SOP prompt asking too much with too few words

[Anoushka]

This is the prompt:

Please describe the academic and intellectual interests, progress, and achievements that have contributed to your decision to apply for post-graduate study.

You should include a thoughtful description of your tentative plan of study or area of inquiry at The New School for Social Research as you now envision it, the kind of research questions you intend to pursue, what you hope or expect to do after you’ve completed the degree. In addition, include a stringent self-assessment of your work as a scholar, pointing out strengths and weaknesses.

I don't want to include the stringent self-assessment b/c I've spent a lot of time detailing my area of study and research questions. Also, my adviser told me not to talk about strengths/weakness. I think the statement is very strong as it stands, but I'm worried they wont accept me because I didn't listen to their question prompt and answer all of it...

[colormehappy]

Since it sounds like this prompt is specific to the department and not the graduate school as a whole, I would say try to answer all the parts. You probably don't need to say a whole lot in the self-assessment. You could even try to subtly weave these things into the rest of the statement. That might sound better than flat out stating your strengths/weaknesses. Either way I doubt that they would ditch your application solely because you didn't answer one part of the question. But why test that?

[Bonkers]

This is the prompt:

Please describe the academic and intellectual interests, progress, and achievements that have contributed to your decision to apply for post-graduate study.

You should include a thoughtful description of your tentative plan of study or area of inquiry at The New School for Social Research as you now envision it, the kind of research questions you intend to pursue, what you hope or expect to do after you’ve completed the degree. In addition, include a stringent self-assessment of your work as a scholar, pointing out strengths and weaknesses.

I don't want to include the stringent self-assessment b/c I've spent a lot of time detailing my area of study and research questions. Also, my adviser told me not to talk about strengths/weakness. I think the statement is very strong as it stands, but I'm worried they wont accept me because I didn't listen to their question prompt and answer all of it...

I agree we the first response, you should answer it anyway even if your professor told you to ignore the strengths and weaknesses part. If it is not something you like to talk about at length, try sneaking it into the existing statement. For example, when you are discussing your previous research experience, integrate it into the part where you describe your responsibilities in that research project and how you demonstrated exemplary skills in blah blah blah... but you have yet to master your skills in blah blah blah--but hope to in grad school. Boom strengths and weaknesses done and you did not have to write a new paragraph or anything. Eh, I hope this helps.

[Medievalmaniac]

For example, when you are discussing your previous research experience, integrate it into the part where you describe your responsibilities in that research project and how you demonstrated exemplary skills in blah blah blah... but you have yet to master your skills in blah blah blah--but hope to in grad school. Boom strengths and weaknesses done and you did not have to write a new paragraph or anything. Eh, I hope this helps.

This. To me, their prompt is checking for your ability to self-assess, which is an invaluable and frankly necessary skill in higher levels of academe. They seem to want to know that you know what you are good at and what you need to improve, and that in turn can show them whether or not they have the resources to help you acquire or develop the skills or thinking/behavioral patterns necessary for success at the graduate level and beyond.

You don't have to say "I'm really strong in interpersonal conversations and group work, but I am weak in my ability to conduct an independent study without a lot of teacher feedback", or "I could stand to improve in time management and study skills, but I'm really great at fashioning an argument and supporting it with texctual and secondary evidence." It can certainly be integrated into the rest of your statement, as the above poster has suggested. So, for the first, something like "In my capacity as the discussion leader for our group presentation on taxonomy, as evidenced by my group's evaluation of my performance, I demonstrably improved our group's overall communication patterns over the course of compiling our research and crafting our presentation, as well as facilitating a larger discussion involving nearly every member of the 150 student seminar, a feat that the professor specifically singled out as noteworthy in her grading report. While I did require a lot of professorial assistance on that assignment, I learned a lot about how to go about conducting research in taxonomy at the university level, a skill I am keen to improve upon in graduate school." etc. etc. etc. In other words - it doesn't have to be a separate and glaringly evident part of the SOP, it just has to be there. Embedding it in the overall narrative is a smoother and more professional way to handle it.

ALSO, for what it is worth - don't bother "turning your negatives into positives" (ex. "I have a tendency to take too much on, but while this can be viewed as a deficiency, in the end it's really a positive thing because it speaks to my enthusiasm for education" blah blah blah) - maybe it's what every PR person expounds upon as the way to go, but adcomms have seen all that before, and I think it is counter-productive. No one is perfect. The question is, can they work with you and your particular strengths and weaknesses? Answer that, honestly, and you will be fine.

Edited January 20, 2011 by Medievalmaniac