Admissions tutors will want to know you’ve got the right character and commitment for counselling, psychotherapy, and occupational therapy, so try and get across where your passion for this career comes from, examples of how you’ve developed the relevant attributes, and why you wish to work in this sector.
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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:
- Explain clearly why you want to study counselling, psychotherapy, and occupational therapy, and explain what you know already about the subject. Perhaps you’ve had counselling yourself, or you’ve seen adverts for an organisation like BetterHelp and it prompted you to explore the career further. Or maybe you watched BBC Three’s Don’t Call Me Crazy and you were interested in occupational therapist Vicki Ray’s job.
- Give examples of articles you’ve read, programmes you’ve watched, or podcasts you’ve listened to that have given you further insight. Maybe your parent listens to Radio 4’s Bringing up Britain and you now follow Dr Anjula Mutanda, which has helped you understand what psychotherapists do. Or if you follow Dr Nicole LePera or Dr Sara Kuburic, explain how that’s given you an insight into particular types of counselling and psychotherapy.
- If you know, mention where you hope this degree will take you, whether you want to work in a hospital, corporation, or private practice. Don’t worry if you don’t know yet – you can still explain what it is about you as a person that makes you a good fit.
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:
- If you have studied psychology, for example, focus on one aspect of your studies that resonated with you and why. If you loved developmental psychology, explain why that’s made you want to work in child psychology, for example, and some of the knowledge you picked up – such as how trauma in the early years affects children.
- Think of skills you’ve gained from other subjects too, such as analysing data in maths or sciences, and good research, writing, and communication skills in English or drama.
- 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:
- Counsellors, psychotherapists, and occupational therapists all need to have a lot of empathy and good active listening skills. Mention if you’ve volunteered for a charity, especially someone like The Samaritans, and how you dealt with an emotional client. If you’ve had other jobs in a hospice, care home, or nursery, for example, explain how that has taught you to be patient and a good listener.
- Think about other skills you’ll need, such as problem-solving, resilience, and persistence. You could write about personal situations where you’ve built up these skills – such as having a sick parent or sibling or dealing with a big disappointment –or think of part-time jobs or work experience where you had to develop these skills.
- Write about clubs you’re part of, sports you play, and other hobbies you have and how they’ve helped you. For example, playing on a sports team will have enhanced your interpersonal and communication skills, resilience, and commitment.
- 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?
Your character and attributes are particularly important for counselling, psychotherapy, and occupational therapy, so try and demonstrate that you are mature, self-aware, and reflective. Perhaps you can write about a personal experience you’ve had, and what you learned from it. If you’re a young carer, for example, you’ll already have a great degree of maturity and resilience. Or if you had a tough time with peers at school, reflect on how you coped and what it has taught you.
What jobs have you had that might relate to your chosen course?
What is it about you, too, that makes you want to help other people? Maybe you’ve done some charity fundraising throughout school or college, or you or your family have had experience with counselling, psychotherapy, or occupational therapy due to an injury or illness. Or maybe you’re transfixed by Couples Therapy on BBC Two and it has made you realise you know what you want to do!
It's even better if you can link what you’ve written back to something you've learned in your sciences, sociology, or psychology studies, or read in New Psychotherapist, on the Royal College of Occupational Therapists website or seen on a TED talk.
Some more tips to consider
- Research the course: Why do you want to study counselling, psychotherapy, and occupational therapy, 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? Make sure you tailor your statement to the course you’re applying for.
- Patience and persistence: Can you describe situations where you’ve demonstrated these attributes, alongside other personal qualities like resilience, that you’ll need for a career like this?
- Make your work experience count: If you’ve work-shadowed a counsellor, psychotherapist, or occupational therapist, or spoken to one about their jobs, that’s great – make sure you also spell out exactly what you learned 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. Think outside the box – so, you’re part of a musical theatre group; how has it developed your communication and problem-solving skills and your ability to work well on your own and as part of a wider team?