<p>Some of the applications I'm filling out want a personal statement, and don't say what they are asking for in it. So what should a personal statement be about?</p>
<p>The personal statement is a challenge because aside from being about you, it's pretty much open in what you write. I had a friend who wrote about her recipe for the perfect grilled cheese sandwich and how the sandwich had played an important role in her life. I wrote a tongue-in-cheek essay about how never getting over childhood dreams played into my current ambitions. It can be more interesting or avant garde (written from the perspective of your dog, but I wouldn't necessarily recommend it), or it can be more basic, like mine. If you want to go that route, if you have a passion, you could write about that.
My recommendation is this:
1. think of one activity, object or incident that defined your or is important in your life right now. Try using it as a springboard for writing about yourself. Like, if you had a scarring run-in with duct tape start with it at the beginning, go on to talk about yourself, and you may find a way to tie it all back in at the end.<br>
2. if that doesn't help, just write a short summary of your life to get started. Something will probably leap out at you eventually. You'll realize that your summer job had this or that significance, and things will start to click.
3. if you're still stumped, try asking other people those annoying to answer questions like, how would you sum me up in one word? Something may strike you there, too.</p>
<p>I don't know if this helps, but there it is.</p>
<p>It's hard. It's REALLY hard. I wrote or started probably 15 different essays, about things ranging from a restaurant to a fascination with a future job, and I've narrowed it down to 3 topics that I'm playing with. </p>
<p>One is a very traditional extracurricular-based essay that ties in everything I've ever done to a single, broad concept.</p>
<p>Another is specific for the University of Michigan's "discuss an issue of local or national concern, and why it has affected you" where I talk about my unconventional wisdom regarding the handling of sexual orientation in secondary education.</p>
<p>The third, and the one I will most likely use, is an anecdotal experience about a crazy redneck family member, then a personal examination of why I love small town culture so much, and miss it dearly. (I moved from the stix to Detroit a few years ago).</p>
<p>It takes time. Every potential idea that pops into your head - WRITE about it. Eventually, it will smack you in the head and you'll write a great essay.</p>
<p>"Personal statement" just means "open ended essay." You can take whatever essay you wrote for the Common App or another school's application and submit it as your personal statement.</p>