Statementsofpurpose.com

MS, Chinese, Statistics for Technological Advancement

2019-09-26T13:12:00-04:00

Born and raised in China and coming to the USA at the age of 19 to attend university, I have now been here for 3 years. Throughout the course of my education, I have increasingly fallen in love with the field of Statistics and it is in this area that I hope very much to earn my Master’s Degree at the University of XXXX, where I am currently finishing my undergraduate studies. I feel strongly that I would be able to best excel at UX since I already have an establish support base and network here and I love UX very much. I have chosen to give my professional life to the advancement of Statistics because I see it as ultimately a humanitarian enterprise; since the more we are able to master statistics, harnessing its power for the purposes of technological advancement, the more our world will be able to prosper and develop in peach and harmony. The greatest possible contribution I can make, as I see it, is to use statistics ultimately to help ordinary people.

While serving for months as a volunteer teacher in both China and Thailand, I came to a much fuller realization of how so many people are much less fortunate than I am. These teaching experiences left me highly motivated to give my all to the advancement of the cause of education, which I see as the best solution to the problem of inequalities. If given an opportunity to complete your especially distinguished Master’s Degree Program in Statistics at UX, I will be able to realize my central professional goal of the fullest possible engagement with research in the area of big data, putting my skills to use on behalf of the non-profit, humanitarian organizations. I am also especially passionate about statistical applications in the social sciences and with respect to social and humanitarian issues. It is because of these interests that my foremost intellectual role model at the University of Michigan is Professor XXXX, who uses statistical applications to analyze how to motivate more people to donate money to relief efforts for the poor. Most specifically, I hope to study in-depth the statistical applications that are being designed for the advancement of public health in developing countries.

I have contributed to several research projects as an undergraduate and currently I am heavily engaged in the study of deep learning mindset, analyzing data using Python. I spent two years studying Management and Economics and this coming May of 2018 I will graduate from UX as a triple major in Economics, Mathematics, and Statistics. During my junior year, I realized the limitation of simple machine learning algorithms and became interested in the concept of deep learning and neural networks, under the guidance of professor Ji Zhu, learning to classify data sets to detect picture patterns. Analyzing the real estate market in the US since the beginning of 2016, I used random forest imputation to deal with huge amounts of missing data and fit generalized linear models to test for association between sale prices and house features. I used deep learning mindset to predict the log error of Zestimate (a widely used estimated market value for an individual home) and the actual sale price. I also spent countless hours immersed in the Chinese stock market crisis of 2015, contributing to an analysis of stock data from ETF 50, and clustering on time series data to pinpoint abnormal company behaviors during the crisis. This study has been submitted to the Journal of Behavioral Finance and I am listed as one of the co-authors.

I have experience in R, SQL, Python, MatLab and Stata. In addition, I am familiar with C, C++ and Mathematica. I am also currently learning SAS. My previous research compels me to continue towards my goal of becoming a professional research investigator. Thank you for considering my application to Statistics at the University of XXXX.

Graphic Design Master's, Art History Background

2018-09-26T09:28:00-04:00

I have loved art and calligraphy since as long as I have been able to hold a brush. I have won several prizes in China for art and calligraphy and passed the prestigious Level 7 Painting Certificate of the Shanghai Chinese Calligraphy and Painting Association. I love the creative process and have applied my artistic and marketing skills and experience in producing eye-pleasing and effective designs for both marketing products and web pages. I am greatly attracted to the vast creative potential that the web provides and seek to fuse traditional art forms with the very latest technological innovations. I regard myself as a ‘natural’ in the field who now seeks to acquire the additional skills and knowledge to make a significant contribution especially in the area of ‘new media’ which is opening up thrilling new possibilities for almost every kind of business and organization.

My bachelor degree in Graphic Design and Art History provided me with an excellent grounding for a career in this field. The study and practice of ‘bringing ideas to life’ through GD was, in itself, fascinating but the fact that I was surrounded by highly creative people who shared my enthusiasm made the experience truly life-changing. This was supplemented by an appreciation, in the study of Art History, of the fact that there have always been those who seek to present thoughts, information and opinion through appealing and compelling composition and have found many means of doing so over several millennia.

My artistic and design education has been supplemented by technical knowledge and skills acquired over several years spent as an intern, employee and contractor in the working world of design/web design. I am aware that ‘artists’ can sometimes struggle in the demanding and profit oriented ‘real world’. However I have a well-developed practical ‘side’ and I have thrived in the ‘rough and tumble’ of the collaborative and team based projects in which I have often been involved. I consider the ‘art’ of effective communication is as vital to a designer as his technical skills and I am by nature as ready to listen as I am to speak though always ready to make my own ‘case’ to others. I have found this characteristic to be very helpful in achieving early agreement with colleagues and clients. The technical knowledge and skills acquired during my bachelor degree studies and broadened them considerably by the application of a number of additional platforms.

I have particularly enjoyed working in the exciting environment of the ‘start up’ in which the creative impulse can be allowed maximum rein. In one case, our team designed an animated app mock up prior to the launching of the product to gauge the interest of potential backers. This approach saved much time and expense in judging whether or not to proceed and we were ultimately successful both in raising finance and marketing the product. The use of UI/UX design assisted in attracting traffic and product purchase. The whole exercise was enormously satisfying and taught me much.

I am excited to be in a field where change is so rapid and openness to innovation and adaptability are vital to success. I enjoy learning and applying new techniques and platforms and understand that this process of change and improvement will continue at an increasing rate over time.

To summarize, I am an accomplished artist with an excellent and relevant academic and professional background that will enable me to excel in the program and in a web design career beyond. I can assure the reader of highly enthusiastic and diligent participation in the program, I look forward to sharing the fruits of my own knowledge and skills for the benefit of my fellow students and receiving the benefit of their own.

Thank you for considering my application to one of the finest Graphic Design Master’s Program in the world at XXXX University.

PHD Health Sciences Informatics, Chinese

2018-09-18T09:09:00-04:00

Born and raised in my native China until the age of 18, now, at 36, I have spent half my life in the USA. I hope to be selected to your competitive PHD Program in Health Sciences Informatics at XXXX University on the basis of my professional experience and the fact that I hold dual Master’s Degrees that are closely related to this field. This will enable me to excel and distinguish myself in your program.

I plan to fully devote my life to doing everything that I can to contribute to the reinvention of the US healthcare system, making health care increasingly safe, effective, affordable, and accessible in America. I finished my first Master’s Degree in Regulatory Science and Health Safety in 2013 and then my MS in Biotechnology in 2015. I have worked on the development of medical devices as a research intern at the Food and Drug Administration and I have also been running a free weight loss class for my local community for the past several months and enjoy it immensely.

I have very diversified experience in research, regulation and business - all medical related. This includes two years of basic science research experience in the area of brain cancer and I have published one paper entitled "Clinical Cancer Research" as a second author; I have two years of working experience as a FDA regulatory specialist for a software company, making sure that the software serves its purpose of helping drug/biotech companies to stay in compliance with FDA regulations, including the beta testing of several revised versions of the software. I also own my own medical imaging company, a mobile ultrasound company that scans patients in doctor's offices.

I very much appreciate the interdisciplinary character of your Health Science Informatics PHD Program at XXXX and I feel strongly that I am a good fit with your program given my skill sets, experience, and research interests for the future. I hope to teach in the area of Health Science Informatics in the future and this is why I very much hope to be accepted by one of the finest programs in the country. I hope to combine teaching and research for many decades to come, at the same time that I continue to develop my own technology company.

I have been relentlessly following major issues at the intersection of Biotechnology, Medical Informatics, and Preventive Medicine for the past 5 years. During my last semester as a graduate student I was coming up with several creative ideas that were supported by my professors and I again very much look forward to a full time immersion in the academic world so that I can bring some of my creative ideas to professional fruition. One project that I am working on is a mobile app to holistically integrate the functions of consumer informatics, telemedicine, eHealth/mHealth, and disease prevention & management through health information exchange and interactive patient education, all of which are subjects covered by your curriculum. I am also making progress with an interactive program that can be implemented into organizations or communities at a very low cost but could make significant contributions to education and health literacy for the general public, at the same time that it helps to improve communication between care providers. I especially look forward to learning as much as I can about Ehealth and human computer interaction at XXXX. I thank you for considering my application to your program.

Doctor of Special Education, Autism Spectrum

2017-12-28T04:17:00-05:00

My sport, women’s wrestling, is new and we have momentum, increasing ten-fold in as many years. As a teacher and a coach, I seek to harness this energy towards the design of sports programs specifically for children with Autism. My investment in women’s wrestling pales in comparison to my investment in issues related to Autism-spectrum because 2 of my 3 children are on that spectrum. This is why I made a career change from literature to education and why I feel that I have something special to contribute to the Special Education Doctoral Program at XXXX University where I am currently earning my Master’s Degree. For several years now, I have enjoyed my own Autism laboratory at home, complete with two subjects and my only non-Autistic child serving as the control group. This will continue to help me to excel as a researcher and a teacher.

The most challenging and also the most exciting aspect of my M.Ed. Program at XXXX has been the applied behavioral analysis component. I am currently conducting research in my English classroom based on the concept of ‘direct instruction’, measuring student progress as a result of ‘precision teaching’. I am new at this and I feel very strongly that I want to continue with this avenue of research on a doctoral level; in fact, for the balance of my professional life. Thus, I am gearing up in my mind and heart for doctoral studies and I hope to be accepted to your program at Penn State because I feel so comfortable here; well established with schools, professional contacts, etc. I am working on a proposal to submit for a poster session at the National Autism Conference that XXXXe hosts in August. XXXX is the ideal location for me to continue to learn how to best adapt the way that I teach to the unique needs of my students. I go to IEP meetings now armed with data that can be of assistance to parents as well as teachers.

I have 3 children. My daughter Elizabeth is 11 and she has Asperger Syndrome. Nevertheless, she is also gifted; and she does really well academically without much intervention. My second child, my son James, is "high-functioning Autistic" although I normally define it as "he has autism." My third child, Sammy, is "normal," whatever that means. As little Sammy the infant macho man has grown, I have paused to reflect on the extent to which ‘aggression’ can be positive, aiding in the development of something that was clearly missing with my older son who came before, perhaps my daughter as well. Wrestling can be good for you and I have tussled with Sammy since the day he was born.

I believe I am a good fit with the culture and directions of your program at XXXX. I also feel strongly that I have something important of great value to contribute to the academic community and the teaching profession with respect to the study of antecedent interventions in the secondary classroom, as a way to reduce problem behavior. We have a PBIS (Positive Behavioral Intervention and Support) group at my school and I serve as a Tier 2/Tier 3 coordinator. I would like to design simple, effective strategies that teachers can use to increase motivation and decrease challenging behaviors. This is why I have been especially inspired by the research of XXXX Professors XXXX and XXXX. I want to earn the doctorate so that I become much better at what I do: developing programs for progress monitoring and curriculum development at the high school level. I could not be more inspired, in particular, by the support of Dr. XXXX who currently serves as my Adviser. She has encouraged me to apply to your program. Finally, XXXX is currently ranked #1 in wrestling.

I thank you for your consideration of my application.

Master’s Statistics, Chinese Woman

2017-09-11T04:02:00-04:00

Currently a student at the University of XXXX, I will be graduating this coming May, 2016 with 2 degrees, in Mathematics as well as Landscape Architecture. I have taken Calculus III, Abstract Linear Algebra, Elementary Real Analysis, Intro to Computer Science, and Numerical Methods, all prerequisites for your distinguished Master's Degree Program in Statistics at the University of California XXXX, my first choice for graduate school.

UC XXXX is the most idyllic environment that I have ever visited, both academically and with respect to community and the natural environment. I find the landscape most inspiring. I feel strongly that I learned an enormous amount of valuable, very practical things as a result of earning an undergraduate degree in Landscape Architecture in addition to Mathematics, about industry, supply chain, finance and management, as well as technology, engineering, and business.

I learned throughout the course of my studies, however, that I did not want to devote the rest of my professional life to landscape architecture. Rather, I seek to continue my education at the graduate level in the area that I have always been most passionate about. Mathematics was my first intellectual love and my most recent area of study; this will help me to excel in your program in Applied Statistics at the UC XXXX.

Earning multiple degrees as an undergraduate student is something that I will in all likelihood repeat at the graduate level, earning multiple graduate degrees as well. All of my instincts and innermost feeling tell me that earning my first graduate degree in Applied Statistics at UC XXXX will point me in the right direction and open the doors to a future in which I will be able to make my finest contribution to both humanity and the scientific community. I want to go to graduate school in the area where I have the greatest ability; and I have awesome skill with numbers and their applications. I could not imagine being any happier in the future than I could be fully immersed in data analysis, statistical computing, and applied statistics. I have already taken several computer science classes and I am skilled at website design, both HTML and writing algorithm in java. I am currently learning Python.

I look forward to contributing to the diversity of your program at UC XXXX not just as a Chinese woman but also someone who has spent over 3 years working with art people, dealing with design problems. I completed more than 10 design projects varying in scale up to 1700 acres. For each project, I developed a unique strategy for a unique task and conditions. From site analysis to design, I have become adept at research and investigation. I see each of these projects that I completed as a little like a math problem which I learned how to solve and did so.

If I am accepted into your program, after earning my Master’s Degree, I intend to get extensive experience in the real world, working, thinking creatively, and achieving lofty goals in the area of data analytics and in this way reach my fullest potential as a professional and human being who seeks to contribute to our development as a global society. I see Applied Statistics as the best way to do that.

I thank you for consideration of my application to your very special Statistics Program at UC XXXX.

Master’s Global Business Journalism, Korean

2017-09-11T03:55:00-04:00

During my studies to date I have become increasingly interested in the vital subject of the potential of emerging economies, especially in East Asia, and the barriers that might prevent that potential from being fulfilled. I am convinced that the sharing of timely and accurate information and of educated opinion, as widely as possible, and the encouragement of debate and opinion-sharing will be among the most important means of ensuring a smooth and effective integration of emerging economies into the global market place. I see the program as a means to enable me to assist in this vital process.

My ultimate goal is to work in the public advisory field in Korea, and undertaking a public relations or a journalistic role to inform private investors/potential investors about notable movements in the economies of the East Asia region and their implications and so to assist them in making prudent financial decisions.

I am aware that the field of emerging economies and related communication on the subject is a complex area of study and work calling for specialist knowledge in several areas and uncommon skills among its practitioners. My resume will provide the reader with an assurance of my strong academic ability and potential, I have an impressive GPA in my current program of study. The program that I am currently pursuing is directly relevant to the program and the knowledge and skills acquired will I believe enable me to bring very useful and relevant perspectives and insights to the GBJ program. I have acquired analytical, technical and research skills that will provide a good basis for success. Courses that I have taken include ‘Research Tools and Technologies for Social Sciences’, ‘Research Methods’, and ‘Social Statistics’. I have familiarized myself with the use Excel, Stata and ArcGis together with various statistical tests. I was also entrusted with organizing FDI and ODA inflow statistics during my internship at the Hudson Institute which provided me with the opportunity to extend my familiarity with the organization and interpretation of financial data.

My studies, research and work to date have been focused on public policy and social relations. I cannot claim a background in finance/business nor journalism except for some exposure in the field of student journalism. However I have undertaken substantial informal study in these areas and have familiarized myself with specific data on capital movements through research and internships on ODA and FDI. My background has also provided me with significant research experience and the skills and characteristics of a good researcher are directly transferable and will, I believe, enable me to assist in useful research in the program. I hope that it might be possible to develop my current research relating to the level of technological localization in China’s IT industry.

My senior honors thesis compares the relationship between development models in Chongqing and Shenzhen, and I plan to tweak and expand my current research on local Chinese IT enterprises and their internal structures. My academic background has also equipped me with an understanding of the ‘big picture’ of the global economic system as well as the interactions between different actors, the public, governments, NGO’s etc., which provides me with considerable relevant knowledge of the analytical processes involved in examining the ‘big picture’.

I am aware that accurate interpretation of data calls for intuitive, as well as purely technical skills. A computer can ‘read’ but as yet only a human can ‘read between the lines’ and possibly see potential connections in apparently unconnected pieces of data. I also understand that over-reliance on statistics that might be months old can be a problematic and that it is important to have one’s ‘ear to the ground’ to supplement official information; for instance a taxi-driver whose brother has a local haulage firm may be able to provide information that is more current than the latest official statistics and may contradict them on, say, the level and type of local production.

I believe that my language skills will be of particular use in this field of work and study. I am fluent in Korean, English and Chinese which are particularly relevant to my particular interest in the East Asia region. I have lived in New Zealand, China, Korea and the US and have consequently developed a very flexible approach to life. I have studied, worked and socialized with people from many ethnic and social backgrounds. I am a very curious person who greatly enjoys learning about other cultures and in sharing knowledge of my own. I am socially confident with a well-developed sense of humor.

The curriculum coincides closely with my own areas of interest and my career aims. I am also very impressed by the international make-up of a prestigious faculty and the success of its graduates. Of all the master’s programs that I have considered, your own appears to be a ‘perfect fit’ for my purposes.

I can assure the reader that I shall apply myself with great enthusiasm and diligence to the program, if successful, and will seek ultimately to ‘add luster’ to its already prestigious reputation.

Thank you for considering my application.

Undergraduate, Physics, Chinese

2017-08-05T07:18:00-04:00

As a young man from China whose family is not well educated, formally speaking, I am the first member on either side to attend college. My mother finished only middle school and then entered the workforce to help support the family and my father achieved only a vocational education, never attending a real university. Life as I have known it has always been a great struggle to make ends meet economically—education has always been my compensation and reward. I also come from a family background that is built around hard work and perseverance. We were fortunate to have each other and the opportunity to learn. Most families in China only have one child, but my family had two, me and my younger brother. Our age difference of 11 years placed an early responsibility on my shoulders as I was forced to act as an additional parent and help guide him as he grew up. I taught him many things and continued to learn a lot about myself along the way. Most of all, I learned early on how to care for others both physically and emotionally; how far a helping hand really could go.

Also, I didn’t confine myself in my small hometown. Instead, diversity for me is something that I encountered and learned to appreciate when I grew and matured enormously, personally as well as professionally, especially during my six month exchange program in Hong Kong. This experience left me hungry for more international experience and I decided to apply for and was selected to a three-month research internship at the University of XXXX. I jumped at the opportunity to not only learn at another academic institution in an entirely new country and culture but also to perfect my English skills to an optimal level of performance. Soon after arriving in Canada, I became very much aware of the different teaching styles and I very much enjoyed the more liberal atmosphere since I found this openness to be more effective at stimulating the creative ideas of students. I especially enjoyed making friends from all over the world and swapping stories about physics, engineering, architecture, construction, etc.

I have struggled mightily throughout my entire life, always with great joy, to excel as a student and I have attempted at the same time to become a consummate intellectual with a global mentality. In this I have found my freedom and progress, opportunity and growth. Through community outreach and tutoring, I have also found great pleasure, giving back to those around me, contributing to causes that are close to my heart. I spent over 10 hours each week for two years tutoring peers and lower-level students in my undergraduate program. After spending two years’ work at peer-tutoring, I came to better appreciate the suggestion that ultimately one does not fully learn a subject matter until they teach it. This experience not only reinforced my understanding but cultivated my ability to articulate in the most fluent and concise fashion exactly what the student most needed to learn. I was also the co-founder of the physics club and sought to deliver cutting edge research to the community and non-physics-major students.

My formal education has always been accompanied by informal learning experiences as well as doing research and leading research projects, along the way as I have learned what is required to succeed at the next level of academia. I look forward to many decades to come of full time immersion into the interdisciplinary pursuit of creative ways in which the power of physics can be brought to bear on making the world a better place to live for all of us. As a world-class institution and exemplary in your historic commitment to fostering a diverse and welcoming community, your university stands out head and shoulder among the rest. I assure you that I shall always accept nothing less than to perform world class research that will make a difference for the next generations of physicists to come. I sincerely ask for your favorable consideration.

Diversity Statement, Grad School, Hong Kong

2017-08-05T05:18:00-04:00

A young man who grew up in China, diversity for me is something that I encountered and learned to appreciate primarily as a result of my experiences studying abroad, first in Hong Kong and later in Canada. I savor every opportunity to experience greater levels of ethnic, national, and linguistic diversity in my life. As a result of its history, Hong Kong is an extremely diverse social agglomeration, ranging from those whose families have lived in Hong Kong for many generations, to Chinese Mainlanders, Taiwanese, Turks, American and British, the list is very long, especially when one includes the thousands of political refugees struggling to survive on the fringes of society, mostly from other Asian countries.

Throughout my six month stay at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, I made my studies my first priority. But, when I was not studying or in classes, I walked all over Hong Kong. The extreme density of the population facilitates frequent social engagement, sometimes even among total strangers. I enjoyed engaging in conversation on numerous occasions with people from all over the world, speakers of English as a foreign language like I am. English has been the vehicle of my diversity appreciation, opening the doors, making the interaction possible.

Diversity has been and continues very much to be a crucial factor in the great richness of my experience as a Research Intern at the University of Alberta where I have been serving since May of this year, 2015. Jumping at every opportunity, I learn from everyone with whom I come into contact, professors, guest speakers, academic colleagues, friends. Perhaps the most diverse population that I have encountered, however, are the homeless people. Many if not most of them seem lonely, and feeling lonely myself at times, a very long way from home, I take advantage of the opportunity to have some fellowship. I have been shocked and intrigued here in Canada even more so than I was in Hong Kong at the great variety of ways that English is spoken. I absorb it and imitate it; thus, I like to think that these last six months in Canada have not only radically improved my English, but have also helped me to learn to think in English, and to do so in global ways, inspired by the vast diversity of my social interactions.

PHD Statistics, Biomedical Research, Korean

2017-07-21T07:19:00-04:00

My fascination with Statistics came with the early realization that the applications are almost limitless in that they have the potential to beneficially affect almost every area of people’s lives and with it came the deep desire to become an expert and teacher in this field of study and my application is made with that aim in mind.

I seek to equip myself with the additional skills and knowledge which the program will provide, along with post-graduation professional experience, to fulfil my ultimate ambition which is to obtain a teaching/research post. As a teacher, I will do my best to equip and inspire the next generation of statisticians to enable them make a real and beneficial difference in the world and also to acquire and to apply the ‘artistic’ skills of intuition and subtle interpretation to supplement the scientific models and techniques that they will employ. My special area of interest is in public health and biomedical research, particularly in the design and analysis of large and complex data, primarily in the context of epidemiological studies. I also aim to contribute to consulting and collaborative research in various other related fields in my future career.

Since beginning my studies, I have also become aware of the vital importance of statisticians maintaining independence and objectivity so that their skills are not used as a tool to ‘prove’ that what is untrue is ‘true’ or vice versa and that this ethical component is of great significance where there may be entrenched or even corrupt pressures for a pre-decided outcome. These considerations are perhaps particularly relevant in the medical applications that are of special interest to me.

I pursued a Master’s degree in Biostatistics at XXXU during which time I acquired and developed the various skills and knowledge and acquired the research experience that, I am confident, provide a firm basis for further studies and research at the highest level. I have a strong academic record in mathematics, statistics, calculus, probability theory and regression together with familiarity with statistics package programs such as SAS, STATA, SPSS and JMP as well as R software programs. In terms of my research experience, I had the good fortune to work at the XXXX Biology & Cell Signaling Laboratory at XXXU under the guidance of Dr. XXXX in my work in an ongoing study entitled ‘Aging Associated Cardiac Remodeling’.

I have also been fortunate in having been given the opportunity to gain experience in a wide variety of professional settings and have taken full advantage of them to apply theories in a variety of ‘real world’ situations and applications. I have been encouraged, mentored and taught by highly qualified and enthusiastic professionals.

Along with technical knowledge and skills, I have always sought to develop the ‘soft skills’ relevant to the profession, especially being someone who hopes to teach, lead and inspire students. I understand that a truly effective professional in this field must anyway be able to relate well to others to encourage cooperation, collaboration and the sharing of insight and opinion which is vital to it. Fortunately, I have the natural characteristics that help me to relate easily to others. I have happily studied, worked and socialized with people from many social and ethnic backgrounds. I am of Korean origin and I enjoy sharing knowledge of my culture and learning about others. In addition to Korean and English, I speak Mandarin which I studied formally at undergraduate level. I have also been exposed to various cultures in fairly wide travel in Asia and Europe.

I regard XXU as my academic ‘home’; I benefited enormously from the great breadth of experience and areas of expertise of a prestigious faculty and the constantly challenging but supportive atmosphere in the department. It is my aim to further the department’s and the university’s reputation for academic excellence. I am aware that the doctorate program will attract other very well qualified applicants but I genuinely believe that I can add significant value based upon a very successful academic career, research experience, wide work experience, intellectual curiosity and, perhaps most importantly, a genuine passion for this field of study and its development. I can assure the reader of highly enthusiastic, committed and diligent participation in the program, if selected.

Thank you for considering my application.

PHD Epidemiology LOR, Chinese Doctor

2017-05-23T03:27:00-04:00

To Whom It May Concern,

My name is Dr. XXXX and I am writing this letter of recommendation on behalf of my student XXXX who I see as an outstanding candidate for your PHD Program in Epidemiology. I am a physician from Japan and I came to the US in 1994 to study epidemiology as a basic science of disease prevention, obtaining the MPH and then PHD in Public Health in 1999. My research expertise is focused on the international epidemiology of coronary heart disease (CHD) and subclinical atherosclerosis as well as nutrition. I have been serving as an Associate Professor of Epidemiology at the University of XXXX since 2001.

Not long after her arrival at our university, XXXX approached me and introduced herself as someone who is extremely dedicated to building a lifelong research focus in the area of cardiovascular epidemiology. Because of her great passion for our area of study and the fact that I serve as her Thesis Director, I have spoken with her at length on numerous occasions discussing developments and research opportunities in our field, and I find her to be extremely knowledgeable already about many fast-moving events.

This year, 2015, I have been helping XXXX with her Master’s investigating the potential determinants of arterial stiffness progression using 656 population based samples that serve as a basis for her conclusion that an accelerated increase of blood pressure and aortic calcification are positively associated with arterial stiffness progression as measured by brachial-ankle Pulse Wave Velocity (baPWV). I will publish this article as first author.”

It is because of her great passion for study and investigation, the relentless pursuit of unsolved mysteries that I think XXXX has become so highly developed early on in her critical thinking skills in support of the many enormous challenges that we face in cardiovascular epidemiology. I can assure you that she will bring to your PHD Program the very highest level of excellence and energy, inquisitiveness and indefatigable curiosity that will leave you delighted that she is on your research team.

A very independent thinker, XXXX brings a strident focus to bear with a tenacity that does not let go until the problem or issue is resolved. We communicate entirely in English despite the fact that we are both Asians. She is so fluent, as a writer as well as a speaker, that after we have spoken at length I am left with the impression that my own fluency in English has improved.

It would be an honor for me to provide any additional information as reference for XXXX’s application to your distinguished doctoral program in Public Health Epidemiology at UXX

Sincerely,

Certificate Program in Global Studies and IR, Mexican-American

2017-03-31T06:26:00-04:00

I see your most creative Certificate Program in Global Studies and International Relations at XXXX University’s College of Professional Studies as the best fit for me to begin graduate study, at my own pace, taking one class at a time, so that I might excel through intense focus on the subject as well as continue to work full time to support myself. My undergraduate studies were in Political Science and I am most interested in social justice issues and how they related to globalization, the politics of global hunger.

Born and raised mostly in the USA, I still remember childhood years spent in Mexico with my immigrant Mexican parents. Unfortunately, I lost some of my ability in Spanish over the years, and never learned to write the language. My background in Spanish did, however, greatly facilitate my learning of French because they are in the same family of languages. Thus, still 27 years old, I am off to a great start in the two languages that I need in addition to English to devote myself to a lifetime of fighting hunger in the Developing World: French for the parts of Africa that my English does not cover and Spanish for Latin America.

Born and raised on the South Side of San Antonio where the poor people are concentrated, I have known hunger and I know first-hand how it is related to academic achievement and community involvement. It was only through a great deal of hard work and good luck with a lot of perseverance that I found myself accepted to study at the University of Texas at San Antonio. Each day I spent two hours on bus route 43 to attend classes. I studied, and I watched the scenery very carefully, studying the social stratification around me. Your online program at XXXX will prepare me to excel further along in graduate study as I begin to think about earning the Master’s Degree, what to study. My thinking will mature as I complete your certificate program learning, analyzing, immersing myself in research, so as to develop the technical tools with which to treat my topic in the most rigorous manner.

I would like to see education treated as a greater priority in our society and both access and quality improved. Higher education has provided me with a fighting chance in life to achieve the intellectual and academic preparation of my dreams. Now, if accepted to your distinguished program at XXXX, I will be travelling far beyond what I observed on route 43 and will learn how to see in new ways, in light of new models that help us to understand the global unbalances and inequities that exist and what can be done to level the global playing field with respect to social and economic opportunities. Raised by my grandmother even more than my mother, I know a great deal about female-managed, single-parent families and their special needs, particularly for little boys with absent fathers.

To work my way through college at UX, I got a job at Gold’s Gym as a housekeeper. Soon, I was promoted from Housekeeping to Front Desk Associate and then from Front Desk Associate to Fitness Consultant. Next, I was relocated to our busiest location in San Antonio where I currently lead in overall membership sales and personal training packages. I help people live healthier and more active lifestyles. I enjoy my work and in fitness and health and I like the idea of continuing in this area for several years to come as I continue to advance in my graduate studies.

While studying at UX, I took a sociology course entitled “Poverty,” exploring it first as a concept and then as a real-world economic struggle, mechanisms, history, structures of exploitation, waste, and injustice. During that class and since then, I have developed a personal interest and passion for the area of food insecurity and its health consequence. This is why I am currently taking an online class entitled “The Challenges of Global Poverty” taught by Professors Esther Duflo and Abhijit Banerjee, authors of the book Poor Economics.

I want to devote my life to the cause of putting an end to food insecurity in my lifetime, at the same time that I also study and investigate in the areas of nutrition and public health, the politics and colour of hunger, its geography, diversity, etc. I study disturbing things—genocide, corporate greed, defunding of social welfare nets. The United Nations would be my ideal professional destination and this is one of the reasons why I have invested a lot of effort in improving my French. Working for a world food program would be my ideal job. A fighter, I survived growing up on the south side of San Antonio because when I did not run fast I fought hard. This instilled in me a no-quit attitude and a great deal of tenacity to pursue my dreams of becoming a professional in the area of human rights, fighting for the most basic of liberties, including nutrition.

Prior to completing my Political Science Degree in August of 2014, I earned two Associates Degrees from Palo Alto College. A student leader at PAC, I travelled to Washington DC to work with several food banks. My grades suffered when I worked too many hours; otherwise, I did quite well, making the Dean and President’s lists. My greatest joys came from volunteering with the San Antonio Food Bank throughout high school and beyond, the American Red Cross in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, organizing events as a student leader. Hispanic, homosexual, I embrace diversity and work well across frontiers. Now living on the upscale north side of San Antonio, I make enough money selling fitness to afford paying my tuition at XXXX University—at the same time that I continue prolonging lives here in San Antonio.

I thank you for considering my application.

Latin American Studies PHD, Central American

2017-03-31T04:51:00-04:00

I recently turned 50 years old and have been living in the U.S. for the past 32 years, ever since my family and I fled our native El Salvador as political refugees. Although a virulent civil war was raging at the time, our flight was also a result of the consequences of my sexuality and age, an 18 year old gay man in a country where homosexuals were ‘disappeared’ along with thousands of others who were seen as being somehow subversive to the established right-wing patriarchy and its death squads. Only recently, largely as a result of earning my master’s degree in Latin American Studies at the University of XXXX, have I looked back creatively and analytically to synthesize and express the trauma that I experienced as a young gay man as a result of my sexual orientation.

I now hope to spend the balance of my life writing about issues of gender repression, sexuality, and male homosexual identity—especially the way in which homosexuality has been traditionally repressed in Latin America, both as a way of life and as a subject for literature. I want to record and analyze the evolution of voices that are rising in protest and expressing outrage at the violence , publishing those voices in solidarity with the struggle for progressive change, healing, consolation, and greater understanding among ourselves and from our communities. My master’s thesis on this subject was well received and I am increasingly being sought after as a public speaker in academic circles concerning the subject of violence and discrimination against the LGBT community in Latin America. In April of this year I had the opportunity to present at the 13th Annual South Florida Latin American and Caribbean Studies Conference at XXXX University, where I was awarded a first prize in the area of History and Identity in Latin America. A month later, I participated in the 3rd National Symposium of the Stonewall National Education Project where I was invited to speak about the coming out experiences of gay males in the context of living in a violent society. Later in the summer I was invited to present portions of my thesis at the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender and Straight Alliance (GLBTSA) at the University of XXXX in Chapel Hill. This/Next December, I will be the keynote presenter at the Stonewall National Museum and Archives, in Fort Lauderdale, FL, where my thesis has played a supportive role in their current national exhibition “XXXX.”

My world lit up like a pinball machine in the summer of 2012 when I was selected to work as an intern in the Office of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) at the Organization of American States, in Washington D.C., working on projects and initiatives to promote and protect the human rights of LGBTI people throughout the American hemisphere. I helped process petitions and managed cases related to precautionary measures involving sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender expression among OAS Member States. I also helped to monitor human rights violations of LGBTI persons in the Americas, promoting their visibility in the literature and materials developed by the OAS and sent to its Member States. My summer intern opportunity at IACHR has been complemented by my volunteer work at the XXXX Institute in Coral Gables, Florida, working to prevent suicide through gender-orientation education. This experience also provided me with great inspiration and impetus for my master’s thesis on the LGBTI community of XXXX, specifically gay men born before and after the Civil War of the 1980s.

Entitled “Sexuality and Trauma in Modern XXXX: An Autoethnography,” my thesis offeres a powerful, intimate and detailed analysis of the testimonios of gay men in El Salvador where despite massive amounts of societal discrimination, hate, abuse, violence and abandonment by family members, marginalization generated by a governmental institutions that still interpret homosexuality as a psychological sickness and a flawed relationship with religious establishments that continue to view homosexuality as a perversion, and homosexual people as socially defective and morally degenerate the LGBTI people have found ways to cope and prevail. My own story, supported by the testimonies of others in similar circumstances, helps to provide a rich foundation for a detailed autoethnographical analysis, complete with rich historical background of both the pre and post-civil war eras in El Salvador, so as to provide adequate context for the principal life histories of three gay men who still live in El Salvador. Along with them, through their stories of lives disrupted by war and crippled by street violence, I take a close look at the way that sexual violence, social unacceptance, and family hostility resulted in additional challenges to their mental health. I have worked towards research that is most compelling, and intimate, an influential piece of advise from Dr. XXXX at the University of XXXX who is a leading force in the area of “anthropology that breaks your heart.”

A consensus seems to have emerged both among my faculty advisors as well as my heart that I should continue with my research, go on to the next stage and earn a PhD Degree, and that I should continue to do so at the University of XXXXi in the Department of Modern Languages and Literatures. I love how the Romance Studies Program at UM is so interdisciplinary, with students encouraged to study a wide range of interrelated topics spanning, in particular, Latin American Studies, Romance Languages, History, Anthropology and Sociology, while at the same time they develop a strong theoretical background that will be used to produce innovative, valuable and personal research. I was “born” at the University of XXXX in my late, late 40s and for the first time, as a result of my master’s studies, I am fully alive. I hope to reach my fullest capacity as a productive member of my society by learning to write to my greatest potential and becoming a professional chronicler of and advocate for the abused and the marginalized. I see and feel redemption in education, romance, reconciliation, and greater understanding.

No other major city in the United States has such a great general interest in our neighbors to the south in Latin America and the Caribbean, as does Miami, for cultural as well as geographical and historical reasons. Thus, the vast resources of the Miami area which I have been learning to enjoy and to put to good use for some time now are another extremely powerful reason why I feel so strongly that UX is the best fit for my doctoral program. Most of all, however, it is simply your exceptional faculty that draws me, teaching the right combination of just what I want most to learn: gender studies, immigration studies, U.S.-Latino culture, contemporary Latin American literature, Spanish cultural production, and postcolonial studies. I look forward in particular to studying under the guidance of Dr. XXXX who specializes in sexuality studies, and his research encompasses Brazil, Latin America and Women and Gender Studies Studies. Dr. XXXX’s research and scholarship have helped increase the visibility and focus on LGBTQ culture in contemporary Brazil and Latin America ethnography, and cultural production with a great emphasis on gender and queer studies. I admire him greatly and already consider him to be my mentor. His mentorship would prove invaluable in my attempt to conduct ethnographic work in Latin America where he is already a successful expert, scholar and author. I also look forward to studying under Dr. XXXX who also teaches in the areas of sexuality and Latin America. Dr. XXXX’s research on cultural studies, immigration studies and queer theory are key components to my research interests and I look forward to learning and perhaps collaborating with her in the future. Last but not least, if accepted into your PhD Program at UMXI will continue to have the opportunity to learn from my master’s thesis director, Dr. XXXX in the English Department, whose work on sexuality and sexuality in Africa most specifically, can be a source of comparative study in Latin America. She has taken me under wings and encouraged me to apply to your program as well.

I also have great admiration for Dr. XXXX, a Cuban-American anthropologist who works at the University of XXXXMichigan. She has been profoundly important to my academic and intellectual development. Her work in ethnographic memoir, displacement, narrative approaches and visual anthropology could not be more fundamental to the development of my own playbook for what I dream of doing; her book “The Vulnerable Observer: Anthropology that Breaks Your Heart,” is the principal guideline that sheds light on the kind to work to which I aspire. She helped me greatly to put my thoughts together and pushed me forward to believe that my personal history and my voice mattered. Our continued collaboration will remain a significant asset if I am admitted to your program.

While I am applying for the Spanish track, I see the fact that I also speak French as an additional strength of my application even though I did not learn this language in an academic context but, rather, from 7 years of a very full life working in France’s fashion industry, modeling, reading books and newspapers. I really thrived in Paris.

I thank the University of XXXX Miami for always being there for me, and for continuing to offer opportunities for people from many diverse underprivileged or marginalized backgrounds. I thank the Romance Studies Program in particular for helping to develop the voices of victims of sexual violence and repression who have spent most of their lives in search of a voice that only the most fortunate among us will ever find.

Finally, I thank you for considering my application to your distinguished program.

LLM Masters, Scientist, Pharmacy Regulation

2017-02-18T09:53:00-05:00

In a spacious conference hall in Hilton hotel in Seoul, Korea, June 2015, I had a half day meeting with two officials from CDER (Center for Drug Evaluation and Research) at US FDA, and three other officials each from EMA (European Medicines Agency), Merck USA and Korean MFDS (Ministry of food and drug safety). I was invited to discuss the very first implementation of RMP (Risk Management Plan) of pharmaceutical drugs in Korea as a member of task force to draft the guidelines for a risk management plan with several other colleagues from major multinational pharmaceutical firms including Lilly, Merck and Pfizer.

Over the last 5 months or so, I have been heavily engaged in providing guidance to enable compliance with newly enforced law that became effective as of July 2015 in Korea. The new legislation requires pharmaceutical companies to submit a 200 to 300 page document setting out comprehensive safety, efficacy, clinical trials and pharmaco-epidemiological data of new and orphan drugs and any potential or identified risk factors associated with their administration. The document must be submitted when an application is made for marketing authorization to national health authority.

I made a 5 day trip to Berlin, Germany to Bayer Health Care’s headquarters, then spent 7 days at Bayer’s Asia Pacific regional headquarter in Singapore and also passed many hours in teleconference and email communication with pharmacovigilance, medical advisors, regulators and regulatory colleagues in the US and Korea. Following this considerable effort, I was able to successfully complete drafting guidelines and annex to the amendment of Korean MFDS law and also contributed in developing training module and tracking tool of RMP preparation and submission that is to be used to track and manage any risk minimization activities conducted by Bayer health care offices around the world. This 5 month project was the most challenging one I had undertaken since I was a project manager of Enbrel® biosimilar drug “SB4”, a monoclonal antibody biopharmaceutical to treat Rheumatoid Arthritis at Samsung Bioepis back in 2012, but at the same time the fruitful outcome of this work brought me the same feeling I had when I learned the news that clinical trial application of SB4 was successfully approved from BfArm, a German Federal Institute for Drugs and Medical Devices. Hard work always pays off and I love to be involved in bridging between science and law.

I already work at the interface of science and the law and it has been necessary for me to become familiar with the law as it relates to my area of responsibility. During this time, I have become increasingly interested in the interaction and relationship between the two disciplines. There are some obviously overlapping skills between the scientist and the lawyer, including the application of analytical skills and a well-developed ‘eye for detail’. However, I am also aware that advocacy calls for skills not necessarily apparent in the laboratory and that these obviously include an ability to persuade and also to present scientific data in a form comprehensible to non-scientists. I believe that I possess the characteristics necessary to enable me fulfil my ambition to become a highly successful lawyer/scientist specialising in patent law and health law.

The US is the key international regulator of pharmaceutical/biotechnology industry and so, naturally, I seek to study the subject in the US. I am aware that the purpose of such regulation is not only to protect the rights of those who invest significant sums in developing new products but also to protect the consumers of such products from undue risk. I have researched some of the history of pharma-regulation and one case that has made a great impression on me was that of ‘Thalidomide’. The FDA in the US proved itself to be highly effective in the case of this drug which was marketed in the sixties as a preventative for nausea in pregnant women. The drug caused fetal death in around 5,000 cases and serious defects in a further 5,000 cases in the dozens of countries in which its use had been approved. The FDA had blocked sale of the drug in the US.

It is clear to me that the law in this area is of enormous importance. If the rights of those who undertake investment of time, finance and creativity are not properly protected then progress in the world of pharmaceuticals and biotechnology will either cease or, at least, be gravely damaged, to the detriment of all. It is just as important to ensure that the producers do not recklessly pursue profit at the expense of the users of their products. I can think of few more important roles than that of being one of the ‘gatekeepers’ by coupling my current scientific knowledge and experience to the specialist legal knowledge and skills that I now seek to acquire, and this is the reason for my application.

My goal is to become a general counsel advising and representing various clients including government, industry or academic researchers particularly in the area of biotechnology. I am very interested in assisting in legal and policy research relating to the areas of: biotechnology from micro-organisms, plants, and animals to human genes and stem cells, law and bioinformatics, haplotype mapping, proteomics, pharmacogenomics, nanotechnology and patent law and human embryos.

I am aware that there are a growing number of scientists seeking to enter the legal profession so, though aware that I am not unique, I do believe that my career to date and especially that of my current role as a Pharmacovigilance Officer provides me with highly relevant and useful experience which, even if not entirely unique among my fellow students, will enable me to ‘add value’ to the academic community in providing valuable insights. I look forward to sharing the fruits of my experience and knowledge and to benefiting from the diverse experiences of my fellow students.

Because of the success in my academic career, I was offered the opportunity to teach chemistry and math and took every opportunity to do so. I thoroughly enjoyed passing on my knowledge and my efforts were appreciated by both students and superiors. I believe that my skills and experience in teaching has provided me with the type of communication skills that will assist me in explaining technical matters to non-scientists with clarity and accuracy. I know that this will be an important aspect of the work that I seek to undertake in the future.

In my work, academic career and during my voluntary activities, I have interacted happily with people from a wide variety of social and cultural backgrounds and ages. It was necessary for me to adapt quickly to a contrasting culture in the US and to ‘fine tune’ my English language skills. I empathise with those who face similar challenges and have sought to assist them where I have had the opportunity to do so.

I enjoy sharing knowledge of my own culture and in hearing from other people about their own. I am currently resident in Korea but, having studied in the US for five years, I am familiar with the US academic and social environment. I took part enthusiastically in several extra-curricular activities during my bachelor degree program including membership of my university ski-club and I made many friends. My voluntary work in the Buffalo General Medical Center was particularly satisfying and useful in providing exposure with the variety of cultures in the US and in witnessing at first-hand the importance of pharmaceutical advances in people’s lives. I also served for two years as a conscript in the Korean Army achieving senior NCO rank and was stationed in South Sudan for 6 month as part of Korean Army and United Nations peace keeping operation mainly taking responsibility for interpretation. This part of my background provided me with an increased self-discipline, self-confidence as well as an experience of humanitarian aid work and gave me experience of exercising leadership and in getting along and cooperating with people of diverse academic ability, attitudes and socioeconomic backgrounds.

I am fluent in the English and Korean languages and can converse confidently in German. I excelled in my bachelor degree program at the University of XXXX and graduated ‘magna cum laude’ and was awarded several other honours. This will provide an assurance of my academic ability and of my potential not merely to succeed in the program but to excel within it, which is my firm intention to fulfil. I know, from observing the progress of fellow students over the years, that there is sometimes a tendency among the most academically gifted to ‘coast along’ and pursue only limited academic goals. This is a ‘trap’ that I have always sought to avoid since my earliest school-days. Doing ‘just enough’ is a tempting prospect but one that I have successfully avoided. My aim always is to excel and so meet my potential rather than merely to succeed and I always encourage others to do the same.

I am a strong believer in the maxim ‘all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy’ and I seek to be a ‘well rounded’ person outside of my work and studies. Although it may not be obvious from this statement so far, I have a well-developed sense of humour. Although life is a serious business, I consider it unwise to take it, or oneself, too seriously. I pursue several interests some of which stretch me physically and others which provide pure relaxation and joy. These pastimes include scuba diving, travel, basketball, playing guitar, watching movies and reading a wide variety of fiction and enjoy reading biographies of those who led inspiring lives.

To summarise, I believe that my background demonstrates academic ability and potential, an ability to relate well with others, communication and teaching skills, the ability to rapidly absorb and apply information, an ability to adapt and to be flexible in new situations and cultures, determination, diligence and, not least, a firm intention to ‘make a difference’ rather than merely to ‘make a living’ and to do so for the benefit of others as well as for my own financial and other goals in life .

I am aware that, even for the gifted student, the program will offer challenges and am determined to meet them. If admitted, it is my firm intention to participate with a very high degree of enthusiasm and diligence. In addition to working hard to excel in the program curriculum, I look forward to interacting with my fellow students and faculty members for our mutual benefit, assisting with at least one valuable research project, contributing to law journals and helping in voluntary projects for the benefit of those who have been less fortunate than I have been in life.

MLIS, Women’s Studies Minor, LGBT

2017-02-18T07:51:00-05:00

The University of XXXX is my first choice for graduate study towards the MLIS Degree for a variety of reasons including the fact that I live in XXXX. I also very much admire your creative curriculum and the way in which it is inspired by and interwoven with the strength and creativity of your University in the Humanities and Social Sciences generally speaking. In particular, I very much admire the work of XXXX as an advocate of the LGBTQ community. As I see it, Dr. XXXX stands as a model for everyone in MLIS—and those who, like myself, aspire to a career in MLIS—in the way in which she engages with social justice issues at the center of her professional concerns. I see this type of dedication to making the world a better place to live for all of us, particularly historically marginalized and exploited groups, as fundamental to our mission in Library Science, providing progressive information and resources to library clients online as well as in brick-and-mortar institutions. While I volunteered at one point at my local library and very much enjoyed the experience, it is the world of online libraries that I find most exciting and where I hope to put my MLIS Degree from the University of XXXX to work. If accepted to your program, I intend to focus on your general track in Archival Studies and Special Collections Librarianship.

I am convinced that my undergraduate major of Interdisciplinary Studies with a focus on the Humanities and Social Sciences, along with a minor in Women’s Studies, have provided me with an excellent, diverse, and thoroughly humanistic foundation for graduate study towards the MLIS Degree and that my studies so far will empower and inspire me to excel as a student in your program who is especially engaged with many of the burning social issues of our day that are most relevant to library studies, increasingly so in our age of information technology

Another reason why I feel strongly that I am a good fit with Library and Information Science is that I have long developed a great passion for and subsequent prowess in all things having to do with computer and internet technology. My extensive travels as a military spouse have helped me to develop and refine a sense of identity as an international citizen with a great curiosity for cultural challenges. The maturity and intensity of this curiosity, I am convinced, will enable me to make important contributions to our field as a library professional. My experience earning my minor in Women's Studies is especially close to my heart as I have always had an interest in feminism and these studies gave me a lot of great insight into my own life. Women and girls need survival strategies and resources that are tailored to their challenges. Thus, as a library professional, I hope to develop a special interest and focus on providing these resources to women and girls, tools that help them to honor and value themselves and to have the fullest life possible characterized by the highest level of autonomy and creativity that they can achieve. My choice of an MLIS program for graduate school was further reinforced when I learned how the beginnings of the ALA were very much tied to its roots in the feminist movement. I see the advancement of human—and also gender—rights as fundamental to the mission of the librarian and this is consonant with the way in which the ALA supports the Universal Declaration of Human Rights with the established rights to information, knowledge, and free expression. Librarians help to protect these human rights by developing diverse collections, programs and services; promoting literacy; and preserving cultural and historical records and it is to this cause that I wish to devote my professional life.

Ideally I would LOVE to be able to take part in this internship: XXXX. I originally went to college planning to major in art and photography but changed course so as to achieve a broader understanding of the humanities and social sciences. I want to spend my professional lifetime working with archives, managing collections, and the digitization of collections. I want to preserve history so that more and more young people will have more and more resources to study the humanities in the future. I look forward to learning everything that I can about e-library automation and archiving and the cutting-edge technological advances in information storage and access that are unfolding before our eyes in leaps and bounds. I want to describe, catalogue, analyze, exhibit, and enhance the value of objects and collections for the benefit of research and the public interest.

I have been fortunate enough to live in Europe and travel to many different places as an Air Force spouse. My husband is Vietnamese-American and we have also been to Vietnam. I see my vast exposure to all things South East Asian as another complimentary asset for a library professional. Everywhere that I have gone I have been to the libraries and museums and I look forward to sharing some of my stories with the great diversity of other graduate students in your program, from all over the world. I finished my undergraduate studies in 2010 and since that time I have been working with our Wounded Warriors, assisting them in a variety of areas. I am pleased that I have done so and I have learned many valuable things caring for our veterans; but I now feel strongly that it is time for me to pursue my passion. It is time for the MLIS Degree.

I thank you for consideration of my application.

MS Educational Administration California

2017-02-18T07:00:00-05:00

I am applying to your distinguished MS Program in Educational Administration because I feel strongly that I am the best fit for your mission and purpose in Educational Administration at XXXX University. I live for progressive social change in the California classroom and the implementation and dissemination of our advances as a society. Furthermore, while the classroom should mirror advances made in our society, it should also be a vanguard of social change, in fact, where social change ultimately begins. Thus, I would feel most comfortable in a progressive and creative program such as your MS Program in Educational Administration at Pepperdine. I also appreciate the way in which your program combines the convenience of online study—so that I might be able to continue my present employment—with the richness of on-campus participation and experience.

I hope to earn the Preliminary Administrative Services Credential so that I can eventually become a principal of a highly multiracial middle school or high school and help to make it exemplary of our celebration of diversity in America. I see diversity as America’s greatest strength as a nation and especially true of California where I have spent my entire life. I have a great passion for character education and have been developing my capacity as a leader among my colleagues in our middle school. Completing your MS Program will provide me with the platform that I need to excel and reach my fullest capacity as a teacher and as an African-American woman who is an advocate for her students. My volunteer activities consist of working regularly at the LA Mission serving food as well as helping Habitat for Humanity and other initiatives directed at the less fortunate members of our community.

I have spent the last 17 years teaching and developing curriculums for English classes for the 7^th through 12^th grades. I monitor and assess students’ academic development and use this information to refine lesson plans, integrating technology into the curriculum, supplementing class lectures and developing students’ word processing and researching skills. Utilizing internet resources to complement learning activities, I always seek to create learning environments that enhance the emotional, intellectual, social, and creative strengths of the students. Building and maintaining a positive home-to-school relationship with the parents, I forward curriculum updates and stay in touch as much as possible. Most recently, I helped to develop and served as an instructor for the California High School Exit Exam Intervention Course. I was instrumental to the development of a school-wide leadership class and association as well as helping to develop and serving as an advisor for a number of student clubs. Participating on committees for the betterment of the school and mentoring student teachers from UCXX are other aspects of my professional agenda. I strive for constant progress as a motivator and innovator, always suspending judgment and operating on empathy. I created the handbook for our entire school last summer; undoubtedly helping me to become elected Instructional Leader of this year.

My educational philosophy is centered on teaching students to be fair and consistent because I believe these three traits are what can help develop productive citizens in our society. I always seek to create a school climate that is an inclusive environment where all students will have the opportunity to reach their individual potential on a level playing field. School leadership needs to have a constantly positive impact on the school climate and I seek to do this primarily by taking full advantage of internet resources. In addition to serving as a school principal after completing your program, I would also like to eventually build my own school. I look forward to sharing some of my pedagogical dreams and visions with the wonderful people who I will meet at XXXX as a result of completing your distinguished MS Program.

I thank you for considering my application.

Translation MA, International Affairs, Turkish

2016-12-29T05:41:00-05:00

I became fully convinced that Translation Studies at XXXX University was my first choice for graduate school when I learned that your curriculum includes a class in Turkish. English is my second best of 4 languages after my native Turkish; translation is my field. A young woman from Istanbul, my parents are well-educated and have always been most keen to talk about Turkish affairs and interests, especially international business. Thus, I grew up thinking of myself as an advocate for my country, seeking to promote its interests on the world stage. By adulthood, I came to focus on translation as the best way to achieve this goal, ready to travel, increasingly coming to see myself as a global citizen as well as a woman from Turkey. Most recently, struck by the horrors happening across the border in Syria for more than three years now, I have become interested in issues of peacemaking and conflict resolution, especially insofar as translation and interpretation studies might be useful in these areas.

Russia has long been a very important trading partner for Turkey. My father encouraged me to learn Russian and it came easily since I began as a child, learning from the children of Russians living in Turkey who were friends of my family. Excelling in my undergraduate work in Translation and Interpreting Studies in Russian at University of XXXX resulted in my being awarded a scholarship from the Russian Federation to attend XXXX University for one year of full immersion in Russian in St. Petersburg (where I have recently arrived), so that I will be nearing fluency in Russian by the time I enroll at Edinburgh University next fall. My Russian may never become as good as my English, however, since I spent six months in Houston Texas as a teenager which did wonders for my English, which I have also worked very hard since childhood. In Houston, I also began learning Spanish, something that I look forward to taking advantage of as we celebrate international diversity at the University of Edinburgh.

I also want very much to develop my thinking about translation and language interpretation from a multidisciplinary perspective in a way that is relevant to addressing the human issues of our day, especially migration. Turkey is full of desperate refugees fleeing violence in neighboring Syria and Iraq—all trying to get to Europe and many dying in the process. The International Relations Department at XXXX University has a central focus on these kinds of international humanitarian issues and I look forward to attending as many lectures in these areas as well.

In August this year I visited Scotland and spent time in Glasgow, Aberdeen, Balloter (to see the Highland games), and finally Edinburgh. I was fortunate to be there while the fringe festival was on and I really fell in love with the city. There is nothing quite like walking down the royal mile catching some street acts performed in front of beautiful and historical stone buildings.

Masters Translation, Literature, Saudi Applicant

2016-12-29T05:05:00-05:00

I won first place in a competition that involved the translation of a short story from Arabic into English when I was a student at middle school. It was at that point that I made my career choice and since then I have become increasingly fascinated by the contrasts and similarities between the two languages and have delighted in pursuing an understanding of the cultures from which the English language springs and in spreading interest in my own language and culture among English speakers, especially in the United States where Arab cultures and their language are still not very widely known or appreciated.

The study of English has provided me with the key to many beautiful literary works that have never been translated into Arabic and its study has therefore ‘broadened my horizons’ considerably by teaching me about the culture, traditions, lifestyles and institutions of the US especially. I have also greatly enjoyed many of the classic English language films that have never been dubbed or subtitled into Arabic. It is my hope to assist in translating some of those works and films for the enjoyment and illumination of Arabic speaking audiences and also to translate some equally beautiful works, which are available only in Arabic, into English, to promote and share the, currently hidden, gifts that my culture holds for English speakers.

I am aware that the translation of literature, especially classic works, carries with it significant responsibility as the translator necessarily becomes, to some degree, an author especially where linguistic roots and literary conventions may differ considerably. English and Arabic have evolved from very different roots and so the translation of one to the other requires perhaps more subtle skills, finesse and judgement than are usually required of those, for instance, translating from one European language to another. I am aware that this will call for an unusual level of commitment and diligence on my part to succeed within the program.

I intend to complete my M.A. and then pursue a doctorate, also at XXXX, to fit me to teach English translation at a Saudi university and share my love and enthusiasm for this vital field of work with others. My ultimate ambition is to work for the Saudi Foreign Ministry as director of translation services.

I hold a bachelor degree in English awarded by the King Khalid University with a grade of 3.5. The main elements of the program were: literature, linguistics and translation and I my interest in the latter was confirmed to me as the specialism for my future career. I have undertaken translation, technical translation, editorial work and interpretive translation and the use of translation computer programs both within in my degree program and in substantial voluntary extracurricular work and competitions for which I willingly surrendered much of my spare time.

I worked as a volunteer on courses to teach foreign faculty students about the Arabic language and culture in the medium of both languages. I thoroughly enjoyed teaching and the opportunity to meet students from several different cultures and to introduce them to my language and culture. Sharing an enthusiasm for a subject that I love hardly seemed like work and I also learned much from my students during that time. My efforts were appreciated by the students and the faculty. I was presented with certificates of appreciation for my work by both the faculty and, to my delight, from the Dean. I greatly look forward to the opportunity to resume teaching in the future and look to the program to supplement and extend my skills in this respect.

I know that research is an essential element of the program. I excited at the prospect of assisting in research and feel that my enthusiasm and curiosity will enable me to assist in advancing the art of translation. I would be particularly interested in assisting in research in one or more of: modern literature, visual arts and/or in the field of intergovernmental communications. I am also looking forward to learning more about advances in the use of computer programs and in their optimum applications.

I am aware that the program will attract many, well-qualified candidates, however I do believe that my academic career and voluntary work to date together with my considerable skills and enthusiasm for this field of study will enable me to ‘add value’ to the program. I am looking forward with great pleasure to sharing the fruits of my knowledge, background and experiences with fellow students and benefiting from their own and in co-operating with them for our mutual educational benefit and the advancement of our chosen field of study.

Thank you for considering my application.

MA Translation, Interpretation, Intl Studies, Chinese

2016-12-29T04:33:00-05:00

Your especially distinguished MA Program in Translation and Interpretation at the XXXX Institute of International Studies at XXXX (XXXX) is my first choice for graduate school primarily because of of my profound admiration for the breadth and depth of your curriculum, focusing not just on Translation but Interpretation as well. I hope to earn my degree from the XXXX because it is so very highly ranked near the top among programs of its kind. It is not the most convenient location for me but I am ready to move because I so very much want to become a part of your especially dynamic, intercultural and multilingual, academic environment and to participate in your extensive and admirable celebration of diversity.

Building on my education in International Business with the completion of my undergraduate studies this coming December, 2015, I hope to make my professional mark in life as a conference interpreter, researching and publishing on the cutting edge of conference interpretation and translation challenges and innovations. I am also receiving course credit for completing an internship with the XXXX Company for whom I translate a broad variety of business documents back and forth from English to Chinese. I am also responsible for the translation of internal communications between XXXX's headquarter (in Changsha, Hunan, China) and its overseas subsidiaries and other permanent offices such as XXXX-Russia and Zoomlion-Belarus. Strong in the areas of business, economics, and international law, I hope to make important contributions to class discussions in your program in a variety of areas.

I have distinguished myself as a volunteer since community service is one of the pillars of my professional work and community ethic. I continue to volunteer my time at Twin Pines Adult Care Center and I also help disadvantaged Chinese children, teaching them English, Chinese and Music from grades 1-12 during summer and winter breaks. Born and raised in China until the age of 16, I have now been in America for 6 years, long enough to bring my English up to near-native standards and I am most interested in the interplay between these two languages. I seek to make my professional mark in the area of professional Mandarin/English interpretation and I see the XXXX as the finest of all possible springboards, in order to inspire and empower me to realize my fullest creative potential.

I am especially excited about the prospect of studying under Professor XXXX, whose writings in the area of translation and interpretation have been of central importance to my own intellectual development in this area, also helping to inspire my application to your program. As a result of a great deal of study of the subject, reading Dr. XXXX and other leaders in our field, I am quite ready and enthused about the prospect of the fullest immersion experience possible and making contributions to the Chinese wing of our career, discipline, and professional organization. I want to help individuals and organizations with cross-cultural communication, solving problems and standing up to global challenges for many decades to come, translating and interpreting. I look forward to acting as a mediator between cultures and languages with an increasingly refined and cultivated ability to produce sustainable and equitable solutions to global business challenges. I seek to distinguish myself most of all in the non-profit sphere, and to help the weak and the voiceless to achieve expression and attention. My dream job would be to work for the UN, EU or other world organizations as a conference interpreter and coordinator.

I thank you for considering my application to your especially distinguished program.

MA Translation, Volunteer Teacher, Chinese

2016-12-29T04:05:00-05:00

I have my heart set on attending your distinguished MA Program in Translation at XXXX University because I see your program as the optimal preparation for a long professional lifetime working as a conference interpreter. Conference interpretation is one of the most difficult and rigorous of translation functions and while I still have a long way to go in my studies at 21 years old, I am most confident that my high degree of motivation and dedication to my classes in particular, and language in general, will propel me to excellence.

I look forward to learning everything that I can about both simultaneous and consecutive translation for business and meeting as a graduate student at XXXX. My studies so far into the theoretical foundations of literary translation have helped to make me a better translator. I am a gregarious, outgoing person, however, who much prefers to be working in active engagement with other human beings rather than alone. I thrive on communicating with others; hence my intense drive to someday serve as an interpreter for international conferences and meetings on global issues and topics of the day.

I am extremely thankful to have been accepted into XXXX University’s special program with the first two years of undergraduate studies at XXXX’s Ningbo Campus in China and the final two years of study at the XXXX Main Campus in the UK, where I will be graduating with my BA in English and Applied Linguistics in July of next year, 2016. I feel strongly that my undergraduate studies and my intensive language experience over the course of two years in the UK will enable me to excel in your Translation Master’s Program at the University of XXXX and propel me forward into a successful career as a professional translator for international meetings.

It pleases me greatly that I have already enjoyed a broad variety of professional and volunteer experiences in my field in business, education and cross-cultural communication, my three principal areas of interest. I have already worked with several companies back in China with respect to their translation needs, especially while on vacations back home. I am experienced in teamwork building and group presentations. I have also been very involved in several activities of our Chinese Student Association at XXXX, our English Corner, football matches, and especially our Spring Festival for which I helped to translate our dragon dancing performance list and other materials.

During my experience as a volunteer teacher in Indonesia for one full month, July, 2014, I learned a great deal about challenges in education, especially for younger students like the ones that I was working with, whose English skills were quite limited. I found pictures and relevant cartoons that they could engage with and also taught them to sing songs in English, playing “Hey Jude” and other easy songs on my guitar got them to sing along with a little coaxing, helping to open up the shy students.

My work in the Oxfam Charity shop in the UK where I attend to customers from all over the world also has me excited about the fascinatng challenges presented to our field in the area of simultaneous translation, in particular, and I thank you for considering my application to your competitive program at XXXX University.

Endodontology Certificate Program, Indian Woman

2016-09-29T04:23:00-04:00

The especially distinguished Endodontology Certificate Program at the XXXX School of Dentistry is my first choice for continued professional advancement as a dentist for a variety of reasons, primarily the sheer excellence of your program. Nevertheless, the fact that I live just 10 miles away is clearly also a predominant factor driving my profound hope to be accepted into your program. My husband works as Senior Engineer at Intel Corporation; his work is also 10 miles from home and he has been with Intel for 24 years. He fully supports me in every way, financially, emotionally, morally and professionally. Since we do not have any children, I can devote myself to dentistry 24/7.

An Indian woman, Canadian citizen, and a permanent resident living in the USA for the last 14 years, when it comes to my profession, dentistry, I freely admit that I am a perfectionist. Thus, I want very much to learn from the best and perform only at the very highest clinical level. The part of my work that brings me the greatest joy is attending to the oral health needs of the under-privileged; thus I seek to broaden my capacity to be of service to those who need my help the most yet are the least capable of affording it, both here in America and abroad.

As a general dentist practicing since 2007 here in the USA, I feel strongly that now is the right time for me to give my all to a specialty and I have chosen Endodontics because it is my special professional passion. When I think about Endodontics, I generally think in terms of preparing myself for dental missions in the future as this is the engagement that provides me with the deepest sense of meaning and fulfillment. I have participated in multiple community service dental camps, going to Northern India twice and Costa Rica once.

In June of 2013 I joined a team of doctors and traveled to Costa Rica for a week (on my expense) to treat a large group of underserved patients. I personally performed more than 50 extractions, mostly wisdom teeth, and this journey has helped to define my professional sojourn of service to the underserved. The Dental camp was organized by one of the local church missions and every facet of the experience was enormously uplifting, providing me with a great sense of accomplishment. The feeling that comes over me when I look into the patients’ eyes gazing up at me, as I were an angel come down from heaven to alleviate their suffering. Some held my hands and prayed with tears in their eyes. I feel that their blessings are invaluable for my soul. My vision of dentistry as service rather than business has also led me to spend the last 7 years treating mostly patients who receive public assistance; thus, while earning considerably less than I might have otherwise, I have been able to focus precisely on those sectors of society in which I have the greatest interest, those with the fewest resources who are the least likely to receive the oral health care that they need. While I am a skilled and accomplished practitioner, I seek further advancement in the area of Endodontics so as to further enhance the quality of care that I provide to my patients by staying fully abreast of cutting-edge developments in my field.

I also seek further training so as to prepare myself for greater connection with academia in the future, perhaps serving as a clinical associate for a dentistry program. I have taken several CE courses in Endo and I have been shadowing Endodontists whenever I get the opportunity. Thus, I feel that I am ready to distinguish myself as a very efficient student in your program.

I thank you for considering my application.