You will need to write a personal statement for your UCAS application.
Your UCAS personal statement is your chance to tell us about your academic interests. It will help us to understand your potential as a Cambridge student.
Personal statements are only one part of the Cambridge application process. We look at all the information provided to us when considering applicants. We will read your personal statement in full, but we don’t give statements a formal score.
Structuring your UCAS personal statement
For 2026 entry, your UCAS personal statement will be split into 3 sections. You can find out more about the new personal statement questions on the UCAS website.
We know that your personal statement is for more than one university. So, we do not expect your statement to be aimed at Cambridge alone.
We do not have a preference for how you split your personal statement between the 3 sections. But make sure you have enough space to talk in detail about your academic interests. You can include this in any section.
If you have any information specifically for Cambridge, you can add this to the extra personal statement in My Cambridge Application.
What to include in your UCAS personal statement
We use personal statements to identify candidates with the most academic potential.
We want to hear about how you are exploring your academic interests outside of school or college. You should give examples of activities you've been doing or resources you've been using beyond your school curriculum.
We particularly want to know what you:
- have been thinking about
- found interesting
- learned from these activities or materials
Telling us about this will help you to:
- explain your academic reasons for wanting to study the subject
- show your enthusiasm for and commitment to your chosen course
- express any particular interests within the field
Exploring your academic interests
There are lots of ways that you can explore your academic interests. For example, you could listen to podcasts, do further reading or watch videos online. These are known as super-curricular activities.
We don't expect you to have explored your interests in any specific way. The most important thing is to spend your own time engaging academically. Crucially, we are interested in the thoughts you have to share about what you've learned.
The best personal statements show a pattern and logic in an applicant's academic engagement. You should think about the connections between your own academic interests. This includes any connections between subjects that seem disconnected at first. When your write your personal statement, make sure you highlight those connections.
What not to include in your personal statement
We do not recommend that you include lots of information about extra-curricular activities. This means any non-academic activities that are not related to your chosen course.
Participating in these activities will not increase your chances of receiving a Cambridge offer. So, your personal statement should primarily be about your academic interests.
You should also keep discussion of your school curriculum to a minimum. You could reference how your studies have led you to develop your interests outside of school or college. But you should not reflect on your classroom-based learning at length.
Extra personal statement for Cambridge
You will have the opportunity to write a Cambridge specific personal statement in My Cambridge Application. This is optional. Your application will not be disadvantaged if you do not have anything to add.
Cambridge is particularly interested in how you've explored your academic interests. You may find that you run out of space in your UCAS personal statement to cover this sufficiently. If this happens, you can add the information to your Cambridge specific personal statement.
Find out what to include in a Cambridge specific personal statement.