How have you expanded on areas of the curriculum, in which you are interested, outside of the classroom?

This is one of the most common questions that a student will be asked when discussing their personal statement in interview. It's all very well claiming to love a subject or a particular area of the curriculum but demonstrating a valid and keen interest in the subject comes from how you have furthered your study of it. The first port of call is simply not to lie; if you're struggling to find something in the curriculum you have enjoyed then say that but explain what does interest you and how you have pursued it, this may impress them more because it shows an active intitiative rather than just a passive one. Don't claim to have an interest and that you have read up on it, if you've have/done neither. Also, even if you have expanded your education outside of the classroom and done all the preparation you claim, the preparation itself will become a real chore and the enthusiasm will be hard to fake. Finally, if you love an area of the subject and you have done the work then simply, don't be ashamed in what form this has come. Not everyone can read large, dusty books but watching films and documentaries, reading dramatisations or fiction on the subject or going to exhibitions, museums or galleries will sit just as well with an interviewer because genuine interest goes even beyond personal research and into entertainment and relaxation.