<p>If anyone has time, I was looking to get some preliminary feedback on my SoP. </p>
<ul>
<li>I fear it's too autobiographical, but I think it kind of adds to the cohesion.<br></li>
<li>Also, I have some published research, but it's in a whole different branch than what I want to study, so I have to explain both parts equally</li>
<li>I don't know if I should be more specific about my research or my independent studies. The only essays I can find are </li>
<li>Some of my early semester grades were kind of low, and I was hoping my approach would casually explain them</li>
<li>I'm applying to MS in some places and PHD in others. Was planning on just changing the last paragraph, but if there's something else important, let me know.</li>
<li>It's 1200 words - probably a bit long.</li>
</ul>
<p>Anyway, if you're looking to kill a few minutes, just look it over. I want to make sure it's not completely ridiculous before I submit it to my adviser for feedback.</p>
<p>Thanks</p>
<hr>
<p>A popular author once said about writing: You can approach [it] with nervousness, excitement, hopefulness or even despair Come to it any way but lightly. Its good advice for approaching any field, and one Ive taken to heart. In fact, my decision to pursue graduate studies in MEMS seems to have come every way but lightly.</p>
<pre><code>My early undergrad years indirectly shaped this decision. Out of ten schools, Berkeley was the only one I didnt apply to as an aerospace engineer. So when their Mechanical Engineering department offered me a full merit scholarship to attend, it was hard not to believe that Mech E. was some sort of calling. Fated or not, it was the right choice. Sitting in on an upper division aerodynamics lecture early on, I realized that aerospace wasnt what I wanted to do with my life.
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<p>The only problem was that no interest was rising up to take its place. While my classmates were excited about learning skills for their dream jobs in automotive industries and design, I could barely muster the effort to do my homework and maintain the GPA for my scholarship. During these first few semesters I developed a strong interest in non-engineering pursuits such as political science and writing. At one point, I even considered switching to pursue an academic or federal career as a political scientist. </p>
<pre><code>Still, I couldnt bring my self to go through with it. For one, I would lose the funding and that would be painful. But even more than that, I didnt dislike engineering. I had just lost sight of where I saw myself in the field. When I returned to school my junior year, I took a position as research assistant in the biomechanics laboratory.
The research was my second wind. My assignment was to assemble and process high resolution vertebral models to help understand how osteoporotic bone failed. With any luck, the results would validate an experimental in-vitro procedure for diagnosing osteoporosis. The study was cutting-edge and as far as we knew, no one had used such high resolution models before. This was the sort of work I could see myself doing in the future.
A year and a half at the lab has taught me, if nothing else, that research takes time. Only recently were preliminary results from two studies I coauthored accepted for presentation at a 2007 conference. Hopefully, one of these studies will be at a stage we can publish before I graduate. Still, the process has prepared me for all the other rigors of graduate research. I have had to learn numerous computer skills just to advance my project, from writing scripts with Python to programming in C. Ive learned how to minimize downtime when processing large models. Now Im learning how to write code to visualize our finite element models under loading. Through group meetings, Ive learned how to present my work and explain it to my colleagues and superiors.
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<p>Most importantly, Ive learned how to handle the unexpected. Even with the best planning and theory, experiments often yield unexpected results. Troubleshooting is perhaps the most crucial skill any scientist can acquire, as your anomalies can produce the most revealing insights. Anyone can get angry when an experiment goes wrong; it takes a good researcher to realize hes got penicillin growing in his Petri dish.</p>
<p>Ironically, it was a political science class that solidified my engineering future. While researching global oil production for an essay, I stumbled upon a site mentioning something called peak oil that opened with the line: Dear reader, Modern civilization, as we know it, is coming to an end. Faced with a doomsday theory, I did what any sensible person would do: snort and hit the back button on my browser. Yet, something about that line stuck with me, and a week later, I went back. The site outlined not only just how addicted modern society was to dwindling supplies of oil, but also systematically dismembered the current scalability of nearly every alternative fuel source. Along the way, it offered quotes and articles about energy scarcity written by such crackpots as Alan Greenspan, the president of CalTech and Nobel winner Richard Smalley. </p>
<p>I was a man obsessed that semester, working on my bone research at the lab, then coming home, scribbling down some answers to homework and spending the rest of my night poring over statistical formulas to analyze oil production charts. An optimist by nature, I quickly switched my focus to exploring solutions. My research led me to discover CdSe quantum dots tiny tunable photovoltaic converters that held great promise for absorbing the full spectrum of visible(and possibly infrared) light. It was, in short, my first technical encounter with nanotechnology.</p>
<p>I signed up for the Intro to Nanotechnology course. Through lectures, guest speakers and journal articles, the class thrust me to the technical forefront of the field. There was a refreshing attitude of go-after-whatever-you-want in the class, highlighted by the independent study that made up the bulk of our grade. I convinced my group to examine quantum dot solar cell technology. It was exhilarating just reading through published research, coming up with ideas regarding assembly and heterostructure that even the leading minds hadnt considered. There were many questions to which professors I talked to simply said, Its possible, but we dont know yet. </p>
<p>I continued on to the Intro to MEMS course the semester afterward. Here we spent more time on theory and fabrication methodology. My group is investigating another important component to energy: storage. By exploiting the Debye length at the nanoscale, we are hoping that we can come up with an efficient salt-water battery based off electro-osmotic flow. Going to Berkeley has granted me the opportunity to discuss the project with the professor and graduate students who did the initial research, teaching me more than a paper ever could. This experience is what made me seek out the similar environment offered by _______.</p>
<p>From solar and fuel cells, to batteries and power lines, nanotechnology has the potential to make a huge difference in the energy industry. Its hardly surprising that _____ has taken a leading role in shaping this branch of the nano-field. My research experience has provided me with the fundamental skills and experience to persevere in any area. My coursework and independent studies have given me the background and ideas to conduct original investigations. From looking over research sites, Prof. <strong><em>s work with _</em></strong> and Prof. _<strong><em>s study on _</em></strong> caught my interest the most.</p>
<p>In all likelihood, I will probably continue on to a Ph.D. Although I enjoy research, my plans are now leaning heavily towards the industrial side. While fundamental research is important, someone has to bring the ideas to the marketplace. The next decade or two will be a formative period for the nanotechnology industry and I would like to be there to help shape it, scientifically and commercially. I have not forgotten the breadth of my experience at Berkeley, and still pursue non-engineering interests, along with my studies. As N.W. Dougherty famously said, The ideal engineer is a composite ... He is not a scientist, he is not a mathematician, he is not a sociologist or a writer; but he may use the knowledge and techniques of any or all of these disciplines in solving engineering problems. My path to nano-engineering was not a simple one, but in retrospect, every stage of my journey has gotten me one step closer towards being this ideal engineer.</p>