Statement Of Purpose (SOP) - How To Write An SOP For MS In Ireland
A Statement of Purpose (SOP) is a mandatory requirement in several universities abroad. A perfectly crafted SOP (also called a Motivational Letter or Statement of Intent) brings out your character and personality, your strengths and weaknesses, and highlights your academic and professional accomplishments in a personal tone that an LOR or CV cannot do. Here, you pen down your tale in your own words. It is the only non-official record in the application that carries up to 30% weightage in deciding your admission. You need to point out what makes you a suitable choice for the university and program you are applying to.
Statement of Purpose (SOP) - How to write an SOP for MS in Ireland
A Statement of Purpose (SOP) is a mandatory requirement in several universities abroad. A perfectly crafted SOP (also called a Motivational Letter or Statement of Intent) brings out your character and personality, your strengths and weaknesses, and highlights your academic and professional accomplishments in a personal tone that an LOR or CV cannot do. Here, you pen down your tale in your own words. It is the only non-official record in the application that carries up to 30% weightage in deciding your admission. You need to point out what makes you a suitable choice for the university and program you are applying to.
Table of contents
Highlights
- Every Statement of Purpose has to be exceptionally unique.
- This is the document which presents your dreams and aspirations as a person to the admission officials.
- Your Statement of Purpose must reflect your individuality, and also display your linguistic skills and mastery in communicating thoughts.
- A well-drafted Statement of Purpose gives you an edge over all the other students applying to the same program.
- Your SOP has to be free from jargon and grammatical errors.
Before You Start
- Check the Course Requirements to see if there is a topic that you need to particularly write about in your SOP.
- Do not exceed the word limit for your Statement of Purpose. Some universities mention such specifications under their application guidelines. Generally, SOPs are 1-2 pages long.
- Never to refer other SOPs before completing yours. Familiarize yourself with the standard SOP structure and make a rough draft. This prevents you from using cliché phrases in your SOP.
Requirements
- Your CV
- Microsoft Word
- Grammarly and Hemingway editor
Step by step Guide
Your Statement of Purpose is your story, and no one can tell your story better than you. This guide should give you a proper framework with which you can build your story to create an impression.
- Read through your Curriculum Vitae for major points that can be mentioned in your SOP. Be careful so as not to make your SOP a repetition of your CV.
- Remember - all your academic information and experiences have already been mentioned in your CV. You do not have to mention them all over again in your SOP.
- Think about a clear break-point, the one that has driven you to set afoot on your current track and is a noteworthy reason for you to pursue this master’s degree.
- Now that you have enough material to begin with, sit down and write your story. Do not hesitate to write your Statement of Purpose with emotion.
- Get your achievements and grades to speak for you and recite the story behind them. Bring life to your work. Just let it out in a continuous flow, you can edit it later.
- Have someone read through your prepared document; to get a different point of view and their say on it. Check (i) Is the text coherent and easy to follow? (ii) Does it reflect your personality? (iii) Does it bring out the right spirit? Make corrections accordingly.
- At this stage, you can look at the various SOP samples online. This is just to see if your document is on par with the competition. You may also choose to include/exclude some points based on this review.
- If your university expects you to answer any specific questions, make sure that you have addressed everything in the question. e.g. What motivates you for this domain? Why our university?
- Do not exceed the word limit. This is essential and shows that you are capable of following instructions to the word.
- Now do the final editing. You can use free online tools like Hemingway editor and Grammarly.
- Lastly, ‘Justify’ your SOP and insert the document header and footer..
- Save it as a PDF. This will instantly make your SOP look far more professional.
Useful Tips
- Writing an excellent Statement of Purpose takes a lot of effort and deep thinking. Make sure you have sufficient time to make, edit and proofread your document.
- Due to the large number of applications that most universities get, 3-5 minutes is the maximum time allotted to admission officers to analyze your SOP. If your SOP is just like that of the others, it will not get their attention.
- If you are planning in applying to more than one university, make your Statement of Purpose sound like it has been written exclusively for their university. Do your homework and be smart about which information to mention/omit based on the university profile.
- Different universities they may have different accomplishments or be ranked by various standards and accredited by many organizations. Including these details in your Statement of Purpose would give the impression that you have done your homework and are interested in the university.
