Sample SOP---check out!
Sample 1#
The urge to achieve and prove myself among the greats in the history of science has been my ambition from the days I was first introduced to the captivating concepts of science and engineering. The mental ability to approach a problem with the right blend of logic and reasoning has supported me in inching towards my goal. As a first step out of school I decided to take up engineering, the only field that requires comprehensive understanding of the basics of science and the flair to exploit the fascinating field of Mathematics.
The computer was the next important milestone and, as a person with the penchant towards logical reasoning, was attracted towards it. High school introduced me to the high level languages like C and C++ that made me use the computer the way I wanted it. I underwent courses to master software languages like C, C++, Java and the entire Visual Studio. The Certificates of Excellence from NIIT Ltd., an official partner of Microsoft in India speak for my performances under their guidance. My ability to work as team and as an individual was enhanced by the projects like the Inventory Control System and the Online banking System (Modules) that I had to venture upon. I put my knowledge of these programming techniques to realize a simple game called the “Cows and Bulls” implementing some basics of Artificial Intelligence. System Programming was my immediate focus and for this I needed to understand the electronics behind the computer. My Bachelor’s degree program on Electronics and Communication Engineering endowed me with that knowledge .I assembled a computer at home to assist me in digitized computing and system design. I also volunteered for extensive 30 day training under the service Engineers of Allegro Systems and Software (P) Limited in troubleshooting hardware and software conflicts in the systems that their clients were complaining of.
Technology was changing and I had to be in constant touch with it. Digitized computing was the field I was engrossed into once I understood the Engineering approach to Electromagnetic Theory and the Signal Processing tools. Courses in the undergraduate program like Numerical methods, Operation Research, Signals and Systems, Digital Signal Processing and Electromagnetic theory for communication, laid the foundation for my project. The reinforced enthusiasm has taken me into a project on Data Communication using the techniques of Signal Processing. I am working on an algorithm that represents video signals using the least amount of space.
The principles that I learnt in the various undergraduate courses have kindled me to produce an enhanced version of the existing ones and to my misfortune I find that such an extension has already been implemented. This instigates me to learn more in an exhaustive and systematic manner of the existing technology and its limitations. A Master’s Degree with the Thesis Option leading to a PhD would definitely be the next opportunity knocking my doors.
My ability to comprehend technology without external guidance has often projected me as a potential asset to my college. My participation in the national level seminars and conferences has been commended by the faculty members. It is with the all their best wishes that I am encouraged to pursue higher education. The engineering courses that I underwent have imbibed my aptitude to make things work and has appended to my attentive and observant elegance. As an engineer, I learnt the techniques of performing tasks in the most simple, uncomplicated and economical way. The deft character that I demonstrated in experimenting in the laboratory at the undergraduate level has been rewarded and has increased my predilection to my research objective.
Academics on one side, I have been shouldering responsibility right from the age of 14 as the unopposed leader of the class and in college as an organizer of the Symposium Committee and the active member of the Students Association. The college and the department of Electronics and Communication entrusted me with the job of editing the yearly magazine in the second year of study and my efficacy and creativity impressed one and all in the department to delegate me with the job for the next two years. My technical contributions apart from the job of anchoring have received worthy commendations as well. The Master’s degree offered by your university aims to promote most my interests and more importantly is a giant leap towards my research objectives.
The project that I was involved induced me to approach various aspects of signal processing and I learnt that signal processing involved a plethora of sciences and mathematics and every principle and tool that I came across fueled my journey towards the ambition. The various algorithms and schemes encouraged me to think a few steps ahead. The field of Electromagnetism that involves the processing of signals was one abstract subject to which I was enslaved. My undergraduate performance in that course is exemplary and stands foremost in the universities’ records. As my quest to learn more and innovate is still unabated, I would like to take up the Engineering Electro sciences as my major with the signal processing concepts supporting it.
After having gone through the web pages of the Iowa State University and its Electrical Engineering department I have decided that your university is my next step towards my decade old desire. The erudite faculty that the institution boasts of and the much-sought after infrastructure along with the academic ambience have allured me to pursue higher education. I am sure that all these factors will facilitate the realization of my research aspirations. Hoping for an encouraging and prosperous future at the university, I take this opportunity to thank the University faculty for their patient perusal of my application.