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How to write the perfect teaching personal statement

Application and interview, tes editorial.

When applying for a new job, you may be competing with tens or hundreds of other applicants in a race for the role.

The HR manager or headteacher recruiting for the job will be scrutinising every detail of your application to make sure they are bringing in the right people for interview.

The application form is the first hurdle you have to get over and sets the first impression of you as a person in the recruiter’s mind.

• Advice on honing your job search
• How to write a personal statement for teacher training
• How to write a must-read CV

The personal statement: why does it matter? 

The personal statement presents the perfect opportunity to show you are an exceptional candidate, understand teaching and know the school you are applying to.

It is not an easy task and is a tricky thing to get right. It requires being concise and clear – it shouldn’t be too long or read like a list.

You should talk about yourself and your professional achievements, while at the same time apply those experiences to the school itself.

We spoke to Malcolm Trobe, deputy general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders , about what goes into the perfect personal statement. Here's what he said:

What does a great teaching personal statement look like?

"In general, I would say no longer than two sides of A4 – typescript. It needs to be well structured and linked to the specific school. It will need to include a number of key areas, including behavioural management, educational philosophy, subject expertise, pedagogy, personal organisation and skills and enrichment activities that the candidate can bring."

What should it contain?

"I would recommend that candidates include three elements in each of the key areas:

• What their beliefs/philosophy/approach is – i.e., the theory
• Their experience in that area
• How they would use that experience in the school they are applying to and specific to the job they are applying for

The statement should also include something personal in terms of their outside interests to indicate that they live an interesting and well-balanced life."

What are school leaders looking to read in a good personal statement?

"They will want to see something of the person’s character come through. It must not be just a list of achievements or repeat of the CV. It needs to be well-written, error-free and mention the school they are applying for – but not too many times. It should read as if it has been specifically written for the school and job they are applying for. I would be looking for something similar to the approach I have indicated above, covering all of the key areas and indicating that they have a vocation for working with young people. Somehow I would like to see a ‘generosity of spirit’ come through in the statement."

How can a candidate stand out in a personal statement?

"A good personal statement needs to include something of the person themselves. It has to make the reader believe that the candidate has something special without bragging or appearing arrogant – but something a bit above what other candidates may offer. A really good introduction and ending are important, and it's worth spending a great deal of time crafting those sections of the statement. Hook the reader in at the beginning and finish on a high note so that they want to meet the person and explore what has been written."

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• mrsstrickey
• Jan 16, 2021

Writing a Personal Statement

Going for your first NQT post can be a daunting prospect... especially when in teaching, you need to write a personal statement to support your application form.

Schools use your personal statement to help short list candidates for a position by checking off the criteria of the person specification that they can see in your statement. It is always a good idea to write your personal statement alongside the person specification, ensuring that you have included all the "essential" criteria and as much of the "desirable" criteria you can that are assessed through the application.

Where possible, you should also use the language of the school you are applying to - their vision, values, mission and ethos statements will help you here and should be available on the school's website. You will also sometimes find these in the application pack. Read this carefully and then read it again, reading between the lines of what they might be looking for.

Here is an example of the structure of a personal statement for a trainee teacher applying for their first NQT job:

Begin with an impact statement that summarises your philosophy on teaching or that refers to the mission/vision/values/ethos of the school you are applying to:

I believe that it is, as Einstein said, the supreme art of the teacher to awaken joy in creative expression and knowledge. As a passionate teacher, dedicated to ensuring the very best outcomes for all students I teach, this statement resonates with me as I endeavour to awaken joy in all of the learners within my classroom. It was your belief all young people have the right to a transformational educational experience, that will enable them, no matter what their starting point, to fulfil their potential and realise their ambitions that first attracted me to your school as it aligns with my own personal and professional philosophy on education.

Throughout my practice, I constantly encourage pupils to participate and contribute in an atmosphere highly conducive to learning. I have consistently set high expectations of pupils in different training contexts. There are high levels of mutual respect between me and pupils. I am very effective in promoting learners’ resilience, confidence and independence when tackling challenging activities. In my lesson, I generate high levels of enthusiasm, participation and commitment to learning.

Back this up with an example from your training.

I have also assumed a high level of responsibility for the attainment progress and outcomes of the pupils I have taught. I have demonstrated confident judgement in planning for pupil progression both within individual lessons and over time and I am able to articulate a clear and well-justified rationale as to how I am building on prior achievement. Within my lessons, I seek to actively promote engaging and effective methods that support pupils in reflecting on their learning. I have demonstrated that I am able to set appropriately challenging tasks, drawing on a sound knowledge of the pupils’ prior attainment, which has been obtained through systematic and accurate assessment. I regularly create opportunities for independent and autonomous learning. As a result the majority of pupils make very good progress.

In order to plan effective lessons, I draw on my in-depth subject and curriculum knowledge of [your subject or phase] to plan confidently for progression and to stimulate and capture pupils’ interest. Throughout my training, I have demonstrated very well-developed pedagogical subject knowledge, by anticipating common errors and misconceptions in my planning. I am astutely aware of my own development needs in relation to extending and updating my subject, curriculum and pedagogical knowledge in my early career and have been proactive in developing these effectively during my training. I always model very high standards of written and spoken communication in all professional activities. I also successfully identify and exploit opportunities to develop learners’ skills, in communication, reading and writing.

I plan lessons that often use well-chosen, imaginative and creative strategies, and that match individuals’ needs and interests. I am highly reflective in critically evaluating my practice. I am able to accurately judge the impact of my practice on individual and groups of learners and can use my evaluation to inform future planning, teaching and learning. During my training, I have shown initiative in contributing to curriculum planning and developing and producing effective learning resources in my placement settings.

I have been able to quickly and accurately discern my learners’ strengths and needs and I have been proactive in differentiating and employing a range of effective intervention strategies to secure progression for individuals and groups. I have an astute understanding of how effective different teaching approaches are in relation to impact on learning and engagement of learners

I can confidently and accurately assess pupils’ attainment against national benchmarks. I use a range of assessment strategies very effectively in my day-to-day practice to monitor progress and to inform future planning. In my practice, I systematically and effectively check learners’ understanding throughout lessons, anticipating where intervention may be needed and do so with notable impact on the quality of learning. I have shown that I am able to assess learners’ progress regularly and work with them to accurately target further improvement and secure rapid progress.

I have been able to rapidly adapt to the different circumstances in which I have trained, working confidently within the frameworks established in different settings and applying rules and routines consistently and fairly. I have also demonstrated an ability to adapt to remote working and remote delivery in response to the Global Pandemic. I consistently have high expectations and understand a range of strategies that experienced teachers use to promote positive behaviour and apply these very effectively, including use of school sanctions and rewards, and use of praise, in order to create an environment highly supportive of learning. I am able to manage pupil behaviour with ease so that learners display very high levels of engagement, courtesy, collaboration and co-operation. Where it is needed, I actively seek additional support in addressing the needs of pupils where significantly challenging behaviour is demonstrated.

During my training, I have been proactive in seeking out opportunities to contribute in a significant way to the wider life and ethos of the school. I have built strong professional relationships and have demonstrated that I am able to work collaboratively with colleagues on a regular basis. I have taken responsibility for deploying support staff in my lessons and for seeking advice from relevant professionals in relation to pupils with individual needs. I deliberately seek out opportunities to develop my own professional learning and respond positively to all the feedback I receive. I have also demonstrated that I can communicate very effectively, both verbally and in writing, with parents and carers in relation to pupils’ achievements and well-being when required to do so formally, but I am also proactive in communicating in relation to individual pupils’ emergent needs.

I always treat pupils with dignity, building relationships rooted in mutual respect, and at all times observing proper boundaries appropriate to a teacher's professional position. I realise the need to safeguard pupils' well-being, in accordance with statutory provisions. I show tolerance of and respect for the rights of others. I do not undermine fundamental British values, including democracy, the rule of law, individual liberty and mutual respect, and tolerance of those with different faiths and beliefs. I always ensure that personal beliefs are not expressed in ways which exploit pupils' vulnerability or might lead them to break the law. I am always punctual and have good attendance. I have attended numerous CPD sessions and will continue to do so. I have also completed a weekly duty (before school and at break} and attends daily briefings (whole school, subject or pastoral). I have taken on board the policies of the school and maintain a high standard in all my practices. I have a good understanding of the framework within which I work and my professional duties

End with a statement that implies/assumes you will be invited for interview:

I would relish the opportunity to work at your school and look forward to discussing this further with you at interview.

You can download the word version of this

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Free Personal Statement For Teaching Job (Samples & Examples)

Personal Statement for teaching job requires that when we apply through an application, we need to keep in view what are school requirements. Moreover, Your statement is a great place to highlight your training, achievements, and aspirations. Well-written personal statements can give you an edge over other candidates applying for the same job. We discuss how to write a personal statement for a teaching job, bonus tips to make your statement stand out, and examples to help you create your own.

What is a personal statement?

A personal statement is a place where you can share your thoughts, strengths and aspiration of careers through your employer. For a post of teacher, this statement provides an occasion to explain the ideal candidate for the position of the teaching post. Similarly, the statement should be approximately 200 to 500 words.

Further, you need to include an overview of who you are in terms of strengths, work experience and education. You should keep in mind that for every position you need to write a new personal statement. A unique statement will reflect the individual qualities a school is looking for in its teaching candidates.

How to write a personal statement for teaching?

You can break down the steps of writing a personal statement process. Further, you can easily manageable and help to include all of the important information. Here are the few steps which are important to crafting a personal statement for a teaching job:

• Brainstorm your ideas
• You can introduce yourself
• Highpoint about your achievements, skills and strengths.
• Further, you can wind up with your objective

Brainstorm Your Ideas

It is important that before writing your ideas you brainstorm your ideas and what you could corporate into your statement. These include accomplishments, strengths and weaknesses. Moreover, the experiences you had in the post in the classrooms are very powerful. You can read through the job description and look at the words to describe the school is looking for to hire like ‘innovative, ‘creative’ and ‘motivative’. Therefore, the use of these words can make your c.v outstanding as compared to others.

Introduce Yourself

You need to write your introduction in which you will explain your background and who you are. Further, you need to explain your experience and your role at your school. For a strong statement, you need to include a specific teaching position.

Highlights your achievements, skills and strengths

After introducing yourself you need to check what offer you will give to the school. However, you should set different from other candidates. Moreover, what you can include here is your relevant experience, achievements, skills, professional goals and any other talents that will make you differentiate from other applicants. Further, you can add about your expertise in handling the classrooms and how easily you tackle the students. What type of techniques do you implement in impressing your pupils. Make it brief and explain in two to three lines.

End with your objective

You can conclude with a personal statement for the job of why you are applying for this job and what targets you will achieve after getting this job. Similarly, you can share your vision of why you are doing a teaching job and what teaching styles and strategies you will adapt to provide the best learning to students after getting a new teaching job.

Tips For Writing Personal Statements For Teaching Jobs

You should consider these tips whenever you are writing a personal statement for teaching jobs:

Keep your audience in mind:

Twist personal statement for a teaching job whenever you are applying for a new post. Moreover, you can adjust the wording for your job description.

Be specific:

Make sure that statements are to the point and short. Try to make it more informative. Therefore, it is the best-recommended way to limit the words to 500.

Edit Extensively:

Once you create a personal statement, you can come back later. The reason behind it is you can come back with fresh eyes and identify more grammatical errors. Similarly, you are writing your draft and after that, you can write the statement as long as you want. After you have finished editing you can reduce it and make it between 200 to 500 words.

You should write a personal statement as you are talking to your friend. Likewise, this will give an impression that it is different from others. This will sound good and unique as compared to other applicants.

Teacher Statement Examples

Using their statements for teaching jobs to help you to create your own.

New Teacher Example:

I recently finished my graduation in Early Childhood Education from the University of London. Moreover, I can perform the lead teacher role in your preschool. I would apply my skills and knowledge which I learned from there. Additionally, I spent the last 5 years in elementary school for children as a child substitute teacher. This helped me to interact and learn the skills of children with a wide range of skills and abilities. Therefore, I have decided to train young children and their minds.

I am sure that I will be an asset to your organization and will be helpful in all regards.

Experienced Teacher Example:

With my experience of 15 years, I am the most suitable applicant for the role of senior teacher. Moreover, I have experience in teaching high school and middle school students. Further, with the experience, I will utilize to train my students and make their habits which will help them in their professional life. I also implement strategies such as filmmaking for students which will make them excited about their subject and make it memorable. Moreover, I am sure that with my love and care students will learn a lot. Therefore, I will transfer the way I showed to my previous students to make their careers at their peak.

What you ought to cover in your statement

Why you are applying for the job:.

Allude to any knowledge you have of the LA or the school, including any visits to the school and what you gained from them.

Notice any unique conditions, for instance, your strict confidence, which you believe are relevant.

Insights regarding your course:

Give an outline of your training course, including the age range and subjects covered, and any unique elements.

If you are a PGCE understudy, notice your most memorable degree, your paper (if suitable), any classroom-based research projects and pertinent modules examined. Additionally, notice assuming you have concentrated on any expert modules.

Your educating experience:

What year groups you have educated.

Your utilization and comprehension of developmental and summative assessment practices.

Your classroom management strategies:

• Give instances of how you arranged and conveyed examples and observed and assessed learning results, including differentiation.
• Make sense of how you have overseen classrooms and conduct.
• Detail your experience of working with collaborators or guardians in your group.

Your dreams and convictions about primary/secondary education:

What are your benefits of learning and your dreams for what’s in store? You could address regions like learning and showing styles and strategies.

Consider key arrangements applicable to the age range you need to instruct.

Other related experiences:

This can incorporate data about any previous work experience.

Incorporate preparation exercises you have completed and manners by which your subject information has been created.

Other related abilities and interests:

Give details of specific capabilities, encounters or recreational interests, which will assist the school with finding out about you and could ‘add esteem’ in a school climate.

Any contribution in working with kids (running clubs, youth work and day camps) is especially helpful to note.

Intend to finish strong. An end which shows your energy comparable to the particular application and showing overall will improve your application, however, stay away from general proclamations and cliches.

Conclusion:

A personal statement for teaching job explains how you demonstrate your description for the post of teaching. Moreover, the statement should be 200 to 500 words. You can include your strengths, skills and education. The ambition of a new teacher is to train children with their best capabilities and prepare the best nation. ON the other hand, the senior teacher wants that polish young students and bring their hidden talent in front of the public which will help them to be successful people in their practical life. You can download statements for teaching from different websites or you can draft them as per your requirements.

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How to write a teacher personal statement

What experience do you have, are you engaged in teaching theory and research, are you up to date on safeguarding statutory guidance, what are your skills and qualities, how can you contribute to wider school life, search for roles.

Your personal statement is your first opportunity to show the school you’re a great fit for the job, and gets you closer to being shortlisted for an interview. The more you show how your skills and interests match the school’s ethos and values, the better. We’ve spoken to a range of teachers to get their top tips for success.

Schools want to hear about your trainee experience with different subjects, key stages, types of school, and working with a range of pupils.

Think about your approach to teaching, how you keep pupils engaged, and how you communicate with different kinds of people (children, staff, parents and carers). Ensure you provide evidence for how you have improved student engagement and built positive relationships with pupils.

Schools will be interested in your approach to behaviour management, so think about your go-to strategies.

Think about any research that has affected your teaching practice. Explain what has worked well and if it didn’t, what you learnt.

You need to demonstrate your awareness of the importance of safeguarding and the requirements of Keeping Children Safe in Education . Include any examples of how you worked with a Designated Safeguarding Lead.

Are you a well-organised, confident, and motivated teacher? Say it, and provide examples! Schools are looking for great communicators, team players and relationship builders. Make sure you say how you create a positive learning environment, and consider skills like time management, organisation, and flexibility. Schools will also want to know how you overcome challenges.

Set yourself apart by showing how your hobbies and achievements could contribute to the wider school community. Could you run an after school club or organise school trips?

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Teaching personal statement examples

Giving you the chance to show why you'd be a great teacher, your personal statement is an important part of your application and worth taking the time over

What is a teaching personal statement?

Your personal statement is used to explain why you want to become a teacher and your suitability for the role. While your application form briefly outlines your qualifications, skills and work experience, your teaching personal statement is where your personality shines through.

Take your time with it. Many candidates often spend a few weeks on this part of the application as you don't have to write it all at once. You should get someone to read over it and be prepared to receive constructive feedback and write a few drafts before you send it off.

It's important to:

• use examples based on your recent teaching experience
• tailor your personal statement according to the school/age group
• use good, clear, written English, using first person terms such as 'my' and 'I'
• be original and honest
• avoid clichés and general statements, such as 'I've always wanted to teach'
• demonstrate a passion for teaching.

While it's crucial to get it right, your teaching personal statement is only a small part of the application process. Find out how else you'll need to prepare to  get a teaching job .

How to write a personal statement for teaching

Your personal statement should be between 500 and 1,000 words. It's crucial that you  don't copy  and that the statement you provide is  your own work .

This is your opportunity to:

• write about any relevant skills and experience you have
• explain your understanding of why teaching is important
• detail why you want to become a teacher
• list any extra skills or experience you have, such as volunteering or first aid.

See  personal statements for postgraduate applications  for more guidance.

The nature of your personal statement will vary, depending on the type of teaching you'd like to pursue. Take a look at some of our example personal statements to get an idea of how they differ.

Personal statement for PGCE primary

As well as focusing on roles in which you've gained experience with primary-age children, a PGCE primary personal statement should demonstrate your well-rounded personality and any skills that could be useful for the range of extra-curricular activities primary schools provide (such as the ability to read music for recorder lessons, or drama experience to help with school plays).

Personal statement for PGCE secondary

Many good PGCE secondary personal statements acknowledge the challenges involved in teaching older pupils and provide examples of where the candidate has worked to overcome these problems. As secondary teaching roles are geared towards teaching a specific subject, training providers are looking for more evidence of your subject and degree knowledge.

Personal statement for School Direct

If you're applying for the salaried School Direct route, you should discuss the experience you've gained in the classroom prior to your application. One of your references will need to be from an employer, or someone who can comment on your work ethic and suitability for teaching. Don't worry if your degree is unrelated to the subject you'd like to teach - you may still be able to apply by completing a subject knowledge enhancement (SKE) course .

Find out more

• Discover how to structure a teaching CV .
• Find out what it's really like to be a primary or secondary school teacher .
• Search postgraduate courses in teaching .

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How to write a great personal statement for a teaching job

Vinny Potter

Last updated: 7 Feb 2024, 16:23

Discover our top tips on what to include in your personal statement for a teaching job and how to present your skills, knowledge, experience and attributes.

Supported by:

Academies Enterprise Trust

Your personal statement is the heart of your application for work as an early career teacher and should be tailored for each role. For teaching applications this is sometimes also called a letter of application, but it is essentially the same thing. This is your opportunity to provide evidence of how you match the needs of the specific teaching job you are applying for, and earn yourself an invitation to the next stage, which is likely to be a selection day held at the school.

Writing tips for personal statements

See our example personal statement for primary school teaching, below. Imagine it was written in response to the following job advert:

We are advertising for a Year 3 Classroom Teacher. The successful candidate will be able to demonstrate the following:

• Committed to our school and our values
• Experience across a range of age groups
• Committed to reflection and improving practice
• Knowledge of the National Curriculum
• Excellent lesson planning
• Knowledge of assessment
• Good knowledge of SEND and positive interventions
• Positive approach to provide challenge and support student success
• Excellent behaviour management
• Good communication skills with parents
• Enthusiastic and creative approach to lessons
• Willing to contribute to the wider life of the school.

See our personal statement for secondary school teaching, below. Imagine it was written in response to the following job advert:

Country High School are advertising for an enthusiastic Secondary PE Teacher. The successful candidate will be able to demonstrate the following:

• Ability to adapt and tailor your approach for the differing needs of pupils
• Knowledge of the National Curriculum for your subject
• Knowledge of a wide range of sports
• Willing to engage in extra curricular activities and the wider life of the school
• Experience of supporting high ability students, as well as those who may be less able or motivated
• Ability to use data effectively
• Teach across all ability levels including SEND
• Ability to use Technology to enhance learning.

When completing a personal statement for a teaching job, you should typically observe the following guidelines:

• Do not write a generic statement. Instead use the person specification and job advert for the vacancy as a structure for your statement or consider using the government's Teachers' Standards if no person specification is provided.
• Do not exceed two sides of A4, unless otherwise instructed.
• Tailor your statement for each new application according to the nature of the school or LA and the advertised role.
• Always read any guidance provided – many schools and LAs will tell you how they want this section set out.
• Emphasise your individual strengths in relation to the role.
• For a pool application, make sure you give a good overview of your skills and experience.
• It is essential that you give specific examples of what you have done to back up your claims.

Primary school personal statement

Examples of a personal statements for a primary school teaching job.

Primary school personal statement example

Secondary school personal statement

See our example of a personal statement for a secondary school teaching job.

Secondary school personal statement example

What you should cover in your personal statement

When schools advertise graduate teaching jobs , they write a job description which states the essential attributes they are looking for. This is their marking criteria for the job. When they read your statement, they will usually score this based on their essential and desirable criteria. Therefore, you need to read their documents carefully to find the criteria and provide an example or evidence of each point. If the job advert does not include any documents which include their criteria, then you can use the following structure for your statement and use the Teachers’ Standards as a guide for the criteria they may be looking for.

Why you are applying for the role:

• Refer to any knowledge you have of the LA or the school, including any visits to the school and what you learned from them.
• Show you would be a good fit for the school. The best way to do this is to look at the school’s values and give an example of how you match these.
• Mention any special circumstances (for example, your religious faith) which you think are relevant.

Details about your course:

• Give an overview of your training course - including the age range and subjects covered - and any special features.
• If you are a PGCE student, mention your first degree, your dissertation (if appropriate), any classroom-based research projects and relevant modules studied. Also mention if you have studied any masters modules.

Your teaching experience:

• What year groups you have taught.
• What subjects you have covered.
• Your use and understanding of formative and summative assessment practices.

Your classroom management strategies:

• Give examples of how you planned and delivered lessons and evaluated learning outcomes, including differentiation, scaffolding etc.
• Explain how you have managed classrooms and behaviour.
• Detail your experience of working with assistants or parents in your class.

Your visions and beliefs about primary/secondary education:

• What are your beliefs about learning and your visions for the future? You could touch on areas such as learning and teaching styles and strategies.
• Reflect on key policies relevant to the age range you want to teach.

Other related experience:

• This can include information about any previous work experience.
• Include training activities you have carried out and ways in which your subject knowledge has been developed.

Other related skills and interests:

• Give details of any particular competencies, experiences or leisure interests. This will help the school to know more about you as a person and could ‘add value’ in a school environment.
• Any involvement in working with children (running clubs, youth work and summer camps) is particularly useful to include.

Aim to end on a positive note. A conclusion which displays your enthusiasm in relation to the specific application and teaching in general will enhance your application - but avoid general statements and clichés.

Written by Vinny Potter, St Marys University, Twickenham, July 2023

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Crafting a Compelling Teaching Personal Statement

Your teaching personal statement needs to give an insight into your personality, teaching style & unique qualities only you hold. In this article, we’ll guide you through the process of writing a compelling teaching personal statement.

The best personal statements are more than just a list of experiences and achievements. A personal statement which tells a compelling story will always compel the reader to want to find out more. If you keep your philosophy as the central theme and ensure that you use examples of practice which link back to that, it will ensure that your personal statement is a coherent and interesting piece of writing.

What Inspired You:

Begin by reflecting on what motivated you to become a teacher. Headteachers want to understand your background, inspiration, the reason you trained as a teacher and why you want to teach your specialism. Highlight your passion for teaching and your genuine desire to make a positive impact on students’ lives.

Showcase Key Achievements:

Highlight your career achievements, qualifications and teaching milestones that you’re most proud of. Demonstrate your ability to drive student progress and results through concrete examples throughout your teaching personal statement. If you’re an early career teacher, discuss your teaching placements, voluntary work, or even include any quotes from observation reports.

Showcase Teaching Skills:

Demonstrate your teaching skills by providing specific examples. Discuss successful teaching strategies you’ve employed, innovative lesson plans you’ve created, or how you’ve adapted to meet the needs of diverse learners. Highlight any extracurricular involvement, such as coaching sports teams or leading clubs, which showcases your dedication to students’ holistic development.

Keep It Concise and Well-Structured:

Teaching personal statements should be clear, concise, and well-structured. Aim for a maximum of 500-600 words. Use headings or bullet points to organize your content. Start with a captivating opening paragraph and conclude with a strong summary of your qualifications and enthusiasm for teaching.

Proofread and Edit:

Thoroughly proofread your teaching personal statement to eliminate grammatical errors, typos, or awkward phrasing. Consider seeking feedback from mentors, colleagues, or friends to ensure clarity and impact. Editing is crucial to present yourself as a professional and detail-oriented teacher.

Show Enthusiasm:

Infuse your teaching personal statement with enthusiasm and optimism. Convey your passion for teaching, showcase your qualifications, and demonstrate your commitment to fostering student growth. A positive and enthusiastic tone can be infectious and leave a lasting impression.

To conclude, your teaching personal statement is your chance to shine as a teacher. Get personal. Write about what makes YOU in the classroom.

For further support and tips, please reach out to Gemma Yates.

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Job tips for teachers: how to write a winning application

Helen sadler, art and design teacher, hammersmith and fulham.

It's the personal statement that will get you short listed: The application form is standard, it's the personal statement that will get you short listed. No more than two sides of A4 it should show how and why you teach and who you are as a person. It should not be a list.

Always read the specification, if it says you are required to teach A-level and you don't or don't mention a willingness to learn it shows you haven't read it. If you are applying for a job in a different area to where you live explain why. Check who the application needs to be sent to, don't just send it to the headteacher. It sounds obvious but make sure you get their name right.

Gaps in employment make it look like you're hiding something, whatever the reason highlight all the positives for gaps. If you have worked in a different sector think about the transferable skills you have. Be honest, don't be tempted to change that D to a C in your qualifications. If you get the job they WILL check.

If interviewed you will be questioned using your personal statement. Don't say you do certain things in the statement but then can't give real examples when interviewed. Be enthusiastic about your subject, why do you teach it, what do you enjoy. Include hobbies on your personal statement, it makes you a more rounded person. But don't include 'socialising with friends' as basically it means getting wasted.

If you only have your training experience include all the schools you have trained in, say what you have learnt, how they are different, what you enjoyed. You could be up against teachers with years of experience. Use any particularly good comments from observations in your personal statement. This is really useful if you are a NQT. Don't be negative about any previous schools.

Chris Hildrew, deputy head teacher, Chew Valley School , Bristol

Successful applicants explain why they are applying for this particular job at this particular school: When sifting through a pile of applications I can usually halve the pile by getting rid of those making basic mistakes. These include poorly proofread or inaccurate letters (there's nothing quite so off-putting as finding the wrong school or head teacher's name left over from the previous time that letter was used), application forms incorrectly completed, and those who feel obliged to include more than is asked for.

I don't want to see your CV unless I've asked for one. I don't want to see a portfolio of PowerPoint presentations you've developed. I don't want a testimonial from your summer job behind the bar in the student union. I want what I've asked for please - letter and form. Form and letter. Thank you.

Straight to the top of the pile go those whose letters explain why they are applying for this particular job at this particular school. Also a winner are those who show exactly how they fit the person specification not only through what they've already done but what they'd like to do next. Above all, though, I like to know exactly why the applicant is a teacher in the first place. A good application will get you the interview; a good interview will get you the job.

Doug Belshaw, former teacher and senior leader and author of #getthatjob

Be selective, rather than scattergun: One of the best things you can do when applying for jobs is to be selective. It's easy to get desperate, either because of money or stress, but it's important to make sure that you've done your homework on what you might be letting yourself in for. Read everything you can online and, if the deadline's far enough away, phone the school and ask them to send you anything (newsletters, for example) that aren't on their website.

There's two benefits to going deep rather than employing a scattergun approach. First, you'll be sure that it's the kind of place you can work. And second, you'll have done 'due diligence' and be in a better position than other candidates to show how you'd fit right in. At interview and on the application you can use examples from the school's recent history to show how you could make an impact straight away.

Finally, be an enlarged version of yourself both on paper (and at interview). It's the best advice I ever received for 'performing' in the classroom and it stood me in very good stead when snagging a job that rocketed me from classroom teacher straight to senior management.

Peter Lee, assistant vice principal, Q3 Academy , Birmingham

Make your application personal to the school and write about why you love teaching: As part of my role I read through numerous written application as part of the job application process. Here are some of my top tips.

Make sure your application is personal to the school – i.e. quote from the Ofsted report, latest exam results, ethos and so on If your application sounds like you've generated a whole host and it's not personal to the school then it's likely to remain at the bottom of the pile Visit the school before handing the application form in – that way you can get a real feel for the school Check spelling and give to another person to proofread any SPAG errors Make sure there are no gaps in your employment history Explain what you will bring that is extra if successful – so what skills can you bring / what extra-curricular opportunities would you be willing to offer? Be positive – write about why you love teaching List any areas in which you have added value – i.e. specific class residuals/meeting whole school or departmental targets

Kirstie Thomas, head of history, Lewis School , Pengam, South Wales

Look at what the school's needs and have ideas for addressing them: I recently had to appoint a new teacher, the main criteria the school was looking for was what else could that teacher offer, and many applications did not make the shortlist as they did not explicitly say what I was looking for. Applicants need to include the other subjects they are able to teach; NQTs should look at doing a secondary subject to improve their initial letter.

An awareness of current educational practice is good but do not write in great depth and waste time and space about it. Have a vision for after school or lunchtime clubs; something they have done or if an NQT something they would like to do, it could be linked to curriculum or an additional free choice, but they should look at school needs and try to offer something interesting and different.

Any previous work although unconnected to education can be phrased in such a way that it gives a sense of transferable skills. Most importantly, the letters should be spell checked and proofread. With a literacy agenda in school I disregarded three letters that were full of basic spelling mistakes and seemed rushed and were poorly written.

Sally Law, principal teacher of English, Marr College , Troon

Show off your vocabulary and try to make applications interesting to read: I appointed two new English teachers this season and had a few gripes with applications. The most irritating, and surprising, problem was the applicants' seeming lack of vocabulary. For English teachers this isn't good although I think it stems from applicants thinking they must use the current jargon so the same words just keep popping up over and over again.

So I would say be a bit more flexible with vocabulary although not to the point of overdoing it with the thesaurus. If there was one more thing it would be to vary sentence structure too and absolutely avoid starting every sentence with 'I'.

John Bull, year 5 teacher, Thursfield Primary School, Stoke-on-Trent

Visit a school before you apply: Headteachers get many applications from many individuals. It is the responsibility of the applicant to make the headteacher want to meet them by making their application stand out. Sometimes that might be in creative ways, like changing the colour of the fonts for different parts of the CV. Not being too effusive is also a good tip. Be positive but not overconfident. Expect the headteacher to want to see you, by writing this as an end paragraph 'I look forward to meeting you at interview.' Always visit a school before you apply. You might not be right for them as well as them not being right for you.

This content is brought to you by Guardian Professional . To get articles direct to your inbox, and to access thousands of free resources, sign up to the Guardian Teacher Network here . Looking for your next role? See our Guardian jobs for schools site for thousands of the latest teaching, leadership and support jobs

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Free Examples of Effective Teaching Personal Statement

Table of Contents

The personal statement is an important part of the teaching application process. It allows you to provide information about yourself that doesn’t appear in your resume or transcripts.

When writing your personal statement, be sure to focus on the qualities that make you a good teacher. Before giving you  examples of personal statements for teaching jobs , we have a few tips to help you.

Important Tips for Writing a Personal Statement for a Teaching Job

When creating your personal statement , it’s important to remember why you want to become a teacher. We dive further into this and more in this section of the article.

Start With Why You Chose Teaching As a Profession

What do you love about teaching? What drives you? Define what makes a great teacher for you and explain how your experiences have prepared you for this career.

Be specific and honest in describing both your strengths and weaknesses as they relate to teaching. Ultimately, the goal is for the recruiter to understand why you’re the best choice for the job.

Explain How You Have Developed This Passion

Your statement should explain how you developed your passion for teaching. Choosing teaching as a profession isn’t enough. How did you nurture this passion?

Describe Any Experience You Have Had Working With Students

You need to describe your previous experience working with students. Doing this helps demonstrate your ability to handle students and work in a school environment.

Highlight Your Strengths and Skills As They Relate to Teaching

Don’t be shy to highlight your teaching strengths and skills. You’re competing with others for the job. Only qualified candidates with skills related to the job get interviewed. Highlight any experience or qualifications that are relevant to the role.

Tailor the Statement to the Job Description

Like any job opening, be sure to read the job description. This helps ensure you tailor your personal statement specifically for the position you’re applying for . 

It is unbecoming for a teacher to submit a statement full of errors. Proofread and edit your statement carefully before submitting it.

Examples of Personal Statements for Teaching Jobs

We have some of the best examples of personal statements for teaching jobs for you. Read through to see what your personal statement should look like.

Teaching has been a lifelong passion of mine. I began working with children as soon as I was old enough to volunteer in my local Sunday school program. Since then, I have continued to work with students of all ages in many different settings, including public schools, after-school programs and summer camps. My experience has taught me that nothing is more rewarding than helping young people learn and grow. 

I am confident that my skills and passion for teaching would make me an excellent educator. In addition to having classroom experience, I possess strong organizational and communication skills, which are essential for successfully managing a classroom environment.

Above all, however, what makes me an ideal teacher is my dedication to the success of each individual student. Every child deserves the opportunity to find their own unique strengths and passions. It is my goal as a teacher always be there to help them discover these things within themselves.

I am a compassionate and dedicated teacher with years of experience in the field. Above all, I believe that teaching is not simply a profession. Rather, it is a calling that allows me to share my knowledge and help others learn and grow. 

My approach is student-centered. I adapt my instruction to meet their unique needs while fostering an environment where they can feel comfortable taking risks and making mistakes. In addition to having strong classroom management skills, I have a proven track record of developing engaging curricula tailored for students at different levels. Ultimately, I view teaching as an opportunity not only to impart important academic knowledge but instill lifelong values such as curiosity, resilience, and compassion.

It’s always nerve-racking to go through the application process for a teaching job. If you put some thought into it, it becomes easier. Focus on what’s important: the skills, strengths, and experience that make you right for the job. 

Abir Ghenaiet

Abir is a data analyst and researcher. Among her interests are artificial intelligence, machine learning, and natural language processing. As a humanitarian and educator, she actively supports women in tech and promotes diversity.

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Teacher Training Personal Statement Examples

What is a teacher training personal statement?

The teacher training personal statement is your opportunity to let training providers know about your qualities, skills and expertise, and why you want to teach.

While your application form briefly outlines your qualifications, skills and work experience, your teaching personal statement is where your personality shines through.

Take your time with it, be prepared to receive constructive feedback and write a few drafts before you send it off.

How do I write a good teacher training personal statement?

To help you write a successful teacher training personal statement, we recommend you include:

• use examples to back everything up, based on your teaching experience so far
• tailor your personal statement according to the age group you wish to teach
• write using concise English, using first person terms such as 'my' and 'I'
• be original and honest - don't embellish the truth or lie outright
• avoid clichés and general statements, such as 'since a young age' or 'I've always wanted to be a teacher'
• demonstrate your passion and enthusiasm for teaching.

You have up to 4,000 characters to write a memorable opening, middle and conclusion.

Don't waste your valuable space on writing about things that are already on your UCAS form elsewhere, such as your qualifications.

What should I include in my teacher training personal statement?

When planning out your personal statement, ask yourself what it is your training providers are looking for. Make sure your statement answers the following questions:

• Why do I want to teach? - show that you know about the challenges and rewards of teaching, and remember that everything has its ups and downs. Maybe talk about any lessons you have observed/taught, what went well and how you would have improved on them. Discuss teaching styles used and the use of technology in the classroom.
• Why do I want to teach this age group/at this level? - what appeals to you, and what experience do you have teaching these students/children?
• What are my strengths? - include the relevance of your degree and subject knowledge.
• What experience do I have? - include any experience you have of volunteering with children, such as teaching a sports team, youth work or working at a summer camp? Give examples of how this helpd develop your teaching skills.
• What personal skills/abilities do I have? - these might include research, creativity, time management, IT skills, problem solving, managing people, organisational skills, listening skills, leading or working in a team. To strengthen your application, make sure you back everything up with examples.
• Are there are any location restrictions? - if you don't currently live in the UK, why do you want to study here? Are you willing to move away from your current home town/city for your degree?

You only have up to 47 lines (4,000 characters including spaces) in which to persuade your chosen initial teacher training (ITT) providers to offer you an interview. The statement must be concise, enthusiastic and sell your potential to be a successful teacher.

For more help and advice on what to write in your teacher training personal statement, please see:

• Personal Statement Editing Services
• Personal Statement Tips From A Teacher
• Analysis Of A Personal Statement
• The 15th January UCAS Deadline: 4 Ways To Avoid Missing It
• Personal Statement FAQs
• Personal Statement Timeline
• 10 Top Personal Statement Writing Tips
• What To Do If You Miss The 15th January UCAS Deadline.

What is a teacher training degree?

Teacher training degrees combine the study of curriculum subjects with learning teaching techniques and putting these into practice during hands-on school placements. The course leads to QTS (qualified teacher status) to enable you to teach in a school or college.

How long is a teacher training course?

To teach in England and Wales you need to gain QTS. You will obtain this on an ITT programme, which could be school or university-based and takes approximately one year to complete.

How do I become a teacher with a degree?

To teach as a qualified teacher in England, you'll need qualified teacher status (QTS). If you already have a degree, you can complete a postgraduate teacher training course to achieve this. Additionally, you'll need to have a GCSE at grade C/4 in maths and English, as well as science if you want to teach primary.

Can I train to be a teacher without a degree?

Unfortunately no - you cannot become a teacher without a degree.

But if you are an undergraduate or have a degree in a different subject than what you want to teach, there are options to help you get into a teaching career.

Will I get paid for teacher training?

There are three types of funding available for teacher training - depending on your circumstances, you could receive all three:

• Tax-free bursary or scholarship.
• Tuition Fee Loan and Maintenance Loan.
• Extra financial support if you're a parent, have an adult dependant or a disability.

Further information

For more tips and advice on teacher training personal statements, please see:

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• The Complete University Guide

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Your NQT Personal Statement – 13 Tips to Make it Stand Out

When you’re applying for your first NQT teaching job it can be quite challenging. You might feel like you’re all alone, with no one to help and advise you. We don’t want you to struggle and perhaps lose the opportunity to get that teaching position you have set your eyes on. Therefore, we’ve created this post just for you.

Once you’re ready to start looking for a teaching position, one of the first things you will need to prepare is your application. There are usually three main components to an effective application, and these elements are:

• The application form
• A supporting statement or letter of application
• An executive summary to show how you comply with the criteria, and that you are the person the school is looking for.

In this article we will be focusing on your NQT Personal Statement. 

Your NQT personal statement is likely to be the first impression that you will make with this new school or NQT pool and an ideal opportunity to show your unique qualities that make you the best person for the position on offer. 

Therefore, you will want this opportunity to promote yourself to the school in the best way possible. So it’s important that your writing is coherent, focused and clearly explains your reasoning behind wanting to be a teacher. In addition, a strong NQT personal statement will set you apart from other candidates in the competitive marketplace. 

Just like a resume and cover letter for a regular job, your personal statement should be rewritten for every position you apply for.

Never use the same NQT personal statement for multiple applications. Generic personal statements are super easy for employers to spot. And after all, you want to shine, right? Plus, you don’t want to copy someone else’s statement. Your employer might screen all personal statements using a similarity detection service like Copycatch. This could really hurt your application right out of the gate. And quite possibly end up in the bin. 

Remember, your personal statement is your chance to show your personality and enthusiasm, relevant to the school and prove you understand what they are looking for.

Your personal statement also shows your communication skills. That’s why you want to grab their attention, just like you want to with your students at the start of every lesson.

What is the NQT personal statement?

The NQT personal statement is an important document which schools use to understand why you want to become a teacher and whether you are suitable to teach at their school.

Of course, your application form will lay out all your qualifications, your skills, your strengths and weaknesses and also any relevant work experience. But your NQT personal statement is where you allow your unique personality to shine.

It is important to put your heart into writing your statement. And be prepared to write multiple drafts.

How do you write an effective NQT personal statement?

Your application and your NQT statement are going to be the first steps in securing the position you are looking for. Therefore, you obviously want to make a great first impression. Be ready to go through multiple drafts. Take your time, and get feedback from friends and family members.

I’m sure you have a ton of questions, such as:

• How do I write a killer, successful NQT statement?
• Where do I start?
• What should I include in my NQT statement?

These are all important questions. And I’m sure you have many more. So, let’s dive in and show you how to write an NQT statement which will stand out and give you the best chance of getting hired in your chosen teaching position.

Are you ready to write your killer NQT personal statement?

Great. Here are some important tips to help you.

1. The first rule when writing a successful NQT statement is to know your audience.

Before you start, it’s a great idea to step back for a minute and put yourself in your hiring manager’s shoes.

Think about what's important to them. What are they passionate about? What are they looking for? How can you improve their life?

When you think about what your hiring manager is looking for, you’ll have a much better chance of writing a concise and effective personal statement.

It’s a good idea to write a list of 10 things you think will be important to them.

However, the most critical step at this stage is to do your research and find out exactly what is required for this specific application. Different schools or LEA’s will have different requirements for the personal statement and should have guidelines somewhere in their application advert or portal.

Clearly your first task is to make sure that the personal statement you prepare is tailored to the requirements that have been set out for that job.

2. What is your objective?

• What is the purpose of your personal statement?
• Why should they hire you?
• What action are you trying to get the reader to take?

You need to be clear on this before you start writing your personal statement. If the answer isn't clear to you, it certainly won't be clear to your potential employer.

3. Why do you want to be a teacher?

Seems a simple question on the surface. But this is a great opportunity to show you’ve thought through this question. You could mention a past teacher who inspired you. Or the challenges and rewards of teaching. You could also talk about any lessons you have observed or taught previously which impacted you. You could also discuss particular teaching styles and your interests in using technology in the classroom.

Key tip: Think about creating a story for this question. Remember, the hiring manager is first and foremost a human being. Many new teachers make the mistake of forgetting this vital point. You are equal to them in this respect. Use emotional language to touch your reader. Help them imagine themselves in the situation you are describing. Help them feel what it was like in the situation that drove your desire in becoming a teacher. This is a major key in rousing your reader’s emotions.

4. Make sure you start your personal statement strongly.

Just like a great book or movie, your opening sentence should stand out. Make it memorable, without being overly dramatic. Effective personal statements often start with what inspired you to enter teaching in the first place.

• Did a high school teacher inspire you?
• Was it your own experience of learning?
• Was it a good or bad teacher you had previously?

This is a great opportunity to show some passion. Like point no.3 above, use some emotional language.

5. Why do you want to teach a particular age group?

Be ready to explain why a certain age group appeals to you. Mention specific examples of your experience with this age group.

For example, anyone who has taught kindergarten knows how much energy the students have. Lessons are always full on. And as cute as the kids are, if your lessons are not jam-packed with active, high-energy games, you’re going to lose them. 

Similarly, elementary students are at a stage where they are slowly beginning to think for themselves and many of them think they already know it all. At this age role-playing is effective, as the students like to see themselves as tiny adults. 

If your chosen age group is teenagers, you’ll be aware that this age group has its own challenges. Being a teenager has never been an easy task, and with so many changes going on in their lives and their bodies, their confidence is up and down. 

So, when you answer this question, you’ll need to show that you can relate to what is going on in your chosen group’s world. Show you are able to look back to when you were their age, relate to the age group and show how you keep your lessons relevant and exciting.

6. What experience do you have?

Relevant teaching experience is always going to help you when applying for any position. But it is also important to reflect on how that experience has helped you develop as a teacher. If you haven’t had much classroom time:

• Do you have any experience in voluntary teaching?
• Have you coached a sports team or been involved with a summer camp?

Obviously, as a new teacher, you can’t recite years of experience. Help your hiring manager imagine you in action. For example, you could describe a particular lesson which was either a success or failure. Think about retelling a memorable or challenging experience with a student, or a description of what your classroom looks and sounds like on a typical day. This will be much more valuable to enable them to envision your teaching experience than to cite pedagogical terms or talk vaguely about your teaching experience.

Always use specific examples of how your experiences have developed your teaching skills.

7. You should highlight your achievements, strengths and skills

Explain what you can bring to the school. Show how you differ from the other candidates. You could mention past experience and achievements, your unique talents, as well as your professional goals. You could also add specific classroom strategies you have developed and how they helped your students.

Many applications will make it clear that they want you to cover your specific qualifications, skills and understanding of elements of the National Curriculum, your classroom and educational skills plu your short and long term goals for making a difference to the education of your pupils.

The exact requirements should be set out in the application guidelines which should also tell you what you need to focus on.

8. How long should your NQT personal statement be?

This is not an essay. It’s simply a summary of you, your skills and your experience, and how they relate to the position you are applying for. Therefore, you should be specific and keep your personal statement short and informative.

This will help you keep your personal statement under a widely recommended  500-word limit. The school will not be impressed by minor childhood achievements, so keep your statement pertinent and focused.

That said, again, check the specific requirements in each case. Some applications will welcome a longer NQT personal statement, as is the case with Lambeth where we are happy to read up to three pages of A4, but no more.

If there is no guidance then the 500 word range is a very solid guide.

9. Make every word count

It’s a good idea to take a leaf out of a professional copywriter’s book here. Don’t waffle. Make every word count. Use powerful words where possible, without being overly dramatic. Avoid weak words like may, maybe, hope, wish, try, and perhaps. Instead, use words like will and can to help your personal statement command attention.

10. Take your time

Edit and then re-edit your personal statement. Besides being difficult to read, misspelled words and grammatical errors will destroy your credibility. Once you think you’ve written a great personal statement, it’s a good idea to leave it for a day or two. Then come back and see if you can improve it.

11. Read your statement out loud

This next tip is super-effective, and one many people fail to do. Read your statement out loud. If you do this, you’ll spot areas that don’t flow properly. And if you stumble when reading your statement out loud, you can be sure your potential employer will have the same trouble.

Key tip: Why don’t you record yourself as you read out your statement? This is simple to do with your phone. Then play it back and see if you can spot areas you can improve.

12. Let friends and relatives read your personal statement

Make sure whoever you ask to read your personal statement knows you want them to be critical. The whole purpose of this exercise is to improve your statement, not to make you happy that they love it. Choose your feedback team carefully. 

13. Finish strongly

The way you finish your personal statement should reinforce your enthusiasm for your career in teaching. Acknowledge that hard work is necessary, but also make your excitement stand out.

Your personal statement for PGCE primary

You should explain the experience you’ve gained with primary-age children.

The PGCE primary personal statements usually demonstrate your personality and the various skills you have which would benefit primary schools such as being artistic, your musical talents or your sporting prowess. 

All these types of skills would be very useful during primary schools’ extracurricular activities.  

Your personal statement for PGCE secondary

In this type of personal statement, you will want to make it clear you understand the challenges of teaching older students.

You could mention specific examples of situations and challenges you have faced teaching this age of students, and how you overcame them.  

You’ll also want to document how your degree ties in with the position you are applying for.

Final thoughts on your NQT Personal Statement

So, that is the nuts and bolts of what your NQT personal statement should include. The basic foundation for an effective personal statement is that it’s all about the pupils. What the school wants for the pupils, what you can provide for the pupils.  

You should always write your personal statement, and indeed your whole application from the angle of what will benefit the pupils, not what’s best for you.  The school is not interested at this stage in what’s good for you, it’s more interested in what’s good for its pupils, and if you can provide that. 

Now you know the structure of a strong NQT personal statement, we hope you will be in a perfect position to write an effective statement to get that dream job you’ve had your eyes on.

There’s more on the specific requirements of what Lambeth are looking for in the NQT personal statement for the Lambeth NQT pool on pages 10 and 11 of the NQT Information Pack which you can download here .

Remember that, as we said at the start of this article, each job you apply for should come with clear requirements for the application and hopefully some guidance. In the case of Lambeth we have a requirement for your NQT personal statement to clearly cover how your skills, knowledge and experience meet the requirements of being an NQT, and we outline a set structure that helps you do that.

Download our NQT Information Pack now to learn more.

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Personal Statements

by Harry on November 20, 2017

When I’m writing a letter of recommendation for an undergraduate applying for graduate school (one of the many parts of my job for which I have received no training and my skill in which has never been assessed by anyone), I pretty much always want to look at the personal statement (or, their answers to the program-specific questions which many professionally-oriented programs ask). If I don’t know the student really well, the personal statement helps me write the letter, just because it keeps them fully in my head; and if I do know the student really well it seems wrong not to offer to comment on/offer editorial advice, especially if I know (as I often do) that the student doesn’t have a parent who will be able confidently to do this. For all I know my own confidence is misplaced, but I don’t think it is – I have read thousands of personal statements over the years {mainly for nursing school, clinical psych, teacher ed, school counseling, medical school and law school and, of course, philosophy), and although I only know directly what other people (my immediate philosophy colleagues) think about the statements of students who apply to Philosophy PhD programs, I have observed the fate of those students whose statements I’ve looked at.

The main thing I want to say about personal statements is that in my experience many candidates agonize over them and spend far too much time trying to get them exactly right. In philosophy the main purpose of the personal statement is to convey that you know what you are doing, that you are genuinely interested in the program you’re applying to, and that you are not a complete flake. Some people, it is true, have genuinely interesting stories behind their desire to X, whatever it is, but most really don’t.[1] But they usually seem compelled to tell a story as compellingly as possible. Here’s a quote from a recent email (used with permission):

Hi Brighouse, I hope you had a nice weekend and that you have a good week ahead of you! I wanted to email you to ask for your help with my personal statements. I have spent a lot of time attempting to write some of them and I am really struggling. They feel very cliched to me and I am not sure how to make myself stand out as an applicant in so few words!

Actually, what she sent me was better than she thought, but I’d guess it would have been still better, and less stressful, if she’d had a good sense of what to do. Here’s the advice I’ve been giving recently, roughly, and obviously tailored to the specific student to whom I’m writing (in addition to specific advice about what they have written). To be honest, I usually give this advice only after they’ve already agonized a bit – I hereby resolve to start telling them ahead of time.

1. The personal statement will rarely affect whether or not you get in. Mostly that will be your letters of rec, resume, grades (and GRE and writing sample, if those are applicable). Helping your recommenders write letters that really represent you is a much more valuable use of your time than turning an ok statement into a good one. Stop stressing out about it.

2. If you have an amazing story, tell it. But don’t try to invent one, or to make a rather boring story (like mine) sound amazing. Tell the committee i) why you want to become (say) a nurse; ii) what qualifies you for their program iii) what will make you a good (say) nurse; iv) why you are interested in their program in particular; v) what you specifically think you have to learn.

3. Someone else might be able to tell you qualities you have that suit you to the profession in question if you can’t figure it out yourself – e.g., in the case of the student whose email I quote above, she had said something about herself in the draft statement that seemed both negative and false; and I was able (easily) to tell her a positive truth about herself that, when she wrote it in the revised statement, nevertheless did not seem self-aggrandizing.

4. If there is something in your transcript or resume that looks weak, and you have a good explanation for it, the ideal thing to do is i) ask your lead letter writer to mention and explain it and ii) mention in your statement that they will explain it. If someone else explains a weakness, it is much less likely to come over as special pleading or excuse-making.

5. Don’t use lots of adverbs and adjectives. Don’t use colloquialisms. Don’t actually try to use clichés, but do relax a bit about them – mostly your statement is not going to stand out from the crowd, and that’s ok! Stand out from the crowd once you are there, if you want to.

6. Be direct and straightforward, without being self-denigrating.

7. Make sure you stay within the word limit. Get someone skilled (who might be me) to look it over, and suggest edits which save you words.

8. Give yourself a time limit. Remind yourself that the chances this will make a difference to your prospects are small. If it is truly awful that might sink you (so get someone like me to read it to ensure that it is not truly awful); if it is good enough, then making it better is unlikely to yield much benefit.

Any amendments, revisions, contrary advice, would be welcome.

[1] I don’t. I encountered Philosophy in secondary school, and decided that, unlike History, I’d never learn how to read Philosophy unless someone taught me. I went to graduate school because I liked doing Philosophy and couldn’t think what else to do. Then I became a professor because I was not imaginative or bold enough to go work for dissidents in Russia during the waning months of perestroika (really, a left wing dissident member of the Moscow City Soviet asked me to come and work for him).

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{ 14 comments }

Adam Roberts 11.20.17 at 9:14 am

In addition to doing all the things Harry mentions at my own institution (and for which, like him, I have received no training and in which my skill in which has never been assessed) I also go to local schools and do mock interviews with sixth-formers by way of readying them for actual personal interviews at Universities that still insist upon such things (Oxford and Cambridge mostly). With vanishingly rare, usually suspiciously cocky, exceptions these are all desperately nervous teenagers trying not to appear so, made more anxious by their desire to remember a more-or-less prepared script that has been prepared to show them off in the best possible intellectual light. Just getting them to relax is half the battle. The main thing I tell them is: from the other side of the desk, from the admissions perspective, one of the main unspoken attitudes of interviewers is: if I let this student in, and s/he ends up in my seminar group, will I regret it? Almost always the answer to this question is no. But really the point of the process is not to identify geniuses-to-be and admit only them, it’s to weed out hopeless cases and the unhinged.

Adam Roberts 11.20.17 at 9:17 am

Gah, now would you look at that? What price a CT edit button for comments, I wonder?

Matt 11.20.17 at 10:13 am

A few thoughts:

1) While you have not been trained at writing letters of recommendation, at least you have, I’d assume, seen may of them, for grad school applicants and job applicants. I’ve written quite a few law school letters of recommendation without having any experience comparing mine to what other people do. This makes it even harder. (I have seen lots of recommendations for people applying for clerkships and internships with judges because law clerks often do a “first cut” on those, so at least have some idea of how law job recommendations go, even if clerkship recommendations are different from many other areas.) It’s a hard subject to know if you’re doing right, at least in my situation.

2) Possibly the best advice I’d heard about personal statements is that the applicant is not his or her own reference, and shouldn’t act or write like it. In truth, I’m not sure if this is good advice _in practice_ (I’d be interested to hear what people think) though it’s obviously good advice in theory.

3) Who was the Russian MP and in what way was he a “left wing dissident in the waning months of perestroika”? I’d be interested to hear the story and what he wanted to do, and wanted you to do.

sanbikinoraion 11.20.17 at 11:18 am

If this is a thing you have never received training on, why is that?

My experience of UK universities is that they are singularly uninterested in training their staff for the benefit of their undergraduates. It seems from various posts here on CT, the staff themselves seem remarkably uninterested in acquiring such training either.

If this is a genuinely useful skill that you and your peers should have, then why are you not lobbying the university for budget to be allocated to learn how to do this stuff?

Harry 11.20.17 at 2:22 pm

Matt — I’ve only seen letters of rec for Philosophy (grad school jobs) in sizeable numbers. I write a lot for Elementary Ed, Secondary Ed, Counseling Psych, Nursing, etc. I have talked to people who admit in all those programs, so do know what they say about how they use letters and what they like to see in them. But it is different.

Actually, I misspoke, it was a member of the Moscow city soviet — I’ll correct that. More details another time, I don’t want to derail.

sanbikinoraion — good point. I’ve got higher priorities — lobbying for support to improve instruction which is the core skill-set in which we are not trained. With some success, thanks to my Dean and the Chancellor — we’re currently planning pilots for several projects starting next fall, one of which is related to this post: https://crookedtimber.org/2013/05/28/employing-a-student-to-criticize-my-teaching/ but see more generally: https://crookedtimber.org/2016/07/21/how-could-a-research-university-systematically-improve-undergraduate-instruction/

DCA 11.20.17 at 2:48 pm

I’d add to (2), include anything you’ve done in the area that is above and beyond the requirements. In the sciences this is, ideally, spent time working on some part of some prof’s research project. Also, do not begin the statement with “Ever since I was a child, I have been fascinated by [relevant topic]”. This is way too common, and rarely credible.

EB 11.20.17 at 4:18 pm

In the US, applicants to selective and sometimes less-selective colleges and universities must submit a personal essay, and the goal is to make themselves look unique and desirable along several different dimensions to admissions officers who are not academics. A lot of dissembling and story-telling is involved. These students, in particular, would have a hard time coming up with a personal statement (4 years later) for grad or professional programs that is suitably fact-based and temperate in their self-presentations.

Harry 11.20.17 at 6:13 pm

Yes, that seems exactly right to me. Though, talking to admissions officers, the irony is that many of them (at least think they) see through the dissembling, and would like to read more prosaic and unself-promoting essays.

RJB 11.21.17 at 12:03 am

Here’s advice I’ve written before. It’s for accounting, but it shouldn’t be too hard to generalize. Pasted in full, since I don’t know how long the fasri site will stay up:

As someone who reads a lot of SoP’s, here are the questions I want an applicant to answer, more or less in order:

What is your purpose? What are your career aspirations? What type of research do you want to conduct? What topics and methods are you intending to pursue? What led you to your purpose? Why are you applying to this field? This is a big issue in accounting, as many applicants could well have applied to programs in less lucrative and/or more competitive fields, like economics, psychology, finance or statistics. You need to convince the faculty that you are pursuing your purpose because you are truly interested in the subject material in your chosen field. Research and teaching are simply too much work for anyone to succeed if they aren’t inherently interested. Why will you succeed? The faculty already have your transcript and a CV that lists your accomplishments. This is your chance to pull those facts together into a story that answers the questions that faculty are going to be most concerned about: Do you know enough about accounting (or whatever field you have chosen) to ask interesting questions? Are you smart enough? Can you write? Are you sufficiently well-trained in the fundamentals (math, statistics, psychology, depending on your purpose)? Will you work hard enough? Do you have the emotional makeup to learn and improve from constructive criticism (which you will receive in abundance throughout your career)? But you can’t just write “I am smart and hard working.” Follow the classic writer’s advice: show me, don’t tell me. You’ll be much more persuasive writing “As an undergraduate I regularly took 18-credit terms, still averaging a 3.6 GPA in statistics and calculus” or “During my 3 years at East Coast Investment Bank I learned how misleading accounting reports can be.” Do you know what you are getting into? Many highly-qualified applicants are admitted but fail to thrive because they don’t actually want to do the job they applied for! Being a PhD student or faculty member involves spending a lot of time alone with your computer, reading, writing, trying to find something new to tell people who already know a great deal. You’ll have to put up with constant criticism–and learn from it. Even though you are in accounting, you will spend most of your PhD years studying foundational material that is far removed from the applications that interest you. When you finally conduct research on a topic of your choosing, it will be far narrower and more distant from real-world issues than you are probably expecting. You might address this point in a specific paragraph, but an alternative is to weave in evidence throughout the entire SoP that demonstrates that you know what you are getting into, and you like it. Have you ever conducted research? If you have, you can use that fact to address many of the above questions. Perhaps a research project with a professor led to your interest in accounting. Perhaps the paper provides evidence of hard work and math skills. Perhaps it shows that you know what you are getting into. There is no better way to show that you can succeed at conducting research than to have succeeded at conducting research! You probably need a separate paragraph to describe your research topic, method and conclusions. But place that discussion in the context of one of the above bullet points. What are your weaknesses and how will you address them? Almost no one has a strong answer to every question in the previous bullet points. If you lack a strong math background or work experience, faculty will think more of you if you acknowledge that fact (after all, they already know from your transcript) and propose a plan for dealing with it. This shows both self-awareness and an understanding of what the job requires. Why us? You could pursue your purpose at any number of institutions. Why are you applying to my school? I strongly recommend reading articles posted on SSRN written by faculty at every school you apply to. Here is your opportunity to explain which faculty you are hoping to work with, and why those people and the program are attractive to you. Why you? Doctoral program admission rates are extremely low in accounting and other management fields (under 5%, usually just one or two people per field per year). There are probably other applicants who are similarly qualified. Why should the school admit you? This is your opportunity to explain why you are special. Everyone has some experience or training that will make them more memorable and suggest qualifications above and beyond the usual qualifications. Use yours to stand out from the crowd, and as a means of drawing your SoP to the only possible conclusion–that the school should admit YOU.

A final remark on writing style. Your SoP is also a way to convey that you understand how academics write. Here are some rules successful doctoral students learn quickly:

Don’t tell us a mystery story. If you are writing fiction, keep me in suspense. But if you are writing an academic paper–or a Statement of Purpose. I have to read about 100 SoPs in a typical admissions cycle. Don’t make me wade through any more words than necessary before telling me what I need to know. Don’t tell us “what I did for summer vacation.” This is particularly important for academic research. We want to know the conclusion, how you support it, what you found and why it matters. We don’t want to know the fifteen different ways you tried to solve the problem before you found one that works. Your SoP might deviate from this rule a little bit, because we want to know why you ended up applying to our program. But even for that insight, what we really want to know is why right now, after all you have done and learned, you want to apply to our program. Don’t overclaim. This cardinal rule of academic writing has three components. First, never overstate the facts. Don’t say that you were the best student in your class if you weren’t. Any hint of overclaiming facts is going to raise questions about your academic integrity, and might be grounds for immediate disqualification. Second, don’t overstate the implications of the facts. Being first in your class doesn’t mean you are sure to succeed, so don’t say it does. Third, don’t overstate the value of the facts. I wouldn’t recommend writing that being in first in your class is “extremely impressive”. Many academic writers will advise you never to say that a certain fact is interesting, important, impressive, astounding, crucial, or the like. Instead, just say that the fact implies a certain outcome or conclusion, and let the reader judge whether that is interesting, important and impressive. After all, you wouldn’t have even mentioned it if you didn’t think it was interesting, important and impressive. Saying so explicitly just makes the academic reader want to take issue with you. (This is how we roll.) Just lay out the facts and their direct implications in a way that allows no conclusion other than “wow, that is interesting, important and impressive!”

Eszter 11.21.17 at 3:28 pm

Lots of helpful advice here. I don’t have much to add, but the total cliche from my field on the social aspects of digital media: applicants starting their statements by explaining how thanks to having grown up with technology, x. Of course, 99.8% of our applicants also grew up with technology so this is not particularly unique to them. Plus if they knew related research they would know that that does not automatically make them y so it’s not a particularly helpful angle.

Sam Tobin-Hochstadt 11.21.17 at 7:33 pm

I find the common-among-academics complaint that “we were never trained to do X” always rather surprising. Sure, I wasn’t trained to do some of my job (although I received apprenticeship-style training in many things, including letter-writing and teaching). But this is totally normal in the vast majority of the jobs people have.

I think academics have too strong a sense of “other jobs” as meaning professional jobs that require specific academic curricula, such as law, nursing, etc, rather than the jobs that most people in fact have. How much of a mover’s job is covered in formal training, or a WalMart greeter, or a furnace repairman?

Trout 11.22.17 at 7:34 am

My UK-based impression is that most of the academics I know would do almost anything to avoid any more ‘training’. Too often it’s part and parcel of ever more heavy-handed regulation, of limited practical use, and in some cases, just a sticking plaster for poorly designed procedures and management tools (‘we couldn’t be bothered to figure how to do this efficiently, but the ‘training’ will cover all of this…’). By contrast, a thread like this is genuinely helpful – I’ve never received enough recommendations to form a very clear view of what works well and as I’d like to help my students as best I can, this is indeed a problem.

harry b 11.22.17 at 1:32 pm

Thanks Trout — for what its worth, we have quite a lot of evidence from compulsory education that people welcome and use training when it is embedded in their practice, ongoing, and directly related to their daily activities. My own department has started having a monthly lunchtime meeting, in which we designate someone to learn (or invite someone from outside who knows) about some practical problem that we all, or most of us, face in our instruction, or in our other professional interactions with students. These posts (maybe I’ve done 10-12 over the years) have set the stage for some of those discussions. So maybe ‘training’ isn’t quite the concept I’m looking for. Just informed discussion among professionals who trust each other, in a formal setting. And, ideally, peer observations that are not for evaluative purposes, but for purposes of mutual improvement.

I suppose that’s also a response to Sam. I watched some good teachers (my advisor is a brilliant undergrad teacher, but I can’t really emulate her, I’m too different). But ‘apprenticeship’ suggests something more systematic than I’ve had; and I did quite a bit more teaching as a grad student than many grad students coming out of elite programs do these days.

Compare the systematic attention we give to improving our research capabilities to the systematic attention we give to improving our undergraduate instruction.

But, I agree with Trout, that there is a hell of a lot of bad ‘training’, some of it worse than a waste of time.

Thomas Lumley 11.23.17 at 7:14 am

the main purpose of the personal statement is to convey that you know what you are doing, that you are genuinely interested in the program you’re applying to, and that you are not a complete flake.

That fits my experience in biostatistics. We mostly cared about (a) does this person really have some idea of what biostatistics is, and (b) will they cope with the required math-stat coursework.

On the ‘complete flake’ issue: when I’ve looked at statements by undergraduates with a bad semester or two of grades they often want to explain how it wasn’t really that bad or wasn’t their fault or was because of a good cause. What the admissions committee really cares about is whether (given reasonable accommodations if necessary) it’s likely to keep happening.

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