You have finally decided to go for a graduate degree, and just about every article you could find on the Internet tells you how cutthroat the application process is. Well, that is true, but you should not let that be a setback for you. Graduate school requires students to work harder than they used to in college—that is if they worked hard at all. For this reason, the admission board or committee takes utmost care in assessing the applicants to make sure that they get the kind of students who can comply with the academic requirements and finish their graduate degrees. While your grades indicated in the transcripts and the exam results exhibit your mental aptitude, these are not sufficient for deciding whether or not you have the determination to push through. With graduate studies, attitude and not just aptitude determines your potential for getting that degree. This is where the recommendation from your mentors and the graduate admission essay come in.

The admissions essay

If you browse through the Internet for reference materials on graduate school applications, chances are that you will come across a sample graduate school essay or two. As what you should know by now, the admission essay is a statement of purpose or your intent for pursuing a graduate degree. As such, your essay should indicate what your motivations are, your major influences in life, as well as where your personal development goals are geared toward. Sometimes, even students with the best grades and exemplary writing skills get turned down by universities, because their objectives for getting into a program seem inappropriate. While applicants may not write it openly, the committee can read between the lines and realize that they are pursuing a degree for the wrong reasons, such as being pressured by their parents and bosses, being unhappy with their jobs, or killing time before finding a job. So how do you avoid making the same mistakes? Read a sample graduate school essay which got a thumbs-up from a university with a very selective admission process, and use it as your guide.

What you should find in a sample graduate school essay

The motives should state that the degree will enable the applicant to make a significant contribution to his or her community. The guiding principles or philosophy need to show resilience and strong willpower to finish what he or she has started. In addition, the essay must include the applicant’s involvement in activities which are relevant to the degree that he or she wishes to pursue. To sum it all up, a clear career path must be evident.

What you should never find in an admission essay

First of all, there should not be a mismatch between your personal goals and the objectives of the graduate program. Second, your essay should never show manifestations of a nonchalant, devil-may-care attitude about your career and personal goals. Lastly, you should steer clear of wrong motives or reasons for earning a graduate degree, such as for higher pay or keeping up with other people and their expectations.