1. UCAS SURVIVAL PACK
MAKE SOMETHING HAPPEN
The Personal StateMEnt

2. ENERGIZER
Simon Says – Winner selects volunteer
Thumb Game
Magic Eye

3. Aim Incentive Reason Why
To focus you and your work in and around the personal statement, part of the UCAS process.
Incentive
Quicker and more effective personal statement.
Reason Why
6Ps, the place you want – at the university you want.
Welcome from the University of South Wales
Introduce yourself and our student ambassadors
Why are you here? AIR

4. Revision: What do you think of the personal statement?
THINK.PAIR.SHARE

5. Revision: Can you change your perspective?

6. Revision: Why write a personal statement?
THINK.PAIR.SHARE

7. 60:1 Revision: Why write a personal statement?
Growth of students going on to University
1963 – 216,000 applications
2001 – 1.96 million applications
2004 – 2.1 million applications
2007 – 2.3 million applications
2010 – 2.5 million applications
60:1

8. [2 Students. Same subject]
Revision: Why write a personal statement?
COMPARE.CONTRAST
[2 Students. Same subject]

9. [My friends. The competition]
Revision: Why write a personal statement?
COMPARE.CONTRAST
[My friends. The competition]

10. Revision: Why write a personal statement?
- Part and parcel of the application process
- A chance to sell yourself
- Differentiate yourself from the competition
“The Personal Statement is your chance to sell and differentiate yourself…to influence the Admission Tutors and explain what motivates you.”

11. [Why is it so difficult?]
My Personal Statement: Filling the white space
THINK.PAIR.SHARE
[Why is it so difficult?]

12. [Self esteem assessment]
My Personal Statement: Filling the white space
TASK
[Self esteem assessment]

13. [What do your friends think?]
My Personal Statement: Filling the white space
TASK
[What do your friends think?]

14. TASK My Personal Statement: Filling the white space
[Mind Map on page 5]

15. My Personal Statement: The specification
4,000 characters
High quality SPG, no formatting.
1 statement only
Save a copy
Submit c.Jan 15th 2015

16. Motivated Independent X-Factor Experience
My Personal Statement: What are we looking for?
Motivated
Independent
X-Factor
Discuss and describe these examples.
Experience

17. My Personal Statement: What are we looking for?
146million results in 0.26 seconds(!)
UCAS has ‘Copycatch’ software which detects statements which are similar to each other or similar to those found online. The applicant’s university choices are informed and appropriate action is taken.

18. My Personal Statement: What are we looking for?
Dear John: I want a man who knows what love is all about. You are generous, kind, thoughtful. People who are not like you admit to being useless and inferior. You have ruined me for other men. I yearn for you. I have no feelings whatsoever when we are apart. I can be forever happy – will you let me be yours? Gloria
Dear John: I want a man who knows what love is. All about you are generous, kind, thoughtful people, who are not like you. Admit to being useless and inferior. You have ruined me. For other men, I yearn. For you I have no feelings whatsoever. When we are apart, I can be forever happy. Will you let me be. Yours, Gloria
The words stay exactly the same – spellchecker could not help you here – yet the meaning is entirely different!

19. usingTXTspkREALYdzAFECTthWAYuWRITE.ITwilBhardr2writeAgr8PERSONALst8mnt.

20. [Structure tips page 6-9]
My Personal Statement: What are we looking for?
TASK
[Structure tips page 6-9]

21. A + B = C Good – Better - Best
My Personal Statement: What are we looking for?
A + B = C
Good – Better - Best
© University of South Wales

22. “ ” My Personal Statement:
What are we looking for? “
Your personal statement did not show sufficient understanding, relevance or knowledge about the course you are applying for
Your personal statement does not strongly support your desire to study your chosen degree
You failed to demonstrate sufficient knowledge and interest in the subject in your personal statement
Unsuccessful as you have not expressed a strong enough interest in the subject area in your personal statement
These four examples are taken from data given in 2010 to applicants as reasons for being made unsuccessful ”

23. There is no maximum length to a personal statement
My Personal Statement:
What have we learned?
Answer 1
A personal statement is a maximum of 47 lines or 4000 characters whichever comes first
Question 1
There is no maximum length to a personal statement
TRUE
FALSE
You can enter up to 4,000 characters (this includes spaces) or 47 lines of text (this includes blank lines), whichever comes first. You do not have to use all the space provided. When you save text, the system will tell you how many characters are still available or if you have used too many characters. You can preview your statement after you have saved it.

24. A personal statement can be written in paragraphs
TRUE
FALSE
Question 2
A personal statement can be written in paragraphs
Answer 2
You can use paragraphs in a personal statement – remember that blank lines count towards the maximum

25. The UCAS Apply software has spelling and grammar checks
TRUE
FALSE
Question 3
The UCAS Apply software has spelling and grammar checks
Answer 3
Apply will not spell check your work – we recommend you prepare your personal statement offline using a word-processing package and copy and paste it into apply
We recommend that you prepare your personal statement offline using a word-processing package and copy and paste it into the Apply system. Whether you are typing your statement directly into the box, or amending a statement that you pasted in, you should click 'save' regularly because Apply will time-out after 35 minutes of inactivity. The countdown on the screen displays how much time you have left before it times out.
The character and line count in Apply may be different to a word-processing package, such as Microsoft Word - this is because formatting characters, such as paragraphs and tabs, are counted in Apply but may be ignored in Word. Please use the size as specified in Apply as the guide.

26. You can write a different PS for each of your choices
TRUE
FALSE
Question 4
You can write a different PS for each of your choices
Answer 4
You only write one personal statement and it will be used for all your choices
Remember that you only write one personal statement so it will be used for all your choices. Try not to mention a university or college by name, even if you're applying to only one university - your personal statement cannot be changed if you apply to a different place later.
If you're applying for a joint degree you will need to explain why you are interested in both aspects of this joint programme.
If you're applying for different subjects or courses, you need to identify the common themes and skills that are relevant to your choices. For example, both mathematics and law are subjects where you have to think logically and apply rules. You may like both subjects because you enjoy solving problems, using theory and natural or man-made laws to come to a correct conclusion.
If your chosen courses can't be linked by a common theme, think about your reasons for applying to such varied courses - it might be useful to speak to a careers adviser to get some guidance.
If you mention a subject in your personal statement and are applying to other courses, you may be asked by the university or college for additional information about why you have chosen alternative courses.

27. You can use bold, italics & underlined characters
TRUE
FALSE
Question 5
You can use bold, italics & underlined characters
Answer 5
You cannot use italics, bold, or underlining in your personal statement - the system will automatically remove this formatting

28. You should keep a copy of your personal statement
TRUE
FALSE
Question 6
You should keep a copy of your personal statement
Answer 6
The personal statement could be used as the basis for an interview. Keep a copy so you are prepared to answer questions on it

29. There’s no problem in using material I’ve found on the web
TRUE
FALSE
Answer 7
All personal statements are checked by our system for similarities – see for more details
Question 7
There’s no problem in using material I’ve found on the web
All personal statements sent to UCAS are tested for similarity.
There are some example personal statements on the internet that have been used by applicants, in some cases word for word. The service we use, called Copycatch, finds statements that show similarity, works out how much of the statement may have been copied, and reports the findings. It helps admissions staff at universities and colleges judge applications, and it is the institutions who decide what action, if any, to take regarding notified cases.
Each personal statement is checked against:
a library of personal statements previously submitted to UCAS
sample statements collected from a variety of websites
other sources including paper publications.
Each personal statement received at UCAS is added to the library of statements after it has been processed.

30. [Download Uni Box and filter content p16]
My Personal Statement:
Where else can I look for inspiration?
TASK
[Download Uni Box and filter content p16]

31. My Personal Statement:
Where else can I look for inspiration?

32. My Personal Statement:
Where else can I look for inspiration?

33. My Personal Statement:
Where else can I look for inspiration?

34. ?
© University of South Wales