BRING YOUR TRANSCRIPT ALIVE !

1. BRING YOURTRANSCRIPT ALIVE! Writing an Effective Personal Statement (for the UC & Scholarships)

2. You can use a PERSONAL STATEMENT to apply to University of California schools,or . . . apply for a Scholarship.

3. Your TRANSCRIPT alone . . . GPA UNITS COURSES

4. Your unique and interesting self Your TRANSCRIPT plus . . . Your Unique andInterestingSelf

5. What is a PERSONAL STATEMENT?

6. A Personal Statement is . . . • A way to: - bring your transcript alive, - separate yourself from the crowd. • In a Scholarship Essay, you . . . - inspire the college admission officer to pick your name for the “accepted list,” or to give YOU a financial award for your college education.

7. Your PERSONAL STATEMENT . . . Offers an understanding of YOU and your world. Is an opportunity for you to explain how people and experiences have challenged you and enhanced your ability to succeed . - www.admissions.ucla.edu

8. Writing an Effective PERSONAL STATEMENT

9. INCLUDE . . . * Discussion of your academic record * Your accomplishments * Other activities. INCLUDE . . . * Unusual circumstances , challenges, or hardships you have faced . . . ways in which you have overcome or responded to them. INCLUDE . . . * STRENGTHS INITIATIVE MOTIVATION LEADERSHIP SERVICE TO OTHERS SPECIAL POTENTIAL EXPERIENCE WITH OTHER CULTURES INCLUDE . . . * Achievements you have made with the opportunities given to you.

10. Compelling PERSONAL STATEMENTS should NOT include . . . • NO . . . Wordy or flowery descriptions or unimportant itinerary when describing experiences. • NO . . . Exclamation points !!! • NO . . . Generalities or unnecessary adverbs and adjectives.

11. Words of Wisdom In order to be an effective writer, you must remember to use your own words. I cannot stress this enough: Stop using too many big fancy words in one sentence! It does not make you sound smart; you instead sound like you are trying too hard. Have you ever been told that you look nice in your sweats when you think you look sloppy? The same idea applies to your writing style. Sometimes it is better to let yourself shine through. It is easier to convey your message when you are comfortable and are familiar with your words, rather than trying to impress the reader with complicated strange wording that you borrowed from a thesaurus. In saying this, I am not implying that you should use remedial words and phrasing. (ALWAYS USE CORRECT GRAMMAR!) I am stating that you should simply not rely on the thesaurus or make the main focus of your paper these “impressive” words. — Katerina Syrengelas

12. Responding to PROMPTS(What’s a PROMPT?)

13. UC Prompt #1(Transfer Applicants) What is your intended major? Discuss how your interest in the subject developed and describe any experience you have had in the field — such as volunteer work, internships and employment, participation in student organizations and activities — and what you have gained from your involvement.

14. UC Prompt #2(All Applicants) Tell us about a personal quality, talent, accomplishment, contribution or experience that is important to you. What about this quality or accomplishment makes you proudand how does it relate to the person you are?

15. UC Prompt #3(Optional for all Applicants)(Suggestion to complete this prompt!) Is there anything you would like us to know about you or your academic record that you have not had the opportunity to describe elsewhere in this application? - Personal circumstances - Family experiences - Opportunities that were or were not available at their school or college

16. Just the Facts . . . 1) Maximum of 1,000 words in both prompts combined 2) Each response – at least 250 words 3) No special characters

17. IMPORTANT !!! 4) Copy and paste from a Word document First - Copy & Paste your essay into the space provided in the application. Next - Proofread once more to make sure no odd characters or line breaks have appeared. When submitting a paper application . . . attach a copy of your personal statements. - Name , date of birth, and the words "Personal Statement” in the upper right corner of each page

18. Helpful Tips for Prompts . . . Avoid generalities & Be specific! For example: Do not give a summary . . . Focus on an interesting detail instead. Make it interesting and meaningful to the reader. Help them learn more about you, and make your essay more enjoyable and easy to read.

19. More helpful tips . . . Don’t use humor !!! Avoid clichés or lines from Movies or Songs. Examples: “Two wrongs don’t make a right.” “Somewhere over the rainbow” Do not be cute with font and format options. (Use Times New Roman & 12 point font.) Talk to someone if you are having difficulty writing what you want to say.

20. UC Writing Tips: DO’s & DONT’S

21. DO . . . • Do . . . give yourself enough time. (Start early!) • Do . . . make sure to answer the question asked. • Do . . . beyourself! • Do . . . ask for help. • Do . . . proofread.

22. DON’T . . . • Don’t . . . use the same story for both prompts. • Don’t . . . use humor. • Don’t . . . procrastinate. • Don’t . . . make up hardships.

23. Who here would like free money?

24. No matter what college system you decide on, you can apply for free money to attend. • Using the writing skills you have learned today . . . you can apply for scholarshipsthat will help you pay for any college you wish to attend.

25. Scholarship Essays • Communicate effectively through the written word. • The topics for scholarship essays vary widely from college to college and scholarship to scholarship. - Some colleges have pre-selected topics. - Others give some leeway and allow you to choose your own specific topic within a specified, broader range.

26. General Tipsfor writing your Scholarship Essay

27. Tip #1 FOLLOW DIRECTIONS Many students fail to follow simple directions such as margins, spacing, or style. Use only white paper for essays. Colored paper is pretty, but often judges prefer white paper . . . It’s much more professional.

28. Tip #2 STAY ON TOPIC Always answer any questions asked for the essay. (Do not write about topics the essay does not ask for.) Some essays will want to know about your favorite book, movie, or hobby to see what you enjoy doing besides studying. (Describe an intelligent activity!) Another question that may be asked is . . . “What was the most difficult time in your life and why & how you grew as a person from this experience?” (This does not mean that you have to tell a tragedy.) Other types of questions may ask about . . . personality traits, extracurricular activities, and your dreams.

29. Remember . . . The purpose of these essays is to see how well you can express yourselfin words on paper.

30. Focus on . . . keeping all that you say in your “personal statement” or “essay” positive inspiring and education oriented.

31. Helpful Websites • http://www.universityofcalifornia.edu/ • http://www.californiacolleges.edu • www.universityofcalifornia.edu/apply • www.scholarships.com • www.admissions.ucla.edu

32. Let’s Practice . . . Can you think of . . . An accomplishment or a special experience and describe what you have learned and how you have grown from this, or A challenge . . . and ways in which you have overcome or responded to it.

33. Examples: Learning to cope from a loss, Learning to prevail through having patience and persistence, Learning how to work with others effectively in school, volunteer work or your job.

34. ACTIVITY TIME !!!

42. WEB RESOURCES

45. http://www.admissions.ucla.edu/prospect/PerStmt.htm

46. http://students.berkeley.edu/apa/personalstatement/blunders.htmlhttp://students.berkeley.edu/apa/personalstatement/blunders.html

47. http://www.ucgateways.org/

48. http://www.quintcareers.com/college_application_essay.html

49. http://www.fastweb.com/

50. Please go to the: Harbor College Website (lahc.edu) “Student Services”  “EOPS” “EOPS Student Information” . . . for this presentation.