Personal Statement: What It Is and How to Write It?

Growing up, we were asked several times to talk about ourselves, write about our aim in life and what we want to become when we grow up. We have written uncountable essays on these topics so many times. Here is where it all comes to use, to write a personal statement.

Whether applying for a job or making a university application, you have to submit a personal statement along with your resume and other documents. It is an essential part of the application process. The statement is your chance to shine out in front of your hiring team or in college applications. 

As it is a vital part of your application, it should be written with perfection and must be compelling to convince anyone of your capabilities. 

This article will guide you to write an attractive and interesting personal statement for yourself in no time. Read on!

What is a Personal Statement?

A personal statement is an essay that you write about yourself and accounts for all your achievements, skills, talents, goals and interest. It lets the company, academic institution, office, or client know more about yourself from the resume and certificates you submitted. A personal statement is also needed sometimes for applying to other countries. It highlights what you have to offer concerning the job or courses you are applying for.

The personal statement is a part of your job or college application. Tell an intriguing story about yourself supported by your resume, certificate, and other documents that combined becomes one whole application. It should positively accentuate your strength and capabilities. The statement is your chance to talk to the administration directly, and it summarises all the things that made you what you are today.

The essay should uniquely highlights who you are as a person. The purpose of the statement is to sell yourself to the reader so that they take you in right away. You can use your experience and triumphs to beautify your statement and make it catch readers’ eyes.

Sometimes, the organisation and academic institute have a question prompt to answer in a given format and word limit and submit it as a personal statement.

The statement must be original, most importantly.

A great personal statement shows five things:

1. Your writing skills.
2. Your education and attributes, also how they support your future goals.
3. Your philosophy behind choosing a specific career, job position, or university program.
4. The statement highlights how you are unique and can be an asset to the company or college.

How Long Should a Personal Statement be?

The length of a personal statement varies depending on its purpose and for whom you are writing it. Usually, a personal statement for a job application is longer than one written for a job application. 

A personal statement is written within 500 to 800 words for university applications. It is more detailed and demands more creativity. 

For some jobs, the statement can be a paragraph long, ranging from 250 to 500 words. Many jobs give their word limits to write a personal statement. No matter what the word limit is, make sure you highlight the most important details of yourself related to the job.

How to Write a Personal Statement?

Writing a personal statement within a limited word count and making it compelling at the same time can be challenging. Keep in mind personal statement is an essay, and like all other essays, it has an eye-catching introduction, a detailed body and a promising conclusion. We will help you write a captivating statement breaking it into small and achievable parts. The steps will ensure that your statement has all the required elements that it needs to stand out. 

So follow my queue –

1. Brainstorm All your Goals and Achievements:

Think back at least five to six years from now. Look at what you have achieved and all the goals and achievements that bought you where you are today. List all your accomplishments and struggles down that you have done that made you decide to take the particular job or courses you are currently applying for.

• If the personal statement is for job applications, workplace, or particular client, think back at all your educational accomplishments, skills and talents that you acquired over the last five years. Think about your positive character traits, like well you get along with people and understand them, how much you can handle pressure, how disciplined you are and so on.  
• If the personal statement is for applying to a college or university and scholarship, think even deeper. Think about why you want to be a part of the institution, what are the previous experiences that will make you a perfect candidate to take the subject in that college or university.
• When a prompt is given for a personal statement, focus on all the needed details it is asking for. Make sure you have a complete understanding of the prompt.

2. Research about your target audience:

Go through all the available resources of the organisation or the academic institution you are applying for. Look at their mission, vision, history and recent newsletter. Try to find out what they are looking in for potential candidates. While preparing your statement, always try to find your speciality that matches the company and institution’s mission and goals. 

If the company values dedication, discipline or creativity, tell them how you can offer it to them. If the college or university values community work, tell them about your past contributions in that field.

3. Start with writing an Introduction:

The introduction plays the most important part to gain the attention of the reader. That is why the introduction of a statement has to be particularly informative and catchy at the same time.

Write an introduction that emphasises you and your most recent achievement. 

You can write something like “A passionate and original young professional driven by career and believe in endless learning and self-improvement.”

While applying for a job, make it sound professional; one line of introduction will do. 

For applying for college, you can write a paragraph of introduction, focusing on education and where are you from that makes you the way you are. 

4. Highlight Your Skills and Talents in the Body Paragraphs

The body paragraph concentrates on your education, skills and positive attributes and characteristics that will benefit the place you are applying to. It demonstrates your own belief in what you have achieved and what you are trying to achieve. 

• Tell them about your years of education, awards, certifications, extracurricular activities, experiences that illustrate your capabilities to join their team.
• Give them your experience on building skills, interests and talents and how you utilised them in the past to help others or grow yourself.
• You can also describe the philosophy of your life or give an account of a famous person you idolise. But make it relevant to the job. 
• Write what kind of positive diversity you can bring to the institution. Make them know how you can be a value to the organisation.
• Discuss your academic or career goals and where you see yourself in the future. 

You can write around three to five lines for the body paragraph when the personal statement is for a job. You do not need to mention everything discussed above but mention all the important events.

When the statement is for the academic purpose you can, you can give two to three paragraphs describing your goals and interests.

5. Write a convincing conclusion.

End the statement with a strong conclusion that will make a lasting impression on the reader. It has to be clear in conclusion why you are applying for the position or program. Describe how getting in the program or the job will shape your future and contribute to your personal and professional goals.

Make a clear one line sentence at the end of the personal statement made for a job. When it comes to a college application, make it a paragraph describing how the program will help build your future career.

6. Edit it Out

While writing the first draft of your personal statement, do not hesitate to write whatever relevant comes to your mind. But check it thoroughly at least three times and show it to someone else who can give you an honest review. Cut out all the unnecessary and cliche parts. Proofread it to check spelling or grammatical error. Refine the statement into a shinny summary of yourself.

Necessary Tips for Personal Statement

While writing a personal statement, ensure that it has the following qualities:

1. Write the statement from your point of view.
2. Make it concise, to the point and clear.
3. Use the active voice.
4. Make the sentences small and easily understandable.
5. Use a positive and enthusiastic tone.
6. Ensure that your statement is original and different.

End Note

Do not fear to write about yourself; show all you have while writing a statement. The personal statement will reflect your confidence level and your faith in yourself. Always try to give your best. Hopefully, this article guided you well to write your personal statement.