Psychology Personal Statement Example (Mature Student) 2

As a childcare worker looking after 3-4 year olds, I'm constantly being asked "why" and, although I love the times when I can give an answer, I especially love the times when I can't.

I'm a person whose motto is "learn one new thing everyday", which makes every new "why" another adventure, a new journey of discovery - both for me and the children in my care.

In my role as a key worker, it is my job to plan and implement activities for my small group of key children using the EYFS framework; maintain records on the children's progress; communicate regularly with parents and staff and assist with training and supervision of relief workers and students.

In my secondary role as ECAT Lead Practitioner, I am in charge of training and supervising the entire staff team in all aspects of Speech and Language.

It also involves planning and implementing workshops and information sessions for the parents; overseeing, maintenance and data collection of tracking records of all the children, as well as liaising with management, my Coordinators, fellow ELLPs and relevant agencies e.g. SLT. I also attend numerous courses to further my knowledge of children's care and development.

Whilst studying for my Level 3 NVQ & BTEC in Children's Care, Learning and Development, the topic that interested me most was Cognitive Development in Early Years.

In the class, we had to discuss the theories of Pavlov, Skinner, Bowlby, Bandura and Freud, and how relevant they still were today.

This resulted in a heated debate, with me arguing on the side of Freud in opposition to the rest of my class, about the psychosexual aspects of his theories.

The overt, negative reaction I observed further fanned the flame of curiosity I had about society's attitudes towards sex and what, in particular, shapes our individual models of what denotes sexual deviance.

This has lead to me doing further reading on Freud's life, background and theories, as well as on other related theorists.

Though I am in full-time employment, I'm also an adult carer for my mum and my 17 year old sister. Juggling these two responsibilities isn't always easy, but it has helped me hone the key skills I've learned over the years. When mum first started chemo, my sister and I took part in our first Race for Life.

Meeting the survivors, their families and friends and hearing their stories reaffirmed to me the strength that comes from adversity; which speaks a lot to my own life experiences. It was truly invaluable for me and I continue to organise fundraising events on behalf of Cancer Research UK bi-annually.

I'm a huge bookworm and I'm most interested in fiction books with beautiful, tortured protagonists like Louis de Point du Lac in "The Vampire Chronicles" by Anne Rice.

Following his battles with the murderous nature forced upon him, allowed me to explore the impact of societal norms versus the Id on the development of personal identity.

I love to travel and my favourite trip so far has been to a town called Kullu in the Himalayas. I was able to visit an ashram where I met with a guru and attended meditation sessions, Satsang (teachings) and discussions with his other satsangis (students).

Travelling around India and being able to immerse myself in another culture and live by a different set of traditions was eye-opening and I’m returning to explore even more this winter.

I'm applying to study Psychology for many reasons, but mainly because I'd like to find answers to humanity's many questions.

At present, I have particular interests in Child, Criminal and Abnormal Psychology, but I'm sure that as I work my way through the course, I'll find the path that fits me best. If available, I'd also like to do a Foundation Year as I feel it will help to fine tune my current skills and add some new ones.

I don't expect it to be easy, but I know it will be very eye-opening and informative, and most of all fun. It's the subject I feel most suited to and passionate about and I can't wait to get started.