Statement of Purpose - too much about my interests?

[-hermes-]

I'm applying for a masters in media studies, and while I've read up a lot on what goes into a Statement of Purpose, I feel like I'm getting it wrong.

My approach: I talk about three instances from my academic and professional background that each gave rise to specific interests with regards to media studies. I then have a short para on why I'd like to study at that school in particular.

1) Given that this is a masters program, I'm worried that I'm limiting myself by speaking about 2/3 specific topics that interest me. I don't want them thinking, "well, we only have 2 courses on XYZ" but the interests I mention tie in well with my experiences.

2) I like this program because it has an interdisciplinary approach. I'm not sure what else I can say besides mentioning the courses I like, which feels odd to write. As a masters student, I don't think I need to say I want to work with specific professors - is name dropping imperative? How do I make this para seem less like an after thought?

I'd really appreciate comments!

[elem3nt]

In my personal statements I kept the balance 2/3-3/4 past research experiences that prepared me for grad school, 1/3-1/4 future research interests. I am just an undergrad in the sciences, but my professor told me that research interests often change during grad school (even among those who were certain of what they wanted to do) and thus you should keep the research interests section short. Therefore, you are getting it wrong. Shorten your research interests and integrate that with why you want to study there. Expand the section on your background - remember, background is definite and concrete, and you want to demonstrate that you will do well and not fail or flunk out of grad school. Harsh as it may seem, what you are interested in has little bearing on this.

[-hermes-]

In my personal statements I kept the balance 2/3-3/4 past research experiences that prepared me for grad school, 1/3-1/4 future research interests. I am just an undergrad in the sciences, but my professor told me that research interests often change during grad school (even among those who were certain of what they wanted to do) and thus you should keep the research interests section short. Therefore, you are getting it wrong. Shorten your research interests and integrate that with why you want to study there. Expand the section on your background - remember, background is definite and concrete, and you want to demonstrate that you will do well and not fail or flunk out of grad school. Harsh as it may seem, what you are interested in has little bearing on this.

Thanks for this. I figured I would let my resume speak for itself, but you're right - I need to expand on concrete things I've done.

However, I'm still not sure how much more I can say for why I want to study at this school - I do know of several courses I'd like to take, but it feels really contrived to mention them. Some of the profs are doing work I'm interested in, but I'm not sure how much relevance that has to a Masters student of a mainly taught versus research program.

[runonsentence]

My advice is actually to spend less time on your background. The SOP is generally a forward-looking document that focuses on your goals, interests, and scholarly identity. If you're spending most of the document doing this, then I think you have it right.