Tip 43 : Give yourself credit
This is a fairly short point, but an important one to remember, and it has to do with the way you go about writing your achievements. If at some point in the past you designed and implemented a system which added X value and saved Y amount of money, that's great.
The problem is, if you say it like that, you're only taking credit for designing and implementing the system, not for the adding the value or saving the money - The system takes that slice of the pie.
Instead, it's best if you can reword your achievements in order to claim both the design/implementation aspect and the actual results. This will take practice, but it's well worth doing. Each time you write an achievement, read it through a few times and see where you think the glory is being attributed; Once you've stopped giving your achievements away to systems and procedures, you're in the clear.
Tip 44 : Be proactive
When writing a personal statement, it's easy to come across as being rather passive. You do not want this to happen.
What do I mean by passive? Well, it's very easy to write about your skills, experience and achievements... without ever really discussing what you've actually done.
For instance, as a strategic director, you could say that you've improved operational efficiency, boosted workforce morale and engendered change by improving the reward structure. That's great, but it sort of sounds like you just signed off a project, and these benefits were a result of that.
If instead, you personalise things and play up your own path in the process, suddenly you sound much more proactive - like somebody who actually does things.
Appearing passive is particularly easy for people in senior or strategic roles, but it's equally important to avoid this kind of thing as a prospective student.
Most university applicants have work experience of some sort, but if you simply say that you have that work experience it's going to sound a lot like you watched other people working and occasionally made the coffee. It's really best to avoid this, so if you do have relevant work experience make sure you explain what you actually did. Don't worry if it doesn't sound too impressive, course leaders don't really expect you to be taking on difficult work on your own at this stage in your career. Even if all you did for a week was observe other people working (quite common if you're applying for medicine, dentistry, or some other hands-on profession) you should still be able to spin this out more proactively with a bit of thought and creativity.
Think about what you learned as well as what you did, and say that in positive and proactive terms.