PS - written by hand or not?

[Guest]

Hello everybody!

I am an EU student and, even though I had to do a PS for the first time in my life, I am pretty happy with the way it turned out.

I am applying for some Further Education courses, directly to Universities/ Colleges.

Could you please advise me on whether it would be better to write the PS by hand on a separate sheet of paper, or type it in WORD and print it?

Also, do I have to limit myself to the space provided in the Application letter, should I start there and continue, or just write it on separate pages altogether?

Being a mature student, I had quite a few things to write about. Do you think 800+ words might be too much? I just hope it is not as strict as UCAS...

Thanks a lot to whoever might be as kind as to answer my questions.

Cheers and good luck!

[DIVIAN]

Thanks for all the "help"...

[Guest]

You should definately TYPE your personal statement. Hand writing a personal statement is about the equivalent of waltzing into an interview in t-shirt and jeans...it just does not look professional and you do not want to start of on the wrong foot.

As for the legnth, the typical legnth is usually 500-750. 800+ is actually not too bad, as long as it's closer to the 800 and not the +. I completely understand your frustration of trying to convey all that you want in that amount of time, but they are looking for clear, concise, well thought out and structured essays (with some personal flair). This involves tact, and choosing which stories and experiences to share that best illustrate who you are instead of bogging the whole thing down by telling them every reason. The idea is to get them to want to know all the rest about you by accepting you to their program. As English teachers always say SHOW them that they want to except you, don't tell them.

[DIVIAN]

thank you very much for your suggestions, I appreciate it!