If you missed the GATES meeting on "Writing a Personal Statement", we've compiled the advice from our wonderful graduate student panel below. You can also see real example statements from successful applications to graduate school and for GRFP fellowships at the bottom of this page.
The goal
The personal statement is your opportunity to talk about who you are, what you are interested in, and where you are coming from. Here, you can emphasize particularly relevant or important aspects of your CV. This is also the place to explain your journey if you started off in another field, took time off, or aren’t particularly proud of your GPA. If you have negative experiences to describe, include how you learned from them and how they have shaped you. This is very different from writing than a lab report, make sure it reflects your personality!
The personal statement is also a way to describe how you will fit into a potential graduate program and should be tailored for each school. You can suggest collaborations with other lab groups on campus, describe how your work will use an instrument or technique that’s available, and think about how the courses offered will help you attain your research goals. This will require a little digging through the department website but will show that you are truly interested in that particular program.
Make sure you include how graduate school fits into your long-term plans. Mention why you are applying to a masters versus a PhD program. Describe what you hope to do afterwards. This isn’t a hard and fast commitment, but it shows you’ve thought about why you want to go to graduate school in the first place.
Pay attention to the prompts! Different programs may want different types of statements. Make sure you are providing what they ask for. If a prompt is super vague, (politely) reach out to your potential advisor in that program and ask what they are looking for.
The approach
There are many different ways to start writing a personal statement so you’ll need to find what works for you! A few of our panelist described writing it in a chronological fashion in order to end up at their current interests. Others panelists suggested a non-linear path, but everyone agreed the first draft is “word vomit”, so just get writing! If you can’t imagine writing about yourself, ask your friends to describe you and your awesome research.
Get feedback and ask for examples! Ask your friends if it sounds like you. Ask your professors if it’s clear and concise. Graduate students and postdocs are a great resource as well. They have just been through this process and can offer lots of useful advice. Ask for their personal statements to use as an example!
Example Statements
Outside Resources
These resources have compiled past application statements for grad school, fellowships, grants, funding, etc.
Example Personal Statements (For CU Boulder)
Here's an example of a personal statement written for CU Boulder. Use these as a guide for yours, but remember to write about yourself and your interest!
CUB Example Personal Statement 1
CUB Example Personal Statement 2
CUB Example Personal Statement 3
CUB Example Personal Statement 4
CUB Example Personal Statement 5
CUB Example Personal Statement 6
CUB Example Personal Statement 7
Example Statements for Other Schools
Berkeley Example Personal Statement 1
Davis Example Diversity Fellowship 1
Davis Example Diversity Statement 1
Davis Example Statement of Purpose 1
UM Example Personal Statement 1
UM Example Personal Statement 2
UNR Example Statement of Purpose 1
Example GRFP Statements
GRFP Example Personal Statement 1
GRFP Example Research Statement 1
GRFP Example Personal Statement 2
GRFP Example Research Statement 2