This article will provide some SOP writing tips which will
increase your chances of getting a US University admit. Make sure you follow
these tips to write an excellent SOP to impress your admission review committee.
Some do’s and don’ts for SOP writing for US University applications
- Length of SOP – Do not exceed the maximum length of SOP provided by the Universities. Suppose your University requires maximum length to be 1200 words, make sure you write at least 1100 words, but not more than 1200 words.
- Formatting of SOP – Do not make your SOP fancy by putting unnecessary highlighters, bolds, italics and font variations or any other fancy formatting. Keep your SOP simple, professional and readable.
- How to write SOP – Read the article How to write SOP (Statement of Purpose) for US University applications for all SOP writing help. Typically SOP must contain an introductory paragraph, body and a concluding paragraph.
- Personal details in SOP – Do not mention the personal details like your name, address, phone number, email or any other details which are not relevant in your SOP. SOP must contain information related to your interest in the field of study, your achievements and your career aspirations in that particular field.
- Extra-curricular activities – If you have participated in a number of events, workshops, drama competitions, sports, etc. make sure you mention these activities. But if they are not related to your field of study, keep their length as less as possible. Don’t just say that I participated in so and so competition, mention any challenges that you faced and how you overcame those. A mere listing of the activities is not useful, why you participated and how those activities help build your character and skills is more relevant.
- Field related activities – If you have any major paper publications, paper presentations, research activities, research work, seminars, workshops, guest lectures, etc. associated to your name in your field of study make sure you write about them and how they helped improving your various skills.
- Praising University or professors – Do not praise the University that you are going to or any particular professor. The professors are well aware of the quality of teaching, infrastructure and ability of the faculty. They are interested in what is there for you in that University. Mention how the degree will help you and what are your aspirations after getting that degree. If you are interested in some research work going on, your SOP should reflect your interest in the field and the professor undertaking that research. SOP is all about YOU and not the University.
- Share you SOP –Show your SOP to your friends, relatives, family members, professors and any person that you feel like showing. Do not hesitate to do this. Take feedback from everyone. Ask for the improvements that could be made or any mistakes that you might have made. Make only those changes that you feel like making. Take what you agree with them and discard what you feel is not right. Do not ask whether you will get admit with your SOP. Nobody can answer this question, except the professors reviewing your profile.
- Keep improving your SOP – Your first draft of SOP will never be the one that you will send to Universities. Your final SOP will be a series of improvements suggested by your family members, friends, seniors, professors, peers and others. Keep improving till you get a feeling that the admission committee will like your SOP. It will take at least a month’s of effort to come up with a well-constructed SOP.
Sample SOP
To download free sample SOP, click on the following download link:
