Personal Statement Sample Outline

Opening Paragraph

• Introduce yourself and give your general reasons for pursuing graduate study. Because the selection committee members will read many applications, make your statement relevant by stating your particular talents and individuality

Qualifications

• The aim of this section is to build a foundation for your forthcoming work. You should discuss your experiences in the following:
  • Why you chose this field and what motivated you.
  • Your expertise and accomplishments in your major field and any research you have performed. Mention the project and the name of the professor whom you worked for or under the direction of.
  • Your undergraduate studies in mathematics, including calculus, discrete math, linear algebra, and numerical computations and how they relate to what you intend to do in the graduate program.
  • Your specific experiences that demonstrate your competence, motivation, and inspiration for continued study in computer architecture, operating systems, and networking; data structures and algorithm analysis; high level programming languages (C and C++); computer graphics; and game software design and/or production.
  • Other relevant experiences (i.e. jobs, community activities, leadership in school organizations, awards, honors, etc.). Be sure to include names of person(s), organization(s), and other important details.
  • Explain (briefly) any discrepancies on your transcript, which would include having a lower GPA in a particular semester or year. No details are necessary.

Background

• Here, you want to tell the school about yourself. Also, describe your family and your community (or a community in which you once lived). You could include whether your family, a family member in particular, or someone in your community influenced your chosen field of interest. Also, you want to give examples of personal attributes or qualities that you know will help you successfully complete graduate study. For instance, describe your determination to achieve your goals, your initiative and ability to develop ideas, and your capacity to work through problems independently.

Closing Paragraph

• Finally, leave the reader with a strong sense that you are qualified and will be successful in this graduate program