Statement of Purpose

XYZ

“One learns from books and example only that, certain thing can be
done. actual learning requires that you do those things.”- Frank
Herbert
My four years of civil engineering served as an eye-opener to the vast
vista of opportunity that lies ahead. This has evoked in me an urge to
learn more and do more and thus becomes my motivation to pursue
higher studies. My eagerness to help, protect, renew and conserve the
water resources and promote sustainability by application of
technologies to address real-life problems has played a major role in
influencing me to pursue a master's in Environmental Engineering.
As, a woman in science, armed with technology, shaped by
experiences, fuelled by the ardent desire to protect my mother earth,
and humbled by the power of meaningful research, I feel pursuing
Masters from TU Delft will direct me towards achieving my passion
and goals.
My quest for effective waste management solutions was ignited by
the milestones achieved by the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan (Clean India
campaign) launched in the year 2014. I feel this campaign played a
massive role in shaping my decisions for the future. The projects like
“Namami Gange” (clean Ganga) left me with a sense of longing and
motivation to be one of those who can effectively contribute towards
it. From then on, I decided to embark on a journey to gain expertise in
the field of Environmental Engineering and pursued Civil
Engineering as my under-graduation studies from Vellore Institute of
Technology (VIT) Chennai.
My under-graduation studies played a paramount role in shaping me
as a person and also fuelled my interest in Environmental
Engineering. I endeavoured to acquire the skills of leadership,
management and research along with my academics to the best of my
abilities. Along with the gamut of core civil engineering courses, the
flexibility of the curriculum allowed me to choose elective courses
related to environmental engineering such as solid waste
management, pollution control and management, industrial waste
treatment, environmental impact assessment (EIA). Theory in these
courses was aided with project components which exposed me to the
various core concepts of environmental engineering.
To further enhance my learning, I did an internship in National
Environmental Engineering Research Institute (NEERI), Hyderabad
central zone during my summer break. My work focussed on the
surface water analysis of 4 major lakes around the city of Hyderabad.
My guide and I chose the topic that would involve lab work to
enhance my skills and further honed my proficiency in handling
apparatuses such as the spectrophotometer, the total Kjeldahl nitrogen
(Gerhardt’s apparatus) and analysis techniques of cyanide, ammonia
and open reflux method for SCOD examination along with sampling
techniques and essential safety protocols.
Recognizing my aptitude and dedication towards the subject, my
professor, Dr PC Sabumon inducted me as an undergraduate
researcher in the five-year project SUTRAM for easy water (funded
by the Department of Science and Technology (DST) Govt of India).
My area of research work focussed on sludge treatment.
My first-year research was all about the effect of pre-treatments with
ultrasonication and microwave on the varying concentrations of
sludge. I got the rare opportunity to present my results in the 10 th
International Conference - Sustainable Waste Management towards
circular economy organized by Jadavpur University and IISc
Bangalore. I had the rare honour of presenting my work as an
undergraduate student in the conference dominated by postgraduates,
Ph.D. scholars and eminent scientists. This paper is selected for
publication in Waste Management & Research (SAGE).
My aspiration to know more about energy production from biomass
led me to take up the study of the effect of pre-treatment options like
FeCl3, Granulated Nanoscale Oxyhydroxides of Fe and
ultrasonication on the anaerobic digestion of waste activated sludge. I
got an opportunity to present the promising results of my studies at
the Sustainable Energy Solutions for a Better Tomorrow conference.
This work has been published in the Materials Today: Proceedings,
Elsevier. Under the able mentorship of my professor Dr. P.C
Sabumon, I learned various lab protocols and acquired paper writing,
comprehension and presentation skills.
Managing research work with academics and other extracurriculars
taught me the most important skill of time management and
multitasking. I am happy that I could manage to continue my music
Vocal and Violin practice along with my academic schedule. I
explored my love of languages by learning German and Sanskrit.
With a view to give back to the society, I undertook the task of
teaching basic Maths and English to underprivileged students as an
outreach program . Emboldened by the experience of teaching, in my
third year, through Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation
Engineers (SPIE) student chapter VIT Chennai, I introduced a
teaching program imparting basic physics concepts to high school
students. This immensely enhanced my organizational abilities and
leadership skills enabling me to successfully become the media
coordinator for the college festival Vibrance.
Continuing with same quest, we studied the solid waste issues in the
city of Chennai and did a project themed “Smart dustbin for Chennai
city”. We studied the current practices of Municipal Solid Waste
handling around the city and the causes for garbage overflow from the
dustbins. We designed an IOT based dustbin that had garbage level
sensors that would intimate the control room. At desired level, the
garbage truck will set off through the shortest trucking route, decided
with the help of ARC GIS. This project earned us an S grade which
denotes the top 5% of the class. Furthermore, we got a chance to
represent our college in the national level design competition
CONSOLUTION held in Sathyabhama University.We finished in the
top 3.
industrial wastes, being one of the main causes of pollution, prompted
me to undertake a project that aimed to address the issue of
slaughterhouse waste in India. The project is a comprehensive
literature study of the slaughterhouse conditions in India and the
various technologies used worldwide in the treatment and
management of waste. This project is one of its kind offering
solutions encompassing circular economy. The study is due for
publishing in the journal of environment management.
my final year capstone project was a collaboration by my colleague
and I. Our work focused on establishing the best amongst the four
decentralized treatment facilities namely Membrane Bio Reactor
(MBR), Moving Bed Bio Reactor (MBBR), Sequencing Batch
Reactor (SBR) and Up flow anaerobic sludge blanket (UASB) for a
population of 10,000 in the backdrop of an educational institution. For
unbiased comparison, the primary and tertiary units of the system
remained the same for all four reactors. A basic engineering design
was made inclusive of process design, hydraulic design, structural
design of the reactors, piping and instrumentation for the four
reactors. Further, we compared the Budgetary estimation of the
costing (land area, civil, equipment and energy). I used software such
as AUTOCAD to conceptualize the plan and used IS 465 IS 3370 part
I codes to design the civil structures to arrive at the exact material
used and the cost involved. This project was well applauded and one
of the few projects to be awarded an S grade (top grade).
I’ve come to a humble conclusion that my experiences and
background have shaped me to face and adapt to challenging
situations and give my best in whatever I do. I’m confident, if
provided with the chance to do my masters in a university such as
yours with cutting edge technology, state of the art facilities,
esteemed faculties and a keenness towards research and innovation,
will help me gather the expertise to propel me towards my personal
and professional goals. In the future, I see myself as an environmental
engineer working in the area of wastewater treatment and resource
and energy recovery. I’m particularly fascinated by the work of Prof.
Dr. Ir. Merle de Kreuk. Her body of work in India with Lotus on
wastewater treatment and providing low-cost treatment options align
with my interest. I will consider myself fortunate if I get a chance to
learn under her guidance.
If I get the opportunity to pursue my master’s degree from Tu Delft, I
would opt for MSc Environmental Engineering with a specialization
in Water resource engineering. I would like to further my research in
the biological treatment of wastewater enhanced with tertiary
treatment and aim to explore the complete reusability of water with
energy reclamation. I would also like to explore the area of providing
economic and sustainable decentralized treatment facilities to
maximize the recyclability and reuse of wastewater.
Looking forwards to a fruitful association.

1) Punctuation marked in blue

2) MSc or MS?
3) Can you write a couple of lines about the culture (Germany)
that attracted you to choose the State/country
4)Justify (Ctrl+J)
5) Mention that u r among the top 10 students in your batch
6) one word about your interest in music,which would project
your personality( think about it)
* the SOP is good