When I wrote my optional personal statement, I thought it was pretty good. Looking back though, it’s pretty terrible. It’s just about how much I want to attend William and Mary and how great of a fit it is for me, which is not at all unique and colorful for someone applying to William and Mary. Someone else told me that this was what you are supposed to do in statements like this, but I think that was bad advice in retrospect. How heavily is the optional essay weighed in comparison to the Common App essay (which I think I did much better on)? Could I get rejected because of this personal statement if it is bad, even if my grades, extracurricular activities, and testing are pretty solid? I really wish I hadn’t written anything for it at all at this point. It’s pretty short, so at least I’m not forcing the admissions officers to read too much of a bad thing haha.
I was accepted a month ago as an ED applicant, so here’s my two cents:
If you have a solid profile (and are in state, that’s a huge factor that I didn’t have to my advantage) and don’t necessarily write a stellar personal statement, all is good. The blog posts I’ve read on the subject have all implied that writing a mediocre optional essay won’t drag down an already solid application unless the statement has serious flaws of mechanics or form. It really is just another chance to exhibit and explain what you can bring to the school. It really can be anything. If you want the admissions office to know that you can bring a bucket full of tribe pride, then you wrote your essay to form. So long as everything else is solid, you should be fine.