What is SOP & How to Write an SOP?

Well, it looks like someone is searching about how to write SOP, it means you have started thinking about your future. It is a good thing to see how serious you are about your further education, and you don’t want to leave any stone unturned until you achieve your dream. To ensure you make no mistakes and do get into your preferred university abroad, one of the many things you require is to submit a flawless SOP. Now, writing an SOP may seem challenging at first when you know it is one of the most crucial documents during the time of admission, let’s learn a bit more about it. In this blog, we will cover; what is an SOP, how to write an SOP, some common mistakes that you must avoid, and elaborate on an SOP format. So, without further ado, let’s get started.

What is an SOP?

What does SOP stand for? This is the very first question that comes to a student’s mind when they start wondering and working on their college applications. After doing a Google search the result that pops up is standard operating system and even though it isn’t wrong, for students it is not relevant. Because for college admission, the SOP a student must submit means “Statement of Purpose”.

A Statement of Purpose, popularly known as SOP, is a letter of intent that students must submit at the time of admission along with their admission application. The purpose of an SOP is to tell the admission committee why you wish to pursue a particular course from that university. Your SOP should also contain the reason why the faculty of that college can help you achieve your dream and if there is any professor you would wish to work closely with to learn better.

Having said that, now, let’s look at the concept of how to write an SOP. Knowing that writing an SOP for the first time can be a complex and overwhelming task, today, we are going to ease it for you.

Tips to Write an SOP

When you have never worked on a task before, it will look complex. However, the minute you gather knowledge about it, you will find yourself working easily on it. Similarly, as you must write a Statement of Purpose and have zero idea about how to write an SOP, let us help you with that. Below are some of the great tips that will help write a perfect SOP even if you are not a word wizard.

Tell Your Story

An SOP or Statement of Purpose is also known as a personal essay, in which students tell the admission committee of their preferred college and why they deserve admission in that university. Your aim of writing an SOP will be somewhat similar. Now, while sorting the ways to write an SOP, you must prepare a list of things you wish to talk about that showcases your overall development as a person and a student. This list may include your academic journey till now, any academic or personal achievements, what you aim to be, and what your interests are. Moreover, your SOP should be written in the form of a well-knitted story and not like providing statements on your life.

Quantify your Experience

When writing your SOP, one thing you must keep in mind is to include your achievements and experiences. The admission committee receives thousands of applications from national and international students, and if you wish to stand out in that, your SOP must be unique. One of the ways to make your SOP stand out from others is by including your achievements and experiences with numbers. For instance, if you have worked in a part-time job somewhere for four months, instead of writing, “I also have working experience,” elaborate on your experience by quantifying it. The best way to structure your adventure would be, “When I was in high school, to gain a better experience of the real world, I worked as a waiter for three months, which enhanced my skills and made me a better professional.”

Customise Your Essay

As you are wondering how to make statement of purpose into something impressive that gets you admission easily, here’s another tip for you. When you are applying for various colleges abroad, you need to submit an SOP with each. However, many students here make mistakes and use the same SOP for every university. Even though the ultimate goal of every university is to provide practical education, various things make every educational institution different from the other. To be clever and complete the SOP faster, students prefer just changing the name of the university and submitting it as it is. The lack of customisation leads to the rejection of admission applications. Hence, when you are working on your SOP, you should customise it and if it matters, you can start writing your SOPs early so that you have ample time to make changes and tailor your personal essay for each university.

Keep it Structured

Another reason for SOP rejection is students failing to keep it structured. Submitting an unstructured or cluttered personal essay that lacks correct sequence unfolding makes the reader uninterested in the SOP, leading to the student’s rejection. As you are also working on your SOPs and want to get accepted into your dream college, it is better advised that you follow the correct structure and write your story in the perfect sequence. The basic structure of an SOP contains a subtle introduction about yourself, followed by your past story experiences, and concludes with your future aim. By writing your personal essay in a manner where each sentence links with the other, you can surely end up getting into your preferred college.

Use Formal Tone

Now, one of the things that you must keep in mind when working on your SOP is to write it in a formal tone. One of the many reasons that makes the admission committee member uninterested in your SOP is when it is written informally. The lack of showcasing yourself as a responsible professional who is eager to learn may harm your chances of getting into your dream university. Hence, when you start working on your personal essay and wonder how to write an SOP, do ensure to keep the tone in check. Here one more thing you must keep in check is to use a formal tone but also make it conversational. Having a conversational and formal tone in your SOP will not only make it interesting to read but will also increase your chances of acceptance.

Adhere to the Guidelines

The next thing you must keep in check is adherence to the university guidelines. Not taking the university guidelines seriously shows carelessness and it is one of the reasons impacting admissions chances. When you start to work on your personal essay, keeping the university guidelines in mind is crucial for you. A few things you surely check are; what is the word limit of the SOP, what is the deadline, your aim for studying in that university, providing your academic background, and providing clarity on your past education and future expectations. Usually, an SOP is 800-1000 words long and tailoring it for every university may seem a tough task, but if you start early and look out for some good SOP example, you may get done with your personal essay on time and get accepted in your dream university.

Do the Final Checks

The last thing to keep in mind when you work on your SOP is to do the final checks. Knowing that an SOP is one of the most crucial documents standing between you and your college admission, you cannot afford any mistakes to harm your chances of getting accepted. Hence, it is better if you start working on your SOP a month or two before the deadline. Because this will give you ample time to make changes as required. One of the most common mistakes students make is to think the first draft is the final draft. But you shouldn’t make the same mistake as others. The final draft of your SOP will be way better than what you will write initially, hence, you should start working on your personal at the earliest possible. This will give you time to proofread your work yourself, take feedback from others, and customise your SOP for every college you are willing to apply for.

Mistakes to Avoid While Writing an SOP

When you are working on a Statement of Purpose for your college admission application, one thing you must ensure is your SOP is flawless. There are several mistakes that students are intended to make, and we are jotting them down for you so that you can ensure you do not make the same mistakes. Remember the smallest of mistakes can affect your chances of studying abroad and as you can’t risk it in any manner, you must be cautious at every step. Here’s a list of mistakes you must avoid while working on an SOP.

• Using the same SOP for every course and college, and not tailoring it for each application.
• Being too generic and beginning your SOP with, “It was my childhood dream to study in a prestigious college like…”.
• Not having enough time to do the final checks of your SOP and get feedback from someone.
• Lacking the structure of your SOP and randomly using life incidents.
• Using too much personal information and making the SOP informal.
• Ignoring university guidelines like missing the deadline or exceeding the word limit.
• Using technical jargon and industry-specific words that are not understandable by everyone.
• Failing to showcase how you are the best fit for the program you are applying for.

Keeping these mistakes in mind and doing the appropriate things like following the rules, you can surely write the best SOP to get accepted into your dream college abroad.

Submit a Flawless SOP to your Dream University with MetaApply’s Assistance

Here ends your guide on how to write an SOP. Writing a personal essay can be an overwhelming task, especially when you haven’t written this type of document before. To make things simple for you, you should follow the tips mentioned above, and no matter what, one thing you must follow is to start working on your SOP in advance, because the last-minute stretch may lead to a poorly constructed SOP harming your chances of getting accepted in your dream university. Moreover, if you need any personal assistance to understand more about SOP writing, you can contact our experts. Our in-house team of SOP writers will provide you with the best SOP example that will help you construct a perfect personal essay. So, when it is about college admission, you better pull up your socks and do every right thing. For more assistance, you can contact us now.