Configuring Writing Sample

[parisienne91]

Hi All,

I'm in the process of applying to DePaul University's M.A. in International Studies program for Fall Quarter. Right now, I'm debating on my writing sample; the maximum length that I can submit is 8 pages from my undergraduate thesis. I've decided to select the analysis section of my paper, roughly around 5 pages, I'm wondering how much "background" on my research I should give prior to the actual analysis portion. I know that quantity doesn't always trump quality, but for some reason I feel weird not using all of the 8 pages allowed. What are your thoughts on this? DePaul is my top school and really want show the adcomm my best. The app is due on Friday and I would love all of your insight!

[fuzzylogician]

You need to provide information that will allow the reader to understand the question you are asking and why it's interesting, and how specifically you went about asking it. Define any variables that you tested, explain how you obtained the data, how it's coded, anything else we'd need in order to understand your analysis and results and put them in context. I could easily see that taking up the entire 3 pages you have left, although your wording here suggests you don't. If you think you can do all that in 1-2 pages, that's fine. No one wants to read unnecessary text if you can say the same thing in fewer words. Without knowing more about your thesis, I don't think there is much more that we can say.