UC Application Personal Statement Essay Question Analysis

by Dr. Jon Reider, Former Senior Associate Director of Admissions, Stanford University

and Kit Muller, Former Admissions Counselor, Harvard University

UC Application Personal Statement (2 prompts)

Prompt #1 – Describe the world you come from – for example, your family, community or school – and tell us how your world has shaped your dreams and aspirations.

This question is an attempt to find out about your circumstances.  The first section calls for a description of your world.  For example, very bluntly, are you rich or poor, middle class, advantaged or disadvantaged financially?  Do you live in a complete family unit, or with a single mom or dad?  Does your grandmother live with you, do you have many siblings?  Is your neighborhood a nice suburb, an urban community, a rural farm or ranch community, or an inner-city slum?  Do you go to a public school or a private school?  Does your school provide music, art, theater, and extensive sports opportunities, or do you have to go through a metal detector on the way in the front door each morning?  Or, are you home schooled? 

This section helps the admissions evaluator assess the way in which your circumstances have affected you personally and academically.  If you are a great student and active participant in the world despite obvious disadvantages, the college wants to know that.  If you have a lot of advantages and have responded – or not responded  - by being a strong student, leader, baseball player, or community service volunteer, they want to know that too. 

The second part of the question asks you to describe how these circumstances have shaped your dreams and aspirations.  Here is your chance to talk about what matters to you, what you are passionate about, what you would like to do with your future, as affected by where you come from.

The question helps the admissions committee compare you with other students with the same grades and test scores, but with widely different backgrounds.

Prompt #2 – Tell us about a personal quality, talent, accomplishment, contribution or experience that is important to you.  What about this quality or accomplishment makes you proud and how does it relate to the person you are?

All colleges are looking for a good mix in their incoming class in terms of interests, diversity, personal qualities, and ability to contribute to the college experience of other students.  This question helps the admission officer evaluate whether you will be a good addition to the class, and a proud graduate of the college.  Colleges want to know that a student will get involved when he arrives on campus, which helps the student himself and the other students around him fit in more easily and have a good college experience. 

Both prompts will also be evaluated on your ability to write a logical, thoughtful, informative answer, with good structure and writing style.  However, this personal statement is not a creative writing assignment – they are after information rather than flash or flowery wording.