What is the difference between cover letter and personal statement

You will usually be given an idea of how long your personal statement should be. The most common length is between 1 and 3 pages or about to words.

For a personal statement, think about the things you want to convey to the admissions committee that is not already obvious from your application. For example, if you faced substantial obstacles in graduating from high school and pursuing a higher education, how you overcame these obstacles might be an appropriate topic for your personal statement.

Your personal statement might be about how a family member taught you to value the natural world and how that passion has compelled you to spend your life studying and working in that field.

Remember how up above we said that the cover letter should emphasize how you can be an asset to the company, organization or school you are applying to? In contrast, you can think of the personal statement as being the document that is all about you! While a cover letter is a formal document, a personal statement is the place to let your personality shine. One way that cover letters and personal statements are similar is that you want to get right to the point from the start.

Instead, just state your interest up front. For a cover letter, say what you are responding to and why you are interested. A journalism student applying for an internship at a small local newspaper might write something like the following:. I am majoring in journalism at ABC University, where I am the managing editor of the university paper. I am a passionate believer in the importance of local journalism to small towns and communities.

Similarly, for a personal statement, start with the reason that you want to attend the university:. My resume enumerates the various positions I have held at Kerasotes Theaters, Chili's restaurants, and Indiana University's new Student Recreational Sports Center SRSC , and what all of these positions have in common is an emphasis on serving the public effectively. Further, as an assistant manager at the Showplace 11 and a staff coordinator at the SRSC, I have gained valuable expertise in managing employees and creating work schedules.

Both of these positions have allowed me to develop my sales and people skills, which are extremely important in an increasingly service-driven marketplace. Not all of my work experience has been as a paid employee. Part of my volunteering experience at Middleway House, the local battered women's shelter, involved extensive work on computers, including word processing, organizing databases and creating spreadsheets.

Also, I recently participated in an internship program for academic credit with the Eli Lilly corporation in the personnel division. As a management intern, I was able to watch the workings of a major corporation up close and would like the opportunity to combine my experiences with the theoretical background available in the MBA program at IUB, with its emphasis on computers, marketing and human resources.

My successful internship is one element of my overall academic success as an undergraduate here at IUB, yet I have also made time for a variety of extracurricular activities, including working for my sorority and competing in intramural basketball.

My positive experiences here have resulted in my desire to stay in Bloomington to continue my academic endeavors; furthermore, continuing my education here would allow me to make important business contacts, with the career goal of opening my own computer consulting firm in the Midwest. Personal Statement Format As mentioned before, the requirements for personal statements differ, but generally a personal statement includes certain information and can follow this format see following model.

Conclusion Tie together the various issues that you have raised in the essay, and reiterate your interest in this specific program or position. Wells Library E. Bloomington, IN This leaves more space for mistakes and mishaps in where data is at its generally significant. Individual articulations will in general stay unreasonably conventional, thus neglect to give the full picture with regards to how well your experience and range of abilities fit job necessities.

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Email: [email protected]. And how different can the two documents be? Here are some key differences between a cover letter and a personal statement —both important parts of your candidate file. The inherent vagueness of the personal statement allows you to discuss yourself more generally, without having to fit into the mold of a specific school. Your personal statement should complement—not completely echo—your cover letter.