ual foundation personal statement

How to write the best personal statement

A great personal statement will help your university application stand out and get those offers rolling in. We cover everything you need to know about writing your personal statement.

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A personal statement is meant to show off YOU. You’ll need to think about why you want to study the course you’re applying for, what you’ve done to work towards that already, what transferable skills you have and what you want to do after university. It’s a lot to think about and squish into the strict UCAS character and line limit, but don’t worry, we’ve got all the tips and advice you could want.

Personal statement all finished? Read more about applying to university.

CONTENTS:

When’s the deadline to finish my personal statement?
How to get started on your personal statement
Tailoring your personal statement to your subject choice
How to structure your personal statement
What to include in your personal statement

Can you use AI when writing your personal statement?

Things to avoid in your personal statement , how long should your personal statement be .

How to edit your personal statement

Are you ready to submit your personal statement?

Ucas proposed reform , when’s the deadline to finish my personal statement .

The UCAS deadline for 2024 entry is 31 January 2024 at 6pm UK time. You can submit applications after this, but you won’t be covered by the Equal Consideration Policy and some courses may be full. Any applications received after 6pm on 30 June 2024 will be entered into Clearing.

It’s best to have your personal statement drafted a couple of weeks before the deadline so you have time to get feedback on it and edit it.

How to get started on your personal statement

Before you even think about writing, you’ll have to research the courses you’re applying for. This can give you some inspiration on what to write about, and if you see you’ve already covered some of the first-year material, even better.

After research comes planning. You’ll want to plan out paragraph by paragraph what you’re going to include to make sure you don’t repeat yourself or miss anything out.

If you have your research and plan completed, it’s time to start writing!

How to start writing your personal statement.

Tailoring your personal statement to your subject choice

Admissions tutors want to see why you’d be a good fit for the course you’ve applied for on your personal statement, so you’ll want to make sure the things you’re mentioning link back to the course you’ve applied to. For example, if you’re applying to study psychology, there’s not much point going on about how much you love watching Great British Bake Off. However, if you’re a huge fan of Milton’s Paradise Lost and you’re applying to study English literature, that’s a great thing to mention.

Not everything you mention has to be directly linked to your chosen course, but it should either link or demonstrate transferable skills useful to university study such as time management, leadership, balancing responsibilities or independent research.

Tailoring your university personal statement to your subject

How to structure your personal statement

There’s no set way you have to structure your personal statement, but if you read a few examples online, you’ll probably notice a bit of a pattern occurring. The main thing to do is to open your personal statement by introducing yourself and why you want to study the course you’re applying to. You might then want to talk about:

Your academic qualifications
Any work experience or volunteering
Extracurricular activities
Any reading you’ve done around your subject (and what you learned from that reading!).

A good way to close your personal statement is to talk about what you’d like to do after university, and how the subject you’re applying for will help you get there.

Ashley Harrison-Barker, Home Admissions Manager at University of Hertfordshire , says "We want you to give us a summary of you as an individual and your journey up until this point... Think of it as a timeline that explains your journey to-date and how you would use this course as a springboard to achieve your desired career aspirations."

How to structure your personal statement.

What to include in your personal statement

Your personal statement should be just that – personal! Exactly what you should include depends on what you’ve done. However, some areas that you might want to cover in your personal statement include:

Work experience
Part-time work or volunteering
What you’re studying now
What topics within the subject particularly interest you
Your future career goals
Extracurricular activities or reading you’ve done relevant to your course

Simone Wilson, Careers Manager at Wirral Grammar School for Boys, says it's important to, "explain what interests you about particular topics and how you have gone above and beyond to learn more about it."

Essential topics to include in your personal statement.

ChatGPT and AI is a hot topic right now, so you might be wondering whether it can help you write your personal statement. In short, you have to be careful if you’re using AI to help you with your personal statement.

Your personal statement must be original work, which means you can’t copy and paste chunks from an AI. UCAS checks personal statements and can detect AI-written content, so using AI-generated paragraphs could harm your application. As Harrison-Barker says, "AI won’t know all your personal experiences so there is no substitute for the real thing."

However, AI can be helpful for the planning stage as it can generate personal statement examples that you can use for inspiration on what to cover and how to structure your own personal statement. It can also help you to brainstorm topics related to your subject that you could relate to your experience when it comes to writing your personal statement.

Using AI and ChatGPT when writing your personal statement.

It probably goes without saying that you shouldn’t use any inappropriate language such as swear words in your personal statement. You should also avoid slang, or language that comes across as too informal (the admissions tutor is not your ‘mate’).

Be wary of using cliches or buzzwords if you don’t have the experience and evidence to back them up, and of course you should avoid lying about anything. It’s also wise to avoid discussing anything that you can’t link to either the subject you’re applying to study, or a transferable skill you learned that’ll be useful at university.

Words you should never use in your university application.

The limit for your UCAS personal statement is 4,000 characters (not words!) including spaces or 47 lines, whichever comes first. To check the length of your personal statement, copy and paste it into the UCAS application form as character count may vary a little bit between your word processing program and UCAS, and the only way to check your line count is to put it into the application form.

Read more about the length requirements for personal statements .

How to edit your personal statement

Once you’ve got a first draft of your personal statement, it’s time to get feedback and redraft. One of the first things you’ll want to do is check how it compares to the UCAS character and line limit. You can’t go over the limit, but you want to get as much in as possible.

You’ll also want to show it to a few people and get some feedback. You could ask your parents, friends or a teacher at school to read it over for you – the more eyes you can get on it the better. It’s good to show your personal statement to whoever is writing your UCAS reference so they can mention some of the things you’ve put into your personal statement.

You’ll need to proofread it to make sure it all makes sense and there aren’t any spelling or grammar errors before you send off your final draft.

How to tell if your university application is good.

Have you drafted, redrafted and drafted your personal statement again? Have you checked for any spelling and grammar mistakes? Have you got a few people to look it over and give you feedback? If you answered yes to all of these questions and your personal statement fits within the UCAS character and line limit, all that’s left to do is go through our application checklist and send it off…

University application checklist.

For 2026 entry onwards, UCAS are changing the way the university application process works. For those applying for entry in 2024 or 2025, the personal statement will not be changing. We’ll bring you more information about the application reform when UCAS release the details of the updated process.

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How To Write Your Personal Statement for UAL / LCF

Hello people 🫶

Writing my personal statement has been a struggle; as someone who studied in a different country, I really didn’t know what I was doing.

But I did it ✨ and I’ve been accepted by my dream uni and without an interview!

Before starting: if you have any questions about the Personal Statement or the application process, comment below 🫶

Now, let’s dive into some tips:

• Research:

As general advice, check what your university wants from you. You can find many info on your course webpage! For example, Oxbridge wants to read mainly about your academic career, while UAL would like to know more about your personality.

• Ask for Help:

I reached out to many friends to write my PS. I reached out to a lovely girl who posted about my course on TikTok asking for advice; I reached out to an old friend who studied in the UK to understand the concept of Personal Statement better; and finally, I reached out to several friends to read my final work and listen to their thoughts.

• What YouTube & Read Examples:

You can find different creators on YouTube by typing “UAL personal statement” to gather information and advice. Also, you can research on Google “name of your course + personal statement” to be inspired.

• Check your grammar and your level of writing:

I found different tools to help me write better.

The first one is Grammarly, as you can choose the “academic” option, and click on different filters to reach your goal. The second tool is PaperRates; an amazing tool for checking the quality of your writing.

Read my PS to be inspired and try to analyze its structure:

My devotion to the creative industry stems from my experience as a content creator. I consistently had a strong enthusiasm for fashion, online communication, and innovative ways of conveying messages to the world. My purpose of motivating people and building self-confidence through my words and style pushes me to choose this path.

Throughout high school, I matured an interest in the executive and expressive aspects of businesses, prompting me to switch my course of study from Foreign Languages and take a final high school Diploma in Financial and Marketing Administration. My education in a foreign language module trained me to talk and transmit messages in different languages, particularly English. Additionally, my diploma gave me the necessary business and marketing ability to comprehend various industries. Subsequently, I took a break to understand myself better; during this time, I took different online courses to extend my credentials and familiarity with online marketing, including the "Fundamentals of Digital Marketing" certification through a Google course.

I partook in extracurricular activities, such as being a part of a students' council, tutoring children in History and Italian, and taking photography classes, which allowed me to set up verbal and non-verbal communication skills with various personalities and age groups. Besides, I joined art and journalism projects in middle schools, like restoring and renovating old objects and creating a school journal. I amplified my teamwork, problem-solving, and time-management skills through these activities.

Later in life, I pursued my interest in fashion and became a fashion content creator. I created and grew a few social media accounts with up to 80000 followers and acquired invaluable learning that can be applied to the marketing and fashion industry. My social media background equipped me to create content that resonates with a target audience, use analytics to track performances, establish relationships with influencers, and create campaigns that attract attention.

I aim to create a more positive presence in online fashion spaces by furthering my studies. As digital marketing has become a key part of the fashion industry, it has caused mental health and self-esteem issues. My struggles with anxiety and social media use have also made me aware of online space's effect on individuals. I am eager to take a degree in the online area to bring about meaningful change in the industry and to use my understanding and mastery to create a more positive presence for fashion.

My career history has benefited me in imparting my knowledge about fashion and self-expression from multiple standpoints. For instance, as a hairdresser, I knew how to sell different hairstyles to clients and craft compelling messages to attract customers. As a waitress, I witnessed customer biases and realised how diverse types of attire can be used to make a statement and how to promote the establishment's products. Finally, as a retail associate in a museum, I gained insight into how fashion can recount a story and be used to stir emotions and how to market the museum's inventory.

The activities, the areas of study I learned, and my work experiences formed me into the person I am today. I currently work part-time in the hospitality industry, honing my oratory and networking skills. I have also launched a Social Media Marketing agency, leveraging my self-studied knowledge of fashion and digital marketing and the affinities I made via my Instagram account. Moreover, my past of moving to other cities during my lifetime can assist my current purpose of a marketing and communication industry career, as I can directly use the wisdom I hold for my future University studies.

#Lemon8Student #LCFStudent #UALStudent #PersonalStatement #universitystudent #universitytips #uniapplication #unitips #universityadvice #L8FashionStudent

I hope it helps at least one fo you 🍋 thank you for reading 🫶

So helpful 🥰

Em Barnard, MD

lorieinscrubs

bea_studies_PA

Hannah Walsh

Yourstudypal

Digitalgirl

Lizzy Reaux

𝑳𝒊𝒚𝒂𝒉 𝑳𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒍𝒚

Girls on Campus

Cleo Natalie

Progression
Art at Kings

Main courses

UAL Foundation Diploma in Art & Design
Art & Design Foundation
Art & Design A-levels
Fast-track Art & Design Pathway

Preparation

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Preparing your portfolio

UAL Foundation Diploma: Course structure

Programme structure and content.

The UAL Foundation Diploma is a highly intensive and stimulating course designed to give students a fulfilling and rewarding learning experience, and to prepare for university undergraduate studies.

Students benefit from regular one-to-one teaching with a variety of specialist teachers who maintain their creative professions alongside their teaching commitments at Kings.

Our high teacher-to-student ratio enables individually tailored experiences for our students.We organise regular opportunities for students to work in larger groups and with other art specialists, such as the Art Residential currently taking place in Bristol at the University of the West of England Bristol (UWE).

Regular events are planned throughout the year with the aim of providing opportunities for students from the different Kings colleges to work collaboratively and to share good practice such as the joint Art/CSS, and Mid-FMP presentations and group gallery visits.

Spread over three terms, the course is 80% Art and Design, supported by 20% Communication Study Skills (CSS) including IELTS.

At a glance

Start dates

1 Academic Year (3 terms)
Average 21 hours per week (plus homework and private study)

Portfolio requirements

A presentation of your work in a pdf or powerpoint format – clearly organised and laid out with self-directed and/or most recent work at the top
Work can include good quality photographs of: drawings, paintings, sculptures, short films/animation, photography and or any other 2D and 3D processes
Show evidence of research and idea development
Organise your portfolio so that progression is evident for each project – from the beginning of the idea to the development of final artwork
A maximum of three different projects and/or a maximum of 10 different pages/slides
If the portfolio needs more work, we will recommend applicants take Art and Design Preparation programme

Other entry requirements

Academic: Completed 11-12 years of schooling
English: IELTS 5.0 or equivalent. If the level of English is below IELTS 5.0, down to 4.0 applicants will be advised to take 1-3 terms of English Preparation
Minimum age:16.5

Course aims

Developing awareness of different creative practices, approaches and perspectives;
Researching, analysing and evaluating relevant information as part of the creative practice;
Instilling the value of research as an investigative and creative practice;
Exploring solutions to complex problems through the application of practical, theoretical and technical understanding;
Enabling students to explore media and processes within a safe environment;
Encouraging independent creative practices and self-led initiatives;
Developing ideas through investigative practices;
Identifying opportunities for progression;
Using critical visual, verbal and written language to communicate ideas and entire bodies of work effectively to both peers and the wider audience.

The programme can be taken at Level 3 or Level 4.

All students take 3 Units across 3 Terms. Level 3 students take Units 1,2 and 4 and Level 4 students take Units 1,3 and 4.

UCAS Application

From September to January students are supported by art staff and the UCAS coordinator during the UCAS application process. This support will include subject-specific advice regarding courses and universities, guidance on how to write Personal Statements and filling in UCAS forms correctly. All references are written by the art tutors. Applications are completed and sent by the first January university deadline and for January entrants by end of March.

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