It is ok to be clueless on how to write an impressive Statement of Purpose for MBA or any other post-graduate degree. A subpar Statement of Purpose can hinder your dream of studying at a top university. Top educational institutions abroad demand you send them a compelling Statement of purpose to make it easier for them to select students for the next calendar year. So if you are one of the students who is looking forward to writing an SOP that is just subpar, this is a blog for you. Continue reading to learn about the SOP guidelines, MBA statement of purpose format, and a sample sop for MBA.
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MBA Statement of Purpose Format
MBA statement of purpose format retains all the primary structures that an SOP of an undergraduate program comprises. However, the MBA statement of purpose adds more sections in terms of educational qualifications and professional experiences. The SOP starts with the basic introduction and escalates to answer more specific questions like the aforementioned academic and professional experiences, reasons to choose the university, and future career goals. The following pointers can give a little more detail to the statement of purpose format necessities.
1. The Basic Introduction
In the introduction of the statement of purpose for mba, you need to introduce yourself in a few lines and immediately connect yourself to the course you are applying for. You also need to explain how you fit the best resume of a motivated candidate who will bring a positive change in the field. Refrain from going on and on about yourself. You must have a leach on your words and tailor them in such a way that they serve their purpose of capturing the decision maker's attention.
2. Reason for choosing the university
After explaining "why the course," the next step is to explain "why the university." You need to express in convincing detail why you choose the university. The decision committee will want to know your expectation of studying at the university and what is the prediction of your achievements after graduation. You are also expected to answer why you choose the country if you are an international student.
3. Academic and Professional Experience
Academic and professional experience in the statement of purpose for MBA or any other course should come in the middle. This is a crucial part of the SOP essay. For the decision committee of top universities, this section provides them with the quantifiable proof of your eligibility for the course. Academic experience required in the case of SOP for an MBA is a schooling certificate, a bachelor's's degree in business administration, or similar fields. And professional experience is any work experience previous to the application.
4. Career Goals
The statement of purpose for mba or any other postgraduate degree should end with a conclusion about your long-term and short-term goals after your graduation. For most decision committees, this section is a make or break. A well-written future plans or career goals section will usually get the decision makers convinced about you. This section, along with the rest of the content, will also help them to assess your personality.
Guidelines for writing SOP for MBA
Having the format for SOP understood, you can start writing your SOP for MBA. However, even with a good format for SOP, students find it difficult to get selected. This is because, with just the format, you will know what to write but not how to write. Knowing how to write, along with a good format, increases your chances of getting into your desired course in any of the top universities. To serve this purpose, here are some guidelines for writing SOP for MBA.
01. Originality is the key
Universities want you to write SOPs that are unique and personalised so that it captures you through educational history, professional experience, and career goals. Duplicating other people's SOPs is not tolerated. The decision committee or the application officer has gone through thousands of applications each year, and they won't think twice about disqualifying a duplicate SOP. While writing SOP, eliminate the information about you that is already mentioned in the resume.
02. Grammatical errors are a big NO
Almost all SOPs that come in with grammatical errors have the same fate. You might find these SOPs, which lack grammatical accuracy, in and out of the universities paper shredder in no time. So, it is super necessary that you double and triple-check for spelling mistakes, misleading information, and grammatical errors before submitting your statement of purpose for mba or any other postgraduate degree. Easy to understand and error-free SOPs will give you a higher chance of getting selected.
03. Do not overreach with false promises
Decision committees in top universities are not big fans of promises you can't keep. Students who make overreaching promises are declined by the admission officers. Universities and decision committees can weed out ingenuine overreaching false promises. Hence, it is highly advised that you write down a practical list of items that you can achieve with suitable examples.
04. Organised content catches the attention
By formatting, proofreading, maintaining originality, and grounding the authenticity of your claims in the SOP essay, you have increased 90% of chances of getting selected. But it is not complete without the composition of your content (which is the icing on the top). Make sure that the alignment is done in such an organized way that the admission officer can do anything but approve your application.
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Sample SOPs for MBA
Even as a small child, I was very passionate about business. This interest stemmed from watching my father, who was an entrepreneur himself. Business meant so much to me because that was what everybody always talked about, from my great grandfather to my father to my brothers. All the trips to my father's business place during my childhood filled a lot of accounts. My father was a genius on how to play numbers to his advantage. Slowly, I decided that when I grew up, I would be involved in entrepreneurship.
Having my goals of set toward business, I consumed everything that involved or related to that topic from my father's library. Even in school, I was more interested in math and science, in which I scored my highest marks. After finishing school with such a great performance in these subjects, I had a clear idea of what I had to do. I applied, got selected, and finished my bachelor's degree in business management in one of the top business schools in my country. For me, the dream was closer than ever before. Although, this was when things took an unexpected turn. My family had fallen into a huge debt that my father alone could not pay back. This forced a detour from continuing my MBA education. During these years, I worked for daily wages in a local furniture wholesale company. This experience gave me a brand new perspective on business.
Fortunately, with just a year and a half of hard work selling furniture, the debt was paid in full. I then immediately started preparing for various entrance exams to get into the top universities in my home country and abroad to pursue my dream of becoming an entrepreneur. This was the same time my cousin was returning home after his education at the New York University Stern School of Business. The details of his experience at the university made me very interested in the institution. I jumped on the university website, and within a few days, I knew everything there was to know about NYU Stern. Everything from awards and recognition to student testimonials made me very interested in the university. So, I wasted no time and decided to opt for the MBA course at the university.
If everything works as I planned and I get admitted to NYU, things will be more different for the family. I would then like to make my good fortune benefit the whole community. My plan is to develop and sustain business with ethical practices and go green initiative. And when I finish my MBA, I will try my luck to work in my dream American companies like Amazon, Deloitte, IBM, etc. I stop here now with good faith that I have put forth a compelling case on why I belong in the upcoming business class at New York University Stern School of Business.
Difference between SOP and Personal Statement
SOP and Personal statement are slightly different in approach but are the same considering what they are trying to achieve. Both of them are academic documents that are necessary for your application to top universities. In some universities, you are required to only submit either. However, in others, both documents are required. Universities like UC Berkeley, University of Michigan, UCLA, etc., are educational institutions that require students to submit both the SOP and personal statement during their application process.
An SOP or Statement of purpose for MBA or any other course is a document that conveys your aspirations for life after graduation. Thus, it is a very important document that the decision committee of the universities demands for student admission.
Know more: Difference between SOP and Personal Statement
A Personal Statement is a document that describes or paints a picture of what kind of person you are to the university. Thus, decision committees of most top universities also prefer personal statements over or conjoint with statements of purpose for student admission. The personal statement is more informal when you compare it to the statement of purpose.
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Difference between SOP and Letter of Motivation
The difference between an SOP and a Letter of Motivation can be confusing for most people. This is because when looked at from far, both seemed to serve the same purpose with the same approach. But there are considerable differences. If you are applying for a European university in countries like Germany, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, etc., the decision committee asks for a Later of motivation or LOM instead of the statement of purpose for MBA or any other postgraduate degree. In other words, the LOM is the same as the SOP but for European universities.
