A STEP BY STEP GUIDE TO
Writing a Personal Statement for Job Applications 8 Steps to writing a personal statement to maximise your chances of getting a job interview.
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CONTENTS Introduction
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What is a personal statement?
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Step 1 - Understand the role
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Step 2 - Write engaging opening and closing paragraphs
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Step 3 - Address the Person Specification
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Step 4 - Give examples
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Step 5 - Use the STAR format
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Step 6 – Use powerful language
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Step 7 – Make your examples relevant
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Step 8 – Keep to the word count
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Summary
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Contact the Careers Team Visit us in the Careers & Opportunities Hub in SAB303 Find jobs, advice and book appointments through CareerConnect Use the Careers Intranet pages @_UoWcareers @uowcareers @universityofwinchestercareers 01962 827310 careers@winchester.ac.uk
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INTRODUCTION The aim of this guide is to walk you through, step by step, how to create a personal statement for a job application that will maximise your chances of securing a job interview. A personal statement is all about telling the employer why you meet the requirements for the job. Providing relevant evidence will make it easier for them to see you as a match and therefore put you through to interview stage. The hard part comes long before you begin writing a personal statement; you need to make sure you have evidence that you meet the requirements of the job to write about in the first place. This is usually developed from paid work or voluntary experience but can also be gained through club and society membership, course group/project work and other developmental opportunities, such as placements. Therefore, aim to get as much experience as you can, relevant to the field of work you are interested in.
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Give yourself plenty of time to write your statement, as the more effort you put in, the more responses you will get back. Each statement must be written specifically for the job you are applying for, although you will be able to reuse bits from past statements once you have done a few. Personal statements are not easy documents to write, especially at first, but if you can master the art of writing a good personal statement each time you apply for a job, then you will find that you are never job searching for long. If you require any clarification or more in-depth one-to-one guidance, please do not hesitate to contact one of the Faculty Employability Advisers at the University.
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WHAT IS A PERSONAL STATEMENT? Employers use personal statements to decide if you are a candidate that is suitable to be interviewed for a particular job. They are often described as a “Supporting Statement” or “Supporting Information” identifiable as a free text box within an online application form, where you are invited to state why you match the requirements listed in the person specification. The Person Specification is the section of the job description where the employer has identified what skills, experience and qualities someone would need to perform the job in question. They will often split the criteria into sections in order of importance such as “Essential” (you must have all these things to do the job), or “Desirable” (it would be even better if you had these things as well). If every candidate meets all the Essential criteria, then selection will be made according to who meets most of the Desirable criteria as well. They cannot interview everyone! Fig.1: example of a Person Specification within a University of Winchester job description for a Graduate Research Associate: PERSON SPECIFICATION The person specification details the attributes that the successful post holder requires to enable them to succeed in this role. Each of the attributes are designated as either essential (E) or desirable (D). In order to be shortlisted for interview, your application needs to demonstrate that you meet all of the essential (E) attributes and as many of the desirable (D) attributes as possible that are being assessed at application (A) stage. (I = interview) ESSENTIAL or DESIRABLE
ASSESSMENT A,I
Graduate of the University of Winchester who graduated in the academic year 2019/20
E
A
Committed to the Internship duration
E
A, I
Not enrolled on a further course of study at time of internship
E
A, I
Eligible to work in the UK
E
A, I
D
A, I
MS Office Word
E
I
Outlook
E
I
Excel
E
I
ATTRIBUTES
EDUCATION/TRAINING
EXPERIENCE Office administration procedures KNOWLEDGE Proficient in the use of:
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SKILLS/ABILITIES Ability to work to deadlines
E
I
Excellent interpersonal skills
E
I
Excellent communication skills both orally and written
E
A, I
Excellent attention to detail and accuracy
E
A, I
Flexible approach to work
E
I
Team player
E
I
Professional manner
E
I
Tact and diplomacy
E
I
Initiative
E
I
Demonstrate commitment to University Values
E
A, I
Experience of hydrological study are undergraduate level
D
A, I
PERSONALITY
OTHER
Tip: You can see from the example person specification above that the employer has indicated what they want you to address in your personal statement as “A-Application”. Some sections, such as “Personality” will be assessed at interview stage, so you don’t need to write about them in detail.
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DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A PERSONAL STATEMENT AND A COVER LETTER You might be thinking, “Isn’t a personal statement the same as a cover letter?” and it is true that there are some similarities, such as: F A personal statement should begin with an engaging opening paragraph stating why you are interested in the role and aim to grab the reader’s attention, in the same way as a cover letter. F They should also both end with a closing statement that leaves the reader thinking you are professional and courteous, keen on the job and that they would like to find out more about you. Cover letters are used both when applying for advertised positions and, also, when contacting an organisation to make a speculative application with a CV. You would write this speculative cover letter tailored to the company, selling your skills, experience and potential should any vacancies arise. For an advertised position requesting a letter and CV, the job advert may describe what needs to be addressed in the cover letter. A personal statement is always within an application to an advertised specific role. The key difference is that a personal or “supporting” statement needs to address all the points in the person specification and provide enough evidence to show that you meet all the requirements to allow you to move to the next stage of the recruitment process. The employer will be reading your statement and scoring you against the person specification before comparing your score against other applicants. The truth is, if you do not meet all the “Essential Criteria” listed in the Person Specification, it is highly unlikely that you will be invited to interview. Therefore, it is so important to target your application to each job you apply for, and carefully match your statement to the criteria that are listed.
STEP 1 UNDERSTAND THE ROLE AND THE ORGANISATION If you do not fully understand what you are applying for, it will be difficult to write an engaging and relevant personal statement. Be sure to read the job description, job advert and any other information available until you feel that you could explain what the job is in your own words. This will make the process a lot easier. Do some research on the organisation, but at this stage just consider their culture and values, as you need to focus on writing about you. Read enough so you feel like you ‘get’ the organisation and what they are about (as well as understanding clearly what they do). You could find information in many places: F The “About Us” section on the company website. F Google them, see if they appear in any press stories. F Check out the company values (usually searchable on their website). F Make sure you are clear on where this job fits within their company. Many organisations have multiple divisions or sections that do completely different things.
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STEP 2 WRITE ENGAGING OPENING AND CLOSING PARAGRAPHS Now that you have a proper understanding of the organisation and its culture, it’s time to start writing an application to make them believe you will be a great addition to their team!
The beginning: The first few lines need to grab the reader’s attention and make them want to read on. Try and combine a few major points in your opening paragraph: F State why you are applying for the job, demonstrating passion and enthusiasm. F Mention the organisation you are applying to specifically and why you want to work for them (Never use a generic application for multiple companies). F Be concise and use the first paragraph to give a brief overview of what is to follow in your personal statement, a bit like the “Profile” section of a CV.
Something like: “I am writing to apply for the position of XXXX as I am dedicated to pursuing a career in XXXX. This is demonstrated by the volunteering and work experience that I have gained throughout my degree, which I have detailed in this personal statement. I am extremely keen to join XXXX (organisation name) as I am highly motivated about your ethos of / research in / work in the area of ...”
F Mention the company name again to show that your attention is fully focused on working for them (even if you are writing 10 other job applications that week!).
For example: “In summary, I am confident in being the right match for this position. I meet all the requirements in the Person Specification, but aside from that I demonstrate clear passion for the field of XXX. This is evidenced through multiple volunteering hours in this field and supported by a strong academic record. I am extremely keen on developing a career with (organisation name) and believe I already live your values of ... I feel that my dedication and enthusiasm for this role will enable me to truly make the most of the training opportunities you offer, working in partnership to hopefully build a successful and mutually beneficial career with your organisation. Thank you for taking the time to read my application, I hope to get the chance to meet you and discuss the position further”
To finish: End with an uplifting closing statement that pulls together what has been covered and adds in any extra points you wanted to include. Personal statements can be quite dry, methodically addressing each point on the Person Specification, so use the closing paragraph to inject some personality: F Summarise why you are a good match for the job; you can include points that are not on the person specification now if you feel you want to add anything that is more focused on your passions, interests and character. F Thank the reader for their time and re-iterate your enthusiasm for the position.
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STEP 3 ADDRESS THE PERSON SPECIFICATION The most important thing to remember when writing a personal statement for a job application, is to address EVERY point on the person specification. For this middle section of the personal statement, content is more important than style. A methodical and organised approach is effective for this purpose: F Address each point on the Person Specification individually (if possible and if the wordcount allows), so you can be sure that they are covered, and you do not miss anything out. F You could use the headings in the Person Specification as section headers in your personal statement, as this makes it easy for the employer to see you have addressed each point.
F Use a highlighter to mark off each point on the Person Specification as you address them. F Start at the top if it is easier but the order is not important, one point may naturally lead on to talking about another that is further down the list.
STEP 4 GIVE EXAMPLES The reason employers use personal statements is because it is a fair way to evaluate your competence and is a part of the recruitment process called Competency Based Selection. This is a widely used method to select candidates that are best matched to jobs through extracting evidence of when they have demonstrated the skills and experience that the job requires. The best way to get this evidence is to ask the candidate to provide real life examples of
when they have used these skills or gained this experience. This method is used in the application and interview stages of recruitment so mastering this way of demonstrating evidence whilst writing an application will also help you prepare for the interview. So, when you address each point on the person specification it is vital that you use examples. For instance, to address a requirement for Good Teamwork skills; rather than just saying “I am really good at working in a team”, you would say something like: “I am good at working in a team. For example, at my part-time job in Sainsbury’s I work as part of a team of 10 in the clothes section. One day we had 5 members of staff off sick and I had to...”. The examples need to demonstrate when you specifically (the candidate), not your colleagues or a wider team, have demonstrated the skills and experience. So, you use the first-person: “I worked on a research project...” or “I succeeded in...” rather than “we organised an event...” or “at work they always use Microsoft Excel...”.
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STEP 5 USE THE S.T.A.R FORMAT An effective way to explain your examples is through using an acronym known as STAR. This is where you frame your example as a story, told in a structured way that demonstrates your evidence clearly:
S
Situation — set the scene, give context: the wheres and whens
T
Task — describe what needed to be done, make it specific to what you had to do: your task or job
A
Action — elaborate on the actions that you took (remember, specific to you: “I” not “we”)
R
Result — what happened, what was the outcome, what did you achieve?
Example 1: “Experience of working with people who have varied mental health needs”
S T
A
R
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Situation
Task
Throughout my degree I volunteered for XX Organisation as a Helpline Call Handler. The position involved undertaking extensive training then handling calls from service users who had varied mental health needs and were feeling overwhelmed or needed support.
Action
I took initial calls and followed a structured process of handling service user queries, using a series of open questions, always staying within safeguarding policies and procedures. I encountered a range of mental health needs including depression, anxiety, and obsessive compulsive disorder.
Result
This position and the training attached to it developed my knowledge in the field of mental health immensely. It gave me great insight into the reality of interacting with people who have minor to severe mental health needs and further fed my passion for the field.
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Example 2: “Strong Organisational Skills”
S
Situation
T
Task
At University I was part of the debating society. For 2 years, I volunteered to be in charge of organising our annual debating competition.
A
Action
I marketed the event through social media and the Intranet, registered participants, booked a venue, engaged judges, secured donated prizes from a local company, hosted and presented the event and wrote an article afterwards for the student newspaper to raise awareness of the society.
R
Result
I succeeded in delivering a fantastic event, attended by over 70 people which led to a record sign up of members the following year.
Here are some links that you might find useful: ₀
https://nationalcareers.service.gov.uk/careers-advice/interview-advice/the-star-method
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https://www.prospects.ac.uk/careers-advice/interview-tips/competency-based-interviews
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https://targetjobs.co.uk/careers-advice/interview-types/456283-how-to-answer-typical-competencybased-interview-questions
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STEP 6 USE POWERFUL LANGUAGE Using “active” verbs within your evidence and examples in application forms, covering letters and in your CV provides a positive explanation of the impact you have had. Using a variety of convincing and strong verbs will make your statement interesting, dynamic and powerful.
Here are some examples of words and phrases you may find useful.
A
I
P
Adapted Analysed Assisted Advised Arranged Audited
Illustrated Implemented Improved Increased Instructed
Planned Prepared Presented Produced Published Provided
L C Compiled Coordinated Created Communicated Conducted
D Demonstrated Developed Delivered Directed Delegated Designed
E Edited Enabled Established Enhanced Evaluated
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Led Liaised Launched Learned
M Managed Mentored Maintained Motivated Mobilised
O Observed Organised Operated Orchestrated Overhauled
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R Researched Recommended Reduced Received Recruited Reviewed
S Surveyed Supervised Supported Streamlined Solved
T Trained Targeted Taught Teamed with
STEP 7 MAKE THE EXAMPLES RELEVANT Competency style selection is designed to allow candidates to demonstrate experience and skills that are transferable i.e., if you have not done the job before, you could still be suitable having gained your experience in another environment. However, to give yourself the best chance, it is a good idea to make your examples as relevant to the job as possible (this goes for interviews too). For example, if you are trying to demonstrate teamwork in an application for a Marketing Graduate job and you have an example of working in a team within a voluntary position within a marketing department then use that instead of an example of working in a team on a University project. There are a few reasons for this: F You will be in competition with multiple other candidates, some of whom may have done the same job or very similar before. F Being able to demonstrate experience of working in a similar environment may just give you the edge and put you into the “Yes, to interview” pile. F Having experience in the relevant environment is a big win for employers, as it means there is more evidence that you work well in that environment and you understand what it is like (and you are more likely to enjoy the job and stay if you know what to expect). F If you are applying for a job in an office environment for example, and you can demonstrate experience of working in an office team rather than a team in a retail environment, this will suggest many subtle points such as that you understand how to behave in an office and know how to handle office politics.
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STEP 8 KEEP TO THE WORD COUNT Personal statements for job applications nearly always have word count/character limits but they can vary quite a lot. Check the word limit before you start writing your statement. You can do this by filling in the rest of the online application and getting to the section with the personal statement. The open text box that you are required to fill in will show you the word or character limit once you start writing in it. Once you know the word limit, it is a good idea to save your application, and draft your personal statement on a separate Word document. This way you can email it to your Faculty Employability Adviser or anyone you know who would be willing to look over it for you before you send it. It is important that it is presented well, with no grammar or spelling mistakes! Start by writing your statement, making sure you address all the points on the Person Specification, then see how many words you need to reduce it by once you have finished. It is easy to reduce the word count once you have covered all the points: F Read through and check for any repetition you can remove. F Take out unnecessary words and make your language more concise, for example: Change: “I was part of a large team for a project
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as part of my Ancient History module during my undergraduate History degree” to “As part of a team for a University project in Ancient History” Or just simple changes like “all of the customers” to “all customers” can add up to reduce the word count significantly. If the word count is low and the Person Specification is long, it can be challenging to address all the points with full examples. In this case: F Double check if it is indicated which points are being assessed in your application. Remember the example in Fig.1 of the Graduate Research Associate earlier. This showed that some of the points would be assessed in the interview, so you would not need to address them in the personal statement. F The points at the top of the list on the Person Specification tend to be the most important (things like “experience and understanding of how a sales department works” or “experience of working in a helping role in a social care environment” and become more generic as they go on (“positive attitude”, “willingness to travel”). The more important points near the top will require more detail and others further down can be addressed more briefly.
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SUMMARY Most job application forms include a personal statement, identifiable as a free text box to describe to the employer why and how you meet the requirements for the job. The employer will use this to decide if you are a suitable candidate for interview. Often described as a “Supporting Statement” or “Supporting Information” within an online application form, this is your opportunity to evidence your skills, aptitudes and experience tailored to the job role.
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Fully understand the role you are applying for by making sure you have read the job description and Person Specification carefully. Also don’t forget to research the company you are applying to.
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Always read any application instructions that are included as processes may vary across different employers.
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Add some style and flair into the opening and closing paragraphs. Use these to get your passion across and sell your personality, showing how keen you are on that specific job and organisation.
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Address all the points on the Person Specification. Longer, more detailed specifications will indicate which points are being assessed in the application, so you can focus on writing about these.
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Use examples specific to you and your experience “I did” not “We did”.
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Use STAR. It is a great way to structure your answers and will help prepare you for interviews.
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Use positive and powerful words that add impact and make a professional impression
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Keep the examples as relevant as you can. If you have more than one example to choose from, then pick the one that is in the most similar environment to the job you are applying for.
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Check the word count before you start. Draft on a separate Word document, proofread and send to your Faculty Employability Advisers for feedback if you are unsure.
Look out for our supporting information on a range of subjects on CareerConnect - our Careers and Opportunities platform, our Intranet pages and in our recorded webinars. If you require more in-depth one-to-one guidance, please do not hesitate to contact one of the Faculty Employability Advisers at the University or email careers@winchester.ac.uk.
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Contact the Careers Team Visit us in the Careers & Opportunities Hub Use the Careers Intranet pages Find jobs, advice and book appointments through CareerConnect @_UoWcareers @uowcareers @universityofwinchestercareers 01962 827310 careers@winchester.ac.uk
