I am a graduate student at Harvard University and I work at MIT's admissions office. I also offer a writing and editing service. Through my professional experience, I have come across some very common mistakes in PSs. However, reading the blogs and suggestion columns, I find very little information that is truly useful. The advice just seems conventional and vague. So, I decided to start a series of informational posts to help you guys. I will address one main topic everyday. Hopefully these blogs will help you.
What should I focus on in my PS
Your PS should include 5 essential elements:
1)Your motivation – what has inspired you to
pursue the field. This could include background, research experiences, family influence, etc.
2)Professional/research background
Lots of people have problems in this area and don't know what to focus on.
I obviously cannot just make a list of all possible fields. However, as a
good rule of thumb: If your future goal is to work in industry - focus
on professional experience. If your goal is to work in research or
academia - focus on research experience.
Explaining Research Experience:
Do not just say “new “
developments. Thinking about the following questions will help you more
comprehensively describe your research.
1)How did your research change or impact the field - what was the
situation before or after your contribution? Emphasize the significance.
If you only assisted research - how was your assistance important. What
did you actually do? How did you contribute to the overall project?
Although you only assisted in research, you still need to make sure
that you explain the big picture of the research project and purpose. What was the goal of the research?
2) What problems did you solve and how
3)What was your research process? In this area, include technologies,
approaches, systems used (example: Choice behavior, regression
analysis, due diligence, game theory. Please note that “mathematical model is too
vague.)..Do not forget to say HOW you used the above and why.
5) future work - in this area...you can include information about possible research for your future.
For professional experience - focus on contributions to the company and
your job tasks. Also make sure you list your achievements, promotions,
leadership, etc
3) Future goals, and how you will achieve them. (sometimes
it is a good idea to split this
into short and long term goals). Be specific in terms of how... This
should be easy since you should already have a plan for your life. This
can include your graduate studies, future jobs, etc
4) Why did you pick the school, and how you will
contribute to it?
To answer this question, make sure
you know the school. It is a good idea to use specific courses or
programs offered by the school to emphasize your points. Student organizations and
research focus can also be included. DO NOT say things like "the
school's excellent reputation and faculty impresses me" - this is vague
and useless. Anyone on the admissions committee reading it will know
right away that you have no idea what you are talking about.
However...you can talk about the placement program, an specific
professor's research, specific labs, etc.
In terms of your contribution...sometimes it might help to think about the
future global situation. For example, as Asia develops, your cultural
background and information on Asian society will become very useful.
I'm sure this would be very helpful to your classmates.
5)
Any other information the school has asked you
to provide.
An example for this question is Leadership.
When talking about leadership, it is best to use an actual example. However,
if you do not have any leadership experience, you can use situations
where you exhibited leadership qualities - such as determination,
compassion, drive, communication, sacrifice, organization. Just make
sure you are able to explain how these traits make you a good leader.
However, the most important pieces of advice I can give you are:
1) Make sure you come up with a comprehensive outline before you write. ORGANIZE your thoughts
2) Choose examples from your past VERY VERY carefully. DO NOT choose
examples that include failure. This will only highlight your negatives.
DO NOT include examples where you are presenting another company,
organization, person, situation in a negative light. This will make you
seem like you are complaining and difficult to work with. When speaking
about another organization...be either positive or neutral. DO NOT
speak negatively about your previous company.作者: bella 时间: 2010-5-7 20:29
太感谢楼主了，正愁ps呢
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