<p>Is a general approach enough for a good statement? E.g. "the school has good resources", etc.</p>
<p>Or should I say something specific, like "I think professors like Prof. X and Prof. Y will be helpful for my research blah blah blah".
Problems with this:
- most schools have a ton of prof.s to look through. Should I spend 8 hours tediously shifting through all of them and selecting, given that there is even enough info about them posted?
- also, how would I narrow down my interests to a prof. teaching a specific thing if my interests in the field are currently broad?</p>
<p>Yes. Programs want to know that you have taken the time to research them, and this is one way to prove it. Don’t worry about your broad interests – unless they are too broad, that is. Pick three professors who are doing work that interests you. Those profs should fit what you’ve already stated in your SOP, but they don’t have to be doing the same kind of research. </p>
<p>Most students have an SOP that is used across the board, with the final paragraph different for each school.</p>
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<p>An important distinction: you should look at what they are researching, not what they are teaching.</p>
<p>Are you applying to PhD or Master’s programs? If Master’s, are you considering thesis-based or coursework-only types?</p>
<p>It should be specific to each program. Modifying only the last paragraph is considered a “kiss of death” in grad school admissions and successful applicants typically do more than that level of change between schools, although a broad template is good to have is it will save you time.
As for your second question, keep your SOP professional. I’m not entirely sure what you mean by “conservative” as that term can have many different meanings to different people. Your SOP is sort of your cover letter. Think of it that way if need be. It’s there to sell you to the program. Being a bit creative may be effective w some schools and depts but not others. Considering where and what you’re applying for.</p>
<p>@apumic: You’re exaggerating. I don’t know about your field, but in computer science or engineering in general, it is perfectly fine to modify only the last paragraph. In the word of a stanford grad student:</p>
<p>*"Should I customize my statement for each school?</p>
<p>Yes, if you want, but not much. The only part that should be customized is the paragraph (probably the last one) where you mention which professors or projects at that school interest you. There is no need to suck up to the school by saying how it’s such an esteemed institution or how it’s world-famous for this kind of research, blah blah blah. If the school is famous for something, I’m sure that they already know that. Just cut out the **** to leave more room for real content. (It’s perfectly fine to not customize, either, if you don’t feel like doing so.)"*
[Philip</a> Guo - Advice for preparing to apply and actually applying to science Ph.D. programs](<a href=“http://www.stanford.edu/~pgbovine/grad-school-app-tips.htm]Philip”>http://www.stanford.edu/~pgbovine/grad-school-app-tips.htm)</p>
<p>Apumic, you’re wrong about the need to write a different SOP for each university. The statement of purpose should be about you and your preparation/goals. That should not change from school to school. The final paragraph (or paragraphs) should show why you and that particular school are a good match, and it should be consistent with the rest of the SOP. If the main part of the SOP needs to be changed, then either your interests are too broad or you are applying indiscriminately.</p>
<p>The programs want to learn about the applicant, not about how strong their program is.</p>
<p>Ilikedrit, you don’t want to get so specific that you pick out only one prof to work with. I suggest you list three who have specialized in areas that interest you; however, with a master’s program, you might not even have to do that much. It might be sufficient to list a particular strength in the department without naming specific profs – I don’t know.</p>
<p>I’m finding that I am changing my SOP more than one or last paragraph between schools. This is due a lot to 1. some schools i want to get into a lot more than others 2. the research that appeals to me is different so i have to modify first parts of the SOP but more than that, 3. some of my statements have to be ~500, while most ~1000, some ~1300 and yet others can be 2500. Clearly that’s more than one paragraph. But the main outline is there, sometimes I just cut out the extra, sometimes I leave it in.</p>
<p>MWFN: One school I’m applying to is one of my top choices at the moment and the lab rotations in one of the depts are optional and in another you can do just two . The uni has one prof who I reallly want to work with (cross-appointed in those depts). So I am wondering, is it okay to focus most of my time spent talking about fac research on that? There are some other interesting people, but this particular faculty member stands out and matches my interests by a mile more than others. I’m worried this is becoming a bad thing.</p>
<p>While you can focus on the research of that one prof, it’s dangerous to give an all-or-nothing impression. Demonstrate that you could and would work with other profs. That particular PI might not want to take you on, or he/she might be advocating for another applicant that would make yours without a champion. Remember that admissions decisions are made by committee. </p>
<p>The SOP is kinda tricky because you must be specific enough with your interests to show that you know the field but broad enough to suggest flexibility. The adcom will want evidence that you’d be happy even if that PI left or didn’t have room for you in his lab.</p>
<p>As for adjusting length, yes, you do have to modify your SOP for specific applications. Sometimes you have to break it up to insert in separate question fields – for instance, your interests might belong in one and your research experience in another. That’s different from re-tooling your narrative for each school.</p>
<p>That’s what I’m doing, just modifying the last paragraph, which is about 3 sentences long and lists a few profs that I think would work well with my research plans, and also a class or two I am interested in taking.</p>
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<p>Architecture, MArch I to top programs. By creative I would mean going so far as using extended analogies and even messing around with fonts and crap throughout the paper. It really depends on the personality of the admissions committee whether or not they would like this stuff. Some might like it but some might treat it as a tacked-on gimmick or a call for attention, and want something more concise after all the statements they have to read. Then again, it’s something different from the ordinary and they might welcome that. It’s hard to tell without knowing the staff. But I’m guessing the safe thing to is to be professional and stick with a more generic letter? I’m just afraid my letter is more likely to get glossed over in this case: a superficial read and then tossed in the bin with the rest of them.</p>
<p>OP, your plan about how much to customize is right on. I would go with the more conservative/professional letter: your file is judged on its whole contents, not the cover letter/SoP. The recommendation letters, test scores, and research statement (portfolio for architecture? I’m in a very different field) are all at least as important. Often the statement is not even read carefully unless the other materials put you ‘over the bar.’ So don’t give them a reason to toss your file away when you get that far.</p>