Whether talking about a recent news story, how you meet targets in your weekend job, or who inspired you to study business at uni or college, that spark of genuine motivation and enthusiasm will get you noticed. We’ll cover some examples to get you started on thinking about what you could include in your personal statement to help you stand out, plus some experts are on hand with their advice.
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Think about why you want to study the subject
- Have you been inspired by someone, a news story, a documentary, or a podcast?
- Do you have career aspirations in this area of study?
- What interests you about the subject – be specific; rather than saying you enjoy it or are good at it, try to explain the ‘why’ behind your reasoning.
- What do you already know about the subject and what are you looking forward to learning more about?
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What makes you suitable to study the subject?
- Have you done projects or essays in this subject at school or college?
- Think about who you are as a person; your personality, your strengths, your experiences in life – how do these make you suited to study the subject?
- How have you shown an interest in the subject outside of school or college – have you done extra reading, online courses, been part of clubs or competitions?
- Your current subjects and grades will be included elsewhere in your application, so try to think about specific things you’ve learned during your studies that relate to the subject, rather than listing your grades and subjects.
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Look at the bigger picture
- Have you done any work experience, an internship or had a part-time job in this subject area or related? Most job or work experience will give you transferable skills, even if it’s in a different industry.
- Do you have any hobbies you can mention that might relate to your chosen subject? Many hobbies show that you can be motivated outside of school to achieve and succeed in something you’re interested in.
- Think about how your life and personal experiences have helped make you the person you are today, and how these challenges and experiences can support your application by evidencing essential qualities for certain subjects.
- If you’ve got ambitions and goals for your life and career, can you express how this subject will help you reach these goals?
Dr Trevor Bolton, Pro Vice Chancellor and Dean of International Business School – Anglia Ruskin University
Guidance and examples you can use
Question 1: Why do you want to study this course or subject?
This is your opportunity to showcase your passion and knowledge of your chosen subject area and to demonstrate to universities and colleges why it’s a good fit for you and your future ambitions.
Examples:
- Have you been inspired by business owners, maybe family members or people you follow online, e.g. Ben Francis of Gymshark? What about their business and how they have become successful do you admire?
- Podcasts and Youtube or entrepreneurs, e.g. Diary of a CEO. Give examples of what you found inspiring and what made you interested in business and management.
- Want to run your own business so you want to learn the skills to be successful? Talk about your career ambitions and goals.
- Are you interested in a particular strand of business? For example, human resources, finance, marketing?
Question 2: How have your qualifications and studies helped you to prepare for this course or subject?
This is your chance to shout about the relevant or transferable skills you’ve gained from your formal education and highlight your understanding of how they will help you succeed in this subject area.
Examples:
- How can you show you’re a good communicator? Have you given presentations at school?
- Have you done any online courses to boost your knowledge in the subject? For example, why not try Subject Spotlights or Virtual Work Experiences from Springpod to grow your skills and interest?
- Talk about a project or coursework you’ve done that sparked an interest in an area of business or management.
Question 3: What else have you done to prepare outside of education, and why are these experiences useful?
This is your chance to talk about any other activities you have undertaken outside of your formal education, or personal experiences which further demonstrate your suitability for the course. This section is likely to be highly personal to you and anything you do include should reflect on why you’re including it.
Examples:
- Include some examples to show you’re self-motivated and have a strong work ethic – things that you’ll need if you are running your own business. Maybe you’ve been doing your own research, done work experience or volunteering, or have a side hustle with a business plan you created?
- Do you have a part-time job, or have you done work experience? You can talk about time management, teamwork, looking after money, interacting with the public; these are all transferable skills that are very relevant for a business and management course.
- You might even have saved up money for something like a games console or a phone, or budgeting for a trip with friends. These are great skills that show you understand how finances and budgets work, and you are self-motivated and driven.
- Do relate any examples back to the subject you’re applying to – make it relevant
- Do make it personal – admissions staff want to get to know who you are
- Do use a spell-checker and grammar-checker to ensure there are no errors
- Do ask people for feedback, whether that’s family members or teachers
- Do your research to find out what universities are looking for, and make sure you include evidence to show how you are suitable for the course
- Don’t just list out examples, subjects you study, or experiences you’ve had without any evidence
- Don’t copy something you’ve seen online or use AI to write something for you
- Don’t make things up just because you think they’ll make you look good on paper
- Don’t leave it until the last minute – you need time for several drafts
- Don’t worry about making each section the same length; as long as you hit the minimum character count, you can use the 4,000 characters across each answer in the way that suits you best
How to set yourself apart
The key to setting yourself apart in your application is to remember how important the ‘personal’ bit is to your personal statement. What makes you, you? Maybe you have a side hustle selling crafts on Etsy, maybe you got inspired after DMing Steven Bartlett, or maybe you want to start a sustainable business because you’re passionate about the environment.
It's the "how" that brings your statement to life and makes it interesting and personal. So, try to think of specific occasions or unique ways you have demonstrated your potential, or maybe something you've observed about customer behaviour, management styles or an effective (or ineffective) marketing campaign.
It's even better if you can then link it to something you've learned in your business, economics, or psychology studies, or read in the Financial Times, The Economist, or on the BBC website.
How can you demonstrate these skills?
Dr Pam Croney, admissions tutor at Newcastle Business School at Northumbria University, is especially looking for evidence of:
- an independent learner
- a thinker and doer
- an innovator or potential entrepreneur
- a good communicator who likes giving presentations
- an interest in what's happening out there in the business world
Some more tips to consider
- Structure and organisation: To study management, you need to demonstrate you are capable of managing yourself. Your personal statement needs to be structured, organised, and free of spelling or grammatical errors.
- Examples of your relevant skills: Can you describe situations where you’ve demonstrated relevant skills like good communication or teamwork, problem-solving, initiative, leadership, or achieving goals?
- Research the course: Why do you want to study business and management, what specific aspects of the course interest you, how does it relate to your academic studies, and what additional reading or other activities have led you to apply?
- Entrepreneurial flair: Can you show you are a 'self-starter' who enjoys identifying and solving business problems?
- Making your business experience count: It’s not just what you've done but how you've reflected on it. If you work-shadowed the CEO of a multi-national company, that's great, but it will have zero impact unless you spell out what you personally gained from it.
- Transferable skills: Whether through extra-curricular or super-curricular activities, work experience or a part-time job, you’ll have lots of skills that will be relevant to your course. Try to think outside the box – ok, so you’re part of a football team; can you explain how that has given you teamworking and communication skills, helped with your self-motivation and time management?