going over vaguely given page limit on SOP? thoughts

[ritapita]

One of the programs I am applying to wants an SOP 'roughly 1-2 pages' yada yada yada.

 

I know that its best to tightly summarize, stick to page count, effective writing, etc etc, but I have got a rockin' SOP that is about 1/2 page over their vague guidelines.  Does anyone have any experience/insight with this?

 

The great thing is my POI has offered to proof my statement prior to submitting, so I am sure they will let me know if it is too long, but just looking for some feedback here.

[tulips]

From the people I've talked to (including the head of graduate admissions at my undergraduate university), I think it's best to try to stick to their guidelines (or even try to make it shorter). The committees have to read so many essays, and I'm sure they would appreciate a succinct SOP rather than a long one. That being said, I don't think you'll be penalized for going half a page over their "guidelines" since they do say "roughly," so if you do think that your SOP cannot be cut down any shorter and that it is well-written as it is, then I think you will be okay. But if there is anything you can cut out, I would definitely do so.

[bsharpe269]

I've heard that you don't want your SOP to be over 2 pages anyway. I had a REALLY hard time cutting mine to 2 pages but now that I have, I think it reads a lot better than my 2.5 page version. If you go over by a few sentences then I wouldn't freak out but I would spend some time trying to cut down to 2 pages.

[rising_star]

I would try really, really hard to cut your SOP down. More than 2 pages (especially if we're talking single-spaced) is too long for adcom members

[Victoris]

Submitting a longer SOP may imply that you are unable to follow simple directions.  I was 'politely' informed that professors don't require a specific page/word limit for "giggles and ish".   The content of your SOP must effectively illustrate your competence and goals to the admission committee; within the given page limit.  

[peachypie]

I'd try your best to get it to 2 pages.  

Imagine how rockin' it'd be if they stopped reading it at 2 pages, still worth it?

I can almost assure you that if you take some time in editing you can get it to 2 pages.  And as others mentioned, it'll read better when you do.  

[Between Fields]

Arguably, it's not rockin' if it isn't followin' the guidelines. Having a long SOP says a few things: 1.) you didn't read the directions 2.) you read the directions and decided not to follow them 3.) you have a lot to say about yourself 4.) concise communication is difficult for you. 

[ritapita]

Thank you all for agreeing with my conscience on this one.  I had already told myself all the above statements, and then immediately tried to justify them, because, you know, writing SOPs SUCK!   Thanks for reassuring me that I was pushing the boundary so to speak.  So done. So burnt. So fried.  Moving on.... Happy crunch time to the rest of you!

[foreignstudent]

One of the universities I am applying to have a essay word limit of about 300 words. I find it to be way too short to express my ideas. In such cases should I really condense my SOP with the trade off being losing some important points or can I upload my original SOP??

[MathCat]

One of the universities I am applying to have a essay word limit of about 300 words. I find it to be way too short to express my ideas. In such cases should I really condense my SOP with the trade off being losing some important points or can I upload my original SOP??

Follow their instructions.

[Page228]

Advice that was given to me: "The word limit is as much a test as any other."

[rising_star]

Definitely follow the instructions!

 

(As an instructor, I routinely stop reading once student's go over the page count for an assignment. So, if I said 300 words and you submitted 750 words, I'd only read the first 300 words. If they're really, really, really good, I might skim the rest but you really shouldn't count on anyone being so generous with their time.)

[drownsoda]

Reiterating what most everyone else has said: follow the directions. 

 

I had a few applications that specified the SOP should be "1,000 words approximately," so I made them 1,000 words, approximately. Another application had a 500 word limit, so I rounded mine off at 498. I know it can be difficult and/or annoying, but it's an exercise in precision as much as it is a way to make the review process efficient for the committee. 

 

I got drilled on this as an English major throughout my undergrad, so I learned to be VERY precise and succinct in my writing, and because of that this wasn't really anything new to me. It does demand editing and pruning though, so you have to make every word count.