Writing a Statement of Purpose for an MBA is a completely new experience as the ones writing it are expected to be highly experienced with both academic knowledge as well as professional expertise. Hence, SOP is considered as one of the important parts of an MBA program which is expected to be a mature and insightful piece giving a glimpse of the candidate’s nature.
If you are an aspiring MBA applicant, then it is important to understand the importance of SOP as writing it more professionally helps enhance your chances of getting admission into the top-most B-school. Writing a good SOP helps make you stand out from the crowd and make your application noticeable. But many MBA aspirants find it difficult to write a professional SOP and thus face a difficult situation. We understand that taking admission to an MBA program is a stressful task as many don’t know how to approach writing their SOP. Thus, all MBA aspirants planning to do an MBA program can go through the detailed blog and get correct information related to writing SOP for MBA.
What is SOP?
SOP for MBA is like a forward-thinking question helpful for the admission committee to get a better idea about candidates’ abilities and skills. Applicants must remember that information provided by them in an SOP for MBA will be discussed during the interview process, so make sure to write accurate and much-needed information.
SOP is an important piece of information and helps the selection committee to understand the candidate’s life, his/her achievement, career goals, etc. Thus it is important to discuss your past achievements, awards, etc. that make your SOP outstanding.
SOP structure for MBA?
Precise information in the statement of purpose for an MBA differs from university to university. Many universities follow certain guidelines on how to approach it and ask MBA candidates to present their stories in any way they like. While some other B-schools are rigid and look for a particular piece of information only. Some of the questions that you are supposed to answer while writing an SOP include:
- What is your history?
- What were your achievements in the past?
- Your career goals and professional objectives?
- Why do you want to do an MBA? What will you do after getting an MBA degree?
- Why did you make up your mind to do an MBA from our university?
The first paragraph of a statement of purpose for an MBA must include an overview of the applicant and include an answer to the questions mentioned above.
After that, discuss your academic background. It must include all details related to the candidates’ previous education. Since the majority of the universities offer MBA in different disciplines, you must focus on the managerial or business aspect included in your program curriculum rather than discussing something else. In this section, you can also mention your projects, participation in extracurricular activities, club memberships, etc. that showcases your skills.
The following paragraphs must talk about the reasons for pursuing an MBA, and why you have chosen a particular university. Here you can talk about the available course, professors, or something else that helps the committee know that you have done your homework well.
Also in this section, you must talk about your career goals. In this section, applicants can discuss their plans and talk about their long-term career goals post getting an MBA degree.
The concluding para must be powerful and deliver an impactful message. You can talk about your plans and how doing an MBA can prove beneficial to you in the future. In other words, your SOP must prove that giving you admission to an MBA program can not only help you have a great career but can prove to be an asset to the university also.
How to write SOP for MBA: number of words
Many MBA schools don’t mention anything about SOP and leave it up to the applicant to decide. Many applicants grab the opportunity and start writing pages highlighting their strengths. However, this is not the correct strategy, writing so many words in an SOP can make it look very boring and there are higher chances that it doesn’t get noticed.
Rather remember to write much-required information that readers find enjoyable to read. Write in such a way that readers don’t feel bored, don’t write anything that makes no sense. Include only the relevant and selective details, which you think the committee must know. In case, the university has not defined the number of words requirement, try to ramp up your MBA SOP between 1000 and 1500 words. Make sure to give a professional touch to your SOP and focus on quality rather than quantity.
Tips for Writing SOP for an MBA
Make sure to add authentic and reliable information only, adding unique and presentable information is like adding life to your MBA application. Some of the factors that must be kept in mind while writing SOP for MBA include:
- Make sure to establish a connection between the paragraphs, they must be connected.
- Use a professional tone while writing down your SOP.
- Give extra importance to opening and closing paragraphs as they make your SOP look different and outshining from the rest.
- Strictly adhere to the guidelines given by a particular college or business school you are applying to.
- All facts mentioned by you must talk about MBA and how doing it from a particular university or B-school can prove to be a turning point in your career.
- Plan your SOP, decide what you want to write, and frame a structure for it.
- Don’t plagiarize anything as it will result in straight-away rejections. The universities are more concerned about this and will disqualify your application if anything is copied from somewhere else. Thus write the original content only.
- The SOP acts as a bridge between you and the university thus explaining yourself in a more presentable manner.
- Last but not the least, always review your SOP. Go back to the essay, revise and edit it, if required. Revising it ensures that you have submitted the best possible version of the essay.
A well-written SOP is important to get admission to an MBA program. There are many criteria based on which the final decision is taken and SOP is one such aspect. In addition to having a strong academic record and scores /academic transcripts, a professional written SOP is also important.
Hope we have provided enough details related to SOP for an MBA program. Following the above-mentioned guidelines helps improve your chances of getting admission to renowned B-Schools.
So impress the selection committee by writing facts, not mentioned in your academic documents, professionally and dynamically.
