<p>Hi so I'm an incoming Junior and I've been think about what to write for my personal statement senior year and I was wondering does Stanford, UC schools and Ivy league school change personal statement prompts every year? or do they change every once in a while? if the do, do you think they will change the essay prompt in 2012?</p>
<p>Well Stanford and the Ivy League schools use the CommonApp. It has one main personal statement and one supplement space that basically says “tell us something you want us to know that makes you seem awesome,” and that doesn’t really change from year to year. Visit the website and make an account whether you’ll use it or not; I think they’ll show you the prompt.</p>
<p>But in all seriousness, I just realized you’re an INCOMING junior. Don’t start writing your statement yet… your writing skills will improve this year and working on old statements might even hold you back from showing improvements in style and structure. I started my personal statement and supplements the summer before senior year, and that left me plenty of time, even though I applied to MANY, MANY schools. </p>
<p>For now, start writing in a weekly blog or something to get used to letting the writing juices flow. That’s what’ll help you the most, honestly. Personal statements don’t change, in essence. Supplements are usually asking what books/magazines/websites you use most or most recently, why you think their school is the one for you, and why you’re interested in a certain area of study.</p>