Samples of Personal Statement for Scholarship Application 2016
Did you know that American graduates in 2016 have an average of $37,172 in student loans? College is more and more expensive, and only scholarships can help bear the brunt. You need an well-written personal statement that can help you make an impact and get the scholarship you deserve. Your finances are depending on it! But how can you write a good personal statement? Here’s our tips.
Steps for Scholarship Personal Statement Samples
Writing a personal statement for a scholarship is a lot easier if you have a place to start. These steps will help you overcome your blank page phobia.
- Read: Read the guidelines several times to be sure you’ve got it right.
- Brainstorm: Don’t write anything formal yet – jot down answers to question and think for a while.
- Outline: Write yourself a little outline based on your very informal notes. Feel free to keep this loose.
- Fill it in: Go through and elaborate on your points, tightening up your structure.
- Check it again and again: Finally, read over the first draft and find any mistakes. Then get someone else to look it over for you and read it yourself again. Proofreading is crucial.
Keep or Not: Five Things for Personal Statement Samples
What needs to stay in your scholarship essay, and what should you ditch? Here’s three things each to consider.
Keep:
- Your story: What brought you to where you are? Discuss it – that’s what makes you unique.
- Your voice: Don’t write like a dictionary – use words you’re comfortable with. Talk out loud first if you need to.
- Your goals: Show that you have plans for the future.
Ditch:
- That joke: It’s probably not as funny as you think.
- That quote: It just wastes space.
- Your ‘passion’: The word passion is deeply overused.
Personal Statement Buzzwords and Trends
To keep up to date with the latest scholarship personal statement trends, here’s a look at what’s currently popular.
- Keep it completely relevant to your scholarship
- Don’t mess around with extra stuff like quotes
- Use action oriented verbs
- Show your unique personality
What are action oriented verbs? They’re words that show, rather than tell, that you’ve done something. Lead, investigated, analyzed, learned, and joined are some great examples. They show your scholarship program that you don’t just think – you do. And that’s the quality of a leader. These are the most important buzzwords for your personal statement.
Personal Statement for Scholarship Samples
Each personal statement will be shaped by your scholarship. However, here we offer you a basic outline of a personal statement sample that you can tweak as you need to.
- First paragraph: Talk a little bit about yourself; explain why you’re studying what you’re studying and how you came to your school, etc.
- Second paragraph: Discuss why you’re qualified for this scholarship. Why do you deserve it? Be humble but confident.
- Third paragraph: Talk about your long-term plans. How will you use the scholarship and how will it help you?
- Fourth paragraph: Conclude; sum up what you just said in a non-repetitive way. Finish with a strong sentence about your hope for the future.
Get the Best Scholarships Now
Getting the scholarships you deserve isn’t easy. It’s a long and difficult road to a debt-free or reduced-debt student lifestyle. But with just a little help of our samples like personal statement MBA samples, the process doesn’t have to be so hard. Try it yourself and you’ll see how much smoother your personal statement goes.