According to Andrew Pike, Admissions Tutor at Newcastle University, a 'genuine passion for the subject' is the top ingredient to convey in your chemistry personal statement. Demonstrate this dedication in a way that's unique to you.
You could explain what it is about the subject that will keep you motivated to study it for three or four years, or how you see chemistry fitting into your longer-term plans or career. You don’t need to know exactly where you want your future career to lead, but you can write about what you might want to achieve through your chemistry degree, whether that’s career progression, personal fulfilment, academic curiosity or specific topics you want to learn about, for example.
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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?
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:
- Write about things that have genuinely impacted on your knowledge, understanding or enthusiasm, or on you as a person. Andrew Pike at Newcastle University says: ‘Avoid generalisations. You need to make this personal. It is about you, so you don’t need to tell me how a detailed theory works or make a political or environmental point unless you actually did something about it’.
- Dr Simon Gerrard, Principal Teaching Fellow (Organic & Medicinal Chemistry) and UG Admissions Tutor for the Department of Chemistry at imperial College London, wants evidence of your motivation: 'It doesn’t matter if you don’t know what you want to do after university, what I really like to see is enthusiasm and a passion for the subject’. Give an example or two of how you have applied your learning to real life – through work experience, a lecture you attended, a documentary you saw, a podcast you heard, or something specific you’ve discovered through your wider reading.
- Think too about any experiences you’ve had that made you want to explore chemistry further – perhaps you’ve enjoyed lab work, or you’ve experimented with inks and dyes at home. Or maybe you want to create more sustainable packaging because you’re passionate about protecting the environment.
- If you know what you want to focus on, for example, investigating environmental issues, then mention that too – you can relate it to your career aspirations, and make sure it’s relevant to the course you’re applying for.
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:
- Think about skills you’ve learned from the chemistry lab at school or college, such as working with acids, analytical techniques, sample and data collection, all of which will help you during your degree.
- Write about the skills you’ve picked up from studying other subjects that may be relevant to chemistry, such as attention to detail, independent research, presentation and communication skills.
- How is your personality suited to studying chemistry? Maybe you’ve always been curious or wanted to make a difference in the world. Give examples that illustrate this, whether it’s supercurricular activities or charity fundraising.
- 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?
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:
- Think about your hobbies and interests. You may have learned teamwork from playing sports, problem-solving skills from playing computer or board games, etc.
- Part-time jobs also teach us lots of transferable skills such as good verbal communication and time management. If you’ve worked in a restaurant, factory or construction site, you may even have learned how to dispose of chemicals safely.
- Mention any work experience you’ve had or volunteering you’ve done that suits you to the course you’re applying for, whether you’ve worked in a chemist, or for an environmental charity and you now want to learn how to analyse soil.
- Maybe you’ve had a personal or family experience with a disease such as cancer and it has made you want to work in clinical research or medicinal chemistry.
- 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? Whether you’ve been inspired by the novel Lessons in Chemistry or you enjoy creating new recipes, let admissions tutors know what makes you stand out.
Think of unusual things you’ve done. You might have worked up to a black belt in karate over many years, which shows the commitment and dedication you’ll need for a degree. You might enjoy experimenting with dyeing t-shirts or bags. Maybe you're really into TV shows like Silent Witness or Forensic Files and know you want to focus on that area of chemistry – showcase you and what fascinates you.
Link your interests
If you can, link your personal interests back to your desire to study chemistry, and reference what you’ve learned already from your studies, or the books or podcasts you enjoy. Maybe you’re a big fan of Britain’s Lost Masterpieces, you’ve done art A level, and you already know you want to use your chemistry to restore works of art!
Some more tips to consider
- Structure and organisation: To study chemistry, you need to demonstrate you’re capable of organising yourself, whether that’s evidenced through your time management for school projects and assignments, or in your hobbies.
- Examples of your relevant skills: Can you describe situations where you’ve demonstrated relevant skills like good teamwork, problem-solving, analysing, initiative, or achieving goals?
- Research the course: Why do you want to study chemistry, 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?
- Making your chemistry experience count: It’s not just what you've done but how you've reflected on it. If you worked in a pharmacy or a local hospital, spell out what you personally gained from it.
- Transferable skills: Whether through extracurricular or supercurricular 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 – explain how being in a band has given you teamworking skills and helped with your self-motivation and time management.