[Music] hi there welcome to my youtube channel my name is anna sir uber and i am a master student at the university college london i'm from nigeria but currently living in london um in this video i'm going to be reading my personal statement to ucl out loud and i studied masters in law if i didn't see that at the start so yeah about this time last year um i decided i was into doing masters and i applied to some universities that still had their applications open which is still not too late if you're wanting to apply so i applied to university college london which was my first choice queen mary university of london um university of birmingham and where i was completing my law degree undergrad degree at the time university of leicester and i got into all four universities with the application with a short span of time so it's definitely doable and so i'm just going to be reading my personal statements to ucl this was the personal statement i wrote first and then i tailored it to the other universities i applied to and i'm going to be sharing some tips and tricks on you know writing a really good personal statement i hope this helps so bear with me as i read and if this is something you're interested in then stay tuned so personal statement international commercial law llm that was the heading and before i start i'll just say that i started like in a sort of story form i didn't start with the normal or i'm writing to apply for you know i went to the tv of spice and i guess it worked so first paragraph from my home country nigeria i have observed that growth in your country's gdp does not always translate to the economic development of its people a major tool for bridging this gap is the adoption of sound legal and regulatory frameworks to govern the commercial sector this has driven my long-term aspiration of becoming an international commercial lawyer with a focus on sustainable economic development studying law at graduate level at the university college london will be a major stepping stone to achieving this career goal so this first paragraph was my introduction you know i stated what i wanted to apply for or what i was applying for and you know i stated that i wanted to become an international commercial lawyer and that's why i was applying for that specialism and second paragraph this is where i go into like my story of how i got to where i am so second paragraph my fascination with the law began during my first undergraduate study in international law and diplomacy through studying models such as international economic and trade law i developed an international outlook towards law and the relevant role he plays in facilitating development the more i learnt the more questions i had the depth of my intellectual curiosity about the law ran beyond the answers a bsc degree could provide thus i decided to further my studies by obtaining an nlb degree in the uk this was the giving trajectory of my academic pursuits especially in light of the preference for english law as the governing law in international commercial agreements this decision this decision to study law in the uk informed my short-term goal of qualifying as a solicitor in england and wales as it would further propel me into the achievement of my long-term career aspiration a lot of international but yeah that's my second paragraph you know stating how this you know my first degree my second degree how i got here and how this um course would propel me further into where i wanted to get to in terms of short-term goals and longer-term goals and although it might seem a bit worthy like seemed like a big word i was applying for a masters you know i wanted to you know write a good personal statement but also the sentences are short so make sure to keep your sentences short you don't want overly long sentence like three lines anything more than three lines is too long and it will be hard to follow use understandable english words simple words you don't have to use really huge words i don't think the words i used were too big but yeah keep it simple and short that really sells here you know simple short sentences easy to read and understand third paragraph so this is where i start talking about my law degree and the skills that i gained that will help me on my masters because i realized for ucl from my research one of the things they wanted to see was critical thinking you know they wanted to see that you have great and perseverance so that's what i was trying to exemplify in the next few paragraphs third paragraph the start of my law degree was challenging because i was new to the academic system in the uk i had to learn on my feet and quickly adapt to both the legal and cultural environment i found myself in i remained resilient and willing to improve my intellectual and personal skills in order to excel first i developed my ability to critically evaluate the law and formulate strong arguments i did this by thoroughly engaging with cost materials and in tutorials i also undertook further reading and frequently asked questions to my tutors my dedication and hard work culminated in my recognition for academic excellence furthermore fourth paragraph now i proactively took up opportunities to engage with the diverse body of students within the uk i volunteered as a coach representative within the law department through this i developed leadership skills as i adequately represented the interests of my peers and advocated for their needs within the law school and the wider school administration while volunteering as a member of the pro bono insight project i developed strong communication skills by making presentations to secondary school children on different areas of the law i did this through creative ways such as pictorial illustrations which simplified the presentations there is no doubt that i will hone these skills and develop new ones while studying at ucl and that's the end of the first page so those two paragraphs which i just read up to you you know exemplifies me saying the skills that i have that will help the course that would help me on the course the skills that i'm bringing to the table you know how well i had done um in my undergrad how i developed the skills and i was able to do all of my undergrad and how i'm going to bring this to the table and i didn't just say oh i have communication skills i try to demonstrate it with the examples that i gave so on to the second page and the next paragraph now this paragraph is where the next paragraph is a bit long it's the longest paragraph is what i talk about you see a wipe you still in particular why because you know i try to exemplify or to reflect that i i want to study at this particular university and not any other university in london or wherever so you got to cast them up a little bit and show that you've looked at their courses you've looked at or looked at the course looked at the modules looked at the website looked at you know done your research and that you're keen on the university and if you want to know how to do all of this um i'll get back to that at the end of this video then being one of the top 14 universities worldwide is the fifth paragraph now i believe or sixth ucl is at the forefront of legal research and has consistently contributed to the global narrative on contemporary legal issues i look forward to learning from leading researchers such as name of a lecturer who has outstanding experience in the field of international and economic international economic and trade law by learning from leading practitioners and academics at ucl i aim to sharpen my research skills further develop thought leadership and contribute to the global narrative driving legal development in my areas of interest i hope to participate in the lore without wars program at ucl law's amazing program as it is the right opportunity to collaborate with a diverse body of students while learning from international experts i have been in touch with the current president of the graduate law society at ucl she gave positive feedback about the llm program specifically the specialist degree in international commercial law and the numerous opportunities for career development within the ucl laws this has strengthened my resolve to study at ucl so i made this paragraph all about ucl and why i wanted to study at ucl the things that i was interested in i looked at the extracurricular activities for law students because that was something i wanted to do i found the ones of interest and i mentioned it here i also got a tip from this my friend who was the president of the graduate law society that you know mentioned lecturers that you're keen to learn from nobody's going to hold you to this no one's going to say oh you wrote this lecture and you have to you know do their course but it just shows that you've done your research and you're looking and i remember her telling me that um don't mention the lecture that's to call because that's just off but yeah so i said you know this university's top it's one of the top universities i want to learn here i want to build my research skills i want to develop thought leadership boy did i know what i was getting myself into so then on the next two paragraphs is about why like why why me why this course or why i'm motivated to study the course and then i'm going to read that and read that up now this is probably the sixth or seventh paragraph my decision to specialize in international commercial law has been largely influenced by my academic and professional journey thus far during my first degree i undertook the entry course into arbitration hosted by the chartered institute of arbitrators uk this improved my understanding of how sound dispute resolution mechanisms can facilitate international commercial activities through the smooth and speedy resolution of disputes as such i am interested in the international arbitration module on the llm program at ucl next paragraph also during my recent virtual vacation scheme at an international law firm in london i read more about how the capital markets practice area is involved in promoting the sustainable development goals through specific collateralized loan obligations ignore those big words this has followed my interest in undertaking the corporations global business and environment module i am interested in researching more about the relationship between law and economic development particularly i would like to understand how international commercial law can facilitate the achievement of sustainable development goal 8 decent work and economic growth through the formulation and enforcement of sound policies and regulatory frameworks so in these two paragraphs i just read you know i stated some of the courses that i was interested in doing but here's the thing no one's going to hold you to the list of courses that you've stated but issues that you're keen and you're already interested in the module in the faculty and the things they are teaching you know a few big words here and there that's specific to my course but i wanted to show that okay this is helping me my career path of where i want to get to you know my my um course at ucl i'm being taught by practitioners i've been told by leading researchers and this is something i wanted is because this will help me my future career in devils and i was keen to mention it here mention the sort of modules that i'm looking at um taking or i'm potentially going to take and things like that and how this help you know have it ties into my career path my career journey thus far and my career path going forward and then the final paragraph to bring an end to this misery of me reading my personal statement um here just to tie everything up and to conclude it says situated right in the legal and commercial capital of the uk ucl provides the best platform for me to engage with the prestigious international law firms and organizations that i am interested in working with excuse the noise i hope to build more meaningful connections and advance my career through the networking opportunities available there is no doubt that an ll.m and the prestigious ucl laws will be a great launching pad for my future career as an international law practitioner i look forward to studying in the bright open spaces of bentham house end of the personal statement so yeah the bentham house is the ucl building that has that was renovated recently or the ucl laws building that had been renovated recently so i was keen to say that you know i've heard so much about bentham house and i can't wait to study there and also i just wanted to show that you know situated in london is key for my career path you know networking opportunities and likes and ucl is the right place for me to be and i ended on that note and like i said i just um for my other universities or the other universities i applied to i just tailored this template to them took out the things that were not relevant to those universities and included the things that were relevant you know some of the skills are the same so you may leave that part in i'm going to stop waffling now but yeah that's it i hope this has been helpful you should definitely check out more videos it doesn't have to be cost specific but seeing how people wrote their personal statements wrote about the academic journey and where they want to go you know it's really helpful and seeing how they evidence the skills that they have and evidence their interest not just saying or i want to study llm law why or i want to study business at this university why you should be able to demonstrate it effectively keep your sentences short and simple again and um straight to the point easy to read short paragraphs or decent sized paragraphs and conclude there that's it so i hope this helps you want to find out more about how to like apply for masters your steps you should take in preparing your master's application to study in the uk then check out my other video and i'll put the link in the description box below do let me know if you have questions in the comment section and i will be happy to answer to the best of my ability please do like if you enjoyed this video give it a thumbs up please share and subscribe thank you bye