And the competition just got tougher….
An article in Sunday Times 1 August 2021 shines a useful light on the demand for university places in the UK.
Vocational degrees – law, teaching, medicine, dentistry, nursing, veterinary science and computing are more popular than ever. More and more young people are opting to study in an area where jobs are available after graduation. Unsurprisingly, applications for places at Oxford and Cambridge continue to far outstrip the numbers available. Read the complete article here
So what does this mean for you as a potential applicant ?
Reaching the required academic standardas measured in GCSEs and predicted A Level grades will certainly get you to the starting blocks. However, to set yourself apart from your fellow applicants you will need to burnish your personal statement to the point where it best represents you.
At Pain Free Personal Statements, we offer a FREE REVIEW CALL lasting 30 minutes to get you started and hopefully finished ( !) in this crucial qualifying heat. You will have the dedicated services of one of our consultants, who all have more than 15 years of experience. They can provide an assessment and assessment and advice on your specific situation.
Happier to go it alone at this point ? Here are our top 5 tips for this week:
- Write out everything that might be relevant, no pressure, no structure, just write !
- Use the 80:20 principle – 80% of your statement should focus on the academic, 20% on extra curricular. Nobody cares that you won a medal at the U8 swimming gala, sorry !
- Avoid using ‘I have been passionate about XXXXX since I was a child’ or any another variant of this as your opening sentence. Step away at all costs. In 99% of cases, this statement is untrue. Intelligent 5 year olds might show a frightening ability to know what parents are thinking but they are NOT passionate about psychology !
- Use your time now to increase your super-curricular knowledge. Online courses, TedTalks, podcasts will add to your knowledge. Better still, they demonstrate that you are genuinely interested and sufficiently energetic to do your own research. These attributes are what universities want and need in all prospective students.
- Recruit others as proof readers, advisors and mentors. Choose wisely, go for an expert, not a friend.
If you need some help, then please use our free review call service.
