Examples of Autobiographies
Example of an Autobiography:
I, James Smith, was born on September 21, on the first day of autumn in the year 1971. My birthplace
is Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. My middle name is Scot which is my mother's maiden name. My
nickname at home is Jim, and Tiago but in school I was called by many nicknames such as Jimmy, Santy,
and Smithy. My father was a retired miner in Alberta. He had an automotive mechanics diploma in San Luis
School, Abra, Philippines. He moved to Alberta, Canada when he was 37 years old. He then worked for
Sandbanks Mining Inc. until retirement. He died of diabetes and heart failure at the age of 70. My mother had
a degree in Education. She started working as temporary teacher in different cities in Ilocos, Philippines.
After getting a permanent position in an elementary school in Santiago city, she then met my dad, dated for 3
years, and got married. After 2 years of marriage, I was born. I am the oldest of 3 children. My younger
brother's name is Marlon and my younger sister is Erika.
I can say that the best education I ever had started at home. This was when mommy and daddy taught me the
principles in life and values that I still hold strong until this very day. My kindergarten was in Macaulay
School. I love my first teacher in school. I also remember so well the names of my first classmates and
friends in school. My elementary school was a bit far from my home. My dad or mom gave me ride to school.
I receive two awards in school being the most responsible student of the month of November and a Chess
competition award. I took high school in Ferguson Bay High School. This was the coolest and most
enjoyable facet of my life...
Autobiography Sample
An autobiography example presented in a simple format is given below. The format provided below is
more like a narrative essay.
I was born and brought up in Houston, Texas. Ours is a family of four with my parents, me and my
younger brother. The schooling years of my life were toughest. I struggled a lot in my studies. The
standardized procedure of education never interested me.
I was an average student throughout my academic life. Extra-curricular activities like sports, drawing,
crafts, etc. were my favorite things. I just remember that it was the second semester of 8th grade
when I stood first in class. However, it didn't serve any purpose in motivating me to take up studies
seriously. I enjoyed understanding the concepts more than just memorizing ready-made notes. After
completion of my schooling and college in the science stream, I chose to become a painter. It was a
weird decision taken by me at that time. Today, however, I don't regret it at all.
My career in painting began a smoothly and I was more than happy to grab the right opportunity for
which I was waiting so long. Today, I am happy with my life and enjoy it to the fullest. The positive
attitude to face hardships brought out the best in me. Today I am looking forward to face the
challenges of life in a positive manner.
Autobiographical Sketch
My name is Jane Hilman. I am twenty-five years old and a junior at Utah State
University. I was born in West Virginia, but grew up in Denver, Colorado. I have six
sisters and no brothers. My dad works for the local PBS station and my mother is a
stay-at-home mom. My parents love the outdoors and my family and I all love to ski,
camp, and backpack. My family is Baptist. My sisters and I love to tell scary stories. It is
not uncommon for us to stay up late when we return home for holidays, rehearsing for
each other the "weird" stories that we have heard. It must have started when we were
little girls in West Virginia. My granddaddy Jones, my mother's father, knew hundreds of
stories about ghosts and local legends. When we moved from West Virginia (when I
was eight), my mother started to tell us many of her father's stories. She would always
tell us "stories from home" when it was snowy outside and we couldn't get to school. My
dad also got in on the action by telling "strange" stories about his army days. It became
a family tradition to "tell stories" on no-school days or when camping or traveling. When
I graduated from high school, I decided to come to Utah to work and ski. I moved to Salt
Lake City and worked as a secretary for an architectural firm. I also joined the local back
country club. On one of the first campouts I attended with the group I heard (and told)
some pretty scary stories. When I moved to Logan, Utah, to study Fisheries and Wildlife
Management at USU I continued to camp and ski with my friends from the Salt Lake
area. When I decided I would collect urban legends for my folklore class I decided to
use the stories that my friends had told me on our skiing and camping trips.