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Statement of Purpose

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Statement of Purpose
Ohio Wesleyan Writing Center Founded University Promoting1955 as a hallmark of liberal arts education writing

Writing Guidelines
Statements of Purpose
From the OWU Writing Center in the Sagan Academic Resource Center

The OWU Writing Center
Corns 316 ▪ (740-368-3925) ▪ http://writing.owu.edu ▪ open Monday-Friday, 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

Ohio Wesleyan University Writing Center © 2011

Writing Guidelines for Statements of Purpose
Contents
Writing Your Statement of Purpose ................................................................................................ 1 I. Audience and Institutions ....................................................................................................... 1 II. Content ................................................................................................................................... 2 III. Organization and Development ........................................................................................... 4 IV. Language, Tone, and Voice ................................................................................................. 5 Sample Statements of Purpose ........................................................................................................ 8 I. Social Sciences ........................................................................................................................ 8 Education: Teaching English as a Second or Other Language (TESOL)—non-native English Speaker .................................................................................................................................... 8 Environmental Studies ............................................................................................................ 9 Geography ............................................................................................................................. 11


Cited: Asher, Donald, ed. Graduate Admission Essays: Write Your Way into the Graduate School of Your Choice. 2nd ed. Berkeley: Ten Speed Press, 2000. Print. Bravinsan. ―Music Personal Statement.‖ Studential.com. 2008. Web. 15 Nov. 2010. Brown, Robert M. "Self-Composed: Rhetoric in Psychology Personal Statements." Written Communication II.3 ( 2004): 242-260. Print. Dong, Yan. Statement of Purpose. Ohio Wesleyan University, 2010. Doran, Jo and Allen Brizee, contributors. ―Writing the Personal Statement: Examples of Successful Statements.‖ The Purdue Online Writing Lab. Purdue University. 7 Sept. 2010. Web. 19 Nov. 2010. ―Essay #6: ‗The Real History.‘‖ Asher 128-132. ―Essay #40: ‗Multifunctional Enzymes.‘‖ Asher 247-248. ―Extensive Personal Statement: Film.‖ Schall 98-100. Keira. ―Social Work Personal Statement.‖ Studential.com. 2009. Web. 31 Aug. 2011. ―Life Sciences [Bio/medical].‖ Statement of Purpose.com: What‘s Your Story? 2004. Web. 27 Jan. 2011. Psychology Club of University of Northern Iowa. ―Statement #1: Personal Statement.‖ Sample Personal Statements. N.d. Web. 20 Jan. 2011. -----. ―Statement #13.‖ Sample Personal Statements. N.d. Web. 20 Jan. 2011 ―Sample Essay 1: The Environmental Studies Student.‖ Accepted.com. 2011. Web. 25 January 2011. ―Sample Essay 2: The Engineering Student.‖ Accepted.com. 2011. Web. 25 January 2011. Ohio Wesleyan University Writing Center © 2011 Page 46 ―Sample Personal Statement for Electro-Acoustic Music.‖ Personal Statement. Eduers.com. The Eduers, 2009. Web. 20 Jan. 2011. ―Sample Statement of Purpose.‖ University of California Berkeley College of Letters and Science, Social Sciences Division, Graduate Diversity Outreach Office. 2004. Web. 17 Jan. 2011. ―Sample—Statement of Purpose 3.‖ English for Practical Purposes, Fall 2002. 2002. Web. 31 Aug. 2011. ―Sample Statement of Purpose for Mathematics,‖ Personal Statements. Eduers.com. The Eduers, 2009. Web. 20 Jan. 2011. ―Sample Statement of Purpose for 20th Century American Literature.‖ Personal Statement. Eduers.com. The Eduers, 2009. Web. 20 Jan. 2011. Schall, Joe. Writing Personal Statements and Scholarship Application Essays: A Student Handbook. Victoria, Australia: Thomson--Brooks/Cole, 2006. ―Short Personal Statement by a Student in Medieval Literature.‖ Writing Personal Statements Online: A Handbook for Students Applying for Scholarships and Graduate Study. Joe Schall. State College, PA: The Pennsylvania State University College of Earth and Mineral Sciences, 2008. Web. 31 Aug. 2011. ―Short Personal Statement: Geography.‖ Schall 68. ―Short Personal Statement: Geology.‖ Schall 66. ―Short Personal Statement: Paleontology.‖ Schall 67. Somethingbiblical. ―Sociology Personal Statement.‖ Studential.com. 2008. Web. 31 Aug. 2011. Stelzer, Richard. How to Write a Winning Personal Statement for Graduate and Ohio Wesleyan University Writing Center © 2011 Page 47 Professional School. Princeton, NJ: Peterson 's Guides, 1989. Print. Ohio Wesleyan University Writing Center © 2011 Page 48
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