<p>i was wondering if somoene could give me some advice on writing the POS. almost everyone who has mentinoed grad admissions here has mentioned the POS and how, if done correctly, it actually has the ability to help one overcome other defects in grad admissions.</p>
<p>my problem is that i'd always figured that everyone who applise to grad school (at least for the most part) has a good SOP. so how do i really make mine stand out? are there any good resources to look to for this kind of thing? professional services i should seek out? anything else?</p>
<p>There are a number of books, some of which will be available in your school's career services office. Your goal is to explain how you are the perfect fit for the program you're applying to. The short summary is:</p>
<p>Do:</p>
<p>1) Start with a little background material about you and how you decided to go to grad school.
2) Tell what you want to do, including research you've already done
3) explain how that fits with the target program
4) If possible, name professors who do work relating to 1) and how their work fits in</p>
<p>Do not:</p>
<p>1) Say "I have always wanted to be an XYZ" (because you haven't)
2) Tell the program how wonderful it is (they know better than you)
3) Explain the subject you want to study (chances are the Classics department has a pretty good idea of what the Second Sophistic is, for example)
4) mention ECs unless they are DIRECTLY related to your field of study.</p>
<p>Finally, the biggest DOs of all:</p>
<p>Do have your advisor(s) read your SOP(s) and Do take their advice.</p>
<p>Professor X - what do you like to see in a SOP?</p>
<p>You can also Google "statement of purpose" or "personal statement" and find samples. There are companies out there that have examples online, but I found samples from university pages more useful. For example, I found a very good website from Berkeley that had samples within my field. Do try to find samples that are within your field, as there are subtle differences from field to field. And the suggestion of SOP books is an excellent one. Also, livejournal has a thread on SOPs where people make comments.</p>
<p>William C provides excellent advice.</p>
<p>In my field, a good SOP:</p>
<p>Provides solid information about the level of the applicant's preparation for graduate study in the SPECIFIC field of intended specialization, drawing special attention to any factors that may not be obvious by looking at the transcript. For example, research papers in the student's intended field of specialization, written in the context of undergraduate courses; linguistic capabilities that are not evidenced by coursework; archival research done, etc.</p>
<p>Illustrates the applicant's familiarity and facility with current method and theory in the field. Most often, this is done by specifying which theorists have been most influential upon the applicant (making sure these theories or methods are appropriate to the applicant's intended field of specialization). The writing sample should buttress this. If it does not, an explanation is needed.</p>
<p>Demonstrates that the applicant has done her/his research on my program by indicating which faculty persons in my program would be of greatest value to the applicant, and WHY.</p>
<p>BRIEFLY explains any "blips" on the transcript, or other anomalies in the application.</p>
<p>^^ How exactly do you write in the bleminshes in the SOP without seemingly throwing the reader off because all of sudden you're talking about something else?</p>
<p>I like to think of it less as briefly trying to gloss over any blips, and more as something that ties your other materials (transcripts, work or research history, publications) together with your goals and your situation: something that creates a person out of the pieces of paper, and in that context can explain anything less desirable in context.</p>
<p>To give an example, I had an undergrad in architecture, was applying for graphic design, had some nighttime coursework at a school other than my undergrad school, and had achieved poor grades in structures. So someone looking at the other parts of my application might wonder why I was making the switch, and maybe be concerned about my GPA if they hadn't noticed which specific courses were bringing it down. By explaining my reasons for changing fields, and what I had done to prepare myself for graduate coursework in the new field, and talking about my quest for design over the technical aspects, I managed to tie that all together into something the reader could easily grasp, and hopefully make them double check my transcript and notice that the courses I excelled in were those based in design and theory (which is what they were mainly concerned with), and those dragging me down were technical and not applicable to the field I was applying for.</p>
<p>ticklemepink,</p>
<p>SOPs are often not seamless documents, but just as in a research paper, a transitional sentence when moving from topic to topic can help to demonstrate writing skills.</p>
<p>And I am certainly not advocating "glossing over" any blips. I am instead recommending that an applicant should directly address any blips, briefly and clearly.</p>