What is a Statement of Purpose and How to Write It?

When applying to a foreign university, you must submit a Statement of Purpose (SOP). SOP reflects your personality to the Admissions Committee (Ad Com) highlighting core competencies that are not reflected in your academic scorecards. Check out what an SOP is and how to write one along with a sample in this article.

If you are planning to study abroad you must have come across the term SOP as part of admission requirements. So, what is SOP as per your understanding, and why is it needed? SOP is an essay and an essential document which gives your perspective on your academic background, long term and short term goals along with some key achievements in the past. The SOP is written formally, in a strict word limit and in a set structure. SOP format may vary slightly based on course or university of study. Your SOP is customised as per your experiences and it is suggested that it is written in one's own words.

Also there are certain rules like you cannot use third person while writing your SOP. You can refer to the guidelines of SOP followed by reading some samples before starting your essay. Keep certain check points ready before submitting it. You will get all SOP related information in this article including a sample format that is universally followed. So check it out now. 

What is a Statement of Purpose?

A statement of purpose is an essay which highlights academic and professional achievements along with future goals and reasons for choosing a course or university. This is written in an essay format and is required for admission abroad. A statement of purpose is also a specialised essay. It includes the applicant's characteristics, such as their educational background, goals, aspirations and reasons for pursuing a degree at the chosen university or course at the undergraduate or graduate level. Plus forms as an essential part of the application process to study abroad.

How to Structure a Statement of Purpose (SOP)?

A statement of purpose is a structured essay which is written in paragraphs. Each paragraph holds a meaning and you have to draft your SOP based on it. Statement of purpose format plays a major role in this. So when you start writing your statement of purpose you must follow paragraph by paragraph instructions:

• Paragraph 1 is the Introduction, where you introduce yourself and talk about your course interest briefly.
• Paragraph 2 is Academic Background where you discuss your academic background, accomplishments to date and future goals. 
• Paragraph 3 is about Research Experience. If you were involved in any research, then this is the paragraph where you will talk about it.
• Paragraph 4 is Work Experience where you can talk about your professional experience if you had any. 
• Paragraph 5 includes Why this course and here you highlight your motivation for enrolling for that course. Cover potential knowledge and experience you might pick up that will help you in achieving your objectives.
• Paragraph 6 is about Career Goals and you outline your career objectives. After completing this course, your immediate aim, top employers followed by mid-term goals within course completion.
• Paragraph 7 is where you talk about Why this University? Write this section where you are able to persuade the AdComs of your suitability for your objectives and your alignment with its vision and mission. You can talk about research projects, course curricula, faculty names (a crucial factor), and activities unique to the university.
• Paragraph 8 is your Conclusion. So here you sum up the key points and conclude the SOP. Show you desire and preparedness to enrol in the selected course and mention you are capable of taking all challenges.

What should you include in each paragraph? How long should each paragraph be and what are key points for creating an exemplary SOP?
Download Shiksha’s Sample Guideline for SOP and curate your SOPs like a pro!

How to Write a Statement of Purpose?

If you are starting with you applications abroad soon surely you must be wondering how do I write a statement of purpose? To answer your query, here are some tips on how to start a statement of purpose writing along with what all you must include when drafting it.

Think and Gather Your Thoughts: 

This part of SOP writing is referred to as introspection. When discussing introspection, consider all the significant events that moulded your character and helped you become who you are now.

• You can begin by considering your volunteer work, professional experiences, academic achievements, reasons for selecting the course and long term goals.
• During this process, you could experience events that change your life, such as receiving public criticism for your academic performance and being motivated to study harder.
• List everything, then collaborate to create a strategy.

Research: 

Do thorough research of the course, college and its achievements. You have to be assured of why you decided to attend that particular university and pursue your chosen subject of study. Even if you plan to change your academic field after receiving your Bachelor's, there must be a good reason for doing so. Your Statement of purpose should include your research on the course and university and concise and understandable arguments. 

Draft: 

Prepare a proper structure and then fill in the details. Before everything check what to include in your SOP. The statement of purpose template is available you can check and start drafting your SOP: 

• Professional and personal background and interests must be a part of your statement of purpose, 

• Relevance of the chosen course and University is equally an important part of the statement of purpose, 

• A logical connection between the above and your future goals and aspirations must be added in the essay, 

• Intention to contribute to the University, community, and society at large should also make it in your SOP. 

• Plus, how can short term goals best lead towards accomplishing long term career goals is an important aspect of inclusion in statement of purpose.  

Review: 

Once you have drafted your SOP, the final step is to review it. You statement of purpose layout should be in sync with instructions given to you. Apart from this:

• Go back to the list you created initially and check whether you have covered all the points in your SOP. 
• Understand what not to include in your SOP. Eliminate any extra information that has no relation to the info you have provided.
• It will take multiple readings and reviews to develop a final draft.

Before taking professional services, make sure to get your SOP reviewed by an unbiased family member, colleague, or friend. 

Key Components of SOP (Statement of Purpose)

When formatting a statement of purpose ensure that all of these components are included in your statement of purpose before you make your final submissions:

• A statement of purpose must cover your goals, the job route you have chosen thus far, and your academic progress.  

• SOP should also include your reasons for selecting the course or university and your plan for using it to accomplish your objectives. 

• Your background, academic achievements, financial background and professional experiences if any should also be included. 

• The statement of purpose must also include details about the extracurricular activities the applicant has been involved in. 

• If involved in research do mention in SOPs about it and mention what you worked on (research/non-research). 

• SOPs can also include hobbies and interests if there a question about the applicant specifically.  

The content of your SOP will solely depend on the university’s requirements. The mantra is to adhere to the statement or question that the university has presented.

Why Statement of Purpose is Important?

Given that an SOP shows an applicant’s qualifications for the program and distinguishes applicants from other applicants, a Statement of Purpose is one of the most significant application materials for admissions to programs abroad. Some reasons why an SOP is an essential document for admissions abroad to get a letter of enrollment are as follows:

• SOP helps Ad Coms understand a candidate's goals, motivations for selecting a specific professional path, academic background, previous curricular and extracurricular activities, present activities and plans.
• A candidate's selection for admission is based on several variables and a strong SOP is one of them. A compelling and engaging statement of purpose not only keeps the Ad Coms hooked but also gives them a sneak peek into the applicant's skills and experiences.  
• Those with low GPA scores can acknowledge it straightforwardly on their SOP and increase admission chance by briefly stating the reasons and circumstances.
• Transcripts and mark sheets are for formal checks. Whereas, an SOP is where the applicants write about their achievements and aspirations. This is why the statement of purpose is essential. 

The Statement of Purpose allows applicants to pen down their future goals and aspirations, in turn this helps Ad Coms determine if applicants are suitable for admission to the chosen program.

How Long Should a Statement of Purpose be?

SOP should not be longer than 800 words and in most exceptional case not beyond 1000 words. SOP should be written on two one sided A4 page, unless otherwise specified. Applicants must ensure SOP is in a standard font size and formatting. Not all fonts are permitted, there will be restrictions for use here. Along with the word limit you should note the formatting of a statement of purpose - 

• Serif fonts like TNR, Ariel or Calibri, 11 point font
• Normal margins
• A4 page
• Single spaced
• Use correct punctuation (check the importance of punctuation in your essays)

What to Include in an SOP (Statement of Purpose)?

Based on the statement of purpose format you can identify some important things that needs to be included. The mantra is to directly answer the question that the university has given and include relevant information in your SOP. Essays focusing on specific questions or just a mission statement are acceptable to universities.

• Cover short and long-term goals
• Job route chosen thus far
• Academic progress. 
• Reasons for selecting the course or university 
• Plan to use skills after graduation to accomplish personal objectives
• Applicant's background
• Academic achievements
• Professional experiences
• Also include details about the extracurricular activities (if involved)
• Research involvement
• Research papers written and published 
• Exclusive projects they have worked on (research/non-research)

Common Mistakes to Avoid in SOP

Some mistakes must be avoided when writing an SOP for admission at all costs. To write a winning SOP, applicants must avoid these mistakes in their statement of purpose:

• First, reflect, research, and draft the statement of purpose, keeping all the requirements handy.
• Be specific, write within the word limit, and avoid beating around the bush; this is one major mistake that must be avoided.
• Avoid boasting excessively about yourself; instead, be subtle when crafting your statement of purpose. Ad Coms may reject the application due to overconfidence.
• Adhere to using slangs, abbreviations or contractions in an SOP. This is a formally written essay, read by the admission scrutiny team so write in a formal tone. 
• Applicants should also avoid using AI or plagiarise content and try to draft the SOP in their own words. 

These mistakes are unintentionally, but still happen. Applicants should keep checking their writing aligns with the guidelines frequently to avoid making these grave mistakes.

Statement of Purpose Examples

Most universities worldwide have a standard SOP format/ template they accept. However, as mentioned above, the content of the statement of purpose varies for different courses. Here are some statement of purpose sample formats for students selected from other universities.

Statement of Purpose Sample

Here is an academic SOP sample for reference. Please note, this is only an example and should not be copied from for your original submissions.

"The experience of learning mathematics gives me curiosity, freedom and awe. I have always been interested in mathematical modelling of real-life systems and their optimization. As a Design Analyst in Caterpillar’s innovation and technology development division, I work with a team that deals with complex problems and builds innovative design solutions. In a recent project, on design optimization of structural components, the idea of fractal-based trusses was explored to improve the design. For this, iterated function system based on contraction mapping was used as a generative design tool. This exposure introduced me to the significance of applied mathematics research in addressing industry-related problems. I eventually became motivated to gain deeper understanding of mathematical concepts to solve modern-day challenges, existing in different domains.

During my Bachelor’s in mechanical engineering, I took courses on vector calculus, differential equations, fluid dynamics and structural mechanics. Differential Equations course made me appreciate how real-life systems with multiple variables could be studied systematically using mathematical modelling. The course had topics like method of undetermined coefficients, variation of parameters and phase plane method. I solved elliptical equations using green’s functions and solved parabolic evolution equations for modelling diffusion using Laplace transforms. I became acquainted with topics like optimization using Lagrangian, Fourier series and infinite dimensional function spaces. I also learned the basic concepts in calculus of variations for the course on Finite Element Methods. The idea of finding a function that minimizes another function was interesting for me. I then studied courses on numerical methods, probability and statistics.

In fifth semester, I took an elective on Computational Fluid Dynamics, which covered differential analysis of fluid flow and Finite Volume Method for solving boundary value problems. As part of this course, I wrote OpenFOAM code to solve problems on incompressible flow; I used time-marching methods to solve the coupled system of non-linear ODEs derived from discretization of Navier Stokes equation in case of unsteady flow problems. I also wrote code for pressure-based solvers like SIMPLE (semi-implicit method for pressure linked equations) to solve problems based on steady flow.

Moving ahead, in seventh semester, I attended a seminar on ‘Industry 4.0’, where the concept of predictive maintenance caught my interest. Therefore, I decided to take up my final-year group project on condition monitoring using a data-driven approach. While I was surveying literature, I came across a signal processing technique, using Holder’s Continuity Criteria to detect discontinuities, and, we decided to apply this concept to the vibration signals of the tool for end-milling process. I was involved in process parameter optimization and selection of the mother wavelet for signal-processing. I decided on orthogonal wavelets with higher vanishing moments, as energy-preservation and ability to capture oscillations were important to our application. I trained Quadratic Support Vector Machine model for different wavelets, decomposed to different levels, and calculated accuracy for each of them before arriving at Daubechies 8 wavelet, as the mother wavelet for the acquired signal. The hard work paid off when our paper, titled, ‘Development of Tool Condition Monitoring System in End Milling Process Using Wavelet Features and Holder’s Exponent with Machine Learning Algorithms’ got published in the Measurement Journal by Elsevier in March 2021. We also received a grant of INR 10,000 from the Tamil Nadu State Council for Science and Technology for the implementation of our project.

In June 2020, I joined XYZ Private Limited, Chennai, as a Design Analyst. At present, I have completed two years in this role. My responsibilities include designing and validating roll-over protective structures for operator cabins. This job role gave me the opportunity to work with cross functional teams, and come up with innovative design solutions. The exposure in mechanical engineering industry made me appreciative of the applications of mathematical modelling in solving various problems. This inspired me to develop a better understanding of mathematics and apply it in other fields as well. 
Through my graduate studies, I wish to study differential equations and optimization. I want to understand both deterministic and stochastic approaches to modelling dynamical systems and apply these concepts to engineering, financial markets and life science applications. To be able to model dynamical systems, draw conclusions and predictions, and applying control theory to influence the system to achieve desired goals will be important in finding solutions to real-world problems.

Post MS, I want to pursue PhD in Applied Mathematics to perform research in dynamical systems in order to address the current challenges of modelling non-linear, high-dimensional systems with unknown dynamics and uncertainties, using data-driven approaches. Its applications in fields like economics and climate-modelling will help me form strategies to achieve sustainable development goals. I also want to explore its application in neuroscience, because, while machine learning helps overcome challenges in modelling modern dynamical systems, dynamical systems neuroscience will reciprocally contribute towards the advancement of machine learning. After my PhD, I want to join as an academia in an Indian university and engage in further academic research.

The Master of Science in Engineering in Applied Mathematics and Statistics program at XYZ University, offers modules on Dynamical Systems, Introduction to Stochastic Calculus and Time Series Analysis, which will equip me with the desired skills. Further, Dr AAA’s research work on fluid dynamics and chaotic dynamical systems relates to my own interests. I am excited at the prospect of meeting him and seeking his guidance on modelling turbulence and convection in the ocean and atmosphere for climate-modelling applications. Also, I am inspired by Dr YYY’s extensive research on control and multivariate stochastic approximation. His patented work on computerized traffic management systems using simultaneous perturbation stochastic approximation optimization technique, with a model-free approach, has inspired me immensely. I look forward to exploring his exclusive insights on control theory and optimization techniques.

I am active in my college alumni network for the last two years and I have conducted seminars and mock interviews for students to guide them on the knowledge and tools required in the industry. With the same serving spirit, I will strive to contribute towards your institution as a student and an alumna afterwards.

In all, my background in mechanical engineering will allow me to understand dynamical systems easily, in order to identify and address industry-oriented problems. I am convinced that your program will support me in achieving my goals of contributing towards the field of data-driven dynamical systems. In my capacity, I intend to share my knowledge and ideas with my peers, and contribute as a worthy member of your esteemed university."

The SOP sample shared above will help applicants understand how to draft an SOP and what format they should ideally follow for their overseas university applications. The above-mentioned sample for SOP is for MS applications; download the samples for SOP for UG and MBA as well. Download-

Final Takeaways

Before drafting your final statement of purpose, create a checklist and based on that cross each item when they have been included. Here is the checklist, go as per this and ensure you don't miss -

• SOP format is followed as per course requirements
• Each paragraph includes what it should 
• Tone is formal and not conversational
• SOP includes only academic and professional aspects
• The word limit is not crossed
• There are no grammatical errors and typos
• SOP is authentic and does not match any previously approved SOP
• SOP has zero AI content percentage
• Goals and motivations are included properly

Students seeking to study abroad can contact our Shiksha Study Abroad Counsellors for help with their university applications. The comments section below also allows candidates to reach out to us.