Any advice on PhD Personal Statements?

I disagree with that, to a point. Here’s the thing…the admission committee knows that you just have one statement but if they see a portion of that statement tailored to their school, they’ll know you put that extra bit of effort and it really makes a difference. I mean I don’t know if it made a difference for me but I tailored mine to each school and was pleased with my acceptance results. I was really specific, as well..I looked through the faculty of each school, I read their books, I figured out who in each school would be good to mention in the statement, etc. I was honest in every way but it was specific to each institution. The bulk of my statement remained the same however, it was only the end that I tailored.

@Simone_De_Beauvoir I had heard similar things from other professors and sites, so it is good to hear some consensus

In Australia, having an application to undertake a RHD accepted is highly competitive and especially if you want a scholarship. I would definitely tailor my proposal to the each University and their strengths/expertise in your field. You want them to see you have considered your choice and they aren’t one of many and you just want to be accepted, you have thought about where you want to study and they are at the top of the list of potential universities.

In the end, it will be your research proposal, track record etc. that will make the difference, but it will not hurt to show you have done some research (as @Simone_De_Beauvoir has suggested) and you are being selective about where you apply.

I have always been advised to tailor each one, even to play to the egos a bit in the department (eg I am excited to work with Dr. Hunt on her more recent research on x). And it makes sense – there’s really nothing to be gained by having just one broad personal statement, other than time, and most PhD programs would rather accept someone who saw their program as valuable of their time and effort and created more personalized personal statements than someone who thought their time was more valuable than the program was. The point of the personal statement is to help the program know why they should pick you over other applicants. And, if you’re the only one who didn’t tailor the statement, that could be a reason to pick someone else over you.

@Aethelflaed @Bellatrix Good to see everyone seems in rough agreement. For all three of you, and anyone else, Is there any general advice you have about what I should be putting in this thing. I hate personal statements, and have been told currently that mine is perhaps too much of a narrative.

I wrote mine a long time ago and given the variety of forms and expectations those applying to complete their PhD are dealing with now, I would hate to get too specific with you. Do you have a Graduate centre at your current university? I would speak to them and see if they have any exemplars you can look at and if you know anyone at the specific universities you are applying to, talk to them about their proposals and the specific proposal process at that establishment. At my university, you can get some assistance with writing these documents and I, and my colleagues, are usually very open to helping students to develop their proposal. Even if it isn’t with our university.

Do you have a particular professor you want to work with? If you have already been in contact with them and they are interested in working with you, ask them for guidance too. They should have a good understanding of the expectations and process at their university. They have a vested interest in helping you with this process if they want to supervise you.

When I have to write this type of thing, I often use Google to see if I can find any examples I can draw on. The key in anything of this type though is to be specific. I just found this advice from a UK university for prospective postgrads writing a personal statement Have a look through a few of these types of things and then look at the specific instructions from the university you are applying to.

Good luck. My background is communications and it is a fascinating and fast-moving field.

@Bellatrix Very informative. It leaves me a bit worried as I apply, only because there are no professors with whom I have an intimate connection. From what I understand, applying at least to Canadian PhD programs, that sort of approval/sponsorship is necessary (working on that as we speak), but I am not sure if such a connection is necessary for American universities.

@sushilovinfun You don’t have to have an intimate connection, just drop the name or an event. I went to all the schools prior to applying and I’ve been going to the events held by the schools anyway for years. So I was able to say which events I enjoyed, etc.

@Simone_De_Beauvoir That, at least, I have been doing. I have presented at conferences and all that, and am aware of the work, if broadly, of various professors… I finally got my hand on a sample Personal Statement. I may add my thoughts on it in a day or two in case someone else has this question on Fluther.

Don’t worry about the connection. @sushilovinfun, you don’t HAVE to have a connection. Some people will have a connection though and it can help. They may have met someone at a conference and spoken to them or worked with them on a project. If you did meet someone you admire at a conference, and you would like to work with them, call them up. Let them know you are applying to their university and ask whether they would be available as a supervisor. If they are not available, is there someone else in your field they would suggest? We still live in a ‘it’s not what you know but who you know’ world and as @Simone suggested, dropping a few names is not a bad thing. It is also not a bad thing to get someone on side so you can specifically say they are interested in supervising you.

Work those connections if there is someone or somewhere you want to go particularly. Ask around too. A PhD is a step in your academic career it is not the end goal. Is there someone out there in your field who is a really fabulous supervisor. They may not have the ‘international’ track record of someone else, but they are complimented by their students for being a great supervisor. I cannot stress how important that relationship is.

Given that you are thinking about all of this, I am sure you will be fine. You aren’t taking the process for granted. That will show in your application.