Writing Sample-- SOP ties?

[MauBicara]

Hey all, 

Any thoughts on how closely our writing samples should relate to our research interests stated in the SOP? I had a paper that I thought had tied in quite nicely and would be a good fit, but as I go through the process of editing, I am finding that it may not have been as close as I'd initially thought...In light of that, I'm now considering other papers, which I feel might be better overall, though are not about my region of interest and are only somewhat similar to my broader thematic interests.

In this situation, is it better to put the effort in to polish the more relevant paper, or is a better paper that is less relevant to current research interests OK so long as it demonstrates good writing/analytical abilities? 

[rising_star]

I would submit the strongest paper you can. That means one which shows off your research, analytical, and writing abilities and highlights your potential as a scholar. If it's on the same topic as your SOP great but, if it's not, that can be okay too.

[MastersHoping]

^ditto on that

Quality of sample takes precedence over the topic

 

[Mrs A.K.]

Regarding programs that claim writing samples are optional, but not necessary.  When should I add/not add one?  If my SOP is very strong, is it worth my time to put together a writing sample?  (I switched laptops after graduating and don't have access to my old papers.  Careless mistake, I know.)  Also, what are programs looking for in a sample?  Does it need to be formal, or could it be something less formal that still showcases research and writing skills? (Ie, a blog post.)

[Syas]

My advisor advised me to mention my writing sample in my SOP, so I talked about my writing sample just after the introduction section to describe my main areas of interests. The nice thing about writing sample is that it gives the opportunity to describe your research interests in debth.

[rising_star]

2 hours ago, Mrs A.K. said:

Regarding programs that claim writing samples are optional, but not necessary.  When should I add/not add one?  If my SOP is very strong, is it worth my time to put together a writing sample?

Honestly, no. If they really wanted everyone to submit a writing sample, they would require it. In my field, writing samples are rarely required from applicants, mostly because they assess your writing skills based on your grades, your SOP, and what your LORs say about you.

[reasonablepie]

2 hours ago, Mrs A.K. said:

Regarding programs that claim writing samples are optional, but not necessary.  When should I add/not add one?  If my SOP is very strong, is it worth my time to put together a writing sample?  (I switched laptops after graduating and don't have access to my old papers.  Careless mistake, I know.)  Also, what are programs looking for in a sample?  Does it need to be formal, or could it be something less formal that still showcases research and writing skills? (Ie, a blog post.)

As a general rule for all materials, if it's not required only add it if it significantly strengthens a weak area in your application. In your case, that means definitely do not send optional writing samples if it's just something you'll be throwing together at short notice. For those schools that require you send something, the goal of the writing sample isn't to see whether you can write decent English (the SOP and to some extent GRE cover that), but to see how well you can engage in academic writing and ideally research. So, send something at least academic and ideally something that shows research skills, i.e. not blog posts.

Edited December 7, 2015 by reasonablepie
grammar

[Mrs A.K.]

Ok thanks for the input everyone.  One of the programs I contacted told me the same.  (Also, I blog about politics and include a fair bit of research, so it would have been an informal research-type paper.)