Personal Statement - French and Spanish

Why do you want to study this course or subject?

Modern Foreign Languages, for me, is more than an academic discipline. I believe the study of French and Spanish at degree level will further develop the key skills of communication, application, knowledge and understanding of differing cultures, essential in the ‘global village’ we live in today.

The study of Modern Foreign Languages has opened my mind to different ways of thinking, enabling me to view the world from the perspective of another nation, and on occasions, change the angle from which I consider a topic. I believe this has enhanced my thinking and writing skills, for example, by reading newspaper articles such as those in Le Monde I am able to examine and experience world events through the eyes of a different nation.

I am interested in French current affairs and regularly correspond with a friend in Bordeaux via online messaging and Skype: this has enabled me to discuss more widely everyday events, e.g. mariage pour tous, with native speakers – this has developed my conversational French and vocabulary. I am an avid reader of French books having read works by authors such as Albert Camus and Thierry Jonquet, and I have also read an English translation of El Juego Del Ángel by Carlos Ruiz Zafón. I have also enjoyed watching film adaptations of books such as that of Je Vais Bien, Ne T’en Fais Pas by Olivier Adams and more recently, other films such as the Spanish comedy Di Que Sí.

I believe that studying for a degree in languages will provide me with a valuable opportunity to develop further my genuine interest in languages and further explore the diversity of linguistics in greater detail. In future I intend to travel and work abroad, making full use of my language skills.

How have your qualifications and studies helped you to prepare for this course or subject?

I currently study French at A2 level and particularly enjoy exploring the political and cultural aspects of a range of topics, including immigration and the issues surrounding Roma gypsies and the problems associated with poverty.

Such is my commitment to study a second language that I have taken the opportunity to do so in my own time. As a result, I am currently studying Spanish at GCSE and have discovered how similar, yet different, Spanish and French are to each other. I find it fascinating how accents are used to vary effect in differing languages, including sentence structure and grammar. Recently I participated in the UK Linguistics Olympiad 2013, which provided me with insight into the ‘root’ of languages and also how each is different to the other.

I have a very positive attitude to study, in particular working independently; this has enabled me to further enhance my Modern Foreign Language skills, providing essential preparation for independent study at university. In addition, I have enjoyed the intellectual freedom which studying in the Sixth Form provides.

What else have you done to prepare outside of education, and why are these experiences useful?

I have always been enthusiastic about internationalism and was part of a group of students who traveled to Kenya in July 2012 where we taught and ran activities in a school in the Kibera slums of Nairobi. I found it amazing how children as young as six and seven years old were speaking English and Swahili interchangeably as well as their tribal languages. I will also be going to Morocco in October 2013, which I have self-funded, and I am hoping to have the opportunity to use my language skills with people in the francophone world outside of metropolitan France, as well as experiencing the culture by helping out in Berber villages.

I am an active member of my Academy community and would like to engage fully in many activities during my studies at university. Throughout my time in the Sixth Form I have supported lower Academy French classes, explaining structures and grammar to younger students: this has also helped my own understanding of the language. I am also Head Girl, a role in which I lead the Sixth Form in organising events and liaise with both staff and students.

Universities applied to:

• University of Cambridge (MML)
• University of Southampton (French and Spanish)
• University of Exeter (French and Spanish)
• University of Bristol (French and Spanish)

Grades achieved:

• Geography (A2) - A*
• French (A2) - A
• Mathematics (A2) - A
• Environmental Studies (AS) - A

How personal statements have changed?

The current personal statement format, with three 'scaffolding' questions, was introduced by Ucas in September 2025. This personal statement was submitted before then, using the old essay-style format. It has been carefully edited into the three-question format, with all of the original wording kept.

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