Helping Your Applicants Write a Strong Statement of Purpose

1. It is one of the most critical pieces of a graduate application. So the student should use
their 1 2 pages wisely! Grammar and spelling should be perfect.
2. It is important for the document to be forward looking and not focused too much on what
the student has already done we can see that from the transcripts and other documents
sent with the application.
3. The document should quickly outline the students experience, background and education
with a focus on how that affects the goals for future academic endeavors.
4. The student should in some detail outline specific areas of research and study goals they
have for the specific institution they are applying for. This is a good place to show that
the student has done their research and identified some professors doing research in their
areas of interest and how they might contribute if admitted.
5. The more specific students can be regarding the department, professors they would like to
work with, etc. the better their chances since it demonstrates they have done some
research and feel strongly about the institution.
6. Examples of strong and weak Statement of Purpose are linked below.