The Statement of Purpose

Graduate program applications generally require you submit a generic application form of some sort, your university transcript(s), GRE scores*, a CV, letters of reference (these should go directly from the letter writer to the university), and a statement of purpose. The SOP is important both for its content and for how well you express yourself.

In general, your statement of purpose (SOP) is a 1-2 page typed description that addresses three areas: (1) Your educational experiences and how they have led to your interest in graduate study in the geological sciences; (2) a description of any scientific research you have conducted (be specific and include field experience, lab/analytical work, a summary of your findings); and (3) a description of your research interests for graduate school and your career goals. A well-crafted statement of purpose is specific about what you want to study and the geology faculty member(s) you are interested in working with. Do your research about the faculty and department to which you are applying and tailor each of your SOPs to that faculty member/department. You do not need to know exactly which one faculty member you want to work with - it's OK to include two or three names (maximum) if they are working in related/complementary fields (but don't include, for example, a geophysicist, a geomorphologist, and a hydrologist - that would demonstrate that you have no idea what you want...). Nor do you need to know exactly which project you want to work on - be as specific as possible about your interests ("extensional terranes", "metamorphic core complexes", "ultrahigh-pressure metamorphism") and certainly include a description of how your research experience has prepared you to tackle your proposed research. Look through the websites of potential graduate advisors to see which projects are active. You can also search the National Science Foundation website to look for active research grants for those prospective advisors (although not all research funding comes through the NSF, that is a major source of funding in the Earth sciences).

This web site and this link have good descriptions of the basics of the SOP (even though these are intended for graduate programs in psychology) and some things to avoid. Whatever you do, don't start your SOP off with the all-too-common "I have loved geology since I was just a kid starting out with my first rock collection" sort of statement. Gag me. Just start with your college experience, or perhaps one notable trip you took where you learned about geology. Be matter of fact, as specific as possible, concise, and use the SOP as a place to elaborate on things only briefly included in your CV (like your research experience) or to discuss things that don't appear elsewhere in your application and that are relevant to your application (e.g., if you need to explain poor GRE scores or a D in a chemistry class in your freshman year). Stay positive and don't make excuses.

Spell check, proofread, and have someone else read your statement and give you feedback before submitting it (a grad student, a faculty advisor, swap SOPs with other students). The rest of your academic record can't be changed at this stage, and you can't control what your letter writers say, but you CAN write an excellent SOP.

*GRE scores are no longer required to apply to the MS program in Geosciences at SF State.

Scientific writing

As a research group, you are in different stages of your academic careers that require writing specific kinds of documents. I've found a few sets of (mostly) succinct guidelines to help both graduate students and undergraduates: a statement of purpose for admission to graduate school, a thesis proposal, a grant application, and theses. You should also know how to write an abstract.

Scientific writing also requires you to write briefly and to the point. Use an active, not passive, voice. Cite references appropriately and be consistent in how you format the text. I have several books on scientific writing style in my office including the classic Strunk and White. Strunk and White also address words and expressions that are commonly misused (e.g., affect vs. effect; and you can always search Google if you're not sure...).

It is very important to first get the words on paper (or the computer screen), without worrying if it's crap. Then sleep on it. Return to the text with a fresh perspective, improve what you wrote, and move on to write the next section.

Next, read through the text again and assess whether it is organized correctly and try to make the text more succinct: Look for redundancy and remove it, perhaps by combining sentences or deleting sentences outright. Avoid short, choppy sentences in favor of more complex sentences that combine ideas/phrases. Are the sections of the paper or individual paragraphs in the right place in the paper? Move introductory or background information to the front of the paper. Make sure your data/results are separate from your interpretations.

Have you answered the question every reader will ask - why is this work important? Have you related your results to the bigger picture?

You're not done yet. When you have a first draft, proofread it and run spell- and grammar-checkers. Then run it past a set of fresh eyes: both you and your fellow students will benefit by reading each others' work.

Add page numbers, put your name somewhere in the file name of your document (so that I don't have 15 "thesis.doc" files on my computer), then it's ready to send to me.