PS Tip 54 : Minimum required words to make your point

This is perhaps as close as we’re going to get to a hard-and-fast rule, and it goes for any non-fiction writing, not just personal statements.

The best number of words in a sentence, paragraph or document is the minimum required to fully convey your point.

That doesn’t mean that your writing should be a bland statement of fact, but it does mean that you should avoid repetition and superfluous filler-words like the plague. I’ve already mentioned this with regard to language and word selection, but it also goes for whole sentences.

If your personal statement discussed several previous jobs, work experience placements and/or educational courses (which it probably will), you only need to mention your excellent organisation skills or line management experience once. Repetition will waste space, and possibly also bore the person reading your statement, which you definitely don’t want to do.