How to promote yourself on paper
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Attending this session will allow you to ;

Understand what a personal statement is and why it is needed

Improve self-awareness by reflecting on your skills, experience, expertise and aspirations, and how these relate to your chosen university course

Begin to plan and draft your personal statement, deciding on which information to include and how this might be presented
 Understand the ‘dos and don’ts’ of personal statement writing

Be able to identify and take responsibility for your future development goals
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In your groups share the information that you know about Personal Statements
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• Each statement can only be 47 lines long
• Each statement must not exceed 4000 characters (including spaces)
• You can only submit one personal statement for all of your five different university choices
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It’s not about what you have done, but what you have gained from it
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Who would you choose?
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An invaluable skill that comes so naturally to you that you do not even notice it.
For example
• Translating for your parents – multi-lingual, good communicator
• Helping out in the family business – financial competency
• Looking after younger siblings – trustworthy and responsible
• Enjoyed an activity since childhood - commitment
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Time to plan your own
Personal Statement
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Do your research!
• UCAS website www.ucas.com
• University Prospectuses and websites
Look at:
Entry requirements
How you will be assessed
Career opportunities
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Course length
Course content

S pecific
M easurable
A chievable
R elevant
T ime specific
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You now have an excellent head start
• Linked your own skills to the qualities that a university will be looking for
• Produced a UCAS worksheet that is the template for your statement
• Identified and created an action plan to strengthen specific areas using SMART targets
© IntoUniversity 2015

2
3
4
5
6
7
The Higher Education in FOCUS Teacher’s Toolkit consists of
Module
1
Workshop Title and Topic
Why Higher Education?
Introduction to the benefits of choosing higher education
Steps to choosing the right course
Looks at the key factors to be considered
UCAS and the university application process
University application process explained
Introduction to Personal Statements
Students plan their own statements using a structured approach
Preparing for Interviews
Acquiring effective verbal and non verbal communication skills
Preparing to go to university
Practical steps to having a smooth transition from home to university life
Student Finance
Overview of the main areas of student finance and information on how to apply
© IntoUniversity 2015