Before the how, let's start with the why.

Why do you even need to write a Statement of purpose?

An admissions committee wants to know:‍

1. Will you do well if admitted in the program?
2. Will the program help you achieve your goals?

1 and 2 have to be true in order for you to be happy in the program. The better your application profile showcases 1 and 2, the more are your chances of admission.

Finding the odd one out:

Being on the admissions committee myself, I've seen a ton of applications flooding in, and honestly, most look pretty similar – similar GPAs, backgrounds, and activities.

But hey, in this sea of sameness, the Statement of Purpose (SOP) pops up like a superhero cape, screaming individuality! It's like a spotlight on each candidate's superpowers that make them stand out.

Imagine a student applying for a data science program. Even though their SAT scores are not super high, their SOP tells a cool story: they built a weather prediction model on their own! It shows they love solving real-world problems with data, making the committee really interested in what they can bring to the program.

In sum, in a sea of similar applications, the Statement of Purpose (SOP) stands out, spotlighting each candidate's unique strengths beyond mere SAT scores.

How does one approach writing the statement of purpose?

‍Your approach to a task significantly influences your performance.

Approach writing your Statement of Purpose (SOP) as an enjoyable and purposeful exercise. Take it step by step, treating it like a mini-autobiography. View it as a story, aiming to connect with your readers by sharing your unique narrative and aspirations.

Statement of Purpose Template

Step 1: Statement of purpose storyboarding using SOP template

The first step in writing a compelling statement of purpose (SOP) is to outline your story structure. This will help you organize your thoughts and ideas, ensuring that your SOP is clear, concise, and persuasive. Here's the SOP template:

I. Introduction

• Introduce yourself and your passion for your chosen field.
• Express your interest in the specific program or institution.

II. Journey of Interest

• Share a pivotal moment that sparked your interest.
• Elaborate on your evolving passion and key achievements.

III. Actionable Steps

• Showcase relevant research, internships, or volunteer experiences.
• Demonstrate real-world application of knowledge and skills.

IV. Achievements and Impact

• Highlight notable accomplishments and quantifiable impacts.
• Emphasize positive contributions to others or society.

V. Fit for the Program

• Clearly align your background, skills, and goals with the program.
• Demonstrate understanding of the program's focus and learning objectives.
• Articulate how you'll enrich the academic community.

VI. Bottleneck and Program Support

• Identify a knowledge or skill gap.
• Explain how the program's resources and expertise can help.
• Position the program as the ideal solution for growth.

VII. Mentorship and Research Opportunities

• Highlight professors with aligned research interests.
• Describe how their mentorship and expertise can advance your goals.
• Express eagerness to collaborate and contribute.

VIII. Conclusion

• Reiterate strong interest and confidence in success.
• Express enthusiasm for contributing to the program and field.
• Thank the admissions committee for consideration.
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Step 2: Creating the first draft of the statement of purpose

After completing your storyboard, you may have a general idea of the content for your statement of purpose (SOP), but you may not know how to write it like an expected 'SOP'.

Historically, students would search for others' statements of purpose for reference. However, this often led them to be highly influenced by the direction of someone else's statement. With AI, you now have the luxury of generating a first draft tailored to your storyboard. This initial draft provides a solid foundation for crafting an ideal SOP

GradGPT AI SOP draft maker is trained on a massive dataset of successful SOPs that have been admitted to top universities like Stanford, MIT, Yale, and more. It can generate a first draft that captures your unique story and highlights your strengths and accomplishments. To use GradGPT, simply scribble down your ideas for each section of your SOP and let the AI writer generate a first draft for you.

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Step 3: Polishing your Statement of Purpose

Once you've crafted your initial draft of the Statement of Purpose (SOP), it's time to elevate it to the next level. Now that you have a reference SOP, tailor your narrative, purpose, and sensibility to evolve the first draft. This is the stage where you can infuse your unique story, making a lasting impression on the admissions committee.

Here are some tips for refining your SOP:

Your essay needs to be readable:

Go to hemingway editor or GradGPT SOP reviewer and do bring the score to below 10:

Your story needs to have a great flow, engaging and tailored to the program:

Remove cliches, flattery and red flags highlighted by the GradGPT AI SOP reviewer

Quantify achievements with numbers:

• Identify adjectives such as "improved," "enhanced," etc.
• Replace them with specific numbers or percentages. For example, change "improved efficiency" to "increased efficiency by 15%."

Purpose should be clear & your journey should be relevant:

Step 4: Do a holistic review of your statement of purpose using AI

1. Paste your essay into the SOP reviewer
2. Fix the red flags like inaccuracies, false data, incoherence.
3. If you have less than 3 stars on critical stuff like readability, grammar, lack of purpose, then improve it.

Step 5: Send the SOP across to friends or mentors for review

Once you have the initial feedback from the AI reviewer, it's important to seek additional input from trusted friends, mentors, or professors who can provide a more personalized perspective. Share your SOP with individuals who have a strong understanding of your academic background and aspirations, and ask for their candid feedback on the following aspects:

• Clarity and Conciseness
• Emotional Connection
• Uniqueness and Personal Voice
• Overall Effectiveness

In summary:

• SOP is extremely critical to your application success.
• Creating the SOP is an enjoyable process.
• Ideate and storyboard your SOP using the shared template.
• Use tools like GradGPT to create a great first draft for the Statement of purpose.
• Polish your SOP and remove all the red flags using AI SOP reviewer.
• Get your final polished draft review by friends or colleagues.

You can also explore our AI resume reviewer, Common App AI essay prompt draft makers, and other tools available on the website. If you share GradGPT on Twitter or Discord and send the link to hello@gradgpt.com, you will receive 250 free credits for the AI tools, along with a complimentary application planner!

Wish you all the best for the applications!