Does your UCAS personal statement have to be 4000 characters?

Remember, it can only be 4,000 characters, which is about two sides of A4. So, you'll need to use your words wisely to fit everything in. You can find a full guide on How to start a personal statement: the attention grabber, but here are the main things to think about.

Is UCAS 4000 characters or 47 lines?

You can use up to 4,000 characters (including spaces, headings and line breaks) or 47 lines of text whichever comes first. All references must be written in English.

How short can a UCAS personal statement be?

UCAS personal statement word limit

Your personal statement length can be up to 4,000 characters long. This may sound a lot, but it's a word limit of around 550–1000 words with spaces and only about 1 side of typed A4 paper. You need to keep it concise and make sure it's clear and easy to read.

Can my personal statement be 2000 characters?

Personal statement – practicalities

4000 characters (not words, so includes spaces) or 47 lines of text, whichever comes first. No formatting such as bold, underline or italics.

Can a personal statement be 3000 characters?

You can type your personal statement in the online application form (3,000-character limit, including spaces) or upload it as a separate document. If you upload your personal statement, you can go over 3,000 characters but it cannot be longer than two sides of A4 paper (size 12 font and single spaced).

How to write your UCAS personal statement

Can your personal statement be less than 4000?

Remember, it can only be 4,000 characters, which is about two sides of A4. So, you'll need to use your words wisely to fit everything in. You can find a full guide on How to start a personal statement: the attention grabber, but here are the main things to think about.

Is it OK if your personal statement is short?

Even if you don't include an anecdote in the statement, the topic that you choose should, in a sense, “tell a story” about you in a way that captures and keeps the reader's attention. Some schools set no limit for personal statements, but most suggest either 2–3 or 2–4 pages. Aim for two pages, double-spaced.

Are UCAS getting rid of personal statements?

Personal statements have always been an essential part of the university application process. However, UCAS has decided to scrap personal statements in their traditional form. They will now be replaced by a new three-question structure.

Is a 1000 word personal statement too long?

Excluding special cases, 1,000 words is typically too long for a personal statement.

Is 3500 characters enough for a personal statement?

There's a limit on how much you can write: your personal statement can be up to 4,000 characters (including spaces) or 47 lines of 95 characters (including spaces); whichever is shorter. This may appear generous (read: long) but once you've got going you may find yourself having to edit heavily.

Why is UCAS personal statement so short?

UCAS has given you 47 lines (or 4,000 characters) for a reason - they expect you to use them. If not all of them, then the vast majority. If you cannot do this then you need to go back to the planning stages as clearly you are not going into the detail that will be expected of you.

What should a UCAS personal statement be like?

Explain what you've been doing since leaving education, and provide additional evidence to support your application. If you're not in full-time education, you should give details of any relevant work experience, paid or unpaid, and information about your current or previous employment.

What characters are not allowed in UCAS personal statement?

Common symbols not allowed are €, long dashes (–) and the special quote characters “ ' ' ” which will simply be removed from your statement.

Does 4000 characters mean 4000 words?

Answer: 4,000 characters is between 571 words and 1000 words with spaces included in the character count. If spaces are not included in the character count, then 4,000 characters is between 666 words and 1334 words.

What happens if your personal statement is over 47 lines?

It is important to stay within this limit as exceeding it may result in your personal statement being cut off or disregarded by the admissions committee. While the number of lines may vary depending on formatting and spacing, it is advisable to adhere to the specified character limit.

What is the minimum character count for UCAS?

You can only write 47 lines and a maximum of 4,000 characters. There is also a minimum of 1,000 characters, use your limit wisely.

How long is the UCAS personal statement?

UCAS Character Count

There are some specific instructions for your personal statement that you can never ignore. First, it must not exceed 4,000 characters or 47 lines of text (including blank lines), whichever comes first. If you do exceed this, the university will not get your entire statement.

Is it OK to go over word limit personal statement?

While going slightly over the limit by a few words is acceptable, we do ask that you adhere as closely as possible to the 500-750 word limit for your Personal Statement.

What if my personal statement is too long?

While your application will not be rejected outright if you include a personal statement that is significantly longer, take your program's guidelines very seriously. They're telling you what they want. They're just also giving you some leeway to say what you need to say.

What happens if your UCAS personal statement is plagiarized?

All personal statements submitted to UCAS are checked against a library of personal statements, and if an applicant's statement contains phrases or sentences that are identical to those held in UCAS's student records, UCAS will notify each institution the applicant has applied to and contact the student directly to ...

Why are they stopping personal statements?

But it also found 79% of students said the personal statement was difficult to write without support and 83% found writing a personal statement to be stressful. The removal of the personal statement in its current form is intended to make applying to university more inclusive and supportive, says Kristel.

Should I use paragraphs in my UCAS personal statement?

Clearly structured and correctly wri en statements

No more than 4,000 characters (about 47 lines; approx 2 pages). Aim for 4-‐5 paragraphs: STRUCTURE! UCAS strips out all special forma ng such as bold, indents, tabs, mul-ple spaces with the single excep-on of blank lines.

What does a bad personal statement look like?

Listing your accomplishments or rehashing your CV and extracurriculars. You need to show, not tell. Choosing a bland topic that admissions committees see over and over again. Overstating the obvious and using clichés.

How do you avoid cliches in a personal statement?

Using clichés

Avoid overused phrases like 'my passion for history began...' or 'I have been interested in geography since a young age'. Admissions tutors read a ton of personal statements and you want to stand out. So get creative with your sentences, but make sure not to go off-topic.

Is 2 weeks enough to write a personal statement?

We recommend a minimum of 4-6 weeks to write your personal statement. This is because you still have to juggle schoolwork and extracurricular activities at the same time.