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ty: You can describe misfortunes or a disadvantaged background, but do not
use them as an excuse for bad performances or to seek pity. Doing so not only could sound
manipulative, but also means that you haven't emphasized your strengths sufficiently. Thus,
as in the case of weaknesses, you should bring up obstacles in your past only to show how
you have overcome them.

 Lesson Two: Graduate Statement Themes
The best way to approach your personal statement is to imagine that you have five minutes
with someone from the admissions committee. How would you go about making the best case
for yourself while holding the listener's interest? What would you include and omit in your story?
Figuring out the answer to these questions is critical to successfully preparing an effective
statement.
To arrive at these answers, you should begin by asking yourself some more specific questions:
• Why have I chosen to attend graduate school in this specific field, and why did I
choose to apply to this particular school's program?
• What are my qualifications for admission?
• What is special, unique, or impressive about my life story?
The answers will not necessarily come easily to you, but this exercise will have great practical
benefit in readying you to write an outstanding personal statement. By answering each
question thoroughly, you will have given much thought to yourself, your experiences, and your
goals, thereby laying the groundwork for formulating an interesting and persuasive
presentation of your own personal story.
Select One:
• Why Graduate School?
• Why Qualified?
• Why Unique?
• Explain Blemishes
EssayEdge Extra: The Future Over the Past
"First, they should tell me where they're coming from--what it is
in their background that leads them to apply to a program like
ours. Second, they should tell me what it is they want to get out
of our program. Third, I want to know where they hope our
program will eventually take them in their career."
- The Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International
Affairs, Princeton University
"Usually a straight autobiography should be avoided, although
interesting and pertinent autobiographical facts should be
included. But the statement should be more future-oriented
than past-oriented. I don't really want the story of a student's
life (although there are exceptions) but rather plans for and a
vision of the future."
- Graduate English Department, UCLA
"Mistakes? Dwelling on past accomplishments as opposed to
describing future interests. The recitation of past
accomplishments, prizes won and scores gotten--all that kind
of stuff--is helpful but at the stage when we're reading the
statement, we know all the applicants are highly qualified; that
is almost beside the point. What we're looking for at that stage
is, again, some insight into how the student thinks, what sort of
clarity of purpose he has into one or more research areas."
- Graduate Admissions Committee, Applied Mechanics,
Civil Engineering & Mechanical Engineering, California
Institute of Technology
Whereas some professional programs, particularly law
schools, give applicants more freedom to discuss any past
experiences that may help them to stand out, graduate schools
are chiefly interested in your past only as it relates to your
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