statement of intent resources

[OverCaffeinated]

can we list some sources that help with writing things like letters of intent and statements of purpose.

someone had mentioned a resource book from the 90s that was supposedly is very good, but i cant find it...

[slporbust2016]

This is such a confusing topic. I've scoured the internet, asked professors, asked friends who have already gone to grad school, and read article after article. There's so much information, and a lot of it disagrees with each other. I even checked out this book from the library and read it. http://www.amazon.com/Graduate-Admissions-Essays-Fourth-Edition/dp/1607743213  Still confused, and feeling like I have the world's most boring life compared to the writers of those essays.

From all of this research, what i've gathered is that I need to make a personal statement that I'm proud to have represent me. I need to make sure that it answers what the AdComm asked for, and I need to proofread it 349 times before I hit that submit button. I've got one that I'm trying to turn in by October 1 that's on the fourth draft right now. I feel your pain. 

[slporbust2016]

https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/969/01/

https://career.berkeley.edu/Grad/GradStatement  (specifically the "words to avoid without explanation" I took that to mean that AdComms view these phrases as meaningless and trite without additional info.)

Many universities have info online that might be helpful. 

 

 

[OverCaffeinated]

no universities dont have anything online that might be helpful. theyre not interested in helping you write your statement.

the book was kinda like this one u mentioned but it was way older..kinda like the oldie but goldie... damn. i just have no idea whats its called 

[fuzzylogician]

This is also relevant: http://psychology.unl.edu/psichi/Graduate_School_Application_Kisses_of_Death.pdf

[slporbust2016]

Both of the sources that I listed above are posted by universities and have helpful information. University writing centers will have helpful information. I wasn't talking about the actual departments. 

I think it's hard to get a definitive answer to this question because it comes down to the people on the AdComm. Some people love personal stories. Some people hate them. No one likes proofreading mistakes, and no one likes it when you don't answer the questions that they asked or don't follow the formatting guidelines. 

I had two people read my essay this week. One is a professor. One edits papers professionally. They had wildly different reactions to one section of my essay. Sometimes, it is personal preference. 

[OverCaffeinated]

This is also relevant: http://psychology.unl.edu/psichi/Graduate_School_Application_Kisses_of_Death.pdf

this was a very good read. i liked the examples

[slporbust2016]

https://grad.ucla.edu/asis/agep/advsopstem.pdf

 

[talkingcake]

There's also the whole Statement of Purpose subforum in Grad Cafe too- i remember reading some tips and pointers floating around there, although it's important to keep in mind that a letter of intent for a professional program like SLP can sometimes be a bit different from one for a research program, depending on what you're gonna write in it

[curly_girl]

While I liked information on how to write an SOP for any grad field, I looked for information specifically for SLP. 

I found this gradcafe  thread helpful: http://forum.thegradcafe.com/topic/41889-the-slp-sop/. 

I liked the following blog post even more, mostly because it is more detailed. Unfortunately, not all the links work anymore. https://slpecho.wordpress.com/2013/01/15/letterofintent_slpgradschool/

 

[OverCaffeinated]

While I liked information on how to write an SOP for any grad field, I looked for information specifically for SLP. 

I found this gradcafe  thread helpful: http://forum.thegradcafe.com/topic/41889-the-slp-sop/. 

I liked the following blog post even more, mostly because it is more detailed. Unfortunately, not all the links work anymore. https://slpecho.wordpress.com/2013/01/15/letterofintent_slpgradschool/

 

these are great. Thanks! 

[curly_girl]

these are great. Thanks! 

You're welcome!