examples of personal statements for history degrees

• Oxbridge Law 24/25 Entry
• Non-Oxbridge Law 24/25 Entry
• Oxford PPE 24/25 Entry
• Oxbridge Economics 24/25 Entry
• Oxbridge Modern Languages 24/25 Entry
• Cambridge Land Economy 24/25 Entry
• Oxbridge Psychology 24/25 Entry
• Oxbridge English 24/25 Entry
• Oxford Human Sciences 24/25 Entry
• Oxbridge History 24/25 Entry
• Oxbridge Geography 24/25 Entry
• Cambridge Philosophy 24/25 Entry
• Oxbridge Classics 24/25 Entry
• Cambridge Architecture 24/25 Entry
• Cambridge HSPS Programme 24/25 Entry
• Oxbridge Medicine 24/25 Entry
• Oxford Biomedical Sciences 24/25 Entry
• Oxbridge Engineering 24/25 Entry
• Cambridge Natural Science 24/25 Entry
• Oxbridge Maths 24/25 Entry
• Oxbridge Computer Science 24/25 Entry
• Oxford Physics 24/25 Entry
• Oxford PPL 24/25 Entry
• Cambridge Veterinary Science 24/25 Entry
• Oxford Chemistry 24/25 Entry
• Oxford Biology 24/25 Entry
• Oxford Biochemistry 24/25 Entry
• Non-Oxbridge Medicine 24/25 Entry
• Non-Oxbridge Dentistry 24/25 Entry
• IMAT Medicine 24/25 Entry
• Can’t Find Your Subject?
• Law Interview Programme
• PPE Interview Programme
• Economics Interview Programme
• Oxbridge Medicine Interview Programme
• Natural Science Interview Programme
• Engineering Interview Programme
• Maths Interview Programme
• Dentistry Interview Programme
• Medicine MMI Interview Programme
• Our Guarantee

Our Students

Student Success Stories

• University Access Scheme
• New Tutor Application Form
• Frequently Asked Questions
• How Does It Work?

Enrol on a UniAdmissions Programme by the 21st June and enjoy a £500 reduction on your fees. Schedule your consultation here today.

Secure your place on a UniAdmissions Programme by Friday, 21st June, and enjoy a £500 reduction on your enrolment fees. Schedule your consultation here today.

• +44 (0) 208 068 0438
• [email protected]

SCIENCE PROGRAMMES (25/26 ENTRY)

HUMANITIES PROGRAMMES (25/26 ENTRY)

GET STARTED

Can't find your subject?

OXFORD TESTS (25/26 ENTRY)

CAMBRIDGE TESTS (25/26 ENTRY)

MEDICINE TESTS (25/26 ENTRY)

View Our Free admissions guides & resources

How UniAdmissions Cracked The Oxbridge Formula

Applying for Oxbridge is an opportunity seldom approached correctly. So how do you enter the top 16% of a strong cohort of applicants that get an offer? Discover how UniAdmissions get 2/3 of our students in.

UCAT Registration 2024: What You Need To Know

Every year, thousands of medicine applicants take the UCAT aiming for top scores. To take the test, you must register first. This guide provides all the information you need to secure your UCAT registration.

Inside The UniAdmissions Portal: The UA Advantage

UniAdmissions students have access to the world's first dedicated Oxbridge admissions preparation platform, and this guide will help you discover exactly how the Portal will help you get your offer.

Discover all guides

ABOUT UNIADMISSIONS

Learn about who the world's first Oxbridge prep school are.

Learn about the Portal; the heart of our Programmes.

UniAdmissions' Foundation

The Foundation is our charitable arm to support disadvantaged students.

Students & Tutors

Discover who a UniAdmissions student is and our admissions criteria.

Learn about our high-performing Oxbridge tutors.

We're proud of our alumni. Read about their journey with UniAdmissions here.

Admissions Resources

Free Admissions Guides

Visit our Learning Centre and read our in-depth free guides.

We are the world's biggest Oxbridge application publisher. Learn more here.

Teachers Learning Hub

Learn about how to help your students get their place at Oxbridge.

Get Started

• Access Student Portal
• Oxbridge Programmes
• Open Day Webinar
• Tutor Application Form
• Common Questions
• Download Our Prospectus

Successful Personal Statement For History At Oxford

Last Updated: 6th April 2022

Author: Rob Needleman

Table of Contents

Welcome to our popular Personal Statement series where we present a successful Personal Statement, and our Oxbridge Tutors provide their feedback on it. 

Today, we are looking through a History applicant’s Personal Statement that helped secure a place at Oxford University. The History Course at Oxford combines the examination of large regions over extended periods of time with more focused work on smaller social groups, shorter periods and particular themes.

Read on to see how this candidate demonstrates that they can understand and analyse history.  

Here’s a breakdown of the Personal Statement (the applicant uses most of the 4,000 characters available):

SUCCESSFUL?

The universities this candidate applied to were the following:

Enrolling on our Oxbridge History comprehensive Programme will give you access to Personal Statement redrafts. 

Your tutor will give you actionable feedback with insider tips on how to improve and make your Personal Statement Oxbridge quality for the best chances of success.  

History Personal Statement

My passion for history can best be explained by discussing the period of German Unification, which displays the most engrossing virtues of studying the subject. Firstly there is great scope for debate and exploration of the interlocking causations, examining the relative importance of Bismarck’s own role against the military strengthening of Prussia or the shifting international relations. But most interestingly it is a defining period in the shaping of modern Europe and the way in which it links the past to the present is most fascinating. Studying this period reveals how international relations progressed after the Napoleonic era leading to the way in which Germany was unified through war and thus became a country built around war. It is therefore arguable that this era created the state which would then trigger the two wars which have shaped the modern world. This period shows how history can give us a more rounded understanding of the world we live in, linking our mysterious and intriguing past to our all too familiar present surroundings. It is partly this, which motivates me to study history as in doing so I gain immense satisfaction from learning how our world has evolved.

An understanding of history also provides a fundamental backdrop for any other areas of study. I have found this through my other A-Level subjects, for example historical knowledge of politics in Britain was essential to AS politics, particularly when studying the political situation in Ireland. An understanding of past conflicts is indispensable when it comes to managing contemporary politics. Furthermore, whilst taking French the study of Un Sac De Billes by Joseph Joffo unearthed experiences of living under Vichy France. To learn a language fully it is important to immerse oneself in the culture and history of the country in order to develop a more rounded understanding of the people who live there. Thus it seems that history is inescapable; it not only provides vital background knowledge but also helps bring to life every other academic subject, which is why in my opinion, it is the most important.     

During my A Level history course, the Napoleonic era particularly fascinated me and I pursued my interest through further reading, looking specifically at Napoleon’s downfall, an area I found most compelling as it offers the greatest exposition of the psychology of this exceptional man. I read Digby Smith’s ‘The Decline and Fall of Napoleon’s Empire’ as well as Zamoyski’s ‘1812’. I picked up on several themes throughout Zamoyski’s book and developed my own opinions such as sympathetic stances towards General Barclay and the Tsar, but was particularly intrigued by how Napoleon let his ego drive his pre-war diplomacy and how Napoleon’s own role in the breakdown of the Treaty of Tilsit perhaps triggered his eventual downfall. The fact that I was so gripped by so many different themes within an historical study of one war also reveals another aspect of history that is so appealing to me. It offers vast numbers of different avenues to pursue in one’s research, whether it is Napoleon’s diplomacy or the fallibility of the Russian command.

Outside of my academic studies, I am a dedicated sportsman but have particularly flourished musically as a cellist, obtaining a grade 8 standard in year 11 and am a committed member of various ensembles. Music has coloured my historical studies, for example, I played various Shostakovich symphonies coinciding with my study of Stalinist Russia at GCSE, each with a very different feel depending upon his relationship with Stalin, but perhaps most moving was playing his 10 th symphony, a purely self-indulgent expression of relief after the death of the dictator. It is impossible to appreciate this great work without its historical context, which transforms the piece into something personal, attaching the listener emotionally. History is not only fascinating in itself, but it enriches our appreciation of all other interests.

For more inspiration, take a look through our other successful Personal Statement a nalysis articles:

Successful Personal Statement For Natural Science (Physical) At Cambridge

Successful personal statement for economics at cambridge, successful personal statement for land economy at cambridge, successful personal statement for chemistry at oxford, successful personal statement for geography at oxford, successful personal statement for classics at oxford, successful personal statement for law at oxford, successful personal statement for classics at cambridge, successful personal statement for engineering at cambridge, successful personal statement for philosophy at cambridge, successful personal statement for veterinary medicine at cambridge, successful personal statement for psychological and behavioural sciences at cambridge, successful personal statement for psychology at oxford, successful personal statement for physics at oxford, successful personal statement for cambridge mathematics and physics, successful personal statement example for computer science at oxford, successful personal statement for english at cambridge, successful personal statement for oxford english language and literature, successful personal statement for medicine at oxford university, successful personal statement for modern languages at oxford, successful personal statement for engineering at oxford, successful personal statement for natural sciences (biological) at cambridge, successful personal statement for economics & management at oxford, successful personal statement for ppe at oxford, successful personal statement for law at cambridge, successful personal statement for dentistry at king’s college london, successful personal statement for medicine at cambridge, good points of the personal statement.

The student speaks intelligently and successfully links their interests – both within history and outside of history – to the study of history on a wider scale. The statement is well organised and reads well. Paragraph three, in particular, has many strong points with a greater focus on what really interests the student and why. The student does well to focus on the different areas of exploration within history showing a strong awareness of the nuances within historical study.

Bad Points Of The Personal Statement

The statement focuses too much on what the student knows, rather than what interests the student – the first paragraph, in particular, reads too much like an essay, and less like an exploration of why this student actually wants to study history. The student risks falling into a trap of trying to teach and impress the admissions tutor with their knowledge instead of offering a more personal approach. The student also needs to try to avoid repetition, for example ‘most interestingly’ and ‘most fascinating’ within the same sentence in order to ensure the whole statement flows better.

UniAdmissions Overall Score:

This is a very strong, well-written Personal Statement. The student has clearly proved they can both understand and analyse history. The student perhaps needs to focus more on their own motivations behind studying history, but overall, the statement suggests a student with great potential and zeal for the subject. What would make the student stand out even more is a stronger closing statement – something to bring the whole personal statement together.

This Personal Statement for History is a great example of a strong, well-written Statement. The candidate’s interest and achievements are clearly shown which is vital to Admissions Tutors.

Remember, at Oxford, these Admissions Tutors are often the people who will be teaching you for the next few years, so you need to appeal directly to them.

There are plenty more successful personal statements and expert guides on our Free Personal Statement Resources page.

Our expert tutors are on hand to help you craft the perfect Personal Statement for your Oxford History application.

With our  Oxbridge History Premium Programme, we help you craft the perfect Personal   Statement , score highly on the HAT and teach you how to  Interview effectively .

Discover our  Oxbridge History Premium Programme  by clicking the button below to  enrol and triple your chances of success.

UniAdmissions students placed at Oxford And Cambridge

Continue learning about Oxbridge...

Ai writing & ucas personal statements: what you need to know.

When it comes to writing in the 2020s, AI-Generation has become one of the most important issues for many industries,…

Oxbridge Personal Statements: A Complete Teacher’s Guide

As a teacher, you will support students with their UCAS Personal Statements every year, but what about Personal Statements for…

UCAS Personal Statements Are Changing in 2025

On January 12th 2023, UCAS announced that the traditional Personal Statement would be replaced by a multi-question form for university…

Writing an Economics and Management Personal Statement for Oxford? If so, you’re in the right place! In this post, we…

Successful Personal Statement For Computer Science At Oxford

Read through a successful Computer Science Personal Statement for Oxford with a full analysis by Oxbridge Tutors. Find out why…

PAT Scoring: What Is A Good PAT Score?

When you're preparing for the PAT one thing you're going to want to know straight away is how the exam…

The Secrets to Oxbridge Admission.

• We cracked the Oxbridge formula . Find out what we discovered here.
• Looking for application support? Don't work with a random tutor. This is what you need to know first.
• Get up-to-date Oxbridge advice with our webinars. Follow our Open Days led by our experts and stay updated.
• Begin your Oxbridge journey with UniAdmissions through our programmes of support by clicking here.

How would you like to speak to an Admissions Consultant?

• FindAMasters
• History Masters Personal Statement Sample

Written by Hannah Slack

This is an example personal statement for a Masters degree application in History. See our guide for advice on writing your own postgraduate personal statement .

The Black Lives Matter protests over the last few years have sparked interesting debates about the role of nationality, memorial and history in our modern society. I have long been interested in the history of migration and otherness and recent events have shown that these are topics that need ongoing teaching and discussion. I am applying for this Masters programme because I believe it will give me the best opportunity to advance my understanding of these themes and learn more about the complexities surrounding such universal debates.

Last year I completed a Bachelors degree in Politics, achieving a 2.1. My degree allowed me to take cross-discipline modules and so in addition to political theory I studied modules on the African Diaspora and propaganda in the 20th century. I believe having a background in politics will benefit my studies in history because it allowed me to learn about broad ideas such as race theory, modernisation and mobilisation.

After graduating from my undergraduate degree I worked as a freelance writer for an American sports online magazine. I have a strong passion for sports and this job not only helped improve my written communication but it also taught me how to work for myself and manage a sizable workload. Research was another important element in the role which I thoroughly enjoyed. Aside from discussing physical games, I wrote articles on the role of politics in American sports and the many moments of activism that drew the attention of the nation.

My passion for sports did not stem from my interest in politics but rather the two intertwined somewhere along the way. Prior to landing a sports journalism job, I was the team captain of my university’s lacrosse team. I had never played lacrosse when I joined in first year but the dynamics of the game made it an extremely fun and interesting hobby. Advancing to the position of captain within three years shows my dedication and willingness to work hard, as well as my leadership skills. I believe all of these skills will aid me in completing a Masters degree.

I have applied to this institution because the taught modules you offer and the specialists housed in the department align most with my interests. The large emphasis on modern history excites me as a place for me to learn, grow and contribute.

Find a Masters in History

If you're interested in a studying History, then why don't you check out our regularly updated catalogue of available History Masters courses .

Our postgrad newsletter shares courses, funding news, stories and advice

Picking a different Masters doesn't just mean choosing a new subject. In this post Chantelle describes her experience studying an interdisciplinary vocational course.

FindAMasters. Copyright 2005-2024 All rights reserved.

Unknown    ( change )

Have you got time to answer some quick questions about Masters study?

Select your nearest city

• Aberystwyth
• Beaconsfield
• Bishop Burton
• Bournemouth
• Bridlington
• Chatham Maritime
• Cirencester
• East Malling
• Hemel Hempstead
• High Wycombe
• Huddersfield
• Isle of Man
• Jordanstown
• London Central
• London East
• London South
• London West
• Londonderry
• Loughborough
• Middlesbrough
• Milton Keynes
• Musselburgh
• Northampton
• Potters Bar
• Saffron Waldon
• Scarborough
• Southampton
• St Leonards on Sea
• Stoke on Trent
• Wolverhampton

You haven’t completed your profile yet. To get the most out of FindAMasters, finish your profile and receive these benefits:

• Monthly chance to win one of ten £10 Amazon vouchers ; winners will be notified every month.*
• Access to our £6,000 scholarship competition
• Weekly newsletter with funding opportunities, application tips and much more
• Early access to our physical and virtual postgraduate study fairs

Or begin browsing FindAMasters.com

or begin browsing FindAMasters.com

*Offer only available for the duration of your active subscription, and subject to change. You MUST claim your prize within 72 hours, if not we will redraw.

Do you want hassle-free information and advice?

Create your FindAMasters account and sign up to our newsletter:

• Find out about funding opportunities and application tips
• Receive weekly advice, student stories and the latest Masters news
• Hear about our upcoming study fairs
• Save your favourite programmes, track enquiries and get personalised subject updates

Create your account

Looking to list your Masters programmes? Log in here .

Let us help you find a Masters

Never miss a course

Enter our ambassador competition

Get funding news, tips and advice

Hear about upcoming events

Sign up to our newsletter today

We've been helping students find the right postgraduate course for over a decade.

Login to your account

Enter your username below to login to your account.

Student Good Guide

The best UK online resource for students

• History Personal Statement Examples

Learn how to write a good History personal statement with guidance from the best student examples. Here, we present two history personal statement examples focusing on the medieval and ancient periods to provide you with inspiration and valuable insights into preparing your university application.

You can use it for Oxford , Cambridge , or any other university. 

History Personal Statement Example

History, which has fascinated and engaged me from early on in my education journey, has become my deep passion and formed my intellectual journey. Teaching History at AS-Level proved transformative despite initial scepticism from others: through my independent study of the Crusades and Norman Conquest of England, I achieved outstanding results while honing valuable self-directed learning, exam preparation skills, time management practices and time commitment skills that I now hope to pursue at one of Britain’s premier universities as an undergraduate degree candidate in History.

My interest in history was ignited through reading Ladybird ‘Adventures from History’ books handed down to me, featuring stories about Cleopatra to Charles II and more. As I progressed, my literary journey expanded, including readings from respected historians such as Asbridge and Stubbs. Reading has not only expanded my knowledge but has also inspired a desire to delve deep into historical interpretation and historiography. 

Tosh’s works, in particular, have opened my eyes to historical truth and its ever-evolving narrative of history. Additionally, I find comfort in reading both factual and fictional literature like Bernard Cornwell and Sharon Kay Penman who bring history alive through storytelling.

Beyond academic study, I took the initiative of starting an Ancient History Club at my school. Not only has this engaging venture brought me immense satisfaction but has also sharpened my teamwork and leadership abilities. From organizing collective research projects, delivering presentations, and creating lesson plans, to managing my schedule – these responsibilities were met easily due to my inherent love of history, evident through reading National Geographic articles or R. L. Fox’s ‘The Search for Alexander’ book series.

My A-level subjects (History, Biology and German) have not only enabled me to explore historical inquiry more thoroughly but have also given me an appreciation of science. Supplementary AS-level studies in Mathematics and Chemistry have given me an invaluable foundation in the scientific principles that underpin humanities fields, illuminating how scientific insights can shed new light on ancient civilizations. Though I did not travel much during my studies of history, I gained knowledge about many cultures through studying History. Learning German further deepened my fascination with languages; learning ancient dialects has further deepened this appreciation of history’s complexity. While languages are indispensable tools for travel communication purposes, my true passion lies within history – something I plan on continuing my career path.

As part of my commitment to personal growth, I have spent the past year volunteering. This experience has broadened my abilities to collaborate effectively and communicate with individuals from varying backgrounds and age groups; taught valuable time management lessons; helped maintain an appropriate balance between academic responsibilities and social commitments; been immensely fulfilling; particularly realizing its profound effect on lives that may otherwise feel isolated;

My school community is vibrant in tradition; as an active participant, I have taken on multiple positions of responsibility that contribute to its dynamic fabric. From serving as a musical school student and perfect to leading my sixth-form charity team and fulfilling emotional/academic mentoring responsibilities for younger students – each experience has built my leadership and interpersonal skills further. I am immensely proud of these contributions and look forward to expanding them through active involvement in various clubs and activities beyond school, such as rowing which not only keeps me physically fit but also brings with it camaraderie/discipline associated with team sports!

My desire to pursue a History degree at one of the Russell Group universities stems from a strong desire to engage in rigorous academic inquiry, deepen my understanding of history, and contribute meaningfully to ongoing discourse within this field. With my commitment to self-improvement, voracious hunger for knowledge, and steady commitment to community engagement I hope to make an invaluable contribution both at the university level and wider historical scholarship sphere. I look forward to beginning this intellectual journey alongside esteemed academics while forging a future that combines my love of history with my persistent ambition to make lasting changes in society.

Ancient History Personal Statement

Through the centuries and millennia, cultures across history have been profoundly shaped by the relationship between ancient world and present-day cultures. Michael Crawford brilliantly observed this link when discussing how Roman authorities neglected legitimate grievances that led to its downfall, echoing today’s socialist frameworks and political systems. This profound connection between past and present has ignited my intellectual curiosity as I investigate where today’s global landscape originated from; I view classical civilizations study as essential in understanding their character and growth today.

As someone raised in an area rich with Roman archaeology, my interest in Ancient History began early on. Over time, it has transformed from passing intrigue to an eager desire to expand my knowledge base. Engaging with numerous historical texts spanning numerous periods and ancient literature such as The Iliad, Odyssey, and Aeneid has broadened my perspective. Of the many engaging fields of study available to me, the late Roman Republic holds special interest – its multifaceted factors contributing to political and social unrest at that epoch eventually leading up to Empire are particularly captivating and I am eager to uncover their intricacies more thoroughly.

My passion for ancient history led me to launch a web portal dedicated to the art, archaeology, history, culture and literature of Greek and Roman civilizations. Alongside my interest in classical period culture, art and literature is my desire to learn languages: Ancient Greek and Latin are of particular interest as I hope to master them to read, write and converse in them one day; studying this field at university would provide the perfect platform to realize these ambitions.

As part of my college experience, I developed my debate and discussion skills by actively taking part in the college debating society. Participating in lively exchanges of ideas has enhanced my intellectual development; therefore, I am committed to continuing this rewarding pursuit at the university level. Given my firm belief in political engagement, I’m delighted to join forces with the Liberal Democrats. My love for debate and discourse comes through in my written essays, as evidenced by winning an essay competition hosted by my college, where I examined political ideologies in modern British politics. Last year, I had the incredible privilege of participating in a college study trip to Greece that provided firsthand experiences of significant sites of ancient Greek civilisation – such as Delphi’s sacred centre and Epidaurus theatre – which I will always treasure.

As a sports enthusiast, I enjoy participating in and watching football, cricket and golf – I am an active member of Surrey Cricket Club – in my free time. Additionally, walking provides great peace; this summer provided me with an opportunity to traverse a section of North America’s Appalachian Trail! Additionally, as an advocate of architecture preservation, conservation and restoration in Britain – being an active member of the National Trust gives me access to their wide portfolio of properties under their protection and care.

As my plans develop, my ultimate career goal involves heritage management and conservation work within museum work environments. To gain first-hand exposure, I am currently seeking relevant work experience. Furthermore, as part of my post-university trajectory, I would love to take up further study; particularly Ancient History due to its captivating figures of antiquity that offer opportunity through primary sources, remnants from ancient built environments, discussion, debate literature history politics architecture of antiquity courses will propel me toward success!

My passion for Ancient History, nurtured through both personal and academic pursuits, compelled me to embark upon an intensive undergraduate program in this field. The ancient world’s myriad lessons and timeless allure draw me in; by exploring its mysteries I hope to gain greater insight into present and future situations. With an insatiable desire for knowledge and a dedication to intellectual growth, I eagerly anticipate contributing and flourishing within the vibrant academic community at the university.

Personal Statement Examples

• Animal Science Personal Statement Examples
• Anthropology personal statement examples
• Statistics Personal Statements
• PPE Oxford Personal Statement Example
• Classics Personal Statement Examples
• Theology Personal Statement Examples
• Physics Personal Statement Examples
• Chemical Engineering personal statement examples
• Oncology Personal Statement Examples
• Psychiatry Personal Statement Examples
• Earth Sciences Personal Statement Example
• Veterinary Personal Statement Examples For University
• Civil Engineering Personal Statement Examples
• User Experience Design Personal Statement Example
• Finance Personal Statement Examples
• Neuroscience Personal Statement Examples
• Graphic Design Personal Statement Examples
• Film Production Personal Statement Examples
• Events Management Personal Statement Examples
• Counselling Personal Statement Examples
• Forensic Science Personal Statement Examples
• Children’s Nursing Personal Statement Examples
• Chemistry Personal Statement Examples
• Sports Science Personal Statement Examples
• Mechanical Engineering Personal Statement Examples
• Electrical and Electronic Engineering Personal Statement Examples
• Quantity Surveying Personal Statement Examples
• Social Work Personal Statement Examples
• Physiotherapy Personal Statement Examples
• Journalism Personal Statement Examples
• English Literature Personal Statement Examples
• Marketing Personal Statement Examples
• Computer Science Personal Statement Examples
• Fashion Marketing Personal Statement Examples
• Dietetic Personal Statement Examples
• Product Design Personal Statement Examples
• Aerospace Engineering Personal Statement Examples
• Geography Personal Statement Examples
• Business Management Personal Statement Examples
• Politics Personal Statement Examples
• Psychology Personal Statement Examples
• Oxbridge Personal Statement Examples
• Zoology Personal Statement Example
• Sociology Personal Statement Example
• Fashion Personal Statement Example
• Mathematics Personal Statement Examples
• Software Engineering Personal Statement Examples
• Philosophy Personal Statement
• International Relations Personal Statement Example
• Biochemistry Personal Statement Example
• Dentistry Personal Statement Examples
• Midwifery Personal Statement
• Law Personal Statement Example
• Medicine Personal Statement for Cambridge
• ICT Personal Statement
• Primary Teacher PGCE Personal Statement
• PGCE Personal Statement Example
• Games Design Personal Statement
• Paramedic Science Personal Statement Examples

• Personal statement advice: history

Applying to university

• Getting started
• UCAS Tariff points
• Calculate your UCAS Tariff points
• Amendments to the Tariff consultation
• Offer rate calculator
• How to use the offer rate calculator
• Understanding historical entry grades data
• Admissions tests
• Deferred entry
• Personal statement advice and example: computer science
• Personal statement advice: English
• Personal statement advice: Midwifery
• Personal statement advice: animal science
• Personal statement advice: biology
• Personal statement advice: business and management
• Personal statement advice: chemistry
• Personal statement advice: dance
• Personal statement advice: dentistry
• Personal statement advice: drama
• Personal statement advice: economics
• Personal statement advice: engineering
• Personal statement advice: geography
• Personal statement advice: law
• Personal statement advice: maths
• Personal statement advice: media studies and journalism
• Personal statement advice: medicine
• Personal statement advice: modern languages
• Personal statement advice: music
• Personal statement advice: nursing
• Personal statement advice: pharmacy
• Personal statement advice: physiotherapy
• Personal statement advice: politics
• Personal statement advice: psychology
• Personal statement advice: social work
• Personal statement advice: sociology
• Personal statement advice: sports science
• Personal statement advice: statistics
• Personal statement advice: teacher training and education
• Personal statement advice: veterinary medicine
• Personal statement: finance and accounting
• Filling in your application
• Staying safe online
• How to write a personal statement that works for multiple courses
• How To Write Your Undergraduate Personal Statement
• Fraud and similarity
• How to start a personal statement: The attention grabber
• How to end your personal statement
• Introducing the personal statement tool
• Personal statement dos and don'ts
• What to include in a personal statement
• Using AI and ChatGPT to help you with your personal statement
• Using your personal statement beyond a university application
• Carers, estranged students, refugees, asylum seekers, and those with limited leave to remain
• Personal statement guides
• References for mature students

History personal statements: how to impress

What else to include in your history statement.

• Why you want to study history: this is an obvious one, but try and bring your love of history to life with evidence. The best statements are those that go straight into engaging with what currently inspires you about the subject, not simply 'as a child when my uncle took me to a castle...'.
• Relevant experiences: one way to show your engagement with the subject is to talk about an experience and – crucially – what it was you learned. This could be a museum or gallery visit, volunteering, wider reading you've undertaken – even a powerful documentary or insightful discussion with your grandparents. A tutor told us one of the best statements they've read opened with a short account of a conversation with a grandad about his experiences in World War II.
• How other subjects give you useful knowledge or skills: try to do this in an interesting way (rather than just listing out what else you're studying), giving a sense of your broader reading and intellectual interests.
• Career aspirations: if it's relevant, explain where you see yourself in future and how a history degree can help you get there. Don't forget to elaborate on why – many history students say they want to be teachers or journalists, for instance, so saying this alone won't help you to stand out.
• Relating it back to history: Dr Selina Todd from the University of Oxford told us she's looking for creative evidence of your engagement with history. That could be through work experience or creative writing, an interest in current affairs and how history helps us to understand them, or maybe something about how your hobbies and personal interests fit with history. For example, if you play in a band, are you also interested in music of the past?

Key skills for history students

Highlight any skills you've developed that would make you a strong candidate for studying the course at university level. These could include:

• Independent research: the University of Bristol is 'particularly eager to identify applicants whose interest in the subject extends beyond the A level syllabus and who are keen to engage in independent research', for example.
• Awareness of key historical concepts: Dr Pigney from Goldsmiths told us he's especially impressed with applicants whose statements engage with fundamental historiographical questions, such as the extent to which history is a collection of different stories told from different viewpoints, or whether there is a single true account of the past.
• Self-motivation: demonstrate how you can think coherently, analytically and critically, can research and write independently, and manage your time effectively.  

Things to avoid

The tutors we spoke to stressed the importance of researching your chosen courses to ensure that the content covered actually matches your interests. Your enthusiasm for Ancient Rome won't stand out in a good way if one of the courses you're applying for only covers historical periods after 1500 – so read the course content thoroughly (you can look up courses and read detailed descriptions with our search tool ).

Don't devote too much space in your statement to your extracurricular activities. Keep this section brief and relevant, using it to show how you're a well-rounded applicant. Dr Todd from Oxford told us she doesn’t want to see random hobbies or qualities which have nothing to do with the course or its selection criteria. Here are a few final pointers:

• Avoid using long quotations in your statement – 'we want to know what you think!'
• Don't just say: 'I have a passion for history' – demonstrate it.
• Misspelling and grammatical inaccuracies are a no-no. History is a literate subject, so it needs to be well written.  

Sponsored articles UCAS Media Service

Five reasons to sign up to the ucas newsletter, do you need to take an english test to study at university in the uk, degrees focusing on your employability.

The Uni Guide has a fresh new look

• Teacher training
• Bangor University
• Birmingham City University
• Sheffield Hallam University
• University of Aberdeen
• University of East Anglia
• University of Hull
• University of Kent
• University of Reading
• A-level choices
• GCSE choices and university
• Choosing a course
• Making firm and insurance choices
• University open days
• Top questions to ask at a university open day
• Ucas Extra explained
• Understanding conditional offers
• University offers: what they mean and what to do next
• Getting the most from Ucas university fairs
• What do I need to get into Oxbridge?
• What to do if you don’t get an offer from your first choice university
• What you need to know about getting a university scholarship, grant or bursary
• AS and A-levels explained
• Is a higher or degree apprenticeship right for you?
• Universities

By Nik Taylor (Editor, The Uni Guide) | 21 September 2023 | 6 min read

Writing a history personal statement: expert advice from universities

Here’s how to shine in your history personal statement

Share this page

Email & print.

Research the course

• Read more:  how to write an excellent personal statement in ten steps

Explain why you want to study history 

• Read more:  teacher secrets for writing a great personal statement

Keep it personal 

• Read more:  personal statement FAQs

Reflect on your motivations

• Read more:  the ten biggest mistakes to avoid when writing your personal statement

Critique books you’ve read

• Read more:  universities reveal all about personal statements

Think outside the history classroom 

• Read more:  universities explain how to end your personal statement with a bang

Write about relevant extracurricular activities 

• Read more:  how to write your personal statement when you have nothing interesting to say

Only use quotations if you’re planning to expand on them

• Read more:  how long does it take for universities to reply to your application? 

Ask someone to proofread your personal statement before you submit

You may want to look at these..., personal statement secrets – universities reveal all.

Want to know how to craft an amazing personal statement? Take some advice from the experts...

How to write an excellent personal statement in 10 steps

Help and advice on putting your application together

Personal statement FAQs

We've gone through some of the most commonly asked personal statement questions and put all the answers in one place

Related to this article

Search the uni guide, find further advice or search for information on a course or university.

• Search Advice
• Search courses &/or universities

The Uni Guide and The Student Room are both part of The Student Room Group.

Promoted universities

• Durham University
• Lancaster University
• University of Glasgow
• University of the Arts London
• University of Southampton
• Swansea University
• Aston University, Birmingham
• Ulster University
• Cardiff University

Browse expert advice

• Oxbridge applications
• Ucas application
• Personal statements
• Ucas deadline 2024 countdown
• Clearing and results day
• Preparing for university
• Student accommodation
• Student life
• Student finance
• Advice for parents

About this site

• Cookie policy
• List of universities and colleges
• Privacy notice
• Terms and conditions
• Where we get our info

Who we work with

• Your account settings

Ad privacy settings

Popular tools and features

• A-level Explorer
• Course search

Connect with us

Testimonials

Free Resources

PrepScholar GRE Prep

Gre prep online guides and tips, 3 successful graduate school personal statement examples.

Looking for grad school personal statement examples? Look no further! In this total guide to graduate school personal statement examples, we’ll discuss why you need a personal statement for grad school and what makes a good one. Then we’ll provide three graduate school personal statement samples from our grad school experts. After that, we’ll do a deep dive on one of our personal statement for graduate school examples. Finally, we’ll wrap up with a list of other grad school personal statements you can find online.

Why Do You Need a Personal Statement?

A personal statement is a chance for admissions committees to get to know you: your goals and passions, what you’ll bring to the program, and what you’re hoping to get out of the program.  You need to sell the admissions committee on what makes you a worthwhile applicant. The personal statement is a good chance to highlight significant things about you that don’t appear elsewhere on your application.

A personal statement is slightly different from a statement of purpose (also known as a letter of intent). A statement of purpose/letter of intent tends to be more tightly focused on your academic or professional credentials and your future research and/or professional interests.

While a personal statement also addresses your academic experiences and goals, you have more leeway to be a little more, well, personal. In a personal statement, it’s often appropriate to include information on significant life experiences or challenges that aren’t necessarily directly relevant to your field of interest.

Some programs ask for both a personal statement and a statement of purpose/letter of intent. In this case, the personal statement is likely to be much more tightly focused on your life experience and personality assets while the statement of purpose will focus in much more on your academic/research experiences and goals.

However, there’s not always a hard-and-fast demarcation between a personal statement and a statement of purpose. The two statement types should address a lot of the same themes, especially as relates to your future goals and the valuable assets you bring to the program. Some programs will ask for a personal statement but the prompt will be focused primarily on your research and professional experiences and interests. Some will ask for a statement of purpose but the prompt will be more focused on your general life experiences.

When in doubt, give the program what they are asking for in the prompt and don’t get too hung up on whether they call it a personal statement or statement of purpose. You can always call the admissions office to get more clarification on what they want you to address in your admissions essay.

Quick side note: we've created the world's leading online GRE prep program that adapts to you and your strengths and weaknesses. Not sure what to study? Confused by how to improve your score? We give you minute by minute guide.

You don't NEED a prep program to get a great GRE score. But we believe PrepScholar is the best GRE prep program available right now , especially if you find it hard to organize your study schedule and don't know what to study .

Click here to learn how you can improve your GRE score by 7 points, guaranteed .

What Makes a Good Grad School Personal Statement?

A great graduate school personal statement can come in many forms and styles. However, strong grad school personal statement examples all share the same following elements:

A Clear Narrative

Above all, a good personal statement communicates clear messages about what makes you a strong applicant who is likely to have success in graduate school. So to that extent, think about a couple of key points that you want to communicate about yourself and then drill down on how you can best communicate those points. (Your key points should of course be related to what you can bring to the field and to the program specifically).

You can also decide whether to address things like setbacks or gaps in your application as part of your narrative. Have a low GPA for a couple semesters due to a health issue? Been out of a job for a while taking care of a family member? If you do decide to explain an issue like this, make sure that the overall arc is more about demonstrating positive qualities like resilience and diligence than about providing excuses.

Specific Examples

A great statement of purpose uses specific examples to illustrate its key messages. This can include anecdotes that demonstrate particular traits or even references to scholars and works that have influenced your academic trajectory to show that you are familiar and insightful about the relevant literature in your field.

Just saying “I love plants,” is pretty vague. Describing how you worked in a plant lab during undergrad and then went home and carefully cultivated your own greenhouse where you cross-bred new flower colors by hand is much more specific and vivid, which makes for better evidence.

A strong personal statement will describe why you are a good fit for the program, and why the program is a good fit for you. It’s important to identify specific things about the program that appeal to you, and how you’ll take advantage of those opportunities. It’s also a good idea to talk about specific professors you might be interested in working with. This shows that you are informed about and genuinely invested in the program.

Strong Writing

Even quantitative and science disciplines typically require some writing, so it’s important that your personal statement shows strong writing skills. Make sure that you are communicating clearly and that you don’t have any grammar and spelling errors. It’s helpful to get other people to read your statement and provide feedback. Plan on going through multiple drafts.

Another important thing here is to avoid cliches and gimmicks. Don’t deploy overused phrases and openings like “ever since I was a child.” Don’t structure your statement in a gimmicky way (i.e., writing a faux legal brief about yourself for a law school statement of purpose). The first will make your writing banal; the second is likely to make you stand out in a bad way.

Appropriate Boundaries

While you can be more personal in a personal statement than in a statement of purpose, it’s important to maintain appropriate boundaries in your writing. Don’t overshare anything too personal about relationships, bodily functions, or illegal activities. Similarly, don’t share anything that makes it seem like you may be out of control, unstable, or an otherwise risky investment. The personal statement is not a confessional booth. If you share inappropriately, you may seem like you have bad judgment, which is a huge red flag to admissions committees.

You should also be careful with how you deploy humor and jokes. Your statement doesn’t have to be totally joyless and serious, but bear in mind that the person reading the statement may not have the same sense of humor as you do. When in doubt, err towards the side of being as inoffensive as possible.

Just as being too intimate in your statement can hurt you, it’s also important not to be overly formal or staid. You should be professional, but conversational.

Graduate School Personal Statement Examples

Our graduate school experts have been kind enough to provide some successful grad school personal statement examples. We’ll provide three examples here, along with brief analysis of what makes each one successful.

Sample Personal Statement for Graduate School 1

PDF of Sample Personal Statement 1 – Japanese Studies

For this Japanese Studies master’s degree, the applicant had to provide a statement of purpose outlining her academic goals and experience with Japanese and a separate personal statement describing her personal relationship with Japanese Studies and what led her to pursue a master’s degree.

Here’s what’s successful about this personal statement:

• An attention-grabbing beginning: The applicant begins with the statement that Japanese has never come easily to her and that it’s a brutal language to learn. Seeing as how this is an application for a Japanese Studies program, this is an intriguing beginning that makes the reader want to keep going.
• A compelling narrative: From this attention-grabbing beginning, the applicant builds a well-structured and dramatic narrative tracking her engagement with the Japanese language over time. The clear turning point is her experience studying abroad, leading to a resolution in which she has clarity about her plans. Seeing as how the applicant wants to be a translator of Japanese literature, the tight narrative structure here is a great way to show her writing skills.
• Specific examples that show important traits: The applicant clearly communicates both a deep passion for Japanese through examples of her continued engagement with Japanese and her determination and work ethic by highlighting the challenges she’s faced (and overcome) in her study of the language. This gives the impression that she is an engaged and dedicated student.

Overall, this is a very strong statement both in terms of style and content. It flows well, is memorable, and communicates that the applicant would make the most of the graduate school experience.

Sample Personal Statement for Graduate School 2

PDF of Sample Graduate School Personal Statement 2 – Musical Composition

This personal statement for a Music Composition master’s degree discusses the factors that motivate the applicant to pursue graduate study.

Here’s what works well in this statement:

• The applicant provides two clear reasons motivating the student to pursue graduate study: her experiences with music growing up, and her family’s musical history. She then supports those two reasons with examples and analysis.
• The description of her ancestors’ engagement with music is very compelling and memorable. The applicant paints her own involvement with music as almost inevitable based on her family’s long history with musical pursuits.
• The applicant gives thoughtful analysis of the advantages she has been afforded that have allowed her to study music so extensively. We get the sense that she is insightful and empathetic—qualities that would add greatly to any academic community.

This is a strong, serviceable personal statement. And in truth, given that this for a masters in music composition, other elements of the application (like work samples) are probably the most important.  However, here are two small changes I would make to improve it:

• I would probably to split the massive second paragraph into 2-3 separate paragraphs. I might use one paragraph to orient the reader to the family’s musical history, one paragraph to discuss Giacomo and Antonio, and one paragraph to discuss how the family has influenced the applicant. As it stands, it’s a little unwieldy and the second paragraph doesn’t have a super-clear focus even though it’s all loosely related to the applicant’s family history with music.
• I would also slightly shorten the anecdote about the applicant’s ancestors and expand more on how this family history has motivated the applicant’s interest in music. In what specific ways has her ancestors’ perseverance inspired her? Did she think about them during hard practice sessions? Is she interested in composing music in a style they might have played? More specific examples here would lend greater depth and clarity to the statement.

Sample Personal Statement for Graduate School 3

PDF of Sample Graduate School Personal Statement 3 – Public Health

This is my successful personal statement for Columbia’s Master’s program in Public Health. We’ll do a deep dive on this statement paragraph-by-paragraph in the next section, but I’ll highlight a couple of things that work in this statement here:

Want to improve your GRE score by 7 points?  We have the industry's leading GRE prep program. Built by world-class instructors with 99th percentile GRE scores , the program learns your strengths and weaknesses through machine learning data science, then customizes your prep program to you so you get the most effective prep possible.

Try our 5-day full access trial for free:

• This statement is clearly organized. Almost every paragraph has a distinct focus and message, and when I move on to a new idea, I move on to a new paragraph with a logical transitions.
• This statement covers a lot of ground in a pretty short space. I discuss my family history, my goals, my educational background, and my professional background. But because the paragraphs are organized and I use specific examples, it doesn’t feel too vague or scattered.
• In addition to including information about my personal motivations, like my family, I also include some analysis about tailoring health interventions with my example of the Zande. This is a good way to show off what kinds of insights I might bring to the program based on my academic background.

Grad School Personal Statement Example: Deep Dive

Now let’s do a deep dive, paragraph-by-paragraph, on one of these sample graduate school personal statements. We’ll use my personal statement that I used when I applied to Columbia’s public health program.

Paragraph One: For twenty-three years, my grandmother (a Veterinarian and an Epidemiologist) ran the Communicable Disease Department of a mid-sized urban public health department. The stories of Grandma Betty doggedly tracking down the named sexual partners of the infected are part of our family lore. Grandma Betty would persuade people to be tested for sexually transmitted diseases, encourage safer sexual practices, document the spread of infection and strive to contain and prevent it. Indeed, due to the large gay population in the city where she worked, Grandma Betty was at the forefront of the AIDS crises, and her analysis contributed greatly towards understanding how the disease was contracted and spread. My grandmother has always been a huge inspiration to me, and the reason why a career in public health was always on my radar.

This is an attention-grabbing opening anecdote that avoids most of the usual cliches about childhood dreams and proclivities. This story also subtly shows that I have a sense of public health history, given the significance of the AIDs crisis for public health as a field.

It’s good that I connect this family history to my own interests. However, if I were to revise this paragraph again, I might cut down on some of the detail because when it comes down to it, this story isn’t really about me. It’s important that even (sparingly used) anecdotes about other people ultimately reveal something about you in a personal statement.

Paragraph Two: Recent years have cemented that interest. In January 2012, my parents adopted my little brother Fred from China. Doctors in America subsequently diagnosed Fred with Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD). My parents were told that if Fred’s condition had been discovered in China, the (very poor) orphanage in which he spent the first 8+ years of his life would have recognized his DMD as a death sentence and denied him sustenance to hasten his demise.

Here’s another compelling anecdote to help explain my interest in public health. This is an appropriately personal detail for a personal statement—it’s a serious thing about my immediate family, but it doesn’t disclose anything that the admissions committee might find concerning or inappropriate.

If I were to take another pass through this paragraph, the main thing I would change is the last phrase. “Denied him sustenance to hasten his demise” is a little flowery. “Denied him food to hasten his death” is actually more powerful because it’s clearer and more direct.

Paragraph Three: It is not right that some people have access to the best doctors and treatment while others have no medical care. I want to pursue an MPH in Sociomedical Sciences at Columbia because studying social factors in health, with a particular focus on socio-health inequities, will prepare me to address these inequities. The interdisciplinary approach of the program appeals to me greatly as I believe interdisciplinary approaches are the most effective way to develop meaningful solutions to complex problems.

In this paragraph I make a neat and clear transition from discussing what sparked my interest in public health and health equity to what I am interested in about Columbia specifically: the interdisciplinary focus of the program, and how that focus will prepare me to solve complex health problems. This paragraph also serves as a good pivot point to start discussing my academic and professional background.

Paragraph Four: My undergraduate education has prepared me well for my chosen career. Understanding the underlying structure of a group’s culture is essential to successfully communicating with the group. In studying folklore and mythology, I’ve learned how to parse the unspoken structures of folk groups, and how those structures can be used to build bridges of understanding. For example, in a culture where most illnesses are believed to be caused by witchcraft, as is the case for the Zande people of central Africa, any successful health intervention or education program would of necessity take into account their very real belief in witchcraft.

In this paragraph, I link my undergraduate education and the skills I learned there to public health. The (very brief) analysis of tailoring health interventions to the Zande is a good way to show insight and show off the competencies I would bring to the program.

Paragraph Five: I now work in the healthcare industry for one of the largest providers of health benefits in the world. In addition to reigniting my passion for data and quantitative analytics, working for this company has immersed me in the business side of healthcare, a critical component of public health.

This brief paragraph highlights my relevant work experience in the healthcare industry. It also allows me to mention my work with data and quantitative analytics, which isn’t necessarily obvious from my academic background, which was primarily based in the social sciences.

Paragraph Six: I intend to pursue a PhD in order to become an expert in how social factors affect health, particularly as related to gender and sexuality. I intend to pursue a certificate in Sexuality, Sexual Health, and Reproduction. Working together with other experts to create effective interventions across cultures and societies, I want to help transform health landscapes both in America and abroad.

This final paragraph is about my future plans and intentions. Unfortunately, it’s a little disjointed, primarily because I discuss goals of pursuing a PhD before I talk about what certificate I want to pursue within the MPH program! Switching those two sentences and discussing my certificate goals within the MPH and then mentioning my PhD plans would make a lot more sense.

I also start two sentences in a row with “I intend,” which is repetitive.

The final sentence is a little bit generic; I might tailor it to specifically discuss a gender and sexual health issue, since that is the primary area of interest I’ve identified.

This was a successful personal statement; I got into (and attended!) the program. It has strong examples, clear organization, and outlines what interests me about the program (its interdisciplinary focus) and what competencies I would bring (a background in cultural analysis and experience with the business side of healthcare). However, a few slight tweaks would elevate this statement to the next level.

Graduate School Personal Statement Examples You Can Find Online

So you need more samples for your personal statement for graduate school? Examples are everywhere on the internet, but they aren’t all of equal quality.

Most of examples are posted as part of writing guides published online by educational institutions. We’ve rounded up some of the best ones here if you are looking for more personal statement examples for graduate school.

Penn State Personal Statement Examples for Graduate School

This selection of ten short personal statements for graduate school and fellowship programs offers an interesting mix of approaches. Some focus more on personal adversity while others focus more closely on professional work within the field.

The writing in some of these statements is a little dry, and most deploy at least a few cliches. However, these are generally strong, serviceable statements that communicate clearly why the student is interested in the field, their skills and competencies, and what about the specific program appeals to them.

Cal State Sample Graduate School Personal Statements

These are good examples of personal statements for graduate school where students deploy lots of very vivid imagery and illustrative anecdotes of life experiences. There are also helpful comments about what works in each of these essays.

Want to improve your GRE score by 7+ points?

Check out our best-in-class online GRE prep program . We guarantee your money back if you don't improve your GRE score by 7 points or more.

PrepScholar GRE is entirely online, and it customizes your prep program to your strengths and weaknesses . We also feature 2,000 practice questions , official practice tests, 150 hours of interactive lessons, and 1-on-1 scoring and feedback on your AWA essays.

Check out our 5-day free trial now:

However, all of these statements are definitely pushing the boundaries of acceptable length, as all are above 1000 and one is almost 1500 words! Many programs limit you to 500 words; if you don’t have a limit, you should try to keep it to two single-spaced pages at most (which is about 1000 words).

University of Chicago Personal Statement for Graduate School Examples

These examples of successful essays to the University of Chicago law school cover a wide range of life experiences and topics. The writing in all is very vivid, and all communicate clear messages about the students’ strengths and competencies.

Note, however, that these are all essays that specifically worked for University of Chicago law school. That does not mean that they would work everywhere. In fact, one major thing to note is that many of these responses, while well-written and vivid, barely address the students’ interest in law school at all! This is something that might not work well for most graduate programs.

Wheaton College Personal Statement for Graduate School Sample 10

This successful essay for law school from a Wheaton College undergraduate does a great job tracking the student’s interest in the law in a compelling and personal way. Wheaton offers other graduate school personal statement examples, but this one offers the most persuasive case for the students’ competencies. The student accomplishes this by using clear, well-elaborated examples, showing strong and vivid writing, and highlighting positive qualities like an interest in justice and empathy without seeming grandiose or out of touch.

Wheaton College Personal Statement for Graduate School Sample 1

Based on the background information provided at the bottom of the essay, this essay was apparently successful for this applicant. However, I’ve actually included this essay because it demonstrates an extremely risky approach. While this personal statement is strikingly written and the story is very memorable, it could definitely communicate the wrong message to some admissions committees. The student’s decision not to report the drill sergeant may read incredibly poorly to some admissions committees. They may wonder if the student’s failure to report the sergeant’s violence will ultimately expose more soldiers-in-training to the same kinds of abuses. This incident perhaps reads especially poorly in light of the fact that the military has such a notable problem with violence against women being covered up and otherwise mishandled

It’s actually hard to get a complete picture of the student’s true motivations from this essay, and what we have might raise real questions about the student’s character to some admissions committees. This student took a risk and it paid off, but it could have just as easily backfired spectacularly.

Key Takeaways: Graduate School Personal Statement Examples

In this guide, we discussed why you need a personal statement and how it differs from a statement of purpose. (It’s more personal!)

We also discussed what you’ll find in a strong sample personal statement for graduate school:

• A clear narrative about the applicant and why they are qualified for graduate study.
• Specific examples to support that narrative.
• Compelling reasons why the applicant and the program are a good fit for each other.
• Strong writing, including clear organization and error-free, cliche-free language.
• Appropriate boundaries—sharing without over-sharing.

Then, we provided three strong graduate school personal statement examples for different fields, along with analysis. We did a deep-dive on the third statement.

Finally, we provided a list of other sample grad school personal statements online.

What’s Next?

Want more advice on writing a personal statement ? See our guide.

Writing a graduate school statement of purpose? See our statement of purpose samples  and a nine-step process for writing the best statement of purpose possible .

If you’re writing a graduate school CV or resume, see our how-to guide to writing a CV , a how-to guide to writing a resume , our list of sample resumes and CVs , resume and CV templates , and a special guide for writing resume objectives .

Need stellar graduate school recommendation letters ? See our guide.

See our 29 tips for successfully applying to graduate school .

Ready to improve your GRE score by 7 points?

Author: Ellen McCammon

Ellen is a public health graduate student and education expert. She has extensive experience mentoring students of all ages to reach their goals and in-depth knowledge on a variety of health topics. View all posts by Ellen McCammon

Sample Personal History Statement

by Talha Omer, MBA, M.Eng., Harvard & Cornell Grad

In personal statement samples by field.

A personal history statement (PHS) provides an insight into your academic and professional endeavors. It should include your notable achievements as well as the challenges you have faced. The purpose of a PHS is to provide the admissions committee with a better understanding of your personality, your motivation, and how your prior experiences have prepared you for the future.

Here is a sample personal history statement of a student who applied to the anthropology program and got into several top schools like Columbia, Harvard, and Stanford.

Growing up in a family and society that strictly adhered to the traditional roles of a “proper conservative woman,” I have found pride in breaking free from these restrictive cultural expectations and in embracing my own identity and self-expression.

As the first female in my family to study arts, I remember feeling discouraged when, during a sixth-grade science class, I was lectured by my teacher on the importance of hard sciences and the perceived uselessness of arts. This came after she saw my notebook filled with a detailed sketch of the circulatory system of a frog. Her face betrayed her disdain. The muffled laughter of my classmates seemed to confirm her notions – as if to say that only the truly intelligent pursued careers in the hard sciences.

During my tenth-grade, my family pressured me to choose a science-based curriculum over one that focused on arts and humanities. But I refused to give in and instead found a way to combine my love of art with my disdain for science. When words failed me and I felt stifled by my circumstances, art became a reliable outlet for self-expression, full of vibrant colors and offering endless opportunities for creativity.

During my senior high school year, I finally took control of my own future and decided to study fine arts. This choice opened the doors to a whole new realm of possibilities, allowing me to pursue the future I had always dreamed of. In college, I approached my studies with a sense of exploration, as if I were an adventurer in uncharted territory. Each new topic and area of knowledge helped me to grow in objectivity, intellect, and wisdom.

My journey through the world of art and culture has been filled with magnificent pieces and spellbinding paintings, as well as the opportunity to learn about and appreciate the glorious civilizations that reached the pinnacle of trade, art, and culture. My coursework in the history of art piqued my interest in anthropology, and I was particularly fascinated by the ancient Egyptian civilization, whose artifacts, hieroglyphics, and art offered a window into its evolving languages, unique architecture, and transformative culture. Similarly, in Greek civilization, I discovered how art and politics intersected and shaped public opinion, and how philosophy and politics were intertwined.

Art is often thought of as an individual expression, but when considered as a collection, it can have a powerful impact on society. I am fascinated by the relationship between the arts and the evolution of social, political, cultural, and religious systems and constructs.

It has been difficult for me to come to terms with the fact that I have lived in two worlds that often seem incompatible. On a daily basis, I find myself immersed in a culture that imposes strict rules that limit my intellectual and expressive freedom. Whenever I had the opportunity, I immersed myself in the emotive world of curiosity, human expression, and perspective, where individuals create cultures that have outlasted even the most famous nations throughout history. Unfortunately, this parallel universe abruptly came to an end when I graduated.

Working as a professional graphic designer and photographer made it clear to me that I wanted to pursue a Master’s degree. Unfortunately, it took me over a year and a half to convince my family to allow me to do so, rather than simply getting engaged and becoming the first female in my family to pursue a graduate degree.

Attending the country’s premier National College of Arts allowed me to expand my education and skills across the fine arts. This broader exposure helped to refine my academic interests, and I was able to bring these interests together in my thesis on self-harm.

My experimental short film, “Pain of Disappointment,” and accompanying paper explored how the society cope with the expectations placed on them by their families to be successful. The film and paper highlighted the prevalence of self-harm in the society, and how it manifests itself physically, emotionally, and mentally. Through this project, I sought to educate people about self-harm and its impact on our society.

As the first woman in my family to pursue an advanced degree outside of the country, I hope to use the science of Anthropology to explore how individuals can transform negative energies into positive expressions that contribute to and benefit society. Additionally, as a woman growing up in a male-domindated society, I am interested in using Visual Anthropology to study suppressed issues and effectively inform all segments of society, including those who are illiterate, in order to empower everyone to reclaim their pride.

WANT MORE AMAZING ARTICLES ON GRAD SCHOOL PERSONAL STATEMENTS?

• 100+ Outstanding Examples of Personal Statements
• The Ultimate Guide to Writing a Winning Personal Statement
• Common Pitfalls to Avoid in Your Personal Statement
• Writing a Killer Opening Paragraph for Your Personal Statement
• Ideal Length for a Graduate School Personal Statement
• 100 Inspiring Quotes to Jumpstart Your Personal Statement

Sample Personal Statement for Masters in International Business

Sample Personal Statement for Masters in International Business My journey began amidst the kaleidoscope of Qatar's landscapes, setting the stage for a life attuned to cultural nuances. Transitioning to Riyadh in my teens, I absorbed a mosaic of traditions, sparking a...

Sample Personal Statement for Family Medicine Residency

Personal Statement Prompt: A personal letter is required. We are looking for mature, enthusiastic physicians who bring with them a broad range of life experiences, are committed to providing excellent patient care, and can embrace the depth and breadth of experiences...

[2024] 4 Law School Personal Statement Examples from Top Programs

In this article, I will discuss 4 law school personal statement samples. These statements have been written by successful applicants who gained admission to prestigious US Law schools like Yale, Harvard, and Stanford. The purpose of these examples is to demonstrate...

Sample Personal Statement Cybersecurity

In this article, I will be providing a sample grad school personal statement in the field of cybersecurity. This sample was written by an applicant who got admitted into George Mason, Northeastern and Arizona State University. This example aims to show how prospective...

100+ Grad School Personal Statement Examples

Introduction Importance of a Strong Personal Statement A personal statement is essential in the graduate school application process, as it plays a significant role in shaping the admissions committee's perception of you. In fact, a survey conducted by the Council of...

WANT AMAZING ARTICLES ON GRAD SCHOOL PERSONAL STATEMENTS?

• 100+ Personal Statement Templates

Clearing Universities & Courses

Clearing advice.

Recommended Clearing Universities

Leeds Arts University

Yorkshire and the Humber · 100% Recommended

Solent University

South East England · 100% Recommended

University for the Creative Arts

London (Greater) · 87% Recommended

Popular Course Categories

Take our quick degree quiz.

Find the ideal uni course for you with our Course Degree Quiz. Get answers in minutes!

Take our full degree quiz

Get more tailored course suggestions with our full Course Degree Quiz and apply with confidence.

Search by Type

Search by region.

Recommended Universities

University of Leicester

East Midlands Region · 93% Recommended

University of Bedfordshire

East of England · 94% Recommended

University of Bradford

Yorkshire and the Humber · 94% Recommended

Search Open Days

What's new at Uni Compare

University of Chester

Chester offers guaranteed accommodation for firm applicants, find your place today!

Get a high-quality technical degree from WLIoT and boost your career prospects!

Ranking Categories

Regional rankings.

More Rankings

Top 100 Universities

Taken from 131,500+ data points from students attending university to help future generations

About our Rankings

Discover university rankings devised from data collected from current students.

Guide Categories

Advice categories, recommended articles, popular statement examples, statement advice.

What to include in a Personal Statement

Personal Statement Tips

Personal statement example history personal statement.

Capitalise on your curiosity of the past.

Apply for a History degree at Southampton to learn from expert researchers, who'll give you a guided tour through humanity's stories.

QMUL History gives you so much choice!

Study History at QMUL for a huge range of subject choice, from Medieval Islam to the building of New York City and everything in between.

History Personal Statement

Due to my upbringing, I have always been encouraged to question everything, so I could create my own opinions and be imprinted on as little as possible by the media, friends and family: a key skill needed for a historian. This ignited a passion in me for history at an early age.

With enthusiasm comes commitment and a positive work ethic: this would drive me to dive deeper into topics and analyse sources from my chosen modules, questioning everything. I quickly learnt that not everything a teacher taught me was so plain and simple even though it was perceived to be. My ability to examine events through history and play devil’s advocate made me eager to do extra reading on critical, world changing events such as; the assassination of President John F Kennedy; 9/11; Nazi Germany and the rise of communism in Eastern Europe.

Ancient history encapsulated me from my very first lesson: the behaviour, the culture, the religions, the architecture, all engrossed me. From then on the ancient world had its grip on me. At the age of 7 I started watching documentaries on Roman emperors and Egyptian pharaohs (my favourite by far is Tutankhamun from the 18 th dynasty). Due to studying Latin at GCSE level, I had the amazing opportunity to travel to Rome, where the Roman world was really brought to life for me. A highlight was the city of Pompeii, which was incomprehensible for me to image prior to visiting it, but made me view the tragic events that unfolded there for the first time in an emotional sense.

Furthermore, as I’ve grown up and been able to understand political, social and economic factors, communism and fascism have taken my interest also. By taking both history and politics at A level, they have allowed me to have a greater understanding of the Nazi government and the Bolshevik’s charge for a communist government in Russia. Also my understanding of a coalition government advances my knowledge and understanding of how Britain dealt with the rise of fascism in Germany and Italy in the Second World War. All of these experiences have sparked my passion in history and confirmed my desire to study this further at a degree level.

I have always worked hard to develop parts of my life aside from academia, and will continue doing so at university. Due to my 10 years of playing netball at a high level, teamwork embedded in me, allowing me to work well with other people in high pressured situations. I would be able to apply this to group work and seminars as an undergraduate student, working together with fellow undergraduates to achieve a common goal and progress through the course as a team, sharing ideas and arguments. Through achieving both bronze and silver Duke of Edinburgh and being in the process of completing gold, I have done volunteer work for Oxfam book stores and gained valuable skills such as Makaton sign language and first aid. Due to the demand of good communication skills, determination, self-motivation and time management needed to complete and work well with your expedition team, transferring them over to create a good relationship with my subject tutors and degree would pose no problem. I attended work experience at the Birmingham Children’s Hospital for a week, to experience and learn out of my comfort zone. Being based on the intensive care unit made me more aware of the extreme side of medicine. Not only this but the structure of our health system and the advances we have made over time within health care. For my GCSE course I studied ‘medicine through time’ which started my interest in the history of the NHS and how William Beveridge’s social service report in 1942 was the catalyst for Aneurin Bevan’s National Health Service in 1948.

I am confident my enthusiasm, dedication and analytical skills would make me an ideal candidate and allow me to pursue a career in history. To study a degree in history would be a privilege.

Recommended Course

Recommended Statements

Submitted by anonymous

My passion for History stems from a young age through world travel having had the phenomenal experience of...

My interest in history started with stories of my grandparents’ struggles when they first migrated to Engl...

I am captivated by the ways in which History has moulded the world’s leading economies and has set the sta...

Submitted by Naima

History BA Personal Statement

Studying History has offered me an insight into the structure of society and what influences and initiates...

undergraduate Universities

Undergraduate uni's.

Uni of Leicester

436 courses

Uni of Bedfordshire

651 courses

Uni of Bradford

393 courses

Goldsmiths, UOL

342 courses

826 courses

Bath Spa Uni

512 courses

Uni of Roehampton

468 courses

Middlesex Uni

670 courses

Northeastern Uni

126 courses

West London IoT

Escape Studios

Uni of Hertfordshire

598 courses

Uni of Chester

630 courses

Cardiff Met Uni

500 courses

Uni of Sunderland

332 courses

Uni of Suffolk

222 courses

Uni of Surrey

740 courses

709 courses

Uni of Brighton

521 courses

Heriot-Watt Uni

337 courses

Uni for Creative Arts

610 courses

Uni of East London

570 courses

ARU Writtle

Uni of Winchester

258 courses

893 courses

Coventry Uni

780 courses

Staffordshire Uni

478 courses

467 courses

Uni of Westminster

515 courses

Ravensbourne

103 courses

UWE, Bristol

495 courses

Leeds Beckett Uni

459 courses

Queen's Uni

634 courses

Nottingham Trent

930 courses

Uni of Kent

588 courses

Uni of Reading

692 courses

Highlands & Islands

451 courses

Uni of Huddersfield

784 courses

Wrexham Uni

294 courses

Uni of C.Lancashire

795 courses

Uni of Essex

1397 courses

Kingston Uni

619 courses

Edge Hill Uni

400 courses

Uni of Hull

Anglia Ruskin Uni

876 courses

Uni of Portsmouth

779 courses

Swansea Uni

1360 courses

FIND THE IDEAL COURSE FOR YOU

Degree Course Quiz

Find the ideal university course for you in minutes by taking our degree matchmaker quiz today.

Latest in Clearing 2024

#1 for UK City of Culture 2025, click here to learn more!

Nottingham Trent University

Beat the Clearing queue with NTU Priority!

University of Roehampton

Ranked in top 15% worldwide for high-quality education and excellent research (Young University Rankings 2024).

Queen Mary, University of London

Launch a career in finance with QMUL's expert-led Finance degree. Proximity to London's financial centre offers unique opportunities for you!

Find Info For

• Current Students
• Prospective Students
• Alumni and Friends
• Engage with Purdue
• Research and Innovation

Quick Links

• Report a Concern
• Calendar of Events, Dates, and Deadlines
• Current Graduate Students
• Alumni and Giving
• Rankings and Recognition
• All Graduate Programs at our Campuses
• Graduate Degree Programs
• Certificate Programs
• Interdisciplinary Graduate Programs (OIGP)
• University Academic Catalog
• Course Information
• Publications
• Graduate Programs Office
• Office of Graduate Assistance (OGA)
• Guidelines for Graduate Student Mentoring and Advising
• Preparing for Graduate Studies
• Graduate Program Requirements
• Why Choose Purdue?
• Tuition & Fees
• How to Apply
• Check Application Status
• Transcript Upload Tips
• Admitted Students
• Visit Campus
• Global Ambassadors
• Purdue Graduate Student Center
• International Students
• Request Information
• Fellowships
• Professional Development
• Information Management and Analysis
• Data Requests
• Database Project

• Personal History Statement

The Personal History Statement helps reviewers learn more about you as a whole person and as a potential graduate student. This may include relevant details on community service, leadership roles, participation in diverse teams, and significant barriers that you overcame to pursue graduate studies.

The Purdue University graduate application allows applicants to select up to two campuses and/or graduate majors per application.  If you are applying to a 2nd choice program, you are only required to submit one personal history statement with your application. Be sure your personal history statement is is all-inclusive, and supports your suitability for your enrollment in all the graduate programs listed on your application. 

Required of all applicants:

• Describe how your background and life experiences contribute to your ability to be both persistent and resourceful in your graduate studies.
• Describe how your life experiences have prepared you to contribute to an academic community where scholars with diverse research interests, abilities, backgrounds, and experiences are supported, respected, and valued.
• Please address concerns that you may have that your academic record does not reflect your true capabilities and discuss mitigating factors that have affected your academic record. Reviewers will be interested in understanding your accomplishments relative to your opportunities.

The Academic Statement of Purpose and the Personal History Statement are two of the most important documents in your graduate application. The documents should be concise, clear, and free of spelling, grammar, and punctuation errors. You should have others review your document for content, organization, and to ensure that there are no errors. Information in the Personal History Statement should complement but not duplicate information in the Academic Statement of Purpose.

• Application Deadlines
• Application Fee
• Application Fee - Foreign Currency
• Documents Required by Country
• English Proficiency Requirements
• GRE Requirements
• Recommendation Letters
• Academic Statement of Purpose
• Submitting Transcripts
• Technical Help Questions
• Testing Information

Communication

• OneCampus Portal
• Brightspace
• BoilerConnect
• Faculty and Staff
• Human Resources
• Colleges and Schools
• Find Workshops
• Funding Support
• Purdue Graduate Student Government
• Staff Directory
• OGSPS Toolkit
• Catalogs, Manuals, Policies

Ernest C. Young Hall, Room 170 | 155  S. Grant Street, West Lafayette, IN 47907-2114 | 765-494-2600

Contact OGSPS at [email protected] for accessibility issues with this page.

Samantha Putterman, PolitiFact Samantha Putterman, PolitiFact

Leave your feedback

• Copy URL https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/fact-checking-j-d-vances-past-statements-and-relationship-with-trump

Fact-checking JD Vance’s past statements and relationship with Trump

This fact check originally appeared on PolitiFact .

Former President Donald Trump has selected Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance as his vice presidential running mate.

“After lengthy deliberation and thought, and considering the tremendous talents of many others, I have decided that the person best suited to assume the position of Vice President of the United States is Senator J.D. Vance of the Great State of Ohio,” Trump wrote July 15 on Truth Social.

Vance, 39, won his Senate seat in 2022 with Trump’s backing. He would be one of the youngest vice presidents in U.S. history.

But before becoming one of Trump’s fiercest allies and defenders, Vance sharply criticized the former president. During the 2016 presidential election, Vance wrote that he goes “back and forth between thinking Trump is a cynical a–hole like Nixon who wouldn’t be that bad (and might even prove useful) or that he’s America’s Hitler.”

WATCH: 2024 RNC delegates react to Trump shooting

He has since sounded a different tone including in defending Trump’s actions in the events leading up to and during the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol. Vance was critical of Vice President Mike Pence’s handling of the 2020 election results certification and in an interview with Kaitlan Collins on CNN questioned whether the vice president’s life was actually endangered during the riots. Vance also vocally condemned what he sees as the tenor of political rhetoric, which he tied to an assassination attempt during Trump’s July 13 rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.

“The central premise of the Biden campaign is that President Donald Trump is an authoritarian fascist who must be stopped at all costs,” Vance posted on X shortly after the shooting. “That rhetoric led directly to President Trump’s attempted assassination.”

Who is J.D. Vance and what is his relationship with Trump?

Before winning his Senate seat in 2022, Vance worked as an investor, commentator and bestselling author.

Vance, who was born in Middleton, Ohio, served in the U.S. Marine Corps before attending Ohio State University and Yale Law School. He worked as a corporate lawyer before moving into the tech industry as a venture capitalist.

WATCH: JD Vance’s evolution from Trump critic to running mate

Vance rose to fame through his 2016 memoir “Hillbilly Elegy,” which describes his growing up in poverty and details the isolation, violence and drug addiction that often surrounds poor white communities in middle America.

When the book was released, Vance started talking to the media about issues important to people in his community — and started criticizing Trump.

Vance told ABC News in August 2016 that, although Trump successfully “diagnoses the problems” people are facing, he didn’t see Trump “offering many solutions.” In an October 2016 interview with journalist Charlie Rose, Vance said he was a “never-Trump guy.”

In another 2016 interview about his book, Vance told a reporter that, although his background would have made him a natural Trump supporter, “the reason, ultimately, that I am not … is because I think that (Trump) is the most-raw expression of a massive finger pointed at other people.”

Vance began to publicly change course when he launched his Senate campaign in 2021. He deleted tweets from 2016 that included him calling Trump “reprehensible” and an “idiot.” In another deleted tweet following the release of the “Access Hollywood” tape on which Trump said fame enabled him to grope women, Vance wrote: “Fellow Christians, everyone is watching us when we apologize for this man. Lord help us.”

He apologized about his Trump criticisms in a July 2021 Fox News interview, and asked people not to judge him based on what he had said. “I’ve been very open that I did say those critical things and I regret them, and I regret being wrong about the guy,” Vance said. “I think he was a good president, I think he made a lot of good decisions for people, and I think he took a lot of flak.”

In June, after news circulated that Vance was on Trump’s short list for vice president, Fox News host Bret Baier asked Vance about the comments. Vance said he was wrong about Trump. “He was a great president, and it’s one of the reasons why I’m working so hard to make sure he gets a second term,” he said.

Trump endorsed Vance in the Ohio GOP Senate primary, helping him win the race and the general election.

As a senator, Vance lobbied to defeat Ohio’s constitutional amendment that ensured access to abortion, calling it a “gut punch” after the measure passed.

After the hazardous East Palestine, Ohio, train derailment in 2023, which ignited a fire and led to evacuations and a controlled release of chemicals, Vance worked with Ohio’s senior senator, Democrat Sherrod Brown, to introduce rail safety legislation.

PolitiFact has fact-checked Vance 10 times. He’s received two Pants on Fire ratings, three Falses, two Mostly Falses and two Half Trues. He also received one Mostly True rating before he was a politician in 2018.

In March, Vance echoed a popular Republican talking point, saying that “100% of net job creation under the Biden administration has gone to the foreign-born.” We rated that Mostly False. Since Biden took office in early 2021, the number of foreign-born Americans who are employed has risen by about 5.6 million. But over the same time period, the number of native-born Americans employed has increased by almost 7.4 million. We rated False Vance’s claim in February that the $95 million Ukraine supplemental aid package included a “hidden impeachment clause against President Trump.” The measure doesn’t mention impeachment.

Because it’s the president’s job to spend congressionally appropriated funds, experts said whoever is elected president next will be responsible for spending the money allocated in the law. It doesn’t target former Trump; it would apply the same way to Biden, should he be reelected.

On immigration, Vance falsely claimed in 2022 that Biden’s “open border” meant that “more Democrat voters were “pouring into this country.” Immigrants who cross the border illegally cannot vote in federal elections. The process for immigrants to become citizens and therefore gain the right to vote can take a decade or longer.

PolitiFact also addressed controversial comments Vance made in 2021, surfaced during his Senate run, about rape being “inconvenient.”

Vance didn’t directly say “rape is inconvenient.” But when he was asked in an interview whether laws should allow people to get abortions if they were victims of rape or incest, he said that society shouldn’t view a pregnancy or birth resulting from rape or incest as “inconvenient.”

In the interview, which occurred before the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022, Vance was also asked whether anti-abortion laws should include rape and incest exceptions. “Two wrongs don’t make a right,” he said in response. “At the end of day, we are talking about an unborn baby. What kind of society do we want to have? A society that looks at unborn babies as inconveniences to be discarded?”

​When asked again about the exceptions, Vance said: “The question portrays a certain presumption that is wrong. It’s not whether a woman should be forced to bring a child to term, it’s whether a child should be allowed to live, even though the circumstances of that child’s birth are somehow inconvenient or a problem to the society.”

Since being on Trump’s vice presidential short list, Vance has expressed a more moderate view on abortion.

On July 7 on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” for example, Vance said he supports access to the abortion pill mifepristone after the Supreme Court dismissed the case against it — echoing what Trump said days before during the presidential debate.

Support Provided By: Learn more

Educate your inbox

Subscribe to Here’s the Deal, our politics newsletter for analysis you won’t find anywhere else.

Thank you. Please check your inbox to confirm.

• Faculty & Staff
• Graduate Students
• Parents & Families
• Prospective Students
• First Generation
• International
• Students With Disabilities
• Undeclared and Exploratory
• Agriculture, Food, Forestry, and Natural Resources
• Architecture and Construction
• Arts, Media, and Communications
• Business Management and Finance
• Data Science and Information Technology
• Education, Training, and Human Services
• Government, Public Administration, Policy, and Law
• Healthcare and Health Sciences
• Hospitality, Recreation, and Tourism
• Marketing, Operations, and Supply Chain Logistics
• Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM)
• Create a Resume/CV/Cover Letter
• Expand Your Network/Find a Mentor
• Explore Your Interests/Career Assessments
• Evaluate/Negotiate an Offer
• Prepare for an Interview
• Applying to Graduate & Professional School
• Search for a Job/Internship
• Getting Started
• Co-op Program Options
• Employer Guide to Co-ops & Internships
• Sign Up/Post a Job
• On-Campus Recruiting Visits
• Employer Partner Program
• Recruiting Guidelines
• First Destination Survey Reports
• College-Specific Career Outcomes
• Report Your Post-Grad Plans
• Appointment & Drop-Ins
• Request a Presentation
• Career Center Overview
• Meet Our Team

How to Write a Powerful Personal Statement for Medical School

• Share This: Share How to Write a Powerful Personal Statement for Medical School on Facebook Share How to Write a Powerful Personal Statement for Medical School on LinkedIn Share How to Write a Powerful Personal Statement for Medical School on X

The personal statement can make or break your medical school application. Learn how to write it and strategies to make it stand out to admissions committees in this expert guide.

Essays are one of the most important parts of any graduate school application. Whereas your resume, letters of recommendation, and standardized test scores speak to your achievements and academic potential, your essays are where you can make a human argument based on your unique candidacy; they tell the story of a person rather than of numbers.

Typically, aspiring MD candidates will need to submit several essays. The personal statement or personal comments essay is submitted through the American Medical College Application Service (AMCAS), a centralized application that most medical schools use (outside of Texas), similar to the Common App. This application opens for submission around the end of May or the beginning of June. After you submit your AMCAS application, you’ll also need to submit a secondary application that goes directly to the schools you’re applying to. Depending on the program, this may be open to everyone or extended on an invitation-only basis. This secondary application usually includes several other essays or short-answer questions that are more specific to what the school is looking for.

Though there is a standard that your scores, GPA, and experience need to meet, the essays really can make or break your chances of admission. In this article, we’ll go over what makes a good personal statement, how to get started on yours, and some actionable strategies for success.

What is the Personal Statement?

The “personal statement essay” can be found in section eight of the AMCAS application. The simple, vague prompt is as follows:

“Use the space provided to explain why you want to go to medical school.”

This prompt is purposefully left broad–the admissions committees want to see where applicants go in their responses. In short, they really want the answer to two things:

• Why should we admit you , specifically?
• Why medicine?

On its website, AMCAS says that this essay “provides an opportunity to distinguish yourself from other applicants and provide admissions officers with more insight into why you have chosen to pursue a career in medicine.” In other words, your response should make a compelling case for what you will bring to the table and clearly outline how your path so far has led you to medical school.

Med School Personal Statement Length

The personal comments essay has a character limit of 5,300, which includes spaces. This translates to about a page and a half worth of words. TMDSAS, the Texan equivalent of AMCAS, has a character limit of 5,000.

How Long Will My Personal Statement Take?

Like with any part of the application, timing is everything. Thankfully, medical school applications don’t require too much writing. Still, we recommend giving yourself at least a month on the personal statement (several if you’re able to) so that you have time to iterate on a few different drafts, sit on it, and get feedback.

For more advice on timing the application process, read The Ultimate Guide to the Medical School Application Process .

How to Write a Med School Personal Statement

Often, the most difficult part is getting started; but, it’s hard to do so without a plan. Before you begin writing, it can be helpful to have an idea of your overarching narrative and the role that you want the essay to play. At a foundational level, you also just need to have a really solid understanding of who you are and what your motivations are for pursuing medicine. After all that, you’ll get to writing. Here’s a step-by-step playback for getting from start to finish on your personal statement.

Step 1: Ideate

Before you put pen to paper, think about the following questions and jot a few ideas down. If there are any that you’re struggling with, ask the people around you! Parents/guardians and close friends can be especially helpful in identifying your strengths and what makes you unique.

• What are the main life decisions I made in the last ten years and why did I make them? What values/thoughts/rationale remained consistent across these decisions?
• What character traits do I want to show the admissions committee? What are some examples of when I demonstrated these traits?
• What are my strengths and weaknesses?
• When did I first believe that I wanted to be a doctor? What experiences originally led to that and then later cemented it as a goal?
• What are the main takeaways from my clinical (and other relevant) experience? What did I learn? What stuck with me?
• What parts of my candidacy are not well represented in the other parts of my application?
• Why do I want to go med school? (get specific)
• What do I want my professional career to look like in 15 years? In 30?
• What motivates me–professionally and personally?

In any graduate school application, you’re trying to strike a balance between providing a comprehensive view of your candidacy and not overwhelming with unnecessary information. For this reason, it can be extremely valuable to have an idea of the overall story you want to tell. Think about your “elevator pitch” and use the essay to build on that. If you’re not sure what experiences or characteristics are the most impactful, you can also work with a coach . They’ll help you identify what’s most important to talk about, and to leave out, and can also work with you to draft an outline.

Step 2: Write a draft (it’s okay if it’s terrible)

Once you’ve got some direction, the next step is to just get your thoughts on paper. Sit down and force yourself to brain dump. It does not have to be pretty, it does not have to make sense, it does not have to be comprehensive. From there, leave it for a day. When you come back, highlight the parts that still resonate and make a note of anything missing.

Step 3: Review and edit, repeat

Based on the comments you left yourself on your preliminary thoughts, write a second draft. This time, pay a little more attention to the overall flow. Support your main ideas with real evidence in the form of stories and anecdotes. Be concise and get to the point–when your characters are limited, it’s important to not waste any on irrelevant details or extraneous verbiage. Once you’ve done this, set your draft aside for a bit. Come back to it later and make it better. Then, repeat the process. To get a really good personal statement, you’re going to want to go through many different drafts.

Step 4: Get feedback

Once you’ve got a draft that you feel good about, we highly recommend getting a second perspective. The ideal editor is someone who has a basic understanding of your background but does not know you in-depth, as this would make it difficult for them to judge the essay objectively. A friend-of-a-friend, friend-of-a-mentor, professor, or med school admissions coach are all great choices. It’s a bonus if they have any kind of writing or editorial experience.

This third-party review will help you figure out what’s working and what’s not. From this point, and depending on the feedback, you may be close to a final draft.

Step 5: Read it out loud

We know–this sounds weird, but do it. When you read your essay out loud, you hear it as the admissions committee member will. It’s easier to find the gaps, identify missing transitions, see where you’re rambling, and get an overall idea of the impression it gives.

Step 6: Review, final edits, and spellcheck

Once you feel really, really good about your response, read it for a final time. Make sure that there are no grammatical or spelling errors. Then, you’ll copy and paste it into section eight of the AMCAS application, and it’s ready to go!

Caution: Don’t overdo it

Though it’s better to err on the side of too much editing over too little, it is possible to overdo it. If you stare at your writing long enough, everything starts to sound the same. And, for those of us who are perfectionists, it’s easy to feel like it’s never good enough . In most cases, it probably is. There comes to a point where you’ve done all you can and it’s time to submit. A good coach can help you gauge when this is but it also takes knowing yourself. If you start to get overwhelmed or frustrated, it’s completely okay (and even beneficial) to step back for a few days. Then, when you return, you’re coming in with a fresh and slightly more removed perspective.

Medical School Personal Statement Tips

Now that we’ve covered what the personal statement is and how to get it written, we’ll dive into some specifics on how to make it great , including things to do and avoid .

Lean into what makes you different from the other applicants.

After reading your personal statement, you want the admissions committees to think, “If we don’t admit this person right now, we might never get another applicant like them!” No pressure, right? Just kidding, we know this is tough to do! You will come from the same schools as other applicants and have the same majors, the same work experiences, the same hometowns, and the same GPAs. What’s different is how you went through all of that. Your perspective, how you interact with the world, and what you take away are all unique to you.

In the examples you share and your overall argument for admission, make sure you address this and don’t be afraid to get specific. A good test is this: if someone else could have written your exact same personal statement, it’s not unique enough.

Know what your personal statement is not.

You’re applying to medical schools, not creative writing programs. With this in mind, your personal statement should not be an exercise in writing the most experimental personal statement. The power in personal statements comes from the applicant’s background and story, not their writing abilities. To be clear, your statement should still be written well; but, you don’t need to get too fancy.

Don’t lose sight of the prompt.

With broader topics like this, it’s easy to get sucked into a tangent and pretty soon, you’re giving your entire life story. And, while you do want to explain your path, you’re doing so with a specific reason in mind. Your personal statement should explain exactly why you want to be a physician . If your stories aren’t directly relevant to that purpose, take them out.

For this, it can be helpful to examine your personal statement paragraph by paragraph. Imagine your response without that section–does the primary message still get across? Is it contributing something valuable or is it extraneous?

Don’t recite your resume.

This is your classic “show, don’t tell” advice. Use examples to support the qualities that you want the adcom to see, rather than listing your accomplishments and what you think they demonstrate. Here’s an example:

• Applicant 1: For two years, I shadowed a family physician in my city where I learned the day-to-day responsibilities required to succeed in the field.
• Applicant 2: For two years, I shadowed a family physician in my city. This taught me how successful doctors in this field need to understand a variety of issues, problem-solve constantly, and develop real relationships with their patients.

Which one is more compelling? They’re essentially saying the same thing, but the second applicant explains what the first only claims.

Keep the focus on you.

You are the main character of the personal statement. While many stories will also involve other people–mentors, patients, friends, family members, etc…–make sure that the focus remains on what you demonstrated. That’s not to say you should only have stories that don’t include others. Tell the same stories but do so in a way that highlights the role you played.

When you’re reviewing any given anecdote, ask yourself: “What does the admissions committee learn about me from this?” If you can’t point to direct and specific things, it needs to be reworked.

Source: https://www.joinleland.com/library/a/medical-school-personal-statement-tips

• Applying to Uni
• Apprenticeships
• Health & Relationships
• Money & Finance
• Personal Statements
• Postgraduate
• U.S Universities
• University Interviews
• Vocational Qualifications
• Accommodation
• ​​​​​​​Budgeting, Money & Finance
• ​​​​​​​Health & Relationships
• ​​​​​​​Jobs & Careers
• ​​​​​​​Socialising
• Studying Abroad
• ​​​​​​​Studying & Revision
• ​​​​​​​Technology
• ​​​​​​​University & College Admissions

Guide to GCSE Results Day

Finding a job after school or college

Retaking GCSEs

In this section

Choosing GCSE Subjects

Post-GCSE Options

GCSE Work Experience

GCSE Revision Tips

Why take an Apprenticeship?

Applying for an Apprenticeship

Apprenticeships Interviews

Apprenticeship Wage

Engineering Apprenticeships

What is an Apprenticeship?

Choosing an Apprenticeship

Real Life Apprentices

Degree Apprenticeships

Higher Apprenticeships

A Level Results Day 2024

AS Levels 2024

Clearing Guide 2024

Applying to University

SQA Results Day Guide 2024

BTEC Results Day Guide

Vocational Qualifications Guide

Sixth Form or College

International Baccalaureate

Post 18 options

Finding a Job

Should I take a Gap Year?

Travel Planning

Volunteering

Gap Year Blogs

Top Rated Personal Statements

Personal Statement Examples

Writing Your Personal Statement

Postgraduate Personal Statements

International Student Personal Statements

Gap Year Personal Statements

Personal Statement Length Checker

Personal Statement Examples By University

Personal Statement Editing and Review Service

Personal Statement Changes 2025

Personal Statement Template

Job Interviews

Types of Postgraduate Course

Writing a Postgraduate Personal Statement

Postgraduate Funding

Postgraduate Study

Internships

Choosing A College

Ivy League Universities

Common App Essay Examples

Universal College Application Guide

How To Write A College Admissions Essay

College Rankings

Admissions Tests

Fees & Funding

Scholarships

Budgeting For College

Online Degree

Platinum Express Editing and Review Service

Gold Editing and Review Service

Silver Express Editing and Review Service

UCAS Personal Statement Editing and Review Service

Oxbridge Personal Statement Editing and Review Service

Postgraduate Personal Statement Editing and Review Service

You are here

History and sociology personal statement example.

History enables me to see how actions and events have shaped our current society and to understand the present, one must understand the past. The broad topic areas that are involved in History and Sociology allow me to understand different perspectives on a diverse range of subjects. One subject that particularly interests me in History are the English Witch Hunts of the Fifteenth and Sixteenth centuries.

This particular subject allows me to see how society has evolved since the years when moral standards were extremely poor. I have been studying this topic for my personal study in History and the diversity of the views on the subject is fascinating. I particularly enjoy James Sharpe's views on Witchcraft: "The Hopkins trials are of massive significance to the history of English witchcraft, because they offer a major challenge to those interpretations which present witchcraft in England as a low key affair." Matthew Hopkins, also known as the Witch finder General, was a key figure in the Witch Hunts and James Sharpe uses him to back up his argument that the Witch Hunts are significant to English history. The diverse range of arguments that are put forward by historians make researching different topics all the more enthralling.

This is also the case with Sociology, as it enables me to understand our current society from different Sociological perspectives, such as Marxism and Functionalism. Marxism is one of my preferred theories to study, as it was created in the 19th century, and thus it enables me to compare views on society from different time periods. Marx summarized his approach in the first line of chapter one of The Communist Manifesto: published in 1848: "The history of all hitherto existing society is the history of class struggles." Marxism views our current society in a negative way saying that we are ruled by the 'Bourgeoisie'. However Functionalism views society positively, referring to it as an organic analogy, functional like the human body. Seeing theories that contradict each other so greatly makes the diversity both appealing and fascinating. History and Sociology are both extremely diverse subjects, making the study of these areas an extremely exciting prospect.

I have been studying history, sociology and psychology at A2 Level, together with English Literature at AS Level. Psychology and history in particular have improved my analytical skills, as they both require focus on sources, case studies and methodologies. This will help me with the different perspectives and topics involved with history and sociology.

I have a passion for working within the police. During Year 12, I shadowed Burnham-On-Sea Police Force, and this included a personal tour of the station and shadowing a PCSO. This confirmed that Sociology and History are the topics I wish to study. I have also been involved with looking after the children at the local church on a Sunday, and with their Summer Holiday Club for three years. This has enabled me to improve my observational skills by watching the children and seeing how they interact.

I used this experience to relate the childrens' behaviour to what I learnt about Interactionism in my first year of Sociology. These observational skills may be useful when looking at cultures and the differences between them. I also enjoy visits to the Natural History Museum and I am going to the Imperial War Museum in February 2011, which will give me a better understanding of the many topics that are involved in History. Also, I am in the process of completing the ASDAN CoPE Level 3 Qualification, which has developed my important key skills, especially independent study.

University will help me reach my full potential and I intend to work hard, directing all my effort into reaching my intellectual potential. I will use all of the skills I have acquired throughout my schooling to be a diligent and conscientious student.

Profile info

This personal statement was written by rgmail1 for application in 2010.

rgmail1's university choices The University of Gloucestershire University of Leeds Cardiff University The University of Warwick University of Exeter

Green : offer made Red : no offer made

rgmail1's Comments

Hi, This is my statement for my joint degree and its been sent to ucas. I'm pretty happy with it but i know you can alaways do better so give me some comments on what you think. Thanks

Related Personal Statements

Hi, i don't mind constructive.

Wed, 06/10/2010 - 15:32

Hi, i don't mind constructive critiscism but if you're just going to slag it off, don't bother. Thankyou :)

Your personal statement its

Tue, 12/10/2010 - 16:26

Your personal statement its brilliant and i am desperate to study history/sociology at university,did you get accepted into warwick?

Hi, i only sent off my

Fri, 15/10/2010 - 12:42

Hi, i only sent off my application two weeks ago so i'm still holding out hope for Warwick *fingers crossed* So where are you thinking of applying to? :)

ohh well good luck :) im

Wed, 20/10/2010 - 21:32

ohh well good luck :) im applying to warwick birmingham cardif manchester and leeds. i havent finished mine yet tho still doing finishing touches lol.

Awesome, they sound like very

Thu, 21/10/2010 - 10:10

Awesome, they sound like very good uni's good luck :)

Wow, yours is amazing! Am

Fri, 29/10/2010 - 21:47

Wow, yours is amazing! Am also hoping to study history/sociology, best of luck to you! What are you predicted?

Thanks :) i was predicted C's

Sun, 31/10/2010 - 19:55

Thanks :) i was predicted C's for my AS levels because i was lazy at GCSE (which I now regret!!) but for my A levels i am predicted AAA. Where are u applying to??

Tue, 23/07/2013 - 22:39

Appreciate you sharing, great blog article.Thanks Again. Awesome.

Add new comment

More From Forbes

Crowdstrike windows outage—what happened and what to do next.

• Share to Facebook
• Share to Twitter
• Share to Linkedin

A CrowdStrike update is breaking computers running Windows, causing them to crash and display the ... [+] Blue Screen of Death.

A CrowdStrike update is breaking computers running Windows, causing them to crash and display the blue screen of death. Across industries, companies around the world haven’t been able to reboot, according to reports. Firms affected by the outage include Sky News, which has been unable to broadcast .

Concerned users have taken to forums such as Reddit to report the issue, with one user saying: “Wow, stuck in a boot loop, and entire org taken out.”

So if you got into work this morning and were met by, frankly, carnage, know that you are not alone. Here’s what happened and what to do next.

What Happened

As you might have gathered, an issue with CrowdStrike cybersecurity software is causing the widespread global issue. Engineers at the company said they are working on the issue, which affects its Falcon Sensor product. CrowdStrike calls Falcon “the CrowdStrike platform purpose-built to stop breaches via a unified set of cloud-delivered technologies that prevent all types of attacks—including malware and much more.”

The IT outage has affected airports, businesses and broadcasters, according to the Sky News website. Planes have been grounded in the U.S., trains in the U.K. are impacted, as well as boarding scanners at Edinburgh airport in Scotland.

Biden Vs. Trump 2024 Election Polls: Trump Expands His Lead—As More Democrats Pressure Biden To Drop Out

Today’s nyt mini crossword clues and answers for saturday, july 20, major surge in democratic congress members urging biden to quit—13 in 2 days.

Microsoft said it is taking “mitigation actions” after service issues it said started at about 6 p.m. Eastern Time. The company says it is investigating issues with cloud services in the U.S. and “an issue impacting several of its apps and services,” Sky News reported.

“We are aware of a scenario in which customers experience issues with their machines causing a bug check (blue screen) due to a recent CrowdStrike update,” a Microsoft spokesperson said. “We recommend customers to follow guidance provided by CrowdStrike.”

While initial reports focused on a dodgy update, a user named Brody, who is director of CrowdStrike Overwatch, posted on X (formerly Twitter) that it is “a faulty channel file, so not quite an update.”

There is a workaround, he added.

1. Boot Windows into Safe Mode or WRE.

2. Go to C:\Windows\System32\drivers\CrowdStrike

3. Locate and delete file matching "C-00000291*.sys"

4. Boot normally.

At 5:45 a.m. ET, CrowdStrike CEO George Kurtz posted on X, confirming the issue is not a cyberattack and was caused by a botched update.

“CrowdStrike is actively working with customers impacted by a defect found in a single content update for Windows hosts. Mac and Linux hosts are not impacted. This is not a security incident or cyberattack,” Kurz wrote, adding that the issue has been “identified, isolated and a fix has been deployed.”

“We refer customers to the support portal for the latest updates and will continue to provide complete and continuous updates on our website,” he added. “We further recommend organizations ensure they’re communicating with CrowdStrike representatives through official channels. Our team is fully mobilized to ensure the security and stability of CrowdStrike customers.”

It’s not easy to say what to do next. While there is a workaround, it’s not scalable, as it would need to be applied manually, system by system. In a large company, this could could take hours or more to get back up and running.

By its nature, the issue is going to be very hard to resolve once systems are in a reboot loop, says Adam Harrison, managing director at FTI Cybersecurity. “Manual fixes are going to take time for system admins to apply: CrowdStrike can't push a new update remotely to fix. It's going to need manual intervention on each system.”

You might be lucky and be able to roll back to known good states, but the majority won't have anything that supports doing that, says Harrison. “The fix itself is quick to perform, but when you scale that up to thousands of servers and/or thousands of workstations, it's going to be a bad day in the office for lots of folks.”

It’s also going to be a bad day for CrowdStrike. What can the firm do to help people?

“They can only communicate that fix as quickly and widely as they can,” says Harrison. “My assumption would be that the update is already down, so any systems which hadn't updated for any reasons shouldn't still get pushed a bad update.”

Ian Thornton-Trump, CISO at Cyjax, says CrowdStrike “will certainly do their very best to pull the update and instruct the old agents not to update till they can get it sorted.”

However, he says, “what has been done can not be undone for those blue screen machines. If the machines can be booted in safe mode they may be able to issue an out of band update or patch. That’s time consuming—if the machines are critical, they might actually consider restoring from backup or a shadow copy (a built in MSFT recovery feature). Whatever path they have, they will try and fix as quickly as possible.”

CrowdStrike might be able to put a tool together that would apply the fix at the disk level, such as bootable media, says Harrison. “This would maybe help some people out who have thousands of systems to fix. It’s still not a solution that solves the problem fully remotely or at huge scale, but it could bring recovery times down.”

This is a breaking story. Keep your eyes peeled and check back to my Forbes page for updates.

• Editorial Standards
• Reprints & Permissions

Join The Conversation

One Community. Many Voices. Create a free account to share your thoughts. 

Forbes Community Guidelines

Our community is about connecting people through open and thoughtful conversations. We want our readers to share their views and exchange ideas and facts in a safe space.

In order to do so, please follow the posting rules in our site's  Terms of Service.   We've summarized some of those key rules below. Simply put, keep it civil.

Your post will be rejected if we notice that it seems to contain:

• False or intentionally out-of-context or misleading information
• Insults, profanity, incoherent, obscene or inflammatory language or threats of any kind
• Attacks on the identity of other commenters or the article's author
• Content that otherwise violates our site's  terms.

User accounts will be blocked if we notice or believe that users are engaged in:

• Continuous attempts to re-post comments that have been previously moderated/rejected
• Racist, sexist, homophobic or other discriminatory comments
• Attempts or tactics that put the site security at risk
• Actions that otherwise violate our site's  terms.

So, how can you be a power user?

• Stay on topic and share your insights
• Feel free to be clear and thoughtful to get your point across
• ‘Like’ or ‘Dislike’ to show your point of view.
• Protect your community.
• Use the report tool to alert us when someone breaks the rules.

Thanks for reading our community guidelines. Please read the full list of posting rules found in our site's  Terms of Service.

Here's what we know about CrowdStrike, the company potentially to blame for a global tech outage

A technical issue related to a US-based cybersecurity firm named CrowdStrike caused computers running Microsoft software across Australia and abroad to glitch on Friday.

The global outage impacted a raft of Australian companies and government agencies, causing many computers to attempt to restart and display a blue-screen error message.

Here's what we know so far.

What is CrowdStrike?

CrowdStrike is a US-based cybersecurity firm that helps companies manage their security in "IT environments" — that is, everything they use an internet connection to access.

Its primary function is to protect companies and stop data breaches, ransomware and cyber attacks.

It includes among its main customers global investment banks, universities and even the Australian betting agency TAB Corp.

The cybersecurity environment has changed rapidly in recent years due to the increased presence of threat actors targeting big business, including Ticketmaster, Medibank and Optus.

As a result, more and more companies are turning towards firms like CrowdStrike to protect their customers' information.

What is CrowdStrike used for?

One of the company's main products is CrowdStrike Falcon, which is described on its website as "providing real-time indicators of attack, hyper-accurate detection and automated protection" from possible cybersecurity threats.

CrowdStrike Falcon is used by thousands of companies across the world to protect data, and a software update released on Friday caused a global outage of Microsoft products.

Earlier this week, CrowdStrike announced an update of its Falcon product, saying it would provide "unprecedented speed and precision" to detect security breaches.

In a statement posted to its website following the outage, a CrowdStrike spokesperson said it was likely an issue with the Falcon product that caused the incident.

Who owns CrowdStrike?

The company was founded by former McAfee employee George Kurtz in 2012.

Its ownership structure is a mix of individual investors, institutions and retail.

The company's stock is broken down into two large investor categories. About 40 per cent is owned by institutional investors, and about 57 per cent is owned by public companies and individual investors.

The investor with the largest share is The Vanguard Group, a US investment fund, with about 6.79 per cent of the company.

The question of who owns CrowdStrike was part of a discredited conspiracy theory after the company investigated Russia's role in the 2016 US elections.

Former US president Donald Trump made reference to the conspiracy theory in a call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in 2019.

"I would like to find out what happened with this whole situation with Ukraine, they say CrowdStrike. I guess you have one of your wealthy people," he said.

"The server, they say Ukraine has it … you or your people, and I would like you to get to the bottom of it."

What's next for the company?

Developer websites have already begun posting workarounds for the issue, and CrowdStrike the company offered a solution on its members-only platform until the incident resolves.

CrowdStrike CEO George Kurtz released a statement on X on Friday evening, saying the outage was caused by a "defect" in a content update for Microsoft users.

He stressed it was not caused by a cyber attack.

Earlier, Reuters said those who phoned the company were met with a pre-recorded message.

"Thanks for contacting CrowdStrike support. CrowdStrike is aware of reports of crashes on Windows … related to the Falcon sensor."

• X (formerly Twitter)
• Business, Economics and Finance
• Company News
• Computer Science
• Science and Technology

• Ask a question Ask
• go advanced Search
• Please enter a title
• Please enter a message
• Your discussion will live here... (Start typing, we will pick a forum for you) Please select a forum Change forum View more forums... View less forums... GCSEs A-levels Applications, Clearing and UCAS University Life Student Finance England Part-time and temporary employment Chat Everyday issues Friends, family and work Relationships Health News Student Surveys and Research
• post anonymously
• All study help
• Uni applications
• University and HE colleges
• University help and courses
• University student life

Postgraduate

• Careers and jobs
• Teacher training
• Finance and accountancy
• Relationships
• Sexual health
• Give feedback or report a problem
• University and university courses
• Universities and HE colleges
• Life and style
• Entertainment
• Debate and current affairs
• Careers and Jobs
• Scottish qualifications
• Foreign languages
• GCSE articles
• A-level articles
• Exam and revision articles
• What to do after GCSEs
• What to do after A-levels
• When is A-level results day 2024?
• When is GCSE results day 2024?
• Studying, revision and exam support
• Grow your Grades

Exam results articles and chat

• Exam results homepage
• A guide to GCSE and A-level grade boundaries
• Year 13 chat
• Year 12 chat
• Year 11 chat

A-level results

• Guide to A-level results day
• Get help preparing for results day
• A-level retakes and resits
• Exam reviews and remarks
• Here’s what to expect on A-level results day
• Six ways to help results day nerves
• Understanding your A-level results slip

GCSE results

• Guide to GCSE results day
• How GCSE combined science grades work
• Stressed about GCSE results day?
• Understanding your GCSE results slip

Finding a uni in Clearing

• Clearing articles and chat
• UK university contact details
• Guide to Clearing
• Seven things people get wrong about Clearing
• How to make a great Clearing call
• Finding accommodation after Clearing
• How Clearing can help you prepare for results day
• All universities
• Applying through Ucas
• Student finance
• Personal statement
• Postgraduate study
• Uni accommodation
• University life
• All uni courses
• Apprenticeships
• Arts and humanities courses
• Stem courses
• Social science courses

Universities by region

• North of England
• South of England
• Greater London
• Distance learning
• International study

University guides and articles

• All university articles
• Applying to uni articles
• Personal statements
• Personal statement examples
• University open days
• Studying law at university
• Student life at university
• Careers and jobs discussion
• Apprenticeships discussion
• Part-time and temp jobs
• Career forums by sector
• Armed forces careers
• Consultancy careers
• Finance careers
• Legal careers
• Marketing careers
• Medicine and healthcare careers
• Public sector careers
• Stem careers
• Teaching careers
• General chat
• Relationships chat
• Friends, family and colleagues
• Advice on everyday issues
• General health
• Mental health
• UK and world politics
• Educational debate

Undergraduate

• Postgraduate Master’s Loan
• Postgraduate Doctoral Loan
• Disabled Students’ Allowances
• Taking a break or withdrawing from your course

Further information

• Parents and partners
• Advanced Learner Loan
• English personal statements

Personal Statement - English and History

English and history personal statement.

Two of my main influences during the past few years have been from both English and History, and this is why I wish to study them as a Joint Honours degree.

Throughout Secondary School my interest and curiosity about English has stretched beyond the A level syllabus. Reading a wide range of books from classics like Great Expectations to contemporary novels such as Monica Ali’s Brick Lane has allowed English to become more than just a sixth form subject, and transformed it into something which I find both intense and exhilarating. The role English plays in communication is something I also find deeply fascinating as both a reader and a writer, as its impact on society is colossal. In a world where both the media and politics use language tools to their advantage there appears to be no limit to English’s influence, and no limit to what remains to be discovered. Outside of my academic studies, I have had time to enjoy English in the form of plays and theatre texts through taking part amateur dramatic productions. This has helped develop my understanding, as it has allowed me an alternative perspective of literary pieces. Although I have enjoyed both my English Literature and English Language A Level courses, I would not feel satisfied to end my study of English here, as I have only just begun to uncover some of the many things further study would reveal.

History is also something I find engrossing, as its foundations have influenced our society’s outlook. Although History is learning about the past, I find it relevant to where we are today as previous events determine our future. Although cliché, the phrase ‘history repeats itself’ is often quite accurate as old events can give a greater insight into current debate and reforms in society, something which I find extremely absorbing. Trips to places abroad have also fuelled my want for more historical knowledge. After visiting the First World War Battlefields I realised there were areas I had already studied which I would like to go into in greater depth. Studying English and History as a degree would give me the opportunity to do more developed independent studies in specific areas.

Whilst Historians use English to portray a positive or negative view of a series of events and analyse sources, those interested in English Language and Literature seek a greater depth of insight and understanding of context through Historical events. This is why studying both English and History as a Joint Honours degree would certainly be beneficial to my understanding of both subjects. Both English and History have allowed me to develop my ability to form an argument and have strengthened my analytical thinking, skills which are both vital in Secondary Education, a career I wish to pursue.

Outside of school I have been able to develop my personal skills through working as a volunteer within the local community. For the past 5 years I have been a Young Leader with children aged 5-7 as part of Girlguiding UK. In 2006 I also completed 200 Millennium Volunteer hours working with young people from less advantaged backgrounds as part of Forest Day Camps, a scheme set up by the YMCA. Within school I have been part of the Senior Students team, which included helping younger students in the school library. I have also been an active member of the Redbridge Youth Theatre Workshop, and enjoy horse riding; both of which have helped me develop confidence and independence through extracurricular activities.

I relish the challenge Higher Education represents. As the first member of my family to have this opportunity, I feel university is something which just cannot be missed.

• Share this story :
• Share on Facebook
• Share on Twitter
• Share on Google+
• Share on Pinterest
• Latest Latest
• Trending Trending
• create my feed
• Edit my feed
• 0 new posts
• Started by: Oxford Mum
• Forum: University of Oxford
• Replies: 9424
• Last post: 1 minute ago
• Started by: Doones
• Forum: University of Cambridge
• Replies: 9595
• Started by: Talkative Toad
• Forum: Forum games
• Replies: 7952
• Started by: 3rinMill3r
• Forum: Applications, Clearing and UCAS
• Started by: sdfj
• Replies: 3592
• Started by: Anonymous5096
• Forum: Gaming
• Started by: Anonymous
• Forum: Relationships
• Started by: selinaxo
• Forum: Healthcare
• Started by: drgn7
• Forum: Medical Schools
• Replies: 84
• Last post: 3 minutes ago
• Started by: JVM2020
• Forum: Society
• Replies: 149
• Started by: Sandtrooper
• Forum: Cambridge Postgraduate
• Replies: 8084
• Last post: 4 minutes ago
• Started by: fa9089
• Replies: 35
• Started by: Mrspring
• Forum: University of Birmingham
• Started by: 04MR17
• Forum: Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games
• Replies: 29
• Forum: Sport
• Replies: 175
• Last post: 6 minutes ago
• Forum: Health
• Last post: 9 minutes ago
• Started by: Harman Kaur
• Forum: A-levels
• Last post: 11 minutes ago
• Started by: Eli_77
• Forum: Social and Political Sciences
• Last post: 12 minutes ago
• Started by: twicenayeon
• Forum: Money and finance
• Last post: 13 minutes ago
• Forum: University of Manchester
• Replies: 22
• Last post: 14 minutes ago
• Started by: asdfjkmel
• Forum: Graduate Schemes
• Replies: 2634
• Last post: 2 hours ago
• Started by: MOZSH
• Replies: 452
• Last post: 3 hours ago
• Started by: Lazlay
• Forum: Civil service, public sector and public services
• Replies: 503
• Last post: 22 hours ago
• Started by: ———————-
• Last post: 2 days ago
• Started by: emm4nuella
• Forum: Biology Exams
• Replies: 1219
• Last post: 6 days ago
• Started by: miss_nia
• Replies: 79
• Last post: 1 week ago
• Started by: Andrew97
• Forum: UK and World Politics
• Replies: 2202
• Started by: Scotland Yard
• Forum: Chemistry Exams
• Replies: 807
• Forum: Maths Exams
• Replies: 457
• Last post: 2 weeks ago
• Replies: 1093
• Started by: oddchocolate05
• Replies: 2078
• Started by: principal-ontolo
• Replies: 468
• Last post: 3 weeks ago
• Forum: Biology, biochemistry and other life sciences
• Replies: 1276
• Started by: Pwca
• Replies: 626
• Forum: Physics Exams
• Replies: 527
• Replies: 480
• Replies: 777
• Replies: 1079
• Started by: emilieh78911
• Forum: Chemistry
• Replies: 132
• Last post: 4 weeks ago
• I think I've exceeded the grades for my university offer
• I think I've met the grades for my university offer
• I think I've missed the grades for my university offer
• Something else (tell us in the thread)

The Student Room and The Uni Guide are both part of The Student Room Group.

• Main topics
• GCSE and A-level
• Exam results
• Life and relationships

Get Started

• Today's posts
• Unanswered posts
• Community guidelines
• TSR help centre
• Cookies & online safety
• Terms & conditions
• Privacy notice

Connect with TSR

© Copyright The Student Room 2023 all rights reserved

The Student Room and The Uni Guide are trading names of The Student Room Group Ltd.

Register Number: 04666380 (England and Wales), VAT No. 806 8067 22 Registered Office: Imperial House, 2nd Floor, 40-42 Queens Road, Brighton, East Sussex, BN1 3XB

What we know about the global Microsoft outage

A routine software update caused cascading chaos Friday that has engulfed global businesses from airports and banks to retail and law enforcement.

It wasn’t a cyberattack, but was caused by one of the world’s largest cybersecurity companies deploying a flawed update while trying to keep their customers safe from hackers.

CrowdStrike, a cybersecurity company based in Austin, Texas, that’s widely used by businesses and government agencies that run on Microsoft computers, said that a defect in one of its updates for computers running the Windows operating system had caused the issue. The result was arguably the largest global information technology outage in history. 

Here’s what we know:

What has been affected?

The outage appeared to affect almost every major business sector in one way or another.

Airports and flights across the world were severely delayed or canceled altogether, as the computers on which these services rely were disrupted by the issue. Three of the largest airlines in the United States — American Airlines, Delta Air Lines and United Airlines — all issued ground stops, citing communications problems.

Long lines snaked through airports from Berlin to Hong Kong, as electronic systems failed and staff members resorted to checking in passengers manually. One flier in the Indian city of Hyderabad posted a picture of a curiosity usually unseen in the modern digital age: a handwritten boarding pass.

Follow live updates on the global tech outage

The issue also affected banks, leaving some customers unable to access their money. People across Australia, New Zealand and elsewhere reported problems logging into their accounts at major retail banks. Meanwhile the London Stock Exchange, the largest of its kind in Europe, said some of its services had been disrupted although trading had not been impeded.

In retail, McDonald’s closed some of its stores in Japan because of what it said in an online statement was a “cash register malfunction.” And the British grocery chain Waitrose was forced to put up handwritten notes informing customers that it was only accepting cash. Some Starbucks locations temporarily closed after the company's mobile ordering system went down, while other locations stayed open and left their baristas scrambling to come up with new workflows.

Baltic Hub, a global shipping terminal in Poland, said in a statement it had been battling issues related to the outage. The Alaska State Troopers agency was among the law enforcement agencies to report issues, warning people that 911 was temporarily not working. And the British broadcaster Sky News, which is owned by NBCUniversal's parent company, Comcast, was briefly knocked off the air.

Some computers that were not on during the software update appear to have avoided the issue, according to initial reports.

What caused it?

Cybersecurity programs like CrowdStrike’s frequently and automatically update themselves to account for new tactics that malicious hackers have discovered. And there’s always a slight risk that any software update will be incompatible with other programs.

CrowdStrike’s update should have been routine, but an error in its code conflicted with Windows and proved catastrophic.

The company’s CEO, George Kurtz , said Friday morning on the "TODAY" show that while some customers would see their computers fixed automatically, others would require manual work to fix.

“The system was sent an update, and that update had a software bug in it and caused an issue with the Microsoft operating system,” Kurtz said. “Our systems are always looking for the latest attacks from these adversaries that are out there.”

How long until things go back to normal?

CrowdStrike identified the problem and issued a fix early Friday after the problem began to emerge. On Friday afternoon, Kurtz released a statement apologizing for the outage, adding that CrowdStrike was “operating normally.”

The fix required affected computers to download another software update, which some have been able to do automatically.

Many companies and services affected by the chaos, such as the New Hampshire Department of Safety, which said its 911 system was briefly down, reported that they were back online by Friday morning. 

Others haven’t been able to load the update, which would potentially require IT workers at some companies to reboot and tinker with every single affected computer.

“Many of the customers are rebooting the system, and it’s coming up, and it’ll be operational because we fixed it on our end,” Kurtz said. “Some of the systems that aren’t recovering, we’re working with them. So it could be some time for some systems that just automatically won’t recover.”

Alexander Smith is a senior reporter for NBC News Digital based in London.

Kevin Collier is a reporter covering cybersecurity, privacy and technology policy for NBC News.