How to Write a Counselling Psychology Personal Statement
Applying to a Master of Counselling Psychology, Counselling, Mental Health Counselling, or Psychotherapy program? Chances are, you will be asked to submit a personal statement, also sometimes referred to as a statement of intent, statement of interest, letter of intent, personal essay, or another similar name.
For many applicants (myself included), this ends up being the hardest and most stressful part of the application. Yet, it’s also one of the most important, often carrying the most weight when selection committees decide who to admit.
In this guide, we’ll cover what the counselling psychology personal statement is, what selection committees are looking for, the most common mistakes to avoid, and how to get started.
What is a Counselling Psychology Personal Statement?
The personal statement is your chance to bring your personality and passion into your application. While your academic transcripts and resume/CV show selection committees what you’ve done, your personal statement lets the admissions committee understand who you are, what motivates you, and why you’ve chosen counselling psychology over other mental health paths. It has the potential to transform your application from a collection of data points into something more personal that leaves a lasting impression.
While programs vary in their requirements, most personal statements are 1-3 pages in length. Typically, the school will give you question prompts that they would like you to address in an essay-based format, allowing them to assess your academic writing abilities while getting to know you better.
What Selection Committees Are Looking For
Each program has different personal statement requirements and question prompts, but most are looking for the same core things. Below are the key components that make for a great counselling psychology personal statement, and tips on how to incorporate them into your paper.
Why Counselling Psychology (Not Just “Mental Health”)
Your personal statement needs to clearly explain why you’re pursuing a graduate degree in counselling psychology, rather than clinical psychology, clinical social work, or another mental health-related field. A common mistake I see is applicants who talk broadly about wanting to help people or become a therapist without demonstrating an understanding of what makes counselling psychology unique and why it’s the ideal choice for them.
Tips:
Show that you’ve explored other paths and made an intentional, informed decision.
Avoid vague statements like, “I’ve always been interested in mental health” or “I want to help people improve their mental health.”
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A Compelling Story
Selection committees want you to paint a clear and compelling picture of the academic, personal, professional, and volunteer experiences that led you to pursue counselling psychology. Think about what motivated you to pursue this path and what experiences you’ve had along the way that have prepared you to be successful in their program and beyond. This might include academic interests, work experiences, volunteer experiences, lived experience, formative relationships, or turning points in your life where you realized you wanted to become a counsellor, that provided you with transferrable skills, and that shaped the type of counsellor you hope to become.
Tips:
Your personal statement should be personal, but not intimate. Avoid oversharing, trauma dumping, or writing a full autobiography. Focus on insights and growth that are connected to your professional development and aspirations. When you include personal experiences, frame them through a professional lens and keep the emphasis on how they shaped your development as a future counsellor.
Don’t just summarize your resume. Instead, connect the dots, weaving your experiences into a cohesive narrative that demonstrates how they have shaped your interests, values, goals, and readiness for graduate-level counselling psychology. This means going beyond your resume by offering new insights, examples, deeper reflections, and context.
Related Reading:
Can (And Should) You Discuss Personal Experiences in Your Personal Statement?
Disclosing Hardships Without Oversharing in Your Personal Statement
Clear and Specific Career Goals
Even if you’re not 100% certain about what you want to do post-graduation, you should present a clear and specific vision of how you hope to use your degree. Selection committees want to see that you’ve thought about your future and how their program will help you get there.
Tip:
Be specific about the kinds of populations, settings, and/or modalities that interest you and how this program will help you move toward them.
Fit With Their Program
Why are you applying to their program? What makes it a better fit for you and your goals than any other counselling psychology program? Mention specific, unique features of their program and explain how they connect with your interests and career goals.
Unique features might include:
Faculty expertise
Unique practicum settings
Program philosophy or theoretical orientation
Course offerings
Specialization or certificate opportunities
Training model or structure
Commitment to social justice or DEI
Tip:
Be specific. Don’t just copy and paste the same paragraph for each school, changing only the school’s name and small details. Refer to their program’s philosophy, faculty, practicum opportunities, training models, values, and other unique aspects of the program that match your values and goals to build a compelling case for your admission.
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Evidence of Self-Awareness
Programs want to admit applicants who are reflective, emotionally mature, humble, and ready to learn. Be honest about areas where you want to grow, while showing that you’ve already laid the groundwork for success. You should also explain how their program is ideally suited to address your areas for improvement and growth.
You might write about:
A challenge you faced in a helping role, and what you learned from it.
A time you received feedback and how it helped you grow.
Specific areas you want to develop in graduate school that will help you reach your goal.
Personal areas for improvement, what you have already done to address them, and specific aspects of the program that will help address them further.
Tip:
Show humility and self-awareness, not perfection. Being able to reflect on your limits and articulate what you’re working on is a strength, not a weakness.
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Academic, Financial, and Interpersonal Preparedness
Some programs will ask about your readiness to take on the demands of graduate study, including time management, interpersonal skills, and how you will finance your studies. They may also ask for examples of how you’ve handled conflict in the past and what you learned from it, or how you’ll balance school with work, caregiving, and other obligations. I’ve even seen programs ask about applicants’ perspectives on personal growth as part of becoming a counsellor.
When answering these types of questions, it’s important to be thoughtful, honest, and realistic. You don’t need to have every detail figured out, but you do need to show that you understand what graduate school (and this profession) will require of you. Programs are looking for applicants with a well-thought-out plan for navigating both the academic and emotional challenges ahead. Ideally, you’ll include past examples that demonstrate your readiness and abilities to handle what’s to come!
Related Reading:
If your prompts include an interpersonal or ethical dilemma-type question, check out How Have You Navigated an Ethical Dilemma?
Your Experience with Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI)
Counselling programs are increasingly including a prompt about your experience working with and commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). Sometimes, they even ask about social justice more directly. This is a great opportunity to demonstrate your understanding of intersectionality and commitment to social justice in the field of mental health.
However, this section isn’t just about what you believe; it’s also about what you do. Typically, selection committees are looking for how your personal, academic, volunteer, and/or professional experiences have prepared you to work respectfully and effectively with people from a wide range of backgrounds and identities. They want evidence that these values truly matter to you, which can be demonstrated through your past experiences. Use this prompt to show that DEI isn’t just a buzzword for you.
You might reflect on:
A meaningful experience working with a marginalized individual or group, including how you approached the work and what you learned from it.
A moment where you recognized your privilege or bias, and how that awareness changed your perspective or behaviour, including influencing the type of counsellor you want to become.
How your intersecting identities or lived experience inform your understanding of social justice, mental health, and access to care.
Concrete actions you’ve taken to advocate for equity or practice cultural humility.
How you plan to continue learning and contributing to DEI and anti-oppressive practice during graduate studies and as a future counsellor.
Tips:
Think beyond race and ethnicity. DEI includes (but isn’t limited to) socioeconomic status, gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, ability, age, language, religious/spiritual identity, and citizenship status.
Structure your answer around growth. One effective approach is to describe a moment of insight, how it changed you, and what steps you’ve taken since then. You can then connect this to how you hope to continue growing, implementing, and advocating for DEI and anti-oppressive practice as a future counsellor.
If you’re not familiar with cultural humility or anti-oppressive practice, take some time to learn about these concepts, including how they are relevant to mental health and counselling.
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Research Interests and Experiences (If Applicable)
Some counselling psychology programs that are more research-oriented will ask you to describe your research interests and experiences. Others won’t expect this at all.
If research is required or emphasized in the program, this is your opportunity to demonstrate your curiosity, critical thinking, and ability to contribute to the research community. Programs aren’t expecting you to have your entire thesis or research interest fully mapped out, but they are looking for evidence that you understand the research process, can think analytically, have ideas that you’re excited to explore, and are aware of which faculty members would be a good fit for your research interests.
Tip:
Aligning your research interests with the program’s research strengths or faculty expertise typically increases your odds of getting admitted. That said, conducting research is hard work and can be emotionally taxing, so I recommend choosing a topic that you’re truly passionate about.
Even if the program you’re applying to doesn’t specifically ask about research interests and experiences, I recommend incorporating scholarly literature to support some of the points you make. Including even one or two APA-style formatted citations and a reference can help your personal statement stand out and demonstrate your academic writing skills.
Common Mistakes Applicants Make
Being Too Vague or Generic
I often see statements like, “I’ve always wanted to help people.” The problem with this kind of phrase is that it doesn’t tell the selection committee what sets you apart. It’s something that almost any applicant could put in their personal statement, and it would be true. Avoid sweeping, one-size-fits-all statements that sound good on the surface but don’t offer real insight into who you are. Instead, aim for specific, personal examples that illustrate your journey and values. Things that are unique to you, even if it's simply the perspective you bring to an issue based on your experiences.
Tip:
Be specific. Use concrete examples and personal reflections to bring your story to life, making your personal statement more memorable and helping it stand out from others.
Not Answering the Prompts Fully
When you have a lot to say and not much room to say it, it can be easy to overlook parts of the prompt. But skipping parts of a prompt or presenting an underdeveloped answer can cost you, since selection committees often use rubrics or scoring guides that directly reflect the prompts.
Tip: Before you begin writing, read and re-read the prompts carefully. Jot down ideas for how you might answer them. Then, when you’re finished your draft, go through it prompt by prompt to ensure you’ve fully addressed each part.
Making Unsupported Claims
Statements like “I have strong communication skills” fall flat if you don’t explain how or where you’ve demonstrated them. Without supporting evidence, the selection committee may question the validity of your claims. Specific examples build credibility and help the reader trust what you’re saying.
Tips:
Show, don’t tell. Use concrete examples from your experience to back up key points.
Keep your examples focused. Share just enough detail to illustrate your strengths without going off track, and be sure to protect the confidentiality of others by omitting identifying details.
Not Tailoring Your Statement to the Program
While you may be able to repurpose some parts of your personal statement from one school to the next, you really need to tailor each application to the program you’re applying to. It’s not enough to simply change the paragraph on why their school is a good fit for you and vice versa. Each program has a unique philosophy, values, approach to training, faculty expertise, and much more. You want to weave that through your whole personal statement.
Tips:
Reference unique aspects of the program and explain how they align with your experiences, values, and goals. To do this effectively, you will need to spend a good amount of time on the program’s website, reading everything you can about it and taking notes. I have found great information by going beyond the “future/prospective students” section and diving into the “current students” area of the program’s website.
Attend informational sessions if the program offers them. They are often filled with valuable information on what the school is looking for in applications, including tips on how to answer the question prompts and opportunities to ask questions.
Poor Structure or Writing Quality
Even strong content will fall short if the writing is unclear, repetitive, or poorly structured. Selection committees read hundreds of personal statements, so clear, well-organized, and engaging writing is a great way to stand out.
Common issues we see are:
Long paragraphs with no clear focus.
Lack of logical flow and smooth transitions between paragraphs.
Unnecessary details.
Overuse of passive voice.
Repetitive phrasing or vague language.
Inconsistent formatting, grammatical issues, or typos.
Tips:
Start early and expect to revise your personal statement multiple times. Some people start as early as a year in advance and complete four to five drafts before submitting.
Write in an active voice to create more direct, concise, and confident prose (e.g., “I developed strong communication skills while volunteering at a crisis line” vs. “My communication skills were developed through my volunteer work at a crisis line”).
Format your paper with APA formatting to demonstrate your academic writing abilities.
Be concise; every sentence should have a purpose, advancing your key messages.
When you finish a draft, take a day or two away from it before you edit. When you do edit, read it out loud to help catch awkward phrasing and repetition. Then, ask for feedback from trusted reviewers, ideally someone with experience in this space.
Related Reading:
Common Grammar Errors in the MSW Personal Statement and How to Fix Them
Don’t Make These 5 Mistakes When Writing Your Personal Statement
How to Get Started
If starting your personal statement feels overwhelming, breaking it into small, manageable steps can be helpful.
Before you write a single word:
Read and re-read the application instructions and personal statement prompts for the school you’re applying to. Highlight key components and make sure you fully understand what’s being asked. If anything is unclear, don’t hesitate to contact the admissions contact listed on the program’s website for clarification. It won’t hurt your chances of admission; if anything, it shows initiative while ensuring you answer the questions accurately.
Research the program thoroughly. Go beyond the admissions page and explore faculty bios, program handbooks, course offerings, practicum options, and how the program describes itself. Pay attention to the language they use and what they emphasize. This will help you speak in their language, conveying a strong fit.
Then, follow a step-by-step process:
Brainstorm your ideas, jotting down key academic, professional, volunteer, and personal experiences that have motivated you and prepared you for graduate studies in counselling psychology. Think about your motivations, experiences, skills, values, turning points, and future goals.
Develop an outline. You can use the structure below or create your own based on the school’s prompts to help organize your ideas before you jump into writing.
Give yourself permission to write a “bad” first draft. Don’t try to make it perfect. Just get your thoughts down. First drafts are meant to be messy.
Edit and refine your work multiple times. Revisit your draft with fresh eyes and read it out loud to catch awkward phrasing and inconsistencies. Look for clarity, conciseness, tone, formatting, grammar, and typos. Strengthen the structure so your statement tells a cohesive story and double-check that you’ve fully answered each prompt. Ideally, ask for feedback from someone you trust to make it even stronger before submitting.
Example Structure You Can Follow
Here is an outline you can use to organize your ideas:
Introduction: What drew you to counselling psychology? Consider opening with a compelling hook that introduces who you are and what motivates you to pursue a master’s in counselling psychology. For example, you might describe a moment when you first recognized a meaningful need or gap in mental health care, one that you feel uniquely positioned to help address.
Past & Present: What academic, professional, volunteer, or life experiences led you to this point? What relevant skills, knowledge, and insights have you gained from your experiences along the way?
Future: What kind of counsellor do you hope to become? What are your career goals, and how do you envision making a difference in the field?
Fit: Why are you applying to this specific program? What aspects of it make it a strong fit for your goals and interests?
Conclusion: What do you hope to gain from the program? What key strengths, perspectives, or experiences will you contribute? Use this section to tie your statement together, reiterating all the most important parts, like a brief, reflective elevator pitch.
You don’t need to follow this structure exactly (always prioritize the school’s specific instructions and prompts), but this can be a useful starting point if you’re facing a blank page or looking for help organizing your ideas.
Related Reading:
Six Personal Statement Tips That Actually Work (From a Professional Editor)
Meeting and Staying Within the Word Count in Your Personal Statement
Final Thoughts
The strongest counselling psychology personal statements tell a clear, cohesive, and thoughtful story about who you are, what drives you, and how this specific program will help you become the counsellor you aspire to be. They demonstrate a solid understanding of the profession and the program, while highlighting the unique perspectives and skills you will bring to both.
Remember, writing a strong personal statement takes time. Be patient with the process and kind to yourself along the way. Seek feedback, and don’t be afraid to write multiple drafts. The effort you invest now can make a meaningful difference in your chances of admission.
Need Support?
In addition to our MSW application support services, we also offer 1:1 consultation, personal statement reviews, and resume editing specifically for applicants to counselling psychology and other mental health-related programs. Whether you need help getting started, organizing your ideas, or polishing your final draft, we’re happy to help.
To learn more about our services, click here.
Looking for counselling psychology programs to apply to?
Check out our list of the Best Counselling Psychology Programs in Canada
