WEAVING YOUR POSTGRADUATE PERSONAL STATEMENT by Elaine

WEAVING YOUR POSTGRADUATE PERSONAL STATEMENT by Elaine

WEAVING YOUR POSTGRADUATE PERSONAL STATEMENT

1. SECRETS TO SUCCESS

2. MAKING A POWERFUL FIRST IMPRESSION

3. AVOID AMBIGUITY

4. MAKING A PROFESSIONAL IMPRESSION

5. BONUS SAMPLE PERSONAL STATEMENT

The failure of the vast majority of postgraduate professionals to gain admission to their chosen university is one of the great unpublicised stories of our time.

Why do they fail?

Because they think in their terms and do not consider the reader: the admission officer.

They don't even know they are doing it.

THAT is why they fail to gain a place on an MBA course.

This article will help you craft a perfect personal statement. Everyone is special and everyone has a personal statement inside them. The main premise of this article is to inspire you. Please dont feel daunted at the personal statementsimply write the way you speak and you are half way there.

1. SECRETS TO SUCCESS

Your first aim is to make sure that your personal statement gets read; start with a powerful selling point that catches the admission officers eye. Admission officers usually give each personal statement a quick scan before picking the best for a more thorough reading. Your personal statement must therefore clearly show the most perfunctory reader what you have to offer.

This means that your words need to be short and punchy.

2. MAKING A POWERFUL FIRST IMPRESSION

The first and main section of your personal statement will almost certainly be a career and achievements, as this is the crucial area that shows that you can do the course on offer. Within each paragraph of your personal statement, put details of your most impressive or relevant achievements at the top of each section.

Always end your personal statement on a high note so that you leave the reader with a final positive image of you as they put the personal statement down. Make sure you describe yourself in a way that does you justice:

* Give evidence supporting your claims

* Quantify your achievements

* Show that you are a high performer in the most important aspects related to your course

* Use clear and positive language

3. AVOID AMBIGUITY

Phases such as I supported the change process or I assisted with financial planning for the company leave the admission officer none the wiser as to what you were actually doing. Make it clear what your contribution was. For example:

..The position involved analysing past financial performance to identify areas for future improvement and preparing budgets to ensure sound financial planning

4. MAKING A PROFESSIONAL IMPRESSION

Your personal statement should have a highly professional image.

* Be clear and easy to read

* Draw attention to the most important points

* Be attractive and professionally presentedutilise online forms!

5. BONUS PERSONAL STATEMENT

Postgraduate Application - Teaching

For three years I have worked as a volunteer Art teacher at a local youth charity. Through these experiences, I have learned how to convey my enthusiasm for art in both the classroom setting and with my students one-on-one. Working with disadvantaged students proved both rewarding and challenging, as I had to make art theory applicable to everyday life. Working in these workshops, I discovered my love for teaching and became determined to help more students understand the relevancy, applicability, and necessity of art in their lives.

I achieved my Bachelors of Art degree with honours from Cheltenham University. After receiving my degree, I decided to delve into the media world to apply the theory I had learned. My duties as Production Manager for the BBC involved presenting workshops, script proof and organising training events. My diverse responsibilities have given me the opportunity to interact with every business department from media relations to finance. For instance, I played a crucial role in a short course where I trained a production team in African Art.

This experience provided me with an opportunity to refine my understanding of the inner workings of the organisational environment. In my spare time, I have continued designing websites, and the prospect of developing a web-based learning environment for students remains one of my foremost professional goals. I understand the importance of Web CT and if given this opportunity, would like to design an on-line art portal, including news, course information, forums, and lesson plans.

Indeed, my experiences as a mentor have solidified my desire to become a teacher. I am in constant pursuit of ways to improve my abilities as an instructor and have recently completed my postgraduate diploma in Art History. I hope to combine this academic knowledge with my existing production expertise to stimulate and encourage my students.

From experience, I understand that teaching has both its rewards and challenges. If given the opportunity to study at Manchester University, I would like to create art courses that will provide opportunities for students to apply their theoretical knowledge in real life situations and allow them to give feedback to continually improve the lessons. Although I do not have a formal teaching qualification, I believe my business expertise has amply prepared me for a position at Manchester and that I will bring the unique perspective of a seasoned professional to the students of the course.

End Note:

Your personal statement is crucial to your application. Planning your personal statement is therefore your first step to success. Gain competitive advantage and order the best editing service on the web.

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Our qualified professional writers will edit your statement to perfectionensuring your application gets noticed. We recognise that you are unique and, therefore, you will receive customised advice from your personal writer. Increase your chances today!

Wishing you great success,

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2004, Get Into Uni Limited. All rights reserved. No duplication without written authorisation.


About the Author
Get Into Uni Oxbridge educated editors help you research, structure, write, present and produce your personal statement. Elaine Millward is the director of getintouni and leads workshops and writes articles on the subject.

http://www.getintouni.com

10 Ways To Start An Internet Salesletter by Ray L. Edwards

10 Ways To Start An Internet Salesletter by Ray L. Edwards

The first sentence of an internet salesletter is like a
hook. It must grab the reader's attention and lead them
into reading the entire letter.

According to copywriter Joseph Sugarman, the purpose of the
first sentence of a salesletter is to get the reader to
read the next sentence. And the second sentence? To get
the reader to read the third sentence. This becomes even
more crucial on the internet than in print, since attention
spans are very short online.

There are certain types of letter openings that prove very
effective in pulling the prospect into the rest of the copy.
We'll briefly look at the ten most effective ways.

1. Tell a Story

Stories have been used for ages to relate lessons. From
bedtime stories to the greatest philosophers, we all love a
good story.

A story creates empathy with the reader and helps to draw
him into the sales pitch. This works best if the story
identifies with the problem that the prospect is now
experiencing for which you've found the solution. Some of
the most effective direct mail pieces used this technique.

2. State the offer upfront

If your product or service is well known to your audience
and doesn't need any special introduction, then you can just
state the offer right away. This serves best if your offer
is a very attractive one. In this case the real appeal is
in the offer itself.

A common example is if you have a free offer or deep
discount on products your target audience is already
interested in. Your entire salesletter can then be based on
the offer and not on the product features or benefits.

3. Use a startling quote or statistic

This type of opening is really intended to get the reader to
sit up and pay attention. It should be 'newsy' and have
some 'shock value'. It should raise a question in the
prospect's mind and build some curiosity to read the rest of
the letter.

4. Make an announcement

This will work best if you have a new product that you are
introducing to the market. This should sound like a press
release. In other words, there should be little 'hype' and
more factual type statements emphasizing what's new about
this product.

5. Ask a question

Questions are very effective in pulling the reader into your
salesletter. This is especially true when the answers to
the questions are very important to the reader. These
questions also force the prospect to think and get involved
with your copy. The questions remain unresolved until you
answer them in the copy. Questions also make the letter
sound conversational and more personal.

6. Write to the reader as a colleague

If your target audience consists of a narrow special
interest group then you can address the reader as such. You
may address the reader as "Business Owner", or "Webmaster".
Right away this qualifies the prospect and saves them
having to read further to know if the letter is of interest
to them. It also serves another purpose: to make the
reader feel as part of a special group-a type of flattery.

7. Offer a free report

This will work best with higher ticket items. In this case
you want the prospects to send for the "special report"
that will further sell them on your product or service. The
report must not be pitched as a salesletter but as
providing genuine information that the reader can benefit
from

8. Pinpoint the reader's problem

Most products or services provide a solution to a problem.
You can therefore start the letter by stating the problem
that your product solves. This will immediately qualify the
reader and provide a logical transition for the letter in
explaining how the product solves the problem in the next
section.

9. State your strongest benefit

If your strongest benefit has a real striking appeal to your
prospect then you may start by stating this benefit
upfront. This benefit must reach out to the reader's
self-interest and go beyond just addressing a feature of
your product. Copywriters commonly refer to this as selling
the sizzle and not the steak. Just think about it, if your
strongest value you are offering the reader doesn't capture
his interest then the others will fail also.

10. Offer some 'secret', privileged information

You can make an offer that is not open to the 'general
public' but only to a select few. This will work well with
your present customer base who may receive this
announcement ahead of other people. The point here is that
the reader feels special because they are getting the
'inside deal'. This will also work well with any select
group such as new subscribers, repeat buyers or any group
you care to 'invent'.

This list is not exhaustive but shows those techniques that
I find most effective as I create salescopy for my online
clients. If you fail to grab the reader's attention in
those precious few opening seconds then the entire battle is
lost. The majority of online readers simply scan before
they choose to read the entire letter. If the start of the
letter doesn't capture their attention then they are lost
for good.

Sometimes the conversion rate for a website can be
drastically increased by just changing the opening paragraph
for the copy. Use anyone of these ten techniques to boost
your online sales.

About the Author
Ray L. Edwards is a published author, copywriter and
internet marketing consultant. He has made tens of thousands
of dollars for his copywriting clients. Being an online marketer
himself,he understands what it takes to sell online and
welcomes your inquiry about his master copywriting service.
http://www.webcopy-writing.com