<p>I'm currently a junior in Electrical Engineering at Purdue University. And I'm planning on applying to grad schools next year. So far, things are working out really well. My grades are great, I love electrical engineering. Research is going well too, got published as third author last year in a small paper. On top of that, my research advisor just told me he's going to assign me a more challenging project this semester, one which requires graduate level expertise. So I think one LOR is going to be pretty good too.</p>
<p>And I do like the field I'm doing research in (computational nanoelectronics). There's just one thing I'm worried about. Electrical engineering is a pretty broad field and I haven't had the chance to experience a lot of it; mainly due to the fact most of my courses have been very theoretical so far. I plan on taking courses in signal processing, computer engineering and vlsi next year. So I'll be taking those courses while I prepare to apply for graduate school.</p>
<p>What should I do if I find out that I like signal processing a lot while I'm in the process of applying to grad school? Don't get me wrong, I really like doing research. And I like nanoelectronics as well. But I feel like I haven't explored all my options yet. I want to see what MEMS and experimental nanotech are all about as well and same with perhaps signal processing. </p>
<p>And I've heard that the best SoPs are those which clearly indicate what field they want to go into. In fact, I think Purdue actually requires you to choose a field. Will it hurt me if I state in my SoP I wouldn't mind working in this or that field as well?</p>
<p>I can’t talk from experience since I’m still an undergrad also. I was talking to one of my professors the other day though (who happens to have gotten his PhD in EE from Purdue) and he told me that he had no idea what field he wanted to go into when he applied to grad schools. I’m not sure if that’s typical though.</p>
<p>Maybe it is just my university but I feel like a lot of students don’t know what they want while they are applying to grad school… I think the trick with the statement of purpose is just to be completely honest while still seeming very strongly dedicated to your convictions. I applied to very different programs (from international security to international finance) and I made it clear that I wanted to keep my options open, but I always concentrated on the areas that I was most interested in during the letters. So I think I would state clearly which field you are leaning toward the most, while at the same time state that you are open to other opportunities. I haven’t got the results back yet… so maybe I am wrong… but I gave my letters to the career service woman at my school and she seemed to think they were appropriate… so hopefully it works. </p>
<p>A lot of people do research in undergraduate that is different from the research they do on the graduate level. I worked on child motor development and motivation in educational psychology as an undergrad. As a graduate student, I’m studying identity and sexuality and HIV prevention. One applies to the other, but they’re vastly different fields.</p>
<p>The key in your statement of purpose is to sound focused and mature, while still flexible enough to allow some movement. You should state a solid area of research that is specific enough to be understood but vague enough that you indicate that you are open to moving around within the field. If the fields aren’t too completely different, you could just indicate that you are interested in doing research in computational nanoelectronics and signal processing. You do need to clearly indicate a field. It is not a good idea to name more than two disparate areas because then you sound unfocused, and don’t say “I’m open to anything!” or “I’m open to many opportunities in research!” because then you sound really unfocused. Graduate school is essentially an exercise in studying pretty much the same thing for 4-7 years. In fact, it is a far better idea for you to write that you are interested only in computational nanoelectronics and expound upon that, with the full intent of exploring some other areas of research once you get to the school. There’s nothing wrong with that and it’s more or less expected within a certain range.</p>
<p>You don’t have to know the title of your dissertation going in, but you do need to show that you have enough focus to complete the degree. Saying “I am open to any kind of research” is a red flag to professors; they will think that you will spend precious years flitting from advisor to advisor and project to project, never finishing.</p>