How do I start my personal statement?

Starting a personal statement is hard! Here's the process I use:

1. Brainstorm - think about what you want to say, and write it down. Anywhere. Single words ("enthusiastic"), two words ("Team work"), anything - just scribble them down.

2. Evidence - look at the words above, and think about what you do / have done that is evidence for it. "enthusiastic" - "I read around my subject"

3. Expand - start to expand these first two parts into some sentences "I was so enthused by biology that I began to read X. I found I was particularly intrigued by Y"

Here's some other tips:

• never forget a first draft is only a draft, expect it to change a lot
• start wherever you feel inspired to start, it doesn't have to be the first sentence
• look at a couple of examples to get ideas of structure, but don't read too many or you risk unintentionally making yours similar and not your own
• start early, don't stress, do a little often.

Good luck!