personal vs professional statement

does the professional statement have to be ‘formal?’

I prefer to write about things from my life and experiences so I was wondering what the difference between the two was.

as many people here have said, “show not tell” is how I would rather write than directly lecture the officers about my ‘aspirations’ and ‘talent.’

in case you are wondering which college I am refering to, I am working on my UIUC app.