Getting Personal

Written By Becky Holderness

It’s that time of the year again. 

You’ve just survived your first year of A levels before being launched head first into A2 work. You don’t know whether to rejoice because Christmas isn’t far away or cry because you have a monthly assessment tomorrow. And, worst of all, you’re expected to write about yourself in a way that isn’t purely critical to form something known as a “personal statement”. Let’s face it, it’s actually just a page of bragging… without sounding too full of yourself. Don’t even think about that.

So, where do you start? Suddenly, staring at that blank piece of paper before you, you forget everything worthwhile that you’ve ever done in your life. Sure, you might have climbed Mount Everest and done a 60k bike ride for charity, but is that really relevant? Effectively, it’s a test of strength: who can pull themselves apart and stick the pieces back together in a way that resembles something positive? Who can find the most original way to write “I promise I’m not a boring and unsociable person”?

It’s harder than you think trying not to sound clichéd, especially when you’re informed that sentences such as “I’ve always wanted to…” are officially banned. You mustn’t use over-advanced vocabulary, as that would appear fake. You need to write in great detail, but be sure not to put everything down. And don’t even think about saying you have a “passion” for something, because that has been done hundreds of times before. Effectively, it’s a confusing battle of contradictions: don’t do this, add a bit of that, but don’t do too much either. Here are some good examples to look at! Wait! You must make sure your writing is original and not plagiarised!

All I can say is, like all difficult things in life, you’re better getting it over with whilst you still can.