Factors for successful applications

Matt Hill Professional Development Officer

Contents Personal statements What’s involved Top tips Do’s and Don’t’s Examples

Referencing Importance of referencing Examples Things to avoid Predicted Grades

Research

The Personal Statement

You will write a 500 word personal statement

What sparked your

interest in your chosen

degree subject?

What would your

friends/family say about

you if they were writing

your statement?

Have you had a

conversation with people

already studying in the

field?

Where do you see

yourself in 10 years

time?

Has anyone motivated

you? If yes, who and

how?

Have you faced any

challenges in your school

work? Did it change you?

What is your favourite

book, film or hobby?

How has it influenced

you?

What has been your

biggest achievement and

why?

List any prizes you have

won – inside or outside

school

Getting started – questions to ask yourself

What admissions staff tell UCAS they are looking for in a personal statement

Evidence of:

Independent study skills Self-awareness Motivation and commitment An understanding of the course Good numeracy and literacy Essay writing Research skills Time management skills Enthusiasm to go beyond the syllabus

Example format for a personal statement

Opening SectionProvide insightful reasons for choosing the subject

Demonstrate commitment to the subject(this section should be at least 70% of statement)

Middle SectionOpportunity for the writer to identify themselves

as a reflective and mature individual with appropriate skills,

knowledge and attitudes

Final SectionNeeds to be ‘punchy’ and leave the reader with a firm impression of a strong desire to

study the subject chosen

Activity

Benefit

Course

Activity

Benefit

Course

What you’ve done

What skills it has given you

How these relate to your course

Personal Statement ABC Guide

Good

Better

Best

Structured, clear, concise, precise

Avoid waffle, slang and inappropriate language

Check GRAMMAR and SPELLING GRAMMAR SPELLING

‘So what?’

… I am working towards my Duke of Edinburgh Gold

award and will be undertaking a hike in the Brecon

Beacons. This has taught me a lot of skills.’

1

“ I am not a mind-reader – to win me over I need the applicant to explain more fully the skills they have gained ”

‘So what?’

… During my Duke of Edinburgh Silver award trip my team ran

short of provisions. As a result I am assuming responsibility for food

and drink for our forthcoming Gold Award trip. I have developed a

spreadsheet which details our precise requirements and I am

confident that my organisation will enable the team to perform at its

peak during the challenge.’

2

“ This is much better – she is obviously not afraid of responsibility, is organised and a true team player ”

Tip for students – avoid ‘list addiction’

I enjoy watching football, I enjoy canoeing and surfing, I sing in the

choir, I belong to the debating society, I am taking part in the Duke of

Edinburgh Award scheme, I work in Tesco on Saturdays and I shop

for my Granny on Monday after school.

Select key activities to expand on

I have been an active member of a Teesside debating society for the

last two years. This has proved really interesting as I have had the

chance to research and defend viewpoints that I would normally not

agree with; an exercise which I’m sure will prove valuable as a Law

student.

Dear John: I want a man who knows what love is.

All about you are generous, kind, thoughtful

people, who are not like you. Admit to being

useless and inferior. You have ruined me. For

other men, I yearn. For you I have no feelings

whatsoever. When we are apart, I can be forever

happy. Will you let me be. Yours, Gloria

Dear John: I want a man who knows what love is

all about. You are generous, kind, thoughtful.

People who are not like you admit to being

useless and inferior. You have ruined me for

other men. I yearn for you. I have no feelings

whatsoever when we are apart. I can be forever

happy – will you let me be yours? Gloria

Punctuation

Things to avoid

Intellectual Pretensions

Misdirected humour

No mention of future aspirations

/ direction

Committing GBH on English

language

‘I so don’t want to miss this

opportunity’

‘I have been interested in

History from the get-go.’’

Reference Writing

An admissions tutor is house hunting

(S)he wants it to be detached, two-storeys and have at least

3 bedrooms

Together, you and your student are going to build one and try

to sell it to the admissions tutor

But...

So are lots of other staff and student teams...

Your student builds the ground floor

...and a very nice job they make of it too!

Do you see where I am going?

(...This is their Personal Statement!)

It is now up to the referee to build the 2nd storey

But who supplies the bricks and joists and tiles and mortar etc?

The subject tutors or teachers (via their subject reports)

...Only, sometimes, there is a shortage of materials for the referee to

build with...

...But (s)he does

the best (s)he

can in these

circumstances!

Even when there are enough materials...

The subject teacher/tutor sometimes doesn’t pay any

attention to the student’s work...(I’m too busy to look – anyway, I know the student quite well...)

If they had paidattention to howthe student hadbuilt the groundfloor, they couldhave workedtoward a moreharmoniouswhole

..and even triedto fill in any gapsif the ground floorbuild quality wasa little bit lacking

So now YOU’RE the admissions tutor

Which of the houses presented to you would you buy?

The one that’s not finished, with 1 almost completed bedroom and no roof, partly patched together with tarpaulin?

The one whose second storey has asevere identity crisis?

Or the one that looks like it is a balanced,harmonious, sturdy and homely structure?

Performance in individual

modules or course

components

Any additional

preparation by student in

support of application

Motivation and suitability

for the chosen HE course

Exploring the subject

beyond the bounds of the

school or college

curriculum e.g work

experience, volunteering

Ability to work hard and

keep to deadlines

Are assignment results a

fair reflection of ability?

Student powers of

analysis and as an

independent learner

Academic and practical

skills specific to your

subject

Writing references – what would universities like to know?

Attainment in comparison

to rest of BTEC group

Writing an effective subject report

…Sharon is a highly competent student of History. Her

factual understanding is immediate and her

contributions in class are thoughtful.

1

Needs flesh putting on the bones!

Writing an effective subject report

…Sharon is a highly competent and perceptive student of History. Her

written work benefits from a commendable economy of delivery, and a

relevant, direct approach. Her factual understanding is immediate even

when the issues are complex (such as the events leading up to the downfall

of Apartheid in South Africa, which she has researched with diligence) and

her thoughtful contributions in class and insightful coursework

show her to have a healthily sceptical mind; very useful in a

historian.

2

This is definitely now pressing the right buttons for me!

Style – example 1

X is an outstanding young man; were I to pour out a stream of

superlatives it would be no more, no less than he deserves. He is

this year’s Head Prefect; I can only say that it is an exceptional year

group and yet he has stood out. He has a buoyancy and energy and

a natural sense of care for others that make it a privilege to know him.

He simply loves life, people, school, everything, and though he makes

major commitments to all sorts of things, he does all that he undertakes

supremely well. (I saw him purely by chance, miles away from school,

during the summer holidays – he was at the seaside accompanying a

group of disabled people who were on a day out, and that is absolutely

typical of him.)

Source: Writing References for Higher Education, Sue Jones

Some admissions tutors’ responses The style is too rococo for some tastes and may obscure

the excellence of the candidate

Could be described as “over the top.” This would put me

off (I’d probably offer the candidate an interview out of

interest!)

Very verbose…lots of superlatives

I feel that the author is trying to hide something – it is so

fulsome!

The style of this reference annoys me.

Style – example 2

X is someone of whom we are very proud. She is an exceptionally hard

working and committed pupil who is popular with both staff and students

and has gained their respect for her friendly and responsible attitude.

She has an excellent record of attendance and punctuality; she is

mature, well motivated and conscientious as well as being meticulous in

her organisation of herself and her studies.

X has held some positions of responsibility with success. She took on

the responsibility as captain of the school sports day athletics team

displaying excellent organisational skills. She has been consistently

supportive of her form’s and the school’s charity events and has

personally raised money for charities.

Some admissions tutors’ responses

Clearly written and easy to read

I prefer this plain nature of words and style

Is a little brusque, but conveys an air of objectivity, and is

very close to the ideal from a stylistic point of view

The perfect structure, style and content. It takes 15

seconds to read and I know that the applicant fulfils all my

requirements

Red card offences

Over the top eulogising…

… and when he is not working towards World Peace,

he enjoys learning languages from scratch, writing

symphonies and playing a standard of golf that Tiger

Woods can only dream about.’

Reference writing: Don’ts

Use it to promote school or college

Directly mention one institution by name

Paste in information on the wrong student!!

Reference writing – the practicalities

The applicant can get the reference if they wish

£10 for a copy of their whole application

This means that parents could read the reference

Can’t use Bold, Italics, Underlined or Foreign characteristics

47 lines of text or 4000 characters – including blank lines and spaces

Save as you go – it will timeout after 35 minutes

Practical guide to writing references:

http://www.ucas.com/advisers/apply/about_apply/writingreferences

Predicted Grades

Universities appreciate

reliability – there is less

than a 55% exact match on

3 A-Level predictions Underestimated grades can

result in no offer being

made Overestimated grades can

result in clearing

• 47% of predictions are too optimistic and 9% are too pessimistic

• If predicted grades are vastly different to AS grades – explain why.Source: Writing a UCAS reference: hints and tips.

University of Exeter

Research

How to choose the right course

Every year there are thousands of students who ask the

same question: what should I study?

Ask yourself the following questions:

Which subjects interest me?

What are my talents?

What job would I like to do after university or college?

Which academic skills would I like to improve?

Tariff statistics

Use of Tariff for 2010

entry requirements:

81% of institutions

using the Tariff

65% of courses using

the Tariff

UCAS Higher education conventions

More than 50 higher education conventions held every

year throughout the UK

The conventions bring together universities and colleges

within the UCAS scheme to inform and guide prospective

university and college students

They are designed mainly for 16-year-old and 17-year-old

students (Year 12, Lower Sixth or Scottish Higher students

in Scotland)

Annually around 250,000 people attend the events

Social Media

UCAStv

yougo

Official UCAS Facebook page

Twitter.com/ucas_online

Youtube.com/ucasonline

Subject Choices

Subjects that give applicants the

most options - Facilitating

subjects:

Mathematics and Further Maths English Science (Physics, Chemistry and Biology) Geography and History Languages (Classic & Modern)

• By choosing facilitating subjects you are not restricted to applying for degree courses which require certain subjects

• Students who take one non-facilitating subject do not generally experience any problems applying to a Russell Group university

• There is no set definition of ‘hard’ and ‘soft’ subjects and down to individual university interpretation so applicants MUST check course search.

Source: Informed Choices: A Russell Group guide to making decisions about post-16 education. Russell International Excellence Group

Questions

Matt Hill

professionaldevelopment@ucas.ac.uk