Writing personal statements

Personal statements are a persuasive form of writing that show who you are as a unique individual and why you deserve funding or admission in a way that tells your story. Demonstrating this in a clear, concrete way that is both detailed and concise can help you write a strong personal statement. These statements are commonly used for undergraduate and graduate school applications and scholarship applications. However, these are not used in Tri-Council scholarships.

Questions to Think About Before Writing

• What would the committee want to know about you?
• What would make the committee choose you over another applicant?
• What can you do to stand out positively in the essay?

Strategies for Prewriting

Whether you are writing a personal statement to apply for a scholarship or to an undergraduate or graduate program, each application has specific requirements that requires you to seek out information about the requirements. Make sure you are knowledgeable about the organization to which you are applying. You can do this by checking the website of the sponsoring organization or program and learning about goals and key strengths of the program. Looking at mission statements can be useful in learning more about an organization. You may also want to seek guidance from someone like a faculty advisor.

Strategies for Drafting

Rather than merely summarizing or listing all your experiences, describe a few experiences in detail. Make sure you clearly connect your examples to the values of the organization or program or to your candidacy. Here are some prompts to get you started.

• How does your social identity influence your desire to be involved with this organization?
• What significant, unique experiences have you had (both academic and extracurricular)? What can these experiences help you do?
• What interests and qualifications make you an ideal candidate?
• Why are you drawn to this field?
• Who has inspired you (such as mentors, faculty, and supervisors)?
• If relevant for the application, what can you contribute?

Make sure to include all required information. Try to get all your ideas out in your draft. You can revise the content and writing style later!

Once you have your ideas out, use a logical structure to organize your essay based on your focus. Make sure you have appropriate transitions. Include a strong opening statement in your introduction and a brief conclusion. For example, you could organize it in a storytelling structure that presents your personal experience as a story or by priority of your experiences:

• Your most significant achievement
• Your excellence in the field
• Your dedication to the field
• Your personal characteristics
• Your ability to show initiative, overcome adversity, etc.

Strategies for Revising and Proofreading

Revising is an important step in writing personal statements. Check to see that you carefully describe your experiences and achievements concisely, keeping to word count limitations. Show who you are by using strong verbs and nouns to describe your experiences. Taking time away from your writing can give you a new perspective on it. Seeking feedback from others, especially those in the same field, can give you more insight, too. Consider the following questions when revising your essay:

• Is this essay tailored to this application specifically?
• Is your voice clear in your writing? Do you use vivid word choice?
• Is the writing polished in a way that is appropriate for the organization’s expectations?
• Are you highlighting unique features of your experience, distinguishing yourself from other potential applicants?
• Are you inspiring the committee to invest in you by demonstrating your passion and capabilities?

Additional Writing Tips

• Proofread for punctuation and grammar errors
• Give yourself a lot of time to write and revise
• Prioritize more recent experiences over older ones
• Be specific with your examples
• Use humour sparingly to avoid alienating or offending people
• Vary how you begin sentences—do not always begin with “I” statements
• Read past winning application essays if they are available
• Avoid the following:
  
  • Clichés (such as “I want to help people”)
  • Overly flowery language
  • Stating something all or most applicants would feel is true
  • Repeating phrases unnecessarily
  • Broad, generic statements about yourself and your experiences