Chemistry with....’ courses?
How much maths/physics support is there if I need it?
How many hours are spent in the teaching lab?
Is there a choice of modules to study? Do they
interest me?
What is the format of practical work in the final year ie
what is the amount of independent research compared
to other lab based activities?
Can I do an external placement?
Will this course help me to develop transferrable skills?
www.rsc.org/TheMole
6/11/2012 3:20:42 PM