Personal statement Definition and 71 Threads

An admissions or application essay, sometimes also called a personal statement or a statement of purpose, is an essay or other written statement written by an applicant, often a prospective student applying to some college, university, or graduate school. The application essay is a common part of the university and college admissions process.
Some applications may require one or more essays to be completed, while others make essays optional or supplementary. Essay topics range from very specific to open-ended.

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  1. C

    Is my personal statement for graduate school in applied math complete?

    I am applying to graduate school in applied math and I was just wondering if there was anything more I should add or take out of my personal statement. Here is a brief overview of what I incuded in my personal statement: I first talked about what got me interested in math which are math...
  2. S

    Personal Statement for transfer admission

    I'll be finishing up community college this fall and transferring to UIC for EE. What should I write in my personal statement? And how long should it be?
  3. Simfish

    Strong enthusiasm in a personal statement - is it +/-?

    So I was wandering around the Internet and came across this http://careers.stackoverflow.com/domenicdenicola It's not a personal statement for graduate school, but it still inspired me mostly because of the strong enthusiasm it contained (including use of the word "awesome" and an...
  4. H

    Schools Grad School Personal Statement Question

    Hello, I'm in the process of applying to grad school in Astrophysics. I graduated last December from a top-tier Physics program and am wondering what exactly I should stick in my personal statement/statement of purpose/whatever the heck a given university calls it. My undergraduate...
  5. A

    Get Advice on Personal Statement for Grad School Application

    Before I do, if I posted up my current version of my personal statement for my grad school application would anyone feel up to giving me some advice on it? Things like what maybe I should include/take out. Grammer/flow suggestions. Major things right or wrong with it. Just want to give...
  6. S

    Chances of acceptance (M.Sc, pure math) / personal statement advice

    Hello, I'm finishing up my personal statement for grad school, and wondering how much the things I'm worried about we also be cause for concern for the admission's committees? Briefly, my background is this: I switched to mathematics late, and did very few of the 1st/2nd year courses. My...
  7. L

    Is My Personal Statement Clear and Compelling Enough?

    I'm not wanting to get into an awesome school. I just want someone to look over this to make sure that I don't sound too bad. Here goes nothing... Any feedback would be appreciated! (I know you all are probably tired of reading these.) It seems to me that life is a constant uphill battle...
  8. E

    Schools Personal statement for grad school with research experience in the wrong field

    Hi everyone, I am currently writing my personal statement for the application to grad school in pure mathematics. I am aware that grad school comitees usually want to hear about the specifics of your research experience: the project, your role in it, etc. However, my only research...
  9. W

    How Can I Improve My Personal Statement for Graduate School?

    I'm in the process of writing one. I thought it was okay until I read some samples I found online and realized I wouldn't get accepted to 3rd grade with my statement. Okay that's a bit harsh. Does anybody have any tips for this? I see some as essentially life stories, and others as "I'm so...
  10. H

    What is the difference between personal statement and statement of purpose

    Some graduate schools I am applying to require both while do not give specific directions of what to include in each . This lack of directions makes me very confused about what to put in each category. I have done some research and have rough idea, however I am not sure. So if you can help me I...
  11. M

    Schools Graduate School vs. REU Personal Statement

    What are the main differences between personal statements ( / statements of purpose) written to support a graduate school application versus one for an REU? I have now written two successful REU personal statements, so one might assume that I was doing something right when writing them. In...
  12. G01

    Schools Advice for Grad School Personal Statement

    Hi everyone, I am applying to grad schools this fall and I am planning a personal statement. I was hoping I could get someones advice on writing this statement. Here is my basic outline for the statement so far: 1.Explain that I want to do Condensed Matter Experiment in grad school and...
  13. E

    Help on personal statement for summer research :redface:

    help on personal statement for summer research!:redface: HI everybody. I am in community college(in california) taking second semester of university physics and differential equations. I am planning to apply for summer research in physics (may be to ucla, caltech, and some other university)...
  14. A

    Anyone good with English? Need help with personal statement.

    My English is poor and I need someone to look over my personal statement. I'm planning to transfer colleges so I can get into a program with civil and environmental engineering =). If you could PM me or give me contact info that would be nice. Thanks!
  15. L

    So I wrote this personal statement for my REU application

    So I wrote this personal statement for my REU application... Could you critique it? At this point it still needs a lot of work but I need to have it done by Monday so I can start asking professors to write letters of recommendation. Below is the first draft of the personal statement...
  16. C

    Schools What Should I Include in My Grad School Personal Statement?

    I am applying to get into the masters program at my school. The process includes a statement of purpose which I need to write. I've asked around the department and found out that these grad school essays differ a lot from undergraduate application essays. One of the advisor told me not to write...
  17. L

    How Should One Structure a Personal Statement for an REU Application?

    I am a junior electrical engineering (may double major in engineering physics) student with 2 more years before completing my degree. I hope to go the graduate school/academic research route, as opposed to the industry route. I am looking at doing a SURF/REU with the NIST Electronics and...
  18. S

    Personal statement - wondering whether it's 'appropriate'

    Firstly I'd just like to say that quite a while ago I posted some pretty, rude, offensive and childish posts under a different username. It's no excuse, but I'd like to say that I was having problems and that I regret making those posts and am ashamed. I'm seeing a psychiatrist about my issues...
  19. B

    Help with UK Personal Statement for Chemical Engineering

    I'm currently trying to apply for chemical engineering, but is afraid that the personal statement done might be too towards the theoretical side of sciences, with not much practicality shown upon the statement. I want to study chemical engineering because of interest in calculus along with...
  20. R

    How Should Sian Approach Her UK University Personal Statement for Engineering?

    its my first post here! :smile: YAY! :smile: im applyin for uni in the UK this yr and hav to write my personal statement. I am applyin for a degree in Manufacturing and Mechanical Engineering. im finding it really hard to get started as i don't know what to write. i don't want to begin...
  21. D

    Need Help with Engineering Personal Statement?

    Hey, i have to hand in my ps on monday, but i feel like it's really dull and crap, can a current engineering student have a look at it please? i'll either send it via pm or email... THANX o:)
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