个人陈述，有时也称自荐信，英文名称为Personal Statement，是申请英国大学，无论本科，硕士还是博士必不可少的文书之一。在申请奖学金的时候，个人陈述也是必须提交的材料之一。一份好的个人陈述会让你备受大学的青睐，当然，学术成绩也是评估的标准之一。如何写好个人陈述，需要申请人花时间去想。个人陈述不需要太长，一般建议在1-2页之间，必须精简，提到要点。

以下是写个人陈述需要注意和掌握的几个要求，可供申请人参考：
首先，个人陈述是：
• A picture. Your personal essay should produce a picture of you as a person, a student, a potential scholarship winner, and (looking into the future) a former scholarship recipient.

• Who do I want to be?

• What kind of contribution do I want to make, and how?

• Why does it make sense for me to study at XX university?

• An invitation. The reader must be invited to get to know you, personally. Bridge the assumed distance of strangers. Make your reader welcome.
Also, you will want to include a proposal of study, one or two paragraphs devoted to why XX university makes sense to you. For some progarmmes/universities, you may be asked to submite a proposal. Your proposal should be as detailed and specific as possible, including degree plans, course titles, and professors with whom you hope to study (especially if you have contacted them by email or letter). Why is this the right place and program? Is it consistent with your studies and activities to date? Draw connections.

• An indication of your priorities and judgement. What you choose to say in your statement tells the committee what your priorities are. What you say, and how you say it, is crucial.

• A story, or more precisely, your story. Everyone has a story to tell, but we are not all natural storytellers. If you are like most people, your life lacks inherent drama. This is when serious self-reflection, conversation with friends, family, and mentors, and permission to be creative come in handy.

简单的说，个人陈述主要是回答以下几个问题：
• Who am I?
• Who do I want to be?
• What kind of contribution do I want to make, and how?
• Why does it make sense for me to study at XX university?

最后，申请人应该记住，个人陈述不是：
•An academic paper with you as the subject
•A resume in narrative form
•A journal entry.
•A plea of justification for the admission/scholarship