The university application process in the UK "further disadvantages" low- and middle-income pupils, a report by an educational charity says.
The Sutton Trust says pupils from independent schools are more likely to shine in their "personal statements".
It says their applications are generally better written and list more prestigious, relevant activities than those of state-school pupils.
Many schools, private and state, offer pupils help with their statements.
And some companies offer to write them for money.
The statement is an essay applicants write about themselves that is meant to persuade universities or colleges they are right for a course.
Applicants are accepted on to university courses on the basis of their A-level results as well as their personal statement.
The idea of these is that applicants write about themselves and show universities or colleges they are right for a course.
They usually list achievements, in and out of school or college, interests and hobbies as well as work experience.
The Sutton Trust's research, by Steven Jones of Manchester University, was based on a study of personal statements of 300 pupils with identical grades applying to the same department at "a leading university".
The charity said independent school applicants were more likely to have well-written statements, "filled with high-status and relevant activities".
"State school applicants, by contrast, appear to receive less help composing their statement and often struggle to draw on suitable work and life experience," it said.
'Managing a gastro pub'The report highlights one application from an 18-year-old, who lists their work experience as working "for a designer in London; as a model; on the trading floor of a London broker's firm; with my local BBC radio station; events planning with a corporate five-star country hotel; in the marketing team of a leading City law firm… and most recently managing a small gastro pub".
The charity said for state school applicants, "work-related activity is more likely to involve a Saturday job or a school visit to a business".
It said the personal statement system could be made fairer if there was a limit on the number of activities people could list and if there was more of a focus on what applicants might contribute to university life.
It also recommended that more schools and colleges helped pupils with their university applications and that more professions offered work placements to young people from middle- and low-income families.
Sutton Trust chairman Sir Peter Lampl said: "This research suggests that the personal statement further disadvantages [applicants] from low- and middle-income backgrounds. Good state schools and colleges already help their most able students apply for places in leading universities. This should become the norm."
"But admissions processes also need to change. Personal statements should be more than an excuse to highlight past advantages."
TipsUniversities say the personal statement is "only one factor" taken in to account when offering places.
Nicola Dandridge, chief executive of Universities UK, said: "The report does raise the important issue of how school type, background and access to professional networks can influence the experiences of young people.
"However, university admissions staff are highly experienced at recognising this and taking such things into account when interpreting personal statements."
Mr Jones found that although the students in the study all had the same A-level grades, 70% of those who were from independent schools went on to "a leading university" but just 50% of applicants from comprehensives and sixth-form colleges did so.
The body that manages university admissions, Ucas, gives tips on writing personal statements and warns students applications are checked for plagiarism.
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