How to Impress Admissions Committee with your SOP for MBA Abroad?

Statement of Purpose or SOP is an essential document which a student needs to submit while applying for an MBA abroad. But unlike all other documents, this one is completely drafted by the student, in his or her own words. The ideal word count for an SOP for MBA should be between 800 and 1200 words. But each and every word is crucial to your chances of admission. 

How Important Are SOPs For MBA Courses Abroad? 

SOPs are highly important for MBA courses, as compared to other masters courses. While your GMAT score and academic records speak of your achievements in numbers, your SOP adds depth to your records as well as to your goals and aspirations. The SOP matters as much to the admissions committee as do your academic and entrance scores, and one can’t stress enough on the former’s importance. 

And the higher your desired university is ranked, the more crucial is your SOP. Top business schools care more about your SOP than low-ranked universities. While your marks just provide a brief outline of your academic graph, your SOP justifies that record while simultaneously highlighting your personality. Personality is a key quality in business and management - and that is exactly what top business schools are looking at. 

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What Is The Format Of A Good SOP For MBA?

There are a few crucial aspects that make a good SOP. To begin with, your SOP needs to be built around a theme or central idea. Think of your life as the story of a movie and think of yourself as to its protagonist. 

Just like a movie, your SOP should have a prologue and epilogue. The prologue, or opening lines, would be your introduction to the story and will set its tone. The ending lines would talk about the alignment of your life’s missions and goals with the program you are applying for. And the core of the content - that is the middle part - is where your character really comes to life, and emerges as a hero. 

As is the case with movies, the hero is almost always shown in a positive light. Yes, the central character would have vulnerabilities - and that is what makes a movie interesting. But highlighting the best things often helps you overshadow the shortcomings. So before drafting your SOP, the first thing you need to do is make a list of all your achievements, your USPs, your skills, your specializations, your unique ideas, and things that really set you apart from the crowd - that would be your superhero elements. 

Another thing that is extremely essential is to research about your desired course and the university you are applying to. Find out about the alumni and the university’s history. Read everything that is available about the university online. Add it to your story in an organic manner. Express how a particular past occurrence aligns with your expectations of this course. This would certainly express your willingness as well as your keen sense of observation. 

Once you are done with jotting down your superhero elements, it is time to eliminate unnecessary things. Put everything down on a piece of paper. Your short term goals after completing your desired course, as well as your long term vision should clearly be mentioned. Draft a sample SOP, as if this were your final SOP. Read and edit the whole thing. Now read again. Still finding mistakes? Keep editing it till you find the best version of it. It is recommended to send it to 6-7 past applicants you know who have secured an admit, or someone you trust for honest feedback. If you want expert advice, let GyanDhan know and we will do it for you through one of our partners. 

What Parameters Is Your SOP Judged On?

Your statement of purpose (SOP) for MBA programs is assessed on the basis of different parameters. Your sense of leadership and decision making plays a crucial role in your MBA SOP. Since most MBA applicants have a work history behind them, the admissions committee expects a more in-depth SOP from MBA applicants than those applying to other departments.

Here are some parameters your SOP would be assessed on the basis of - 

1. Your Expectations From the Degree - All students applying to the program have different expectations and career goals. Many take up managerial positions in top companies and many applicants might be planning to establish their own startups. Try to justify why you are the right fit for the school and how the school fits in the path of your career goals. The question you need to answer is how this degree helps your career in the long run. 
2. Your Multifacetedness - Most students applying for MBA programs are above the age of 22. By this time, you would have had enough opportunity to try your hand at a range of activities and projects from a variety of fields. As a prospective student writing an SOP, your range of interests and achievements need to be mentioned and highlighted in a way that presents you in the form of an allrounder. 
3. Lessons From Your Professional Career - Are there any hardships you faced in your professional career? How did you overcome them? Mention this in your SOP. Also, how good a team player are you? Mention the people who helped you along in your journey. 
4. Decision Making - Was there a time in your life when you had to make tough decisions? Why did you choose your bachelor's course? Were you required to make any major decisions through the course of your professional career? If yes, what was it? Mentioning such points would make a strong impression of you as a decision-maker. 
5. Your Convincing Power - Well, your convincing power is under the radar for pretty much the entire SOP. This is not something you can directly convey or mention as one of your attributes. Your convincing power would come across if you are able to express your desire to study this course, and the ways you can benefit the university. Just think about it, and include it. 

What Are The Common Mistakes To Avoid While Drafting an MBA SOP?

There are a few things you should avoid while drafting an MBA SOP. You might get carried away at times, and regular iterations can also spoil the deal. So make sure you avoid a few things as a general rule. Here is a list of things that are a certain no-no: 

• Plagiarizing - Plagiarizing is as good as lying. Admissions committees go through hundreds of SOPs, if not thousands. Your SOP should stand out, yes, but only originality would help you crack the deal.
• Don’t Copy-paste the Same SOP & Send It To Different Universities - SOP is one of the most important documents, and should be exclusive to each university. Research well about your desired university, and make sure each and every word is catered towards that specific university.
• Don’t Exceed a Certain Word Limit - While some universities would already let you know about word limits, try not to exceed your SOP beyond 1000 words. A few words here and there would do, but remember that admission committees have to go through hundreds of applications. If you can’t make an impression in the first 500 words or so, the committee probably won’t read till the end. 

How Can GyanDhan’s SOP Tool Help You?

GyanDhan’s free automated SOP Tool helps you write the best SOP for MBA programs. The tool utilizes Natural Language Programing (NLP), which analyzes your data without any human interface, and provides you with an analysis of your SOP within minutes.

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Using the guidance provided to you in this article, write an SOP and submit it to this tool. Unlike any other online review tool, this tool is catered specifically for SOPs for popular programs such as MS / MBA. The tool highlights grammatical errors as well as the flow of the SOP
Details such as your GRE/GMAT score, the target course, the target university, and the target country are asked before processing your SOP. All the information is taken into account while analyzing your SOP. Once you are done entering the details, just paste the content of your SOP and wait for two minutes. 
The tool highlights long and complex sentences, which are not encouraged by the admission committees. Things missing from the SOP - such as mentors/professors the student would be interested in working with - are also highlighted. 
All these tips help you write a better SOP, without spending any money. GyanDhan also encourages students to get their SOP reviewed by their partner admission consultants. The consultant might or might not charge a fee, depending on the university the student wishes to apply to. 
If you wish to contact our partner admission consultants for an SOP review, you can click here for a consultation session.