For the past few years, I have been working with international students to help them navigate university applications around the world. Within the process, an important element is the statement of purpose. Writing a solid statement of purpose that highlights an applicant’s past achievements and future ambitions requires a lot of work and can make or break an application.
Any basic university application includes academic transcripts, work/volunteering experience, letters of recommendation and a statement of purpose. The admission committee looks at all of these different parts to decide whether the applicant is a good fit for the program and university. All are important, but the statement of purpose is unique because it can be the one that sways a decision.
The statement of purpose is an opportunity for applicants to create a narrative of who they really are. It is a way to put all the moving parts together and create a compelling story to convince the admissions committee that the applicant should be admitted.
To help my students, I often share the statements of purpose that I submitted when I applied to graduate school to give them an idea of how they can create their own narrative and put their best foot forward.
I personally went through the process of university applications a few years ago when I was considering going to graduate school. On creating my application, I wrote several drafts for my statements of purpose. It was an introspective journey where I had to really question myself and why I wanted to go to graduate school.
I applied to three different universities and would like to share my statements of purpose to help anyone who is navigating university applications.
Sharing is caring. With that said, I hope this is useful to anyone writing their statements of purpose!
Statement of Purpose for Master of Science in Education in Learning Sciences and Technologies at University of Pennsylvania Graduate School of Education (Accepted)
Statement of Purpose for Master of Arts in Instructional Technology and Media at Teachers College, Columbia University (Accepted)
Statement of Purpose for Master of Education in Learning Design, Innovation, and Technology at Harvard Graduate School of Education (Rejected)