Mrs. Livermont
Personal Statement
It is your final year of high school and many of you will soon be applying to college. Many universities require that you write a personal statement and submit it with your application. The essay you write will provide the selection committee with additional information about you in regards to your academic and creative achievement.
This is your chance to sell yourself to the selection committee. It is usually the only opportunity for the readers of your application to get a feel for you as a person, as well as for you as a student. Your personal statement is an opportunity to put your academic record as well as your opportunities and/or obstacles into context as they pertain to your collegiate success and future goals.
I have included the personal statement options for the University of California as well as for the Common Application. If you plan to attend a university that requires a different personal statement, please speak with me in advance of the due date for approval.
Also, be sure to include a coversheet that specifies the essay choice(s) and includes the following:
Your name
Due Date
Class Period
The prompt or questions to which you are responding
Things to Consider When Planning/Drafting:
· Remember, you are the focus of this statement.
· Make sure that your writing is clear and focused.
· Analyze the question(s) asked on a specific application.
· Research the school and/or program to which you are applying.
· Proofread carefully.
· Remember, you are the focus of this statement.
· Make sure that your writing is clear and focused.
First Draft Due______(MUST be typed in MLA Format and 100% complete)
**Final Draft Due ______
All UC Schools
Answer four of the eight questions and limit your responses to 350 words each. Here they are:
THE NEW UC ESSAY PROMPTS:
1. Describe an example of your leadership experience in which you have positively influenced others, helped resolve disputes, or contributed to group efforts over time.
2. Every person has a creative side, and it can be expressed in many ways: problem solving, original and innovative thinking, and artistically, to name a few. Describe how you express your creative side.
3. What would you say is your greatest talent or skill? How have you developed and demonstrated that talent over time?
4. Describe how you have taken advantage of a significant educational opportunity or worked to overcome an educational barrier you have faced.
5. Describe the most significant challenge you have faced and the steps you have taken to overcome this challenge. How has this challenge affected your academic achievement?
6. Describe your favorite academic subject and explain how it has influenced you.
7. What have you done to make your school or your community a better place?
8. What is the one thing that you think sets you apart from other candidates applying to the University of California?
*Please note that these are separate essays. Be sure to include the prompt at the top of each essay.
The Common Application will also be placing a limit of 650 words for the “personal statement” essay with the caveat that 650 words is the limit, not the goal. The application will not accept a response shorter than 250 words. (Your paper should be approximately 500-650 words.)
The following prompts will appear on the 2016-17 Common Application:
PROMPT #1: Some students have a background, identity, interest, or talent that is so meaningful they believe their application would be incomplete without it. If this sounds like you, then please share your story.
PROMPT #2: The lessons we take from failure can be fundamental to later success. Recount an incident or time when you experienced failure. How did it affect you, and what did you learn from the experience?
PROMPT #3: Reflect on a time when you challenged a belief or idea. What prompted you to act? Would you make the same decision again?
PROMPT #4: Describe a problem you’ve solved or a problem you’d like to solve. It can be an intellectual challenge, a research query, an ethical dilemma-anything that is of personal importance, no matter the scale. Explain its significance to you and what steps you took or could be taken to identify a solution
PROMPT #5: Discuss an accomplishment or event, formal or informal, that marked your transition from childhood to adulthood within your culture, community, or family.
**Colleges who make use of The Common Application may also require other essays as supplements to the above essays.