FREE STUDY ABROAD TUTORIAL - WRITE ONCE, READ TWICE AND REPEAT PART 2 of 4

Dear Study Abroad Action Takers,

It's free study abroad tutorial day again and we will be continuing our 4 part series on Write Once, Read Twice and Repeat. Who’s excited to continue?

So to recap, in part 1, we introduced the concept of knowing what to write in your SOP and Reference Letters.  We particularly discussed this topic below:

Do you know what is expected in each paragraph? How do you know what is expected in each paragraph? 

If you missed it, that is fine. We have provided an attached PDF below to help you catch-up on part 1 of this series.

DOWNLOAD PDF

So now, we move on to part 2. For this part, we will be taking about the topic below

How would you know if you have written each paragraph well to meet the requirements of what is expected?

So before we delve into the details, I would like to highlight the importance of writing the right thing or rather, not wasting your paragraphs. 

Take a second and imagine your document is a patch of land. Each paragraph is then a house that is built on the land. If you were a land owner trying to develop your land, would you build a house with an empty roof, with no doors and windows, that no one can live in?

I guess the answer is no. You would want to ensure that your land is used efficiently to build houses that serve the purpose of housing people and turning you a profit, perhaps from renting.

This same principle applies to your study abroad document. You must ensure that each paragraph in your document serves the correct purpose. In SuccessFactors Migration, we call it PARAGRAPH ECONOMY!

You would be amazed to find out that most of us write paragraphs on our documents without even thinking about the purpose of such paragraphs. We blindly write with eyes wide shut, without thinking, hoping that the document would naturally just come together into a cohesive narrative that convinces the Adcom that we are the best candidate for admission and scholarship.

The truth is that such an EYES WIDE SHUT APPROACH lands your documents in the BIN.

LIKE THIS

So read on, let me show you how to write with your eyes open.

We do so using a 3 part framework called the 3S Framework: Statement, Story, Submission. 

Say it loud: STATEMENT, STORY, SUBMISSION

So let’s break it down. 

Fist of all, this framework does not apply to the introduction and conclusion paragraphs but to the other paragraphs where you make claims that you possess certain skills or experience:

1. Statement: Here you make a statement that you possess a certain skill. You can approach this by answering the question: What do you think about this skill? Or what is your opinion about this skill?
2. Story: Here you tell a story to show that you possess the skill. You can approach this by answering the question: How have you demonstrated this skill before?
3. Submission: Here you make another statement to inform the adcom how this skill you possess is relevant and makes you a competitive candidate for the course. You can approach this by answering the question: How would this skill benefit me or give me a competitive advantage over other candidates?

So let’s do a quick example.

Mr P wants to apply for a Masters in Human Resources at Louisiana State University.

From his review of the course overview, he has found that Leadership skills is a top requirement for successful applicants.  So here is now Mr P would approach writing up a paragraph in his SOP to talk about his leadership skill.

Statement: Mr P answers the question: What do you think about this skill?

Answer: As a human resource professional with 10 years of experience across multiple industries including Oil and Gas and Pharmaceutical, I have become quite clear on the importance of leadership skills towards building a work environment that is not just inclusive but conducive for the development and retention of talent. 

Story: Mr P answers the question: How have you demonstrated this skill before?

Answer: Whilst working with ABC consultants, I was tasked with collating employment data for the past 20 years over several recruitment campaigns and as part of the process of performing this exercise, I experienced a disproportionate rate of hiring women into engineering roles, way below the industry average. As an advocate for equality, I took it upon myself to bring this up with our HR director who went on to assign me the task of putting together a team to investigate the root cause of this disparity and outline potential recommendations to address it.

Submission: Mr P answers the question: How would this skill benefit me or give me a competitive edge over other candidates

Answer: Performing this investigation and the implementing the ensuing recommendations, which over the last couple of years has significantly increased the rate of female hires close to the industry average has improved my conviction of demonstrating leadership skill where it really matters particularly in relation to standing up for what I believe in and taking steps to communicate with and influence decision makers and other stakeholders to not only understand my views but take action to implement it.

So putting it together in one paragraph, we have:

As a human resource professional with 10 years of experience across multiple industries including Oil and Gas and Pharmaceutical, I have become quite clear on the importance of leadership skills towards building a work environment that is not just inclusive but conducive for the development and retention of talent. Whilst working with ABC consultants, I was tasked with collating employment data for the past 20 years over several recruitment campaigns and as part of the process of performing this exercise, I experienced a disproportionate rate of hiring women into engineering roles, way below the industry average. As an advocate for equality, I took it upon myself to bring this up with our HR director who went on to assign me the task of putting together a team to investigate the root cause of this disparity and outline potential recommendations to address it. Performing this investigation and the implementing the ensuing recommendations, which over the last couple of years has significantly increased the rate of female hires close to the industry average has improved my conviction of demonstrating leadership skill where it really matters particularly in relation to standing up for what I believe in and taking steps to communicate with and influence decision makers and other stakeholders to not only understand my views but take action to implement it.

So there you have it, future global citizens. In part 3, we will be building up on what we have learnt so far to focus on how we can improve our writing using AI tools.

You do not want to miss it. Stay tuned to our Study2Relocate email list and transform your relocation dreams into reality with knowledge.