Advice on constructing a Personal Statement and Referee info

**rachg08** · 03-12-2009, 02:24 AM

Hi this is probs not the right thread to post this q, but just to clarify...when you are in ucas track and click on 'view all' (of your application), is it normal to not be able to see your reference? My referee details are there but not the reference.

**rush919** · 03-12-2009, 05:30 AM

Originally Posted by rachg08

Hi this is probs not the right thread to post this q, but just to clarify...when you are in ucas track and click on 'view all' (of your application), is it normal to not be able to see your reference? My referee details are there but not the reference.

Yeah thats how it should be as references are meant to be private from the candidate.

**wannabemedic321** · 16-04-2010, 02:22 PM

What did you have for extra-curriculars?

**heatherb** · 20-04-2010, 01:49 PM

Hi all

I'm a prospective 2011 applicant for GEM - hoping to sit both UKCAT and GAMSAT. With regards to personal statement and reference, I'm not entirely sure who to approach. My uni tutor would probably complete this and I've had a strong working relationship with her for 4 years (she is a clinical psychologist). Would this be appropriate?

I'm also slightly unsure whether to put in my PS that one of my main motivations for pursuing a postgraduate career in medicine has been drawn from the experience of caring for my dad, who suffered from terminal cancer and passed away last June. The care he received, the dedication and passion of the medical team inspired me to seek a career where my knowledge could be used in a way that impacts the care of other people in a positive way - even when the situation is far from positive. I think having a grounding in psychology has benefitted me, as learning about people - what makes us tick and why we behave the way we do would be beneficial to a career in medicine, particularly as people are at the heart of medical practice.

Basically I'm worried about writing a rubbish PS and would like some advice from previous applicants as to what is appropriate to include etc.

Thanks,
H

**birduk** · 02-08-2010, 04:11 PM

Wow H, that sounds like a brilliant thing to be putting in your PS. It is quite emotional, but quite right to put. Although take my advice with a pinch of salt, as I am applying now.

Thanks for the useful information re referees, I have sent it on to my University tutor- H I am sure they recommend your most recent academic supervisor fill this in, so that sounds like the right thing to do.

**garlicbreadman** · 06-08-2010, 06:36 PM

I can't remember whether it was even on this forum, but ages ago I found a list of useful/good words for the personal statement.

Does anyone have a list?

**cookie_monster** · 08-09-2010, 03:22 AM

To anyone writing personal statements - the most useful piece of advice anyone gave me was this:

Don't write a list of what w/e you have, how many things you have done, how many brownie points you have. Write instead what you have learnt from these experiences about the profession, what attributes you have gained/improved through your involvement in them, and how this will help you achieve your goals.

This can be applied to any form of application, CV etc, and in general, if you mention something you've done, mention what you've got from it.

This advice helped me massively when writing my statement!

Good Luck to you all, and I'll happily help out with statements!

**thomp** · 21-09-2010, 05:43 PM

Does anyone have any tips on how to start off your PS? I've read that it's best to open with a sentence that is eye catching, and it's pretty obvious that this would set you apart from the competition.

The problem I'm finding, though, is how do you go about putting in a sentence that makes someone wants to read on. The vast majority of people will put something like "I have wanted to study medicine for x amount of years" or "I want to be a doctor because..." and it just sounds so cliche... so is there anything in particular that would be a good place to start with this?

**Dr Freddy** · 02-10-2010, 03:22 AM

Hi,

I am applying for GEPs 2011. I finished uni in Egypt 3 years ago. I am really confused about whom to choose as my reference. I have a few choices which I feel are not that strong:
My uni lecturer (knows how committed am I, but doesn't know any thing so far about my application to medicine-I haven't met her around 2 years ago-she is in Egypt)
my previous employer (who already wrote my last year's reference) he is not that accessible now and does not have much insight into my academic capabilities
a consultant surgeon with whom I have done a work placement for a couple of weeks (not too long)
voluntry work supervisor (who arranged two voluntary work placements for me)

After the changes on 5th October, does the referee answer specific questions about me, or still construct his own reference?

I need advice urgently-Does the reference affect my application greatly? what if my referee wasn't a fabulous writer??

Help please-sorry for my many questions

thanks

**lauraebanks** · 23-07-2012, 08:43 PM

Hi,
I'll be applying for a place in 2013, and i finished uni two years ago and moved half way across the world now so i'm not sure if my old tutors would remember/ know enough about me to have just one person write my ref, can you have more than one person? or are you allowed to advise your tutor on what to write?
thanks guys,