The UCAS personal statement is a 4,000 character and 47-line essay that each applicant submits when applying for UK undergraduate programmes.
This paper begins by looking at the limited existing literature on UCAS personal statements before presenting some new analysis of applicants’ draft personal statements.
The authors conclude that, in its current form, the UCAS personal statement is incompatible with the principles of fair admissions outlined by Universities UK and GuildHE.
