The Personal Statement: Which Schools Actually Use It

Keele scores the personal statement. Home applicants are ranked on a combination of UCAT and personal statement scores, so the statement carries direct weight in whether an interview happens at all. International applicants are shortlisted on UCAT ranking alone.

Lancashire scores the personal statement, and is the most explicit school in this directory about how. It states that the personal statement and academic reference will be evaluated and scored to determine whether an interview is offered, and publishes the criteria: motivation for medicine, academic preparation, and practical experience covering caring roles, teamwork, initiative and work-life balance. It also says it can only assess an application on the information given, so anything left out is simply absent.

Work experience with service users is strongly recommended and is assessed at interview together with other information from the personal statement, so the statement feeds the interview rather than the shortlisting.

Not scored. UCL states plainly that it does not score personal statements to select candidates for interview, while encouraging applicants to use the space to evidence the attributes and values needed to work in healthcare.

Used, and used twice. Aberdeen tells BDS applicants 'you need to submit an excellent personal statement' and says that on receipt of the UCAS form 'we carefully considers all aspects of the remaining application and score your form objectively, based upon three categories: Practical experience and knowledge of career implications; Knowledge of core qualities required of a dentist ... including team work; Practical skills'. Personal Statement is then a named MMI station domain for BDS, alongside Manual Dexterity, Professionalism & Ethics and Article Comprehension. Aberdeen separately publishes a pre-interview weighting of academic attainment/predictions 60% and UCAT 40%, and says BDS offer decisions rest on interview performance alone - so the statement has no published share of the shortlisting score, but it is directly examined at the interview that decides the offer.

Reviewed before shortlisting and assessed again at interview. Aberdeen states: 'All Personal Statements will be reviewed prior to interview invites being sent out. If you are invited to interview, your Personal Statement will be assessed during the interview.' It recommends structuring the statement around Commitment to Medicine, Knowledge of core qualities required of a doctor, and Teamwork - the same domains the MMI examines. Aberdeen separately publishes a weighting of academic attainment/predictions 30%, UCAT 20% and interview performance 50%, which leaves the statement no named percentage, but its application-process page lists 'the UCAS written application' among the aspects that are scored.

Not a weighted component, but it is the last tie-break. Bristol states: 'We no longer use the personal statement or reference as a weighted component of our selection criteria. Should we need to differentiate between applicants who have identical scores at interview when making offers, UCAT scores will be used as our primary differentiator.' Bristol also publishes what it looks for in that case: 'Should we need to differentiate between applicants who have identical scores in the UCAT, we may use the personal statement to help make final decisions. In these cases, we look for: Evidence of Work Experience & motivation and understanding of dentistry; Evidence of team work or Non academic achievement; Evidence of contribution to society.' Shortlisting for interview is still 100% UCAT once the academic requirements are met.

Cambridge publishes a section headed 'How we use personal statements'. It says 'We use personal statements to help us identify applicants with the most academic potential' and 'We will read your personal statement in full', while also stating 'We don't give personal statements a formal score.' Read in full and used to judge academic potential, but never marked.

The personal statement is assessed during the shortlisting process when determining whether an applicant will be invited to interview. The university adds that it thinks work experience of some form before applying is beneficial, and that elements from it will be used during the selection process.

Manchester's dentistry pages state: 'You will be required to write a personal statement as part of your UCAS application, which will be used in the admissions process. The admissions team reserves the right to review your personal statement at any stage of the admissions process.' A positive claim of use, with no stage or score attached to it.

Read as part of a combined assessment, but never described as scored. Portsmouth's BDS page says: 'Applications will be assessed using a combined approach that includes personal statement review, UCAT scores and academic achievement at Level 2 and 3 (GCSE and A level), therefore it is possible that higher achievement in other areas could compensate partially for a lower UCAT score.' On what it is read for, Portsmouth says: 'For health care, social care and dental care courses, we screen personal statements for particular criteria', pointing applicants at its guidance on demonstrating the NHS values; the course page adds that 'when you apply for this course, we'll expect you to demonstrate how your values align with the values of the Constitution.' All shortlisted applicants are then invited to an interview, individual online or on campus, 'which will be used alongside your application to determine your suitability for this course'.

Assessed, and then used again at interview, which is the opposite of the position Sheffield Medicine takes. The dental school initially assesses the academic record, evidence of career exploration, and the personal qualities and values demonstrated in the personal statement and academic reference. Assessors then interview with reference to the information given in the statement, expecting candidates to show they are well informed about choosing dentistry.

Bangor lists the statement under Additional Entry Requirements rather than as a preference: 'You must also demonstrate an awareness of the healthcare system in the UK and the nature of the medical training in your personal statement.'

A gate rather than a score. Cardiff's dentistry selection section states 'Applicants must submit a satisfactory personal statement and reference to be eligible for consideration for an interview', and the School of Dentistry's 2027 admissions policy repeats it: shortlisting requires an acceptable personal statement.

Screened, but not formally scored, which is a distinct position from either extreme: the statement can cost an applicant their place without ever being able to win them one. Cardiff asks for the new UCAS headings to be used and expects the statement to evidence suitability for a medical course.

Read, though not as a scored ranking component. King's ranks on GCSEs, UCAT and contextual data first, then reviews the rest of the application including the personal statement and reference to settle who is invited, so it can affect the outcome at the margin without being a score of its own.

Read after an initial ranking rather than used to rank. King's says applications are initially ranked using UCAT performance, GCSE grades and widening participation indicators; the highest-ranked applicants are then assessed against the entry requirements, including GCSEs, predicted or achieved A-levels, the personal statement and the academic reference, before interview invitations are made. In the statement itself it looks particularly for evidence of appropriate commitment to, and a realistic appreciation of, the academic, physical and emotional demands of medicine.

Not scored at any stage. Queen Mary's 2027-entry dentistry selection criteria say "The personal statement is not scored as part of the selection process prior, during or after interview", while still calling it an important part of the UCAS application and listing the attributes it should evidence. Shortlisting runs on a weighted score of UCAT and academic qualifications, and applicants below the UCAT fourth decile are rejected.

Not scored, but read at interview. Queen Mary's 2027-entry selection criteria say "The personal statement is not scored as part of the selection process prior, during or after interview", while listing the attributes it should evidence - motivation, insight, communication, teamwork, resilience, empathy, honesty and the rest. Shortlisting runs on a weighted UCAT and academic score instead. The statement still reaches the panel: "If shortlisted for interview, your interview panel will have access to your UCAS application and may ask you questions from the information you have provided."

Section 4 of Queen's Admissions Policy Statement for Dentistry, linked from the A200 course page, opens: 'Personal statements are not scored as part of the selection process and the following general factors are taken into account when considering applications.' Not marked, but read against stated expectations.

Section 3.4 of Queen's Admissions Policy Statement for Medicine 2027, linked from the A100 course page, is headed 'Personal Statement and References' and opens: 'Personal Statements are not scored as part of the selection process.' It then sets out what candidates are expected to show, so the statement is read against expectations rather than marked.

Reviewed and used, which makes Birmingham Dentistry one of the few schools where the statement carries real weight. Statements are reviewed for motivation to do the course, specific mentions of dentistry, and the reasoning behind the application, so a statement written generically for medicine and dentistry together is a visible weakness here.

Not scored when selecting for interview, but not ignored either: Birmingham says it considers the personal statement and reference both before and after interview to check the application as a whole. For international applicants it goes further, and the final stage of selection for interview is an assessment of non-academic qualities made on the evidence in the personal statement.

Screened as pass or fail rather than scored. UEA's FOI disclosures state the statement is read but not assessed or scored in any way, while its course page confirms primary screening checks that an applicant has a satisfactory personal statement and reference. So it cannot earn marks and can still end an application. Applicants with gaps in education must use it to explain what they have been doing or plan to do.

Not formally assessed, but not ignored: Edinburgh says the statement may provide guidance when shortlisting for its Assessment Days, and that it is essential preparation for anyone invited. So it can tip a borderline shortlisting decision without ever carrying a score.

Two different answers at two different stages. Before interview the statement counts: Glasgow says applications are considered "with the focus on academic qualifications obtained and predicted, personal statement and reference", and interviews are allocated only to those meeting "all other screening aspects (e.g. minimum academic requirements and satisfactory personal statement and reference)". At interview it counts for nothing: Glasgow tells candidates to revisit their statement beforehand while noting in the same breath that "interviewers have no knowledge about you other than your name".

Not scored, but decisive at the margin, which is the most useful thing to know about it. HYMS says it does not score the statement, and that it carefully examines all the information on the UCAS form when deciding on candidates who are borderline either at selection for interview or at selection for offer. It also warns that fabricated or exaggerated material, or similarity to other statements, may lead to a future offer being withdrawn.

A hard gate, and the harshest consequence attached to a personal statement anywhere in this dataset. Leeds accepts only statements relevant to dentistry and states that if the statement is not relevant to dentistry the application will not be considered at all. An applicant splitting their five choices between medicine and dentistry cannot satisfy this with one statement. Mitigating circumstances must also be included there.

Not formally part of shortlisting, but load-bearing in one specific way: Leeds requires any mitigating circumstances to be set out in the personal statement and academic reference at the point of application, so a resitting applicant who leaves them out has weakened their case. Leeds also states that the decision to make an offer after interview depends entirely on interview performance, not on grades or the UCAT.

Leicester's 2027-entry scoring document states: 'The personal statement and reference are not routinely scored, except for candidates applying with an Access to Medicine qualification. However, for borderline candidates or in tiebreak situations, the personal statement and reference may be used.' So it cannot lift an ordinary application, and can settle a close one.

Not scored. Nottingham says it will not score personal statements or school references, but will review them after interview to check they are satisfactory. Offers rest on interview performance.

Assessed as a hurdle, not a score. St Andrews says "A 'hurdle' based approach is taken to assessing applications - your application will not be scored nor will weighting be applied to specific parts of your application", with the selection process covering academic performance, the personal statement and reference, and UCAT together. To reach interview an applicant needs a strong academic record, a positive reference and relevant medically related work experience; those who clear the hurdles are then ranked on UCAT global score alone. The school is unusually explicit about what the statement must evidence: empathy, communication and listening, leadership, teamwork, commitment to academic study, resilience, perseverance and intellectual potential, plus paid or unpaid work or shadowing in a caring or health environment.

Not used to select, but used at interview. That combination catches out applicants who have been told statements no longer count. ARU says it does not directly use the personal statement in the selection process, and in the same breath that you should be prepared to discuss or use aspects of it at the MMIs.

Not graded at shortlisting, but handed to an interviewer. Imperial shortlists on academic eligibility and UCAT rank alone, then provides the personal statement to the interviewers assessing MMI Station 1, Commitment to Medicine, and that station carries equal weight to the other five. Imperial's advice is to be honest, specific and concise.

Not used to shortlist for the BDS, but in front of the panel at interview. Once BDS applications clear the academic threshold, the UCAT alone determines who is selected for interview. But Newcastle's 2027 policy says of interview selectors: 'they will not have information about predicted/achieved grades or UCAT scores, although they will have a copy of the personal statement.' Newcastle also asks, for all applications, to see a minimum of ten days of relevant work experience, with selectors looking for evidence of work experience within dentistry, teamwork and leadership, personal achievements, paid or voluntary work and mentoring; applicants with little in-person dental experience are urged to make clear in their application how they gained insight into the career. The personal statement is additionally used for shortlisting on the separate BSc Dental Therapy course. The referee's statement is read on all applications to identify negative comments.

Used at interview only, and only as a possibility. The single thing Swansea publishes about the statement is that "You may also be questioned on the content of your personal statement within one or more of the stations" - so it may come up at assessment, but Swansea never says it is read, scored or used to shortlist. What Swansea does say plainly is what happens to the admissions test: "Following selection for interview, the results of any admissions tests will be considered no further. Any offer of a place to study MBBCh Medicine (Graduate Entry) at Swansea will be based solely on performance at interview."

Hertfordshire states it plainly under its MMI section: 'While we do not directly use your personal statement in the selection process, you should be prepared to discuss your statement.' Selection for interview is by UCAT ranking among applicants meeting the academic requirements, so the statement reaches the interview and not the shortlist.

Not used to shortlist, but read at interview. Liverpool says: 'We do not use the Personal Statement when shortlisting for interview. However, the Personal Statement should demonstrate that the applicant has knowledge of and insight into the profession with emphasis on work experience/observation... The Personal Statement will be reviewed during interviews.' Shortlisting runs on GCSE grades plus the total UCAT and SJT score. Liverpool also warns that any statement UCAS flags through its similarity detection service will be automatically rejected by the Dental School, whatever the percentage.

Liverpool does publish a policy, in its A100 Departmental Supplement: 'All candidates should ensure that the submitted UCAS form includes a fully completed personal statement and academic reference. Personal statements and academic references will not routinely be considered as part of the decision to invite individuals to interview. However, the type of experiences that individuals record through their personal statement are likely to be considered as part of the interview.' So the statement is not a shortlisting instrument but is live at interview, where non-academic attributes are assessed against Liverpool's published list: health care career awareness and insight, caring for the community, a critical, coherent and informative approach to verbal and written communication, and the values that underpin good healthcare practice.

Not part of the shortlisting algorithm, which gives equal weight to the UCAT cognitive score and to GCSE performance judged against the applicant's own school; the SJT band is not used at that stage. Tutors then review every non-shortlisted application to identify candidates the algorithm may have underrated, and 80 additional applicants were added back to the shortlist on that basis for 2026 entry. At interview the statement is in play: Oxford advises that 'when writing your personal statement you should bear in mind that tutors select students using the selection criteria', and after interview colleges rank candidates 'on the basis of all information available to them at that time'.

Not scored, and no part of shortlisting. Southampton screens BM4, BM5 and BM6 applicants on academic requirements and then ranks them on UCAT to decide Selection Day invitations; offers are then made on Selection Day performance. The statement matters at the interview: Southampton says that at the Selection Day interview it draws on the information given in the application personal statement, on both the BM5 and BM6 pages. A statement that is not the applicant's own work counts as a fraudulent application, which can end a place already taken up. The UCAT-exempt statement review in earlier selection policies does not appear in the 2027-entry policy, which says there are no general exemptions from the UCAT.

Not used at all, stated as plainly as any school in this dataset: BSMS does not use personal statements at any point during the admissions process.

Not scored. Lancaster states it does not score or rank the personal statement at any stage of its admissions process, and uses the interview to learn about the candidate instead. The one exception is practical rather than scored: a resitting applicant is expected to explain their circumstances there.

Not used, and Newcastle says so outright: 'Selectors will not have access to the applicant's personal statement or reference, either prior to and during an interview.' Selection runs on an academic screen (GCSE points out of 40, A-level points out of 40 for A100 home applicants, and UCAT out of 60) and then an interview score, weighted 50:50, with no share for the statement at any stage.

Read, but not formally assessed and not used to decide who is interviewed. City St George's is explicit that its process rests on objective measures so that every applicant is treated equally, ranking on the admissions test alone for interview and on MMI score alone for offers.

Not used. Bristol states: “We no longer use the personal statement as a weighted component of our selection criteria.” Where two applicants finish interview on identical scores, UCAT is the differentiator, not the statement.

Not used for the main applicant groups. KMMS mentions the personal statement only for its Group C and E routes, where it says the reference and personal statement will be important in the process.

Manchester Medicine states it plainly: 'We do not normally read the personal statement; you can leave this section blank if you are only applying to Manchester. However, we reserve the right to use any information we may hold on your application(s).' Selection to interview runs on the UCAT threshold plus SJT band against the minimum academic requirements, and no offer is made without an interview. One live risk remains attached to the statement: 'Any personal statements which we are notified by UCAS as having been identified by the similarity detection service will result in an unsuccessful decision, irrespective of the percentage of similarity detected, or whether we have used your personal statement in the selection process.'

Not used at all, and Plymouth says so plainly: it does not currently consider personal statements or work experience when selecting for interview. One of the very few schools to rule out work experience as well.

Not used to select for interview, and neither is work experience. Plymouth states: "We do not currently consider personal statements or work experience when selecting for interview."

Not normally read at all, which is stronger than not scored: Sheffield says it does not normally read or score UCAS personal statements as part of selection, and that interviewers will not have read yours, though you can expect questions on the topics applicants usually write about. The single exception is punitive rather than evaluative: if UCAS flags plagiarism the application is unsuccessful regardless of anything else.

About as unambiguous as any school in this dataset: 'Your UCAS personal statement will be checked for plagiarism but its content will not be considered in our admissions process.' A stated position of non-use rather than a silence.

Not stated. Brunel describes its initial review as checking the reference and whether the academic requirements are met or predicted, with no mention of the personal statement being scored or read at that stage.

The University of Lancashire publishes nothing about the personal statement for the graduate-entry BDS. Its Selection procedure section names every input it does use - the UCAT score, which ranks applications before interview; an academic reference from a course leader, personal tutor or project supervisor; a verification of prior learning form; and the MMI - and the personal statement is not among them. The phrase does not appear anywhere on the course page.