Personal Statement part.1

Why do I say that personal Statement is your weapon of choice? Because up until writing the personal statement, everything you do has been defined by logical steps - first you research the course you want to study, then you choose the university that is around your level, you get the grades, you take IELTS, BMAT, LSAT and whatever tests you need to take and voila! Nothing goes wrong. However enter the personal statement, you are on your own, there is no one to guide you, there is no way to study for it, no marking schemes (an A-Levels' favourite), no alternative but to sit down and seriously write it. And how are you gonna write it? Your choice.

OK, let me introduce the UCAS Personal Statement, probably one of the most important essays in your life. It is one of the factors that the universities consider and also your only chance to talk about your weird hobbies/your inner fantasies/your prediction for the future. Keep in mind though that you can only write one essay to your 5 choice universities, so it might be a bit hard for you if you applied to 2 obviously different courses, i.e. accounting and computer science. If that happens, some universities will a)outright reject you (LSE), b)request you to write additional personal statements (UCL) or if you are super lucky c)accept you without further questions (Manchester). So for those with conflicting interests, you can contact their admission officers and explain your situation to them. I think that is one way to go about it instead of taking risks.

So now under 4000 characters or 47 lines (whichever comes first), you are going to describe why are you going to study the subject you chose, what you have done up to this moment that makes you eligible and basically, sell yourself.

But how am I supposed to do that?

Let LUMO share with you some tips and tricks:

1. Start early. I cannot emphasize this enough. You need to complete it at least a week before the deadline in January or even worse, for those going to Oxbridge, Mid-September. This is easier said than done. So during your honeymoon semesters in Pre-U, try to write a personal statement now and then, although you might later find it repulsive and hard to look at, I assure you that this exercise will definitely help you when you are seriously writing it out. Also, be on the lookout for your exam periods. If your exam period is near the deadline, writing it early will make you have a peace of mind to study. Trust me, you don't want to be in a I-need-to-write-my-personal-statement-yet-I-have-to-study-for-A2-and-take-my-SATs-so-I'm-going-to-cry-myself-to-sleep-now situation. Also check with your referee to see if they had completed their references. If you inform your referee at the last minute and write your personal statement then, most likely you won't be able to apply for UCAS in time.

2. Join relevant clubs and activities. Again, in your honeymoon semesters, you should do something worthwhile that you can write in your personal statement. To be honest, not every budding engineer has a father that owns a garage and had dismantled engines before, and not every future doctor had a mission trip to Indonesia/Myanmar or did blood donation drives. Some of us may discover our passion in a job fair during form 5 and doesn't have much to show for it. So one simple way to show your passion is through your activities. If you had shadowed an engineer or was previously attached to the hospital, the admission officers will surely see that you have the passion for it. After all, its not something that you'd do for fun right? So in Pre-U, you should start doing something to advance towards your future studies even if you don't have such an immersive childhood. It is not too late.

3. Be academic. That's right, be super academic. 80% of your essay should be about the subject that you are about to study and nothing else. Extra-curricular activities should be just some minor statements to show that you are not a machine, unless it is all directly linked to your intended course. Top universities have said that what they want to see is your academic potential and not your athletic prowess on the field. After all, they want you to study there, not to play rugby (As opposed to US universities).

4. Don't copy. As much as you are tempted to use the ctrl +c, ctrl + v cheat code, don't ever do that in your Personal Statement. UCAS runs an anti-plagiarism engine that will detect if you try to rip off other people's work. Also, even modifying other people's work is a weak strategy. You cannot make someone's voice and style your own. Finding your own voice is infinitely better and easier to accomplish.

5. Write long and cut short. I suffer the curse of this generation. I can write short answers and medium-length pieces but not sprawling essays. Hence, my work is always short of word length as I tend to summarize. Don't do that, the best (actually the only) strategy in writing the personal statement is to rant and ramble and write as long as possible. Then only you merge them up and edit your work. That way you can keep the unexpected sentences that adds value to your essay, instead of thinking of how to fill the gaps with "what else can I write about?". I believe that the raw sentences contains a kind of power that is not found with edited and well thought of answers and is the one that we should seek.

6. Write a draft. Writing a draft is the one of the best advice for the personal statement writer. Instead of staring at a blank document, paralyzed by fear to write the first paragraph, you should start a draft which will proceeds to be a readable essay to be the perfect personal statement. Writing the personal statement is like a distillation process - no one gets it right the first time (unless they happen to be  accomplished writers). One of my earliest draft was said to be too cocky by my mentor who proofread it, but as time passes (and many drafts deleted), I managed to write a personal statement that's just right. It sounds exactly like what I would say and is exactly what I want to portray myself as.

7. Cover everything. Make sure you cover everything that matters in a personal statement. If your whole essay is about a work experience in an engineering firm, the readers will definitely have some unanswered questions about you, such as your aspirations or your current courses. Make sure you don't break that reader-writer's pact. Even a mention in passing is better than none, so make a checklist and make sure that you try to cover as much (important) ground as you can.

8. Ask people to proofread. Do not be scared of plagiarism. If what you are writing is your own personal statement. there shouldn't be a fear of people robbing you because they won't have the same personal experience. You should let the people around you who knows you well to read it to see if the essay sounds like you, a best friend/classmate would usually do the trick. At the same time, you should let someone who doesn't know you that well (a teacher usually) to read it as well as they does not have the "auto-correct" that your friends have when reading your essay. That way, you will know which parts require clarification. In short, the more the merrier. Even I had a minor correction after my mum (a true Grammar Nazi) read my personal statement. She was the tenth reader or so.

  

9. Seek an English teacher. Sometimes we are blinded by the mistakes made in English, and our friends and relatives too, but nobody fools the English teacher. As the final step, we should always consult a professional.

10. Stay positive. Even though you feel that you don't have the impressive material for a Cambridge essay, or you can't even wring a single word out of your unreliable brains, don't give up. I had friends who continuously rambled on the Anthropic Principle and stellar mysteries, who reversed the 80:20 ratio and they still managed to get offers from university. These 10 tenets are just guidelines that I felt was the most useful in crafting the personal statement. So whatever I say you shouldn't do, you can still do it and prove me wrong (if you are really, really sure about it). Like I said, the personal statement is the weapon of your choice.

In the end I still feel that the best way to write a personal statement is to lock yourself in your room, think deeply and fall into zen state for a few days, write a first few drafts, and finally reveal to the public your latest draft - a method that my friend used to craft one of the best essay I've read in my life. No matter what your modus operandi is, make sure that you really perfected the personal statement. The rest are just base stats, the personal statement is your weapon.

Don't sell yourself short - give it your best shot!

As always,

TIPS

1. Start early.

2. Join relevant clubs and activities.

3. Be academic.

4. Don't copy.

5. Write long and cut short.

6. Write a draft.

7. Cover everything.

8. Ask people to proofread.

9. Seek an English teacher.

10. Stay positive.

11. Visit collegelah for personal statement examples.
Copied from its 'about us': CollegeLAH is a website by the students for the students, featuring the honest story of applications and university life as told by Malaysians. So be sure to check out this website.

Still don't know what a personal statement is and how it fits into the overall scheme of things, refer to my previous blog post. Still confused? Leave a comment below.

Book Giveaway

My dear readers, I have a surprise for you today! I have a book giveaway!

The leftover books 

The old physics textbooks plus some supplementary reading
My juniors claim that the syllabus has changed for physics
but I think that you guys can still use it.

The Cambridge endorsed set of Mathematics textbook!

Some STPM reference books, given to me
by my senior Khaw

A half-done Chemistry Paper 5 and a Physics exercise.

These are my leftover books, from my A-Levels at Sunway College Petaling Jaya, some of them I deem useful while others, not so. Anyways, these books can be yours today if you wanted them! I have passed it to my friend, currently residing at Sunway-Monash Residence with the order that "In one year's time, if someone ask for the books, I will direct them them to you; if not, you're free to dispose of it as you wish." Hence if you want it, just drop me an email and I'll give you her contact number. The last date before this event ends is at 1st November 2016.

Hurry up, inform your friends if you stumble upon this blog and need A-Levels book and/or the STPM reference books, however do note that the books are currently staying at Sunway Monash Residence at Petaling Jaya.

LUMO is here to help! :)

IELTS

A note about your grades

First and foremost, in UK universities applications, your grades are important. Regardless of how much they say they value the other aspects of your application, your grades are important. Its is the only benchmark that the universities ever get on your academic prowess and one of the conditions that they will set on your offer, hence, your grades are important.

Of course, the converse is true,
but at the pre-university stage, grades really matter

Hope the mantra works.

Regardless of what types of Pre-university programmes you take, be sure to do your best. I can only advise for A-Levels really so the rest of you doing SAM (South Australian Matriculation), MUFY (Monash University Foundation Year) or STPM etc., you guys will have to do your own homework, both in you studies and your universities applications. In your university applications, make sure that the universities that you are applying to accepts the pre-university programme you are doing (University application 101).

Now back to IELTS

As for IELTS or the International English Language Testing System, we take the academic version of it as a benchmark for English proficiency. As a person who is going to study in the UK, you are expected to have a mastery of English, and not to be someone who only understand the "rojak" (mixed fruits salad) version of it.The IELTS test does not have a passing grade, but is graded from band 1-9 with 0.5 unit increments. It consists of four parts - speaking, reading, writing and listening. The normal score that a university requests is usually around 6.5 - 7.5, with some universities having a passing grade for each specific part. The test costs RM 750 and is administered by either the British Council or IDP education. It is valid for 2 years so don't take it too early, especially you "kiasu" (afraid of losing out) people!

IELTS and your grades,
your dream ride to the dream university

My personal experience: I took the IELTS on 26th and 29th August 2015 which is just a week before my mocks for the A-Levels. As a result, I did not study quite hard both on my exam and IELTS, which resulted in me only getting moderately good  (but passable) grades in both tests. Usually the test will be done in 2 sittings, one done on a Saturday (reading, writing and listening) and the other done up to 3 days before the test (speaking).

For me, I wasn't that nervous of the listening and reading test, but rather the speaking and the writing part. At the time of taking the test, I already took my SAT: Reasoning test and had warmed up sufficiently on my speed-reading comprehension skills. As for listening, there is nothing much to it except listening carefully. Usually the audio recording will have a person speaking in the British and Australian slang so you must be do a few practice to get used to it, even if you are a super fluent English speaker. Also, we tend to drift away during the listening test (like we do all the time in class) so it is important to do some exercise to learn how to focus. As Jackie aptly puts it:

For the speaking test, I think that the best preparation is to find a speaking partner, ideally one who has done the IELTS recently. That way, they can actually drill you in the style that is similar to how the test is administered and time you properly. "This is the IELTS speaking test, I am Mr. blah and you are now under recording," my friend suggested this technique and it worked perfectly as I felt more at ease during the speaking test.

Also, most people stumbled in the second part where you have to give a 2 minute speech of a topic given to you. Be sure to know how to rant or monologue for two minutes without interjections in between (Trust me, that 2 minutes felt like a lifetime). Know how to use filler sentences as well such as "I think... that this is an interesting question", "Wow.. nobody asked me that before", "And.. that's all," the last one being super useful when your mouth talks faster than the brain can think and you just have to mention the word "and". Avoid words like "furthermore" and "moreover", words I'm sure you will never use in your daily conversation. Save that for the essays. Although the filler sentences may sound artificial, but trust me, its definitely better than errr.... arrr... orrr....

For the writing task in IELTS, there is definitely a way to score it. Task 1 is quite formulaic with the only thing that needs to be known are synonyms to words such as "increased" (grew by leaps and bounds, jumped, skyrocketed) and "decreased" (shrunk, dropped, plummeted). Reading a few samples and doing some practices is a must. For the second part, it usually tasks you to write a topic that is quite opinion based, something like "do you agree with blah blah blah?". The method I used is to discuss both sides of the topic UNFAIRLY, giving more weightage to the stand that I am about to take. That way during the conclusion I can say that it is clear that blah blah blah has more benefits than drawbacks, so we should definitely support it. In another way, Task 2 is actually quite formulaic too.

Of course, I am not going to thoroughly discuss about the IELTS, just putting a personal perspective to the whole English proficiency test business. Drawing from my own personal experience and of others, I can tell you that:

TIPS

1. Don't take the test too early, it is only valid for 2 years and I've seen a lot of people retaking it due to their own kiasu-ness.
2. Take the test seriously, I've seen many people who just wanted to "get it over with" and did not do adequate preparation. If you are good in English, prepare as to get the hang of the test, if you are not, prepare as to get a passable grade in the test. Even I only get a precarious 7.0 in both my speaking and writing. So do not rest on your laurels. Be prepared to be serious or fork up another RM750. Your choice.
3. Bring pencils to the test as mechanical pencils are not allowed (but pens are allowed for the essay).

I believe grades are important in the Pre-U levels, but do you think otherwise? Are you confused about IELTS and its American counterpart, TOEFL? Still don't know when is the best time to take the test? Do ask questions. I am here to help :)

An intro to UK and UCAS

So, UK universities applications, where do I begin?

First off, UK application is not as hard as it looks. Because Malaysia is previously a colony of the British Empire, their application process actually considers our Malaysian major examinations, for example, SPM and STPM (Malaysian Higher Education Certificate). Before we begin, I assume that you have done adequate research on UK universities as well as their majors. I will be mostly covering for those who are in the same boat as me. For research, I used this book:

I mainly use this book to research about Cambridge colleges
but a lot of information on other universities are here too.

To start - we must first be introduced to UCAS - the web portal for UK universities education.

UCAS

There's a pretty short video in UCAS that shows you all the steps in applying for universities which I found useful including tips on writing the personal statement, obtaining a reference and on how to fill in the application form. When you are filling each section of the form, there will be a short video detailing on how to fill it in correctly. The forms must be submitted before mid-January for most of the students and mid-September for those applying to Oxford/Cambridge asking to be interviewed in Malaysia (which I will elaborate further in my future blog posts).

The UCAS application form does not post any major problems and is quite easy to fill in. However, I encourage students to use the Mabecs's counseling service. Mabecs is an organisation that is keen on helping students to further their study in the UK. What Mabecs will do is this: Before sending off your application to UCAS, they will scrutinize and inspect your application for mistakes, for FREE. So do contact Mabecs and ask for their service. When you fill up the form, you will have to select Mabecs as a centre and nominate Mabecs as an agent in the nominated access section. It's as easy as that. If any problems arise with your application, Mabecs consultants have the power to return your application to you for corrections and acts as your ultimate failsafe.

No application is complete without a reference. The referee can be a teacher or your counselor/mentor that is assigned to you. You will have to notify them early to write the reference. Most of the pre-university preparatory colleges in Malaysia have the support system for the lecturers to do this, but for the sixth-formers in public schools, there is none. The students in public schools will have to be the lone-ranger and do everything themselves, including telling the teacher what is expected of a good reference (or plain writing for them).

It is I - The Lone Ranger

Besides, the last weapon that you need is the personal statement, probably one of the most important essays you will write in your life. It is an essay that you are writing to the admission university on your strengths, your passions and your reasons for studying at that college/university (to be elaborated further). 

In my own experience, I had trouble paying the application fee to UCAS which is £23 and was barred from submitting my application (almost nearing the Cambridge submission deadlines - don't do that folks). I ended up having to contact UCAS through Facebook as they don't have email. This deserves a mention because this is the first time that I have to do something serious and important on Facebook.

To explain to your curious aunties and insatiable uncles, I've put together quite a neat analogy:

UCAS - The portal to enter the world of UK universities.

Personal Statement - Your only weapon, your gun, your killing machine.

Reference - Your hat, making you more presentable, another essential item.

IELTS, examination results and other stuff - Your trusty steed, Shadow, which will bring your closer to your dreams.

Mabecs - Tonto, your sidekick.

With this analogy in mind, I hope that I can clear some doubt about the UK applications. Farewell, Lone Ranger!

TIPS

1. When filling in the forms, be sure to ask/Google for any doubts and always double check, it is better to be cautious than to make irreversible mistakes.

2. When submitting the application for payment, be sure to use a computer with good internet connection (wouldn't want it to disconnect halfway) at a place with good cellphone signal. Chances are, you will need to submit an OTP (one-time password) sent to your phone for the transaction. Failing to pay will result in you being barred and having to contact UCAS.

3. Remember my analogy and the UK application is easily demystified.

Do you still have doubts about UK universities applications? Do you think its too technical? Would you like a more intuitive approach? (i.e. in 'simple' English?) Please leave your comments.

What I'm going to write about

Ok, looking at other people's blog makes me feel bad. The first post felt like I was rambling about... nothing and I didn't explain clearly about the Malay words that I was using about (I have since edited the post and put their English definition in brackets). So as a new blogger I guess I'll have to lay down some blogging goals - the blogging resolutions.

In the space of 2 months I'm going to write about:

1. UK Universities Applications - I'm probably going to split this into a few parts
2. Cambridge Applications
3. US Universities Applications - I'm going to split this as well
4. Stanford Applications
5. Cambridge GCE A-Levels
6. Life After SPM (Malaysia's Certificate of Education)
7. Scholarship opportunities
8. SPM
9. Malaysia's Education in General

The reason I'm doing this in anti-chronological order is because I just did the UK and US applications recently and my mind is the freshest in these subjects. Also, as I discuss the matter of applications, perhaps I would be able to find fresh ideas about the Malaysian system in general.

Dear readers,
As this blog is written primarily for Malaysian youths aiming to graze at the greener pastures out there, it might not be relevant to some of you. Another thing, I intend to add a tips system with each blog post, where I will dispense some of my advice that I regretted not heeding earlier. :(
The tips system goes something like this:

TIPS

1. I will label each blog post to the relevant headings here, i.e UKAPPS for UK applications, so you guys can have a look at the relevant process in the applications.

Do you think that there are other aspects that I should cover? Do comment below.

Welcome speech!

Hi guys! I'm Lumo. This is the first time that I am sharing by blogging.

The truth is, I'm writing this covert blog on education as an outlet for my knowledge of the U.K. and/or U.S. application process and all the shenanigans that go with it, especially for those with a rural background in Malaysia. Flashback 2 years ago in my hometown's SMJK (Malaysia's Public Chinese Secondary School), friends crowded around my table, busy gossiping about the latest breakups at school and doing detailed analysis of the female anatomy. Teachers were perpetually mono-toning on about whatever they were droning about and I was, as usual, daydreaming. Sure, life in a rural area has its perks by being peaceful and relaxing, but in that small town, I was drifting away. Although I invested my time in doing all the extracurricular activities that I can get my hands on, I never really felt busy, I felt comfortable being the jaguh kampung (small town champion).

Later, I managed to secure a scholarship to do A-Levels at Sunway College. The competition there shocked me. That was the first time that I met such intense, cut-throat competition. There were people who did the MIT online courses, who were IMO Gold Medalists, who scored more 100s than the times they didn't score 100s - It was all too crazy! However, after some time of adjustment, I realised that I was not too bad. Coming from a rural background does not mean that we are weak, it is simply that we are not as well-exposed and well-connected as those from the urban areas. Now that I am studying at one of the best university preparatory college in this country, the playing field is leveled.

Fast forward 2 years and back to A-Levels, I have since discovered a sense of purpose (note that I did not use rediscovered here as I never had one before). For the first time, I felt an urge of entering Big-Name schools like Cambridge and Stanford. For the first time, I felt like I could stand a chance against the hundreds and thousands of monsters (geniuses) swamping the world outside. For the first time, I felt the need to give it my all - to go BIG or go home. It is not that I did not have the capacity to dream big, but it had not occurred to me to do so, until now. However, no matter the outcome, this experience has been an important eye-opener and I resolved to see that when the next Lumo stumbles along, he/she will have the guidance of this trailblazer.

Do you have a similar experience? What are your thoughts? Do comment below.