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Writing a personal Statement
The personal statement is th the time to show admissions officers the human side of who you are.
Three Key Tips for a Successful Personal Statement
Make Sure It's About YOU
The personal statement isn't about the activity, the place, or the other people—it's about what you think, feel, and value. Admissions officers want to understand who you are, not just what you did.
Bad approach: "I volunteered at a soup kitchen and helped many people."
Good approach: "Serving food to the same regulars each week taught me that consistency matters more than grand gestures."
Your essay should reveal your perspective, your growth, or your values. If someone else could write the same essay about the same experience, you're not going deep enough.Show a Side of You That's Not in the Rest of Your Application
Your activities list shows what you do. Your transcript shows your academic abilities. Your recommendations show how teachers see you. The personal statement is your chance to reveal something they wouldn't otherwise know.
Don't write about:Being captain of the debate team (it's already in your activities)
How hard you studied for AP exams (your transcript shows that)
Generic leadership lessons everyone learns
Do write about:
Why you care about the weird hobby no one knows about
A quiet moment that changed how you see the world
The side of your personality that doesn't show up in school
This is where you get to be three-dimensional. Use it.Your Topic Doesn't Have to Be "Big"
Students think they need to write about trauma, overcoming impossible odds, or life-changing achievements. They don't.
The best essays are often about small, specific moments:Learning to make your grandmother's recipe and what it taught you about heritage
The day you realized you'd been mispronouncing a word your whole life
Why you rearrange your bookshelf every few months
What matters isn't the size of the topic—it's the depth of your reflection. A small, genuine story with real insight beats a dramatic story with surface-level takeaways every time.
Common Personal Statement Mistakes
Forcing a Topic a Student thinks the Reader wants to see
The mistake: Students write about what they think admissions officers want to hear instead of what actually matters to them. They pick topics like "my mission trip changed my perspective" or "sports taught me teamwork" because those sound impressive—but they don't actually care about those experiences in a meaningful way.
Why it fails: Admissions officers read thousands of essays. They can tell immediately when a student is performing rather than reflecting. The essay feels hollow, generic, and forgettable because there's no genuine emotion or insight behind it.
The fix: Write about what you actually care about, even if it seems small or weird. An authentic essay about your obsession with organizing your closet or why you listen to the same song on repeat will always beat a forced essay about volunteer work you did once. If you're not genuinely invested in the topic, the reader won't be either.Being Overly Vague
The mistake: Students write in broad, abstract language without grounding their essays in specific details, moments, or examples. They say things like "I learned the value of hard work" or "this experience taught me about diversity" without showing what that actually looked like.
Why it fails: Vague writing is unmemorable. Without specifics, every essay sounds the same. The reader finishes and can't remember anything concrete about you. Vague essays also suggest shallow thinking—if you can't articulate specifics, you probably haven't reflected deeply.
The fix: Replace generalities with specific moments, sensory details, and concrete examples.
Specificity makes your essay vivid and real. Details prove you're not making it up.Assuming
The mistake: Students reference people, places, concepts, or context that they assume the admissions officer will understand—but they don't explain it. They mention a family tradition without explaining what it is, reference an inside joke from their school, or use acronyms and slang without defining them.
Why it fails: Admissions officers are reading applications from all over the world. They don't know your high school's culture, your family's background, or the context of your community. If you don't explain it, they'll be confused—and confused readers don't connect with your essay.The fix: Write for someone who knows nothing about you. Provide context, explain references, and define terms. You don't need to over-explain, but assume your reader is intelligent but unfamiliar. If your grandmother in another country couldn't understand the reference, clarify it.