Should I put spaces in between paragraphs in my personal statement?

Q: Do you need gaps in personal statement?

No you dont leave a blank line in between paragraphs. It does need to be written in paragraphs though, not just one solid block of text.

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Table of Contents Show

Do you put spaces between paragraphs in personal statement?
Do you need paragraph breaks in personal statement?
Do you need gaps in personal statement?
Should I leave a line between paragraphs?

I've just tried out my PS for size and it fits perfectly in the 47 line limit. However, it looks like this (attached)

Does the attached look okay/readable?
Is it worth me trying to indent paragraphs or try and make some space for blank lines between paragraphs (i would need to cut down my PS - which I can't..)???

I just don't want to annoy the admissions team with a PS that is difficult to read.

Edit: You can clearly see where a new paragraph starts, but there is no clear blank line between paragraphs.

Looks fine, I left it without spaces between paragraphs and got all 5 offers. Don't worry about it!

If you don't use a line to separate paragraphs, just indent...

I seem to be one of the few that did use blank lines to separate my paragraphs. I think it looks more professional and makes the PS easier to read. It won't make up for poor content though. I got all four interviews out of the way well before January too which was good.

Indents don't work on the UCAS form when its sent. I sent mine with lines between paragraphs when I did my degree and doing it again now for my masters. It looks a lot better structurally and is a lot easier to read...I was always advised to leave lines.

Higgy90

mine didnt have blank lines, and judging from the fact i got into imperial, i dont think top uni's care.

That's not good reasoning for everybody though, as much as it may seem. Imperial is just one top university, and you also applied for a science course (if I'm correct) in which it is usual that the personal statement takes a somewhat back-seat roll.

They could have wanted you for so many reasons, your grades, reference and anything else but still have become annoyed by your 'wall of text' PS!

nuodai

To be honest, it doesn't matter that much. My own preference last year was to put the lines in. That way I had to think of less to write, and it was more pleasing on the eyes of the uni admissions tutors (who probably have to read through hundreds of the things).

Blank lines aren't removed (unless they're at the beginning or end of your PS), it's only excess spaces that are.

Indent spaces, that is " " at the beginning of a sentence - are these removed then?

Thanks.

DJkG.1

Indent spaces, that is " " at the beginning of a sentence - are these removed then?

Thanks.

To the best of my knowledge, yes; so are double-spaces and suchlike. I could be wrong. Try putting it into the UCAS Apply form and pressing the preview button: what they see is what you see there.

Red Alert

u can put indents and blank lines in but when you submit the personal statement they will all be removed

Not true. Only at the start and end of the PS are blank spaces removed.

You don't need blank lines between paragraphs - starting a new line for each paragraph is more than sufficient

If your PS was anything like mine, you'll end up needing/using every single character available

My dad is an admissions tutor at a Russell Group university and he told me to write the PS in three or a maximum of four paragraphs and to leave a blank line between the paragraphs. Seems to be fairly standard advice as that's what my school told me too and it is one of the top performing schools in the country with a very strong track record in university admissions. It's only since coming on TSR that I've heard of people cramming something in every available space and making the PS look like a single paragraph.

Get Cape.Wear Cape.Fly.

I've just tried out my PS for size and it fits perfectly in the 47 line limit. However, it looks like this (attached)

Does the attached look okay/readable?
Is it worth me trying to indent paragraphs or try and make some space for blank lines between paragraphs (i would need to cut down my PS - which I can't..)???

I just don't want to annoy the admissions team with a PS that is difficult to read.

Edit: You can clearly see where a new paragraph starts, but there is no clear blank line between paragraphs.

I wrote mine like your attached picture is, and I'm starting LSE next month for one of their prestigious courses.

It's better to leave a line, but don't worry if you can't afford to.

There is a lot of misinformation in this thread and people don't seem averse to repeat factually wrong advice even when it has already been corrected, so let's be definitive.

Indents and extraneous spaces (and lots of other fancy formatting) are removed by the UCAs system. Blank lines aren't removed.

Those people saying that you can detect where paragraphs end are forgetting that the most important person in the application cycle is the admissions tutor - the decsion maker. It is important to make things as easy and pleasant for the decision maker as possible. They will have literally hundreds of statements to read, and this is very tiring, frustrating process; the printed form of the PS is not all that well designed and it is a brave candidate that is willing to irritate the admissions tutor, never mind contribute to his/her headache.

A well-presented PS will stand out from the crowd of rubbish, regardless of its content, and good content will be even better received than it would be if presented inconsiderately.

Nobody is saying that you won't get an offer with a poorly-presented statement, but not everyone has a cast iron case for an offer and most people need all the help they can get, especially as things get more competitive from year to year. It is definitely not true that simply filling the space available with "important information" will enhance your application.

I always advise the use of blank lines, and still haven't seen a PS that wouldn't be improved by excluding enough text to allow their inclusion. Note what those people who have spoken to them say that admissions tutors like )posts above). I have spoken to quite a lot of tutors and they are unanimous in liking blank lines.

I hope you don't need them because mine was perfect until I pasted it into UCAS and I was 6 lines over!!
So I currently have no paragraph spacing. Can't afford to cut anything else out either.

jaz_jaz

I hope you don't need them because mine was perfect until I pasted it into UCAS and I was 6 lines over!!
So I currently have no paragraph spacing. Can't afford to cut anything else out either.

Read Good bloke's post again. There is definitely something you can cut out/cut down. There always is.

Definitive advice on this point given above. It is optional, of course, so up to the applicant.

Do you put spaces between paragraphs in personal statement?

Personal statements are usually limited to 500 words (approximately one to two pages). Paragraphs should be single-spaced with an extra line separating one from the next.

Do you need paragraph breaks in personal statement?

Formatting your personal statement It can sometimes be tempting to write one long paragraph to make the most out of the character limit, but it's important admissions, and academic staff can read it easily, so don't forget paragraphs and line breaks.

Do you need gaps in personal statement?

No you don't leave a blank line in between paragraphs. It does need to be written in paragraphs though, not just one solid block of text.

Should I leave a line between paragraphs?

Currently, when writing by hand or typing on computers, you should leave one line empty between each paragraph rather than indenting. So, when you write your IELTS essays or your writing task 1, just start your sentences at the beginning of the line and when you have a new paragraph, miss one line.