Building Blocks of a
Personal Statement
Eric Landrum
Department of Psychology
Boise State University
Psi Chi Symposium “Personals Statements for Graduate Applications”
Rocky Mountain Psychological Association
April 16, 2004
Reno, NV
Background

Many graduate programs require applicants
to submit a personal statement (or statement
of intent, or autobiographical statement, or
letter of intent). This activity is becoming
more and more important in the admissions
process. It allows you to provide valuable
background information, and it also provides
the graduate admissions committee with a
writing sample.
Background

The requirements for completing this
task are varied—there is not a uniform
method or procedure to follow. Hence,
you need to make sure that you
completely satisfy the requirements of
each school when you are preparing
your personal statement.
Background

Basically what you are being asked for:
– A statement of your interests in psychology
and how you came to have those interests.
– Your goals and ambitions in the field of
psychology.
– How the program to which you are
applying can help you to achieve those
goals.
Critical Focus

Try to focus on particular educational and
occupational experiences that could account
for your interests, rather than personal
experiences. Why? Add some detachment,
add emotional distance. With goals and
ambitions, try to be as specific as possible.
You need to be more specific that "I just want
to learn--I'm open minded" but not too
specific, or you won't be a match at very
many schools.
Critical Focus—Volleyball!

The "trick" is to lob your volley—you
have some general areas of interest,
but are open to the types of topics that
your graduate professors are studying.
Don't limit yourself to only one faculty
member—faculty leave, have too many
students, etc.
Critical Focus

"Fit with faculty" is more important than
most students think. You have to do
your homework and find out what the
faculty are studying (literature from
university web sites, PsycINFO, etc.).
Personalize each letter to the graduate
program to show that you have done
your homework. ONE SIZE DOES NOT
FIT ALL.
Examples of Personal Statement
Instructions
See the handout for examples of the
personal statement instructions for
different graduate programs in the
Rocky Mountain region.
 Note the variability in the level of detail
in the instructions.
 Note the variability for different
specializations within the same
department.

13 Themes
In an analysis of personal statement
instructions, Keith-Spiegel and
Wiederman (2000) found that 13
themes or topics tend to account for
most personal statement requests.
 These themes can be seen as building
blocks for you to craft your personalized
responses for each school you apply to.

13 Themes
See the handout for each of the 13
themes and some space for you to
begin to sketch out the basic building
blocks of your personal statement.
 It’s OK, go ahead, look at it now.
Really.

Final Instructions and Tips
Don't start: I was born in a small town
in the West...or…I want to help people
(too cliché).
 Make sure that your materials are
presented appropriately. No typos, no
stains, no handwriting. Have somebody
proofread for you (spell-checkers don't
catch all typos). Use good quality plain
white paper. Don't get fancy--print with a
dark, easy to read font.

Final Instructions and Tips

Single-spaced, 1 inch margins, APA
format where applicable. Prefer one
side of one page--no more than two
pages, one piece of paper (back to
back). Always remember to follow the
instructions of the school—exactly—
even if they contradict the above
suggestions.
Final Instructions and Tips

One final note—be sure to answer the
questions exactly. Graduate
admissions committee members will
actually read your personal statement.
Answer completely. If you can’t follow
the directions for applying to graduate
school, what does that say about your
chances for success once in graduate
school?