1) Brainstorm previous academic experiences and qualifications but also include relevant work or other experiences…sales job for social psyc, lab tech for neuroscience
2) Make several outlines of brainstormed items and see which order of presentation best- reflects the overall theme of ‘why you should accept me’3) Write in a straightforward manor. Avoid flowery language or language used strictly to impress a reader. Be concise. Never use more words than necessary.
4) Be specific in your writing: better to say what techniques, procedures, and apparatus you are familiar with than just saying that you have much research experience…don’t say ‘good with computers’ or ‘can handle animals’ say what computer programs you used…what type of animal and how did you handle them