Ideation: Key Context
The key to writing an incredible, impactful, personal statement is to have an idea of who is going to be reading it.
Understanding Your Audience: Just as you would not tell the same jokes with your friends as with your parents or teachers, you need to adjust the tone and content of your personal statement to resonate with your readers (admissions officers). Understanding the values and perspectives of admissions officers will allow you to speak to your readers on an emotional level— a key to making your application stand out.
I don’t know any college admissions officers. How am I supposed to visualize them?
Answer: by creating a Reader Persona:
Craft a detailed profile of your audience akin to marketing techniques, aligning all essay components with their expectations. Obviously you will never know exactly who will read your personal statements, but it is possible to be “exactly wrong but approximately correct.” The reader persona - combined with the demographic data in the video - can help you envision your reader as a three dimensional persona and enable you to speak to him or her on an emotional level.
Some keys to success in this exercise include ensuring you write authentically, but accessibly for audiences whose backgrounds and interests differ from your own. You should always consider the reader's perspective and avoid using niche jargon or references that may alienate or confuse the audience.
Learn to visualize your reader; begin to understand which of your experiences will resonate with them
Key Takeaways:
Tailor your personal statement to your audience. Use the Reader Persona template tool to visualize your reader as a three-dimensional person.
Make sure you frame your narrative in a way that is accessible and relatable to your imagined reader.
Adjust your content and tone to ensure your personal statement resonates with admissions officers who will read it.