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The Universities and Colleges Admissions Service, a charity and private limited company that provides a central service between applicants and universities, has decided to launch a new format for personal statement/ statement of purpose from the 2026 academic session.
Personal statements are one of the components required for applications to UK universities, and while the format and theme of the questions have remained the same for the past few years, UCAS has now decided to evolve with the changing times. Why the change? To make students’ lives easier, UCAS says.
“Our survey of 2022 cycle applicants found most students are in favour of personal statements – 89% of respondents said they felt that the purpose of the personal statement is extremely clear or clear. Students tell us it helps their decision-making, while admissions teams say it supports comparability for them when making offers. However, 83% of students did say the process is stressful. They rely heavily on support from others to feel confident that they’ve covered all of the right information,” UCAS said.
Why do you want to study this course or subject?
How have your qualifications and studies helped you to prepare for this course or subject?
What else have you done to prepare outside of education, and why are these experiences useful?
The personal statement will still be 4000 characters in total, including spaces. While the content of the personal statement will remain broadly the same, it will just be split across three sections rather than one longer piece of text. The expectation for what students need to cover within the personal statement is mostly unchanged from current guidance.
“These three questions provide clearer guidance to international applicants, outlining what universities are looking for in prospective students. There was anecdotal evidence to suggest that the traditional personal statement could disadvantage international applicants and students from under-represented groups in the UK,” said Emma Reay, Director of Student Recruitment and Admissions, Newcastle University.
This new format will be introduced in September 2025 for students applying for 2026 entry.
UCAS believes that the change in questions will give every student a fair chance to articulate their unique journey, aspirations, and potential. “It will help levelling the field by reducing inequities around access to support and advice by those applying, and especially so for international students,” said Manuel Barcia, Dean of Global Engagement, University of Leeds.
“During my time in schools, I saw first-hand how the personal statement can help students clarify and articulate their ambition, but also how challenging it can be for those with less support. The new approach, with guided questions aims to give greater confidence to those students, as well as their teachers when advising on how to secure their dream course,” said Dr Jo Saxton, chief executive at UCAS.
The number of Indian applicants has grown from 4130 in 2015 to 12,750 in 2024.
| Year | Indian applicants |
| 2015 | 4130 |
| 2016 | 4280 |
| 2017 | 4790 |
| 2018 | 5890 |
| 2019 | 6210 |
| 2020 | 7640 |
| 2021 | 9930 |
| 2022 | 11880 |
| 2023 | 12920 |
| 2024 | 12750 |
This new change is expected to help increase the number of Indian applicants as the process will be ‘much simpler’ for Indian students now, experts claim.
“Applicants from India may have less access to advisors with knowledge of the UCAS system than many UK students – they often tell us they are unsure how to structure their personal statement. By breaking it down into three clearly labelled sections, UCAS will undoubtedly give applicants much greater confidence that they are providing the information we are looking to assess their capabilities, whilst still giving space to impress our Admissions Tutors,” Nick Hull, Director of Admissions at the University of Birmingham told indianexpress.com.
