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Ella came to us last year for help with her Personal Statement. She had British Citizenship but had lived all her life in Australia. An academically minded student she applied to five UK universities; four of her choices were for History and one choice was a joint degree in History and French. She was extremely disappointed to receive five rejections!
What we discovered
She got in touch with us to find out why and it was soon apparent that her Personal Statement was the problem. For a history degree application her Personal Statement would have to be 100% focused on History. If she was applying for five joint History and French degrees her Personal Statement should ideally be 50% on French and 50% on History. As it was her Personal Statement confused the Admissions Teams.
What did we do?
We worked with Ella to look more closely at degree options in History and History/French degree options to understand what she would be studying. Ella was an international fee-paying student so some joint History and French courses that were available via Clearing were identified. We made contact with our network of contacts in the International Offices in several universities and we eventually found Ella place at Queen Mary’s University of London (QMUL).
The result
Ella is currently in her first year at QMUL and loving it!
Helena
Business Management | University of Exeter
Helena used our Personal Statement support service.
Our perspective
Helena came to us for some fee status advice but then when she was starting to write her Personal Statement she was struggling for ideas. We took Helena through some of the degree course options and modules through potential Business Studies and Management courses. We gave Helena suggestions for pre-reading around the subject. She was very interested in Human Resources so we focussed on those. She also read more widely around finance and marketing.
Within a few hours her Personal Statement started to take shape and within a few drafts was ready to submit through UCAS.
Helena’s perspective
We caught up with Helena recently and she said the following:
I am a second year student at the University of Exeter studying a Business Management Degree. I have enjoyed every second I have been at Exeter from meeting new people to joining societies such as football and boxing. I am currently preparing for my year abroad in Amsterdam which Exeter has provided through my course. I am so appreciative of all the support from Geraldine and her team throughout my application process. Especially helping broaden my ideas through asking questions and forcing me to think at a deeper level. This is something I still use in my academic writing today, getting into the habit of constantly asking questions to find the best ideas and results.
Varun
BSc Combined Honours in Social Sciences | Durham University
Varun was a student from India studying ISC, one of Indian national curriculum boards. He had potential to study at a top-ranking UK university but was undecided about which course to apply for or which universities would suit him. We put Varun on our Platinum student package which covered two years in the run up to his university entry.
We had initial skype sessions with Varun to find out more about him, his academic and social interests and what he liked to do in his spare time. He was very interested in history, had been involved with the MUN and enjoyed playing Basketball.
Year One: Preparation and Enrichment
Year One: Preparation and Enrichment
- We learned about his academic grades and subjects in his Class X
- Discussed his wish list of university subjects (no Maths!)
- We sent Varun and his parents a timeline for the application process
- Looked at some of the University campuses on skype via screen sharing
- Gathered a general overview of what the entry requirements would be and what the ISC equivalences would be in Class XII
- Guided him through an interest profile application called Centigrade* more information
- Set up a What’s App group with us and Varun
- Set up a What’s App group with us, Varun and his parents (with Varun’s permission) so that they could be involved in the big decisions
- Had regular sessions with Varun via skype and emails to review his thoughts and plans for university entry
- By the end of Year One Varun had a clear idea of his shortlisted universities
- One reach, three strong contenders and one back up
- We had a list of suitable courses and degree choices for Varun to consider
- Subject choices included history, business and politics
- Due to his sporting and social requirements and the interdisciplinary nature of his subject choices a campus university came up tops
Year Two: Building upon his strengths and providing extra resources
Phase One: The Application
- We discussed Varun’s work experience and voluntary commitments
- Discussed topical events that Varun was interested in
- Provided enrichment resources and recommended reading material to give a subject insight
- Arranged campus visits for Varun and his parents on their visit to the UK
- Organised appointments to tour the universities and meet with academics at Durham, Warwick and Exeter universities
- Closer look at each of the courses and modules likely to be studied
- Looked at accommodation options and the Student Union provisions
- As Durham was one of Varun’s choices, we advised him on college options
- Worked on preparation for the Personal Statement over several weeks
Phase Two: Offers and preparation in the run up to registration
- Offers came in from all universities
- Varun scored well in his IELTs exam at his local British Council
- We discussed the offers with Varun and his parents taking into account the likelihood of gaining his predicted grades
- Varun decided on Durham University as his FIRM Choice and Warwick as his INSURANCE offer
- Durham then sent a Certificate of Acceptance (CAS) so that he could obtain his Student Visa
- Varun’s great results meant that he succeeded in getting into his top university choice
- We liaised on Varun’s behalf with the college to ensure he had all the relevant paperwork and helped him with his module choices
The result
Varun is now in his second year at Durham, is thoroughly enjoying his time there and is now planning for his Masters application.