If you've downloaded a sample SOP from the internet, so have a few hundred other applicants. Admissions teams can spot a template in two lines. The good news is that a plain, specific letter beats a polished generic one almost every time.
Start with something only you could write
Compare these two openings. "I have been passionate about technology since childhood." Or: "In my final year I rebuilt our department's attendance system in Python after the spreadsheet kept breaking, and I wanted to understand why it kept breaking." The second one tells the reader what you did, and it makes them curious about the next sentence.
A structure that works
- Why this field. One short paragraph, with a real example.
- Why this programme. Name two or three courses, a lab or a thesis topic that you actually looked up. This is where most letters go vague.
- What you bring. A project, an internship, a thesis, work experience. Say what you did, not what the team did.
- What next. What you want to do after graduating, in a way that is realistic and doesn't promise to change the world.
Things to leave out
- Long family history, unless it directly explains your choice
- Big claims you can't back up
- Copied sentences. Many universities run plagiarism checks, and a flagged SOP can end an application
- Anything you wouldn't be comfortable explaining in an interview
Before you send it
Read it out loud. Wherever you stumble, rewrite. Then give it to someone outside your field and ask what they remember. If they can't say what you want to study and why, it needs another draft. Our counsellors read drafts every week, and you're welcome to book a review. Check each programme's own page for the word limit and format.