How do I write a personal statement for graduate school, law school, medical school, or business school?

An excellent source of help is a book available in the Writing Lab (226 Heavilon Hall): Richard Stelzer's How to Write a Winning Personal Statement for Graduate and Professional School (Princeton, NJ: Peterson's Guides, 1989). The book has guidelines for writing, examples of successful statements, and advice from admissions officers. This handout summarizes Stelzer's guidelines and contains a few of the examples he includes of statements and admissions officers' advice. If you wish to read more examples and do not purchase the book, you may read the Writing Lab's copy, which is on reserve in the lab. The personal statement, your opportunity to sell yourself in the application process, generally falls into one of two categories: 1. The general, comprehensive personal statement This type of statement allows you maximum freedom in terms of what you write and is the type of statement often prepared for standard medical or law school application forms. 2.A response to very specific ...  more