Psychology Personal Statement Example 102

While growing up, I've always been curious about how and why people behave a certain way. Psychology is an area of study that we have yet to fully explore and uncover, and the constant publishing of new theories and revision of old ones never ceases to keep me enthralled.

I view psychology as a treasure trove of knowledge, and I've seen just the top layer of it. I am thoroughly fascinated by the existence of reasonings and possible explanations behind the very way we behave and interact with one another.

Psychology is a subject that is a long-held area of interest for me and I intend to study and explore it further at a higher academic level. When I was 15, I joined a youth organisation for a filmmaking project where I co-wrote and co-directed a short film based on the theme of xenophobia.

Prior to the writing and filming, we had to search up relevant news stories to our themes and I was fascinated at the way people behaved when faced with the fear of the unknown.

It was through this short film, "Dolls Fall", that I became more intrigued in human behaviour which is expressed in the film with displays of multiple forms of xenophobia and how we are affected by it.

In addition, as part of my exploration of psychology I had also attended a job shadowing programme for social work in Habitat for Humanity to see how psychology played a role in aiding people.

It was really interesting to watch the social worker employed with the organisation go through their assessments of the homeowners before evaluating their requests. I was able to witness how psychology - even a small aspect of it - can be applied to real life.

When our extended essay process had begun, I seized the opportunity to properly explore an aspect of psychology. It was thrilling for me to be able to independently research and write out a paper on the development of psychopathy.

However, towards the end of my writing process I became aware that I had merely scratched the surface of a subject with multitudes of areas to explore. This essentially cemented my goal to further pursue psychology at a higher level.

Regardless, the extended essay has helped me gain valuable research and writing skills that I will be able to put into use in my university studies, as well as made me more familiar with essay writing formats.

Furthermore, through my psychology HL subject I was able to conduct my psychology IA based on "The Halo Effect". It enabled us to research the theory, replicate the experiment, organise data, as well as write out a proper report. I found that I enjoyed the whole process from the research to the execution of the experiment.

Through these two writing processes I found myself becoming a more independent learner as well as more comfortable with having to research a new area. As a house prefect and sports captain in school, I carried out disciplinary duties as well as carried out the house charity project to raise funds for a village in Malawi.

I was able to gain collaborative, planning and management skills that I hope to put to use in future projects and group work.

Throughout my 6 years in school, I made an effort to consistently participate in as many interhouses as possible. I felt that taking on such responsibilities allowed for me to exercise my organisation and people management skills so as to carry it out effectively.

Aside from my leadership roles, I have been a committed member of the netball CCA for 4 years and even played competitively.

It helped me to understand the weight of commitments as I found myself having to manage my schedule properly in order to balance the competitions and school. I am certain my past experiences and interests will aid me in my pursuit of studies in psychology.

I believe a degree in psychology is a crucial step towards my continued exploration of the subject and a stepping stone to working as a psychologist.

There is still much to be uncovered, and I hope to contribute to the ever expanding- world of psychology.