Instruction for referee by UCAS says “Avoid repeating any of the information they’ve given in their application”.
What is the meaning of this notice?
Is this instruction tells us that what I want to write in PS cannot be used in
us that any contents in Reference cannot be used as what I want to write in Personal Statement?
[ UCAS Instruction for Referee ]
https://www.ucas.com/file/125176/download?token=tFky7KU3
For example your reference writer should not list the courses you’ve taken or grades, as those are already in your application.
I currently got GPA Score of 3.7 out of 4.0 in my high school and this result will be entered in the Education page in UCAS.
Is this case, should the referee eliminate any mention of my final GPA Score as an academic achievement?
Also, does referee have to avoid containing my extracurriculars if I mentioned them in Personal Statement?
My daughter applied for chemistry. Her HL Chemistry teacher talked about her commitment to the subject, her enthusiasm in class, her summer research, and her excellent lab skills. That’s stuff they can’t get from a course list and test scores that are elsewhere on the application.
@VickiSoCal
Thank you for your quick reply.
By the way, did your daughter mention her summer research in her personal statement, for example?
In fact, I wrote senior thesis in my high school and this thesis is just about what I want to study in UK.
Moreover, I received Senior Thesis Award for this thesis from School President.
My homeroom teacher will definitely write about this award in my reference, but I’ve already witten about this in my personal statement because this thesis is entirely useful for me to relate achievement to passion for the subject area.
In this case, should I ask my teacher not to include this award in order to avoid the repetition?
The words in your application are a finite resource: between your application, your LOR and your PS there are only so many words that you are allowed, and you want every one of them to count.
So your teacher should write mostly about the things that only he can write about- as @VickiSoCal said, things that show what sort of student you are. There is no need to list the GPA, because it is already in the application. In general, your teacher should only be writing about ECs IF it is directly related to the subject you are applying to study AND he linking it as part of a picture of you as a whole student.
Try to think about what the purpose of each section of the application serves. You and your teacher can both mention the thesis or the summer research- but in theory from different perspectives. It is not just a matter of saying “wrote a thesis and got a prize”. The teacher (for example) would talk more about the level of thinking and analysis, the quality of the research, etc., while you might talk more about how your understanding of the subject changed, how it affected the direction of your interests, what you want to do with it next. So, same topic but really different information.
Also, be careful about “passion” - a lot of people throw that word around but while the people who read your application want to believe that you have a genuine interest in the area, it’s not that the “most passionate” wins. Think of the difference between having a crush on somebody- and actually loving them over time. The readers want to see maturity of thought, an understanding of the area more than just ‘passion’. Don’t waste time trying to make them believe that you are ‘passionate’- show them that this is a thoughtful, serious, mature interest.
@collegemom3717
Thank you for your post.
I understood difference in role between PS and Los makes the difference in “aspect” of activities and abilities.
Also, as you mention, we applicants should convey their passion smartly with logicality.