UCAS Statement for 2 very different subjects

[sidsgranny]

DC is torn between Fine Art and Spanish for a degree. There is one particular art course that's favourite but also wants to apply for Spanish courses as a back up. Is it possible to write a personal statement to cover both? School are being particularly unhelpful and saying they have to choose one or the other.

As anyone else been in this situation?

You can only write one statement. However, lots of unis don't even read them so maybe check if this is the case for either (or both) of her preferred options. If one of them uses the PS and the other doesn't, just tailor it to the one that does!

I think they will be able to see her other choices, though...is there a danger that she might end up looking uncommitted to either subject?

Universities can't see the other choices! Another thing is that if DC follows the art route, that creates a lot of extra work early in the process in producing a portfolio, and it also leads to a lot of extra research. The universities which have good reputations for art/design courses are often very different to the MN favourites, and the league tables are of limited help when tiny courses are involved. Hmm.

Universities can't see the other choices!

Fair enough, I stand corrected!

I would focus more on the skills showing she is suited for university rather than course specifics

@PhotoDad makes an excellent point. Won’t your DD need to begin a portfolio soon, if she decided on FA and wants to do a good job?

During my term as an admissions tutor I would occasionally read a PS for a completely different subject, as my STEM subject is a reasonable second choice for some. My School does not take formal account of the PS and my aim was always to recruit the best cohort I could, so I was comfortable ignoring this type of PS. I can’t speak for others

If she’s looking at one art course and four Spanish, I would contact the art uni and ask if they’ll accept a separate statement

Check individual uni prospectus to see if they accept a second PS. When my DD applied, both Exeter and Durham accepted a second PS - she was in similar situation, so it was useful to have that facility,

My son applied for a mix of PPE and languages course. He just contacted the unis where he applied for languages and offered a second statement . They all accepted.

Interesting those saying ask to write two statements.

My dd applied for two different courses but not that different tbf, so she was able to tailor her statement to cover both. Two different ones sounds like a shoot for your dd @sidsgranny . Good point re the portfolio tho .

Artists/designers normally put their portfolio together over the course of next term. Whatever you do, don't submit the UCAS form until a basic portfolio is ready (unfortunately each place asks for something slightly different but it can be tweaked). Very often, art schools ask to see the portfolio on a very tight turnaround as soon as they get the application!

If the OP (or anyone else reading this) is interested, I started a thread with my own thoughts about the art/design application process which has attracted lots of comments from people who know more about it from different perspectives;
https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/higher_education/4795276-art-and-design-at-university-for-past-present-and-future-students-and-parents