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Public health is a purposeful, challenging and rewarding career and I experienced it whenIstarted working as a community vaccinator in the health department (Preventive Services). So, I’m writing this letter to apply to Debrecen’s university bachelor's programme in public health...

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Perfecting Your Personal Statement for Health and Social Care Courses

​​​Struggling to start writing your personal statement for a course within the School of Health and Social Care at the University of Gloucestershire? Here are my top tips to help you feel prepared and confident.

The personal statement is undoubtedly a key part of the application process for university courses, allowing you to showcase your subject knowledge, relevant skills and experience and to stand out from others applying.

At the University of Gloucestershire, we are looking for applicants to have work experience or volunteering experience which demonstrates the types of skills that are key for these health and social care courses. How could you demonstrate, for example, proven communication with lots of different community groups and compassion and empathy for others? This experience could include in a care home, community hospital or charity shop for instance. It is also important to note that for our Physiotherapy course, we are looking for specific work experience whether that be within a physiotherapy clinic or shadowing a physiotherapist.

Secondly, try and avoid using empty statements . These are phrases often found in personal statements which provide no real information about you on their own. Examples might be “the Six Cs are important I can demonstrate all of them” or “I have proven teamwork and communication skills”. Rather than using these standalone phrases, always link back to the experiences you’ve had (which could include hobbies and interests) that demonstrate these skills. In fact, make it really clear why you are applying to that specific course and what you will bring to it.

Last but not least, remember it is a personal statement after all. It should be unique to you , to enable you to stand out amongst a sea of other applications and be invited to an interview.

For more tips on writing your personal statement, you can chat to me or visit the UCAS website.

Health & Social Care courses: personal statement tips

The BU admissions team score Health and Social Care courses on the following five criteria: Determination, Resilience, Insight, Values and Experience, or DRIVE for short​. Below are some tips and further detail on what we are looking for in each criterion. 

For any health and social care course, it is also really important that you can demonstrate that your qualities include the ‘ six Cs ’, a set of values that the NHS expect all staff to have.

They are:  Care ,  Compassion , Competence , Commitment , Communication and  Courage ​.

Determination​

We want you to clearly explain what has motivated you to apply to the course​.

You could show us:​

• Why you are enthusiastic about the subject area​
• What your career plans are​
• The future employment opportunities you are considering.​

Resilience​

We are looking for your ability to cope with the demands of studying a Health & Social Care course. This means demonstrating:

• Strong organisational skills ​
• An ability to work independently ​
• An ability to cope under pressure​.

It doesn’t matter where you draw your examples from, we just want to hear about them. They could be from your studies, work experience, volunteering or any employment you have undertaken.​

We want you to demonstrate a clear insight into the subject area and/or relevant profession you are applying for, and demonstrate your ability to reflect on any independent research you have undertaken, showing us you have a good understanding of the profession you want to go into.​

Now is your chance to demonstrate:​

• That you have spoken to professionals in the field to get an insight into the role, or you have proactively attended relevant lectures or talks
• That you have read around the subject area and have a good understanding of what it involves. It is a great idea to familiarise yourself with academic journals related to the profession you are interested in, and doing this research helps show how dedicated you are to the role​.

We want you to show that you understand the values and skills required by the course and profession

Give us some examples of:​

• Your ability to problem-solve and work as part of a team​
• Your strong communication and writing skills​
• If you are applying for a healthcare course, how you share the NHS values.

We look for applicants that have undertaken relevant work experience through work, study or volunteering. If you don’t have any at the time of applying, you will be required to demonstrate at interview that you have a clear insight into the nature of the profession that you will be training to enter.​

Tell us about any work experience you have gained and how it relates to the course or profession:

• If you are applying for a Nursing course, this would ideally be related to the field of nursing practice that you are interested in​
• If you are applying for Operating Department Practice, it is strongly recommended that you can demonstrate that you have insight into working in an operating department​
• For Paramedic Science, we like to see experience related to an ambulance, first response, care or healthcare environment, but also consider other types of experience such as lifeguarding, the St John Ambulance or Red Cross​
• Social Work applicants should demonstrate experience in a social work or social care capacity​
• We understand that getting experience in some settings, like a Midwifery setting, can be difficult. There are a few different ways of gaining an insight into the role of a midwife that we recommend, including: talking to midwives, talking to women who run support groups relating to breastfeeding, child health, or family care, or reading relevant Midwifery journals
• If you are applying for Occupational Therapy you should be able to demonstrate insight into the role. You could arrange to shadow an occupational therapist and/or gain voluntary experience in health care settings or charities where you can gain some experience working with groups of people you may work with as an occupational therapist. Some NHS Trusts run virtual shadowing opportunities that you can access. You could speak to an occupational therapist over the phone/Zoom, explore the Royal College of Occupational Therapists website or read relevant Occupational Therapy books and journals
• If you are applying for Physiotherapy you should be able to demonstrate insight into the role and ideally applicants would have some experience shadowing physiotherapists. However, if this is difficult to acheive then any experience in a healthcare environment e.g. nursing home, elderly care home, special needs school, voluntary work as a support worker with individuals with disabilities etc. would be considered. 

If you do not have any relevant experience, you will be required to demonstrate that you have a clear insight into the nature of the profession that you will be training to enter.

Please check the relevant course pages for other helpful information. 

We appreciate that for a couple of years it has been particularly difficult to undertake work experience. If you have limited experience, you might be able to bolster this with:​

• Shadowing someone in a relevant health career​
• Caring for a family member or friend​
• Volunteering experience. This could be in a whole range of different organisations including schools, day centres, hospices, or mental health services. Volunteering for a charity could also help you get experience with a particular group of individuals you are likely to work with in your chosen career, e.g. children’s charities, special educational needs charities, mental health charities, homelessness charities, or specialist addictions charities​​.

It is also worth remembering that you’ve probably had experiences in non-healthcare environments where you have developed relevant transferable skills​.

UCAS personal statement examples

Having managed successfully to navigate through the 370,000 courses at over 370 providers across the UK, it is now time to make a start at drafting your personal statement.

Students often find this the most daunting of tasks within the application process. This guide will help you through putting together the statement that is going to help get you a place on your ideal course.

Knowing where to start and what to say to when setting out your reasons for applying and convincing the admissions tutor to offer you a place can be a challenge. Looking at examples of how other students have approached this can sometimes be helpful.

Example one

Things to consider when reading this example.

• Consider the structure – what are your thoughts around this?
• Think about spelling, grammar, and punctuation– how does this fare?
• What course do you think this personal statement may have been for?

“The best way to find yourself, is to lose yourself in the service of others.” Mahatma Ghandi

From a young age this quote has inspired my chosen career path to become a children’s nurse. Being one of many siblings I have the role of supporting my nieces and nephews when they become ill and providing comfort. Working with children in my family has motivated along this career path as it has taught me to take responsibility in life, become more organised and mature.

I am currently undertaking a health and social care course. This course has given me insight into the different aspects of health care and its overarching infra structure. Caring for children and young people helped me gain an understanding of the risk that children and young people may be put in and the exploitative and abusive behaviour that they may encounter. We focused on the tragic case of Victoria Climbie. This brought home the significance of multi agency working.

I am committed to ensuring that children and young people in my care are safe,healthy, enjoying and achieving, economic well being and putting in a positive contribution. A core element of the course has been work placement, working with children. This came in very useful for me because it taught me how to deal with children at different ages and what I need to do in order to meet their needs. During this work experience I was responsible for supporting and maintaining the children’s hygiene needs and encouraging them with their speech. I learnt different approaches to meeting the needs of children; for example I was taught to talk the children in a calm, but stern tone of voice when they misbehaved and to use very positive gestures and praise when children listened and kept to task.

I consider myself as having very good communications skills I am able to reassure people positively in any circumstance, I am the committed to ensuring that children and young people in my care are safe and healthy and I am confident when dealing with both children and parents, For example when a child injured herself in the nursery I shadowed one of the senior staff while they administered first aid, it was then my responsibility to explain to the caregiver exactly what had occurred.

I take part in many activities which are helping me to become independent ad preparing me for my course that I want to take part in, in university; I presently volunteer in a nursery. I take part in planning and creating activities and I have a duty to observe the children throughout the day and then give feedback to the parents and carers.

I have many qualities which will be ideal for my future career path I am honest, patient and a reflective individual, this is something that I feel is most important when dealing with children and adolescents.

I have many hobbies that I carry out in my spare time. I have taken part in being a team leader to raise money for a charity that supports children who have been abused because I believe strongly in the cause. We raised awareness, held a campaign, fundraising and protest.

I also enjoy travel, I have visited countries such as Egypt, Eritrea, Holland, Germany and Italy - this has allowed me to explore the outside world and has given me a taste of different cultures and traditions; and ultimately giving me a better understanding of diversity.

I would like to be given the opportunity to study at university because I believe it will be the perfect platform to launch my career. Having the chance to study Paediatric Nursing at university will allow me to fulfil my career path and make a change to my life as I will feel that I am achieving new things on a day to day basis with what I am able to offer children and young people when it comes to having a positive impact on their health.

Being given the opportunity of Working in an environment with children daily would be my dream goal in life that I wish to achieve.

Example two

• Thinking about the experiences gained from a gap year, how has this applicant drawn on these transferrable skills?
• How does experience both in and outside the classroom environment relate to the chosen subject area?

I am a hardworking, talented and motivated young woman looking forward to studying at degree level and taking an active part in university life.

I have a keen interest in the world around me, and enjoy taking part in a variety of activities for example: volunteering at my local brownies, volunteer marshal at Brighton Marathon; textile and weaving classes; completion of the Trinity Guildhall award at both Bronze and Silver level; and a Stand Up Paddle board instructor. These activities, coupled with part time work whilst at sixth form college, have not only been enjoyable but have also helped me to develop skills in communication, organisational, leadership and interpersonal skills.

Although having been accepted to start university in 2014 (Primary Education) I realised that I was not ready to fully commit to the course and took the decision to gain some real life experience and reflect on what I really want from university and my future career.

Since leaving sixth-form college I have been working full time as a waitress/ bar assistant at a local hotel, which has been hard but interesting work demanding stamina, patience and an open mind. I have also secured 3 weeks work at a trade exhibition in New York, where I will have the chance to attend networking dinner and I plan to go inter-railing across Europe in Summer 2015. As a result of these experiences I am more self-assured and resilient. I am ready to commit to full time study and have much to contribute to university life.

I realise that I am most interested in people, what makes them the people they are and how this manifests in their behaviour and opinions.

I enjoyed studying sociology at A level and gaining an insight into how the study of sociology helps us to understand how society works. This coupled with my recent experience in the hospitality world and observation of the behaviour of those who use and manage the service, has fuelled my desire to study Sociology in depth at degree level. I am completely fascinated by the behaviour of others and why we act the way we do. I believe that studying sociology at degree level will allow me to begin to explore and understand aspects of human social behaviour, including the social dynamics of small groups of people, large organisations, communities, institutions and entire societies.

I believe that the skills and knowledge that I will accrue whilst studying will be applicable to a wide variety of careers and that is why I have chosen to study the topic at degree level.

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Health and Social Care Personal Statement

Health and Social Care Personal Statement Sample

Having worked hard to gain training, knowledge and employment experience in the field of care, I am aware both of how challenging and rewarding it can be as a career. Being given the opportunity to turn my aptitude for caring for others into a career has already allowed me to make a positive impact on the lives of others. Gaining the necessary knowledge and experience to perform a more involved role in a nursing capacity will motivate me to continue working and studying to the same high standard and allow me to make an even greater difference to the lives of my patients in the future.

Having shown myself to be a highly competent student throughout my schooling, I am currently undertaking A-levels in Biology and Maths in order to prepare myself for the more rigorous demands of undergraduate study. More importantly, I have also been lucky enough to undergo a large amount of training that has allowed me to learn knowledge and skills in the practical context in which they will be used. I have taken specific training courses on Food Hygiene, Manual Handling, Basic Life Support and Stroke Training, as well as general training courses on the corporate and information technology aspects of care. These have laid an excellent foundation for further medical study but have also introduced me to the administrative and organisational skills that will allow me to work to a high level through undergraduate study and into my career beyond.

Receiving training while working within the field of care is just a small part of the way in which my career thus far has prepared me to study nursing. Actually putting this training into practice has allowed me to prove to myself, and to others, that I have what it takes to make a real impact as part of a care team. Having recently completed the required literacy and numeracy qualifications, I will soon be starting a new role as a Health Care Assistant, working within an interdisciplinary team to deliver individualised patient care. My success in securing this role is a result of my previous performance as an Occupational Therapy Assistant. This rewarding role was my first experience of working within a hospital environment and required the maintenance of good working relationships with colleagues and patients. As well as communicating with and observing patients to help assess their occupational functioning, I also had to complete extensive notes, which would be entered onto the PAS system at the end of each day. Many of the patients would be understandably distressed and I found that my ability to stay calm and talk to them as individuals allowed me to play a valuable role in their treatment. This also allowed me to use a range of skills that I had developed through my time as a Community Care Worker. Travelling to client’s homes and helping them to live as independent a life as possible showed me that everyone is an individual and, while an attention to detail and operational accuracy is important, a respect for this fact is paramount. Whether assessing their medical needs or assisting them during an emergency situation, such as a nasty fall, keeping them as calm as possible and trying to do the same myself was the most important aspect that helped me to get the job done.

Having progressed rapidly during my career I have found additional responsibility has allowed me to play a fuller role in delivering patient care, and this has motivated me to meet any challenges head on. As someone with excellent communication skills, who enjoys listening and taking time with each of the patients I have worked with, I believe that a career within nursing will allow me to reach an even higher standard in the future.

This Health and Social Care personal statement sample is designed to provide you with inspiration to write your own.

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What is expected in a personal statement & interview for a health and social care course?

You should expect to tell them about what makes you a strong candidate to study the subject.

17 March 2021

David says:

Historically, many medical schools have not paid that much attention to personal statements but in the light of potential impact of COVID on applicants they may well be making more use of them in the future.

With interviews, there is often a focus on any work experience the applicant might have had. The interviewers would be wanting the applicant to be reflective and able to speak about what they have learned from the experiences (rather than requiring specific experiences).

Regarding Medicine applications, there is lots of useful advice on the  Medical Schools Council website . 

The main focus of the personal statement is your relationship with the subject; what is it about the subject that you particularly like, and what is it about you that would make you a particularly strong candidate to study this subject? Much like what David has said about interviews, a good way to demonstrate these things is by mentioning any work experience, plus any wider reading or research you have done, any activities or programmes that are related to the subject, and then analyse and reflect on these experiences to really draw out what you have learnt from them; what new knowledge and skills have you gained that will help you when you come to study the subject at university. 

For a more detailed exploration of the UCAS application process  watch this video  UCL have produced the following video which I would recommend any applicants watch. 

Answered by:

David Harrison

University admissions tests, Medicine

Ben Lund-Conlon

Applying for university

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• Social Care Ltd
• 10 February 2012

How to write a personal statement for a University course application

• Guest Writer socialcare.co.uk
• Save for later

A personal statement is an essential part of a University course application. In this article we will guide you through the process of identifying the information you want to include and putting that into a document. 

A personal statement is an essential part of a University application. Not only is it required by UCAS but it is also your main opportunity to speak directly to the admissions officer about why you deserve a place on their course.

You might be applying for a learning disabilities course, social work or any kind of health and social care related programme, but you will still need an excellent personal statement to accompany your application.

Writing a personal statement from scratch can be a real challenge, especially if you’re trying to start with the first sentence and write continuously from beginning to end.

Breaking it down into smaller, more manageable chunks will help you to focus on the message you want to convey and to reduce the number of unnecessary ‘waffly’ sentences that can creep in when writing something like this.

Start by drafting out your ideas

A personal statement for a university application has one specific job to do for you. It has to convince the admissions board that you deserve an interview!

If you’ve never written a personal statement before, whether for a university application or not, breaking it up into smaller tasks is the best approach to take.

You can control the amount of information about yourself you want to highlight and ensure the points you make are relevant and coherently presented.

Start off by making a list of the points you want to make, and backing them up with the skills and experience you have.

Real world examples of how you achieved the things you’re claiming to have achieved are essential to give context to your statement.

Vital elements to include are:

- Your main goal / outcome you want from the course

- Your motivation for taking the course

- Why you want to pursue a career in this area

- Your recent work experience

- Any voluntary experience

- Academic qualifications achieved / studying for

- Skills you have that would be useful in your eventual career path

Give your personal statement a voiceIt’s really important that your personal statement speaks to the audience you’ve written it for and that it speaks with a voice that is your own.

Write in your own style and don’t try to be overly formal by using words that don’t suit your vocabulary.

Obviously you can’t go to the opposite end of the scale and write in a very informal way, but somewhere in between is perfect.

A personal statement is just that - personal. It needs to put forward a convincing statement that encompasses all the points you listed earlier in a cohesive way.

The admissions officer should read it and feel as though you are talking directly to them about why you are unique and deserve an interview for a place on the course.

Talk about your goals with passion, enthusiasm and commitment rather than in a solely informative way. While it’s important to write accurately, conveying your passion for the profession you want to train in is key to a good personal statement.

If you find it hard to know where you should start, begin by simply putting the points you want to make into a logical order and start building words and sentences around them.

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Proof read and re-write where possible

Once you have a draft version of your personal statement, you need to proof read it and check you’ve included all the information you think is necessary and in an order that makes sense.

Accurate grammar and spelling are essential, and if those are not your strong points get someone else to proof read it for you. I would always advise against posting your personal statement online as plagiarism can be an issue.

If your personal statement is not 100% original and written by you, then your application could be disqualified and by posting it online you are opening yourself up for others to plagiarise your work.

Ensure you open your personal statement with an attention-grabbing sentence that entices the reader into reading more about you. Try not to write lists of your qualities or achievements as this doesn’t really tell the reader anything about who you are.

Incorporate your achievements and experience by relating them to your goal and by giving examples throughout your writing. Once you’re happy with it, leave it for a day or so then come back and read it again when you have a clear head.

You will see new insights and changes you want to make before you finally submit it.

To read more about CV and personal statement writing, check out these links:

How to write a personal statement to get a social care job when you’ve got no experience

How to write a CV to get your first job in social and community care

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