13 Rules for Writing the Perfect Personal Statement

Getting admission into a graduate program is never a linear process. It is a winding road filled with transcripts, standardized tests, references, and personal statements. I know you have heard it ad nauseam, but your personal statement (also called SOP or Statement of Purpose) is the most important part of your application. Think of it as a first date but with the school’s admissions board. And like all firsts, you have to make it count- and impress the socks off them while you are at it. Writing a personal statement can be overwhelming. I should know I have written four for myself and many more for different clients. However, with these commandments, the road to graduate school and writing a personal statement becomes less steep.

Read Other Personal Statements

Writing skills are a condition sine qua non for any graduate program. Asides being a “nice to meet you” of sorts, a personal statement calibrates your writing abilities- or lack of it. Therefore, it becomes important to get a lay of the land before penning anything down. It is not enough to read model personal statements and “ooh” and “aah” at the writers’ lexical fluency. Learn to read…