Please review my SOP for master in general psychology

[hzx4742]

I'm a student from China. My SOP is for master in general/experimental psychology. My SOP has been resived by essayedge, but the editor made so few changes and she didn't purpose any useful advice. Thanks for your advice!

 

 

Seeking a fulfilling and exciting life, I aim to pursue an academic career in psychology.

In college, I acquired a broad knowledge scope of psychology. However, I gradually understood that I should not confine myself to or rehash the existing theories of others, but instead to further the current body of research and to make significant contribution to psychology. I therefore actively sought opportunities to participate in research in order to improve my research skills and broaden my perspective.

As a sophomore at XX University, under the supervision of Prof. XX of the Psychology Department, I organized a research team and designed one of the chosen 2011 core projects that received fund from XX. In this project, we investigated peer relationships and maternal parenting style in children both in SOS children villages and in two parents families. This experience provided me with valuable opportunities to be closely involved in every step of psychology research. By the end of the project, I had developed from an amateur who merely had fiery passion for psychology, into a professional who could appreciate the beauty of psychology on a deeper level, and in a more scientific and systematic manner. The experience affirmed my aspiration to devote myself to psychology research. It also enabled me to learn how to cooperate with others as a team and to settle disputes timely and effectively. Our project eventually passed the final assessment of XX and now we are planning to publish our findings.

To expand my research experience, I participated in a project investigating enterprise employees’ career resilience. I managed literature survey and data analysis under the supervision of Professor XX. He trusted my diligence and solid background in statistics. We developed a questionnaire of career resilience in the context of Chinese culture and conducted some empirical research using this questionnaire. From Dr. X as well as his graduates, I learned a lot about developing questionnaires and also improved my skills in operating statistical software applications.

With the accumulation of relevant experiences in psychology, many tentative ideas sparked in my mind, but I could not verify them due to the limitations of my current knowledge. I am looking forward to graduate education. Conducting psychology research to find out the nature and principles behind people’s various behaviors is the most amazing cause I could undertake. I realize that the research field of psychology is vast, and I have interests in many research directions and topics. Accordingly, I have yet to decide on a specific research field on which to concentrate my academic efforts and wish to shape my interests through the general MA in psychology at XX University. The program’s strong emphasis on research and high-degree of individual attention from research-oriented psychologists constitute the most significant factors in my consideration. Both factors will enable me develop my interest areas and to lay a solid background in psychology for evolving into an elite PhD.

Another appealing aspect of XX’s program involves the sizeable proportion of the faculty members conduct extensive research in the area of social and personality psychology. Research in this area is often grounded in effective measurement. Dr. A’s and Dr. B’s work on psychological measurement are closely related to my field of interest. I am also curious about why people with stable traits may change under different situations, which may fall within the category of their research interests. My interests in personality development may also correspond with those of Dr. B and I am fascinated by the future research direction Dr. B purposed in his articles. Additionally, I am also interested in the research directions of several other faculty members, and with my extensive interests, will cherish the opportunities for mentorship.