08 - Personal Statement - Guidelines
Personal Statement Example
As I approach graduation from High School, I stop to reflect on the path that has led me to this point in my life. The portfolio that follows, is a reflection of the work that I have done throughout high school, on both academic and professional levels. Although the following portfolio is not nearly comprehensive enough to demonstrate all of my accomplishments, it should give a sense of the determination and hard work that I have put towards achieving my goals. This portfolio also shows the path I have chosen into my future. I grew up in a small city in Oklahoma. I had 5 brothers and sisters, and someone was always getting hurt. One time my youngest brother fell off the roof of our house and landed on his head. We had to rush him to the hospital to be examined. I was fascinated by all the things the doctors were doing. There were so many details to remember. I was so glad they could help my brother and I decided that I wanted to be able to help people as well. As a student of New Tech High, I've been able to accomplish 8 learning outcomes which have also helped to prepare me for future success. My classes in digital media, and computer literacy have helped me accomplish my technology literacy goals and will help me tremendously when I begin working in the hospital and have to use the computer for patient records. (examples of my technology literacy, can be seen on that page). I feel that my strengths are my collaboration skills and oral presentation skills. You will see evidence of both of these skills in my portfolio. My long term goal is to be an emergency room (ER) physician. To attain this goal I plan to attend the University of California at Santa Barbara and work as a paramedic. In an effort to reach my goals, I have maintained a high grade point average throughout my high school career. I hope that you enjoy my portfolio. I have enjoyed compiling it and feel it reflects me and my potential for success. |
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Step #1: Review ~
Review the Rubric For this Project:
Explain there are 3 basic kinds of Personal Statements
- Education: Used for getting into college.
- Career: Cover letters for getting a job.
- Overcoming Obstacles: Personal narratives detailing the troubles you've overcome and the strengths you have gained because of them.
Ask students, "Which one is this?" & display one of these Personal Statements:
Step #2: Don't Be Boring !
The worst thing you can do is start with:
"Hello. My name is Xxxx Xxxx. I am 16 years old. I have an average life with normal friends and blah blah blah …
Nobody cares what you did in Junior High or how old you are or what your favorite rap star is or that some boy broke your heart or even your name.
If we're reading your personal statement on your web site then we already know your name.
Start with something dynamic, interesting and attention grabbing.
Step #3: Don't Be Boring !
Who are you? What are your achievements? What are your goals?
Your personal statement introduces you and gives them a sense of who you are. The personal statement will be a keystone of your portfolio, and will change and grow each year.
Requirements:
Introduction: Start with an introduction. Give a brief overview of you and your portfolio.
Background: Personal information you're comfortable sharing such as where you grew up, number of people in your family, elementary education, religious involvement, etc. You should also include any information from the personality and learning style surveys that you find relevant.
Experiences & Interests: Include any experiences that have shaped who you are. Talk about activities you enjoy both in and out of school, including clubs you're involved in, sports teams, choirs, drama groups or other extra-curricular activities.
Goals: Tell us your goals for the future; where you want to be and what you want to do. This should include goals toward future educational pursuits, career or personal goals.
Skills: What skills do you feel are your strengths and what are your weaknesses? What evidence of this might we see in the portfolio?
Conclusion: Finally, tell us what you plan to do to make your goals and dreams a reality. Do you plan on going to college, law school, Med school, or any other type of higher education? What sort of resources are you using to find out which direction to head? What steps have you taken to reach your goals?
Your personal statement should be:
3-5 Paragraphs
Neat, clear, and well organized (include a clear introduction and conclusion)
Free of spelling, grammatical and typographical mistakes
More Examples:
personal statement ex5
foreign obstacle personal statement
career specific personal statement
Personality and Learning Style Surveys
Before you can begin to build a portfolio that demonstrates your skills and provides evidence of those skills, you first must understand who you are as an individual. Your portfolio should provide people with a complete picture of your interests, personality, learning styles, and abilities.
I. Explore some of the following online surveys:
http://www.ldpride.net/learningstyles.MI.htm
http://similarminds.com/
http://www.humanmetrics.com/cgi-win/JTypes2.asp
http://www.paulgoldinresearch.com/cg/
http://surfaquarium.com/MI/
http://surfaquarium.com/MI/intelligences.htm
II. Create a report of your survey results and include this report on your portfolio.
