UCAS Personal Statement Changes

6 June 2025

Personal statements are changing for 2026 entry onwards. Read on for helpful guidance to write your personal statement!

As you may already know, UCAS have made changes to the personal statement portion of applications for this year. You will now write your personal statement by answering three separate questions. The new format provides you with a starting point for your writing and allows you to demonstrate all of your great skills and achievements!

The three questions are:

Question 1: Why do you want to study this course or subject?

Question 2: How have your qualifications and studies helped you to prepare for this course or subject?

Question 3: What else have you done to prepare outside of education, and why are these experiences useful?

UCAS have provided helpful guidance on writing your personal statement, which you should read before you begin. You can find the links for these below:

Including RO in your personal statement

Question three of the new personal statement gives you the opportunity to reflect on any activities that you have taken part in outside of your formal education. This is a good chance for you to include your participation on the Realising Opportunities (RO) programme.

As an RO student, you are amongst the most academically able and highest achieving students in the country, and by completing the programme, you are demonstrating your commitment and dedication to your studies. You can use question three to demonstrate your commitment and highlight the useful skills you have gained whilst on the RO programme.

You could think about:

How has RO helped you develop essential skills for university and your chosen course?
What skills you have gained from the RO programme that could help you study your chosen course?
What have you learned from attending the Academic Skills Module event that would benefit you at university?
Are there any RO events or activities you have attended which you found insightful?

Top tips for writing your personal statement:

Check your personal statement and check again! If possible, ask for a peer, parent/carer, or your RO Ambassador to read over your personal statement. They might notice spelling errors or grammatical mistakes which you have missed!
Follow university guidance. It is important that you check the universities guidance on writing your personal statement and tailor this to your chosen subject. This will ensure that you are focussing on the right skills and highlight these skills in the relevant questions.
Avoid repetition. Make sure that you don’t repeat information in your answers. Universities and colleges will review your personal statement as one, so it’s important that you use each question to demonstrate different skills, experience, knowledge, and your passion for the subject.
Check your word count. You have a 4,000-character count limit across all three answers. How you split these characters will depend on your chosen course, your skills, and your experience.

Remember, your personal statement is your opportunity to demonstrate your passion for your subject and highlight your unique skills and experiences. Try not to overthink it and take time to plan your answers.

We wish you the best of luck in writing your personal statement!