Personal Statements (Humanities / Social Science) - Wish I'd Known (Expert Oxford & Cambridge Application Advice)
To understand what makes for an effective personal statement try putting yourself in the shoes of the tutors and supervisors who will make the decision on your admission. What skills, qualities and talents are they looking for?
The key distinction between applying to Oxbridge and other Russell Group universities is that your application to the former is expected to be much more narrowly focused on academia.
Your personal statement should, therefore, strive to explain and justify your interest in your degree of choice; to further illustrate your academic credentials; to outline why you'd make an outstanding student and, state your overriding goals and ambitions in pursuing your degree.
More specifically, you are also expected to demonstrate certain intellectual skills and traits: analytical and critical thinking, open-mindedness and excellent writing skills in a way that simultaneously shows you as a competent candidate without being boastful or arrogant. In other words, you want to present yourself as a student who is keen to learn and who would be an engaging, interesting and satisfying student to your tutors within the weekly setting of a tutorial/supervision.
Your potential and passion for your subject must shine through beyond all else.
Doing so is the most difficult part of the personal statement, and our subject-specific blogs provide more detailed and tailored advice. In general, however, you can demonstrate your skills and interest by discussing and making insightful comments on relevant extracurricular activities such as wider reading, essay writing, academic competitions, clubs participation and even your school work. You also want to avoid giving more space than necessary to extracurricular activities that are not directly relevant to your subject.
Let us know if you have any questions about this article.
This article was written by Wojciech (Oxford - History & Politics).
If you find this content useful, please visit Wojciech' profile for further information on applying to Oxbridge. Alternatively, book support now with Wojciech, using the form below.
Author: Wojciech - Oxford
BA History & Politics
Since graduating I have acquired extensive experience in Mentoring for Oxbridge admissions. I have worked in person with students in London, Hong Kong and Budapest and taught A-level History and Politics at Akademeia High School in Warsaw.
