Writing Effective Personal Statement for Graduate School (with accepted sample)

Hey there, future grad students! If you’re eyeing schools in US, whether it’s for graduate or undergraduate programs, let me tell you – the Personal Statement is your golden ticket. It’s much more than just a formality; it’s a crucial part of your application, a chance to really show who you are. It’s taken way more seriously than the somewhat routine self-introduction essays.

So, buckle up! In this blog post, I’m going to walk you through crafting a stellar Personal Statement for U.S. grad schools with my personal statement I was admitted to the University of Michigan with. We’ll dive into what kind of content you should include, the style you should adopt, and I’ll even share my own sample to guide you. Stay tuned for some insider tips on how to make your Personal Statement stand out!

Make sure to also checkout my other post about writing SOP for graduate schools!

Planning a Personal Statement

Understanding the Purpose of a Personal Statement

Before diving into what to write in your Personal Statement, it’s crucial to understand what it is and why it’s written in the first place.

In U.S. graduate schools, the Personal Statement, or a similar essay, is often required not just as a formality. It serves a deeper purpose. Grades and awards only tell part of your story. These schools want to hear directly from you about your capabilities and strengths – aspects that transcripts and resumes might not fully capture. And trust me, if you look at the guidelines provided by various schools, you’ll find a lot of common themes.

Take, for example, UC Berkeley’s graduate program. If you check out their website, you’ll find guidelines for the Personal Statement that highlight exactly these points.

1. Concrete Examples of Your Potential: This is your chance to show, not just tell. Share specific instances that demonstrate your capabilities and how they have shaped your journey.
2. Unique Vision: What sets you apart? Share your unique perspective or approach to your field of study. This is where your personal flair comes in – your vision that drives you.
3. Contribution to Diversity: How can you contribute to the diversity of the program? Think beyond cultural backgrounds. Diversity of thought, experience, and approach are equally important.

Writing the Personal Statement – Berkeley Graduate Division

Helpful tips and advice for drafting a compelling personal statement when applying for graduate admission.

Crafting Your Personal Statement: Key Ingredients

Now, let’s dive into my recommended approach and what to include in your Personal Statement. Think of it as your recipe for success:

1. Reason for Applying: Start with your motivation. Why this program? Why now?
2. Your Goals and Vision: What are you aiming to achieve? Share your dreams and how this program fits into that picture.
3. Capacity Backed by Experience: Detail your skills and strengths, particularly those supported by your research or work history.
4. Fit with the Program: Show how your profile aligns with the specific degree program you’re applying to.
5. Unique Background: What makes you different from other applicants?
6. Alignment with the Department’s Philosophy: How does your approach resonate with the educational philosophy of the department?
7. Contribution to Diversity: Can you add to the school’s community diversity in meaningful ways?

A well-crafted Personal Statement should encompass these elements, particularly focusing on program fit and diversity, which are highly valued in U.S. institutions.

Remember, it’s more about making an impact than ticking all the boxes. Tailor your content to reflect your unique journey, rather than strictly adhering to this order.

Be mindful of the word limit, typically around 800-1,000 words. Always check each school’s specific requirements. The goal isn’t to cram in as much as possible, but to strategically select content that best showcases you. Even if a school doesn’t set a strict limit, sticking to a similar length is advisable.

In my experience, a good strategy is to gather common questions asked by various schools and address overlapping themes in your statement. This assumes that while each school’s requirements may vary, they won’t be drastically different. I recommend collecting and pondering over these questions as a starting point for your content planning.

(Always verify with the latest application instructions specific to your year of application.)

“Why I’m trying to do what?” – Crafting the Perfect Opening for Your Personal Statement

Imagine you’re on the admissions committee. You have stacks of personal statements to read, and you can’t spend more than a couple of minutes on each. It’s easy to see how a less engaging start could put you at a disadvantage. Your opening lines need to captivate the reader and draw them into your world.

A good strategy? Start with the first four sentences. Make them short but impactful, focusing on your motivation and goals. Avoid lengthy, clichéd, or overly dramatic narratives. This is why I recommend succinctly stating your vision and the objectives you aspire to achieve as a researcher.

Remember, every school will look for your motivation in your Personal Statement. By addressing this right at the start, you’re ticking off a crucial item on the evaluator’s checklist, making for a smoother beginning.

Now, looking back at my own example, it might not be perfect – mainly because I tried to condense too much content, leading to a somewhat disjointed start. Consider it more as a guideline rather than a perfect example.

In my Personal Statement, I began like this:

• Despite moving around a lot, my goal has always been constant.
• Since childhood, I’ve loved [subject], winning various competitions. But my real drive wasn’t the contests; it was a future working with robots.

Once you’ve grabbed attention with the first few lines, it’s time to build on that interest. Add explanations that make the reader nod in agreement. Here’s how I continued:

• The Fukushima nuclear disaster was a shock; seeing robots unable to do much was an eye-opener.
• This motivated me to participate in an international contest, where I witnessed the current state of robotics.
• It was clear there were many problems to solve and extensive research needed.

A strong start sets the stage for a compelling Personal Statement. It’s about striking the right balance between sharing your story and capturing the reader’s interest.

“Who I Am and Why Schools Would Want Me” – Demonstrating Your Fit and Value

In your Personal Statement, it’s crucial to communicate not just your reasons for applying but also how well you fit into the school/program (the ‘best fit’) and your potential to contribute as a member of their community.

Best Fit: Showcasing Your Potential and Direction

Every school and applicant’s situation is unique, but generally, being a ‘good fit’ means demonstrating your academic and research potential and aligning with the department’s desired candidate profile. It’s wise to refer to the specific program’s website for more precise details, as my experience might differ from yours.

Contribution: Highlighting Your Unique Aspects

One of the hallmarks of U.S. universities is their consideration of an applicant’s personal qualities alongside academic strengths. The aspects that often stand out include:

• Leadership: Your potential to be a role model within the student body.
• Diversity: How you can contribute to the cultural richness of the campus.
• Community Involvement: Your track record and future plans for altruistic activities.
• Overcoming Life Challenges: How you’ve triumphed over formidable obstacles such as challenging family circumstances or social adversity.

If you have strengths in these areas, it’s beneficial to highlight them actively. However, considering the plethora of applicants, it’s more effective to emphasize aspects connected to notable activities or experiences. For instance, for Leadership, you might mention significant roles like club president or student body leader; for Community Involvement, active volunteering efforts could be a great example.

As an international student, discussing Diversity can be relatively more straightforward. It’s not enough to just say, “I grew up in Korea.” Instead, focus on overcoming cultural challenges or unique experiences that American students might not have encountered.

In my case, I flipped the script: I sought answers abroad that I couldn’t find in Korea. Living in various countries allowed me to understand different cultures and see the world from diverse perspectives.

Personal Statement vs. Statement of Purpose (SOP): Understanding the Difference

One of the perennial questions in grad school applications is the difference between a Personal Statement and a Statement of Purpose (SOP). It’s a bit of a puzzle that many ask but few can definitively answer. According to a document from Carnegie Mellon University, even they don’t have a clear-cut response. However, a general understanding can be drawn:

• Personal Statement: This is more about your background and motivation. It’s akin to sharing a story about your past experiences and what has led you to where you are now.
• Statement of Purpose (SOP): This document focuses on your future. It’s a direct presentation of what you plan to do and what your goals are moving forward.

So, in essence, while the Personal Statement is a narrative of your journey so far, the SOP is a roadmap of where you intend to go. This distinction, albeit subtle, helps in tailoring your application documents to the expectations of graduate programs. grad-app-sop.pdf (cmu.edu)

Handouts alphabetically – Student Academic Success Center – Carnegie Mellon University

Our library of videos and printable handouts is your free resource for communication advice.

Navigating the Submission of Personal Statement and SOP

Navigating the requirements for Personal Statements and Statements of Purpose (SOP) can get a bit tricky, as different schools have different demands. While some universities require both documents, others ask for only one. To efficiently manage my time during the application process, I adopted a strategic approach: I wrote both documents separately and then merged them into one, as needed, based on each school’s requirements.

However, for this strategy to work seamlessly, it’s crucial that the two documents have minimal overlap. This way, combining them into a single coherent document becomes much easier. By preparing both documents in advance, you’re essentially ready for any application requirement, saving precious time and avoiding last-minute scrambles.

Remember, each document serves a unique purpose, so ensure that each one effectively conveys its intended message, whether it’s your past journey (Personal Statement) or your future aspirations (SOP).

Writing Personal Statement: Tips and Tools

Once you’ve got a solid idea of what to include in your Personal Statement, let’s move on to the writing process. There are various ways to write your document. While many people prefer using Word, I personally don’t recommend it. I’ve detailed my reasons in a previous post about writing Statements of Purpose (SOP), so feel free to check that out for more insights.

SOP for Graduate Schools – Everything you should know (with my sample) for PhD and Master’s

Getting ready for grad school in the U.S.? The toughest part might just be the SOP (Statement of Purpose). In the U.S., your SOP isn’t just another document; it’s taken seriously and weighs heavily in the application process. It demands a good chunk of your time and careful thought. In this post, I’m all about guiding you from that daunting blank page to a polished, complete SOP.

In summary, I opted for LaTeX for its formatting convenience and to minimize errors. LaTeX, widely used for academic writing, might already be familiar to many of you. It’s essentially a tool that takes your script and renders it into a beautifully formatted PDF. If you’re heading to grad school, you’ll likely end up using LaTeX anyway, so why not start now?

Writing with LaTeX (Overleaf)

My document didn’t require any subheadings, just the title and text, so there were no technical challenges. I believe it should be straightforward for others as well. I’m happy to share the LaTeX (Overleaf) template I used. (It’s originally for SOP, but I just changed the title for my Personal Statement.)

Statement of Purpose template with horizontal rule

An online LaTeX editor that’s easy to use. No installation, real-time collaboration, version control, hundreds of LaTeX templates, and more.

As I mentioned in my post on SOPs, make sure to use variables for the names of schools and departments to avoid any mishaps like mentioning the wrong institution.

%Department name
\newcommand{\programname}{Computer Science}
%College name
\newcommand{\collegename}{Columbia Univeristy}

The rest of the process is just about filling in your content, which shouldn’t be too hard, so I’ll skip over that part.

Things to Remember when writing your Personal Statement

The process of composing a Personal Statement requires meticulous attention to detail and adherence to certain key principles. Let’s explore some essential guidelines to ensure your statement is both impactful and professional.

Compliance with Word Limit

It’s imperative to respect the word limit stipulated by each institution. If a maximum word count is specified, adhering to this limit is crucial. In cases where no specific limit is provided, a general rule of thumb is to keep your statement under 1,000 words. This demonstrates your ability to communicate effectively and concisely.

Elimination of Extraneous Content

One common pitfall in personal statement writing is the inclusion of irrelevant details. It’s important to maintain a focused narrative. Content that does not directly support your core message, such as peripheral hobbies or anecdotes, should be omitted. This strategic exclusion ensures a coherent and purpose-driven narrative.

Incorporation of External Feedback

As underscored in my previous discussions on Statement of Purpose composition, independent writing can sometimes lead to miscommunication of intended ideas. It is advisable to seek external feedback to ensure clarity and effectiveness of your statement. This can involve peer review or consultation with individuals possessing strong editorial skills.

Language Proficiency and Precision

For non-native English speakers, obtaining assistance in language polishing is highly recommended. This could involve enlisting the help of native English-speaking colleagues or utilizing linguistic tools such as Chat-GPT or Grammarly. Such resources are invaluable for ensuring linguistic accuracy and fluency in your statement.

Conclusion

This post has outlined strategic approaches for conceptualizing and authoring a Personal Statement for graduate school applications in the United States. Through diligent preparation and iterative refinement, your application can capture the attention of admission committees. A well-crafted statement, characterized by clarity, sincerity, and professionalism, will undoubtedly highlight your unique story and aspirations. May these insights serve as a valuable asset in your academic pursuits.