personal statement examples spanish

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Successful Personal Statement For Modern Languages At Oxford

Last Updated: 10th August 2020

Author: Adi Sen

• Modern Languages

Table of Contents

Welcome to our popular Personal Statement series where we present a successful Personal Statement, and our Oxbridge Tutors provide their feedback on it. 

Today, we are looking through a Modern Languages applicant’s Personal Statement that helped secure a place at Oxford University. The Modern Languages Course at Oxford aims to teach spoken fluency in colloquial and more formal situations, as well as the ability to write essays in the foreign language, and the ability to translate into and out of the foreign language with accuracy and sensitivity to a range of vocabulary, styles and registers.

Read on to see how the candidate approached this Personal Statement. 

Here’s a breakdown of the Personal Statement:

SUCCESSFUL?

The universities this candidate applied to were the following:

Enrolling on our Oxbridge Modern Languages comprehensive Programme will give you access to Personal Statement redrafts. 

Your tutor will give you actionable feedback with insider tips on how to improve and make your Personal Statement Oxbridge quality for the best chances of success.  

Modern Languages Personal Statement

France has developed a literature of unequalled richness and variety. Europeans in any age have had few thoughts, desires, or fantasies that a French writer somewhere has not expressed-it has given the Western mind an image of itself. In this sense, French literature serves as a pool in which many cultures meet. Therefore, in particular, it is French literature’s universality which interests me.

Nevertheless, I enjoy how literature provides a window into an author’s contemporary society. For example, ‘Madame Bovary’ draws us into Flaubert’s disgust for the bourgeois existence of the 19thcentury; Zola’s ‘Thérèse Raquin’ invites us into the leprous lower-depths of Paris. I am interested in how both these writers, unparalleled in their psychological clarity and narrative muscle, provide such a brutal and relentless account of their chosen subject matter: for Flaubert, the indulgent decadence of the bourgeoisie, exemplified by Emma Bovary; for Zola, the moral dankness of the murderous lovers. In addition, I have watched Kassovitz’s ‘La Haine’ and Truffaut’s ‘Les quatre cents coups’, both similar to Zola and Flaubert in their rigorous exploration of character. Focusing on social outcasts, these films act as an exposition of societal problems. ‘La Haine’ sheds light on the all-encompassing violence and cultural exclusion of the suburbs of Paris, while ‘Les quatre cent coups’ reveals the shocking injustices in the treatment of juvenile offenders. Thus, such French cinema serves to illuminate the neglected–I relish this narrative potential in the discovery of truth.

Besides these more realistic works, both my English and French A Levels have introduced me toAbsurdism.I have appreciated the works of Beckett (‘Fin de partie’, ‘En attendant Godot’) and Ionesco (‘La Cantatrice Chauve’, ‘Rhinocéros’). These tragicomedies simultaneously entertain and provoke–the reason why I found them so enjoyable and yet so powerful. To pursue this interest in Absurdism, I read Voltaire’s absurd ‘contes philosophiques’, ‘Candide’ and ‘Micromegas’. Fiction, I found, proved to be the perfect medium of expression for Voltaire’s empiricism and scepticism. Therefore, like the tragicomedies of the 20th century, I thought Voltaire’s work succeeded both as entertainment and as an accessible manifesto of his philosophical beliefs. Furthermore, I decided to follow up this interest in such ‘contes philosophiques’ by undertaking an Edexcel Extended Project, entitled ‘Ancient Influence on French Existentialist Literature’, for which I was awarded an A*. Here, I focused on why Camus, in ‘Le Mythe de Sisyphe’, Sartre, in ‘Les Mouches’, and Anouilh, in ‘Antigone’, chose to use classical themes and motifs to communicate their own particular perception of Existentialism. Despite its challenges, the more I worked at this project, the more certain I was that this is what and how I would like to study.

Moreover, I have taken an interest in symbolist French poetry. Having studied some poetry by Baudelaire (‘Les Fleurs du Mal’) and Verlaine (‘Romances sans paroles’), I have become fascinated by the crippling and contrasting emotions communicated in these poems. I now admire how the very sound of the French language can control the register of a poem and, thus, highlight its true meaning even amongst the most abstract, intangible imagery, employed by Baudelaire and Verlaine. I am intrigued by the French language in part due to this precision.

Finally, I contributed regularly to my school’s Modern Languages magazine, ‘Babel’, and have competed in ‘Les Joutes Oratoires’, a national French debating competition in which I reached the final. Through these experiences, I have begun to thoroughly enjoy communicating in French. I believe an extra language extends one’s range. It releases you from the inertia of one cultural gear–achange of perspective that I find truly enlightening and enjoyable. I will be working in Paris from January to March.

For more inspiration, take a look through our other successful Personal Statement a nalysis articles:

Successful Personal Statement For Natural Science (Physical) At Cambridge

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Download our Free Personal Statement Starter Guide 

Good Points Of The Personal Statement

Throughout this statement, the applicant engages consistently with a range of French texts at a very advanced level.

The applicant is able to demonstrate not only an awareness of a huge tranche of French literature but also how specific works intersect. This comparative criticism is carried out by the applicant across several different forms in a manner that is lucid and impressive.

The applicant has mentioned their personal research and is able to indicate why it is interesting and relevant. They are also able to indicate how their personal pursuits are reciprocally and beneficially related to their academic studies.

Bad Points Of The Personal Statement

At particular moments, this applicant veers from an academic register into an overtly formal one; a stylistic turn which, while remaining clear in meaning, is a little jarring.

More personal information would have been a welcome addition to this statement, especially since its academic calibre is so relentlessly clear throughout; the statement has the potential to be slightly breathless in its rapid consideration of big swathes of literature.

The statement could, therefore, have happily absorbed more personal information without diluting its clear academic potential.

In addition, the candidate could have taken slightly more care over their phrasing, which occasionally takes a tone bordering on reductive or patronising; a risk which is perhaps not worth taking in this context.

UniAdmissions Overall Score:

The candidate effectively and efficiently communicates a level of cultural awareness which goes far above and beyond the demands of their curriculum.

They are able to demonstrate how they practically carry forward their interests in extra-curricular and academic activities. Throughout the statement, the applicant engages a muscular, academically-considered tone which is clear and authoritative.

There was room in the statement for greater personal depth and warmth, and for greater justification for some of the strong academic arguments being posed.

And there we have it – an Oxford Modern Languages Personal Statement with feedback from our expert tutors. 

Remember, at Oxford, the Admissions Tutors are often the people who will be teaching you for the next few years, so you need to appeal directly to them.

Check out our Free Personal Statement Resources page for even more successful personal statements and expert guides.

Our expert tutors are on hand to help you craft the perfect Personal Statement for your Oxford Modern Languages application.

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Oxbridge Spanish Applications in 2024: Our Guide to Reading, Personal Statement and Interview Tips

This article is written by U2 Spanish and Linguistics mentor, Rhys. Rhys graduated with a First in Linguistics and Spanish from St. Catherine’s College, Oxford in 2012 and was the winner of the Fred Holcroft Prize for study of the history of Spanish as a language. This article provides a comprehensive guide to Spanish / Modern Foreign Languages Oxbridge Applications, what to read, and how to write a Spanish personal statement. We also provide a few tips on what to do before your Spanish Oxbridge interview!

Spanish University Applications

Spanish is, in many ways, just like the other European languages available to study at university - only bigger .  As the world’s second or third most-spoken language (really, it depends on how you count it), it can be hard to know where to start when approaching the language with a personal statement in mind. Myself, though, I think this is part of the attraction - you only need to make a start, your start, with comparatively little need to get a handle on all the immensity and complexity that the Spanish-speaking world displays.  This guide is written with that in mind - and by that, I mean that there will be parts of this guide where nothing is set in stone.  If that feels like a cop-out, I promise you: it isn’t.  What’s the point of a personal statement?  To be personal .  Yes, there are certain abilities you will need to be able to demonstrate, certain thresholds that you will need to exceed.  My point is more that the way in which you reach those thresholds, gain those abilities, and how you do it, is very much up to you - and it can be determined by your interests.  This guide is a series of suggestions, and it can provide some pointers, sure - and I’ll do my best to do so.  But it’s just a launchpad, not a doctor’s prescription.

Even if you’re not applying for the particular languages described in the blogs, I do recommend having a look at the posts about French ( LINK ) and German ( LINK ).  The general points about how to build modern foreign language personal statements, and the literary background that is expected, are equally valid and applicable to Spanish.  So please do read this post in parallel to those. You might also like to have a look at this guide to Linguistics ( LINK ) by a charming and dashing author. Language and linguistics complement each other immensely, and at both Oxford and Cambridge it is possible to incorporate a Linguistics paper or two into your languages degree. I’m biased, of course, but I highly recommend you give it at least a few minutes of consideration.

This guide is in several parts. The first few parts are related to Spanish at any university , and the final few sections are related to Oxford and Cambridge only , with a discussion of written work submissions, admissions tests, and (in less detail, as it’s not really the focus of this article) interview preparation. If you would like further insight into interview preparation, U2 has an excellent guide in its Materials Store ( LINK ).

Reading Around Spanish - How and Why

If you’re looking at the top-flight universities in the UK - especially, but not exclusively, Oxford and Cambridge - then having read some texts in Spanish is pretty much a non-negotiable part of your application preparation, and it’s going to take up at least a paragraph on your personal statement.  Honestly, if literary analysis isn’t your bag, Modern Languages at Oxbridge is not the course for you.  But before discussing particular texts, I’d like to clarify a couple of things about how literary analysis and discussion works in the slightly atypical context of writing a personal statement:

You do not need to study English literature to apply for Oxbridge .  Many applicants do study English Lit at A-Level (or equivalent), it’s true, and it certainly doesn’t hurt - and a good grade in GCSE (or equivalent) in English Lit is ideal, because you’ll be using those very same skills all the time.  By this, I mean that the analytical ability from literature classes is definitely a tool to use when reading for Spanish preparation - so don’t let that tool go rusty!  But it’s not obligatory to study English Lit at the time of your application.  The first year in Oxford and Cambridge is fairly rigid and structured, and that’s partly to ensure that you have the literary abilities that you’ll put into further (and more specialised) practice in the rest of your course.

The personal statement should be neither a list of texts you’ve read (that’s not informative), nor a deep and fancy essay-style analysis of one or two texts that you’ve read (that’s not personal) .  It should be somewhere in the middle - a good overview of your reading, and some of your thoughts about them.  You don’t need to feel the need to mention every text in the personal statement- why not have a surprise up your sleeve for the interview?

Some texts are more common than others on Spanish personal statements.  This is mostly due to the A-Level syllabus, where some texts are simply more popular with some schools than others.  A couple of examples of this are La casa de Bernarda Alba by Federico García Lorca , Crónica de una muerte anunciada by Gabriel García Márquez , and the films Volver and El laberinto del fauno .  If you want to include and discuss them in your Spanish personal statement, that’s OK.  Go for it!  But be aware that interviewers often judge the quality of an applicant’s discussion of them (both in the personal statement and Oxbridge interview) to a different standard, if they think it’s a text that you’ve studied at school.  In mock interviews, if these texts appear, I always ask if they’re a classroom text - and if so, I dial my expectations up a little.  Other interviewers might just assume, though - so I recommend having a quick look at the texts on the AQA and Edexcel syllabuses, just to see when an interviewer might also amp up their expectations.  To repeat, this should not deter you from reading and discussing them if you want!  They’re on the syllabus for a reason: not only are they at roughly the expected level, they’re also usually good reads/watches.  But if they’re syllabus texts, give them a little extra attention in your preparation.

Spanish Reading Suggestions- What to Read

The majority of your reading will probably revolve around literature , and that’s understandable; it’ll take up a lot of your time in university (especially at Oxbridge), and, if given a stimulus at interview, it’ll likely be either a prose extract or a poem (though we won’t be discussing that so much here, as this is more about the personal statement).  Whilst there’s plenty to be said for other things as well - mostly history, or current affairs - it’ll be literature that’ll most capture the attention of admissions tutors.

Poetry : I put this at the top of this series of bullet points not because I think it should form the bulk of your reading, but because it’s the thing that most people are frequently given in their Spanish Oxbridge interviews .  Essentially, it’s worth keeping these skills sharp if you’re going for an interview at Oxford … but I consider it less important elsewhere.  You can do this, if you’re nervous, with English poetry too.  All the techniques you might notice - metaphor, sound, sentence length, structure , the lot - are just as valuable here (though I don’t think you need to investigate Spanish poetic metre as part of this - a nice-to-have, but very much optional and less important than actually engaging with a text!).

As a result, rather than recommend individual authors straight off the bat, I think a good place to start is anthologies .  There are many available - Google is your friend here - and don’t worry if they’re English-only, as Google will also help you find the originals … though I often go straight to a site called Poemas del alma for that, which almost always has what I need.  In fact, there are worse ways to spend an afternoon than having a nose around Poemas del alma itself - plenty there to look at, discard, and delve at will.

Some of the popular authors, like Lorca , have sets of selected poems with parallel English - don’t think that this is throwing in the towel! Feel free to select a period, a theme, or an author that you like, or go totally according to what’s available/cheap when you look … this, in fact, is why I’ve avoided (mostly!) names here. You’ll need to have a personal interpretation of the poem, and I can’t provide or influence that. And, after all, sometimes the things we stumble upon by accident are some of the best. This is about your ability to analyse, and not about reading the big names simply because they’re big names.

I am in two minds about whether to recommend Golden Age texts.  You’ll need a guide to help you (though these aren’t too hard to find), and some people enjoy them greatly (especially their clever use of cultismos - words that were “upcycled” from Greek or Latin and used in contemporary poetry) - and objectively, they’re some of the finest European literature of their period.  But I’ll be honest, they’re hard, and they never much set my heart racing … and if poetry isn’t your forte or if you don’t currently study it, I think (sound the opinion alarm!) that time might be better spent with more recent things, where you don’t have to delve into 1500s/1600s culture and history whilst also keeping your literary talons sharp!  Dig your claws in if you like, but only if you want to - it’s not a must-have.

Prose .  It can feel like a big time sink to read a whole novel in Spanish, and I don’t think you need to read a lot of them (and you can go for short novellas if you like - Nada by Carmen Laforet is a popular choice, though I’ve not yet read it myself, and so are some shorter García Márquez texts ).

In general, I think this is a good place to read the texts in parallel .  Reading in English should be second in importance to engaging with the Spanish, of course - but the English can help if you’re a bit lost.  I should repeat, though, reading in English is not a replacement for the originals.  Either read the Spanish with the English to help you, or be very explicit that the text you read is in translation only.  People have been caught out on this before - for example, you might be asked how the use of tú and usted changes in the text, and you won’t know if you’ve read only the English.

Two of the big-hitters for Latin American novels that I see on Spanish Personal Statements are Gabriel García Márquez and Mario Vargas Llosa, with Isabel Allende taking third place.  All great choices!  Some are on the syllabus, so the usual caveats apply.

Short Stories .  I singled these out from prose since, in Latin America in particular, this is a standalone genre.  It allows you to be nice and selective, finding and discarding authors (or even individual stories) who please/bore you as you see fit.  And, also, it’s a personal favourite.  Some of the best include Jorge Luis Borges ( Ficciones and El Aleph ), Isabel Allende ( Los cuentos de Eva Luna ), Roberto Bolaño, Julio Cortázar ( Todos los fuegos el fuego ), Gabriel García Márquez (various), and - though he’s trickier - a personal love of mine is Juan Rulfo ( El llano en llamas ) .  There are also decent anthologies available with parallel texts - by Penguin, by Angel Flores, and by Olly Richards, which can be a boon - treat them as a starting point.

Drama .  If you like drama, go for it!  It was never really my bag, but that’s OK - maybe it’s yours.  The big one here is probably Federico García Lorca , who was mentioned above.  The three common texts are La casa de Bernarda Alba, Bodas de sangre, and Yerma .  The first two of these are often syllabus texts, so keep that in mind.  Some people like to try one of the Golden Age writers of plays as well - such as Calderón de la Barca, or Lope de Vega.  Give it a try if you like, but I should add a caveat.  Like with Shakespeare in English, a lot of its content and style is opaque to modern readers without all the supporting material and study - so ensure you have some of that to hand unless you fancy a challenge!  Personally, as with the poetry I don’t think delving into Golden Age is necessary, but if it floats your boat, go for it.

History .  I thought about including this below in another section, but decided to move it up here for a couple of reasons.  First: it’s the sort of context that often informs your interpretation of the literature you read.  Second: it’s another avenue through which you can demonstrate your analytical skills, perhaps on something like an event, a figure, or an ideology.  Again, you don’t need to feel the need to try and swallow the entire history of the Hispanophone world here.  Overviews are fine, and you might like to specialise in an area that matches your reading (whatever it is). 

Current affairs .  You don’t need to go overboard here, and it’s not something you need to make any mention of in the personal statement.  The exception, though, is if you make it one of your special interests (see below), in which case relevant current affairs stuff is non-optional.  I think a quick check-in on a Spanish-medium news site one or twice a fortnight is sufficient … though, if you have an interview, make this once every one or two days in the run-up to the interview itself.

Non-Text Preparation Suggestions for University Spanish

I’m an evangelist for this sort of thing.  Yes, there does need to be a literary component for the top-flight universities; that’s inevitable.  Though it certainly isn’t the only suitable source.  Far from it!  As mentioned in the introduction, you have the scope to indulge yourself here, all according to your interests and specialities.  The thing is, especially for Oxbridge, that there is no template into which you need to fit.  It’s not a negative (i.e. “let’s see what you don’t have”) process; it’s a positive one (i.e. “OK, show us what you *do* have”).  There are plenty of routes for this - so what I’ve written below isn’t exhaustive. 

FILM and TV .  This is probably the biggest one to appear after literature on a personal statement, again because there’s often exposure via schools.  Really, there’s a lot of scope here - if it’s in Spanish and you can demonstrate an ability to analyse it, like you would a literary text, then it’s worthy of inclusion.  Explain what you found intriguing, or some inferences that you made (just saying you watched it, well, that’s not enough).

I had a stroke of luck here - in my interview, I was given a text that was written from the perspective of an extraterrestrial who crash-landed in Barcelona.  By chance, I had recently watched a low-budget (and, in retrospect, really awful) Argentine film called Mercano el Marciano about a similar story in Buenos Aires!  I didn’t expect it to be relevant, and it didn’t make the cut on my personal statement, but I could draw on it profitably at interview.

There are “usual suspects” for film, as there are for literature - this means El laberinto del fauno, María llena eres de gracia , La lengua de las mariposas , and several of Almodóvar’s works .  As before, include them if you like - but remember that the interviewers might have correspondingly higher expectations.

Spain (and the Spanish-speaking world) generally doesn’t produce a lot of high-quality TV, though there are exceptions.  La casa de papel/Money Heist and the prison drama Locked Up might be fun.

VIDEOS .  I’d be remiss here if I weren’t to make a nod to YouTube .  The Hispanophone world has had quite the explosion of online entertainment, just like everywhere else.  The sort of things you binge on YouTube (don’t lie, yes you do) in English are probably there in Spanish too.  Give it a go!  I have an interest in geopolitics, for instance, and the YouTube channel VisualPolitik (which, even better, has versions in Spanish and English ) is my go-to, especially for Latin American affairs.  I also watch a few Spanish-medium cooking channels.

PODCASTS .  Basically ditto as for the videos, but in audio - all the benefits apply.  You can explore these in any way you like, and to go down any route that corresponds with your pre-existing interests.  There are also some that are English-language for this - I think Latino USA deserves a shout-out for its discussion of Hispanic life in the United States.  The US has the fifth-highest number of Spanish speakers of any country in the world, after all, and it’s easy to forget that.

If you’d like a trashy bit of fun, there’s also a very entertaining (but also melodramatic, poorly-acted, and silly) conspiracy-horror-apocalypse fiction show called El gran apagón .  Proof that you don’t have to be super-serious in everything you do - getting accustomed to hearing spoken Spanish is a benefit in itself.

CULTURE .  I said above, in the introduction, that you don’t need to get a grip on every facet of this enormous culture - and I still mean that.  But you can certainly take advantage of your own special interests and abilities.  Do you study Art or Art History, for instance, or have a general interest in Art?  It should be obvious what sort of things you can get up to.  This is why I mentioned cooking and geopolitics: you can harness whatever it is that gets you talking, and (provided that you can say intelligent things about the thing, beyond “I like it”) use it as a completely legitimate way to demonstrate your enthusiasm.  I like those things, but you probably have others - history, architecture, dance, and music (of course music!) are all fair game, and things I’ve seen before.

You can get super-specific here, if it suits.  I once met a student with a particular interest in one indigenous group in Peru, and their potential connection to the Nazca Lines archaeological site.  I was blown away; it was fascinating.  Fly your nerd flag with pride.  Please!

SPEAKING (interviews) .  Whilst it’s not something that you’ll mention in the personal statement, I do want to make it clear that, 99.9% of the time, you’ll need to speak in Spanish in at least one interview (Oxford, for one, state this on the website).  This daunts some students, but it needn’t.  Put it this way - I don’t even remember what I was asked!  This shows that it was not terrifying, and that I didn’t freeze up when asked something.

Do take advantage of any opportunity to talk in Spanish that you have - maybe on holiday, maybe in school, anywhere.

If you have nobody to talk to, talk to yourself.  Speaking in another language is like a muscle; it needs flexing.  I did this, and it was very handy (even if it feels weird at first).

What to Put in Your Spanish Personal Statement

This really is very much up to you.  In my time I have seen myriad personal statement styles, and there are merits and drawbacks to them all.  It’s also worth saying, that the personal statement for Modern Languages is often a bit of a chimera.  Studying Spanish solo is not an option at, say, Cambridge - and whilst it’s possible to study only Spanish at, say, Oxford, most people apply for a joint course.  This is normally another language (maybe one that’s currently studied, maybe a fresh one), or it could be with History, Philosophy, English Literature, Classics, or (my obvious favourite) Linguistics.  As a result, your space that can be devoted to Spanish is likely to be more limited than the standard 4000 characters; the other subject will need attention too (and yes, that includes a from-scratch language: the interviewers oughtn’t feel that the language has been picked on a mere whim). 

You will find yourself forced into being highly selective, as a consequence.  And that’s no problem.  After all, if you’re being interviewed, why not have an ace or two up your sleeve?  That’s what I mean when I say that what goes in the personal statement is up to you.  Be judicious, and select the things that’ll allow you to put yourself in the most positive light if asked to expand on it in an interview.

I’ve split this section into some dos and don’ts.

Do include some of the texts (etc) that you’ve read.  In doing so, it can be tempting to write what feels like an analytical essay for a literature class - but I would be cautious.  This is a balancing act.  Of course, you want to show off your analytical skills, and you can do so to a modest extent.  But there are other places where that happens - like your submitted grades, written work submissions, and an interview at Oxbridge.  Plus: an unadorned piece of analysis isn’t personal.  Far better to explain what you took from the text, and why.

Do discuss any times you’ve visited the Spanish-speaking world, but only if you can explain what use you got out of it.  Over 18 million Brits visited Spain in 2019, making it the favourite tourist destination for UK holidaymakers.  That does not automatically make them all good candidates! Tell readers what you noticed, experienced, learned, and remembered - this is infinitely more valuable.

Do show that you have an appreciation of the Spanish-speaking world as a large and living culture.  Now, this doesn’t mean all of it, nor does it necessarily mean contemporary culture.  It’s the rot of non-text preparation that I mentioned above, really.  The Spanish Civil War is a popular topic, for instance - and what’s good about it is that it’s not a resolved issue, really (same as the effects of the Second World War are unresolved for Germany).  Over in Latin America, with the effects of colonialism and Bolivarianism, this is just as true.  Always worth a brief and interesting commentary on the theme of your choice.

Do indulge any special interests that you have.  After all, there’s nothing more personal than that for a PS!  The upside of studying a language, especially at top universities, is that you can patch them into other disciplines and areas.  A historical period is an option, or maybe linguistics, or film, or photography.  I mentioned Icelandic on my personal statement, for example (I was applying for it at one university), and it was very clear that the interviewers in *every* interview wanted to talk about it.  It’s variety for them, and it’s probably an ideal avenue for you to get effusive about something.

Don’t worry if you haven’t visited the Spanish-speaking world yet.  It’s not mandatory.  I have worked with several successful Oxbridge applicants who were (at the time) yet to visit.  Interviewers recognise that visiting a country might not be feasible, for a variety of reasons.  They’re looking for aptitude and interest, not passport stamps.

Don’t fret too much about structure.  I always prefer a content-rich personal statement to one that is elegant but empty.  The multi-subject chimeric nature of a languages personal statement means that elegance and true coherence is hard to achieve anyway.

Don’t turn the PS into a buffet of texts. It’s tempting to try and cram everything onto your plate, but this quickly turns into merely name-dropping texts without giving the interviewer anything meatier to chew on.  Remember, an extra text to mention in the interview is a nice garnish.  But for the PS alone, I’d far prefer a rich and belly-filling discussion of just a couple of texts, and not a superficial twelve-course tasting menu.

Don’t feel the need to go for silly extended metaphors like I did in the bullet point above.  It’s a pitfall for more students than you might think, and, like the example you just read, it probably won’t impress.

Don’t use the word “relish”, the biggest cliché word of them all.If you can define it without Google, you can use it.No student I have met is yet to pass this test.

Oxbridge Spanish / Modern Foreign Languages Written Work Submissions

This section contains my personal opinion even more than the others.  I would like to make that very explicit, because it may run against the advice that others might give you.  Here goes: written work submission are less of a big deal than you might think.

  At Cambridge, the requirements for written work vary by College - and some do not require any at all .  So we’ll use Oxford as a benchmark, as the requirements are standard at all Colleges.  At Oxford, all applicants will need to submit a piece in English (about 2000 words) and one in each of the target language(s).  So, if you’re applying for French and Spanish, and study them both already, that’s three pieces to submit.

That might sound like a lot.  It isn’t. 2000 words is between 3 and 4 sides of A4 paper from Microsoft Word, that’s all.  As for the languages, from Oxford’s website, they require (I quote) “normally a few hundred words in length” for the text in the target language.  Or, in other words, the length of an A-Level Spanish literary essay.  As I’m sure you have found out through school essay practice, that’s really not much at all!

The aim therefore, as I see it, is not to wow the interviewers - or, at least, it isn’t the primary aim.  In my opinion (to repeat, it’s just an opinion), the written work is a verification process - and indication of how you’re progressing with the language, and where you are likely to be at the end of your school studies, as well as acting as a companion to your entrance exam .  If the submitted work also happens to give you an opportunity to flaunt your literary skills , even better (my English-medium piece was about Cordelia in King Lear , for instance) - but as mentioned above, that’s not a must-have.  Structure and logical argumentation are more important; these can be demonstrated even in a petite essay.  So, pick a good piece of schoolwork - a representative one, not a bloated Norse saga - and that’ll do.

I inadvertently practiced what I’m preaching here.  What did I send as a representative work for Spanish?  It was a roughly 300-word mini-essay on the (decidedly non-scintillating and non-literary) topic of why smoking is bad for you.  If that was good enough for my application, it’s good enough for yours.  Meanwhile, a student I met on the Open Day was worried that their 2000-word German-language paean on Angela Merkel’s TV persona wouldn’t be enough … when I heard this, it scared the bejesus out of me, but you know what?  I never, ever saw that person again after the Open Day.  When Oxford (the ones for whom we have more info) say just a few hundred words, they really do mean it.

Oxbridge Admissions Tests - The Oxford MLAT and Cambridge MML Tests

No matter the course combination, you will need to sit an admissions test to read Spanish at Oxford or Cambridge.  We have covered the Oxford MLAT ( LINK ) and the Cambridge MML Test ( LINK ) on other posts, so I won’t repeat that here - but please, have a good look.

Preparing for Oxbridge Spanish / Modern Foreign Languages Interviews

Here are some of the useful things that you can do before the interview period starts:

Keep an eye on current affairs in the Spanish-speaking world

Touch-up on grammar

Speak Spanish!

Remind yourself of all your reading so far - especially the texts mentioned on your personal statement

For more information on the interviews and example questions to practise, check out our Modern Foreign Languages & Additional Spanish Questions packs!

If you’ve made it to the end of this sprawling guide, well done!  It’s remarkable how many words I used to say “how you prepare is up to you” … but a reminder of that is how I’d like to finish.  My wordiness on this subject is for one simple reason: the things I discussed are things I found exciting.  This should be your golden rule as well.  I don’t know what those things are for you - maybe you do already, or maybe you don’t yet (and that’s OK; there’s time).  Explore, excavate, expel boring stuff if needs be, and, most of all, explain .  A good candidate is more than just a list of experiences (after all, most good candidates have that - so how to differentiate?).  More than that, they show what they’ve learnt, and why it excites them.  There’s a lot to find out there, and some of it will be right for you - so find things you enjoy, show it, and that personal enjoyment will shine right through.

Are You Applying For Spanish or Modern Foreign Languages at Oxbridge?

Oxbridge Spanish / Modern Foreign Languages Tutoring

U2 offers ad hoc sessions as well as wider Oxbridge Mentoring programmes ( book a free consultation to discuss options). We have a great team of Oxbridge-educated Spanish tutors including 1st Class, Master’s and PhD level graduates.

The Process:

1) We suggest an Oxbridge Spanish / Modern Foreign Languages graduate as a tutor and send their full CV for review. Our tutors are deeply familiar with the admissions process to study Spanish / Modern Foreign Languages at the University of Oxford and Cambridge, and are well-placed to guide you through personal statement curation, the entrance exam (if applicable) and interview process. 

2) We typically suggest beginning with a 1.5 hour informal assessment/ taster session , where the tutor will informally assess the student’s current performance level at Spanish for application, including test and interview. Following this, we issue a report with feedback, and structure a plan to best prepare.

3) U2’s approach for regular Spanish application sessions: The main focus of tutorial sessions will be to explore material that can be discussed in the personal statement and at interview. Tutors ensure each student refines their interests within Spanish, and is exposed to a range of approaches and new concepts, guiding students in their reading and wider subject exploration. Together, we build a case for the student, exploring their special interests in the subject and honing skills for the admissions test if applicable.

Frequency of sessions can be decided between student and tutor. Students can take either ad hoc sessions, or we structure a full programme for preparation, which may include further co-curricular opportunities such as our research projects , our Languages Summer Schools and Oxbridge mock interview days. Oxbridge tutoring presents a wonderful opportunity to learn from and be inspired by some extraordinary academic minds. We would be delighted to support you through what can be a challenging, but hugely rewarding process.

Biological Natural Sciences at Cambridge vs Biology at Oxford: What University Should I Choose in 2024?

The ultimate guide to applying for graduate entry medicine in 2024.

• Hispanic Studies
• College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences
• Writing Guidelines

Department of Hispanic Studies University of Houston 3553 Cullen Boulevard, Room 416 Houston, TX 77204-3062 713.743.3007 Contact Us

Guidelines for writing your personal statement:

Guidelines for writing your statement of intent, ma:.

The purpose of the statement is to present yourself to the graduate admissions committee of the Department of Hispanic Studies, it is, in a way, the first impression we will get from you, so you should spend some time thinking about it and articulating its content.

The statement should concisely (between 500 and 1000 words) answer questions like, what is your purpose for making a MA in Spanish? What do you expect to achieve with this degree? How do you think our program can help you achieve your goals?

Remember that this is a presentation for an academic position, so the tone and content must remain professional and focused, for example, avoid using avoid sentences like: “Spanish is the most beautiful language in the world and it must be preserved” or “I remember that my grandmother used to speak Spanish to me when I was little”.

Guidelines for writing your statement of intent, PhD:

The statement should concisely (1000-1500 words) answer questions like what is your purpose for making a MA or PhD in Spanish and what do you expect to achieve with this degree? How do you think our program can help you achieve your goals?

It must also address your future projects and ideas regarding the kind of research you would like to conduct for your thesis and/or dissertation and the theoretical context in which it could be framed. Remember that this is a presentation for an academic position, so the tone and content must remain professional and focused, for example, avoid sentences like: “Spanish is the most beautiful language in the world and it must be preserved” or “I remember that my grandmother used to speak Spanish to me when I was little”.

• International edition
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The dos and don'ts of writing a personal statement for languages

Tips for convincing university admission tutors you deserve a place on their course

P hilosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein may have made a good case for studying languages when he said : “The limits of my language are the limits of my world.” But be warned: if you quote him in your personal statement, you may test the admission tutor’s patience.

Students often start by quoting someone famous, says Mike Nicholson, director of admissions at the University of Bath, who thinks it’s a “waste of space” and “just demonstrates that you can copy and paste”. Hilary Potter, a teaching fellow at the University of Leeds, adds that quotes “don’t tell us anything about the student”.

Whether you’re interested in French, Spanish, Arabic or Japanese, your first step will be to impress admissions tutors and convince them you deserve a place on their course. A strong, cliche-free personal statement is a must, but what else should you include? And what mistakes should you avoid?

Start with you: “Tell a story about yourself,” says Darren Paffey, from the modern languages department at the University of Southampton. “With a clear beginning, normally about why you’re interested in languages.” Also think about the course you’re applying to; some are very practical, while others are more literature-based, so know what skills you want to emphasise.

Be authentic and enthusiastic: It’s more important to be yourself and show your enthusiasm than it is to be polished. “I’d always prefer something that was clearly a personal response but maybe has a few imperfections,” says Matthew Jefferies, from the University of Manchester’s language school. While Ilse Renaudie, head of French at the University of East Anglia, says authenticity is the first thing she looks for: “Clear and genuine statements stand out.”

Let your personality shine through: Admissions tutors want to know who you are. “Put your personality into your statement,” says Antonia Kamara, who works in the admissions department of the University of Bristol. To study languages, you need show you are motivated, communicative, and can cope in difficult situations. “Open-mindedness is very important for languages,” Renaudie adds.

Show you’re well-rounded: “We’re not just looking for brilliantly academic people,” says Paffey, “we want to know what else you’ll contribute.” If you’ve been involved in non-academic activities like competitions, a student newspaper, or teaching younger students, say so. And don’t forget to show how it helped develop your skills. Tutors also advise you show your research skills, so include your extended project qualification (EPQ), if you have one.

Go beyond school texts: Listing the books on your school syllabus isn’t going to impress. “We can spot that a mile off,” says Kamara. Instead, show you can think critically by talking about how you’ve engaged with the language beyond the classroom. You can do this by offering some views on recent news stories or political events in foreign-language countries. Or talk about what interests you. “If you’ve got an interest in Latin American magical realism literature, or you write a blog on issues to do with the Spanish speaking world, tell us,” says Paffey.

What not to do

Don’t make spelling mistakes: You’re applying to study languages, so your statement has to be well-written. “Nothing leaves a worse impression than quoting in the original language, but quoting incorrectly because of spelling mistakes or grammatical errors,” says Jefferies. Have your finished statement proofread to pick up on missed errors.

Don’t write in an overly academic way: Applicants are often guilty of writing in an overly complicated, pseudo-academic style with too many clauses, says Jefferies. “Students think it will impress us,” he says, “but often it doesn’t make sense.” It’s better to write in your own voice.

Don’t miss out a subject: Lots of people study languages as a joint honours degree. But, if you want to do so, you must include both subjects in your personal statement. “It’s a common fault,” says Jefferies, “and it causes problems with the subject that’s been ignored”. Potter advises you divide your statement equally between the two subjects.

Don’t blag: Some universities interview for language courses. They’ll use the information in your personal statement as a prompt, so don’t get caught out. “If you say you recently enjoyed Thomas Mann’s ‘The Magic Mountain’ in German, it won’t look good if it becomes clear in the interview that you haven’t actually read it,” says Jefferies.

Don’t use cliches: General statements about being passionate about language can sound cliched. “We obviously don’t want anyone who isn’t passionate,” says Paffey, “but tell us how that passion finds its outlet and what you want to do with it,” he says. If you have an idea where you want languages to take you, share it with us, Potter adds.

Don’t worry if you haven’t been abroad: If you’ve been to a country where the language you want to study is spoken, and can show how the trip developed your skills and passion, then great. But don’t worry if not. “We don’t hold it against students who haven’t been,” says Jefferies. “Not everyone has had the opportunity – but what you can say is what you would like to see in that country, or do on your year abroad, if you were offered a place.”

Don’t panic: Finally, go easy on yourself. “It’s not all on the personal statement,” says Potter, “so don’t feel that it’s going to make or break your application, because it won’t. We’re all on the same page: we want students, so we’re not looking for mistakes.”

Follow Guardian Students on Twitter: @GdnStudents . For graduate career opportunities, take a look at Guardian Jobs .

• Personal statements
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• Higher education
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What to include in a Personal Statement

Personal Statement Tips

Personal statement example modern languages (french and spanish) personal statement, modern languages (french and spanish) personal statement.

I have been fortunate enough to spend over 1,000 days of my life in France; the country has been a part of me for as long as I can remember. The ability to communicate is a key skill in today’s world and studying an additional language is a perfect opportunity to enhance my knowledge of France and explore the new culture of Spain. I find having long conversations with friends in French particularly satisfying and fulfilling and for later business ventures I see fluency as the most vital ingredient. Having spent many holidays in both France and Spain I have found it intriguing to see how two countries that are so close have such different cultures, and I am very much looking forward to extending my knowledge of the two countries’ way of life.

My deeper understanding of the French language was honed during my term spent at Sauveterrre boarding school in South West France. There was a low tolerance for speaking English, so I discovered my passion for language while learning French history, science, maths, literature and culture. I also performed in a production of Jules Verne’s ‘Le Tour du monde en quatre-vingts jours’. As well as learning the value of independence, my French speaking and cultural knowledge improved dramatically and it was the best ten weeks of my life. I am excited to continue learning about these aspects at university. The year abroad is what I am particularly looking forward to, as I have found that immersing myself in the language has been the most productive learning tool for me. To support this I enjoy the French Literature club. Having studied Camus’ ‘L’étranger’, I was intrigued to read some of his other work. His idea of punishment being a part of the human condition in ‘Le Mythe de Sisyphe’ is a concept exemplified in Mersault’s being condemned to death. The link I drew between the two is that Mersault is like Sisyphus, the absurd hero, in the way that he looks at life in permanent indifference, wanting no more or less from his surroundings. The theme of existentialism reminded me of Bertrand Russell, whom I have studied in Philosophy, who said “I should say that the universe is just there and that is all”.

I take part in French debating club, in which one of our debates discussed the national motto, ‘Liberté, égalité, fraternité’, and whether instances such as Charlie Hebdo, where freedom of speech was disrespected, beg to question if these ideologies really underly in French society. Moreover, French laws on Islamic headdress undermines the principle of equality. Watching ‘La Haine’ proved to me further that there is segregation between the French people, undermining the aspect of fraternity. Our team take part in a debating contest next year. I have also had opportunities in a playwriting course, in which I titled my first play ‘Chateau Terrible’, inspired by my french neighbour.

I have always placed a very strong emphasis on sport, both competitively and as a way to unwind. I have taken part in the school’s 1st hockey team, I like to ski and play tennis, squash and real tennis (Jeu de Paume), but my overall love is wakeboarding. I also volunteer at a local nursery school which has taught me patience that is necessary when taking on new challenges like languages. I organised a quiz night which raised 250 pounds for a Ugandan children’s charity and additionally took part in a sponsored bike ride. I hope to visit Uganda at a later date to meet the people I have been in contact with at an orphanage there, enhancing my connection with different cultures around the world. South America has many interesting places to see like the Galápagos Islands and Machu Picchu, which have always hoped to visit.

Life is a series of interactions with people and by studying languages I hope to use these facilities in my future career, so that the business and personal opportunities I encounter can be exchanged on an equal footing and the fact that I am English does not impede my progress.

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• Knowledge Base
• Applying to graduate school
• How to Write Your Personal Statement | Strategies & Examples

How to Write Your Personal Statement | Strategies & Examples

Published on February 12, 2019 by Shona McCombes . Revised on July 3, 2023.

A personal statement is a short essay of around 500–1,000 words, in which you tell a compelling story about who you are, what drives you, and why you’re applying.

To write a successful personal statement for a graduate school application , don’t just summarize your experience; instead, craft a focused narrative in your own voice. Aim to demonstrate three things:

• Your personality: what are your interests, values, and motivations?
• Your talents: what can you bring to the program?
• Your goals: what do you hope the program will do for you?

This article guides you through some winning strategies to build a strong, well-structured personal statement for a master’s or PhD application. You can download the full examples below.

Urban Planning Psychology History

Table of contents

Getting started with your personal statement, the introduction: start with an attention-grabbing opening, the main body: craft your narrative, the conclusion: look ahead, revising, editing, and proofreading your personal statement, frequently asked questions, other interesting articles.

Before you start writing, the first step is to understand exactly what’s expected of you. If the application gives you a question or prompt for your personal statement, the most important thing is to respond to it directly.

For example, you might be asked to focus on the development of your personal identity; challenges you have faced in your life; or your career motivations. This will shape your focus and emphasis—but you still need to find your own unique approach to answering it.

There’s no universal template for a personal statement; it’s your chance to be creative and let your own voice shine through. But there are strategies you can use to build a compelling, well-structured story.

The first paragraph of your personal statement should set the tone and lead smoothly into the story you want to tell.

Strategy 1: Open with a concrete scene

An effective way to catch the reader’s attention is to set up a scene that illustrates something about your character and interests. If you’re stuck, try thinking about:

• A personal experience that changed your perspective
• A story from your family’s history
• A memorable teacher or learning experience
• An unusual or unexpected encounter

To write an effective scene, try to go beyond straightforward description; start with an intriguing sentence that pulls the reader in, and give concrete details to create a convincing atmosphere.

Strategy 2: Open with your motivations

To emphasize your enthusiasm and commitment, you can start by explaining your interest in the subject you want to study or the career path you want to follow.

Just stating that it interests you isn’t enough: first, you need to figure out why you’re interested in this field:

• Is it a longstanding passion or a recent discovery?
• Does it come naturally or have you had to work hard at it?
• How does it fit into the rest of your life?
• What do you think it contributes to society?

Tips for the introduction

• Don’t start on a cliche: avoid phrases like “Ever since I was a child…” or “For as long as I can remember…”
• Do save the introduction for last. If you’re struggling to come up with a strong opening, leave it aside, and note down any interesting ideas that occur to you as you write the rest of the personal statement.

Once you’ve set up the main themes of your personal statement, you’ll delve into more detail about your experiences and motivations.

To structure the body of your personal statement, there are various strategies you can use.

Strategy 1: Describe your development over time

One of the simplest strategies is to give a chronological overview of key experiences that have led you to apply for graduate school.

• What first sparked your interest in the field?
• Which classes, assignments, classmates, internships, or other activities helped you develop your knowledge and skills?
• Where do you want to go next? How does this program fit into your future plans?

Don’t try to include absolutely everything you’ve done—pick out highlights that are relevant to your application. Aim to craft a compelling narrative that shows how you’ve changed and actively developed yourself.

My interest in psychology was first sparked early in my high school career. Though somewhat scientifically inclined, I found that what interested me most was not the equations we learned about in physics and chemistry, but the motivations and perceptions of my fellow students, and the subtle social dynamics that I observed inside and outside the classroom. I wanted to learn how our identities, beliefs, and behaviours are shaped through our interactions with others, so I decided to major in Social Psychology. My undergraduate studies deepened my understanding of, and fascination with, the interplay between an individual mind and its social context.During my studies, I acquired a solid foundation of knowledge about concepts like social influence and group dynamics, but I also took classes on various topics not strictly related to my major. I was particularly interested in how other fields intersect with psychology—the classes I took on media studies, biology, and literature all enhanced my understanding of psychological concepts by providing different lenses through which to look at the issues involved.

Strategy 2: Own your challenges and obstacles

If your path to graduate school hasn’t been easy or straightforward, you can turn this into a strength, and structure your personal statement as a story of overcoming obstacles.

• Is your social, cultural or economic background underrepresented in the field? Show how your experiences will contribute a unique perspective.
• Do you have gaps in your resume or lower-than-ideal grades? Explain the challenges you faced and how you dealt with them.

Don’t focus too heavily on negatives, but use them to highlight your positive qualities. Resilience, resourcefulness and perseverance make you a promising graduate school candidate.

Growing up working class, urban decay becomes depressingly familiar. The sight of a row of abandoned houses does not surprise me, but it continues to bother me. Since high school, I have been determined to pursue a career in urban planning. While people of my background experience the consequences of urban planning decisions first-hand, we are underrepresented in the field itself. Ironically, given my motivation, my economic background has made my studies challenging. I was fortunate enough to be awarded a scholarship for my undergraduate studies, but after graduation I took jobs in unrelated fields to help support my parents. In the three years since, I have not lost my ambition. Now I am keen to resume my studies, and I believe I can bring an invaluable perspective to the table: that of the people most impacted by the decisions of urban planners.

Strategy 3: Demonstrate your knowledge of the field

Especially if you’re applying for a PhD or another research-focused program, it’s a good idea to show your familiarity with the subject and the department. Your personal statement can focus on the area you want to specialize in and reflect on why it matters to you.

• Reflect on the topics or themes that you’ve focused on in your studies. What draws you to them?
• Discuss any academic achievements, influential teachers, or other highlights of your education.
• Talk about the questions you’d like to explore in your research and why you think they’re important.

The personal statement isn’t a research proposal , so don’t go overboard on detail—but it’s a great opportunity to show your enthusiasm for the field and your capacity for original thinking.

In applying for this research program, my intention is to build on the multidisciplinary approach I have taken in my studies so far, combining knowledge from disparate fields of study to better understand psychological concepts and issues. The Media Psychology program stands out to me as the perfect environment for this kind of research, given its researchers’ openness to collaboration across diverse fields. I am impressed by the department’s innovative interdisciplinary projects that focus on the shifting landscape of media and technology, and I hope that my own work can follow a similarly trailblazing approach. More specifically, I want to develop my understanding of the intersection of psychology and media studies, and explore how media psychology theories and methods might be applied to neurodivergent minds. I am interested not only in media psychology but also in psychological disorders, and how the two interact. This is something I touched on during my undergraduate studies and that I’m excited to delve into further.

Strategy 4: Discuss your professional ambitions

Especially if you’re applying for a more professionally-oriented program (such as an MBA), it’s a good idea to focus on concrete goals and how the program will help you achieve them.

• If your career is just getting started, show how your character is suited to the field, and explain how graduate school will help you develop your talents.
• If you have already worked in the profession, show what you’ve achieved so far, and explain how the program will allow you to take the next step.
• If you are planning a career change, explain what has driven this decision and how your existing experience will help you succeed.

Don’t just state the position you want to achieve. You should demonstrate that you’ve put plenty of thought into your career plans and show why you’re well-suited to this profession.

One thing that fascinated me about the field during my undergraduate studies was the sheer number of different elements whose interactions constitute a person’s experience of an urban environment. Any number of factors could transform the scene I described at the beginning: What if there were no bus route? Better community outreach in the neighborhood? Worse law enforcement? More or fewer jobs available in the area? Some of these factors are out of the hands of an urban planner, but without taking them all into consideration, the planner has an incomplete picture of their task. Through further study I hope to develop my understanding of how these disparate elements combine and interact to create the urban environment. I am interested in the social, psychological and political effects our surroundings have on our lives. My studies will allow me to work on projects directly affecting the kinds of working-class urban communities I know well. I believe I can bring my own experiences, as well as my education, to bear upon the problem of improving infrastructure and quality of life in these communities.

Tips for the main body

• Don’t rehash your resume by trying to summarize everything you’ve done so far; the personal statement isn’t about listing your academic or professional experience, but about reflecting, evaluating, and relating it to broader themes.
• Do make your statements into stories: Instead of saying you’re hard-working and self-motivated, write about your internship where you took the initiative to start a new project. Instead of saying you’ve always loved reading, reflect on a novel or poem that changed your perspective.

Your conclusion should bring the focus back to the program and what you hope to get out of it, whether that’s developing practical skills, exploring intellectual questions, or both.

Emphasize the fit with your specific interests, showing why this program would be the best way to achieve your aims.

Strategy 1: What do you want to know?

If you’re applying for a more academic or research-focused program, end on a note of curiosity: what do you hope to learn, and why do you think this is the best place to learn it?

If there are specific classes or faculty members that you’re excited to learn from, this is the place to express your enthusiasm.

Strategy 2: What do you want to do?

If you’re applying for a program that focuses more on professional training, your conclusion can look to your career aspirations: what role do you want to play in society, and why is this program the best choice to help you get there?

Tips for the conclusion

• Don’t summarize what you’ve already said. You have limited space in a personal statement, so use it wisely!
• Do think bigger than yourself: try to express how your individual aspirations relate to your local community, your academic field, or society more broadly. It’s not just about what you’ll get out of graduate school, but about what you’ll be able to give back.

You’ll be expected to do a lot of writing in graduate school, so make a good first impression: leave yourself plenty of time to revise and polish the text.

Your style doesn’t have to be as formal as other kinds of academic writing, but it should be clear, direct and coherent. Make sure that each paragraph flows smoothly from the last, using topic sentences and transitions to create clear connections between each part.

Don’t be afraid to rewrite and restructure as much as necessary. Since you have a lot of freedom in the structure of a personal statement, you can experiment and move information around to see what works best.

Finally, it’s essential to carefully proofread your personal statement and fix any language errors. Before you submit your application, consider investing in professional personal statement editing . For $150, you have the peace of mind that your personal statement is grammatically correct, strong in term of your arguments, and free of awkward mistakes.

A statement of purpose is usually more formal, focusing on your academic or professional goals. It shouldn’t include anything that isn’t directly relevant to the application.

A personal statement can often be more creative. It might tell a story that isn’t directly related to the application, but that shows something about your personality, values, and motivations.

However, both types of document have the same overall goal: to demonstrate your potential as a graduate student and s how why you’re a great match for the program.

The typical length of a personal statement for graduate school applications is between 500 and 1,000 words.

Different programs have different requirements, so always check if there’s a minimum or maximum length and stick to the guidelines. If there is no recommended word count, aim for no more than 1-2 pages.

If you’re applying to multiple graduate school programs, you should tailor your personal statement to each application.

Some applications provide a prompt or question. In this case, you might have to write a new personal statement from scratch: the most important task is to respond to what you have been asked.

If there’s no prompt or guidelines, you can re-use the same idea for your personal statement – but change the details wherever relevant, making sure to emphasize why you’re applying to this specific program.

If the application also includes other essays, such as a statement of purpose , you might have to revise your personal statement to avoid repeating the same information.

If you want to know more about college essays , academic writing , and AI tools , make sure to check out some of our other language articles with explanations, examples, and quizzes.

College essays

• College essay examples
• College essay format
• College essay style
• College essay length
• Diversity essays
• Scholarship essays

Academic writing

• Writing process
• Avoiding repetition
• Literature review
• Conceptual framework
• Dissertation outline
• Thesis acknowledgements
• Burned or burnt
• Canceled or cancelled
• Dreamt or dreamed
• Gray or grey
• Theater vs theatre

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History and Spanish Personal Statement Example

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• Published: 23rd February 2022
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The study of History and Spanish perfectly complement each other. From Columbus’ discovery of the ‘new world’ to the events of the Spanish Civil War, the Spanish-speaking world has had a tremendous impact on world history. I have thoroughly enjoyed studying both subjects at A-level and have found that my language knowledge has enabled me to access a wider range of primary sources which I have been able to use to analyse various historical periods.  I  am excited at the prospect of continuing my studies at university.

The study of Spanish helps to provide a deeper insight into the culture and history of Spain and the Spanish-speaking world.  My flair for Spanish can be demonstrated by my exam results – achieving the highest AS & GCSE Spanish results in my school. Additionally, my desire to immerse myself in Spanish culture has led me to co-found a Spanish Society at school to discuss topical issues and film. I have a particular interest in Franco’s Spain, which was spurred by watching the film ‘El Laberinto del Fauno’. The brutal depiction of Franco’s supporters even after the Civil War led me to delve more into the era. Eager to find out about the impact of fascist ideology in Franco’s regime for my EPQ, I proposed to answer the question ‘How fascist was Franco’s Spain?’. The project has led me to determine the main features of fascism and to assess how prevalent these features were during Franco’s rule. Reading ‘La Sombra del Viento’ informed me about the period in a literary sense, with the citizens of Catalonia trying to live normally whilst the dark shadow of the regime still watched over them.  I have been lucky enough to visit Catalonia and the nationalist sentiment that I observed helped me to understand  Franco’s difficulty in attempting to unite Spain as one nation. My interest in the Spanish-speaking world also extends to Latin America – a region of diverse cultures and histories. The challenging novel ‘Lituma en los Andes’ situated in Peru paints a picture of a region embroiled between centuries old ideas and new political thinking in the form of the Communist offshoot Shining Path and I was later surprised to discover how popular the party became in the Andean countryside . I also enjoyed reading ‘Las venas abiertas de America Latina’ which presented many eye-opening ideas for the continent’s economic inferiority. A particular theory that the pillage of the continent’s resources has resulted in inter-city poverty made me question how different would Latin America’s position in the world be today if the ‘conquistadores’ had left the resources untouched. American history has particularly fascinated me due to the country’s growth from a new country to a world superpower in only 240 years.  In order to expand my knowledge outside the syllabus, I took the opportunity to read ‘A People’s History of the United States.’ Zinn’s focus on how historical events affected the American people rather than the elites gave me a new insight into the death and devastation that Christopher Columbus’ landing caused to the indigenous people and made me question why people still commemorate Columbus Day.  Later in the book, Zinn’s insistence that American intervention in the Arab world had mainly been executed to rid the American people of their post Vietnam anti-war sentiment, led me to read a fascinating book about the Arab world – a region that has interested me since watching the events of the Arab Spring unfold in 2011. “The Arabs A History” shed light upon a region which I had never studied before. The chapter on the French empire in Algeria was of particular interest as it highlighted the irony of the French advocating freedom of thought since their revolution but going to war to deny the Algerian people their desire for independence.

In addition to my academic studies, my extra-curricular activities have enabled me to develop skills which will benefit me both academically and socially. Working at my local Tourist Information Centre has greatly helped to improve my communication skills. When working at the Centre I communicate with people of many different nationalities and I have taken the initiative to translate leaflets about the local area into both German and Spanish. Many visitors also enquire about the history of the local area, which has led me to research  the origins of the Norman castle and the plight of the Pendle witches. As a member of the Talking Languages Together group, I volunteer to visit local primary schools to teach Spanish which I have thoroughly enjoyed. My role as Head Boy and Head of School Council demonstrates my responsibility and my motivation to make the Sixth Form the best that it can be – an attitude which I will also bring to university life.  To enhance my knowledge about Spanish culture, I chose to volunteer for a week at the Instituto Cervantes in Manchester. Speaking Spanish from the moment I walked into the building until my train ride home undoubtedly improved my Spanish and gave me a newfound appreciation for Spanish culture.

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Common Impersonal Expressions in Spanish with the Subjunctive and More

Most probably, you have already started flirting with the conditional sentences , the Spanish pronouns and, who knows, even the subjunctive .

Now, you can use all that information to learn everything you want about Spanish impersonal expressions.

In this post, you’ll learn how to create impersonal expressions in Spanish using the subjunctive and indicative moods with the help of plenty of example sentences.

What Are Impersonal Expressions in Spanish?

Spanish impersonal expressions, (no) es + adjective + que + subjunctive, (no) es un/una + noun + que + subjunctive, (no) es bueno/malo + infinitive, (no) está bien/mal + infinitive, hay que + infinitive, parece que + indicative / no parece que + subjunctive, está comprobado que… / está prohibido + infinitive, (no) interesa/conviene/importa que + subjunctive, impersonal se, weather verbs, and one more thing….

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Very simply put, impersonal expressions are sentences where there is no specific subject, no one or nothing performing the action of the verb—hence the word “impersonal.”

An impersonal verb is one that only exists in the third person singular and it is almost never accompanied by an expressed subject.

You have been using impersonality and impersonal verbs in English ever since you started talking coherently, for example:

“It is raining.” (Yes! This is an impersonal sentence. What exactly is “it”? What is doing the action of raining? Nothing and no one! It is just raining!)

“There is a book on the table.” (What is “there”? It is neither a person nor a thing. It is just “there.”)

It is true that Spanish and English have different ways of expressing impersonality, but at the end of the day, they are used for the exact same purpose. Here you have the translations of the previous sentences:

Está lloviendo. (It is raining.)

Hay un libro en la mesa. (There is a book on the table.)

The Subjunctive

The subjunctive is used with many of the impersonal expressions you will learn in this post.

Briefly speaking, the Spanish Subjunctive mood is the one we use (as opposed to the indicative and the imperative moods) in order to express w ishes, e motions, i mpersonal expressions, r equests and d oubts. The five letters in bold spell “weird,” so use this mnemonic technique to remember all the groups.

For example:

No importa quién lo haya hecho. (It does not matter who has done it.)

Es imprescindible que vuelvas a tiempo. (It is imperative that you come back on time.)

There are many different ways of expressing impersonality, and normally each of them has its own rules and formulas.

Below are the 10 most commonly used impersonal phrases for talking or writing impersonally in Spanish.

This formula can be translated as “It is/is not + adjective + that…” and it is, undoubtedly, one of the most common ways of expressing impersonality. It is also one of the first structures you learn when you start getting to know the Spanish subjunctive.

You can use practically any adjective in order to create expressions with this formula. The only two things you have to bear in mind is that the adjective will always be in its basic, masculine form, and the verb following que will be in the subjunctive mood:

Es importante que hagas ejercicio cada día. (It is important that you exercise every day.)

Es imprescindible que envíes la carta cuanto antes. (It is imperative that you send the letter as soon as possible.)

Sometimes, the adjective is not followed by “that” in English, especially when we are dealing with expressions that sound a little bit unnatural when translated literally from Spanish. Notice how the Spanish construction remains the same, no matter what the English translation looks like:

Es necesario que vayas a la escuela. (It is necessary for you to go to school.)

Es importante que cocines tus propias comidas. (It is important for you to cook your own meals.)

If you want to make the sentence negative, the only change you need to make is adding n o at the beginning of the impersonal expression. The rest of the sentence remains intact:

No es imprescindible que envíes la carta cuanto antes. (It is not imperative that you send the letter as soon as possible.)

Exceptions for certainty

There are a couple of adjectives in Spanish that mean certainty.

Since certainty is an indicative realm, the subjunctive is not used when they appear in this type of construction. Instead, the indicative mood needs to be used:

Es cierto que no quiero volver. (It is true that I don’t want to go back.)

Es seguro que no vamos a ir a la playa. (It is certain that we are not going to go to the beach.)

Watch out, however, for sentences with a certainty adjective that is negated. In this case, they need to take the subjunctive!

No es cierto que no quiera volver. (It is not true that I do not want to go back.)

No es seguro que no vayamos a ir a la playa. (It is not certain that we are not going to go to the beach.)

This construction is very similar to the first one but this time we have a noun instead of an adjective.

The use of the indefinite article un/una is compulsory. Do not forget it!

Here are some examples:

Es una pena que no puedas venir. (It is a pity that you can’t come.)

Es una sorpresa que estés aquí. (It is a surprise that you are here.)

As it happened with the first construction, you only need to add no to make the sentence negative:

No es una sorpresa que ya no tenga dinero. (It is not a surprise that he has no money already.)

Para mí no es un alivio que digas eso. (For me it is not a relief that you say that.)

A variation with the infinitive

Up until now, all the sample sentences have referred to a person different from the speaker, but Spanish likes exceptions, variations and modifications.

This is especially true when the speaker and the person they are talking about/referring to are the same.

In these cases, “que + subjunctive” disappears, and it gets replaced by an infinitive:

Es una pena no poder ir. (It is a pity not to be able to go.)

Es un placer estar aquí. (It is a pleasure to be here.)

The adjectives bueno and malo tend to give a bit of a headache to some students sometimes, especially when they are mixed with bien and mal (see next point).

In reality, it is very easy to distinguish them, since bueno and malo are adjectives and bien and mal are adverbs .

But let’s imagine for a second that you do not know what an adjective or an adverb is, or that you do not even want to know. There is a very simple trick you can use in order to always be correct: bueno and malo can only follow the verb ser in these impersonal constructions.

Use “es bueno/malo + infinitive” when you want to say that doing something (any activity) is either good or bad for you, for your health, for the environment, etc.:

No es bueno comer tanto. (It is not good to eat so much.)

Es bueno correr por la mañana. (It is good to run in the morning.)

You can also start the sentences with the infinitive if you want:

Comer tanto no es bueno.

Correr por la mañana es bueno.

Just as bueno and malo could only be used with the verb ser in this type of constructions, bien and mal can only be used with estar.

Even though the meanings of both couples of expressions are quite similar, es bueno/malo normally refers to things that are good or bad for your health, while está bien/mal has a more general meaning or “to be OK/acceptable/advisable or not.”

Here are some sample sentences:

Está bien cerrar la puerta cuando no hay nadie en casa. (It is advisable to close the door when no one’s home.)

Está mal hablar con la boca llena. (It is not OK to speak with your mouth full.)

Hearing more sentences that use this construct can be helpful. Luckily, there’s a useful song by Paulo Londra that uses está bien throughout the chorus line (warning: the lyrics get spicy).

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Hay que  is a very useful Spanish impersonal expression we use to convey the idea that something has to be done.

Normally, the speaker has no hidden agenda and they just want to say something must be done, but plenty of times this expression can be used quite “shadily” in order to express something similar to “you have to do X, but I am not telling you directly you have to do it.” Don’t you love Spanish?

As for its translation into English, there is not a word-for-word one or one that would fit every context and situation.

The intrinsic meaning of hay que is the need to say something has to be done while being impersonal, so you will see translations range from “it is necessary to + infinitive” or “one must + infinitive,” to “something needs + present participle” and “something has to be + past participle”:

Hay que regar las plantas. (The plants have to be watered.)

Hay que estudiar mucho para aprobar el examen. (One must study a lot to pass the exam.)

Use this expression when you want to say that something is likely to happen/have happened.

English normally translates this expression as “it seems (that)” or “you look like,” but bear in mind the latter is not impersonal in English:

Parece que va a llover. (It seems it is going to rain.)

Parece que tenemos un problema. (It seems we have a problem.)

If you have a look at the verbs in the previous three sentences, you will realize they are all in the indicative mood. The reason is that parece que is always followed by the indicative when the sentence is affirmative.

However, if the sentence is negative, you need to use the subjunctive:

No parece que vaya a llover. (It does not look like it is going to rain.)

No parece que tengas ningún problema. (It does not look like you have any problem.)

I have included these two constructions in this post just so you can have a few more examples of impersonal expressions with estar (we saw está bien/mal previously).

Comprobado (proven) and prohibido (forbidden) are past participles as well as adjectives. Actually, these two expressions are examples of the passive voice with the verb estar, something that may surprise many learners who are always used to hearing that Spanish’ passive voice uses ser.

Está comprobado que is normally followed by a noun and a conjugated verb in the indicative. This impersonal expression is used when we want to say that something has been proven or we are sure it is right:

Está comprobado que este no es mi año. (It is proven [I know for a fact] this is not my year.)

Está comprobado que el ejercicio es muy sano. (It is proven that exercising is very healthy.)

“Está prohibido + infinitive” is the typical expression you can read or hear when something is forbidden. English will normally translate this construction as “one/you must not + infinitive”:

Está prohibido aparcar aquí. (You must not park here.)

Está prohibido fumar en el edificio. (One must not smoke in the building.)

The verbs interesar (to interest), convenir (to suit) and importar (to matter) can be used impersonally in the third person singular in order to convey the following:

Interesa que is used when you want to say that doing something would be beneficial for someone or something:

Interesa que ganen el partido. (It would be beneficial for them to win the match.)

No interesa que vuelva. (It wouldn’t be beneficial for him to come back.)

Many students confuse this impersonal expression with the verb interesar (to be interested in), which is conjugated like gustar and its friends :

Me interesa la literatura. (I am interested in literature.)

Nos interesan los deportes. (We are interested in sports.)

The noun interés can mean both interest and incentive , hence the difference in meaning between interesa que and interesar .

Conviene que  is used when you want to say that it would be advisable for something to be done or for someone to do something:

Conviene que termines rápido. (It would be advisable for you to finish fast.)

No conviene que llegues tarde. (It would not be advisable for you to be late.)

Importa que is used when you want to say that something matters or is important. It is very often used in its negative form, no importa que:

No importa que llueva. (It does not matter if it rains.)

No importa que no tengas dinero. (It does not matter if you have no money.)

Se expressions are very useful when we want to be impersonal.

Even though se constructions are normally translated as a passive sentence into English, they are actually not considered passive in Spanish.

Impersonal se can be used in any context, and it is very easy to master.

Se expressions normally look like: “Se + verb + noun.” The verb has to be conjugated in the third person, singular or plural, depending on the number of the noun:

Se vende casa. (A house is sold.)

Se venden casas. (Houses are sold.)

One of the examples I used at the beginning of this post was “it is raining.” Indeed, weather verbs and expressions are always impersonal both in Spanish and English, but while English has a crazy love for “it” expressions (“it is snowing,” “it is cold,” “it is windy”…), Spanish can be impersonal in a couple of different ways.

On the one hand, we have some infinitives that can be conjugated in the third person singular. The most common ones are llover (to rain) and nevar (to snow):

Está nevando. (It is snowing.)

On the other hand, we have the impersonal form hace (lit. it makes, it does) followed by a noun:

Hace frío. (It is cold.)

Hace sol. (It is sunny.)

As you have been able to see and learn in this post, it just takes a couple of expressions to make you a master of using impersonal Spanish expressions.

The grammar tidbits included in this post will help you understand how to use each construction, while the dozens of examples I have provided will serve as the perfect basis for you to create your own!

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Management and Spanish

Applied in: winter 2013, university offers: st andrews, bath, birmingham.

Being a French national, having spent the first half of my upbringing in Singapore and spending the remainder in London, I have come to embrace the vibrancy and what can only be described as a hotpot of multiculturalism. I have always been fascinated by the spectrum of businesses around me, from corner shops to boutiques, but more so the individual culture that transpires through each, be it in mode of operandi or the simple display of products on offer. In a world full of competition, I believe that a multi-cultural view is essential in the understanding of international business and effective management. My travels around the world have triggered my passion in discovering new cultures and new languages such as Spanish which I have been studying and adoring for six years. I became enticed to this language, in particular, having spent four weeks in Marbella where I took intensive Spanish classes. I was truly taken by the passion and energy of the city's working environment which influenced my decision to deepen my knowledge of the language at university. It is these skills and attributes that I see myself using in any future career path that I choose to undertake.

As a student in the French educational system, I have been given the choice between three sections and chose the scientific one, known to be the most challenging. My knowledge of mathematics, particularly statistics and probabilities should help me to approach the quantitative aspect of an enterprise's business and management. Moreover, I have always had a taste for literature and am an avid reader in my spare time. My recent achievement having been to undertake Spanish novels such as 'Don Quixote' which I find very challenging yet most enjoyable. Otherwise, reading international newspapers and current affairs such as 'The Economist', 'Le Figaro' (French newspaper) and sometimes 'El Pais' (Spanish newspaper) keeps me up to date with the socio-economic and cultural issues affecting different parts of the world.  

The human aspect of business and management fascinates me. I am by nature a people's person, and strongly feel that my experiences and upbringing have taught me how to both deal and bring together people of different backgrounds. In June 2012 I have done a two-week work experience in a dental practice which was a good opportunity to leverage my scientific knowledge, particularly in biology. However, spending time with the patients and seeing how the dentist engaged with them made me realize the importance of human interaction in any work place. It also made me realize that my knowledge of English, Spanish and French was a key strength for any future career, as when I had to make appointments for example. By the same token, I also worked for a charity event, managing the cash register and selling children's clothes almost every two months back in Singapore.  

I have been elected class delegate for several years running, which not only requires team work but also making a judgement call on what I deem requires prioritisation. This role also enabled me to develop my skills as a public speaker and effective communicator. Moreover, during a 6 months team project for my Baccalaureate this year, I learnt how to lead a team and managed to achieve the highest grade. The project used my organization and planning skills, which are some of the most-valuable skills for business studies.  

I am extremely eager to further my knowledge in business to another level, and am particularly excited by the International angle that this course will provide me. I strongly believe I am well equipped with the right fundamental attributes for this course and look forward to overcome the challenges that I will be facing; as Dali once said; 'La inteligencia sin ambición es como un pájaro sin sus alas.'

Please note UCAS will detect any form of plagiarism. PSE and its contributors do not take any responsibility for the way in which personal statements are used.

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NPR defends its journalism after senior editor says it has lost the public's trust

David Folkenflik

NPR is defending its journalism and integrity after a senior editor wrote an essay accusing it of losing the public's trust. Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

NPR is defending its journalism and integrity after a senior editor wrote an essay accusing it of losing the public's trust.

NPR's top news executive defended its journalism and its commitment to reflecting a diverse array of views on Tuesday after a senior NPR editor wrote a broad critique of how the network has covered some of the most important stories of the age.

"An open-minded spirit no longer exists within NPR, and now, predictably, we don't have an audience that reflects America," writes Uri Berliner.

A strategic emphasis on diversity and inclusion on the basis of race, ethnicity and sexual orientation, promoted by NPR's former CEO, John Lansing, has fed "the absence of viewpoint diversity," Berliner writes.

NPR's chief news executive, Edith Chapin, wrote in a memo to staff Tuesday afternoon that she and the news leadership team strongly reject Berliner's assessment.

"We're proud to stand behind the exceptional work that our desks and shows do to cover a wide range of challenging stories," she wrote. "We believe that inclusion — among our staff, with our sourcing, and in our overall coverage — is critical to telling the nuanced stories of this country and our world."

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She added, "None of our work is above scrutiny or critique. We must have vigorous discussions in the newsroom about how we serve the public as a whole."

A spokesperson for NPR said Chapin, who also serves as the network's chief content officer, would have no further comment.

Praised by NPR's critics

Berliner is a senior editor on NPR's Business Desk. (Disclosure: I, too, am part of the Business Desk, and Berliner has edited many of my past stories. He did not see any version of this article or participate in its preparation before it was posted publicly.)

Berliner's essay , titled "I've Been at NPR for 25 years. Here's How We Lost America's Trust," was published by The Free Press, a website that has welcomed journalists who have concluded that mainstream news outlets have become reflexively liberal.

Berliner writes that as a Subaru-driving, Sarah Lawrence College graduate who "was raised by a lesbian peace activist mother ," he fits the mold of a loyal NPR fan.

Yet Berliner says NPR's news coverage has fallen short on some of the most controversial stories of recent years, from the question of whether former President Donald Trump colluded with Russia in the 2016 election, to the origins of the virus that causes COVID-19, to the significance and provenance of emails leaked from a laptop owned by Hunter Biden weeks before the 2020 election. In addition, he blasted NPR's coverage of the Israel-Hamas conflict.

On each of these stories, Berliner asserts, NPR has suffered from groupthink due to too little diversity of viewpoints in the newsroom.

The essay ricocheted Tuesday around conservative media , with some labeling Berliner a whistleblower . Others picked it up on social media, including Elon Musk, who has lambasted NPR for leaving his social media site, X. (Musk emailed another NPR reporter a link to Berliner's article with a gibe that the reporter was a "quisling" — a World War II reference to someone who collaborates with the enemy.)

When asked for further comment late Tuesday, Berliner declined, saying the essay spoke for itself.

The arguments he raises — and counters — have percolated across U.S. newsrooms in recent years. The #MeToo sexual harassment scandals of 2016 and 2017 forced newsrooms to listen to and heed more junior colleagues. The social justice movement prompted by the killing of George Floyd in 2020 inspired a reckoning in many places. Newsroom leaders often appeared to stand on shaky ground.

Leaders at many newsrooms, including top editors at The New York Times and the Los Angeles Times , lost their jobs. Legendary Washington Post Executive Editor Martin Baron wrote in his memoir that he feared his bonds with the staff were "frayed beyond repair," especially over the degree of self-expression his journalists expected to exert on social media, before he decided to step down in early 2021.

Since then, Baron and others — including leaders of some of these newsrooms — have suggested that the pendulum has swung too far.

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New York Times publisher A.G. Sulzberger warned last year against journalists embracing a stance of what he calls "one-side-ism": "where journalists are demonstrating that they're on the side of the righteous."

"I really think that that can create blind spots and echo chambers," he said.

Internal arguments at The Times over the strength of its reporting on accusations that Hamas engaged in sexual assaults as part of a strategy for its Oct. 7 attack on Israel erupted publicly . The paper conducted an investigation to determine the source of a leak over a planned episode of the paper's podcast The Daily on the subject, which months later has not been released. The newsroom guild accused the paper of "targeted interrogation" of journalists of Middle Eastern descent.

Heated pushback in NPR's newsroom

Given Berliner's account of private conversations, several NPR journalists question whether they can now trust him with unguarded assessments about stories in real time. Others express frustration that he had not sought out comment in advance of publication. Berliner acknowledged to me that for this story, he did not seek NPR's approval to publish the piece, nor did he give the network advance notice.

Some of Berliner's NPR colleagues are responding heatedly. Fernando Alfonso, a senior supervising editor for digital news, wrote that he wholeheartedly rejected Berliner's critique of the coverage of the Israel-Hamas conflict, for which NPR's journalists, like their peers, periodically put themselves at risk.

Alfonso also took issue with Berliner's concern over the focus on diversity at NPR.

"As a person of color who has often worked in newsrooms with little to no people who look like me, the efforts NPR has made to diversify its workforce and its sources are unique and appropriate given the news industry's long-standing lack of diversity," Alfonso says. "These efforts should be celebrated and not denigrated as Uri has done."

After this story was first published, Berliner contested Alfonso's characterization, saying his criticism of NPR is about the lack of diversity of viewpoints, not its diversity itself.

"I never criticized NPR's priority of achieving a more diverse workforce in terms of race, ethnicity and sexual orientation. I have not 'denigrated' NPR's newsroom diversity goals," Berliner said. "That's wrong."

Questions of diversity

Under former CEO John Lansing, NPR made increasing diversity, both of its staff and its audience, its "North Star" mission. Berliner says in the essay that NPR failed to consider broader diversity of viewpoint, noting, "In D.C., where NPR is headquartered and many of us live, I found 87 registered Democrats working in editorial positions and zero Republicans."

Berliner cited audience estimates that suggested a concurrent falloff in listening by Republicans. (The number of people listening to NPR broadcasts and terrestrial radio broadly has declined since the start of the pandemic.)

Former NPR vice president for news and ombudsman Jeffrey Dvorkin tweeted , "I know Uri. He's not wrong."

Others questioned Berliner's logic. "This probably gets causality somewhat backward," tweeted Semafor Washington editor Jordan Weissmann . "I'd guess that a lot of NPR listeners who voted for [Mitt] Romney have changed how they identify politically."

Similarly, Nieman Lab founder Joshua Benton suggested the rise of Trump alienated many NPR-appreciating Republicans from the GOP.

In recent years, NPR has greatly enhanced the percentage of people of color in its workforce and its executive ranks. Four out of 10 staffers are people of color; nearly half of NPR's leadership team identifies as Black, Asian or Latino.

"The philosophy is: Do you want to serve all of America and make sure it sounds like all of America, or not?" Lansing, who stepped down last month, says in response to Berliner's piece. "I'd welcome the argument against that."

"On radio, we were really lagging in our representation of an audience that makes us look like what America looks like today," Lansing says. The U.S. looks and sounds a lot different than it did in 1971, when NPR's first show was broadcast, Lansing says.

A network spokesperson says new NPR CEO Katherine Maher supports Chapin and her response to Berliner's critique.

The spokesperson says that Maher "believes that it's a healthy thing for a public service newsroom to engage in rigorous consideration of the needs of our audiences, including where we serve our mission well and where we can serve it better."

Disclosure: This story was reported and written by NPR Media Correspondent David Folkenflik and edited by Deputy Business Editor Emily Kopp and Managing Editor Gerry Holmes. Under NPR's protocol for reporting on itself, no NPR corporate official or news executive reviewed this story before it was posted publicly.

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International relations and spanish personal statement example.

Connecting with different countries and bringing people of different backgrounds together is something English people often overlook due to our Anglocentric view of the world, which, to me, has always seemed absurd.

As an avid follower of international news, I was captured after hearing about a fire that broke out during a prison riot in Valencia, Venezuela, killing 66 inmates and 2 female visitors. A thread of systemic problems such as lack of funds and gang presence in these overcrowded prisons means that cases like these are all too familiar to the people of this politically corrupt country, and after having studied Spanish in depth over several years, such events compel me to delve deeper into the factors influencing this political hysteria.

After a resultant gain in interest for these politically unprincipled methodologies, I was mesmerised after stumbling upon Monzon's 'Celda 211', a dystopian depiction of prisons in Spain, which has provided me with a further interest in the bureaucracy of such complex networks. Such was my fascination with this issue that I have chosen this as the basis for my Individual Research Project.

In light of wanting to share my interest in cultural relations, I tutor English, Spanish and French online. This has allowed me to share my passion with others who are as eager as me. Through the same program, I have completed courses in Korean, Norwegian and Mandarin, to supplement the optional modules I have elected to follow in German and Italian outside my A Level studies. Additionally, I volunteered at a local language college in 2015 and immersed myself in communication with people of all nationalities.

I am also a Language Prefect at my school, leading a Spanish club to inspire younger learners and recently stressing the importance of languages at an event alongside local businesses. Moreover, I have engaged in writing articles for my school's newspaper on why it is imperative that we broaden our cognitive connections through learning languages, be it for preventing the onset of Alzheimer's or fostering international tolerance.

Through studying the emotional merging of absence and longing in Neruda's 'Poema 15', and studying short stories about the futility of war by Maupassant, I have seen how a different viewpoint on culture can be gained through the study of literary works; this has unlocked within me a deep desire to study Spanish literature.

To further my knowledge of Spanish, I visited San Sebastian in 2015, where I enhanced my communication skills through studying in a language centre and staying with a host family. In 2017 and 2018, I organised two trips to Malaga to witness the astounding processions of La Semana Santa - a festival that highlights the essentiality of religion to Spain. The vitality of this celebration prompted me to reflect upon the development of a country once plagued by a dark era of repression under Franco's dictatorship and how the women of Spain began to recognise their own rights: a crucial part of Spanish political history.

To aid my school in becoming more international, I joined the International Women's Academy, in which we connect with schools in Ghana, Shanghai and Phuket to seek ways in which we can improve our schooling systems and help marginalised women to embrace their right to education through raising money for scholarships.

By having the opportunity to develop my skills by helping to strengthen connections with other nations through political and language-related means, I have gained a real appreciation for those who fight for justice within organisations such as the UN, the World Bank and UNESCO, whom I aspire to work alongside after my university degree, and I am eager to fully embrace the vast variety of opportunities and challenges that the course will offer.

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