Engineering Personal Statement Guide

Your personal statement is a crucial part of your application to study Engineering at Oxford, Cambridge, or any other university.

It's your chance to showcase your passion, skills, and potential to admissions tutors. You submit one statement for all your university choices, and it must fit within 4,000 characters or 47 lines.

This guide will help you craft a compelling engineering personal statement that demonstrates your suitability for these competitive courses.

• Why are Personal Statements Important?
• What Should I Include in an Engineering Personal Statement? 
• What Should I Avoid in an Engineering Personal Statement? 
• Advice on How to Start an Engineering Personal Statement 
• Advice on How to Finish an Engineering Personal Statement 
• FAQs 

Why are Personal Statements Important? 

Your personal statement is your opportunity to speak directly to admissions tutors and showcase your skills, experiences, and motivation beyond your academic record. It's a crucial component of your UCAS application, especially for competitive courses like Engineering. Admissions tutors will carefully assess your statement, seeking evidence of your passion for the subject, intellectual curiosity, and potential to thrive in a demanding academic environment. It is perhaps your best opportunity to differentiate yourself from other candidates.

A compelling personal statement can play a significant role in determining whether you'll be invited to an interview if you are applying to Oxford or Cambridge. During the interview, you may be asked to elaborate on specific aspects of your statement. Therefore, it's important to craft a persuasive and authentic personal statement that not only showcases your suitability for the course but also presents your specific interests and passions which may serves as a foundation for further discussion during an interview.

What Should I Include in an Engineering Personal Statement? 

Ultimately, the purpose of any personal statement is to demonstrate your passion and potential in a subject. You can demonstrate this by including the following:

Motivation for Studying Engineering

Reflect on experiences that sparked your interest in Engineering, such as projects, internships, books, or lectures. Describe how these experiences have influenced your decision to pursue Engineering at university. Focus on your specific motivations and avoid generic statements like, "I have always been fascinated by how things work", that anyone could have written.

Work Experiences and Projects

These can be valuable components of your personal statement if you have had such experiences. Whether it's an internship, a research project, or voluntary work, these activities allow you to describe practical skills you may have developed and evidence your passion for engineering. When reflecting on your experiences, go beyond simply explaining what you have done. Instead, focus on the transferable skills you developed, such as problem-solving, teamwork, or leadership, and provide specific examples of how you applied them. For example, if you participated in a group project, you could highlight how you collaborated with others and overcame challenges. Even experiences not directly related to engineering can demonstrate relevant skills like resilience, adaptability, or time management. The key is to show how your hands-on experiences have prepared you for the rigours of studying Engineering at university and draw specific and unique reflections from them.

Breadth of Interest

If you are applying for general Engineering courses like those at Oxford and Cambridge which cover all disciplines in the first two years, you may want to demonstrate your interest in various areas of Engineering. Conveying your curiosity and openness to diverse aspects of Engineering through a range of experiences and wider reading can strengthen your application.

What Should I Avoid in an Engineering Personal Statement? 

Clichés and generalities

Steer clear of overused phrases that lack depth and fail to provide genuine insight into your motivations and experiences. Instead of making vague statements like "I have always been fascinated by how things work" or "I want to use my engineering skills to make the world a better place," dive deeper into your specific interests and aspirations. For example, if you mention a book that inspired your interest in the field, avoid clichéd reflections like "this book changed my life." Instead, provide concrete examples of how the book influenced your thinking or sparked your curiosity about a particular engineering concept.

Another common pitfall is the overused "I have wanted to be an engineer since I was a child" trope. While it's great to have a longstanding interest in the field, this statement alone doesn't provide much substance. If you do choose to mention your childhood aspirations, make sure to be sincere and to connect them to specific experiences or learning moments that have shaped your journey towards Engineering. You don’t have to exaggerate; having wanted to study engineering since you were a toddler is not a prerequisite for a successful application!

Listing without reflecting

As mentioned in the “Work experience and projects” section, don't simply list your achievements or experiences without providing thoughtful analysis. For example instead of just stating that you read Sustainable Energy Without the Hot Air by David MacKay, you could discuss your key takeaways, why you think they are important to the field and how the book shaped your interests.

Irrelevant information

Keep your personal statement focused on skills and experiences that you can connect to Engineering. While it's okay to mention non-engineering activities, ensure that you explain the relevant transferable skills you gained. Avoid dwelling on experiences or achievements that have no clear link to your suitability for the course. Furthermore, you do not need to educate the admissions officers on a technical concept; focus on you and your reflections.

Errors

Proofread your personal statement carefully to eliminate any spelling, grammar, or punctuation mistakes. Such errors can undermine the quality of your application and show a lack of care. Consider asking friends, parents, teachers, tutors, or mentors to review your statement and provide feedback.

Advice on How to Start an Engineering Personal Statement  

Writing a strong opening without clichés can be challenging and there is no one correct way to do it however it should set the tone for your interest in Engineering and motivations for studying the subject. Consider the following approaches:

• Give a specific example of a topic that interests you and motivates you to study engineering.
• (Very briefly) describe a formative experience or reading that sparked your passion for the subject.
• Describe an engineering challenge that you are keen to contribute to solving after studying.
• You could also mention your career ambitions in your opening paragraph too.

Advice on How to Finish an Engineering Personal Statement  

Your conclusion should tie together the key topics and ideas of your statement. It should leave a lasting impression of your motivations and potential as an Engineering student. You could finish in the following ways:

• Summarize how your diverse experiences have prepared you for the challenges of the Engineering course.
• Reiterate your enthusiasm for Engineering and highlight specific areas you are excited to delve into further during your studies.
• Connect the skills and insights you've gained to your future aspirations and the impact you hope to make as an Engineer.

FAQs