How to write an effective Statement of Purpose (SOP)?

Every year, tens of thousands of serious applicants apply for the master's program abroad. While almost all of them have their reasons, only a few of them have well-defined and realistic aspirations. And just in case you fall under the latter category, having your goals outlined is one thing, and putting them into words in the form of an SOP is a different ball-game altogether. Hence, an SOP is that fine line of difference that is widely used by the admission committees to determine if you'll be bringing any diversity to their batch and if at all you'll be the right fit for their program.

While your academic record, exam scorecards, and academic transcripts are inherently objective, an SOP is the only genuinely subjective aspect of your application. An SOP is vital because of two reasons. Firstly, it could be a make-or-break component of increasing your chances of getting into a particular foreign university. Secondly, it gives the admission committee a fair amount of idea about your overall skills, knowledge, experience, etc.

Writing an SOP could become quite a cumbersome task at times. More often than not, we tend to start writing it with great zeal, lose interest somewhere in the middle, and then try to finish it somehow without following any proper structure. Therefore, apart from the quality of content in your SOP, it is crucial to develop a standard structure. We'll get back to that in a bit, but before that, let's talk about what an SOP is.

A statement of purpose (SOP), in the context of applying to a graduate school, is an essay that tells the admission committee who you are, why you do you want to get into the particular college, why you're the right candidate, and how will this program help you in the future.

The general format is similar to any other piece of academic writing. You should use:

· 12 point Times New Roman font

· 1-inch margins on all sides

· 1.5 line spacing

· Header for other relevant details

Ideally, one should go about writing an SOP following a 5-paragraph approach. Want to know what to include in these paragraphs? Let's dig a little deeper.

Paragraph 1: To start your SOP, you should first introduce yourself briefly by stating your background and mentioning an overview of your goals and objectives. Your introduction should be relevant to the specific program that you are targeting. For instance, if you're applying to a business school, it's irrelevant to talk about your passion for cooking or anything else that has nothing to do with business studies. Maybe, it would be better for you to start with something like how actively you participated in the entrepreneurship cell of your college or how well you developed your business acumen watching Shark Tank. Mention how these experiences intrigued you more and more towards pursuing business studies. These are mere examples, and to be able to relate your interests and goals to the specific program you're applying to, you must look back at certain events in your life that explicitly made you choose the program. This is not easily conceivable all the time and can only be done after a lot of self-introspection.

Paragraph 2: In the second paragraph, you should discuss why this specific area of study interests you. Having mentioned your goals and its relevance to the program in the first paragraph, you should utilize this paragraph to talk about your inclination towards the field. It helps the admission committee understand your passion and drive towards the particular program.

Paragraph 3: You should mention all your experiences in the form of jobs, internships, projects, etc., in this paragraph. Explain in brief what skills you have gained during these professional pursuits and how they have prepared you for the program. Remember, the more direct the program's experience, the stronger your profile becomes for the specific specialization. In case you don't have any direct experience as such, brainstorm and align your expertise with your chosen program.

For example, if you are transitioning from a Technical background to a Management Program and do not have previous work experience, you can mention the managerial skills you gained while working in a technical role. You can discuss how you have developed your communication as well as leadership skills while learning data analysis and gaining industrial exposure.

Paragraph 4: Here, you can mention any specific challenge you have overcome while working. You can also add a few accomplishments here to present your candidature to the committee. Or, if you think that there is any other information that the admission committee should know about, you can include it here. For instance, if you feel that your CGPA is on a lower end than the requirement of the program, you can briefly mention the reason.

Paragraph 5: In this paragraph, you should briefly describe your long-term goals and aspirations. Needless to reiterate, it has to be related to the specific program you are applying to. Try to paint a picture for the reader to convey that this particular program is the perfect step to live the life of your dreams. It should reflect you as a goal-oriented individual to the admission committee, who has reasons and motivation to apply.

Here are some general tips!

● Keep in mind that your SOP has to be your Unique Selling Point (USP), which distinguishes you from the crowd. Authenticity and relevance is the key to every good SOP.

● You should be able to deliver your ideas effectively as well as economically. Be crisp and concise in your writing. Universities usually mention the word limit/ page limit for the SOP. Ensure you stick to that strictly.

● Remember, admission officers have hundreds or even thousands of applications to read, so make sure your SOP draws their attention and makes them want to continue reading.

So, in a nutshell, we can conclude that writing an SOP is a very critical aspect in itself and, if executed properly, can do all sorts of wonders as far as your Masters is concerned. Following the format and these guidelines will help you develop a very structured but a generic SOP. But that might not translate into an admit ALL the time. With our experience, we have observed that over the years, the admission committees stress more on diversity. Necessarily, the more unique you and your SOP are, the better are your chances of securing an admit! Therefore, after drafting, it's ALWAYS advisable to have a second opinion on that from your teachers, seniors, or proof-readers.

Now at this juncture, you might be wondering as to how does a perfect SOP look like? Well, just like anything else in this world, there's nothing like an ideal SOP! However, having walked through all these miles ourselves, we, at Rubeus Consultancy, have seen what the colleges want. We have seen different kinds of SOPs that work out for some top-notch universities like CMU, NYU, etc., and also the ones that don't.

Assuming that you're someone who has been striving hard to tick all the boxes so that it will boost your chances of securing an admit from your dream university big time, you're exactly at the right place! In case you need any professional second-opinion on your SOP or any other assistance related to that, please feel free to reach out to us at rubeusconsultancy@gmail.com with your preferred time, and we will schedule a free counselling call. Happy Writing!