UCAS Medicine Personal Statement Tips You Need To Know
As part of your UCAS application, you are required to write a personal statement which the admissions team will assess. This is a great way to tell them a little bit about yourself by mentioning your talents, achievements and motivations to study medicine. Remember, the admissions team do not know who you are so it is a great chance to prove to them why this is the degree for you.
You do not get many words so make sure you use them effectively and make every sentence provides value (A maximum of 4,000 characters which is roughly 500 words – just over 1 page).
You want to take the reader on a journey so it is important to structure your personal statement well and have it flow. Here are some tips written by our experts to help you when writing your personal statement:
Why medicine?
A great place to start is by noting a few ideas on why you want to study medicine. Was it an something you previously experienced or observed a friend/family member go through something impactful? Perhaps you were doing some extra reading which interested you or you managed to shadow a doctor. Whatever the reason is, it is important to make it unique to yourself so that you can stand out from the competition. This can act as a great opening paragraph which you can elaborate on further down in your personal statement. You want to highlight to the admissions team you understand what you are potentially getting yourself into and have basic knowledge about the field.
Work experience
This section is key to show how you have actively gone to explore the profession. Whether it be shadowing at your local GP surgery or at a hospital, make sure to mention this in your personal statement. Additionally, it can serve as a great talking point in the interview if you are ever asked about it. You should highlight only a few memorable events when it comes to discussing what you have learnt or observed during your work experience. This often separates out candidates because it shows interest and is a great way to explain what qualities you seen in a doctor.
Think to yourself, were there skills you found to be important when the doctor was carrying out his/her duties? It may have been during a conversion with another member of staff or with the patient or their family. Focus on what skills you observed rather than the story of what happened. Briefly mentioning what you observed can highlight understanding about medical terms however, this should not be the focus of your answer. Instead, it is more useful to show you have reflected on your experience and can comfortably discuss how this is key to the profession. A great tip is after each session, take a note of what you seen or learnt that day. This is to ensure you do not forget about what you have observed and is good practice to keep a diary for your own reflection. When writing your personal statement, you will be able to look back and easily remember what you learnt that day.
What skills are useful?
Think about what skills a doctor must have and how you have shown this yourself. Are you empathetic, have good time management skills or great when working in a team? You can easily highlight these by mentioning extra-curricular activities you do such as sports, clubs or part-time jobs. Your ability to provide examples is key when writing your personal statement.
For example, if you have a part-time job, this can demonstrate teamwork as you often work together with other staff from different ages or backgrounds. It is effective to provide a specific example where you have shown you this skill and relate this to qualities a doctor should have. For instance, mention a task that required multiple people working together or a situation where something unexpected happened which needed this skill. You could also mention time management as you could be doing this alongside your studies. The main aim is to show that you have a solid understanding about the demands of the profession and demonstrate how you also possess these qualities.
Extra knowledge
A great way to set yourself apart from the rest is to mention extra reading you may have done. It may have been part of your EPQ essay or something you have come across when looking deeper into medicine. The admissions team are not expecting you to be an expert (before starting the course!) but it would be nice to show you understand the basics.
Basic terms used in medicine, a firm understanding about GMC guidelines or even recent advancements in the profession can make you shine. This can be mentioned briefly in your personal statement and is good practice as you could get questioned about these topics in the interview. You will impress the admissions team if you have these extra nuggets of information however don’t fall into the trap of overcomplicating things.
Extra-curricular activities
Show that you are an all-rounded candidate which has interests outside of your studies. This part can highlight your character and whilst this should not be the main focus in your personal statement, you want to mention your interests in order to build character to your profile. Things like sports teams, participating in the Duke Of Edinburgh award, scouts or part-time jobs are worth mentioning.
Check, check and double check!
To perfect your personal statement, you will find yourself making multiple drafts and corrections. Remember, making an excellent personal statement takes time and hard work but you will eventually get there!
It is extremely helpful to get multiple people to read your personal statement and get feedback from them. Teachers, family members and friends are a great place to start and you want to convince them you want to study medicine. Also, reading it out loud to yourself will help to see if it flows. Often, you can feel a little exhausted when writing so take breaks and come back with a refreshed pair of eyes to avoid mistakes.
To take that extra step further, make sure you don’t miss out on sending your personal statement to our Geniuson medicine experts! Receiving tailored advice from current medical students studying at top medical institutes will give you that extra edge. Our experts at Geniuson have been through the admissions process and have successfully coached students to ace their personal statements. Find out more information here!
Common mistakes
- Making your personal statement too generic and cliché. You don’t want to use something the admissions team has seen time and time again!
- Over complicating the language you use. Don’t get carried away using big fancy words because this can make your personal statement harder to read.
- Focusing too much on extra-curricular activities rather than your motivations to study medicine. It is great to show your other skills but don’t get too carried away!