The personal statements are one of the most important documents in university admissions. They evaluate the students background, motivations and fit for the program. It can often be the defining factor in accepting and giving an admissions letter, or rejecting a student.
Universities will say that, of course, they need to be written by the student. But in practice many of them, especially from China, are not being written by students, but being written by agents. Some agents that I have spoken to have told me that 100% of Chinese students are not writing their own personal statements when applying to international universities.
A good agent, in an ideal world, will work with the student to coach the student so the student can improve their writing skills to be able to craft the admissions letter themselves. But in practice, many are just writing them for the students. Not doing so becomes the riskier option. The problem is that because this is happening, students who write them by themselves feel disadvantaged and that they have to have it written by someone with more experience.
Now we have ChatGPT it is becoming easier for students to get help in writing. This is going to raise questions at every level of higher education. But how can we solve it at the university admissions level? How can we ensure that admissions letters are authentic? and ensure that the admissions process is fair?
Here are some ideas:
1) Students could personally guarantee that they wrote the personal statement 100% by themselves.
2) Online university interviews being mandatory for every applicant, with questions related to the application.
3) Secret shoppers – just like companies are responsible for their supply chains, it is possible for universities to carry out in market secret shopper evaluations to understand the processes of the recruitment process of partner agents
4) A live proctored entrance test to write the personal statement and / or entrance exam
5) AI assisted essay checking – a checker that evaluates articles and the likelihood of it being written by AI. The perception of a check could also support the documents.
