04/07/2004, 06:12 PM
Jools, you make some interesting points. I agree it's important to get the relevent information over as efficiently as possible, which bulletpoints certainly achives, though I think essay style gives you an extra edge.
I can't see how you could easily display emotions such your enthusiam for a particular subject usig bulletpoints without your statment sounding like a shopping list. Also with bullet points, things like your sentance structure are going to be constrained.
Personlly I think using an essay style will get across far more information to the admissions tutors than writing in any other form. This may not always be a good thing, eg if you have a different sense of humour / different politics to your admissions tutor, but with the amount of competition for many universities these days, you need every advantage you can get.
Just a couple of other points:
1. With the majority of ps's in essay style - a bullet pointed statement will stand out
2. Don't listen to me - if you think you can do your statement best will bullet points then do!
I can't see how you could easily display emotions such your enthusiam for a particular subject usig bulletpoints without your statment sounding like a shopping list. Also with bullet points, things like your sentance structure are going to be constrained.
Personlly I think using an essay style will get across far more information to the admissions tutors than writing in any other form. This may not always be a good thing, eg if you have a different sense of humour / different politics to your admissions tutor, but with the amount of competition for many universities these days, you need every advantage you can get.
Just a couple of other points:
1. With the majority of ps's in essay style - a bullet pointed statement will stand out
2. Don't listen to me - if you think you can do your statement best will bullet points then do!