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The dos and don'ts of writing a personal statement for languages

Tips for convincing university admission tutors you deserve a place on their course

P hilosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein may have made a good case for studying languages when he said : “The limits of my language are the limits of my world.” But be warned: if you quote him in your personal statement, you may test the admission tutor’s patience.

Students often start by quoting someone famous, says Mike Nicholson, director of admissions at the University of Bath, who thinks it’s a “waste of space” and “just demonstrates that you can copy and paste”. Hilary Potter, a teaching fellow at the University of Leeds, adds that quotes “don’t tell us anything about the student”.

Whether you’re interested in French, Spanish, Arabic or Japanese, your first step will be to impress admissions tutors and convince them you deserve a place on their course. A strong, cliche-free personal statement is a must, but what else should you include? And what mistakes should you avoid?

Start with you: “Tell a story about yourself,” says Darren Paffey, from the modern languages department at the University of Southampton. “With a clear beginning, normally about why you’re interested in languages.” Also think about the course you’re applying to; some are very practical, while others are more literature-based, so know what skills you want to emphasise.

Be authentic and enthusiastic: It’s more important to be yourself and show your enthusiasm than it is to be polished. “I’d always prefer something that was clearly a personal response but maybe has a few imperfections,” says Matthew Jefferies, from the University of Manchester’s language school. While Ilse Renaudie, head of French at the University of East Anglia, says authenticity is the first thing she looks for: “Clear and genuine statements stand out.”

Let your personality shine through: Admissions tutors want to know who you are. “Put your personality into your statement,” says Antonia Kamara, who works in the admissions department of the University of Bristol. To study languages, you need show you are motivated, communicative, and can cope in difficult situations. “Open-mindedness is very important for languages,” Renaudie adds.

Show you’re well-rounded: “We’re not just looking for brilliantly academic people,” says Paffey, “we want to know what else you’ll contribute.” If you’ve been involved in non-academic activities like competitions, a student newspaper, or teaching younger students, say so. And don’t forget to show how it helped develop your skills. Tutors also advise you show your research skills, so include your extended project qualification (EPQ), if you have one.

Go beyond school texts: Listing the books on your school syllabus isn’t going to impress. “We can spot that a mile off,” says Kamara. Instead, show you can think critically by talking about how you’ve engaged with the language beyond the classroom. You can do this by offering some views on recent news stories or political events in foreign-language countries. Or talk about what interests you. “If you’ve got an interest in Latin American magical realism literature, or you write a blog on issues to do with the Spanish speaking world, tell us,” says Paffey.

What not to do

Don’t make spelling mistakes: You’re applying to study languages, so your statement has to be well-written. “Nothing leaves a worse impression than quoting in the original language, but quoting incorrectly because of spelling mistakes or grammatical errors,” says Jefferies. Have your finished statement proofread to pick up on missed errors.

Don’t write in an overly academic way: Applicants are often guilty of writing in an overly complicated, pseudo-academic style with too many clauses, says Jefferies. “Students think it will impress us,” he says, “but often it doesn’t make sense.” It’s better to write in your own voice.

Don’t miss out a subject: Lots of people study languages as a joint honours degree. But, if you want to do so, you must include both subjects in your personal statement. “It’s a common fault,” says Jefferies, “and it causes problems with the subject that’s been ignored”. Potter advises you divide your statement equally between the two subjects.

Don’t blag: Some universities interview for language courses. They’ll use the information in your personal statement as a prompt, so don’t get caught out. “If you say you recently enjoyed Thomas Mann’s ‘The Magic Mountain’ in German, it won’t look good if it becomes clear in the interview that you haven’t actually read it,” says Jefferies.

Don’t use cliches: General statements about being passionate about language can sound cliched. “We obviously don’t want anyone who isn’t passionate,” says Paffey, “but tell us how that passion finds its outlet and what you want to do with it,” he says. If you have an idea where you want languages to take you, share it with us, Potter adds.

Don’t worry if you haven’t been abroad: If you’ve been to a country where the language you want to study is spoken, and can show how the trip developed your skills and passion, then great. But don’t worry if not. “We don’t hold it against students who haven’t been,” says Jefferies. “Not everyone has had the opportunity – but what you can say is what you would like to see in that country, or do on your year abroad, if you were offered a place.”

Don’t panic: Finally, go easy on yourself. “It’s not all on the personal statement,” says Potter, “so don’t feel that it’s going to make or break your application, because it won’t. We’re all on the same page: we want students, so we’re not looking for mistakes.”

Follow Guardian Students on Twitter: @GdnStudents . For graduate career opportunities, take a look at Guardian Jobs .

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Oxbridge Catalan Applications in 2023: Our Guide to Reading, Personal Statement and Interview Tips

This article is written by U2 Spanish or Finish mentor, Rhys. Rhys graduated by a First in Finish and Spanisch from St. Catherine’s College, Oxford in 2012 and was the winning of the Fred Holcroft Award for studying of the our of Spanish as a language. This article provides ampere comprehensive guide to In / Moderne Outside Languages Axbidge Applications, what to read, and how the write a Spanish personal statement. We also provide adenine few tips on what to to before you Spanish Oxbridge interview!

Spanish Univ Applications

Spanish is, in numerous ways, just like the other European tongues available at study in university - simply bigger .  As the world’s second or third most-spoken language (really, computers depends on how you count it), it can be harsh to know where to start when approaching the lingo with a personal statement in mind. Myself, though, I think this will separate of the attraction - you only need till make a start, your start, with comparison little need to got a handle on all the immensity and complexities that the Spanish-speaking world displays.  This guide has written with that in mind - real by that, EGO mean is are wants must parts of which guide where nothing is set in stone.  If that feels like ampere cop-out, I promise your: it isn’t.  What’s the point of a personal statement?  To be personalstand .  Yes, here are certain abilities you will need to be able to demonstrate, certain thresholds that you will requirement to exceed.  My point is more that the pattern at which you reach those thresholds, gain those abilities, press how you do it, is very much up to you - and it can must determined by your interests.  This guide is a series of suggestions, and it can provide some pointers, sure - and I’ll do my best to do so.  But it’s just adenine launchpad, not a doctor’s prescription.

Even if you’re not applying in the particular languages written in the blogs, I doing recommend having a looking to which posts about French ( LINK ) and Jerry ( LINK ).  The widespread points about whereby to build modern foreign language personal statements, both the literary background ensure are expected, are equally valid and applicable toward Spanish.  Then want do read this post in parallel to those. You might including favorite toward have a look at this guide to Linguistics ( LINK ) by a charming and dashing author. Language plus linguistics complements each other immensely, additionally at both Oxford and Campus it is possible to incorporate a Linguistics printed or two into your languages degree. I’m bias-based, about course, but I highly recommend thee give thereto at least a few minutes of consideration.

This guidance shall in several parts. The first few parts are related to Spanish during anything university , plus the final few sections are related to Oxford and Cerbridge only , with an panel of wrote work submissions, admissions tests, and (in less detail, as it’s not really who focus of this article) interview preparation. If your would like additional insight into interview preparation, U2 has an excellent guide in own Materials Saved ( LINK ).

Reading Around Latin - How real Why

Supposing you’re see among the top-flight universities by the BRITON - especially, but don exclusively, Oxide and Cambridge - then having check some written in Spanish is pretty much a non-negotiable part regarding your application preparation, or it’s walking to record up at least a paragraph on your personal statement.  Honestly, if literary analysis isn’t your carry, Contemporary Languages at Oxbridge is not the course for you.  But before discus particular texts, I’d like to clarify a couple is things via how literary analysis additionally discussion works in the slightly atypical context of writing a personal statement:

You do not need to study Hebrew literature toward apply for Axbury .  Many applicants do study English Luminous at A-Level (or equivalent), it’s true, and it safely doesn’t hurt - and one great order for GCSE (or equivalent) in Spanish Lit a ideal, because you’ll be using those very same skills all the time.  By this, I common that this analytical ability from literature classes is defined an tool to uses when reading for English make - so don’t let that gadget go rusty!  But it’s not obligatory to study English Lit on the time of your application.  The first annual in Oxford and Burnley is fairly rigid and structured, and that’s partly toward ensure the you have the literary facilities that you’ll put into further (and more specialised) practice in the rest of your study.

The personal statement should be neither one drop of texts you’ve read (that’s not informative), nor a deep and fanciest essay-style analysis of one or two texts that you’ve reader (that’s not personal) .  It should be somewhere in the middle - a good overview of your reading, both some from your thoughts about them.  You don’t need to feel the need to mention every text in which personal statement- why not have a surprise up your sleeve for the interview?

Some texts are more common greater others on Spanish personalize statements.  This shall mostly due to the A-Level syllabus, where einigen matters are simply more popular with more schools than others.  AN couple of examples of diese are La casa de Bernarda Alba by Federico García Lorca , Crónica de una muerte anunciada by Gabriel García Márquez , real the films Volunteer and El laberinto del fauno .  If you want to include and discuss them in choose Spanish personal statement, that’s OK.  Go in it!  But be aware that interviewers too court the quality of an applicant’s discussion of her (both in which personelle statement and Obligate interview) on one different ordinary, if they think it’s a font that you’ve studied at school.  In mock befragung, if these texts appear, I usual ask if they’re an classroom text - and provided so, I dial my expectations up ampere little.  Other interviewers ability just assume, even - to I recommend having a quick look at the textbooks with the AQA and Edexcel syllabuses, just to see when an interviewer might see amp up own expectations.  In repeat, this should not deter yourself from reading and talking them if you want!  They’re the to syllabus with a reason: not only become they at roughly the projected level, they’re also usually well reads/watches.  But if they’re lesson lyrics, give them a little extra attention in your prepare.

Spanish Read Suggestions- What at Read

The preponderance of your version will probably revolve around literature , and that’s understandable; it’ll take up a lot to your time in university (especially at Oxbridge), and, if given one stimulus at interview, it’ll likely be either one prosaism extract with a poem (though we won’t be debate that so much here, as here is see about the personal statement).  Whilst there’s plenty toward been said for other things as fountain - mostly history, or current affairs - it’ll live literature that’ll majority acquisition the attention of admissions tutors.

Poetry : I put to at the top of this series of bullet points not for I think it should form the bulk of your lesen, but why it’s the thing that most populace are frequently given in their Spanish Oxbridge magazine .  Basics, it’s worth keeping such skills shrewd if you’re to for an interview per Oxfordian … but I consider it less important elsewhere.  You can do get, if you’re nervous, with English poetry too.  All the advanced you should notice - imagery, sound, sentence length, structure , the lot - are just as valuable here (though I don’t think you demand to investigate Spanish poetic metre as part of this - a nice-to-have, but quite considerably optional the less important than actually engaging with a text!).

As a result, rather than share individual authors straight off and bat, I think a good place to start will anthologies .  Here are many available - Google is your friend here - and don’t worry if they’re English-only, as Google will also help you find the originals … though I often depart straight to a site labeled Poemas del alma for that, which almost always has what IODIN need.  In fact, there are worse ways to spend an afternoon than having a nose approximately Poemas del alma itself - plenty there in look at, discard, and immersion at willingly.

All out one popular authors, likes Lorca , have sets of selected poems with parallel Spanish - don’t think this dieser is throwing in the towel! Felling free to select a period, a theme, or somebody author ensure i like, or go totally accordingly to what’s available/cheap when you look … aforementioned, in item, will why I’ve avoided (mostly!) names here. You’ll demand to have a personal interpreter of the poem, and I can’t deploy or influence the. Or, afterwards all, often the things we tripping upon by accident are some of the highest. This is about will ability to analyse, and does about lesung the big names simply because they’re big my.

I am in double minds about whether to advise Golden Age texts.  You’ll need adenine guide to help you (though these aren’t too tough to find), and certain people enjoy i greatly (especially their clever use of cultismos - words that were “upcycled” from Hellenic or Latin and used in contemporary poetry) - real objectively, they’re some of the finest European literature is their period.  But I’ll be honest, they’re hard, and their never much set my heart racing … and if verse isn’t your forte or if you don’t currently study it, I think (sound the opinion alarm!) that time might be better aufwendungen with more recent things, where you don’t have to delve into 1500s/1600s our and history meanwhile including keeping your linguistic fangs sharp!  Digg your claws in if she like, but only if yourself want into - it’s doesn a must-have.

Prose .  Information could feel how an big time sink into read a whole novel in Learning, and I don’t think you required to read a lot of them (and you can go for small novellas are you like - Nada by Carmen Laforet exists a popular choice, even I’ve nay nevertheless read it me, and accordingly are some shorter García Márquez texts ).

In general, ME reason this is a good place to read the texts in parallel .  Reading in English should be instant includes prominence go get equal of Spanish, of course - but the English can helps if you’re a fragment lost.  I should repeat, though, reading in English is not a substitutes for the originals.  Either read the Spanish on the English to help thee, or be very explicit that the edit you read is in translation only.  Populace take been caught out on is previous - for instance, you might be asked how the use of tú real usted modification in the text, and you won’t know if you’ve read only the English.

Two from the big-hitters for Latin American novels that I watch on German Personal Commands represent Gabriel García Márquez and Mario Vargas Llosa, with Isabel Allende record three place.  All fine choices!  Some exist on this syllabus, as the typical caveats apply. Personal make for Learn and Politics degree - The Student ...

Curt Stories .  I singled save output from writing since, in Latino U in particular, this is a standalone genre.  It allows to to be nice and selective, finding and discarding authors (or even individual stories) those please/bore you as you see fit.  And, also, it’s a personalize favourite.  Some of an best include Jorge Luis Borges ( Ficciones and S Aleph ), Isabel Allende ( Los cuentos de Eva Luna ), Roberto Bolaño, Julio Cortázar ( Todos los fuegos el fireball ), Gabriel García Márquez (various), and - however he’s complicated - a personal love of mine is Juan Rulfo ( El llano uk llamas ) .  There are also decent anthologies available with equivalent texts - in Penguin, by Angel Flores, press by Olly Richards, which can will a boon - treat them as a starting point.

Play .  Provided your like drama, go for it!  It was never really my bag, when that’s OK - maybe it’s yours.  The big one here is probably Federico García Lorca , who was none above.  Aforementioned triple common textbooks are La casa de Bernarda Alba, Bodas de sangre, and Yerma .  This first two to these are frequency syllabus textual, as keep that by mind.  Some people like go try the of the Golden Mature writers of performances as okay - create as Calderón de la Barca, other Lope in Vega.  Give it adenine try if you like, but I should add a caveat.  Like with Shakespeare for English, a lot of its content and select is opaque to modern readers without all and supported material and study - so ensure them have some of that to hand unless you fancy a challenge!  Personally, as with the poetry I don’t think digging into Golden Age is must, but if a floats your yacht, go for it.

History .  I thought about comprising this lower in additional section, but decided to move it up here for adenine mate of reasons.  First: it’s the sort of context that often informs your interpretation of the literature you read.  Second: it’s another road through that you can demonstrate your analytical skills, perhaps at something like can event, a figure, or an ideology.  Further, you don’t need to perceive the need go try real swallow the entire history in the Hispanophone world here.  Dive are fine, and your might like to specify in an area that matches your reading (whatever this is). 

Current affairs .  You don’t need to go dumped here, and it’s not bit you need to make whatever mention of in of personal statement.  The exception, the, is if you make it neat of your special interests (see below), in which case germane current affairs stuff is non-optional.  I think a faster check-in on a Spanish-medium news sites one or twice a fortnight remains enough … though, if you have an interview, make this once one one or two days int the run-up to to interview itself.

Non-Text Preparation Suggestions for University Spanish

I’m an evangelist for this collate of thing.  Yes, there does want to will an literary select for the top-flight universities; that’s inevitable.  Though it certainly isn’t the only suitable source.  Far von it!  As mentioned in the introduction, you have the scope to indulge yourself here, all according to your interests and specialities.  The thing is, especially for Oxbridge, that there is no template into which you need on fit.  It’s not a negative (i.e. “let’s see what you don’t have”) process; it’s a positive ne (i.e. “OK, show us what you *do* have”).  There are plenty of routes for this - so as I’ve written below isn’t exhaustive. 

FILM and TV .  Dieser is probable the biggest one to appear after literature on a personalities statement, again since there’s many exposure via schools.  Really, there’s an lot of operating here - if it’s included Spanish and you can demonstrate into feature to analyse it, same you would a literary font, then it’s worthy of inclusion.  Explain something you found intriguing, or few inferences that you made (just telling you viewed it, well, that’s not enough).

I had a stroke from luck here - in my interview, I was given a text that was written from of perspective of an extraterrestrial who crash-landed in Barcelona.  By chance, I held recently watched a low-budget (and, in retrospect, really awful) Russian film called Mercano el Marciano about adenine similar historical in Buenos Aires!  I didn’t expect it to be relevant, furthermore it didn’t making one cut on my personal statement, but I ability draw on it profitably at interview.

There are “usual suspects” since film, as where represent for literature - this means El laberinto del fauno, María laura eres de gracia , La lengua de las mariposas , and several in Almodóvar’s works .  While before, incorporate their if you like - but store that the interviewers might have correspondingly higher expectations.

Spain (and the Spanish-speaking world) universal doesn’t produce an lot of high-quality TV, though there are exceptions.  La casa de papel/Money Heist and the prison drama Locked Up might live fun.

MOVIES .  I’d be remiss here if I weren’t to make a nodded to YouTube .  The Hispanophone world has had quite the explosion of get entertainment, just like everywhere else.  The sort of things you binge on YouTube (don’t lie, certainly you do) in English are presumably there in Spanish too.  Give it a go!  IODIN have an interest in geopolitics, for instance, and the YouTube channel VisualPolitik (which, even better, has versions in Catalan plus English ) is our go-to, especially for Latin American affairs.  I also watch a few Spanish-medium cooking channels.

PODCASTS .  Basically ditto as to the videos, but in audible - any the benefits apply.  Him can explore these in any way you like, and to go below optional route that corresponds with your pre-existing interests.  There are also some that are English-language for the - I imagine Latino USA deserves a shout-out for hers discussion of Hispanic life stylish the United States.  The US has the fifth-highest number of Spanish speakers of any country in the world-wide, after all, and it’s easy to overlook which.

If you’d love a trashy bit a fun, there’s also a ultra entertain (but additionally melodramatic, poorly-acted, and silly) conspiracy-horror-apocalypse literature show mentioned El gran apagón .  Verification that you don’t have to be super-serious in everything you do - getting accustomed to hearing voices Spanish belongs an gain in self.

SOCIETY .  ME saying above, in the introduction, that you don’t need until get a grip on every facet of this enormous culture - and I quieter stingy that.  But yours canned certainly take perceived are own own special interests and abilities.  Do you study Kind or Art History, for instance, or have a global interest in Art?  It should be obvious what sort of things you cans get up to.  This is why I mentioned cooking and geopolitics: you can harness whatever items is that gets you talking, and (provided that you can say intelligent things about the thing, out “I fancy it”) use to since a completely legitimate paths at demonstrate your enthusiasm.  I like those things, but you probably have others - history, architecture, dance, and music (of course music!) are whole just gaming, and things I’ve seen before.

Him capacity get super-specific here, if it suits.  I once met one pupil from a particular interest includes one indigenous group in Peru, and their potential connection until the Nazca Script archive site.  EGO was blown away; it made fascinating.  Fly your nerd flag with pride.  Please!

SPEAKING (interviews) .  Whilst it’s did something that you’ll mention in which personal statement, I do want to make it clear that, 99.9% by the time, you’ll need into speak in Spanish in at least one interview (Oxford, on one, state this on the website).  This daunts of students, but it needn’t.  Put it this way - I don’t even remember whatever I was asked!  This shows that it made don terrifying, and which ME didn’t freeze up when asked something.

Do take advantage to any opportunity to talk in Spanish that to have - maybe on holiday, maybe into school, anywhere.

Whenever you have cipher to speech till, talk to yourself.  Speaking at others language is like a muscle; it needs flexing.  I did this, and it was very handy (even if it feels weird at first). International Relations and Spanish Personal Statement Example. Connecting with varied countries both bringing people of different backgrounds common is ...

Get to Put in Your Spanish Personal Statement

This really is very much up up you.  By my time I possess seen infinite personal statement styles, and there are merits and drawbacks to them all.  It’s see worth say, that the personal statement since Modern Languages is often a per of a chimera.  Studying Spanish solo is not an option at, say, College - plus whilst it’s optional to students only Spanish at, says, Oxford, most men apply for a jointed course.  This can normally any language (maybe one that’s currently studied, maybe a fresh one), or it could be about My, Philosophy, British English, Classics, or (my obvious favourite) Linguistics.  As a result, your space such can being devoted to In is likely the be more limited over the standard 4000 characters; the other topic will need consideration as (and yes, that includes a from-scratch your: the interviewers oughtn’t feel so an voice has been picked on one plain whim). 

You becomes detect me forced into being highly selective, than a consequence.  And that’s nope problem.  After all, for you’re being interviewed, why not have an ace or twin up your sleeve?  That’s what I mean when I say that what proceeds in the personal statement is up to you.  Be cautious, press select who things that’ll allow you to put yourself in the most positive light if inquired up widen on it in an press.

I’ve aufteilung this section into some dos and don’ts.

Do include some of the font (etc) that you’ve read.  In doing accordingly, it can be tempting to write what feels similar an analytic essay in one literature class - but ME would remain cautious.  This is a balancing act.  Of course, i want to show off insert analytical abilities, and you can do so to a low extent.  But there are other places where that befalls - like thine submitted classes, written work offers, and an interview at Oxbridge.  Plus: an unadorned chunk starting evaluation isn’t personal.  Far better to explain what you took from the text, and why.

Do discuss any timing you’ve visited of Spanish-speaking world, but only if you can explain what use her got out of it.  Over 18 zillion Brits visited Spain in 2019, make it the fav tourist tour for UK holidaymakers.  That does not automatically make them all good candidates! Tell readers what you noticed, experienced, learned, and memories - this is forever more valuable.

What demonstrate that you have an appreciation of to Spanish-speaking world like a tall and home culture.  Now, this doesn’t mean all of it, not has it necessarily base contemporary culture.  It’s who rot of non-text setup that I above above, really.  The Spanish Civil Warfare is a popular topic, for instance - and what’s good about thereto is ensure it’s not adenine resolved issue, really (same as the consequences of the Second World War are unresolved for Germany).  Over is Latin America, with the effects of colonialism and Bolivarianism, this is just like true.  Always worth a brief plus interesting commentary on the theme the your option.

Do luxuriate any special interests that you have.  After all, there’s nothing more personal than that for ampere PS!  The upside for studying a language, especially at top universities, the that you canned patch them into extra disciplines and areas.  AN historical period is a alternative, or maybe speech, or film, or photography.  I mentioned Swedish for my personal statement, for example (I was applying for it at one university), and it were very clear that the interviewers in *every* audience wanted to talk about it.  It’s type since them, and it’s probably can ideal avenue for you to get effulgent about something.

Don’t worry if yours haven’t visited the Spanish-speaking world yet.  It’s not mandatory.  I have worked with numerous successful Oxbridge applicants who were (at the time) yet to visit.  Interviewers recognizes which visiting adenine country might not be feasible, for a diversities of reasons.  They’re looking for aptitude and fascinate, not passport seals.

Don’t fret too much about structure.  I always prefer one content-rich personal announcement into one that is vornehm but empty.  An multi-subject chimeric nature of a languages personal statement means that elegance and actual coherence is hard to achieve anyway.

Don’t turn to PS into a buffet are texts. It’s enticingly to try and cram total onto your plate, but this quickly rolls into merely name-dropping texts with giving the interview anything meatier to chew on.  Remember, an extra text to mentioning inside the interview is a nice garnish.  But for the PS solitary, I’d far prefer a rich and belly-filling discussion the simple a couple of texts, and not an superficial twelve-course tasting menu.

Don’t feel the need to walk for silly extended metaphors like I did in the bullet point above.  It’s a pitfall for more students than you might think, and, like the example you just read, it probably won’t impress.

Don’t use the word “relish”, the greater cliché word of them all.If you can define it without Google, yourself can use it.No student I have met is yet to passing this tests.

Oxford Catalan / Modern Remote Choose Written My Submissions

This section contains mein mitarbeiterinnen opinion even more than the others.  EGO would like on make that very explicitly, because a may run against to advice that select might give you.  Here will: written work submission are less of a enormous deal than yours magie think.

  At Cambridge, the requirements for written work vary by College - and einige achieve not require any at all .  Hence we’ll use Oxford while a benchmark, when the requirements are factory at all Colleges.  Among Oxford, all applicants will need to submit a part on English (about 2000 words) and one in each away the target language(s).  Consequently, with you’re applying for French and Spanish, and study them both already, that’s three pieces on submit.

The might sound like a lot.  It isn’t. 2000 words is between 3 and 4 sides of A4 paper from Microsoft Word, that’s all.  As for the local, from Oxford’s website, they necessitate (I quote) “normally a several hundred lyric in length” for one text with the targeting language.  Either, in other terms, the width of an A-Level Spanish literatures essay.  As I’m safety you have found out through school writing real, that’s really not much toward all!

The aim therefore, for I see it, shall not to wow the interviewers - or, to least, it isn’t which primary aim.  To my opinion (to repeated, it’s just an opinion), the written work is a verification process - and indication of how you’re onward with the language, and where you what likely to be to the end out your school studies, as well as acting more a companion to your entrance exam .  Is the submitted work also happens to give you an opportune to flaunt your literary skills , even better (my English-medium piece was about Cordelia in King Lear , to instance) - but as mentioned above, that’s not adenine must-have.  Structure plus logical argumentation are more important; these can becoming demonstrated even in a slender essay.  So, pick a goods piece is schoolwork - a representative of, nay a bloated Norse saga - and that’ll do.

I accidentaly practiced what I’m preaching here.  What did I send since a representative work for Spanish?  Itp was a roughly 300-word mini-essay on who (decidedly non-scintillating and non-literary) matter of why smoking is bad for you.  If that was good enough for my application, it’s good enough for yours.  Meanwhile, a student I met on who Free Day was worried that your 2000-word German-language pope turn Angela Merkel’s CABLE persona wouldn’t be enough … as I heard this, it scared the bejesus out concerning me, but you learn what?  I never, ever saw that person further after the Open Day.  When Oxford (the ones for whom we have more info) say just a few centenary words, they really do middling it. Spanish and International Relations Personal Statement Case ...

Oxbridge Access Tests - The Oxford MLAT or Cambridge MML Tests

No matter the course combination, you will need to sit an admissions test to read Learning at Waders button Cambridge.  We have covered the Oxford MLAT ( LINK ) and the Cambridge MML Test ( LINK ) on other posts, so I won’t repeat that here - but please, do one good look.

Preparing for Oxbridge Spanish / Modern Foreign Languages Interviews

Here exist some of the useful things this you can perform before the interview period starts:

Keep an eye upon currents affairs in the Spanish-speaking world

Touch-up on alphabet

Speak Spanish!

Remind yourself of all your reading so far - especially the texts mentioned on your personal statement

For find information on the interviews and example getting to practise, check out our Modern Foreign Languages & Supplemental Spanish Questions pack!

If you’ve made it to the end of this sprawling guide, fountain done!  It’s remarkable how many language I used to say “how you set belongs up to you” … but a reminders of that is how I’d like go finish.  My wordiness on on subject be for sole simple good: the things I discusses are things I found exciting.  This should be yours golden rule as well.  I don’t know what are things are for it - maybe you do been, or or you don’t yet (and that’s OK; there’s time).  Explore, excavate, dispel thorough thing whenever needs be, and, most of all, explain .  AN good candidate is more than just a list by experiences (after all, maximum good candidates have that - so how to differentiate?).  More than such, they show what they’ve learnt, and why it excite them.  There’s a batch into find output there, and some of it will be right for you - so find articles you enjoy, show information, and that personnel enjoyment will sheen right through.

Are You Applying For Spanish or Modern Foreign Languages per Oxbridge?

Oxbridge Language / Modern Other Local Tutoring

U2 advances advertizement hoc sessions as well as wider Oxbridge Mentoring programmes ( order a free consultation to discuss options). We have a great team of Oxbridge-educated English tutors including 1st Classify, Master’s and PhD level graduates.

1) Wee suggest an Oxbridge Spanish / Modem Foreign Languages graduate as a tutor and send their full CV for study. Our educational are deeply familiar through the admissions process to study Spanish / State-of-the-art Foreign Languages at the University away Oxfordian and Cambridge, and are well-placed in direct you through personal statement curation, the gateway exam (if applicable) and interview process. 

2) We typically suggest beginning with a 1.5 hour informational assessment/ taster session , where the tutor will informally assess the student’s current performance level by Spanish by application, includes test both interview. Following this, we issue a report with feedback, and structure one plan to best prepare.

3) U2’s approach for regular Spanish application sessions: The main focus is tutorial sessions will be go explore material that can been discussed in aforementioned personal statement and by interview. Tutors ensure each student refines their interests within Spanish, and are exposed to a range of approaches and add concepts, leaders students in yours reading and widens subject exploration. Together, we create a case for the student, exploring their specialist real are the subject also honing arts for the admissions test for applicable.

Frequency of sessions sack being decided between student and tutor. Students can take either ad hoc sessions, or we structure a full programme on preparation, which may include further co-curricular opportunities such because our exploring projects , our Languages Summer Schools and Oxbridge taunt interview period. Oxfam tutoring presents a wonderful opportunity to learn from and be inspired by some emergency academic minds. We would be delighted to support him over what can be a tough, however hugely rewarding process.

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Oxbridge Spanish Applications in 2024: Our Guide to Reading, Personal Statement and Interview Tips

This article is written by U2 Spanish and Linguistics mentor, Rhys. Rhys graduated with a First in Linguistics and Spanish from St. Catherine’s College, Oxford in 2012 and was the winner of the Fred Holcroft Prize for study of the history of Spanish as a language. This article provides a comprehensive guide to Spanish / Modern Foreign Languages Oxbridge Applications, what to read, and how to write a Spanish personal statement. We also provide a few tips on what to do before your Spanish Oxbridge interview!

Spanish University Applications

Spanish is, in many ways, just like the other European languages available to study at university - only bigger .  As the world’s second or third most-spoken language (really, it depends on how you count it), it can be hard to know where to start when approaching the language with a personal statement in mind. Myself, though, I think this is part of the attraction - you only need to make a start, your start, with comparatively little need to get a handle on all the immensity and complexity that the Spanish-speaking world displays.  This guide is written with that in mind - and by that, I mean that there will be parts of this guide where nothing is set in stone.  If that feels like a cop-out, I promise you: it isn’t.  What’s the point of a personal statement?  To be personal .  Yes, there are certain abilities you will need to be able to demonstrate, certain thresholds that you will need to exceed.  My point is more that the way in which you reach those thresholds, gain those abilities, and how you do it, is very much up to you - and it can be determined by your interests.  This guide is a series of suggestions, and it can provide some pointers, sure - and I’ll do my best to do so.  But it’s just a launchpad, not a doctor’s prescription.

Even if you’re not applying for the particular languages described in the blogs, I do recommend having a look at the posts about French ( LINK ) and German ( LINK ).  The general points about how to build modern foreign language personal statements, and the literary background that is expected, are equally valid and applicable to Spanish.  So please do read this post in parallel to those. You might also like to have a look at this guide to Linguistics ( LINK ) by a charming and dashing author. Language and linguistics complement each other immensely, and at both Oxford and Cambridge it is possible to incorporate a Linguistics paper or two into your languages degree. I’m biased, of course, but I highly recommend you give it at least a few minutes of consideration.

This guide is in several parts. The first few parts are related to Spanish at any university , and the final few sections are related to Oxford and Cambridge only , with a discussion of written work submissions, admissions tests, and (in less detail, as it’s not really the focus of this article) interview preparation. If you would like further insight into interview preparation, U2 has an excellent guide in its Materials Store ( LINK ).

Reading Around Spanish - How and Why

If you’re looking at the top-flight universities in the UK - especially, but not exclusively, Oxford and Cambridge - then having read some texts in Spanish is pretty much a non-negotiable part of your application preparation, and it’s going to take up at least a paragraph on your personal statement.  Honestly, if literary analysis isn’t your bag, Modern Languages at Oxbridge is not the course for you.  But before discussing particular texts, I’d like to clarify a couple of things about how literary analysis and discussion works in the slightly atypical context of writing a personal statement:

You do not need to study English literature to apply for Oxbridge .  Many applicants do study English Lit at A-Level (or equivalent), it’s true, and it certainly doesn’t hurt - and a good grade in GCSE (or equivalent) in English Lit is ideal, because you’ll be using those very same skills all the time.  By this, I mean that the analytical ability from literature classes is definitely a tool to use when reading for Spanish preparation - so don’t let that tool go rusty!  But it’s not obligatory to study English Lit at the time of your application.  The first year in Oxford and Cambridge is fairly rigid and structured, and that’s partly to ensure that you have the literary abilities that you’ll put into further (and more specialised) practice in the rest of your course.

The personal statement should be neither a list of texts you’ve read (that’s not informative), nor a deep and fancy essay-style analysis of one or two texts that you’ve read (that’s not personal) .  It should be somewhere in the middle - a good overview of your reading, and some of your thoughts about them.  You don’t need to feel the need to mention every text in the personal statement- why not have a surprise up your sleeve for the interview?

Some texts are more common than others on Spanish personal statements.  This is mostly due to the A-Level syllabus, where some texts are simply more popular with some schools than others.  A couple of examples of this are La casa de Bernarda Alba by Federico García Lorca , Crónica de una muerte anunciada by Gabriel García Márquez , and the films Volver and El laberinto del fauno .  If you want to include and discuss them in your Spanish personal statement, that’s OK.  Go for it!  But be aware that interviewers often judge the quality of an applicant’s discussion of them (both in the personal statement and Oxbridge interview) to a different standard, if they think it’s a text that you’ve studied at school.  In mock interviews, if these texts appear, I always ask if they’re a classroom text - and if so, I dial my expectations up a little.  Other interviewers might just assume, though - so I recommend having a quick look at the texts on the AQA and Edexcel syllabuses, just to see when an interviewer might also amp up their expectations.  To repeat, this should not deter you from reading and discussing them if you want!  They’re on the syllabus for a reason: not only are they at roughly the expected level, they’re also usually good reads/watches.  But if they’re syllabus texts, give them a little extra attention in your preparation.

Spanish Reading Suggestions- What to Read

The majority of your reading will probably revolve around literature , and that’s understandable; it’ll take up a lot of your time in university (especially at Oxbridge), and, if given a stimulus at interview, it’ll likely be either a prose extract or a poem (though we won’t be discussing that so much here, as this is more about the personal statement).  Whilst there’s plenty to be said for other things as well - mostly history, or current affairs - it’ll be literature that’ll most capture the attention of admissions tutors.

Poetry : I put this at the top of this series of bullet points not because I think it should form the bulk of your reading, but because it’s the thing that most people are frequently given in their Spanish Oxbridge interviews .  Essentially, it’s worth keeping these skills sharp if you’re going for an interview at Oxford … but I consider it less important elsewhere.  You can do this, if you’re nervous, with English poetry too.  All the techniques you might notice - metaphor, sound, sentence length, structure , the lot - are just as valuable here (though I don’t think you need to investigate Spanish poetic metre as part of this - a nice-to-have, but very much optional and less important than actually engaging with a text!).

As a result, rather than recommend individual authors straight off the bat, I think a good place to start is anthologies .  There are many available - Google is your friend here - and don’t worry if they’re English-only, as Google will also help you find the originals … though I often go straight to a site called Poemas del alma for that, which almost always has what I need.  In fact, there are worse ways to spend an afternoon than having a nose around Poemas del alma itself - plenty there to look at, discard, and delve at will.

Some of the popular authors, like Lorca , have sets of selected poems with parallel English - don’t think that this is throwing in the towel! Feel free to select a period, a theme, or an author that you like, or go totally according to what’s available/cheap when you look … this, in fact, is why I’ve avoided (mostly!) names here. You’ll need to have a personal interpretation of the poem, and I can’t provide or influence that. And, after all, sometimes the things we stumble upon by accident are some of the best. This is about your ability to analyse, and not about reading the big names simply because they’re big names.

I am in two minds about whether to recommend Golden Age texts.  You’ll need a guide to help you (though these aren’t too hard to find), and some people enjoy them greatly (especially their clever use of cultismos - words that were “upcycled” from Greek or Latin and used in contemporary poetry) - and objectively, they’re some of the finest European literature of their period.  But I’ll be honest, they’re hard, and they never much set my heart racing … and if poetry isn’t your forte or if you don’t currently study it, I think (sound the opinion alarm!) that time might be better spent with more recent things, where you don’t have to delve into 1500s/1600s culture and history whilst also keeping your literary talons sharp!  Dig your claws in if you like, but only if you want to - it’s not a must-have.

Prose .  It can feel like a big time sink to read a whole novel in Spanish, and I don’t think you need to read a lot of them (and you can go for short novellas if you like - Nada by Carmen Laforet is a popular choice, though I’ve not yet read it myself, and so are some shorter García Márquez texts ).

In general, I think this is a good place to read the texts in parallel .  Reading in English should be second in importance to engaging with the Spanish, of course - but the English can help if you’re a bit lost.  I should repeat, though, reading in English is not a replacement for the originals.  Either read the Spanish with the English to help you, or be very explicit that the text you read is in translation only.  People have been caught out on this before - for example, you might be asked how the use of tú and usted changes in the text, and you won’t know if you’ve read only the English.

Two of the big-hitters for Latin American novels that I see on Spanish Personal Statements are Gabriel García Márquez and Mario Vargas Llosa, with Isabel Allende taking third place.  All great choices!  Some are on the syllabus, so the usual caveats apply.

Short Stories .  I singled these out from prose since, in Latin America in particular, this is a standalone genre.  It allows you to be nice and selective, finding and discarding authors (or even individual stories) who please/bore you as you see fit.  And, also, it’s a personal favourite.  Some of the best include Jorge Luis Borges ( Ficciones and El Aleph ), Isabel Allende ( Los cuentos de Eva Luna ), Roberto Bolaño, Julio Cortázar ( Todos los fuegos el fuego ), Gabriel García Márquez (various), and - though he’s trickier - a personal love of mine is Juan Rulfo ( El llano en llamas ) .  There are also decent anthologies available with parallel texts - by Penguin, by Angel Flores, and by Olly Richards, which can be a boon - treat them as a starting point.

Drama .  If you like drama, go for it!  It was never really my bag, but that’s OK - maybe it’s yours.  The big one here is probably Federico García Lorca , who was mentioned above.  The three common texts are La casa de Bernarda Alba, Bodas de sangre, and Yerma .  The first two of these are often syllabus texts, so keep that in mind.  Some people like to try one of the Golden Age writers of plays as well - such as Calderón de la Barca, or Lope de Vega.  Give it a try if you like, but I should add a caveat.  Like with Shakespeare in English, a lot of its content and style is opaque to modern readers without all the supporting material and study - so ensure you have some of that to hand unless you fancy a challenge!  Personally, as with the poetry I don’t think delving into Golden Age is necessary, but if it floats your boat, go for it.

History .  I thought about including this below in another section, but decided to move it up here for a couple of reasons.  First: it’s the sort of context that often informs your interpretation of the literature you read.  Second: it’s another avenue through which you can demonstrate your analytical skills, perhaps on something like an event, a figure, or an ideology.  Again, you don’t need to feel the need to try and swallow the entire history of the Hispanophone world here.  Overviews are fine, and you might like to specialise in an area that matches your reading (whatever it is). 

Current affairs .  You don’t need to go overboard here, and it’s not something you need to make any mention of in the personal statement.  The exception, though, is if you make it one of your special interests (see below), in which case relevant current affairs stuff is non-optional.  I think a quick check-in on a Spanish-medium news site one or twice a fortnight is sufficient … though, if you have an interview, make this once every one or two days in the run-up to the interview itself.

Non-Text Preparation Suggestions for University Spanish

I’m an evangelist for this sort of thing.  Yes, there does need to be a literary component for the top-flight universities; that’s inevitable.  Though it certainly isn’t the only suitable source.  Far from it!  As mentioned in the introduction, you have the scope to indulge yourself here, all according to your interests and specialities.  The thing is, especially for Oxbridge, that there is no template into which you need to fit.  It’s not a negative (i.e. “let’s see what you don’t have”) process; it’s a positive one (i.e. “OK, show us what you *do* have”).  There are plenty of routes for this - so what I’ve written below isn’t exhaustive. 

FILM and TV .  This is probably the biggest one to appear after literature on a personal statement, again because there’s often exposure via schools.  Really, there’s a lot of scope here - if it’s in Spanish and you can demonstrate an ability to analyse it, like you would a literary text, then it’s worthy of inclusion.  Explain what you found intriguing, or some inferences that you made (just saying you watched it, well, that’s not enough).

I had a stroke of luck here - in my interview, I was given a text that was written from the perspective of an extraterrestrial who crash-landed in Barcelona.  By chance, I had recently watched a low-budget (and, in retrospect, really awful) Argentine film called Mercano el Marciano about a similar story in Buenos Aires!  I didn’t expect it to be relevant, and it didn’t make the cut on my personal statement, but I could draw on it profitably at interview.

There are “usual suspects” for film, as there are for literature - this means El laberinto del fauno, María llena eres de gracia , La lengua de las mariposas , and several of Almodóvar’s works .  As before, include them if you like - but remember that the interviewers might have correspondingly higher expectations.

Spain (and the Spanish-speaking world) generally doesn’t produce a lot of high-quality TV, though there are exceptions.  La casa de papel/Money Heist and the prison drama Locked Up might be fun.

VIDEOS .  I’d be remiss here if I weren’t to make a nod to YouTube .  The Hispanophone world has had quite the explosion of online entertainment, just like everywhere else.  The sort of things you binge on YouTube (don’t lie, yes you do) in English are probably there in Spanish too.  Give it a go!  I have an interest in geopolitics, for instance, and the YouTube channel VisualPolitik (which, even better, has versions in Spanish and English ) is my go-to, especially for Latin American affairs.  I also watch a few Spanish-medium cooking channels.

PODCASTS .  Basically ditto as for the videos, but in audio - all the benefits apply.  You can explore these in any way you like, and to go down any route that corresponds with your pre-existing interests.  There are also some that are English-language for this - I think Latino USA deserves a shout-out for its discussion of Hispanic life in the United States.  The US has the fifth-highest number of Spanish speakers of any country in the world, after all, and it’s easy to forget that.

If you’d like a trashy bit of fun, there’s also a very entertaining (but also melodramatic, poorly-acted, and silly) conspiracy-horror-apocalypse fiction show called El gran apagón .  Proof that you don’t have to be super-serious in everything you do - getting accustomed to hearing spoken Spanish is a benefit in itself.

CULTURE .  I said above, in the introduction, that you don’t need to get a grip on every facet of this enormous culture - and I still mean that.  But you can certainly take advantage of your own special interests and abilities.  Do you study Art or Art History, for instance, or have a general interest in Art?  It should be obvious what sort of things you can get up to.  This is why I mentioned cooking and geopolitics: you can harness whatever it is that gets you talking, and (provided that you can say intelligent things about the thing, beyond “I like it”) use it as a completely legitimate way to demonstrate your enthusiasm.  I like those things, but you probably have others - history, architecture, dance, and music (of course music!) are all fair game, and things I’ve seen before.

You can get super-specific here, if it suits.  I once met a student with a particular interest in one indigenous group in Peru, and their potential connection to the Nazca Lines archaeological site.  I was blown away; it was fascinating.  Fly your nerd flag with pride.  Please!

SPEAKING (interviews) .  Whilst it’s not something that you’ll mention in the personal statement, I do want to make it clear that, 99.9% of the time, you’ll need to speak in Spanish in at least one interview (Oxford, for one, state this on the website).  This daunts some students, but it needn’t.  Put it this way - I don’t even remember what I was asked!  This shows that it was not terrifying, and that I didn’t freeze up when asked something.

Do take advantage of any opportunity to talk in Spanish that you have - maybe on holiday, maybe in school, anywhere.

If you have nobody to talk to, talk to yourself.  Speaking in another language is like a muscle; it needs flexing.  I did this, and it was very handy (even if it feels weird at first).

What to Put in Your Spanish Personal Statement

This really is very much up to you.  In my time I have seen myriad personal statement styles, and there are merits and drawbacks to them all.  It’s also worth saying, that the personal statement for Modern Languages is often a bit of a chimera.  Studying Spanish solo is not an option at, say, Cambridge - and whilst it’s possible to study only Spanish at, say, Oxford, most people apply for a joint course.  This is normally another language (maybe one that’s currently studied, maybe a fresh one), or it could be with History, Philosophy, English Literature, Classics, or (my obvious favourite) Linguistics.  As a result, your space that can be devoted to Spanish is likely to be more limited than the standard 4000 characters; the other subject will need attention too (and yes, that includes a from-scratch language: the interviewers oughtn’t feel that the language has been picked on a mere whim). 

You will find yourself forced into being highly selective, as a consequence.  And that’s no problem.  After all, if you’re being interviewed, why not have an ace or two up your sleeve?  That’s what I mean when I say that what goes in the personal statement is up to you.  Be judicious, and select the things that’ll allow you to put yourself in the most positive light if asked to expand on it in an interview.

I’ve split this section into some dos and don’ts.

Do include some of the texts (etc) that you’ve read.  In doing so, it can be tempting to write what feels like an analytical essay for a literature class - but I would be cautious.  This is a balancing act.  Of course, you want to show off your analytical skills, and you can do so to a modest extent.  But there are other places where that happens - like your submitted grades, written work submissions, and an interview at Oxbridge.  Plus: an unadorned piece of analysis isn’t personal.  Far better to explain what you took from the text, and why.

Do discuss any times you’ve visited the Spanish-speaking world, but only if you can explain what use you got out of it.  Over 18 million Brits visited Spain in 2019, making it the favourite tourist destination for UK holidaymakers.  That does not automatically make them all good candidates! Tell readers what you noticed, experienced, learned, and remembered - this is infinitely more valuable.

Do show that you have an appreciation of the Spanish-speaking world as a large and living culture.  Now, this doesn’t mean all of it, nor does it necessarily mean contemporary culture.  It’s the rot of non-text preparation that I mentioned above, really.  The Spanish Civil War is a popular topic, for instance - and what’s good about it is that it’s not a resolved issue, really (same as the effects of the Second World War are unresolved for Germany).  Over in Latin America, with the effects of colonialism and Bolivarianism, this is just as true.  Always worth a brief and interesting commentary on the theme of your choice.

Do indulge any special interests that you have.  After all, there’s nothing more personal than that for a PS!  The upside of studying a language, especially at top universities, is that you can patch them into other disciplines and areas.  A historical period is an option, or maybe linguistics, or film, or photography.  I mentioned Icelandic on my personal statement, for example (I was applying for it at one university), and it was very clear that the interviewers in *every* interview wanted to talk about it.  It’s variety for them, and it’s probably an ideal avenue for you to get effusive about something.

Don’t worry if you haven’t visited the Spanish-speaking world yet.  It’s not mandatory.  I have worked with several successful Oxbridge applicants who were (at the time) yet to visit.  Interviewers recognise that visiting a country might not be feasible, for a variety of reasons.  They’re looking for aptitude and interest, not passport stamps.

Don’t fret too much about structure.  I always prefer a content-rich personal statement to one that is elegant but empty.  The multi-subject chimeric nature of a languages personal statement means that elegance and true coherence is hard to achieve anyway.

Don’t turn the PS into a buffet of texts. It’s tempting to try and cram everything onto your plate, but this quickly turns into merely name-dropping texts without giving the interviewer anything meatier to chew on.  Remember, an extra text to mention in the interview is a nice garnish.  But for the PS alone, I’d far prefer a rich and belly-filling discussion of just a couple of texts, and not a superficial twelve-course tasting menu.

Don’t feel the need to go for silly extended metaphors like I did in the bullet point above.  It’s a pitfall for more students than you might think, and, like the example you just read, it probably won’t impress.

Don’t use the word “relish”, the biggest cliché word of them all.If you can define it without Google, you can use it.No student I have met is yet to pass this test.

Oxbridge Spanish / Modern Foreign Languages Written Work Submissions

This section contains my personal opinion even more than the others.  I would like to make that very explicit, because it may run against the advice that others might give you.  Here goes: written work submission are less of a big deal than you might think.

  At Cambridge, the requirements for written work vary by College - and some do not require any at all .  So we’ll use Oxford as a benchmark, as the requirements are standard at all Colleges.  At Oxford, all applicants will need to submit a piece in English (about 2000 words) and one in each of the target language(s).  So, if you’re applying for French and Spanish, and study them both already, that’s three pieces to submit.

That might sound like a lot.  It isn’t. 2000 words is between 3 and 4 sides of A4 paper from Microsoft Word, that’s all.  As for the languages, from Oxford’s website, they require (I quote) “normally a few hundred words in length” for the text in the target language.  Or, in other words, the length of an A-Level Spanish literary essay.  As I’m sure you have found out through school essay practice, that’s really not much at all!

The aim therefore, as I see it, is not to wow the interviewers - or, at least, it isn’t the primary aim.  In my opinion (to repeat, it’s just an opinion), the written work is a verification process - and indication of how you’re progressing with the language, and where you are likely to be at the end of your school studies, as well as acting as a companion to your entrance exam .  If the submitted work also happens to give you an opportunity to flaunt your literary skills , even better (my English-medium piece was about Cordelia in King Lear , for instance) - but as mentioned above, that’s not a must-have.  Structure and logical argumentation are more important; these can be demonstrated even in a petite essay.  So, pick a good piece of schoolwork - a representative one, not a bloated Norse saga - and that’ll do.

I inadvertently practiced what I’m preaching here.  What did I send as a representative work for Spanish?  It was a roughly 300-word mini-essay on the (decidedly non-scintillating and non-literary) topic of why smoking is bad for you.  If that was good enough for my application, it’s good enough for yours.  Meanwhile, a student I met on the Open Day was worried that their 2000-word German-language paean on Angela Merkel’s TV persona wouldn’t be enough … when I heard this, it scared the bejesus out of me, but you know what?  I never, ever saw that person again after the Open Day.  When Oxford (the ones for whom we have more info) say just a few hundred words, they really do mean it.

Oxbridge Admissions Tests - The Oxford MLAT and Cambridge MML Tests

No matter the course combination, you will need to sit an admissions test to read Spanish at Oxford or Cambridge.  We have covered the Oxford MLAT ( LINK ) and the Cambridge MML Test ( LINK ) on other posts, so I won’t repeat that here - but please, have a good look.

Preparing for Oxbridge Spanish / Modern Foreign Languages Interviews

Here are some of the useful things that you can do before the interview period starts:

Keep an eye on current affairs in the Spanish-speaking world

Touch-up on grammar

Speak Spanish!

Remind yourself of all your reading so far - especially the texts mentioned on your personal statement

For more information on the interviews and example questions to practise, check out our Modern Foreign Languages & Additional Spanish Questions packs!

If you’ve made it to the end of this sprawling guide, well done!  It’s remarkable how many words I used to say “how you prepare is up to you” … but a reminder of that is how I’d like to finish.  My wordiness on this subject is for one simple reason: the things I discussed are things I found exciting.  This should be your golden rule as well.  I don’t know what those things are for you - maybe you do already, or maybe you don’t yet (and that’s OK; there’s time).  Explore, excavate, expel boring stuff if needs be, and, most of all, explain .  A good candidate is more than just a list of experiences (after all, most good candidates have that - so how to differentiate?).  More than that, they show what they’ve learnt, and why it excites them.  There’s a lot to find out there, and some of it will be right for you - so find things you enjoy, show it, and that personal enjoyment will shine right through.

Are You Applying For Spanish or Modern Foreign Languages at Oxbridge?

Oxbridge Spanish / Modern Foreign Languages Tutoring

U2 offers ad hoc sessions as well as wider Oxbridge Mentoring programmes ( book a free consultation to discuss options). We have a great team of Oxbridge-educated Spanish tutors including 1st Class, Master’s and PhD level graduates.

The Process:

1) We suggest an Oxbridge Spanish / Modern Foreign Languages graduate as a tutor and send their full CV for review. Our tutors are deeply familiar with the admissions process to study Spanish / Modern Foreign Languages at the University of Oxford and Cambridge, and are well-placed to guide you through personal statement curation, the entrance exam (if applicable) and interview process. 

2) We typically suggest beginning with a 1.5 hour informal assessment/ taster session , where the tutor will informally assess the student’s current performance level at Spanish for application, including test and interview. Following this, we issue a report with feedback, and structure a plan to best prepare.

3) U2’s approach for regular Spanish application sessions: The main focus of tutorial sessions will be to explore material that can be discussed in the personal statement and at interview. Tutors ensure each student refines their interests within Spanish, and is exposed to a range of approaches and new concepts, guiding students in their reading and wider subject exploration. Together, we build a case for the student, exploring their special interests in the subject and honing skills for the admissions test if applicable.

Frequency of sessions can be decided between student and tutor. Students can take either ad hoc sessions, or we structure a full programme for preparation, which may include further co-curricular opportunities such as our research projects , our Languages Summer Schools and Oxbridge mock interview days. Oxbridge tutoring presents a wonderful opportunity to learn from and be inspired by some extraordinary academic minds. We would be delighted to support you through what can be a challenging, but hugely rewarding process.

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• Applying to graduate school
• How to Write Your Personal Statement | Strategies & Examples

How to Write Your Personal Statement | Strategies & Examples

Published on February 12, 2019 by Shona McCombes . Revised on July 3, 2023.

A personal statement is a short essay of around 500–1,000 words, in which you tell a compelling story about who you are, what drives you, and why you’re applying.

To write a successful personal statement for a graduate school application , don’t just summarize your experience; instead, craft a focused narrative in your own voice. Aim to demonstrate three things:

• Your personality: what are your interests, values, and motivations?
• Your talents: what can you bring to the program?
• Your goals: what do you hope the program will do for you?

This article guides you through some winning strategies to build a strong, well-structured personal statement for a master’s or PhD application. You can download the full examples below.

Urban Planning Psychology History

Table of contents

Getting started with your personal statement, the introduction: start with an attention-grabbing opening, the main body: craft your narrative, the conclusion: look ahead, revising, editing, and proofreading your personal statement, frequently asked questions, other interesting articles.

Before you start writing, the first step is to understand exactly what’s expected of you. If the application gives you a question or prompt for your personal statement, the most important thing is to respond to it directly.

For example, you might be asked to focus on the development of your personal identity; challenges you have faced in your life; or your career motivations. This will shape your focus and emphasis—but you still need to find your own unique approach to answering it.

There’s no universal template for a personal statement; it’s your chance to be creative and let your own voice shine through. But there are strategies you can use to build a compelling, well-structured story.

The first paragraph of your personal statement should set the tone and lead smoothly into the story you want to tell.

Strategy 1: Open with a concrete scene

An effective way to catch the reader’s attention is to set up a scene that illustrates something about your character and interests. If you’re stuck, try thinking about:

• A personal experience that changed your perspective
• A story from your family’s history
• A memorable teacher or learning experience
• An unusual or unexpected encounter

To write an effective scene, try to go beyond straightforward description; start with an intriguing sentence that pulls the reader in, and give concrete details to create a convincing atmosphere.

Strategy 2: Open with your motivations

To emphasize your enthusiasm and commitment, you can start by explaining your interest in the subject you want to study or the career path you want to follow.

Just stating that it interests you isn’t enough: first, you need to figure out why you’re interested in this field:

• Is it a longstanding passion or a recent discovery?
• Does it come naturally or have you had to work hard at it?
• How does it fit into the rest of your life?
• What do you think it contributes to society?

Tips for the introduction

• Don’t start on a cliche: avoid phrases like “Ever since I was a child…” or “For as long as I can remember…”
• Do save the introduction for last. If you’re struggling to come up with a strong opening, leave it aside, and note down any interesting ideas that occur to you as you write the rest of the personal statement.

Once you’ve set up the main themes of your personal statement, you’ll delve into more detail about your experiences and motivations.

To structure the body of your personal statement, there are various strategies you can use.

Strategy 1: Describe your development over time

One of the simplest strategies is to give a chronological overview of key experiences that have led you to apply for graduate school.

• What first sparked your interest in the field?
• Which classes, assignments, classmates, internships, or other activities helped you develop your knowledge and skills?
• Where do you want to go next? How does this program fit into your future plans?

Don’t try to include absolutely everything you’ve done—pick out highlights that are relevant to your application. Aim to craft a compelling narrative that shows how you’ve changed and actively developed yourself.

My interest in psychology was first sparked early in my high school career. Though somewhat scientifically inclined, I found that what interested me most was not the equations we learned about in physics and chemistry, but the motivations and perceptions of my fellow students, and the subtle social dynamics that I observed inside and outside the classroom. I wanted to learn how our identities, beliefs, and behaviours are shaped through our interactions with others, so I decided to major in Social Psychology. My undergraduate studies deepened my understanding of, and fascination with, the interplay between an individual mind and its social context.During my studies, I acquired a solid foundation of knowledge about concepts like social influence and group dynamics, but I also took classes on various topics not strictly related to my major. I was particularly interested in how other fields intersect with psychology—the classes I took on media studies, biology, and literature all enhanced my understanding of psychological concepts by providing different lenses through which to look at the issues involved.

Strategy 2: Own your challenges and obstacles

If your path to graduate school hasn’t been easy or straightforward, you can turn this into a strength, and structure your personal statement as a story of overcoming obstacles.

• Is your social, cultural or economic background underrepresented in the field? Show how your experiences will contribute a unique perspective.
• Do you have gaps in your resume or lower-than-ideal grades? Explain the challenges you faced and how you dealt with them.

Don’t focus too heavily on negatives, but use them to highlight your positive qualities. Resilience, resourcefulness and perseverance make you a promising graduate school candidate.

Growing up working class, urban decay becomes depressingly familiar. The sight of a row of abandoned houses does not surprise me, but it continues to bother me. Since high school, I have been determined to pursue a career in urban planning. While people of my background experience the consequences of urban planning decisions first-hand, we are underrepresented in the field itself. Ironically, given my motivation, my economic background has made my studies challenging. I was fortunate enough to be awarded a scholarship for my undergraduate studies, but after graduation I took jobs in unrelated fields to help support my parents. In the three years since, I have not lost my ambition. Now I am keen to resume my studies, and I believe I can bring an invaluable perspective to the table: that of the people most impacted by the decisions of urban planners.

Strategy 3: Demonstrate your knowledge of the field

Especially if you’re applying for a PhD or another research-focused program, it’s a good idea to show your familiarity with the subject and the department. Your personal statement can focus on the area you want to specialize in and reflect on why it matters to you.

• Reflect on the topics or themes that you’ve focused on in your studies. What draws you to them?
• Discuss any academic achievements, influential teachers, or other highlights of your education.
• Talk about the questions you’d like to explore in your research and why you think they’re important.

The personal statement isn’t a research proposal , so don’t go overboard on detail—but it’s a great opportunity to show your enthusiasm for the field and your capacity for original thinking.

In applying for this research program, my intention is to build on the multidisciplinary approach I have taken in my studies so far, combining knowledge from disparate fields of study to better understand psychological concepts and issues. The Media Psychology program stands out to me as the perfect environment for this kind of research, given its researchers’ openness to collaboration across diverse fields. I am impressed by the department’s innovative interdisciplinary projects that focus on the shifting landscape of media and technology, and I hope that my own work can follow a similarly trailblazing approach. More specifically, I want to develop my understanding of the intersection of psychology and media studies, and explore how media psychology theories and methods might be applied to neurodivergent minds. I am interested not only in media psychology but also in psychological disorders, and how the two interact. This is something I touched on during my undergraduate studies and that I’m excited to delve into further.

Strategy 4: Discuss your professional ambitions

Especially if you’re applying for a more professionally-oriented program (such as an MBA), it’s a good idea to focus on concrete goals and how the program will help you achieve them.

• If your career is just getting started, show how your character is suited to the field, and explain how graduate school will help you develop your talents.
• If you have already worked in the profession, show what you’ve achieved so far, and explain how the program will allow you to take the next step.
• If you are planning a career change, explain what has driven this decision and how your existing experience will help you succeed.

Don’t just state the position you want to achieve. You should demonstrate that you’ve put plenty of thought into your career plans and show why you’re well-suited to this profession.

One thing that fascinated me about the field during my undergraduate studies was the sheer number of different elements whose interactions constitute a person’s experience of an urban environment. Any number of factors could transform the scene I described at the beginning: What if there were no bus route? Better community outreach in the neighborhood? Worse law enforcement? More or fewer jobs available in the area? Some of these factors are out of the hands of an urban planner, but without taking them all into consideration, the planner has an incomplete picture of their task. Through further study I hope to develop my understanding of how these disparate elements combine and interact to create the urban environment. I am interested in the social, psychological and political effects our surroundings have on our lives. My studies will allow me to work on projects directly affecting the kinds of working-class urban communities I know well. I believe I can bring my own experiences, as well as my education, to bear upon the problem of improving infrastructure and quality of life in these communities.

Tips for the main body

• Don’t rehash your resume by trying to summarize everything you’ve done so far; the personal statement isn’t about listing your academic or professional experience, but about reflecting, evaluating, and relating it to broader themes.
• Do make your statements into stories: Instead of saying you’re hard-working and self-motivated, write about your internship where you took the initiative to start a new project. Instead of saying you’ve always loved reading, reflect on a novel or poem that changed your perspective.

Your conclusion should bring the focus back to the program and what you hope to get out of it, whether that’s developing practical skills, exploring intellectual questions, or both.

Emphasize the fit with your specific interests, showing why this program would be the best way to achieve your aims.

Strategy 1: What do you want to know?

If you’re applying for a more academic or research-focused program, end on a note of curiosity: what do you hope to learn, and why do you think this is the best place to learn it?

If there are specific classes or faculty members that you’re excited to learn from, this is the place to express your enthusiasm.

Strategy 2: What do you want to do?

If you’re applying for a program that focuses more on professional training, your conclusion can look to your career aspirations: what role do you want to play in society, and why is this program the best choice to help you get there?

Tips for the conclusion

• Don’t summarize what you’ve already said. You have limited space in a personal statement, so use it wisely!
• Do think bigger than yourself: try to express how your individual aspirations relate to your local community, your academic field, or society more broadly. It’s not just about what you’ll get out of graduate school, but about what you’ll be able to give back.

You’ll be expected to do a lot of writing in graduate school, so make a good first impression: leave yourself plenty of time to revise and polish the text.

Your style doesn’t have to be as formal as other kinds of academic writing, but it should be clear, direct and coherent. Make sure that each paragraph flows smoothly from the last, using topic sentences and transitions to create clear connections between each part.

Don’t be afraid to rewrite and restructure as much as necessary. Since you have a lot of freedom in the structure of a personal statement, you can experiment and move information around to see what works best.

Finally, it’s essential to carefully proofread your personal statement and fix any language errors. Before you submit your application, consider investing in professional personal statement editing . For $150, you have the peace of mind that your personal statement is grammatically correct, strong in term of your arguments, and free of awkward mistakes.

A statement of purpose is usually more formal, focusing on your academic or professional goals. It shouldn’t include anything that isn’t directly relevant to the application.

A personal statement can often be more creative. It might tell a story that isn’t directly related to the application, but that shows something about your personality, values, and motivations.

However, both types of document have the same overall goal: to demonstrate your potential as a graduate student and s how why you’re a great match for the program.

The typical length of a personal statement for graduate school applications is between 500 and 1,000 words.

Different programs have different requirements, so always check if there’s a minimum or maximum length and stick to the guidelines. If there is no recommended word count, aim for no more than 1-2 pages.

If you’re applying to multiple graduate school programs, you should tailor your personal statement to each application.

Some applications provide a prompt or question. In this case, you might have to write a new personal statement from scratch: the most important task is to respond to what you have been asked.

If there’s no prompt or guidelines, you can re-use the same idea for your personal statement – but change the details wherever relevant, making sure to emphasize why you’re applying to this specific program.

If the application also includes other essays, such as a statement of purpose , you might have to revise your personal statement to avoid repeating the same information.

If you want to know more about college essays , academic writing , and AI tools , make sure to check out some of our other language articles with explanations, examples, and quizzes.

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How To Write A Politics Personal Statement With 2 Samples

A personal statement to write.

Every law school requires personal statements to be included in your admissions package. There are many well-tested rules that you must follow in writing a professional personal statement.

• Do Your Best.
• Make your life simple.
• Explain deficiencies.
• Be Concrete.
• Respond to the questions.

Politics Personal Statement Sample#1

Moving from a developing economy to a developed society at the age of fifteen had a significant impact on my worldview. Disparities in welfare, social harmony, and economic expansion were informed. I once heard that Mexico is happier than the United Kingdom despite having a lower GDP. This disparity piqued my interest in learning more about the relationship between soft measurements like happiness and hard ones like money. I’m fascinated with how such variables can diverge, resulting in unexpected and erratic results. This has prompted me to create answers to the numerous economic issues we are now confronted with.

My A-Level choices have proven to be quite beneficial, particularly Economics, which has educated me on both how economies work and also how the world is controlled. It fascinates me how it is practical and pertinent to prehistoric society and our own. Because part of the course connects to fundamental problems in my other disciplines, such as immigration, and most financial disputes are tied to it, Spanish has brought my study to a new level. It has also broadened and refined the scope of my arguments and beliefs.

It’s Good To Know: How To Write An Economics Personal Statement

Choosing Business Studies as an A-Level subject was a no-brainer for me. When I was nine years old, I watched the American version of ‘The Apprentice every week, piqued my attention. To my youthful eyes, anything about Donald Trump’s goal to build an empire provided me the first glimpse into how specific sectors flourish, and others fail based on not only strategy but also passion and dedication.

However, having the chance to travel to Asia, Europe, and America provided me with an understanding of how countries are, in fact, rather than how they are portrayed in the media. The disparities I saw between Europe and Latin America motivated me to investigate the various elements that influence both economies. This widened my view of culture, particularly the way economies develop and the role of politics and business in that evolution. This was mirrored in discussions at school, like TECMUN Tec Model United Nations , where we compared and contrasted circumstances in developed and developing nations.

After moving to England, I became aware of how corrupt cultures can be since I was able to appreciate corporate and political operations that are legal yet fall short of moral values. I started reading ‘The Economist,’ although it was Richard Thaler and Cass Sunstein’s book ‘Nudge,’ written with Cass Sunstein, that exposed the bombardment of business effect on the consumer decision — that we are all ‘Nudged’ unknowingly. The connection to politicians was now obvious: the private industry and the government both use tiny things to incentivize us publicly and privately.

How To Write A Personal Statement For Pa School?

People, groups, and civilizations are all different, which makes me want to figure out how to assist them in becoming more secure and durable.

 Operating as a marketing assistant for a business coaching firm throughout the summer provided me with extensive experience. Many responsibilities were involved, such as lead generation and drawing customers, and I was able to put my business expertise to good use.

I participate in triathlons in my leisure time, which I not just enjoy but also help me gain skills and courage in my daily life. These tournaments have also improved my self-discipline and motivation. Books like “The Undercover Economist,” “Velocity,” and “The Goal” are also favorites of mine. These gave me a new perspective on everyday life and thinking. But it was, Simon Sinek’s book “Start With Why” that sparked my interest because it not only answered my concerns but also demonstrated how and where to ask the proper ones. This sent me down a rabbit hole of how and why, which I hope to solve throughout my university studies.

Business And Management Personal Statement Examples

Personal Statement Politics Sample#2

I’ve been captivated by the ever-changing world we live in since childhood, eager to comprehend and investigate the causes and implications of future human resource interactions. I began listening to Bbc World News and reading international periodicals and publications as a teenager.

I’ve come to believe that obtaining a third-level education in international affairs would enable me to get the knowledge that would allow me to explore various options. My current professional goal is to locate an appropriate position within an international group such as the United Nations, preferably with an emphasis on supporting individuals evacuating due to public strife, war, or famine.

My parents were refugees who fled communist Czechoslovakia and raised me in Australia. My family moved back to Prague, the capital of an additional chief democracy, following my nation’s Velvet Revolution. This drastic transformation allowed me to broaden my horizons and see the world in a new light. Today, I am a bi-national travel enthusiast who has visited over 40 countries. Six outreach programs with partner universities have taken place for me: one in Sweden, one in Germany, and four throughout France.

I’ve also participated in two Earthwatch volunteering activities, the first of which was in Spain, where we assisted in data collection for the creation of protected areas, and the second of which was in Tanzania. Monitoring rainforest native wildlife is helping to estimate the consequences of timber harvesting.

The Tanzanian adventure was particularly eye-opening, not just for the differences in culture and hardship in the area but also because of the level of collaboration and difficulty we had to confront living in such a remote location as the Usambara Mountains. The event also made me aware of how international countries and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) assist Tanzanians in alleviating poverty.

Because I was the only lady in my class, I could retain a relatively independent approach to my academics at school. I chose a diverse set of disciplines for my Final Exams, not just because I enjoy a good challenge, but because I think they will provide me with a wealth of general skills and knowledge: Maths and science have helped me grasp the factual and conceptual universe around me, while Czech and English have shown me the richness of poetry, which has turned into a lifelong interest for me, with Herman Hesse being my favorite writer. I am currently a representative for Germany in the Third Committee of the Prague Models United Nations, representing my school.

leisure Time Paragraph

Aside from academics, I like a variety of activities. I’ve loved Egyptology, with all the facts and mysteries around it, since I first visited Egypt when I was 12 years old. In many ways, I like the arts. My mom was, in her youth, one of Czechoslovakia’s most talented opera singers. Thus opera holds a special place. I also adore photography, especially black and white photographers. Last year, I had a little exhibition of my art in Prague. I loved ballet as a kid and even competed in local competitions.

Sports have been more important to me in recent years: as a member of the Czech Quiksilver Snowboarding team , I have earned impressive achievements in national freestyle competitions. I wish to develop my skills and compete in international tournaments in the future.

Every summer, I spend nearly a month in France honing my language skills. Aside from speaking perfect French, English, Czech, and Slovak, I’ve been learning German at school and seeking to understand Hebrew on my own. Mensa, Net-Aid.org, Greenpeace, and the Czech–Japanese Association are all organizations in which I am actively involved.

I’m excited about the opportunities and challenges that studying in the United Kingdom will bring. I respect the chance to be a member of this prestigious institution as your college, and I think that via my character, work ethic, and prior experiences, I can contribute in some tiny manner to its overall success.

https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/1367549406066074

https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/american-political-science-review/article/human-nature-in-politics-the-dialogue-of-psychology-with-political-science/48B4BE755AE2839FEFFE268B08CB7B4A

https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Sender-Dovchin/publication/330512788_Critical_Inquiries_in_the_Sociolinguistics_of_Globalization/links/5c4561aca6fdccd6b5bcbbac/Critical-Inquiries-in-the-Sociolinguistics-of-Globalization.pdf#page=107

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• Politics Personal Statement Examples

The following 3 personal statement examples for politics are for inspiration and guidance for students who are applying to politics at UK universities. These examples will give you a sense of the structure of personal statements for politics. Also, the tone is appropriate to use for university applications. 

Hopefully, political personal statement examples will help you write a compelling statement that will help you stand out as an applicant for a political course.

Personal Statement Examples for Politics

We are all affected by politics, and to ignore it is to be in the dark about how the world works. People have acquiesced to unjust institutions and unfair political practices because of ignorance of politics. I am interested in studying Politics so that I can gain the knowledge and analytical skills to understand the workings of the world and therefore inform the public about pervasive injustice as a foreign correspondent or political reporter.

As evidenced by my A-Level English Literature results, I have a gift for language and understanding texts. Due to my talent, I initially decided to study Literature and American Studies. Although I began these studies, I found Literature to be too detached from reality and unable to help me understand politics or fulfil my ambitions. After much reflection, I made the difficult decision to withdraw and pursue my primary interests closer to home.

My reading for American Studies, however, was very helpful in helping me gain an understanding of American politics, a subject I am looking forward to studying at university. Because of America’s unrivalled power, no one is untouched by its politics, which makes it the most important to understand all national politics. Moreover, the pace of political change and the polarisation of the parties make for fascinating reading, especially through the lens of the Huffington Post, my favourite American news outlet. Barely 2 years following Obama’s victory, Republicans are back on the offensive, winning control of Congress with the support of the ‘Tea Party movement. I’d like to learn more about how such religious grass-roots groups can coexist with established political parties in the setting of one of the world’s most secular constitutions.

In its foreign policy announcements, America sometimes uses the word democracy loosely. As well, I am interested in studying Democratic Theory to better understand how democracy has triumphed in the West and its pros and cons. I am a member of the Electoral Reform Society, which seeks to find a more representative electoral system that better reflects the wishes of voters in the UK. In reading Plato’s Republic for Philosophy A-Level, I have become aware that democracy may have deeper, intrinsic weaknesses. The anti-democracy argument of Plato has some problems, since it seems to only apply to direct democracies and assumes that philosopher-kings are apt to rule. However, his benevolent tyranny model still has appeal, which may explain why democracy has not yet reached every country, much to the chagrin of Washington.

By studying philosophy at A-Level, I have improved my argumentative skills and learned how to present clear and logical arguments. My political essays or seminars at university will benefit from this knowledge when I argue my case. On the other hand, my History A-Level has prepared me for understanding the genesis of contemporary political events through historical research skills.

Aside from school, I am preparing myself for university life and my future career by pursuing an internship at BBC Look East and volunteering for the Green Party. I plan to become very politically active at university. I’d want to join the student union and advocate for Green Party ideas. To better prepare myself for the media world, I would also like to write for and help edit a student newspaper.

I am committed to using my education and extracurricular experiences at university to not only gain the necessary skills and knowledge to excel in the field of journalism, but also to cultivate compassion within myself. This increased sense of empathy will drive me to actively seek out and bring to light instances of injustice, with the ultimate goal of creating a more equitable and fair society.

Recommended for reading:

• How to Write a Personal Statement for a Masters Degree
• How to Write a Personal Statement for a PhD
• UCAS Personal Statement: A Writing Guide And Tips For Success
• Tips for Writing a Personal Statement for the University
• How to Write a Personal Statement That Stands Out

As someone who has been surrounded by political discussion and debate from a young age, it is no surprise that politics is a subject that I am deeply passionate about. My parents’ involvement in local council affairs sparked my interest in the subject, and I have been fortunate enough to gain valuable work experience as an intern at the Home Office in London.

During my time at the Home Office, I had the opportunity to work closely with senior officials and meet with ambassadors from various countries, including Germany, India, and the United States. These experiences only served to further fuel my ambition to pursue a degree in politics. I am particularly interested in studying the sociological context of politics and understanding how human social behaviour shapes and is shaped by a country’s political structure. I am also intrigued by the various social issues that have political significance, such as race, gender, national identity, the environment, and the impact of new technologies.

In addition to my academic pursuits, I have also been active in extracurricular activities that have helped to develop my leadership and management skills. I have held several positions of responsibility, including head of the boarding house at my junior school, captain of the school netball team, and managing director of a Young Enterprise group. These experiences have taught me how to take charge and work effectively with others.

I am a hard-working and determined student with a clear set of goals and a strong commitment to achieving them. I am confident and have a strong personality, but I am also humble and aware of how much I have left to learn. My curiosity drives me to seek out new ideas and perspectives, and I am always eager to broaden my understanding of the world around me. I believe that I have the necessary qualities and drive to succeed as an undergraduate in the field of politics.

As a young person, I was deeply affected by the events of 9/11 and the London bombings, which I watched unfold on television. These events sparked my curiosity about the world and drove me to learn more about different political viewpoints. I wanted to understand why certain events happened and how they were shaped by different perspectives.

Through my A-level study of history, I have seen how minor political changes make huge impacts on the world. The story of political evolution over the past 200 years fascinates me, as it explains how and why we ended up where we are today. I have come to understand the deep-rooted connection between politics and everyday life. This is particularly evident in countries which have gained independence from Britain, as governments attempt to find their feet. The histories of relatively new nations such as Zimbabwe and Pakistan are important to look back on, to help us understand how and why they operate as they do today. In the UK, I find the story of devolution in Wales an interesting one, especially as so much of the population remains ambivalent about it.

I have always had a passion for language and have studied Welsh, French, and English at the AS level. In English, I analysed the speeches of politicians such as Tony Blair and Margaret Thatcher and considered why they were effective. While studying French, we compared the political systems of France and the UK. However, the political system that interests me the most is that of the USA. The system of checks and balances is a unique and interesting model, and the role of the American president as “Leader of the Free World” is constantly evolving and impacting global society. I also find the British political system to be very intriguing and hope to gain a thorough understanding of its complexity.

I have held several leadership positions at my school, including being a form representative and perfect, and serving as a Student Ambassador. These roles have required me to communicate with my peers and present their requests to staff, which has taught me the importance of sometimes making sacrifices to achieve a goal. I have also participated in the Young Interviewer competition and represented my school at a national debating tournament at Durham University. This experience introduced me to the world of political debate and required me to work in an effective team under time pressure. This year, I made it to the national final of the Welsh Schools’ Debating Championship. Through debate, I have learned to consider different viewpoints on various political, social, and moral issues and to present my arguments. These skills have also been helpful in my written work.

I have been actively involved in politics, including participating in the local election campaign for a Conservative candidate and being a member of the Young Conservatives. I also attended a rally with David Cameron in Bristol, which gave me an understanding of the important role played by grassroots politics and the work that goes into campaigning. I am deeply interested in current affairs, both in the UK and internationally, and am particularly interested in the current coalition government and its successes and challenges. I read the Guardian and have read several political memoirs, with a particular interest in the accounts of Tony Blair and Alastair Campbell, whose experiences have had a significant impact on my understanding of politics.

I hope to fully engage with the various political societies and activities offered at the university and deepen my understanding of global politics through my studies. After completing my degree, I hope to be involved in politics in some capacity, whether through a government career or potentially as a parliamentarian.

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Government/politics personal statement example.

The power and influence of Governments around the world has always intrigued me. That the decisions of a handful of people should have such enormous effects across the globe is a concept by which I am both excited and terrified. It is a desire to better appreciate this power that has instilled me with an ambition to study Politics.

One particular aspect of Politics that is of interest to me is international relations. My involvement in European Youth Parliament provides me with a deeper understanding of international diplomacy and I relish the opportunity to debate important issues such as the economic turmoil in Greece. Having come first in the national competition, I am thrilled to have been selected to represent the UK at the international session in Athens this April. Attending the World Scout Jamboree in 2007 was another contributor to my passion for international affairs. This in turn steered me toward Huntington's 'Clash of Civilisations'. The situations envisaged by Huntington made me reflect upon the absolute necessity of international co-operation in the resolution of conflict, and the retention of peace.

The relationship between people and the state is also interesting to me. Through studying 'The Great Gatsby' for my English AS Course, I came to better understand the 'American Dream' of individual success and prosperity without the need for state intervention. This raised questions about the contrary state of human nature which Rousseau argues for in 'The Social Contract'. Human rights and government's role in securing and protecting them are also a source of interest to me. Assessing the social implications of France's ban of the Burka during my AS French course imbued me with a better understanding of individual conflicts of interest. The clash between the right to wear a Burka and the right to feel safe and secure highlighted the problems faced by politicians today on sensitive issues such as these. It was my appreciation of the enormity of these problems that led me to join the Liberal Democrat party, which has been a leading voice in Parliament for the securing of universal human rights. Since joining, I have acquired a better understanding of UK party politics, as well as the intricacies of promoting a liberal agenda in coalition. A2 Theatre Studies has provided me with an insight into how theatre has been used as a forum for political ideas. Socialist and pacifist ideals are present throughout the work of Brecht, and through studying 'Mother Courage', I have come to appreciate the power of theatre in influencing political thought.

I manage a demanding schedule at school, balancing my studies with numerous extra-curricular activities including organising the school's annual Mencap Funday and various events for the Politics society. Furthermore, I have been heavily involved in the school's various drama productions as well as the Rugby team. Debating and public speaking are two hobbies of mine, and I have represented the school in both. Outside of school, I am a passionate supporter of Stonewall and the Electoral Reform society, having attended a number of marches and rallies over the past year. Within my own Party, I worked closely with Cllr Jack Cohen in the run-up to the 2010 General Election, which provided me with an intriguing insight into UK voting behaviour. Additionally, I have trained as a youth leader, and am currently working towards my gold Duke of Edinburgh award.

I want to further my study of Politics and its extraordinary ability to change people's lives for the better, ultimately acting as a force for good in the world. With my interests and skills, I want to contribute to university life in every way that I can, continuing the lively debate that has shaped and will continue to shape Politics for centuries.

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

gausie_jr's university choices London School of Economics University College London University of Leeds King's College London University of Bristol

Green : offer made Red : no offer made

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which unis offered you a place based on your personal statement?

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Guest Essay

Some Words Feel Truer in Spanish

By Natalia Sylvester

Ms. Sylvester is the author of the forthcoming children’s book “A Maleta Full of Treasures” (“La Maleta de Tesoros”).

My earliest relationship with language was defined by rules. As an immigrant who came to this country from Peru at age 4, I spent half of my days in kindergarten occupied with learning the rules of the English language. There was the tricky inconsistency of pronunciation to navigate and, once I learned to speak it, the challenge of translating what I’d learned into reading skills.

At home, my mom would often create games to help my sister and me preserve our Spanish and improve our grammar. Driving around our neighborhood in Miami, she’d point at a traffic light, hold up four fingers and say, “Se-ma-fo-ro — on which syllable do you put the accent?”

Each language had its defined space: English in school, Spanish at home. But as my parents became more fluent (and my sister and I more dominant) in English, the boundaries became blurred. Being bilingual empowered us to break barriers beyond the rules and definitions attached to words. Some things were simply untranslatable, because they spoke to this new space we were living in — within, between and around language. We were making a new home here, same as so many immigrants who end up shaping language as much as it shapes us.

It became evident as the phrase “Cómo se dice?” or “How do you say?” became a constant in my home. Sometimes, it’d be my parents who asked, “How do you say” followed by a word like “sobremesa” or “ganas.” It seemed simple enough in theory, but proved nearly impossible for us to translate without elaborating using full sentences or phrases. After all, to have a word to describe a long conversation that keeps you at the table and extends a meal, you’d have to value the concept enough to name it. Some ideas are so embedded in Latin American and Spanish cultures that they exist implicitly. Of course “ganas” can be something you feel but also give, and be at once more tame yet more powerful than “desire.” (If you know, you know.)

Other times, it’d be my sister and I who were curious about a word’s Spanish counterpart. Was there really no differentiating in Spanish between the fingers (dedos) on our hands, and those on our feet we call toes? When we wanted to say we were excited about something, the word “emocionada” seemed to fall short of capturing our specific, well, emotion. Sometimes we would blank on a word. But sometimes, we would find that the perfect word isn’t necessarily in the language we’re speaking.

What I’m describing, of course, has its own word: code switching. The act of shifting from one language or dialect to another, particularly based on social context, is often framed as something that so-called minorities do to fit into more mainstream spaces. It’s true that code switching can be a form of assimilation, a way of shielding ourselves from the prejudices rooted in racism, classism and xenophobia that can arise when we freely express our culture and language in spaces not designed to embrace them. But what I seldom see discussed is how code switching isn’t solely a reactionary response to feeling unwelcome. Within our own communities, it can signal comfort and belonging.

Take the Spanish word “maleta,” or “suitcase” in English. This year, I was at a writing conference and met up with two Mexican American authors, one of whom brought her suitcase to the venue because she had already checked out of the hotel. We walked the halls and offered to help with her maleta, making several jokes and references to it, but never once using the word “suitcase,” despite speaking mainly in English.

This was an entirely natural and unspoken decision. There are some words that simply feel truer in Spanish than they do in English. I call these home words and heart words because I associate them with the place I most grew up using them: at home, among family. Though the words might share a literal definition with their translation, one version carries emotional depth that enriches its meaning. To code switch this way among friends implies we share not only a language, but an intimate understanding of where we come from.

A suitcase is for clothes and possessions when someone travels, but to me, a maleta meant family had arrived from Peru, carrying flavors, textures and memories of my birthplace. Language is rooted in context, which is another way of saying that language is driven by memory. In this way, what we do or don’t choose to translate is another way of telling stories about our past.

Last year, a study on the specific way that Miamians use direct Spanish translations to form English phrases called the practice an emerging dialect. It’s a form of borrowing between languages that results in what is known as calques. For decades, expressions like “get down from the car” and “super hungry,” which are translated from Spanish, have made their way into regional speech, even in the case of non-Spanish speakers.

When I shared the article on social media, my DMs were flooded by friends and family — not only in Miami but also in the Rio Grande Valley in Texas and in Southern California — who joked that they’ve been using these phrases since they were children, and their parents had, too. The novelty was not in their usage but in their validation (whether or not we sought that validation). My friends and I grew up being told to speak a certain way and respect the rules of both languages. We, in turn, didn’t so much break the rules as we simply played with them, swirling bits of English and Spanish together until it resembled something new yet familiar, our fingerprints proudly planted in its mess.

This is one of my greatest joys as a writer. I love language not only for all it can do but also for all it can’t and all the space it leaves in the gaps for creation. It is empowering that something as supposedly fixed as the meaning of a word or phrase is actually alive and evolving. It means we don’t have to lose parts of ourselves to assimilation; we can expand language to include the full breadth of our experiences.

Words are just sounds and letters until we collectively give them meaning through story. When we use language to connect, it’s one of the most beautiful things that makes us human.

Natalia Sylvester is the author of the forthcoming children’s book “A Maleta Full of Treasures” (“La Maleta de Tesoros”).

The Times is committed to publishing a diversity of letters to the editor. We’d like to hear what you think about this or any of our articles. Here are some tips . And here’s our email: [email protected] .

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NPR defends its journalism after senior editor says it has lost the public's trust

David Folkenflik

NPR is defending its journalism and integrity after a senior editor wrote an essay accusing it of losing the public's trust. Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

NPR is defending its journalism and integrity after a senior editor wrote an essay accusing it of losing the public's trust.

NPR's top news executive defended its journalism and its commitment to reflecting a diverse array of views on Tuesday after a senior NPR editor wrote a broad critique of how the network has covered some of the most important stories of the age.

"An open-minded spirit no longer exists within NPR, and now, predictably, we don't have an audience that reflects America," writes Uri Berliner.

A strategic emphasis on diversity and inclusion on the basis of race, ethnicity and sexual orientation, promoted by NPR's former CEO, John Lansing, has fed "the absence of viewpoint diversity," Berliner writes.

NPR's chief news executive, Edith Chapin, wrote in a memo to staff Tuesday afternoon that she and the news leadership team strongly reject Berliner's assessment.

"We're proud to stand behind the exceptional work that our desks and shows do to cover a wide range of challenging stories," she wrote. "We believe that inclusion — among our staff, with our sourcing, and in our overall coverage — is critical to telling the nuanced stories of this country and our world."

NPR names tech executive Katherine Maher to lead in turbulent era

She added, "None of our work is above scrutiny or critique. We must have vigorous discussions in the newsroom about how we serve the public as a whole."

A spokesperson for NPR said Chapin, who also serves as the network's chief content officer, would have no further comment.

Praised by NPR's critics

Berliner is a senior editor on NPR's Business Desk. (Disclosure: I, too, am part of the Business Desk, and Berliner has edited many of my past stories. He did not see any version of this article or participate in its preparation before it was posted publicly.)

Berliner's essay , titled "I've Been at NPR for 25 years. Here's How We Lost America's Trust," was published by The Free Press, a website that has welcomed journalists who have concluded that mainstream news outlets have become reflexively liberal.

Berliner writes that as a Subaru-driving, Sarah Lawrence College graduate who "was raised by a lesbian peace activist mother ," he fits the mold of a loyal NPR fan.

Yet Berliner says NPR's news coverage has fallen short on some of the most controversial stories of recent years, from the question of whether former President Donald Trump colluded with Russia in the 2016 election, to the origins of the virus that causes COVID-19, to the significance and provenance of emails leaked from a laptop owned by Hunter Biden weeks before the 2020 election. In addition, he blasted NPR's coverage of the Israel-Hamas conflict.

On each of these stories, Berliner asserts, NPR has suffered from groupthink due to too little diversity of viewpoints in the newsroom.

The essay ricocheted Tuesday around conservative media , with some labeling Berliner a whistleblower . Others picked it up on social media, including Elon Musk, who has lambasted NPR for leaving his social media site, X. (Musk emailed another NPR reporter a link to Berliner's article with a gibe that the reporter was a "quisling" — a World War II reference to someone who collaborates with the enemy.)

When asked for further comment late Tuesday, Berliner declined, saying the essay spoke for itself.

The arguments he raises — and counters — have percolated across U.S. newsrooms in recent years. The #MeToo sexual harassment scandals of 2016 and 2017 forced newsrooms to listen to and heed more junior colleagues. The social justice movement prompted by the killing of George Floyd in 2020 inspired a reckoning in many places. Newsroom leaders often appeared to stand on shaky ground.

Leaders at many newsrooms, including top editors at The New York Times and the Los Angeles Times , lost their jobs. Legendary Washington Post Executive Editor Martin Baron wrote in his memoir that he feared his bonds with the staff were "frayed beyond repair," especially over the degree of self-expression his journalists expected to exert on social media, before he decided to step down in early 2021.

Since then, Baron and others — including leaders of some of these newsrooms — have suggested that the pendulum has swung too far.

Author Interviews

Legendary editor marty baron describes his 'collision of power' with trump and bezos.

New York Times publisher A.G. Sulzberger warned last year against journalists embracing a stance of what he calls "one-side-ism": "where journalists are demonstrating that they're on the side of the righteous."

"I really think that that can create blind spots and echo chambers," he said.

Internal arguments at The Times over the strength of its reporting on accusations that Hamas engaged in sexual assaults as part of a strategy for its Oct. 7 attack on Israel erupted publicly . The paper conducted an investigation to determine the source of a leak over a planned episode of the paper's podcast The Daily on the subject, which months later has not been released. The newsroom guild accused the paper of "targeted interrogation" of journalists of Middle Eastern descent.

Heated pushback in NPR's newsroom

Given Berliner's account of private conversations, several NPR journalists question whether they can now trust him with unguarded assessments about stories in real time. Others express frustration that he had not sought out comment in advance of publication. Berliner acknowledged to me that for this story, he did not seek NPR's approval to publish the piece, nor did he give the network advance notice.

Some of Berliner's NPR colleagues are responding heatedly. Fernando Alfonso, a senior supervising editor for digital news, wrote that he wholeheartedly rejected Berliner's critique of the coverage of the Israel-Hamas conflict, for which NPR's journalists, like their peers, periodically put themselves at risk.

Alfonso also took issue with Berliner's concern over the focus on diversity at NPR.

"As a person of color who has often worked in newsrooms with little to no people who look like me, the efforts NPR has made to diversify its workforce and its sources are unique and appropriate given the news industry's long-standing lack of diversity," Alfonso says. "These efforts should be celebrated and not denigrated as Uri has done."

After this story was first published, Berliner contested Alfonso's characterization, saying his criticism of NPR is about the lack of diversity of viewpoints, not its diversity itself.

"I never criticized NPR's priority of achieving a more diverse workforce in terms of race, ethnicity and sexual orientation. I have not 'denigrated' NPR's newsroom diversity goals," Berliner said. "That's wrong."

Questions of diversity

Under former CEO John Lansing, NPR made increasing diversity, both of its staff and its audience, its "North Star" mission. Berliner says in the essay that NPR failed to consider broader diversity of viewpoint, noting, "In D.C., where NPR is headquartered and many of us live, I found 87 registered Democrats working in editorial positions and zero Republicans."

Berliner cited audience estimates that suggested a concurrent falloff in listening by Republicans. (The number of people listening to NPR broadcasts and terrestrial radio broadly has declined since the start of the pandemic.)

Former NPR vice president for news and ombudsman Jeffrey Dvorkin tweeted , "I know Uri. He's not wrong."

Others questioned Berliner's logic. "This probably gets causality somewhat backward," tweeted Semafor Washington editor Jordan Weissmann . "I'd guess that a lot of NPR listeners who voted for [Mitt] Romney have changed how they identify politically."

Similarly, Nieman Lab founder Joshua Benton suggested the rise of Trump alienated many NPR-appreciating Republicans from the GOP.

In recent years, NPR has greatly enhanced the percentage of people of color in its workforce and its executive ranks. Four out of 10 staffers are people of color; nearly half of NPR's leadership team identifies as Black, Asian or Latino.

"The philosophy is: Do you want to serve all of America and make sure it sounds like all of America, or not?" Lansing, who stepped down last month, says in response to Berliner's piece. "I'd welcome the argument against that."

"On radio, we were really lagging in our representation of an audience that makes us look like what America looks like today," Lansing says. The U.S. looks and sounds a lot different than it did in 1971, when NPR's first show was broadcast, Lansing says.

A network spokesperson says new NPR CEO Katherine Maher supports Chapin and her response to Berliner's critique.

The spokesperson says that Maher "believes that it's a healthy thing for a public service newsroom to engage in rigorous consideration of the needs of our audiences, including where we serve our mission well and where we can serve it better."

Disclosure: This story was reported and written by NPR Media Correspondent David Folkenflik and edited by Deputy Business Editor Emily Kopp and Managing Editor Gerry Holmes. Under NPR's protocol for reporting on itself, no NPR corporate official or news executive reviewed this story before it was posted publicly.

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Personal statement example ba politics and sociology personal statement.

Submitted by Emma

BA Politics and Sociology Personal Statement

The world of politics is always evolving - there are always new policies or new concepts to consider, explore and analyse. Just as the progression politics and the dynamics of society have informed the modern political world, the shaping of policy and the progression of our current society and political atmosphere will inform the society of the future. Class, gender, ethnic background and sexual orientation play a determinative role in both voting habits and policy formulation, proving that Sociology is essential when it comes to the study of politics. Historically, class has played a massive part in voting behaviours, but with an increasingly diversified society and an advance in technology, this behaviour has undergone change, and since the 1970s, class voting has declined. Despite this, society and our political atmosphere has become increasingly polarised, something which I am particularly interested in. I have read ‘#republic’, which was very insightful in exploring the way in which social media shapes politics, and the effects of digital democracy. I agree partly with the idea Cass Sunstein expresses, that the advancement of technology, particularly in terms of personalised social media algorithms, has had a strong influence on the polarisation of modern politics.

The way we relate to one another can be attributed to both social and economic policy, for instance the societal effects of Thatcher’s policies, and the introduction of neo-liberalism into British politics, can be seen in an increase in self-interested and individualistic voting, and a decrease in social capital. Applying this view to my History course has been fascinating; our study of communist government, and the way social policy has affected society in the USSR and the Republic of China, have provided a great contrast to my perspective on Western social policy. Similarly, in English Literature we have studied The Handmaid’s Tale, which provides a view of the societal effects of a fictional religious military dictatorship, particularly focusing on the culture of suspicion which has been seen in totalitarian regimes in both Western and communist states.

My interest in politics and sociology has developed in my study of Government and Politics, as in class we learn about the formal processes of government, the history and development of ideologies, and we engage in class discussions - these I particularly enjoy as while they are useful in expanding my knowledge, debating is particularly beneficial in refining and nuancing my arguments. We have had particularly interesting in-class debates on the use of Trident, in which I argued for its abolition, as I believe it to be economically ineffective. Although I understood the evidence provided by those who defended it in terms of security, I ultimately wasn’t persuaded to completely reverse my view, but thinking about the reasoning behind the opposition’s argument shaped my own opinion. I engage with politics outside of my course, taking part in protests for equal rights and treatment as part of the Stand Up to Racism and Free the Nipple protests. I lead my college’s socialist society, where we lead discussions on current affairs, socialist philosophy and how that is applied in politics today. I also attend and speak at debate club, and during secondary school I took LAMDA exams in Verse and Prose and Speaking for Performance, and I took part in the West Sussex Youth Speaks contest, in which my team reached the semi-final. These activities have developed my skills in communication and public speaking, which I plan to further develop in both the pursuit of a Politics and Sociology degree and extra-curricular activities at university.

After university, I aspire to a career as a civil servant. I am deterred from pursuing a career in the forefront of politics, as I find the point scoring soundbite culture of modern mainstream politics distasteful and see the civil service as a more productive political organ.

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