GradDreamz87

@what2do Hi, sorry I took so long to answer, I just logged in for the first time in a long time...I did not get accepted to Cornell but I did receive acceptance to my top choice TC @ Columbia U with partial funding. Columbia was my top choice so once I found out Cornell rejected me 3 weeks later I was not too discouraged. I believe that maybe I was rejected because my quantitative scores were not very high. It's OK though, I am adjusting to the scene here in NYC and so far so good.

Hi, I am also considering applying to UIUC and Minnesota. Unfortunately, I don't know of any better programs in the Illinois area other than UIUC. There aren't too many websites that I found dedicated to listing the best HR programs. I do recall looking at one website that listed top 10 HR Schools but the information on there is from 2009 if I recall correctly (got to try and find the link). These are most of the programs I'm considering applying to (all were on the list except Georgetown I believe) after I retake the GRE in a few weeks: USC- Moore Minnesota MSU UIUC Cornell- (MILR) Columbia- (M.S. in Organizational Psychology in case that interests you as well) Georgetown University- (Master of Professional Studies- HR) (safety school) USC and MSU certainly boast high their high placement rates. My top 5 choices: Cornell, Columbia, USC, UIUC, and MSU. I am also applying to a few MBA programs that have a focus on HR. I am a little suspicious about the Georgetown program since no test scores are required for domestic admission but the school as a whole is respected in many fields and a quick LinkedIn search apparently revealed that Delliote really does like hiring some of the program's grads... I'm still weary of course because I actually looked on the Craigslist resume section and found a resume there of a recent grad from the program who's been looking for work for a few months now. However, this person did land an excellent internship after graduation and worked in the field while attending school, so I am not totally sure what his or her circumstances may be... What I do know for sure is that I love this field and I hope to post some good results at the end of this app cycle. Also, please, come back to submit your results, I will do the same!

I appreciate all of your replies. I have edited my SOP a lot since that first draft above, it's almost a completely different essay now but it still has the most of the same chronological order. I know that there were multiple grammar and punctuation/mechanic errors in this first draft but I wanted to get a better idea of what to write before I started doing some more editing. RideTheLightning469, Thank you for your response as well, I have since completely removed that first paragraph posted here and instead started off describing an HR turnover issue in the 401-k department at my former employer (an HR outsourcing company) and a recommended a recruiting/training strategy to solve it. Then, in my last sentence I discussed why I needed a second Master's degree (I know they'll have a concern about that) and the fact that I wanted to study organizational dynamics in order to improve training and development in the workplace. I also looked at the part in which I discussed graduate school, you are right, it did need more information about how I contributed to my program. It's a good thing you mentioned that, I just went back to add some information regarding that. Even though my 1st Master's degree was not research based, I was able to make some more edits that can show how I can contribute to the field. For instance I expanded more on my presentation that illustrated how Kaizen can be used as a benchmark to solve some organizational training issues presented in a book that I was required to read for my Organizational Behavior class. I still need to check my final version for any errors. I think I may post it again in a new thread or maybe I'll just post it in this same thread I'm not sure yet.

I really appreciate your advice, this is really helping me. That's a great idea, I'm thinking that I do have somewhat of a sense of humor and maybe I can find a way to convey that a little through my essay too. I'm thinking that maybe I can also focus on how I would like to help organizations focus on building better training programs. For instance, I've been through many training classes and I feel that the psychological aspect is sometimes missed. Some employees learn different than others, so maybe it would make sense for some employers to ask that employees do more learning self-assessments through training so that trainers can use that to their advantage during training classes. I think that since I started talking about continuous improvement in the body of my essay focusing on this would make sense. I've read some websites say it's good to tell stories as well, I think my issue was narrowing down 1 or 2 HR topics since as an HR Business Partner that I hope to someday be, I would have a variety of tasks to juggle but I think that if I were to start writing a thesis today, training would be my main focus. My undergrad thesis focused on safety in the workplace of my previous employer and how investing in training could help that. Maybe in the paragraph where I talk about my past HR employer I can discuss how training could have been modified to reduce the Very high turnover of employees asked to work in the 401-k department.

Thank you for your response! That is true, I have noticed many SOP's do start off that way. I will take it out the childhood story and instead maybe talk about solid ideas that make me stand out while discussing my uniqueness as an applicant. I will keep the: "What makes me a more suitable candidate for this program that the rest of the applicants?" in mind throughout my editing.

Hello, I changed some information in this for personal reasons but please let me know if I have spoken enough about my current situation and the why I want admission in their program. Does my SOP have a good "flow" to it? I am wondering if I am focusing too much on the past in my SOP, I originally though that was good since it tells a story about me but I'm not sure if I'm focusing on the past too much. This is for Cornell. I am applying to Masters in HR/Labor Relations programs. Am I being specific enough with what I want to accomplish in HR and should I make a specific faculty reference in regards to their work or is that too cliche? Master of Industrial and Labor Relations: Human Resource and Organizations My first lesson regarding the significance of the Human Resources department was at the age of thirteen when I began working at my first documented position at X Department Store in my hometown of X of X Caribbean Island. During my first day at work spent with the Human Resources Manager Suzy, I was lectured on the labor laws at the time and the importance of her following those laws in regards to my age. The knowledge of that importance has resonated with me long after I moved to Orlando, FL at the age of fourteen. Before graduating from X Tech College, learning about the organizational change that took place at Microsoft throughout its rapid growth intrigued me to want to learn more about managing organizational change and employee communication. The Organizational Leadership program at X University-Orlando allowed me to have in class discussions with students who were also organizational leaders. During my senior year (spent in X main campus in another state), other than the memorable experience of achieving above the 2011-2012 fund raising target for the United Way through Students in Free Enterprise (now known as Enactus), the discussion with Professor Suzy regarding how crucial the Human Resources department is to an organization’s survival inspired me. I decided that a Master’s Degree in business management would help me gain a better understanding of the decisions that are required for an organization’s growth and sustainability. While at Hough Graduate School of Business, choosing to further study the Kaizen model (that I initially researched in the OL program) of Toyota’s continuous improvement model as a part of my final presentation for Organizational Behavior gave me a benchmark illustration of training and development. It was exciting to learn that the principles one organizational utilizes for success may not work as well for a competitor possibly because of benefits structure, conflicting strategies, or difference in international organizational cultures. After graduation, I contracted for X Company to consult various participants regarding their company benefit packages. I learned how benefit options for expatriates differed from U.S. employees, witnessed how benefits are correlated to employee morale, educated employees regarding employment law, and have informed HR managers regarding procedures required for initiating leave of absences. Although my official declaration to pursue a career in HR occurred during my third semester at Hough; my on the job experiences further convinced me to pursue a lifelong career in HR by returning to graduate school so that I may become an HR Business Partner for a multi-national organization preferably in the tech industry. I am excited about the opportunity to provide in-depth analysis for multi-national corporations regarding all aspects of personnel challenges with the knowledge I will obtain from the Human Resources and Organizations concentration. My prior knowledge of Human Resources from both undergraduate and graduate school will help me meet the requirements of your rigorous program. I will savor every word of your faculty; I also look forward to joining MILRSO, COLA, and SHRM to share ideas and cultivate with my peers regarding labor challenges. Allow me to use my competence, endurance, and drive to successfully graduate from your program to make a global impact.

I heard back from UF's 1 year MSM program and got in! No funding but I do have in-state tuition.

UF= Master of Science in Management FSU= Integrated Marketing Communications, Mater’s. Hey guys, I got into the University of Florida and Florida State University. UF’s program is a one year program awhile FSU’s is a 2 year program. FSU will pay for half of the program costs but it seems that I would be paying the same since I would graduate a year earlier from UF and make a year’s income while also saving on 1 years’ worth of student living expenses. I have never been given so much funding as FSU have given me from a school. That is why I am so flattered and would feel almost foolish for passing it up. However, UF will most likely not give me the small scholarships they have available from the program, that of course is what I like least about attending UF. Yet, UF’s program is very well ranked and so is the school overall. I feel like graduating from UF would help me more career wise because of higher name recognition and the ranking of the program. Plus, the program is only a year long as I mentioned before. It’s a difficult choice for me to make. Can someone who has been in a similar situation tell me what they did? What would you do in my case? Note: I like both of these programs a lot and I feel that both would help me start a marketing related career. I have until May 10th to decide.

Indiana seems like the best option, from what I saw online it seems that their program rankings are rather close. Plus you'll have the job in Indiana. I know that UM has more prestige but will it be worth the extra the extra debt? Is UM guaranteed to get you to closer to your overall goal anymore that Indiana would? Consider looking up some of the Alumni on LinkedIn.com.

Good point, studying ahead is what I will be doing as well. It's way easier for me to understand the material in class this way.