Statement of intent advice

[Lady_Jane]

Hello everyone, I'm attempting to write a statement of intent for a masters of community and regional planning.

The university's website says that the statement should propose a study focus for my 2 indicated areas of concentration while explaining how this school will uniquely be able to help me meet my objectives.

I'm having trouble determining how specific this "proposal" needs to be. I'm not sure whether I should be listing a potential, specific, thesis topic, or whether I should be listing my general interest (as it stands I'm having trouble even picking 2/6 general concentrations let alone deciding on a thesis topic).

Has anyone written a statement of interest with similar requirements? How did you go about it? Any other suggestions?

Thanks!

[goldeneye]

State and elaborate on which two areas of expertise you would like to study if accepted, while incorporating the profs focused in each respective area. You need to specify how your area(s) of interest align with the school's focus.

[RyanRogowski]

I had to write a statement of intent to enter into my Masters program, and even though it was only about a two page document, it took me hours to write and I spent days revising it.

I know it can seem difficult and very permanent to put your thoughts down on paper.

The purpose of a statement of intent is to tell your future professors what you want to study, why it is important to you and ultimately what do you want to do with your degree after your graduate.

I believe that it is more important to convey that you have a general understanding of the planning field than pinpoint the exact area you want to study. The reviewers of your statement want to know that you have an interest in pursuing a career in planning and are serious about the program and profession. Identify the areas of planning, or the issues in the planning world that interest you (controlling sprawl, creating healthy cities, economic development, transportation planning, etc.) and what you want to do with the degree after you graduate.

In my experience, your future college will not hold your statement of intent over your head once you are admitted into the program. If you discover that you are really interested in some other area of planning once you take a few classes, that is ok. Half of the students in my program have changed their concentration.

Make sure that you develop compelling thoughts, and deliver a concise, cogent message that explains why you are the perfect candidate for the program. This is your formal introduction, so it would be a good idea to have someone else look over it too. Your professors are also looking to make sure that you can complete a sentence and think for yourself.

If you are able to do all of that in a page and a half, you will be a shoe-in.

Good Luck