How to Write a Perfect Personal Statement for a Scholarship

Getting a scholarship is a great opportunity for gaining transformative experience, quality education and a bright future. A personal statement is an important part of a scholarship application as it shows who you really are and explains why you need the scholarship. But the question arises is how to write an effective personal statement for the scholarship. Writing a perfect personal statement does not require you to use extraordinary words and achievements but it is an authentic document that shows your personality, passion and potential.

In this article, we’ll guide you on how to write an effective personal statement for a scholarship that will help you to achieve your academic goals.

What is a personal statement?

A personal statement is written document in which you should include the following information:

• Who you are
• What you have achieved
• Goals and ambitions
• Why you need the scholarship

Step by step process to write a perfect personal statement

In order to write a perfect and effective personal statement, these steps should be followed:

 Understand the requirements

Before writing the statement you should understand the requirements about the scholarship.

Some scholarships require some special questions so need to answer those questions carefully. You should identify the questions and conditions, also check for word limits and note the deadline time for submission.Understanding the prompts and requirements means exactly knowing what the scholarship provider is asking for and responding to that.

Reflect on your journey

Reflecting on your journey means to look back on your life, growth and those challenges that made you a person what you are today. It should include your personal experiences, growth challenges, future goals that make your statement an inspiring way of increasing the chance of getting you the scholarship. 

What to include in reflecting yourself?

• Your background
• Your struggles and challenges
• Your turning points
• Your academic journey
• Your values and beliefs

Create an outline

Before writing the actual personal statement, you should create an outline that shows that logical flow. A personal statement for scholarship should consist of proper introduction, logically connected body paragraphs and conclusion. The introduction should include hookup line and attention grabber line, personal introduction and purpose of the statement. Body paragraphs should include academic achievements, personal background and challenges, goals and how you will use the scholarship opportunity. And the statement should be concluded with gratitude, reaffirming goals and leaving a positive message. 

Write a captivating introduction

Your introduction should immediately grab the attention, show your personality and compel the scholarship providers to read it. A good introduction should include your personal introduction, purpose of the statement and should smoothly lead to the body paragraphs.

Strategies to write a compelling introduction:

• Start with a personal anecdote
• Begin with a quote
• Ask a thought-provoking question
• Tells a surprising fact about yourself

Academic Achievements and Personal challenges

Your academic achievements have a great impact on describing your personality and how passionate you are about your goals. You should include favorite subjects, achievements and recognitions. Also, in the personal statement you should include the personal challenges and crises you have faced that shows you are mentally and emotionally strong person. Both these factors make a picture that you are capable, talented and an ideal scholarship candidate.

Explain your goals and ambitions

This section of your personal statement should aim to tell that your goals are clear and you are an ambitious person and how this scholarship will help you get there. Describing your goals show that you are serious about your education and career. You should include your short-term goals, long-term goals and how this scholarship will help you to achieve those goals.

Show that you are deserving candidate for the scholarship

You must include all the things in such a way that it would be a good enough reason to show that you deserve a scholarship more than other applicants. You should include the evidence of the hard work, commitment to your field, clear demonstration of financial needs if any. You should show that you will make good use of the opportunity. 

Conclude with gratitude

While concluding your personal statement, you should leave a positive and respectful final impression on the scholarship providers. The concluding paragraph of your personal statement should thank the scholarship community, reaffirms your goals and ends on a respectful note.

Common mistakes to avoid while writing the personal statements

The personal statement should be free of the mistakes to make it quite effective.Avoid these common mistakes:

• Stop being too vague
• Do not repeat resume
• Poor Grammar and structure 
• Lack of passion
• Lack of authenticity
• Ignoring the prompt and instructions

Conclusion:

Writing a personal statement is about telling your unique story in such a way that you would be considered as an eligible and perfect candidate for the scholarship. A strong personal statement is an honest, well-organized and emotionally engaging piece of writing. It should show your determination and vision for the future.