Counsellor's Corner

The University Application season

has arrived. Over the next two

months, students will be applying

to colleges across countries and

Universities.

The application forms and portals

expect the students to talk about

themselves as personalities and list

all their achievements. There are various methods and ways in which

Universities try to know the students better such as Statement of Purpose,

Personal Essays, Academic achievements, Activity List, etc.

Statement of Purpose is one such mode to communicate with the

University about yourself, your motivation and your goals. It is imperative

for the student to write an excellent SOP to differentiate oneself from the

crowd of applicants and make the University see that they are the right fit

for them.

Statement of Purpose – Tools & Strategies

What is Statement of Purpose (SOP):

SOP is the student’s personal statement about who you are, what has

influenced your career path so far, your professional interests and where

you plan to go from here. The SOP is your chance to talk directly to the

admissions committee and convince them as to why they should select

you from the multitude of candidates. This is indeed a differentiating

document that can help to set you apart from the rest.

70% of the SOP should be focused on academics and subject related

information. Students should write about their HL and SL subjects, which

subjects interest them the most, certain subject modules that are

incorporated within projects, their academic excellence in any subject, how

the combination of subjects will be beneficial in their UG course, relevance

of subjects with the course intended to study.

Interest toward the subjects may be demonstrated in the following ways:

Describing the modules / topics studied in the subject during the

curriculum, skills developed for the subject and how to utilise them, extra

activities done related to the subject eg. reading about particular topics in

newspaper, internships, projects, etc and what you learnt from them, what

value addition is done pertaining to the subject, contributions to clubs/

contests/projects and what was the learning outcome

Structure of SOP:

Strategies for Effective SOP:

30% of the SOP should be dedicated to extra curricular involvement

and achievements. Students can include activities that they participated in

through school, hobbies or activities pursued outside school, levels of

excellence or achievements attained in the activity. Students can elaborate

upon activities such as sports, dance, drama, musical instrument, visual

arts; academic activities like MUS, debates, olympiad exams; hobbies such

as reading, singing, cooking, travel; interests such as blog writing,

photography; and volunteer work such as helping an NGO.

All achievements (academic or extra-curricular) should be highlighted

along with what you gained from the experience such as motivation,

leadership, team-building, competency, etc.

Write Stories, not Statements: Write such that the reader connects

with you.

Quantify the Stories: The story must contain measurable quantities

for emphasis.

Be specific: Add details about subjects, interests and goals

Decide how you want to portray yourself: Add adjectives and details

to complement your personality.

Customize the SOP as per requirement: If the SOP is for one

particular University you can add specifics about that University and

show why you want to study there.

Be honest: Do not lie about any achievements or about yourself.

Sketch a real picture of you..

Wishing our Grade 12 students all the

best as they apply to their dream univer-

sities as they continue with the University

Application process for Foreign Universi-

ties and as our counsellors provide them

assistance with filling the Common

App, Coalition, UCAS, UC and OUAC

forms.

References:-

http://www.statementofpurpose.com/whatis.html

https://crunchprep.com/gre/powerful-statement-of-purpos

UPDATES

Boston University, USA information session was

conducted on October 9th

, by Ms. Stephanie. She

talked about Life at Boston University and

apprised the students of the course offered at the

University, academic programs, campus activities,

admission requirements, etc.

Playnomics Game Session

Playnomics Game Session

was conducted on October

14th by ISBF for Grade 11

and 12 students. The Bulls

& Bears Workshop is an

interactive stock market

workshop that provides

students with insights into working of the stock

market. In the game simulation, students

participate in teams to maximise the value of

their portfolios. They trade in a variety of stocks

listed on the exchange, negotiating real-time

price changes. The students learnt to build an

investment portfolio based on financial analysis

in response to market dynamics and using

various investment strategies.

Boston University virtual visit

FLAME University, India information

session was conducted on October 16th

,

by Ms. Neha Modi. She talked about:

Liberal Education in a World of

Opportunities.

The session included the following points:

1. Liberal Education – An overview

2. FLAME's Undergraduate program -

structure / USP etc.

3. Study Abroad Opportunities

4. FLAME Admission Parameters

University of Southern California, USA

information session was conducted on

October 22nd

, by Ms. Julie. She talked

about Life at USC and the different

opportunities in terms of co-curricular

activities and academic programs that

were offered to the students seeking

admission to their institution. She also

explained in detail the admission

process and requirements.

Plaksha University, India conducted a

session on October 23rd

. Ms. Nainy

talked about "Reimagining Technology

Education" with emphasis on new-age

tech curriculum and careers.

Interdisciplinary BTech undergraduate

degrees:

Computer Science and Artificial

Intelligence

Robotics and Cyber-Physical Systems

Biological Systems Engineering

Data Science, Business and

Economics

INSPIRATIONAL CAREER QUOTE