personal statement due date

2024-2025 Residency Application Timeline and Month-by-Month Schedule

• By Med School Insiders
• May 7, 2024
• Medical Student
• Residency , Residency Application , Residency Interview

This guide outlines the residency application timeline you should follow, including key dates and an ideal preparation schedule. We’ll break things down based on what you need to accomplish and when each aspect of your application is due, as well as what you should be working on each month as you prepare your application.

Looking for a month-by-month schedule? Scroll below for a breakdown of what you should prepare and work on each month leading up to residency.

A solid road map for the application process will help you secure a residency position without burning out along the way. We’ll cover exactly what to expect throughout the entire application process.

The Electronic Residency Application Service (ERAS)

The Electronic Residency Application Service (ERAS) is the centralized online application service residency applicants use to deliver their application and supporting documents to residency programs. ERAS simplifies the application process for applicants as well as their program directors, Designated Dean’s Office, and letter of recommendation authors.

ERAS has four individual but connected applications.

• Dean’s Office Workstation (DWS)
• Letters of Recommendation Portal (LoRP)
• Program Director’s Workstation (PDWS)

Each application was created to meet the needs of each user group involved in the application process. ERAS provides a confidential and impartial transmission of all applications to residency programs.

The Steps of ERAS:

• Applicants receive a token (one-time access code) from their Designated Dean’s Office.
• Applicants use the token to register with MyERAS.
• Applicants complete their MyERAS application, assign supporting documents, select programs, and apply to programs.
• The applicant’s Designated Dean’s Office and letters of recommendation authors upload supporting documents.
• Examining boards receive and process requests for transcripts.
• Programs receive the application materials through the Program Director’s Workstation (PDWS).

2024-2025 ERAS Residency Application Dates and Deadlines

The following ERAS dates and deadlines for 2024-2025 come directly from the AAMC website . Check this resource for the most up-to-date information regarding deadlines.

These dates represent the hard deadlines provided by AAMC, but there’s plenty you need to be on top of in the months leading up to application season and throughout the summer while applications are open. Below, we’ll share a month-by-month breakdown of what you should be focusing on for your residency application, including applicable resources.

Changes to the 2025 ERAS Residency Application Cycle

Each year ERAS evolves the application process, which means applicants must stay up-to-date with each year’s specifications. For the 2024-2025 cycle, these are the changes and updates ERAS has announced:

• Hobbies and interests will be a standalone item in the MyERAS ® application.
• Consolidated interview scheduling with Thalamus Core will seamlessly manage interview planning and scheduling.
• Dean’s Office WorkStation (DWS) Analytics will make it easier for advisors to access their students’ interview data.
• Program signaling will be available for December cycle ERAS fellowship applicants. Specialties and programs that participate in the July fellowship cycle can participate in the 2025-2026 application season, which will launch in July 2025.
• Real-time data analysis will be delivered to institutions and programs via Cerebellum.

For a full breakdown of changes for the 2024-2025 application cycle, visit the What’s New page on the ERAS website .

Components of the Medical School Residency Application Process

Much like your medical school application , your residency application has many moving parts that you need to be working on at the same time. The application includes some familiar components, including an experiences section, personal statement, and letters of recommendation, as well as some new aspects, like the optional professional photo.

• Experiences
• Personal Statement
• Letters of Recommendation
• Transcripts

Continue reading for a breakdown of each of these components, followed by our month-by-month breakdown of what you should be working on when.

1. Experiences

The ERAS experiences section is an opportunity for you to share your experiences with volunteering, work, and research. Include all of your experiences in this section, not just the ones relevant to your specialty. It’s important to highlight and showcase all of what you have learned and been up to.

You are able to add u p to 10 experiences and can self-select your top three most meaningful experiences.

You can use the following three questions to structure your descriptions of each activity:

• What is it?
• What did you do?
• What did you learn?

Using this three sentence structure will help the reader quickly comprehend the activity and what the experience meant to you. This is where a lot of your interview questions will come from, so it’s a good idea to review this section before heading into your residency interviews .

Note: Hobbies and interests will be a standalone item in your application starting in the 2024-2025 application cycle.

2. Personal Statement

The ERAS personal statement is where you tell your story the way you see it and explain why you want—and are more than qualified—to join a certain specialty. Outside of interviews, this is your only opportunity to personally touch on anything that you feel is underrepresented in the rest of your application.

This is the section where you can put your accomplishments and achievements into context, as much of the rest of your application focuses almost exclusively on your grades and scores.

Your residency personal statement will differ from your medical school personal statement as you are no longer a wide-eyed premed. You have now earned your doctorate, and it’s imperative that your residency personal statement reflects this. Be confident but humble. You are now a young professional with a much deeper understanding of and commitment to medicine. Your residency personal statement must focus on your professional development and the experiences that have crystalized your ambition to pursue your chosen specialty.

While the residency personal statement allows for 28,000 characters, we don’t recommend filling all of this space. A single typed page, about 700-800 words, is all that’s required.

A brilliant personal statement can be enough to land you an interview, while a lackluster essay can ruin your chances of acceptance, regardless of your other academic achievements. View our database of Residency Personal Statement Samples , edit carefully, ask mentors for feedback, and consider professional personal statement editing .

Learn more with our Residency Application Personal Statement Guide . 

3. Letters of Recommendation

The ERAS letters of recommendation, much like your medical school letters of recommendation , provide residency programs with vital insight into how the professional physicians you’ve worked with see you. Your letter writers will speak to your work ethic, professionalism, and why you are a good fit for your chosen specialty .

While you’re allowed to include an unlimited number of references, you can only include four letters of recommendation per program. Your letters should be standardized and not tailored to each specific program so that your letter writers don’t have to draft multiple letters. Your Dean’s Letter and MSPE do not count as letters.

Ideally, your letter writers should be from a range of specialties and experiences, and it’s imperative that they know you well and will speak very highly of you. Include at least one letter from an attending you worked closely with, a department chair, or a mentor in your chosen specialty. Your mentor will be able to speak directly to your suitability and aptitude for that specific specialty.

It’s also possible that programs will require a letter from someone outside the field of medicine. Each program will list specific requirements on their website. Read these requirements carefully to determine exactly what you’ll need to include.

Learn more with our ERAS Residency Letters of Recommendation Guide . 

While optional, including a photo is highly recommended. A professional photo of your friendly, smiling face will help the people evaluating your application put a face to a name and remember you.

Upload your own photo in MyERAS by selecting Upload New Photo in the Actions column.

The photo file cannot exceed these requirements:

• Dimensions: 2.5 in. x 3.5 in.
• Resolution: 150dpi
• File Size: 100kb

The photo should be high-quality and look professional. Ensure you look approachable and friendly, wear professional clothing, such as your interview outfit, and keep the background subtle. You don’t want anything to distract from your face.

If you’re friends with a professional photographer, ask them to take a photo of you, but if not, we encourage you to pay for a professional photo. The cost of a quality headshot is nothing compared to the staggering amount of money you’ve already paid to attend medical school.

Learn more with our ERAS Residency Application Photo Requirements and Tips .

5. Transcripts

You must request your USMLE transcript (or COMLEX transcript for osteopathic schools) for your application, so it’s important to authorize the release of this document during the summer. Since it can take weeks for your test results to arrive, schedule Step 2CK long before the September of your residency application.

Once you make the request, your medical school will organize your MSPE (Medical School Performance Evaluation) letter and transcripts and upload them for you.

Month-by-Month Application Preparation Schedule

Jan-April 2024

• Start thinking about your away rotations and where you want to do them.
• Complete small requirements so you don’t need to worry about them later (vaccinations, certifications, reviewing your CV, etc.)
• Read: How to Choose Letters of Recommendation Writers
• Keep an ongoing extracurriculars journal with dates and noted experiences.

Begin thinking about where you want to complete your away rotations and how many you’re going to do. This can vary based on specialty and whether or not your specialty requires them.

January to February is a great time to get all your vaccinations, certifications, and other small requirements out of the way, too. Some of these things can be time-consuming, and you’ll want to make sure you have these easy-to-check-off tasks complete before the stress of application season.

Most places also like to have your CV and Step 1 score report, so this is a great time to brush up on your CV and catch it up to where it needs to be. April onwards can get really busy really quickly, and it’s much easier getting your CV updated when things are less stressful. Having a good CV setup early makes the process of pasting it all into ERAS that much easier. Plus, you’re less likely to forget things before the stress kicks in.

This is also the time to reach out to potential letter writers, including those you might want to ask on your rotations. If you already have people you want to ask, there’s no harm in approaching them and politely asking if they’re willing to write you a strong letter. Asking for letters last minute can hurt your residency application, as letter writers are bombarded with requests at this time. The earlier you begin reaching out, the better.

If you haven’t already, begin keeping a journal of your extracurricular experiences. The more details you can get down while you are still experiencing the activity, the better you will be able to describe what you did, learned, and accomplished when it comes time to fill out your application. Ideally, you will have kept journals of your experiences throughout your time in medical school, but it’s not too late to begin now.

April-June 2024

• Read: How to Apply for Residency Positions | AAMC
• Read: ERAS Residency Application Guide
• Contact residency programs you’re especially interested in to learn more about specific requirements and deadlines.
• Read: Residency Application Personal Statement Guide
• Read: 25 Personal Statement Prompts to Spark Ideas
• Read: Residency Personal Statement Samples

In the months leading up to residency application season, familiarize yourself with the application process, components, and deadlines. When does the application portal open, and what do you need to prepare between now and when you submit your application? Just like with your medical school application, submitting your application as soon as ERAS begins accepting applications is to your benefit.

It’s best to think about your personal statement ideas early so that you have time to ruminate.

Start jotting down thoughts and ideas as they come to you and begin completing personal statement prompts for more ideas. Some away rotations require one, which will help get you a kickstart on your residency application essay.

Early June 2024

• Obtain your token (one-time access code) by contacting your Designated Dean’s Office.
• Read: Casper Test Guide: Scoring, Preparation, and FAQs
• Read: 15 Casper Test Preparation Tips (Yes, You Can Prepare!)

The beginning of June is when it all starts to happen. Obtain your token (one-time access code) at this time by contacting your Designated Dean’s Office. You will need this to gain access to MyERAS.

You should also find out whether or not you will need to take the Casper test (Computer-Based Assessment for Sampling Personal Characteristics) or any other aspects of Acuity Insights, such as Duet .

• Take full advantage of the ERAS Tools and Worksheets for Residency Applicants .
• Narrow down your programs of interest.
• Begin writing your personal statement.
• Read: ERAS Residency Letters of Recommendation Guide
• Read: How to Get Strong Letters of Recommendation

In June, you can begin filling out your application through your MyERAS account. Start filling in your work, volunteering, and research experiences, taking time to look back on your past notes and journals from those experiences.

Search for programs you’re interested in and save them for later so that you can organize the correct documents for each program.

By now, you should be working on your personal statement and narrowing down possible letter writers. How will you use your personal statement to continue your application narrative? Focus your personal statement on your professional development and why your experiences have made you want to join your chosen specialty.

Narrow down your letter writers and begin asking those you believe would write you a strong letter of recommendation. The key word here is strong . You must choose letter writers who know you well and who will be able to positively speak about your skills and character.

July-August 2024

• Fine-tune your application and compile the materials you need to complete the experiences section.
• Choose which residency programs you’re going to apply to.
• Request relevant transcripts.
• Read: Personal Statement Editing Strategies
• Learn more: Residency Application Personal Statement Editing
• Confirm letter of recommendation writers and follow up to ensure they submit them on time.
• Begin interview prep, especially if you struggle with interviews or haven’t interviewed recently.

During the summer, you should be finalizing all of the aspects of your application so that you are ready to submit it as soon as ERAS begins accepting applications at the beginning of September. Choose which residency programs you want to apply to, and ensure you request all relevant transcripts and evaluations well in advance.

Continue editing and refining your personal statement and finalize and confirm all of your letters. Interview season will begin right away, so now is also a good time to begin interview prep.

September 2024

• Be ready to submit your application when ERAS starts accepting applications at the beginning of September.
• Read: Preparing for Residency Interviews Guide
• Read: NRMP Residency Match Algorithm Explained
• Read: 7 Things You Must Know About the NRMP Residency Match

ERAS begins accepting applications at the beginning of September, and we highly recommend you submit your application well before the deadline . Due to a high volume of applicants, the site may crash or slow down near the deadline, so ensure you don’t leave it to the last minute.

Applications are released to programs at the end of September, and interview invitations can be sent out as early as the next day. If you submit your application close to the day ERAS releases your application, you may miss out on the first round of interviews.

This is also the time to apply for the National Resident Matching Program (NRMP) , also known as The Match, which requires a separate application.

October 2024-February 2025

• Schedule and complete residency interviews.
• Read: Residency Interview Questions and How to Answer
• Read: Questions to Ask Residency Programs During Interviews
• Read: How to Write a Residency Letter of Interest or Update Letter

Interview season will begin in October and last until February. During this time, keep an open schedule and pay close attention to your computer or phone. Ideal interview slots fill up fast, so schedule your interviews as soon as you can. Keep your calendar updated at all times so that you can pick optimal dates as soon as they become available.

March 2024: Match Week

• During Match Week, you will find out if you matched and what program you matched into.
• Read: Residency Match Day Schedule
• Read: SOAP Match Guide (Supplemental Offer and Acceptance Program)

Match Week takes place during the third week of March. It begins Monday morning and ends at 12 pm ET on Friday, when the National Resident Matching Program (NRMP) releases the results of the Match simultaneously to all graduating medical students.

On Monday, applicants find out if they matched, but not where they matched. Any unmatched or partially matched applicants will need to spend Monday through Thursday applying and interviewing for unfilled positions. On Match Day (Friday) at 12 pm ET, Match results are sent by email to the applicants who matched initially as well as the applicants who matched through SOAP.

Take Your Application to the Next Level

Med School Insiders can help you prepare a stand out residency application that will help you match into your ideal program. We offer a number of Residency Admissions Consulting Services tailored to your needs, including personal statement editing , USMLE tutoring , interview prep and mock interviews , and overall application editing.

For more strategies as well as the latest medical school and industry news, follow the Med School Insiders blog , which has hundreds of resources, guides, and personal stories.

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I have secured 262 usmle, I have applied for 180 residency programme in September 2023 for internal medicine,what are my prospects

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Statement Date vs. Due Date: What is the Difference?

Last updated 03/28/2024 by

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How does a credit card work, statement date vs. due date.

Should I pay by the due date or statement date?

Statement closing date, how long after the statement closing date is payment due.

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Payment due date

Do late payments affect your credit score, important terms for credit cardholders.

• Minimum payment. This is the smallest amount of money they are expecting you to send them. It includes two portions, one representing interest and the other the principal.
• Previous balance. What you owed at the start of the billing period.
• New balance. What you owe on your new credit card balance.
• Total credit limit. This is your credit line—the maximum that the lender will allow you to borrow.
• Available credit. The difference between your total credit limit and the amount you have already borrowed.
• Opening/Closing dates. The range of dates that make up the statement billing cycle.
• Account anniversary. It is the day of the year that you opened your account, and the day your credit card’s annual account fees are applied.

How to make your credit card payments

• Pay online. All major credit card companies offer safe online payment portals on their company website.
• Automatic payment. If you prefer online payments but struggle to remember the payment due date, you can also set up automatic payments. Your credit card company will ask for a debit card or bank account information and deduct a specified amount each month.
• Pay by mail. Paying online isn’t an option for some people. If you prefer to pay through the mail, you can write a check and mail it in using the envelope provided. (But you’ll have to pay for your own stamp.)
• Pay by phone. If you feel that your payment might not arrive through the mail on time, you can call the credit card company and pay over the phone.
• Pay in person. If your credit card is issued by an institution with brick-and-mortar branches, you may be able to visit one of their branches and make a payment with a teller.

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When is the best time to pay your credit card bill?

Can you make more than one payment on your credit card, key takeaways.

• The statement date is the credit card closing date for transactions posted during the current billing period.
• Your card’s due date is the last moment your credit card company wants payment before they start charging late penalties and interest.
• You’ll often have 20 to 25 days between your statement closing date and payment due date, known as the grace period.
• The credit card company and the credit bureaus keep in touch. If you pay your balance late, it will show up on your credit history.

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Bryce Sanders is president of Perceptive Business Solutions Inc.  He provides HNW client acquisition training for the financial services industry.  His book, “Captivating the Wealthy Investor” is available on Amazon.  Bryce spent twenty years with a major financial services firm as a successful financial advisor. He has been published in 40+ metro market editions of  American City Business Journals, Accountingweb, NAIFA’s Advisor Today, The Register, LifeHealthPro, Round the Table, the Financial Times site Financial Advisor IQ and Horsesmouth.com.

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12 Personal Statement FAQs and answers!

There is often a large amount of confusion surrounding how to write personal statements, especially when it comes to oxford and cambridge and other top research universities., every year, we have thousands of students ask us what qualities go into making a successful personal statement., to help, we have broken down this question into 12 of the most frequently asked questions our prospective students ask when they are trying to draft their personal statements., 1. how do i write the introduction.

Introductions are often disappointingly generic. To help you achieve more specificity and concision, the best way to write a good personal statement introduction is to complete the rest of it first. When you are getting started on the first draft, it can be overwhelming to begin at a blank page, but discussing your achievements and interests – relevant to the courses and universities you are applying to – can help you clarify what your motivation to study the subject really is. Then you can come back and explain the reasons behind your passion for Mathematics, Anglo Saxon literature or your subject of choice.

2. How many books should I talk about?

This question can be answered in various ways depending on the subject you intend to study. Clinical scientific subjects will not require many book mentions, however, Arts and Humanities personal statements for Oxbridge see a great benefit from discussing at least two books in detail, with further reading mentioned.

It’s also important to remember that academic sources shouldn’t be only limited to books. A well-rounded personal statement discusses specific theories, touches on lectures you have attended or essays and articles you have read to gain a better understanding of specific academic points rather than a general discussion. One of the biggest pitfalls students fall into when drafting Oxbridge personal statements is getting stuck waffling about general points around a subject of interest. To avoid getting stuck in general chatter, try to use only specific examples in your personal statement.

Centrally, admissions tutors want to see that you know you are getting yourself in for. Only reading a couple of books from their introductory list will therefore not tantalise them; try to follow your interests in a bit more depth and look at readings and ideas which are representative of degree level material.

3. What do I do if I have no work experience?

Referencing work experience in your personal statement is dependent on the subject you intend to study. A rule of thumb is to ask yourself whether you think an academic in the faculty you are applying to will think your work experience was relevant for the course. If you are applying to study History, for example, your two-weeks at an accounting or law firm organising files will be of little interest.

For Medicine, work experience is integral not only to the application process but will help build a strong personal statement. When applying to a vocational subject such as Medicine, where possible you should always ensure you are able to reference at least one work experience placement held. If you don’t have any work experience and your personal statement is due, make sure to arrange some and refer to this in the future tense in your personal statement when talking about your upcoming placement.

Work experience can also be useful for other more vocation-leaning subjects, such as architecture and engineering. More widely, doing work experience is extremely useful to help you begin thinking about what you might want to do with your career, and can build highly useful skills, but, unless it is relevant to the course content, it is unlikely to proffer you any credit for university admission.

4. How long should I talk about extra-curricular activities?

Leading research universities are looking for your potential to succeed on the course you are applying for. Nevertheless, two applicants who seem academically matched might be distinguished from each other by their ability to balance their time with several other things. Do include what you do outside of academia, then, but keep non-relevant activities mentioned to a minimum rather than an exhaustive list. This might mean sacrificing some of the things you do outside of your course and focus on those few things you do most often, or to the highest level. (N.B. Your reference might be able to discuss some of your extra-curricular activities too, and you don’t want to overlap this material).

What you do mention, try to link to your subject. This might be easy, as with an English literature student who has directed lots of theatre, or less easy, such as a maths applicant who plays the violin to a high level. Nevertheless, making these links convincingly can bring originality and creativity to your statement.

5. How can I tailor it for different courses?

Subjects like HSPS at Cambridge or Classical Archaeology and Ancient History at Oxford might make it tricky to tailor your statement for different courses. Oxford and Cambridge are very understanding of this, and specific guidance can usually be found on faculty websites about their expectations.

However, as a rule of thumb, focus on the areas of convergence between the courses you are applying for. If these differ in title, then avoid stating the title of the course in your statement and instead refer to the disciplinary area or focus instead. This involves: a) making sure the courses you are applying for are sufficiently similar to give you a chance of doing this, and b) doing your research on the course content and options so that you are covering the appropriate material.

This research stands even if you are applying for the same titled course everywhere. English, for example, is taught very differently at Oxford to Bristol, and focusing on an interest which does not feature in either course will result in your application being put aside.

Doing this research early can also help you to direct your reading and research to build material for your personal statement which speaks to all your choices.

6. How should I talk about my other A-level subjects?

Lots of students are told to discuss the skills they have gathered from their A Level subjects, but we caution around this; your UCAS application includes a full list of A-Level subjects studied, and your school reference will discuss your A-Level abilities. Talking about the time management or analytical skills you gained from studying history, and the logical skills you gained from physics, can therefore come across as ‘fodder’ which could have already been inferred.

You can, however, talk about how other subjects provide further insight into the course or subject you’d like to study. For example, students who have taken Classics that intend to study English Literature at university can talk about translating texts, such as the Aeneid, and how this helped gain a greater understanding of classical influence in modern English Literature. As with the whole statement, the more specific you can make this, the better.

7. How long should it be?

This is an easy one. Your personal statement should be at most, 4,000 characters or 47 lines, whichever you meet first. Although it can be shorter, we strongly recommend taking full advantage of the available space. Ideally, you want your first draft to be much longer so you can cut down and edit your personal statement to be shorter, rather than using general waffle or struggling to fill the space.

Cutting it down is usually relatively easy, but it might take an outside eye to see the ‘wood from the trees’. Any non-relevant, generic material, anything which is likely to be in many other statements, and frilly, decorative language or repetition can all be chopped down.

If you find you are struggling to reach 4,000 characters or 47 lines, you probably need to revisit the body of your personal statement and discuss more subject-specific content. You may, alternatively, need to go back to the research and reading phase of writing.

8. What formatting should I use?

The final version of your personal statement will be submitted in a digital form with no formatting options, so there is no need to worry about formatting. That means you won’t have to decide what font or colour to use and there is no need for styles such as bold or italics. If you do include these, they won’t appear in the submitted version.

Your school should already have discussed best practice for writing your personal statement but as a reminder – do not write your statement draft in the real form! As with any content that is going to be submitted digitally, you should write it in a word document first (Microsoft Office, Google Docs, Pages, etc) where you can save a copy locally to your computer (and back-up regularly). This way, you can avoid the devastating loss of your best statement draft due to an accidental refresh or the internet dropping out.

9. How many paragraphs should it be?

There is no set-in-stone rule for the number of paragraphs but generally, a well-structured personal statement will be broken up into five or six paragraphs and be easy to read. Admissions tutors will need to comprehend your statement very quickly, so structure with this in mind.

A frequently-successful structure follows this pattern: an introduction, two to three course/subject-specific main paragraphs, a penultimate paragraph detailing your extracurricular activities, and then a final summary paragraph. The final two paragraphs are sometimes pushed together to form one.

10. Will they find out if I slightly…exaggerate my talents?

Yes! Your personal statement for Oxford and Cambridge should be considered a springboard for your interview and you could and should expect to be questioned about any single detail of it. At Oxbridge Applications, every year, we have students that approach us in January who are upset that their Admissions Tutor spent 20 minutes focused on a certain author when “I only mentioned that book briefly as a side note”.

However, you DON’T need to be an expert, or even particularly knowledgeable, about a particular idea or author to mention it in your statement. If you are questioned about an aspect of an author’s work you have mentioned which you are unsure about, then be intellectually honest and say so, but try your best to have a go given what you already know about them or similar authors/ideas.

This is not only the case for authors/books mentioned, but also if you put forward a highly ambitious or critical view in your statement. If you want to argue that Marx was totally wrong, then you better be ready to defend your view in a nuanced way. The bottom line is: stay intellectually honest and err on the side of modesty; academics tend to become less rather than more sure about the ‘truth’ the further they delve into their subject matter.

11. How many teachers should check my personal statement?

Preferably, you will get your drafted personal statement checked by at last two of your teachers or guidance advisers. One should be subject-specific who can check over the content of your paragraphs and the other can be from a different department to provide feedback on grammatical accuracy and quality of the statement.

Getting guidance from second and third parties can be useful ensure you retain editorial control, and that your voice and taste runs through the statement. If you try to include everyone’s different opinion, you can quickly end up with a jumbled statement that no longer reflects on you and your communication style and strengths.

Make sure you leave plenty of time between completing your first draft and the Oxbridge personal statement deadline ensuring you have time for others to check it over and you can make changes as necessary.

12. Should I start my personal statement with a quote?

‘Most people are other people. Their thoughts are someone else’s opinions, their lives a mimicry, their passions a quotation.’ Oscar Wilde.

How much have you learned about me from reading Wilde’s words?

Quotes are used each year by applicants who end up getting offers from top universities, including Oxford and Cambridge. It’s not necessarily going to bring your application to an end. Quotes are also awarded marks in certain A Level subjects, if you have taken the time to remember them and give them a bit of context.

However, your personal statement gives admissions tutors the chance to hear your voice, and to get a sense of what you might be like as a student on their course. By definition , using a quote – i.e. someone else’s words – is not personal. It is therefore preferable to avoid using a quote unless it’s absolutely essential. Using a quote doesn’t make YOU sound more interesting.

Before you decide to use a quote, think long and hard. If you would really like to use a quote, try to make it as pithy and concise as possible, and make sure it elevates and builds on what you are saying; that it expresses something you couldn’t have otherwise expressed on your own. (Also, by ‘quote’, we are not talking about specific concepts or theories – these are absolutely fine to include.)

Driven by 20 years of research and first-hand experience in guiding thousands of applicants, our consultations provide an honest and detailed assessment with guidance on individual personal statements.

If you would like to speak to one of our oxbridge-graduate advisors about your own personal statement, contact our oxbridge advising team on  +44 (0)207499 2394 , email at [email protected] , or request a callback  to discuss your situation., explore oxbridge applications, request a callback, application resources, related content, key trends for successful university applications: spring edition, oxbridge applications a-level guide, choosing a college at oxbridge.

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• Personal statements for 2026 entry onwards

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What is changing with personal statements?

Personal statements are changing from one longer piece of text to three separate sections, each with a different question to help shape the focus for students' answers. Each section will have a minimum character count of 350 characters, which is clearly labelled on the question boxes, along with an overall character counter, to ensure students know if they're on track. The new web page for submitting the personal statement will also feature helpful on-page guidance for each question.

The new questions are as follows:

• Why do you want to study this course or subject?
• How have your qualifications and studies helped you to prepare for this course or subject?
• What else have you done to prepare outside of education, and why are these experiences useful?

What isn't changing?

• The personal statement will still be 4000 characters in total; this includes spaces.
• The content of the personal statement will remain broadly the same - it will just be split across three sections rather than one longer piece of text. The expectation for what students need to cover within the personal statement is mostly unchanged from current guidance. 

Personal statement announcement

The new personal statement

Sam Sykes, Customer Success Manager at UCAS, explains the changes to the new personal statement for 2026 entry.

You can also hear from students and an admissions professional on their thoughts and insight into the new structure, which aims to support students and advisers through the application process with a new scaffolded approach. 

Supporting equal opportunities for all students

In our commitment to equity and inclusion, we believe that every student deserves a fair chance to articulate their unique journey, aspirations, and potential. Scaffolding questions level the playing field, providing clear guidance and structure for all applicants, regardless of their background or prior experience with essay writing.

Scaffolding questions offer students a roadmap, breaking them down into manageable parts. By providing specific prompts, students gain clarity on what to address, fostering focus and coherence in their writing. This ensures that each aspect of their experiences and goals is thoughtfully explored and articulated.

Who did we consult?

We engaged with a diverse spectrum of voices, including over 1,200 UK and international students, alongside input from 170 teachers and advisers, and representatives from over 100 universities and colleges. Additionally, we collaborated closely with governmental bodies, regulatory agencies, and charitable organisations across the UK.

To ensure the highest quality, we partnered with an external research agency to rigorously test the new template, guidance, and wording.

The results spoke volumes:

• When surveyed during the research phases of the proposed personal statement changes, over half the students UCAS spoke to found completing the three questions "very easy" or "easy".
• Admissions teams said it made it easier for them to assess applications and more confident that they will receive the information they need to make decisions.  
• Applicants who don't have school support - for instance, mature students - will find it easier to complete their personal statement successfully. This will even the playing field for widening participation, ensuring consistency across all personal statements no matter what level of support students have access to.
• Most advisers preferred the new format and said it would enable students to provide more complete and detailed statements, with the majority of advisers surveyed as part of the research stating they were "very confident" or "extremely confident" that the questions clearly convey what is needed for each answer.

Dr Jo Saxton, Chief Executive, UCAS

What are students expected to include in their answers.

The three new questions will enable students to talk about why they're interested in the course they're applying to, linking their academic and extra-curricular experience to their chosen course. The personal statement is an opportunity for students to show admissions staff evidence that they're passionate, curious and knowledgeable about the subject area they're looking to study further and have the relevant skills and potential to be a great student who has a genuine interest in the subject and a desire to learn more. Students may feel an example could fit into more than one section — there's no right or wrong section to include something in, the important thing is to explain why they're including it and what they've learned from it.

It's important to note that any examples given by UCAS are merely guidance, and not everything suggested needs to be included in every personal statement. Requirements may differ for each university or college, as well as depending heavily on the course.

Question 1: Why do you want to study this course or subject?

This is the opportunity for students to showcase their passion, curiosity, interest, and knowledge of their chosen subject area and to demonstrate to universities and colleges why it’s a good fit for them and their future ambitions.

Examples of what they might talk about here are:

• Their motivations for studying this course(s): Have they been inspired by a key role model or moment in their life? Maybe it’s a subject they love and want to pursue further. We’re all driven by something and it’s important for students to talk about how their path has led them to this course or subject area.
• Their knowledge of this subject area and interests: Perhaps there’s a particular subject area they've researched and can’t wait to learn more about, or a book or subject expert doing great things that have sparked their interest? Universities and colleges want to see students have done their research so they can be confident this is something they will enjoy and excel in. This is a great place to highlight super-curricular activities as evidence of curiosity and interest in the subject outside of the classroom. 
• Future plans and why this course/subject is a good fit: If they already have a particular profession in mind, they could talk about how they'll use their studies to launch their career. If they don’t, think about what’s important to them and their future, and how the knowledge gained from their chosen course(s) will help them to achieve this.

Here are some more examples for this section:

• Personal life experiences e.g. being a carer, the environment where you grew up or lived, an inspirational friend, colleague or family member, a book you read, a news article or blog/vlog, a YouTube video, a podcast, a show you saw, subject tasters
• Understanding of the area and the qualities you might need to succeed in it – research into the course/area

Question 2: How have your qualifications and studies helped you to prepare for this course or subject?

This is the chance for students to show evidence of the relevant or transferable skills they've gained from their formal education and highlight their understanding of how this will help them succeed in this subject area.

• How their studies or training relate to their chosen course(s) or subject area: This could be current or previous studies within a school, college, training provider, or even a short online university course – any form of formal education. The main thing here is to focus on what’s most recent and relevant to their chosen course(s).
• What relevant or transferable skills they have that make them a great candidate: Maybe there are a couple of subjects that have helped them develop a core set of skills required for their chosen course(s). Or, a particular module that helped them understand where their interests and strengths lie.
• Any relevant educational achievements: Universities and colleges will see students' grades elsewhere on their application, so don’t waste time talking about these. Consider accomplishments like winning a school or national competition, serving as a student ambassador or team captain, or landing the lead role in a play.
• Specific modules or topics
• Essays or projects that explore a particular view point or technique
• EPQ – Extended Project Qualification
• School, local, or national competitions e.g. UKMT
• Private lessons and qualifications e.g. music, stage school or sports if relevant to the course
• Tutoring or mentoring
• Online courses leading to a qualification

Question 3: What else have you done to prepare outside of education, and why are these experiences useful?

This is students' chance to talk about any other activities they have undertaken outside of their formal education or personal experiences which further demonstrate their suitability for the course. This section is likely to be highly personal to them and anything they do include should reflect on why they're including it.

• Work experience, employment, or volunteering: Whether it’s in-person work experience at their local school or virtual work experience through Springpod , or volunteering at a dog shelter, the key thing here is for them to reflect on their experiences and the skills gained relevant to their chosen course(s).
• Personal life experiences or responsibilities: Is there a situation they've personally overcome that has influenced their decision? Are there responsibilities such as caring for a family member that has helped them develop essential qualities for the course like resilience and empathy?
• Hobbies and any extracurricular or outreach activities: Think sports, reading, community work, summer schools – any activities outside of their studies that help further showcase why they'd make a great student.
• Achievements outside of school or college: This could be a position of responsibility such as captain for their local club, a music, competition they won, or a qualification they've attained outside of the classroom.

Extra and super-curriculars

Volunteering

Personal life experiences e.g. caring for a family member, overcoming a challenge

Young enterprise

Work experience

Job/employment – part-time or full-time

Work-based learning/CPD

Online learning activities e.g. Springpod, MOOCs etc.

Trips and visits (online or in person) e.g. Museums, exhibitions, galleries, sites of historic interest, relevant sites connected to your course e.g. magistrate courts for law etc.

Podcasts, TED talks, documentaries etc.

Duke of Edinburgh/Duke of York awards

New personal statement: What you need to know

New personal statements: What you need to know

Helen reed, the head of admissions and data services, university of cambridge, adviser-updates-cta.jpg, resources and training for the new personal statement.

Supporting students with their personal statements for 2025 entry?

Looking for advice and resources for students applying for 2025 entry? Take a look at our adviser and student guidance.

Adviser resources for 2025

Student advice for 2025

FAQs for 2026 personal statements

Will the new three personal statement questions be assessed separately by admissions staff, are any of the questions more important or weighted more highly, what are the new three questions, does each answer have to be the same length, will the questions be included in the character count, when are personal statements changing, is the personal statement format changing for conservatoire applications.

Yes, conservatoire personal statements will also follow the new format for 2026 entry applications, with all students answering the same three questions.

Peter Dunscome, Director of Higher Education, RGS Guildford

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UCAS Deadlines 2024 Entry

Make sure you submit your UCAS application on time with our list of deadlines below:

5 September 2024  - University applications can be submitted through UCAS .

You should already be thinking about your personal statement - check out our writing guide and personal statement examples if you're stuck.

16th October 2023  - Deadline for applications for Oxbridge and Medical , Veterinary Medicine/Science and Dentistry applications (including non UK/EU applicants).

31st January 2024  - Deadline for receipt at UCAS of all applications , including the UCAS reference , for all courses except those with a 16 October deadline.

28th February 2024  - UCAS Extra opens. If you are eligible to use Extra, you can refer yourself to another choice. Find out more about UCAS Extra .

16th May 2024  - Date universities will usually have made a decision about your application if you sent it before the 15th January deadline.

6th June 2024  - The date you need to make a decision on your firm and insurance choice if all your universities responded by the 18th May deadline. If UCAS do not receive your responses, they will decline offers on your behalf.

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4th July 2024  - UCAS Extra closes.

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6th July 2024  - International Baccalaureate results are published.

24th July 2024 - If UCAS receive all decisions from your universities/colleges by 17th July 2024, you need to reply to any offers by this date (this includes if you are applying through Extra ).  If UCAS don't receive your replies, they will decline your offers on your behalf.

6th August 2024  - SQA Results Day. Start of Scottish Clearing vacancy information service.

15th August 2024  - A Level Results Day ; full Clearing vacancy information becomes available.

25th September 2024  - The last date UCAS will accept applications for courses starting in 2024.

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15th October 2024 -  This is the last date a university or college can accept an applicant in Clearing.

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• How to Write Your Personal Statement | Strategies & Examples

How to Write Your Personal Statement | Strategies & Examples

Published on February 12, 2019 by Shona McCombes . Revised on July 3, 2023.

A personal statement is a short essay of around 500–1,000 words, in which you tell a compelling story about who you are, what drives you, and why you’re applying.

To write a successful personal statement for a graduate school application , don’t just summarize your experience; instead, craft a focused narrative in your own voice. Aim to demonstrate three things:

• Your personality: what are your interests, values, and motivations?
• Your talents: what can you bring to the program?
• Your goals: what do you hope the program will do for you?

This article guides you through some winning strategies to build a strong, well-structured personal statement for a master’s or PhD application. You can download the full examples below.

Urban Planning Psychology History

Table of contents

Getting started with your personal statement, the introduction: start with an attention-grabbing opening, the main body: craft your narrative, the conclusion: look ahead, revising, editing, and proofreading your personal statement, frequently asked questions, other interesting articles.

Before you start writing, the first step is to understand exactly what’s expected of you. If the application gives you a question or prompt for your personal statement, the most important thing is to respond to it directly.

For example, you might be asked to focus on the development of your personal identity; challenges you have faced in your life; or your career motivations. This will shape your focus and emphasis—but you still need to find your own unique approach to answering it.

There’s no universal template for a personal statement; it’s your chance to be creative and let your own voice shine through. But there are strategies you can use to build a compelling, well-structured story.

The first paragraph of your personal statement should set the tone and lead smoothly into the story you want to tell.

Strategy 1: Open with a concrete scene

An effective way to catch the reader’s attention is to set up a scene that illustrates something about your character and interests. If you’re stuck, try thinking about:

• A personal experience that changed your perspective
• A story from your family’s history
• A memorable teacher or learning experience
• An unusual or unexpected encounter

To write an effective scene, try to go beyond straightforward description; start with an intriguing sentence that pulls the reader in, and give concrete details to create a convincing atmosphere.

Strategy 2: Open with your motivations

To emphasize your enthusiasm and commitment, you can start by explaining your interest in the subject you want to study or the career path you want to follow.

Just stating that it interests you isn’t enough: first, you need to figure out why you’re interested in this field:

• Is it a longstanding passion or a recent discovery?
• Does it come naturally or have you had to work hard at it?
• How does it fit into the rest of your life?
• What do you think it contributes to society?

Tips for the introduction

• Don’t start on a cliche: avoid phrases like “Ever since I was a child…” or “For as long as I can remember…”
• Do save the introduction for last. If you’re struggling to come up with a strong opening, leave it aside, and note down any interesting ideas that occur to you as you write the rest of the personal statement.

Once you’ve set up the main themes of your personal statement, you’ll delve into more detail about your experiences and motivations.

To structure the body of your personal statement, there are various strategies you can use.

Strategy 1: Describe your development over time

One of the simplest strategies is to give a chronological overview of key experiences that have led you to apply for graduate school.

• What first sparked your interest in the field?
• Which classes, assignments, classmates, internships, or other activities helped you develop your knowledge and skills?
• Where do you want to go next? How does this program fit into your future plans?

Don’t try to include absolutely everything you’ve done—pick out highlights that are relevant to your application. Aim to craft a compelling narrative that shows how you’ve changed and actively developed yourself.

My interest in psychology was first sparked early in my high school career. Though somewhat scientifically inclined, I found that what interested me most was not the equations we learned about in physics and chemistry, but the motivations and perceptions of my fellow students, and the subtle social dynamics that I observed inside and outside the classroom. I wanted to learn how our identities, beliefs, and behaviours are shaped through our interactions with others, so I decided to major in Social Psychology. My undergraduate studies deepened my understanding of, and fascination with, the interplay between an individual mind and its social context.During my studies, I acquired a solid foundation of knowledge about concepts like social influence and group dynamics, but I also took classes on various topics not strictly related to my major. I was particularly interested in how other fields intersect with psychology—the classes I took on media studies, biology, and literature all enhanced my understanding of psychological concepts by providing different lenses through which to look at the issues involved.

Strategy 2: Own your challenges and obstacles

If your path to graduate school hasn’t been easy or straightforward, you can turn this into a strength, and structure your personal statement as a story of overcoming obstacles.

• Is your social, cultural or economic background underrepresented in the field? Show how your experiences will contribute a unique perspective.
• Do you have gaps in your resume or lower-than-ideal grades? Explain the challenges you faced and how you dealt with them.

Don’t focus too heavily on negatives, but use them to highlight your positive qualities. Resilience, resourcefulness and perseverance make you a promising graduate school candidate.

Growing up working class, urban decay becomes depressingly familiar. The sight of a row of abandoned houses does not surprise me, but it continues to bother me. Since high school, I have been determined to pursue a career in urban planning. While people of my background experience the consequences of urban planning decisions first-hand, we are underrepresented in the field itself. Ironically, given my motivation, my economic background has made my studies challenging. I was fortunate enough to be awarded a scholarship for my undergraduate studies, but after graduation I took jobs in unrelated fields to help support my parents. In the three years since, I have not lost my ambition. Now I am keen to resume my studies, and I believe I can bring an invaluable perspective to the table: that of the people most impacted by the decisions of urban planners.

Strategy 3: Demonstrate your knowledge of the field

Especially if you’re applying for a PhD or another research-focused program, it’s a good idea to show your familiarity with the subject and the department. Your personal statement can focus on the area you want to specialize in and reflect on why it matters to you.

• Reflect on the topics or themes that you’ve focused on in your studies. What draws you to them?
• Discuss any academic achievements, influential teachers, or other highlights of your education.
• Talk about the questions you’d like to explore in your research and why you think they’re important.

The personal statement isn’t a research proposal , so don’t go overboard on detail—but it’s a great opportunity to show your enthusiasm for the field and your capacity for original thinking.

In applying for this research program, my intention is to build on the multidisciplinary approach I have taken in my studies so far, combining knowledge from disparate fields of study to better understand psychological concepts and issues. The Media Psychology program stands out to me as the perfect environment for this kind of research, given its researchers’ openness to collaboration across diverse fields. I am impressed by the department’s innovative interdisciplinary projects that focus on the shifting landscape of media and technology, and I hope that my own work can follow a similarly trailblazing approach. More specifically, I want to develop my understanding of the intersection of psychology and media studies, and explore how media psychology theories and methods might be applied to neurodivergent minds. I am interested not only in media psychology but also in psychological disorders, and how the two interact. This is something I touched on during my undergraduate studies and that I’m excited to delve into further.

Strategy 4: Discuss your professional ambitions

Especially if you’re applying for a more professionally-oriented program (such as an MBA), it’s a good idea to focus on concrete goals and how the program will help you achieve them.

• If your career is just getting started, show how your character is suited to the field, and explain how graduate school will help you develop your talents.
• If you have already worked in the profession, show what you’ve achieved so far, and explain how the program will allow you to take the next step.
• If you are planning a career change, explain what has driven this decision and how your existing experience will help you succeed.

Don’t just state the position you want to achieve. You should demonstrate that you’ve put plenty of thought into your career plans and show why you’re well-suited to this profession.

One thing that fascinated me about the field during my undergraduate studies was the sheer number of different elements whose interactions constitute a person’s experience of an urban environment. Any number of factors could transform the scene I described at the beginning: What if there were no bus route? Better community outreach in the neighborhood? Worse law enforcement? More or fewer jobs available in the area? Some of these factors are out of the hands of an urban planner, but without taking them all into consideration, the planner has an incomplete picture of their task. Through further study I hope to develop my understanding of how these disparate elements combine and interact to create the urban environment. I am interested in the social, psychological and political effects our surroundings have on our lives. My studies will allow me to work on projects directly affecting the kinds of working-class urban communities I know well. I believe I can bring my own experiences, as well as my education, to bear upon the problem of improving infrastructure and quality of life in these communities.

Tips for the main body

• Don’t rehash your resume by trying to summarize everything you’ve done so far; the personal statement isn’t about listing your academic or professional experience, but about reflecting, evaluating, and relating it to broader themes.
• Do make your statements into stories: Instead of saying you’re hard-working and self-motivated, write about your internship where you took the initiative to start a new project. Instead of saying you’ve always loved reading, reflect on a novel or poem that changed your perspective.

Your conclusion should bring the focus back to the program and what you hope to get out of it, whether that’s developing practical skills, exploring intellectual questions, or both.

Emphasize the fit with your specific interests, showing why this program would be the best way to achieve your aims.

Strategy 1: What do you want to know?

If you’re applying for a more academic or research-focused program, end on a note of curiosity: what do you hope to learn, and why do you think this is the best place to learn it?

If there are specific classes or faculty members that you’re excited to learn from, this is the place to express your enthusiasm.

Strategy 2: What do you want to do?

If you’re applying for a program that focuses more on professional training, your conclusion can look to your career aspirations: what role do you want to play in society, and why is this program the best choice to help you get there?

Tips for the conclusion

• Don’t summarize what you’ve already said. You have limited space in a personal statement, so use it wisely!
• Do think bigger than yourself: try to express how your individual aspirations relate to your local community, your academic field, or society more broadly. It’s not just about what you’ll get out of graduate school, but about what you’ll be able to give back.

You’ll be expected to do a lot of writing in graduate school, so make a good first impression: leave yourself plenty of time to revise and polish the text.

Your style doesn’t have to be as formal as other kinds of academic writing, but it should be clear, direct and coherent. Make sure that each paragraph flows smoothly from the last, using topic sentences and transitions to create clear connections between each part.

Don’t be afraid to rewrite and restructure as much as necessary. Since you have a lot of freedom in the structure of a personal statement, you can experiment and move information around to see what works best.

Finally, it’s essential to carefully proofread your personal statement and fix any language errors. Before you submit your application, consider investing in professional personal statement editing . For $150, you have the peace of mind that your personal statement is grammatically correct, strong in term of your arguments, and free of awkward mistakes.

A statement of purpose is usually more formal, focusing on your academic or professional goals. It shouldn’t include anything that isn’t directly relevant to the application.

A personal statement can often be more creative. It might tell a story that isn’t directly related to the application, but that shows something about your personality, values, and motivations.

However, both types of document have the same overall goal: to demonstrate your potential as a graduate student and s how why you’re a great match for the program.

The typical length of a personal statement for graduate school applications is between 500 and 1,000 words.

Different programs have different requirements, so always check if there’s a minimum or maximum length and stick to the guidelines. If there is no recommended word count, aim for no more than 1-2 pages.

If you’re applying to multiple graduate school programs, you should tailor your personal statement to each application.

Some applications provide a prompt or question. In this case, you might have to write a new personal statement from scratch: the most important task is to respond to what you have been asked.

If there’s no prompt or guidelines, you can re-use the same idea for your personal statement – but change the details wherever relevant, making sure to emphasize why you’re applying to this specific program.

If the application also includes other essays, such as a statement of purpose , you might have to revise your personal statement to avoid repeating the same information.

If you want to know more about college essays , academic writing , and AI tools , make sure to check out some of our other language articles with explanations, examples, and quizzes.

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• UCAS Personal Statements Are Changing in 2025

Last Updated: 16th January 2023

Author: Matthew Amalfitano-Stroud

Table of Contents

It was announced by UCAS in January of 2023 that traditional Personal Statements will be removed from the university application process in the UK. 

Since 1993, UCAS has required university applicants in the UK to submit a 4,000-character Personal Statement during the application process, which would then be accessed by university admissions teams to assist in the shortlisting process. 

However, it has been confirmed by UCAS that this process will be changing as soon as 2025. Here, we dissect the announcement, discuss what we currently know about this change and explain how this could affect your university application. Let’s begin:  

In short, this is what you need to know:

• UCAS Personal Statements are being replaced by a three-question survey that gives applicants the chance to explain various aspects of their application.
• This change will be implemented for the 2025 admissions cycle for 2026 Entry in the UK.
• This will affect all applicants, both home and international, looking to attend any UK university in 2026 and beyond.
• Students will need to learn how to take on these new questions rather than traditional Personal Statement writing.
• Teachers will need to be prepared to do research on this new system and provide support for students in order to maximise their chances of success.
• We at UniAdmissions are keeping a very close eye on the situation and will update this guide as new information surfaces. We will also ensure that our support systems are up-to-date and effective at helping students through these changes.

What are Personal Statements Being Replaced with?

With the announcement that the current system for UCAS Personal Statements will be getting replaced, it is only natural to be asking what will be replacing it. Thankfully, we have already been given some idea of what to expect. 

Unlike the other major shake-up to the 2024 admission process, the removal of various admissions tests including the BMAT , the official announcement has provided us with an explanation of what UCAS is seeking to implement instead of traditional Personal Statements. 

Put simply, the current format of providing a 4,000-character piece of writing will be replaced with a new “scaffolded structure” of three specific questions which applicants must answer. These questions will still allow you to write your answers out, but you will be answering set questions instead of having to plan and structure a full statement from scratch. 

For each question, applicants will need to write a minimum of 350 characters. The overall character limit for the Personal Statement across the three questions (including spaces) will be 4,000 – this is the same as the current limit. 

Responses will need to be submitted via the online UCAS system, which will now feature three text boxes instead of one (one for each question). Each box will include an exact character counter and tips for each question. 

The three questions you’ll have to answer are as follows: 

• Why do you want to study this course or subject?
• How have your qualifications and studies helped you to prepare for this course or subject?
• What else have you done to prepare outside of education, and why are these experiences useful?

These questions cover the important topics that would typically be included in a standard Personal Statement, so the content of your writing should mostly stay the same. The key difference is that your writing will no longer need to flow as a singular piece of work, meaning introductions and conclusions will be de-emphasised. 

In 2023, UCAS initially announced a selection of six questions that were being considered for a new Personal Statement system. These were as follows:

• Motivation for Course – Why do you want to study these courses?
• Preparedness for Course – How has your learning so far helped you to be ready to succeed on these courses?
• Preparation through other experiences – What else have you done to help you prepare, and why are these experiences useful?
• Extenuating circumstances – Is there anything that the universities and colleges need to know about, to help them put your achievements and experiences so far into context?
• Preparedness for study – What have you done to prepare yourself for student life?
• Preferred Learning Styles – Which learning and assessment styles best suit you – how do your courses choices match that?

UCAS stated that these were subject to change based on feedback from schools and students, with the new three-question system being the result of this work (removing the last three questions in the process). 

Of the questions originally planned for the Personal Statement, one aspect that will no longer be covered is Extenuating Circumstances. This was previously going to be a section that allows applicants to discuss any issues that may have impacted their application negatively (illness, family circumstances, etc).

UCAS states that this section was removed from the Personal Statement due to its inclusion as one of the three questions in the Academic Reference (also a part of the UCAS process). If you have anything that you want to discuss in this section, you will need to speak with your referee to explain what you would like to include in the reference. 

At UniAdmissions, we ensure all of our students receive the most up-to-date support.

At UniAdmissions, we’re working tirelessly to ensure that our tutors, curriculum and resources are ready to get our students through these changes. You can join them today and ensure you get the support you need to make it through the 2024 admissions cycle . 

Discover our Oxbridge Premium Programmes below and find out how you can enrol and triple your chances of success .

When Are UCAS Personal Statements Being Changed?

The most recent announcement from UCAS regarding Personal Statements confirms that this new system will be implemented in August of 2025, meaning applicants for 2026 Entry will be the first to face the changes. Applicants in 2024 for 2025 Entry will have to complete the single, free-form document like previous years, 

It’s worth mentioning that these plans have been in place for a fair amount of time, with discussions of reforming the application process starting in April 2021. However, this change has finally received a confirmed date for implementation after previously being planned for 2023. 

Why Are UCAS Personal Statements Being Changed?

The announcement of these reforms was initially made on January 12th 2023 via a blog post on the official HEPI website. This post highlights the amendments being made to the Personal Statement process and the research that was conducted to influence this change.  

Interestingly, the data quoted in this post states that the majority of applicants surveyed were happy with the current Personal Statement process, with 72% feeling positive about it. However, the same survey indicated that 83% of applicants found the process stressful and 79% felt unable to complete theirs without support. This is the data that most likely influenced the changes. 

The post’s writer, Kim Eccleston, states that they are aiming to provide better support for both applicants and universities, creating “a more supportive framework” that allows applicants to write about what the universities need to know in a less restrictive way. It is also stated in a more detailed outline of the announcement that both students and teachers preferred the use of specific questions instead of free-form writing. 

However, a previous post released in November 2022 provides even more insight into the reasoning behind this decision. Based on data featured in HEPI Debate Paper 31 , various industry professionals had commented on the challenges facing applicants of certain background when it comes to the current style of Personal Statement. 

Within the quotes featured here, the traditional UCAS Personal Statement was described as “ambiguous” , “unfair” and “barometers of middle-class privilege” . These comments may potentially be in reference to the current importance of work experience, which can be difficult to obtain without connections in certain industries, as well as additional experiences which may not be available to all applicants.  

Therefore, this new system should presumably reduce the barriers for disadvantaged applicants by shifting focus to each individual’s own interest and abilities within their chosen subjects. 

Other Changes being Made by UCAS

Personal Statements are only one of five key areas being altered by UCAS, as highlighted in the blog post. This is certainly the most significant action taking place, but other changes that were previously made to the application process include: 

• Academic references are being reformed, moving from a free-text approach to a set of three questions, similar to the Personal Statement reforms.
• The 'Entry Grade Report' will be created, which allows applicants to see grade profiles that have been accepted for courses over a five year period.
• A 'Course Recommendation Tool' is being created to provide applicants with personalised suggestions for courses based on their current grades and preferences.
• A 'Fair Access Programme' is being created to encourage widening access and participation.

Overall, it seems these changes all have the same intent; to level the playing field and make university applications more achievable for everyone. 

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How will this affect my university application?

As previously stated, if you are applying to university this year for 2025 Entry (and deferred Entry for 2026), you will not be affected by these reforms and will need to submit a traditional Personal Statement to UCAS like previous years. 

For applicants applying for 2026 Entry and beyond, your application will follow this new process, meaning you won’t have to submit a full Personal Statement but will instead need to answer a series of questions relating to your application and abilities for your chosen course. 

When hearing that the whole process will be changing, this typically instils a feeling of dread as you’ll be treading new ground that no one else has experienced before. However, it’s important to understand that UCAS states these changes are being made for the benefit of both the applicants and the universities. 

As we’ve already discussed, a key part of the reason this change is being implemented is that a high percentage of applicants found writing a traditional Personal Statement stressful, which is counterintuitive to what UCAS is trying to achieve. By providing applicants with a strong framework, in the form of specific questions, this new process should allow more applicants to provide better quality statements for universities. 

This change is also set to be particularly beneficial to those from disadvantaged backgrounds, as the process will allow them to better express their ability regardless of any areas that may be lacking due to factors out of their control. Essentially, the new process should allow more people to stand a better chance of making a good impression despite limitations. 

How Can I Start Preparing?

If you’re starting your preparations early, the main barrier you’ll face at this stage of preparation is not knowing what the questions will be, as they have yet to be announced. There are no resources available currently that cover this system, so you’re going to have to be independent with your preparation here.

Since we have a rough outline of what the questions to focus on, you should still be able to practice your responses. Although they won’t be as relevant any more, it would still be helpful to check out Personal Statement guides and examples as these can help you pin down the language and writing style you use. 

With all this information now available to us, you should be able to get a sense of what to do for your application in the coming years. The initial introduction of this system in 2025 will act as a test of its effectiveness, so elements could be changed in the years following. However, the important thing is that you understand how things are changing from the current system and how you can make the most of the new system. 

If you are applying for university in 2024 for 2025 Entry, you will need to make sure you’re ready to write your Personal Statement. Thankfully, UniAdmissions have plenty of resources to help you through it, including our Ultimate UCAS Personal Statement Guide and our collection of successful Oxbridge Personal Statements . 

If you’re looking for more in-depth support that covers the whole application process for Medicine, Law and Oxbridge courses, them find out how you can enrol in one of our Premium Programmes .  

Start your Oxbridge application journey in the best way possible with effective support from our Oxbridge Tutors . 

Regardless of what changes are made to the Oxbridge admissions process, we will be ready to provide you with the very best support for your application. Our students have access to expert Oxbridge tutors, comprehensive online courses, intensive preparation events and so much more. 

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What Is The UCAS Deadline For Personal Statements?

It’s too simple to say that there’s one UCAS deadline, especially for undergraduate applications.

Depending on your subject or university choice and your own decision-making process, you might want to take advantage of some of that flexibility before submitting your application.

So, what is the UCAS deadline that matters most to you?

The UCAS deadline for undergraduate study relates to the last day that universities are required to treat your application with ‘equal consideration’. This is usually 15 January, although extended to January 26 in 2022. Applications can be made after this time, right through until courses begin.

However, there are other UCAS deadlines that you should be aware of, and I’ll outline these clearly below, as well as give you a snapshot of key US application dates too.

What is the UCAS Deadline for Personal Statements?

The UCAS undergraduate admissions cycle opens in early September of the academic year before a course begins, and you can submit your application at any point from that date onwards.

However, it can make sense to wait a little before you send in your personal statement, as it will give you and your teachers/counsellors or readers more time to help you develop some great content.

It also gives you a little more time to establish a broader range of achievements and to complete some wider reading . An ideal time to apply is late October/early November, which gives you the first half of the autumn term to get your application pitch perfect and gives your school or external referee time to send their elements through as well.

The deadline for applications to the University of Oxford , the University of Cambridge and for Medicine, Veterinary and Dentistry courses is October 15 in the year before taking up a non-deferred place, much earlier in the application cycle.

This early date is partly due to the time needed to process what are often large numbers of applicants but also to give applicants the opportunity to sit additional tests in order to establish suitability.

If you’re a bit behind on this process, don’t worry. Just remember…

The UCAS deadline for personal statements can vary but is traditionally mid-January in the year you intend to take up a place unless you are making a deferred application. Historically the specific date was January 15, but from 2022 onwards, this has been extended to January 26.

You can check the most recent information at UCAS here .

Can I Apply to UCAS After 15 th January?

You can apply to UCAS at any point after the January deadline, up until late June. Applications for undergraduate courses can still be submitted from July onwards, but applicants will usually need to wait for Clearing to open to gain access to the courses that remain available.

However, there are a number of reasons why applying this late in the cycle is likely to disadvantage you:

• Once the January deadline has passed, universities are no longer obliged to consider your application. In other words, they do not have to read it or take the time to make an informed decision. They can simply reject you.
• The majority of competitive courses will have already reached their maximum number of offers, meaning that the later in the process you apply, the fewer spaces are available, and the less choice you will have on subjects, courses and campuses.
• Late applications can be an indication to an admissions team that the applicant is disorganised, unmotivated or unsure about their academic ambitions. That can lead to an application being rejected.
• Very late applications make securing accommodation and funding more challenging.
• The current cycle is designed to leave the spring and summer terms largely clear for study and the completion of advanced level qualifications, without the distraction of the application process. Leaving your application to the last minute can have a detrimental effect on your current studies.

If you possibly can, you should aim to beat the January deadline and submit your personal statement in early November. However, if you do miss your deadline, the best thing to do is to contact UCAS directly, usually via your student hub , and then talk directly with individual universities to establish whether a late application would be welcomed.

What’s the Deadline for Postgraduate Applications?

There is no official deadline for UK postgraduate applications . Most universities are keen to accept applications up until the July prior to courses starting in the autumn. As with undergraduate courses, the sooner you apply, the better your chances of securing a place on the course of your choice.

To be safe, apply at least six months in advance – so around March for a course that starts in September/October. UCAS

The danger with this lack of a formal deadline is that you might delay the application and end up in a rush to get your personal statement completed.

To avoid making that mistake, make sure you organise your resources in advance and prioritise your application with the same level of focus that you place on your undergraduate study.

What About Deadlines for US Uni Applications?

US undergraduate university admissions have a greater range of deadlines than the UK. They are divided into four types; regular decision, early action, early decision and rolling admissions. Different institutions have varying dates for these, so checking a specific university’s requirements is key.

The Early Decision and Action deadline for US applications is 1 November, with follow-up decisions taking place in the new year. The next Early Decision round is 15 November.

Regular Decision deadlines run throughout January, with the majority coming at he start of the month. February 1 and February 15 are also key dates for applications to reach many US universities.

Can you Apply to UK Universities Without UCAS?

As a potential undergraduate, you can apply directly to most UK universities for single courses, bypassing the need to apply through UCAS. You will not be able to apply for other courses, however. You can also apply directly for short courses that do not lead to degree qualifications.

Other specific or specialised courses at universities and other institutions in the UK often prefer direct applications, the most common of which are Art Foundation courses. These frequently do not run through UCAS, and you can find more information on these here .

Good luck with your personal statement, and don’t forget to contact me if you’d like some 1-1 support. You’ve got this! D

Research and content verified by Personal Statement Planet .

David Hallen

I've worked in the Further Education and University Admissions sector for nearly 20 years as a teacher, department head, Head of Sixth Form, UCAS Admissions Advisor, UK Centre Lead and freelance personal statement advisor, editor and writer. And now I'm here for you...

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• UCAS application

Personal statement

Academic reference, special circumstances.

• Declaring your disability

If you want to study at Oxford, you need to apply a year before the start date of your course by completing an online  UCAS application form .

Applications open in May so you can start work on the form from then. You won't be able to submit your application until early September. 

There is a strict submission deadline of 6pm (UK time) on 15 October. Your application must be complete - including the academic reference - and submitted before the deadline. Late applications cannot be accepted.

The deadline for applications is 6pm (UK time) on 15 October and this must be strictly adhered to.

Completing a UCAS application for Oxford follows the same process as for other universities, we just have an earlier  submission deadline of 15 October .

Please note that you should not send us as part of your application any certificates, transcripts or other documents for qualifications that you have already taken. The only exception to this is if you already have a degree from a university – see the 'Other forms' section on this page.

We will contact you for evidence of your qualifications if you are offered a place at Oxford.

Before you start:

• Choose  which course  you would like to study. You can only apply to one course at Oxford, and you can't apply to Oxford and Cambridge in the same year. Read more  information on all our courses . 
• Check the  admission requirements  for your course. Specific grades and subjects required are also shown on each  course page .
• Decide whether to express a preference for a particular  college  or make an open application. If you make an open application, you will be assigned to a college which has had relatively fewer applications for your course in the year you apply.

What will the UCAS application ask for?

• Personal details including an email address. Make sure you check this address frequently.
• Details about your education, and any qualifications you have already achieved. 
• A personal statement where you tell us why you are interested in your chosen course. Read our guidance on writing your personal statement .
• Your reference. Remember that your teacher or adviser will need some time to complete your reference, and this must be completed before the deadline. Read our guidance on academic references .
• A fee payment to UCAS is required to complete the process.

Read guidance from UCAS on  filling in your application .

• Admissions tests

For most courses at Oxford you are required to take a test as part of your application. Registration for tests is not automatic and is not part of the UCAS process.

New arrangements for 2024 admissions tests and beyond are still to be confirmed but will be communicated as soon as possible and no later than the start of the new admissions cycle in early Spring. 

Other forms 

If you are applying for a second undergraduate degree, please send a copy of the transcript from your first degree to the college that is considering your application, to arrive by 10 November.

No other references, transcripts, or certificates are required or accepted except for students applying for  Graduate-entry Medicine (A101)  or  Choral or Organ Awards .

One section of the application is called your personal statement. This is where you can write whatever you’d like to say about yourself and your motivation to study your course.

People sometimes think that there is a trick to writing a personal statement for Oxford, or that we are looking for some special secret formula, but this is not the case.

It’s important to remember that you can only write one personal statement and so the same wording will be seen by all the universities you apply to.

Your personal statement should therefore focus on the course you want to study, not the universities themselves. Please read this  helpful advice from UCAS . Please also view UCAS’ guidance on the use of assistive technology (including artificial intelligence) when writing your personal statement. 

Provided that your academic referee can give us some background on the impact of COVID-19 on your education in their reference, you do not need to specifically refer to this in your personal statement. If the pandemic has shaped how you think about your subject or offered you relevant opportunities to show your interest in your subject area, you can of course include this as part of your motivation for applying for the course. Otherwise, follow the advice given below.

How important is the personal statement?

Universities build a picture of you as a student from all the different information you provide, to help decide whether or not to offer you a place.

The picture is made up of several different pieces:

• your personal statement,
• your academic record,
• your predicted A-level grades (or equivalent),
• and your teacher's reference.

For most courses at Oxford you will also need to take an admissions test or submit written work ( check the details for your course ).

If your application is shortlisted, your interview will also be taken into account. This means that your personal statement is important but it’s not everything: it’s just one part of the overall picture.

What are Oxford tutors looking for?

Tutors at Oxford are only interested in your academic ability and potential. They want to see that you are truly committed to the subject or subjects you want to study at university but it’s not enough just to say that you have a passion for something. 

You need to show tutors how you have engaged with your subject, above and beyond whatever you have studied at school or college. This can include any relevant extra-curricular activities.

Try to avoid writing your personal statement as though you are ticking things off a list. There is no checklist of required achievements, and tutors will not just scan what you have written to look for key words or phrases.

Tutors will read your personal statement to try to understand what has motivated you to apply for their course. It’s a good idea to evaluate your experiences, to show what you have learned from them and how they have helped develop your understanding of your subject.  

Where should I start?

Think about talking to your friends about what you want to study at university: what would you tell them?

What have you read or watched or seen that has inspired you? (This might have been at school, at home, in a museum, on TV, in a book, on YouTube or a podcast or anywhere else. You can also take a look at our  suggested reading and resources .) Why was it interesting? What do you want to find out next? What did you do?

If you find this difficult, it might be time to think about whether or not you’ve really chosen the right course. If you can’t think of anything that has inspired you, this lack of enthusiasm will probably come across in your personal statement, or it will become clear at interview, and you’re unlikely to gain a place at Oxford. If you find it easy to answer these questions, you will have a long list of ideas to help you write your personal statement.

When you start to write, remember not just to list your achievements but show how they have affected you, how you have benefited, and what you’d like to learn next. Be honest about yourself and what has inspired you, whether that’s been text books, museums and literature, or websites, podcasts and blogs.

Be sure to tell the truth, as tutors might check later, so don’t exaggerate and certainly don’t make any false claims. Don’t hold back either – this is no time for modesty.

When you've written a first draft, have a look back at the  selection criteria  for your course and think about the evidence you've given for each of the criteria. Have you covered everything?

Should I include extra-curricular activities?

We typically suggest that you focus around 80% of your personal statement on your academic interests, abilities and achievements. This can include discussion of any relevant extra-curricular activities. The remaining 20% can then cover any unrelated extra-curricular activities.

There’s a myth that Oxford is looking for the most well-rounded applicants, and that you will only be offered a place if you have a long list of varied extra-curricular activities. In fact, extra-curricular activities are only helpful in so far as they demonstrate the  selection criteria  for your course. 

If you are applying to other universities as well as to Oxford (you can make five choices on your UCAS form) then you may need to find out whether the other universities have different selection criteria. If they do, then you might want to provide some information about your extra-curricular interests – but keep it to a minimum.

The space in your personal statement is limited, so think carefully about what you want to include.

Do I need experience of work and travel?

We understand that not everyone has the opportunity to do work experience or to go travelling so these activities are not a requirement for any of our courses. Tutors won’t be impressed by your connections, or the stamps in your passport, but they will be impressed by how you’ve engaged with your subject.

For example, some of our applicants for Medicine may have had work experience placements in prestigious hospitals but not be able to evaluate their time there. If you have no more experience than some simple voluntary work, or even just discussing medical matters with your friends and family, you can still write an effective personal statement by reflecting critically on what you have learned and discussed. 

To give another example, for the History of Art course, tutors will not want to hear about all the galleries and exhibitions that you have visited around the world if you cannot discuss the art that you saw. You can come across more effectively in your personal statement by evaluating art you have seen, even if you’ve only seen it online or in books without ever leaving the school library.

Don’t be put off by any friends who you think have more impressive things to say in their personal statements. Remember that tutors do not have a checklist of achievements that they are looking for: they want to see how you have engaged with your subject. 

I’m applying to different courses at different universities – how should I write my personal statement?

If you are thinking of applying for completely different courses at different universities (eg Physics and Accounting, or Biology and Music) we’d encourage you to reconsider.

It’s important to choose a subject area that you really want to study, and focus on that one area when making your applications. Also, you can only write one personal statement which will be seen by all the universities to which you apply, so it needs to be relevant for all your courses.

If you are thinking of applying for related courses at different universities then we suggest that you avoid using course titles in your personal statement. We recommend that you write about your interest in the general course themes, and how you have engaged with relevant subject areas, so that your personal statement is equally relevant for each of your course choices. 

Does my personal statement need to stand out?

Students sometimes feel that they need to say something dramatic to stand out from the crowd and be really memorable in their personal statement but this is not true. Applying to Oxford is not like a talent show where you may only have a few seconds to make an impression.

Tutors consider each application carefully on its individual merits, looking for evidence of your commitment and ability. If you use your personal statement to demonstrate your academic abilities and your engagement with your subject(s), then your application will be memorable for all the right reasons.

How many versions should I write?

Ask a teacher to read through what you’ve written, listen to their feedback and then make any updates that they suggest. You may need two or three tries to get it right and it can take longer than you think, especially with the limited number of characters.

It can be tricky to get in everything you want to mention, but don't spend too much time trying to make your personal statement completely perfect - it's only one of the things that the tutors will consider.

Some dos and don’ts

• Do apply for a course you really want to study.
• Do be yourself: tell the truth about your interests.
• Do sell yourself: this is not the time for modesty.
• Do re-read your personal statement before an interview – the tutors may ask you to talk about things you've mentioned
• Do read the  UCAS guidance on personal statements .
• Don't be tempted to make anything up, as you might be asked about it at interview.
• Don't copy anyone else’s personal statement. UCAS uses plagiarism detection software.
• Don't list qualifications like your GCSE grades or anything else that's covered elsewhere on the application.
• Don't just list your other achievements: you need to evaluate them.
• Don't feel the need to be dramatic in order to be memorable.

A reference from a teacher or someone else who is qualified to comment on your academic ability is an essential part of your UCAS application. Your application will be incomplete without a reference and we will not be able to consider it.

Advice for candidates

• The process is different for those applying through a school/college/centre and those applying after they have left school or as an individual.
• Read  how to get a UCAS undergraduate reference .
• The reference must be in English. If your referee is not confident writing in English, they can ask an English-speaking colleague to help them. Alternatively, you can have a certified translation made for them to upload. Please ask them not to submit a reference in any language other than English, and to make sure that they have uploaded a reference in English to UCAS by the 15 October deadline.
• Your reference must be from someone who can write about your academic potential; it can't be from a family member.

UCAS's reference guidance

• UCAS registered centre linked applications  (for those applying through their school or college).
• Independent or individual applicants (for those who are not at school or college).

Advice for referees

• Read  how to write UCAS undergraduate references  for information about writing an academic reference for a student's application to Oxford. The format of references has changed this year. It is now split into three separate sections so it is important that all referees are aware of the new guidance. 
• References can be up to 4,000 characters (including spaces, headings and line breaks) or 47 lines of text, whichever comes first, and comprise of three sections.
• It is up to the referee how they divide the word count between these three sections but we would advise leaving plenty of space for Section three, which is where you can comment on the individual academic achievements and potential of your Oxford applicants.
• UCAS have published  sample references  which you are likely to find useful. 
• Section one: this invites referees to enter a general statement about their school, college or centre. We strongly recommend including relevant information about school closures and disruption to whole cohorts on a specifically created webpage on your school website. You can then link to this webpage in Section one of your academic reference to ensure that most of the reference word count can still be dedicated to the academic achievements and potential of your student.
• Section two: if applicable, include here any information about individual extenuating circumstances which may have impacted your applicant's education and achievements. Alternatively, if for any reason this is inappropriate, you are welcome to  contact the college  considering your candidate's application.
• Section three: use this to comment on the individual academic achievements and potential of your Oxford applicant and how these relate to the course they are applying for. 
• If the candidate is currently studying or awaiting results you will be asked to include predicted grades for these qualifications. These should not be included as part of the reference but be included in the Education section of a candidate's UCAS application. Students who are awaiting examination results or are yet to take examinations should enter 'pending' against those qualifications (including resits) when completing the Education section. Those pending qualifications will then be shown in the adviser portal and is where referees should record their predicted grades for these pending examinations. Where applicable, this is an important part of the application, so please do include predicted grades. 
• It may be helpful first for you to refer to the  selection criteria  and  admission requirements  for your candidate's chosen course.
• You may like to refer to the additional advice about writing a reference for an Oxford applicant on our  Advice for Teachers page . 

This is the section of the UCAS form where you list all your qualifications along with the grades you have already achieved and any standardised test scores. Please list everything as the admissions tutors need to see the whole picture of your academic studies so far. It doesn't matter if you have taken a lot of qualifications, a few, or none, we ask you to tell us about them. 

You also need to list any educational qualifications you are currently working towards. Students who are awaiting examination results or are yet to take examinations should enter 'pending' against these qualifications (including resits) when completing the Education section. Pending qualifications will then be shown in the adviser portal and is where referees should record their predicted grades for these pending examinations. Where applicable, this is an important part of the application, so   make sure your referee is aware of this.  

Why do we ask for predicted grades?

Using predicted grades means you can apply to study at Oxford before you have finished school (or equivalent) and you don't have to wait until all your exams are complete and your results are known. These predictions help admissions tutors understand your academic potential and let them know if you are going to meet or exceed the entrance requirements for your chosen course.

If you are made an offer of a place, it will be conditional on your achieving the required grades (based on the  entrance requirements  for your course) in any outstanding exams. 

We appreciate that many educational systems around the world do not usually predict a student's grades in this way; however without these predictions from your teacher we are unable to consider your application. There’s lots of advice for teachers in the  teachers’ section  of our website   and from UCAS about writing references and predicting grades . 

What if you can't provide predicted grades?

If you have listed any exams or qualifications as not yet taken on your UCAS form, then your teacher must provide predicted grades for them. If you can't get predicted grades, then your only alternative is to wait until you have got the final results for all your exams and qualifications before applying to Oxford. Please remember that you can only apply to Oxford between early September and 15 October.

English language qualifications

If you are not a native English speaker, please also include any English language qualifications that you have taken or are due to take. Our English language requirements page lists which tests we accept and also explains possible exemptions.

How do you declare international qualifications in the UCAS form?

You should self-report all details of your qualifications, standardised test scores, and grades on the UCAS application form under ‘Education’. It will need to be clear from your application that you are on track to achieve the admission requirements for your  course .

Please visit our  international qualifications page  for the international qualifications we accept and the level of academic attainment we would require.

For any exams you are yet to take, you will need to ask your referee (normally the teacher supporting your application) to predict your results and submit these as part of your UCAS application. Please refer your referee to our advice on writing references and predicting grades . 

You may choose to declare the results of any individual modules or internal exams in the 'Education' section of your UCAS application, but this is not essential. You may instead like to ask your academic referee to mention the results of any internal school exams in the reference, if you feel that these results will help to demonstrate your academic ability and potential. 

Please visit the  UCAS website  for further advice on how to enter your qualifications on the UCAS form.

Note:  do not send us transcripts for the qualifications you've already taken ; you will only need to produce certificates or transcripts if you are offered a place here.

However, if you are applying for a second undergraduate degree, you will need to send a transcript from your first degree separately, to the college that is considering your application. You do not upload this as part of your UCAS form.

If you have personal circumstances that you'd like to tell us about please include them in your personal statement, or ask your teacher to include the information in your reference.

If for any reason this is not appropriate, then please wait until you have had confirmation that your application has been received by a college and then  contact them directly . This is likely to be around the end of October.

You can  contact our Admissions Office  for further information and advice if you're not sure what to include. If you are applying for Medicine, please read the Medical School's guidance on submitting information about extenuating circumstances . 

Usually special circumstances are something that you as an individual have experienced, something that is unique to you. So we would not, for example, expect you to let us know about your school being closed due to COVID-19. We are extremely aware of the widespread disruption to education during the pandemic and will be asking your academic referee to tell us how this has affected your year group. 

Students with disabilities

Please visit the tab  Declaring your disability  and read our  Guidance for disabled applicants  to find out about the support we offer our students.

Other extenuating circumstances

We are sympathetic to the fact that sometimes candidates under-perform at school or college because of extenuating circumstances. If you feel that your performance has been affected in this way please let us know.

You should let us have this information in your UCAS application as we need to receive this information before admissions decisions have been made. 

Information received after admissions decisions have been made will only be considered in exceptional circumstances and if this was not available earlier.   Examples would include disruption caused by change of school or system, severe discontinuity of teachers (but not if this was due to nationwide school closures due to COVID-19), bereavement, and debilitating illness.

We take care to treat each application individually and would always take such mitigating circumstances into account, if they are brought to our attention before admissions decisions have been made.

You could include this information in your personal statement or your teacher could mention this in their reference. If for any reason this is not possible, then we would advise you to contact the college you applied to (or are assigned to if making an open application) once you have had confirmation that your application has been received. This is likely to be around the end of October.

Teachers and other academic referees should follow the  guidance provided by UCAS  in order to explain the impact of COVID-19 on your education.

Whatever your particular circumstances, the earlier we know about your individual requirements, then the sooner we can begin to meet them. 

We are committed to making sure that all our students can benefit from the great opportunities at Oxford so please do tell us about any disability, whether seen or unseen, on your UCAS application. This should include:

• Sensory and physical impairments
• Specific learning difficulties e.g. Dyslexia
• Long-term mental health conditions
• Autism spectrum conditions
• Chronic illnesses and health conditions

Please be assured that admissions decisions are made on academic grounds alone. 29% of all our undergraduate students are known to the Disability Advisory Service.

By telling us now, you will help us put in place any agreed support early and to make reasonable adjustments to facilitate your access to your course and our University. It will also mean that we can provide appropriate arrangements during the admissions process, so for any test or interview.

While you do not need to include this information at this stage, we strongly recommend you do so in order to give us time to prepare and arrange suitable support.

You’ll find the relevant section at the bottom of the Personal Details tab of your UCAS application

• Click ‘see list’ to select the relevant category
• Fill in the second box below Category to give details of any facilities or special provisions required.
• UCAS also has some  good advice  about how to tell us about your disability.

See also our further  Guidance for disabled applicants . This includes information on contacting our  Disability Advisory Service  and how to put in place any necessary arrangements for our admissions tests, if this is one of the admission requirements for your chosen course.

A STEP BY STEP GUIDE FOR APPLICANTS

• Written work
• Second undergraduate degree
• Oxford and Cambridge: the similarities and differences
• Undergraduate Applicant Privacy Notice

RELATED WEBSITES

• Track your application

International applicants

The application process for international students is exactly the same as for UK and EU students: i.e. you must apply through  UCAS  by 15 October. 

UCAS  is an independent organisation that handles all applications to study undergraduate degrees in the UK. To complete a UCAS application, you will need to  register with UCAS  and pay them a fee. The UCAS website also has  guidance for international students.

There is no separate application form for Oxford's undergraduate courses (with the single exception of  A101 Graduate Entry Medicine ), and it is not possible to apply without completing a UCAS form.

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Documents for ERAS® Residency Applicants

New section.

Each program sets individual requirements for the documents that should be submitted with the MyERAS® application. Be sure to research each program individually to determine those requirements before making document assignments.

• Sign In to the MyERAS® Portal
• ERAS® Timelines for Residency Applicants
• ERAS Participating Specialties and Programs

Within your MyERAS account, you may create personal statement(s); identify the people who will write letters of recommendation (LoRs); authorize the release of your Comprehensive Osteopathic Medical Licensing Examination (COMLEX-USA) and/or United States Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE) transcripts; and manage all other documents. Below is an overview of each of the main documents used in ERAS. For detailed information, please see the Documents section of the MyERAS User Guide.

Tracking Documents

The dashboard provides a snapshot of the progress of various documents and their statuses in the MyERAS portal.

• Uploaded but Unassigned LoRs  - Count of LoRs that have been uploaded but are not assigned to any programs, highlighting that assignments may need to be made.
• Unassigned Personal Statements  - Count of Personal Statements that have been saved but are not assigned to any programs, highlighting that assignments may need to be made.
• Latest USMLE Request Status  - Current status of the latest request made to NBME or ECFMG (for IMG Residency) after at least one program has been applied to with the USMLE transcriptassigned.
• Latest COMLEX-USA Request Status  - Current status of the latest request made to NBOME after at least one program has been applied to with the COMLEX-USA transcript assigned.
• Status of Additional Documents  - Status of all other applicable documents as either  Not Uploaded  or  Uploaded .

The  Photo  is most often used by programs to help identify applicants when reporting for an interview. Applicants must upload their own  Photo  in the MyERAS portal by selecting  Upload New Photo  in the  Actions  column. A photo file should not exceed these requirements:

• Dimensions: 2.5 in. x 3.5 in.
• Resolution: 150dpi
• File Size: 150kb

Personal Statement

The personal statement may be used to personalize the application to a specific program or to different specialties. There is not a limit to how many personal statements you may create; however, you may only assign one (1) for each program.

Note : There are a number of websites that provide examples of Personal Statements. Do not copy any information from these sites and use them in your Personal Statements without giving credit to the author. This is considered plagiarism. See the  ERAS Investigation Policy

Special Note About Formatting

• Personal Statements must be created in plain text formatting. HTML and other special text formatting, such as bold, italics, underline, text color, and alignment, are not allowed. Personal statements created outside of the MyERAS system should be done in a plain text word processing application such as Notepad (for Windows users) or Text Edit (for Mac Users) to ensure text stays as clean as possible.

LoRs must be uploaded through the ERAS Letter of Recommendation Portal (LoRP) by the  LoR Author . It is the applicant’s responsibility to follow up with  LoR Authors  regarding LoRs.

• Creating LoR Entries  - You must create a LoR entry for each LoR you intend to use during the application season.
• Confirming LoR Entries  - You must confirm a LoR entry before an associated  Letter ID  can be generated.
• Uploading LoRs  - The Letter ID contained in the LoR Request form must be used to upload the associated LoR through the Letter of Recommendation Portal (LoRP).
• Resending New Scores  - Applicants must take action in their MyERAS portal to resend USMLE scores to programs previously designated to receive them.

The USMLE transcript is required by many MD residency programs as part of an application to be considered for their positions.

• Authorizing the Release for the USMLE Transcript  - Applicants must authorize the release of their USMLE transcript in order to make assignments of the USMLE transcript to the programs they designate.
• Paying for the USMLE Transcript  - The NBME or ECFMG (for IMG Residency) charges a one time fee of $80 for transmitting USMLE transcripts to the programs designated by applicants.
• Viewing the USMLE Requests Status Report  - Applicants can view the USMLE Requests Status Report to track the status of their USMLE requests by program.

The COMLEX-USA transcript is required by many AOA-accredited and ACGME-accredited residency programs as part of a D.O. applicant’s application to be considered for their positions.

• Authorizing the Release for the  COMLEX-USA  Transcript  - Applicants must authorize the release of their COMLEX-USA transcript in order to make assignments of the   COMLEX-USA transcript to the programs they designate.
• Paying for the  COMLEX-USA  Transcript  - The NBOME charges a one time fee of $80 for transmitting COMLEX-USA transcripts to the programs designated by applicants.
• Viewing the  COMLEX-USA  Requests Status Report  - Applicants can view the COMLEX-USA Requests Status Report to track the status of their COMLEX-USA requests by program.

Uploading : An applicant’s Designated Dean's Office is responsible for uploading the Medical School Performance Evaluation (MSPE or “Dean’s Letter”) into the ERAS system for residency applicants. Find out more in the frequently asked questions section.

IMGs Only : IMG residency applicants must indicate in the MyERAS system if they themselves or their medical school will provide a MSPE to the ERAS Documents office at the ECFMG. Instructions for submission can be found here:  https://www.ecfmg.org/eras/applicants-documents-index.html .

Medical School (MS) Transcript

Uploading : An applicant’s Designated Dean's Office is responsible for uploading the  MS Transcript  into the ERAS system for residency applicants. Find out more in the frequently asked questions section.

IMGs Only :

• IMG residency applicants must indicate in the MyERAS system if they themselves or their medical school will provide a MS Transcript to the ERAS Documents office at ECFMG. Instructions for submission can be found here:  https://www.ecfmg.org/eras/applicants-documents-index.html .
• ECFMG Status Report:   The  ECFMG Status Report  confirms the ECFMG certification status for an IMG residency applicant. This report contains the month and year that examinations were passed for ECFMG Certification, but does not contain your USMLE transcript.
• Uploading:  The ECFMG is responsible for uploading the ECFMG Status Report into the ERAS system for IMG residency applicants.
• 2025 ERAS Webinars for Residency Applicants

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JD Application Process

Step by step to sls.

If you are applying for admission to Stanford Law’s JD program for Fall 2024, mark these three important dates on your calendar:

September 15, 2023  — When the application becomes available.

December 1, 2023 — The date your application must be received and deemed complete (last eligible LSAT test administration is November 2023) by SLS if you are applying for the Knight-Hennessy Scholars Program . We strongly suggest that applicants take the LSAT prior to the November test administration so that all application deadline requirements are met. If you opt to submit a GRE score in lieu of the LSAT, plan accordingly so that we receive your score from ETS by the stated deadline.

February 15, 2024, 11:59 PM PST — The deadline for submitting your application.

Explore these key steps in the application process — then get started.

Application Process at a Glance

The first step to admission to Stanford Law is a thoroughly completed application. It is your responsibility to make certain that all items arrive at the Office of Admissions. We will consider your application complete and proceed with an admissions review as soon as we receive all required documents. Unless stated otherwise, any updates to your application must be submitted via e-mail to the Office of Admissions at [email protected] .

• Application for Admission.  You must complete the entire application form and submit it electronically through LSAC.
• Application Fee. Your nonrefundable application fee of $85 must be submitted by credit card through LSAC. If you are unable to pay the fee, please review the Fall 2025 SLS Application Fee Waiver Instructions , complete the Fall 2025 SLS Application Fee Waiver Form , and submit it to the Office of Admissions as soon as possible so that we may process your fee waiver request. You must submit your fee waiver request prior to submitting your SLS electronic application. Allow 5-7 business days for a decision and factor in this timing to ensure you adhere to the application deadline. Please note that our fee waiver criteria and process are distinct from that of LSAC.  
• Resume.  Stanford requires a one-to-two page resume describing your academic, extracurricular and professional activities. The resume must be submitted electronically with your electronic application. Please do not include a photo. If you have already submitted your resume and have included a photo, note that we have redacted that photo. No further action is required on your part and that original submission will not impact our review process.
• Personal Statement. Please describe what aspects of your life experiences, interests, and character would help you make a distinctive contribution to Stanford Law School. The personal statement must be submitted electronically with your electronic application. Your statement should be approximately two pages in length.
• Optional Essay . At Stanford Law School, we value the ability to communicate constructively across differences – even when the stakes are high or the differences significant. Please discuss a time when you encountered a viewpoint that contrasted with your own and explain how you responded. Would you do anything different if the same thing happened today? Your essay should be approximately one to two pages in length.
• Optional Short Essays. From a list of four essay questions, you may provide up to two responses of 100 to 250 words each.
• Two Letters of Recommendation.  Stanford requires that at least two and no more than four letters of recommendation be sent directly through the LSAC Letter of Recommendation Service . Letters sent directly to the Office of Admissions will not be accepted. Recommenders should be instructors who have personal knowledge of your academic work, preferably those who have known you in a seminar, small class, tutorial program or the like. If you have been out of school for a significant period you may substitute one letter from an employer or business associate. Sometimes these applicants find it difficult to obtain even one academic recommendation; in that case, you may submit two nonacademic letters. Please advise recommenders that should you choose to apply for a joint degree and/or other programs at Stanford University, the letters of recommendation may be forwarded to that program for review.
• Right of Access to Recommendations. Federal law provides a student, after enrollment, with a right of access to, among other things, letters of recommendation in the student’s file (if maintained). This right may be waived, but such a waiver may not be required as a condition for admission to, receipt of financial aid from, or receipt of any other services or benefits from Stanford Law School. Please indicate your choice by checking the appropriate box on the LSAC Letter of Recommendation form before giving them to your recommenders.
• Standardized Tests. All applicants are required to take the Law School Admission Test (LSAT) or the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) General Test. If you have one or more valid LSAT scores, they must be reported as part of your application. If you also take the GRE, you may submit all valid GRE scores, but you may also choose to submit only LSAT scores. The only circumstance where you may apply without providing us with an LSAT score is if you have only taken the GRE. If you are admitted to the Law School with a GRE and, after admission, take the LSAT, the Admissions Committee will consider this new LSAT score and will re-evaluate our offer of admission. LSAT. If you choose to apply with the LSAT, you must take the LSAT no later than January 2024. This deadline is based on the time needed by the Law School Admission Council (LSAC) to get your scores to us by our application deadline of February 15, 2024. LSAC will report scores directly to us. If you do not indicate the January 2024 test date on the application but plan to take that test at a later date, you should notify the Office of Admissions in order for the score to be considered. Scores received on tests taken prior to June 2018 will not be considered valid. Note that all applicants using the LSAT are required to submit at least one writing sample. This sample can either be taken at the time of the LSAT examination or at a later date. If taken at a later date, note that it may take several weeks for LSAC to process and report your writing sample so plan accordingly keeping our February deadline in mind. GRE . If you choose to apply with the GRE, you should take the exam no later than February 1, 2024. This deadline is based on the time needed by the Educational Testing Service (ETS) to get scores to us by our application deadline of February 15, 2024.  You must arrange with ETS to have all valid GRE scores sent directly to us. Log into your ETS account and select Stanford Law School as a recipient of GRE results using the school code 4993 . Scores received on tests taken prior to June 2018 will not be considered valid.
• Credential Assembly Service Report.  Transcripts from each college or university you have attended should be forwarded to LSAC, which will prepare and transmit a Law School Credential Assembly Service (CAS) Report to Stanford Law School. To register for the CAS service, please visit LSAC . The report furnished to the school will include copies of all transcripts sent to LSAC. If you have received academic credit for coursework taken abroad while enrolled as a full-time student, and if grades for that period of study are not clearly indicated on your home transcript, you must send that foreign study transcript directly to LSAC or to Stanford Law School. All non-US/Canadian transcripts listed during registration for the Credential Assembly Service are forwarded to the American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers (AACRAO), where they will be authenticated and evaluated, except in cases where it is clearly marked on the home campus transcript. This service is included in the CAS registration fee. The data is assembled into a credential evaluation document that contains AACRAO’s summary, copies of the transcripts and translations (where applicable), and will be sent to the Office of Admissions. Any updated transcripts must be sent directly to LSAC. Please note that should you choose to apply for a joint degree and/or other programs at Stanford University, the CAS report may be forwarded to that program for review.

When the documents described above have all been received, your application is considered complete. However, until the application has been finally acted upon (and until the first day of attendance, if you are accepted and enroll), you are obligated to advise the school of any changes in the information previously furnished. In particular, you should promptly report to the school any additional grades received and any other facts that would have required a different answer to the questions asked in the application. Such changes may be reported informally by e-mail to the Office of Admissions; if official verification is required, you will be so advised. You must have received, or expect to receive by the Summer of 2024, a bachelor’s degree (or the equivalent) from an approved college. All offers of admission are conditional upon graduation.

Reapplication Procedure

If you wish to reapply for admission you must submit the following:

• New application
• Application fee
• Updated resume
• Updated personal statement
• New letter of recommendation to LSAC utilizing the Letter of Recommendation and Evaluation Service
• Updated transcripts showing conferral of degree
• New LSAT scores through LSAC if available

Please note that recommendations already on file need not be duplicated. Applications for the Fall of 2021, 2022, and 2023 have been retained.

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In order to register as students, Stanford University requires all those who are not U.S. citizens or U.S. registered permanent residents to obtain and maintain an appropriate visa status for their stay in the United States. For more information, please visit the Bechtel International Center website .

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Stanford has actively supported the DREAM Act legislation since its introduction in 2001, which would enable undocumented students to continue their education and apply for U.S. citizenship. Stanford also supports DACA, which has allowed some undocumented individuals who entered the United States as children to remain in the country without fear of deportation. Stanford is among the more than 600 colleges and universities that have signed a letter in support of DACA.

https://immigration.stanford.edu/

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Stanford University admits qualified students of any race, color, national or ethnic origin, sex, age, disability, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, veteran status, or marital status to all rights, privileges, programs, and activities generally accorded or made available to students at the University. Consistent with its obligations under the law, in the administration of the University’s programs and activities, Stanford prohibits unlawful discrimination on the basis of race, color, national or ethnic origin, sex, age, disability, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, veteran status, marital status or any other characteristic protected by applicable law; Stanford also prohibits unlawful harassment including sexual harassment and sexual violence. This policy applies to Stanford programs and activities both on and off-campus, including overseas programs.

The following person has been designated to handle inquiries regarding this nondiscrimination policy: Stanford’s Director of the Diversity and Access Office, Krista Martinelli, Kingscote Gardens, 419 Lagunita Drive, Suite 130, Stanford, CA 94305-8550; (650) 723-0755 (voice), (650) 723-1791 (fax),  [email protected]  (email). Stanford’s Title IX Coordinator, Stephen Chen, has been designated to handle inquiries regarding sexual harassment and sexual violence: Kingscote Gardens (2nd floor), 419 Lagunita Drive, Stanford, CA 94305, (650) 497-4955 (voice), (650) 497-9257 (fax),  [email protected]  (email).  Individuals may also file complaints directly with the Office for Civil Rights, within the United States Department of Education, by following the information on this website:   https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/complaintintro.html

Last revised September 13, 2023 .  For the most recent policy, please visit the  Diversity and Access Office .

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Stanford University complies with the Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Crime Statistics Act. Stanford’s policies and statistics under this act are posted on the Department of Public Safety website at  https://police.stanford.edu/security-report.html . A paper copy can be obtained by calling the Stanford Department of Public Safety at (650) 723-9633 or by sending an email to [email protected].

What is the difference between a due date and statement closing date?

Closing date is the last day of a billing cycle, while a due date is the deadline to avoid interest charges.

The world of credit can often be confusing. There are many terms that often go misunderstood.

So, when it comes to credit card bills, are you making mistakes that can cost you?

Mastering your credit card's billing cycle is crucial for maintaining credit scores and your financial health. At the heart of this cycle are two pivotal dates: the due date and the statement closing date. While they may seem similar, understanding their differences is key to avoiding costly mistakes. Confusion between these dates can lead to late payments, interest charges, and a dent in your credit score.

So what does due time mean ? How many days after the due date is a payment considered late ? Can you make a payment on the due date ? In this article, we'll answer all these questions, clarifying how they impact your finances and offering tips to stay on top of your credit card payments. By grasping these fundamental concepts, you can confidently navigate your credit card statements and build a solid foundation for your financial future.

Payment Due Date vs Statement Closing Date

Your payment due date is the deadline for making at least the minimum payment on your credit card balance to avoid late fees and penalties. On the other hand, the closing date marks the end of your billing cycle. It's when your credit card issuer calculates your statement balance and reports it to the credit bureaus.

What is a payment due date?

When you owe money on your credit card, you must pay some back every month. Your credit card company sets a date for this payment, which is called the payment due date . You might have to pay extra fees if you don't pay by this date.

You can pay your bill before the due date without any extra fees. Just be careful not to pay too early, or your payment might be counted for the next month instead. You can also make more than one monthly payment if you pay at least the minimum amount by the due date .

For example, if your credit card statement is generated on the 1st of each month, and your payment due date is the 25th of the month. You must make at least the minimum payment (as specified in your statement) by 5 p.m. or 11:59 p.m. (check with your credit card company for the exact time) on the 25th to avoid late fees.

Suppose your January statement shows a balance of $1,000, and the minimum payment required is $50.

Let’s say you decide to pay $500 on the 10th of January, well before the due date . Your credit card company applies this payment to your January balance. On the 1st of February, a new statement is generated, showing a remaining statement balance of $500 (assuming no additional charges or payments). You are still required to make at least the minimum payment of $50 by the due date of February 25th. 

Now, if you make a payment of $50 on January 21st, and your credit card company applies this payment to your January balance, any remaining balance from January, plus any new charges, will be included in your February statement, which will have a new due date in February.

What Is A Statement Closing Date?

The statement closing date establishes the billing cycle, typically lasting 28 to 31 days, with a maximum variation of four days as per the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). This date can vary each month.

For example, let's say your credit card statement closing date is the 15th of every month. Purchasing on the 10th of the month will be included in your current billing cycle. However, if you purchase the 16th, it will be included in the following month's statement.

Your card's closing date determines which purchases are included in the current statement's balance and the minimum payment due. Any purchases after this date will appear on next month's statement.

The closing date also calculates finance charges (interest) on your card. Most issuers provide a grace period for new purchases made after the closing date, extending until the payment due date , during which no interest is charged.

While many issuers offer a credit card payment grace period , reviewing your card's terms carefully is not mandatory.

Difference Between Due Date And Statement Closing Date

Let’s compare the statement closing date and due date to better understand both.

What Is Grace Period?

Your credit card payment grace period is the time between the closing of your credit card statement and the due date. You can pay off your balance during this period without incurring any interest charges.

While the law doesn't mandate a credit card payment grace period , most companies provide one. They must send you your statement at least 21 days before your payment due date . It's important to check with your credit card issuer to understand if a grace period is offered and its duration to avoid any misunderstandings.

When Is My Bill Due ?

Your payment due date is typically shown on your monthly billing statement. If you can't find your statement, you can check your due date by logging in to your online banking account or by contacting your credit card issuer's customer service. It's also good to note your due dates on a calendar to ensure you don't miss any payments and incur late fees.

How To Determine Your Next Credit Card Closing Date?

Understanding your credit card bill can help you figure out your statement or credit card closing date . Look at the top of your bill for the due date , often labeled as "opening/closing dates" and shown as a range of dates.

Calculate the number of days between these dates. Then, from the closing date, count forward to find your next statement closing date. This way, you can track when your credit card statement ends and your next payment is due .

How To Change The Payment Due Date?

Your credit card payment due date is the same date each month. For instance, if your payment is due on the 10th of this month, it will be due on the 10th of every month.

Most credit card issuers let you change your due date to another date within the month. To do this, review your paydays and when your other bills are due, then call your credit card issuer to request the change. Remember that the new due date typically takes one to two billing cycles to become effective.

Impact of Statement Closing Date On Your Credit Score

On your credit card statement closing date , your card issuer typically reports your account activity, including your card’s outstanding balance, to the three credit bureaus — Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion. This information impacts your credit utilization ratio, the ratio of credit in use compared to the amount of credit you can access.

For example, let’s say your closing date is June 10, and you made a $1,500 purchase on your credit card on June 5. That purchase will be reported and can increase your credit utilization ratio. A high credit utilization ratio can adversely affect your credit score.

Now, let’s assume the purchase isn’t urgent and you waited until June 11 to put the charge on your credit card. In this scenario, your $1,500 credit card purchase wouldn’t be reported to the credit bureaus until the end of your next billing cycle. If you pay it off before then, it might not affect your credit utilization ratio.

When To Pay Credit Card ?

If you’re wondering when you should pay your credit card bill , the best time to pay it is before or on the due date. Paying late can cost you interest and hurt your credit score.

When paying a credit card bill , paying before the due date helps lower your credit utilization rate, which is good for your credit score. It also helps you avoid late fees. If you have a balance from past months, paying early saves you money because you stop paying interest sooner.

Impact Of A High-Interest Credit Card

High-interest credit cards can harm your financial health due to the substantial interest charges they impose. These cards often come with annual percentage rates (APRs) well above 20%, meaning that carrying a balance can quickly accumulate costly interest charges, making it challenging to pay off your debt.

To refinance high-interest credit card debt, consider using Bright Credit . Bright Credit offers a revolving line of credit, allowing you to consolidate your high-interest credit card debt into a single, more manageable loan. Refinancing with Bright Credit can lower your monthly payments, reduce the total interest you pay, and simplify your debt repayment process.

Understanding the difference between your payment due date and closing date is crucial for managing your credit card effectively. These dates are not interchangeable and play distinct roles in your credit card billing cycle.

Being mindful of both dates can help you plan your spending, avoid interest charges, and maintain a healthy credit score. By knowing when your statement closes, you can strategize your purchases to manage your credit utilization rate and ensure timely payments to avoid penalties.

Bright Builde r can help you manage your money by staying on top of payments. Check it out!

Suggested Readings:

Why is a loan for debt consolidation a smart choice, is it best to get a loan to pay off your credit card debt, balance transfer vs. debt consolidation: what to choose.

1. Should I pay on the statement closing date or due date?

Paying your credit card bill by the due date is important to avoid late fees and potential damage to your credit score. The due date is the deadline set by your credit card issuer for you to make at least the minimum payment on your balance.

Paying on the statement closing date is unnecessary, as the statement closing date is when your billing cycle ends, and your statement is generated. Any payments made after this date but before the due date will be applied to the balance on your next statement.

To avoid confusion, aim to make your payment on or before the due date. This ensures that your payment is processed on time and helps you avoid late fees and interest charges.

2. Why is my statement closing date after due date?

Your credit card issuer typically sets your statement closing date and due date, which can vary based on your specific card terms. However, it's uncommon for the statement closing date to be after the due date, as the statement closing date marks the end of your billing cycle, and the due date is the deadline for paying your bill for that cycle.

If you believe there is an error or discrepancy in your statement closing date or due date, it's best to contact your credit card issuer directly for clarification. They can provide you with accurate information regarding your billing cycle and due dates.

3. Should I do minimum payment due or last statement balance?

Making at least the minimum payment on your credit card account is crucial to maintaining a positive credit report with Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion and avoiding late fees. However, you should pay your statement balance in full to prevent interest charges from accruing.

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Statement Closing Date vs. Payment Due Date

Grace Periods for Major Issuers

When is the best time to pay, frequently asked questions (faqs).

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If you have a credit card, there are two very important dates you’ll want to keep track of—the statement closing date and the payment due date. Learn the differences between these two dates, why each one matters, and how to stay on top of your credit card bills.

Key Takeaways

• Your statement closing date is when you receive your credit card statement.
• You generally have 21 days after your statement closing date to pay your credit card bill.
• Your payment due date is your deadline for making an on-time payment.
• If you don't pay your balance off in full by your payment due date, you will need to start making interest payments. 

It’s easy to confuse your statement closing date with your payment due date. In short, your statement closing date refers to the last day of your billing cycle. Your payment due date is the deadline by which you need to pay the credit card issuer for the billing cycle if you want to avoid paying interest. 

Statement Closing Date

The statement closing date refers to the last day of the billing cycle. Generally, this date occurs 20–25 days before you owe your payment. On your statement closing date, you’ll be able to prepare to pay your credit card bill because the issuer will: 

• Calculate any monthly interest charges owed and your minimum payment
• Post your credit card statement (your bill) to your online account, or mail it to you if you don’t do paperless billing

Payment Due Date

Your payment due date is the date your issuer expects to receive payment in full if you don’t want to pay any interest. On or shortly after your statement closing date, you should receive a credit card statement that shows your total balance, your minimum payment amount, and when your minimum payment is due. 

Your minimum payment refers to how much of your balance you need to pay to stay in good standing with the issuer. If your minimum payment is less than your balance, you’ll pay interest on the remaining balance—unless you’re in a promotional APR period. 

The period between your statement closing date and payment due date is known as your grace period . Credit card companies give you a grace period so you have time to pay your balance in full before any interest charges kick in.

The law doesn’t require a grace period, but many credit card issuers choose to offer one. If they do, those issuers legally have to send their customers their credit card statements at least 20 days before your payment due date. To avoid confusion, confirm that your credit card issuer offers a grace period and, if so, how long it is. 

The following table includes some grace periods for five major credit card issuers:

The best time to pay off your monthly credit card statement is before or on the payment due date. Paying your credit card bill late not only leads to pricey interest payments but could also decrease your credit score.

Paying your credit card bill before your payment due date helps you lower your credit utilization rate (which is good for your credit score). You’ll also avoid late fees. Paying early can also save you money if you have a balance on your credit card from past billing cycles. The sooner you pay that balance off, the sooner you can stop paying interest.

To make sure you never miss a payment , set up automatic payments for your entire balance or just the minimum payment required on your due date. Just make sure you always have enough funds in the bank account you link to pay your bill.

Should I leave a small balance on my credit card to help my credit score?

Leaving a balance on your card will not help your credit score, but paying your card off each month can.

Should I make my credit card payment early, before the due date?

If you carry a balance on your card, making your payment early can reduce the amount of interest you'll pay. It can also lower the balance amount that your credit card company reports to the credit reporting agencies.

Can I make more than one payment per statement period on my credit card?

Most of the time, you should be able to make as many payments as you want to your account during each statement period. However, some credit card issuers do limit the number of payments per month, so it's best to check with your specific issuer.

Capital One. " Venture Miles Rewards Credit Card ."

American Express. " Blue Cash Everyday Credit Card Terms, Conditions, and Disclosures ."

Chase. " Chase Sapphire Preferred Pricing and Terms ."

Discover. " Discover It Cash Back Credit Card Important Information ."

Barclays US. " AAdvantage Aviator Red World Elite Mastercard ."

Experian. " Will Paying My Credit Card Balance Every Month Help My Credit Score? "

Capital One. " What to Know About Paying a Credit Card Early ."

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Personal statement due date

Hi I recently left sixth form to do a gap year but I’m intending on going to university next year. I can’t find anywhere that tells me the time I need to get my personal statement in. I know it’s around the time and people are applying but I just want to know when I can get it in by cause I can’t see anywhere that tells me properly.

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American Express grace period: 'Please pay by' date isn't your payment due date

Editor's Note

While banks and credit card issuers haven't always been the most consumer-friendly, things have generally improved for cardholders since the financial crisis of 2008. (An exception to that is recent events with some small- and mid-sized banks .)

Legislation, especially the Credit Card Accountability, Responsibility and Disclosure Act of 2009 (CARD Act), sets strict guidelines for how card issuers communicate with customers about everything from interest rates and benefit changes to payment due dates.

But as a consumer, you should still check the fine print. And if you have an American Express card , figuring out when to pay can be challenging.

American Express: When to pay

Let's look at a personal example: Right now, new The Business Platinum Card® from American Express cardmembers can earn 150,000 bonus points after spending $20,000 on eligible purchases with the Business Platinum Card within the first three months of card membership.

This offer is worth $3,000, based on TPG's August 2024 valuations . Note that you may be targeted for a different offer and that offers can change at any time.

I applied for the card at the end of 2018. My bonus then wasn't quite as good as the current offer, but I still had a $15,000 spending requirement (no longer available).

Spending $15,000 in three months is a lot, so after opening the card, I closely monitored my account activity. My first statement closed on Dec. 25, and I was a little alarmed to see that Amex was only giving me 15 days, until Jan. 9, to pay off my five-figure balance.

If you're a small-business owner with other tasks demanding your attention, you might've simply circled that date on your calendar and moved on. After all, paying your American Express balance by its due date is important.

But something didn't seem right. By comparison, here's what my account page for my personal The Platinum Card® from American Express looked like at the same time:

While my personal Amex Platinum card clearly told me the date my payment was due, my Business Platinum card had Amex's suggested "Please Pay By" date.

After calling an Amex rep and digging a little deeper into my statement, I learned that I wouldn't actually be charged a late fee as long as I paid my bill in full by Jan. 19, more than two full weeks after the date Amex suggested I pay (see rates and fees ).

It's important to be aware of this since if you think you need to pay your bills two weeks earlier than you have to (to avoid late fees), you may be redirecting funds that could otherwise be used on payroll, inventory and/or growing your business. This two-week squeeze could be especially frustrating for small businesses struggling to manage expenses.

Related: Amex Platinum vs. Amex Business Platinum

Confusing, much?

If you're wondering how it can possibly be legal for a bank to mislead its cardmembers about payment due dates, the answer is that it might not be. Subsection 201 of the CARD Act says the following about late payment disclosures:

"(A) LATE PAYMENT DEADLINE REQUIRED TO BE DISCLOSED.—In the case of a credit card account under an open end consumer credit plan under which a late fee or charge may be imposed due to the failure of the obligor to make payment on or before the due date for such payment, the periodic statement required under subsection (b) with respect to the account shall include, in a conspicuous location on the billing statement, the date on which the payment is due or, if different, the date on which a late payment fee will be charged, together with the amount of the fee or charge to be imposed if payment is made after that date."

The CARD Act references consumer credit plans , so it's unclear whether these same regulations would apply to the Amex Business Platinum . Either way, Amex's behavior is at odds with how Congress wants card issuers to treat their customers.

Nowhere on my five-page monthly statement is there any mention of what, if any, late fees I would owe on what date. The only acknowledgment of late fees is: "You may have to pay a late fee if your payment is not received by the Next Closing Date." Your statement may vary, so make sure to inspect it closely.

Amex has come under fire for its reporting of due dates before, settling and paying an $85 million fine in 2012 for labeling the "Please Pay By" date as the actual due date on the account.

Bottom line

It's easy to trust a company willing to analyze your spending to help you earn the most rewards. However, this is a reminder that you need to be your own advocate.

If you have a card from American Express, when to pay can be hard to figure out. It's worth double-checking the language around your payment due date to ensure you know when to pay your American Express balance. When in doubt, call the number on the back of your card and speak to a representative.

Related: Amex Business Platinum card review

For rates and fees of the Amex Business Platinum, click here .