Nevertheless, to be effective, you must tell us how this person influenced your life , your response to that influence, or the ways in which he or she contributed to your development. It is important to remember that the admissions office is considering you for admission, not the other person. Some students choose to focus their personal statement on an experience from early childhood. In order to have any relevance or to be useful, the information you share must reflect more recent activities or events, and explain the ways in which these experiences have helped you grow, learn, or mature. To recount childhood events without putting them into the context of your current life fails to take advantage of the opportunity afforded you by the personal statement.
Many applicants write about a turning point in their lives.
To be successful, however, this type of personal statement must clearly and convincingly show us the way this experience relates to your current goals and aspirations. This is especially important if the experience you are recounting occurred early in your life. Unusual circumstances or hardship alone do not make a personal statement more effective. If you do choose to write about difficulties you have faced, focus on insights gained and what you learned or achieved as a result of these circumstances, not on the specific hardship. Read the instructions in the application packet, follow the guidelines we suggest, and present yourself in a mature and thoughtful way.