Teacher Education Personal Statement

If you are applying through the Universities Admissions Centre (UAC) to study a teacher education degree at the University of Sydney (excluding early childhood), you will be prompted to complete a personal statement questionnaire during the application process.

Please refer to UAC’s guidelines and the relevant UAC form when submitting your personal statement. More information is available on the UAC website.

Because the number of applications from qualified applicants for many Teaching Areas exceeds the quota of places available, you are required to submit a statement, not exceeding 1000 words, addressing the following four questions about your motivation and suitability for teaching. You must answer all four questions to be considered for selection to the course.  Your responses will be used in the selection process.

1. Tell us what has inspired you to become a teacher and tell us why you think teaching is a good career choice for you.
   Describe who and what has inspired you to become a teacher and describe the types of skills and abilities you will bring to teaching.
2. Describe one or two leadership, community and/or learning and development activities that you have engaged in.
   Describe how these leadership, community and/or learning and development activities demonstrate your conscientiousness and coping strategies when you are faced with challenges.
3. Describe how you manage your time when you are both planning and coordinating activities in your personal schedule.
   Provide examples of how you have put both your planning and coordinating skills to use.
4. Tell us about one or two times where you have utilised your problem-solving skills to achieve an outcome.
   Explain what you learned, regardless of whether the outcome you achieved was positive or undesirable.

You need to submit your answers to these questions in a Word document or a PDF. It is recommended, for your own ease, to answer these questions as four separate items.

If you are applying for one of our Master of Teaching degrees, you will be required to fill out our Master of Teaching supplementary form and upload it to your online application.