Share this post

The Statement of Purpose: why do you want to study in a particular B-school? This is exactly what the Graduate Admissions School is asking you!

This is your chance of showing the selection committee who you are and why you have applied to the particular university. What do we aim to address in this section: How do we write a Statement of Purpose that is appropriate and showcases yourself to the world?

The first question that you need to ask is:

  • Where does the SoP fit into the application?

    An MBA application consists of a number of elements. A brief overview of the components are as follows:

    1. Entrance Examination Scores (GMAT, TOEFL/IELTS)
    2. Letters of Recommendation
    3. Resume
    4. General information

    These pieces of your application are more formal and are a part of the whole set. The Statement of Purpose is the only way your university can understand WHY you want to study there, and what makes you a good fit. Apart from this, the SoP also addresses your long term vision and your ultimate goal.

  • Format of the SoP

    What an SoP must require is never a hard and fast rule- universities just want you to be honest and have a more free-flowing thought process. There should be a seamless thread and a connection between the paragraphs that are written.

    Let us understand what your SoP must have:

    1. Your educational and experiential background
    2. Your vision and goals
    3. An MBA, and how it fits into your plan
    4. The reason the university can help you achieve your goals, and how you can contribute

    The ‘word-count’ of the Statement of Purpose is never mentioned by the university, but remember the GMAT rule: brevity and conciseness. Verbosity is never appreciated.

    A carefully structured SoP consists of a set of paragraphs that are linked to each other in an understandable and presentable sequence.

  • Plagiarism

    Plagiarism is looked at very strictly by universities abroad, to the extent where your application might not even make the cut if you copy-paste someone else’s SoP. While you can use samples of SoPs that you find online to get an idea of how the whole argument must be structured, blindly copy-pasting can have negative consequences. After all, the university wants to know YOUR STORY!

    If you are being counselled by an admissions team, make sure that you are not influenced only by their thought process to the extent where it no longer is your SoP.

    • If you keep these points in mind, and ensure that you review what is written; your SoP should stand out!

    Share this post