Personal Statement Questions

<p>The personal statement is very open ended. My personal essay describes me indirectly through a specific reference. Do the admissions counselors prefer a unique, less direct statement over a statement that is ALL about the applicant, meaning that they write it in a very direct way?</p>

<p>Also… The application says that “300-500 should be sufficient”, is it acceptable to go 50 words or so beyond this?</p>