An SOP for Scholarship is a personal document that has to be submitted to the scholarship committee seeking a request for scholarship approval. The statement of purpose put forward your points as to why you deserve the scholarship. It also carries the way forward on how will you utilize the scholarship to boost future prospects in the academic progression of your choice.
Why it is important?
The scholarship is an additional financial aid given to students to support their academic expenses in a foreign country. It is important because it helps to reduce the burden of financial expenses from the shoulders of the student and helps him to focus more on his studies. It also boosts your employability and helps you to cover your student debt in a faster way.
Types of Scholarships
There are various scholarships you can apply for based on your eligibility and the country you opt for. Here are some different types of scholarships you can apply for:
National Overseas Scholarship
This scholarship is granted by the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment to all countries. Under this scholarship, you will get a maintenance allowance of around USD 15,400 annually if you are going to the USA and other countries except the UK where you will get GBP 9,900 along with tuition fees.
Fulbright-Nehru Masters Fellowship
This is given by United States-India Education Foundation (US) to the students going to the USA. This will offer you complete support for your tuition as well as living costs along with full coverage of accident and sickness coverage.
Commonwealth Scholarships
This scholarship is offered by the British Council (UK) where they took all care of your funding. They offer complete 100% funding for your academic and living expenses.
Cornell Scholarship Tata Scholarship
This is a generous gift by the Tata Educational and Development Trust who offer a complete sponsorship for your educational expenses at Cornell University (US).
India Global Leaders Scholarships
This Scholarship is offered by the University of Queensland to all Indian students who want to pursue Law, Business and economics as undergraduate or post-graduate. Under this scholarship, the university will fund 50% of your tuition fee.
GREAT Scholarships India
This scholarship is funded by GREAT Britain Campaign and the British Council (UK). Under this scholarship, you will be given minimum support of GBP 10.000 to bear your academic and living expenses.
Erasmus Mundus Scholarship
The scholarship has been awarded by the European Union (Europe), under which they will provide 100% support to your academic and living expenses.
How to Write an SOP for a Scholarship?
Writing an SOP requires years of expertise and if you do not know how to write a scholarship SOP. Do not worry we covered you. Here is a sample of the scholarship SOP which you can use to create your own SOP for a scholarship:
Opening Paragraph
The opening paragraph should be attractive enough to grab the reader’s attention. In the same paragraph, you can mention for which scholarship you are applying and also the university you are applying for. You can use phrases that are aligned with your goals, it will make the opening statement more appealing to the reader.
Main Body
The main body will cover all the answers to the questions asked by the authority in the guidelines. This will cover the reason why you deserve the scholarship and how you are going to utilize this. You can add examples that support your statement.
Future Goals
Even though it is a scholarship SOP but still your future goals are an important factor to judge whether you are genuinely motivated for your academics or not.
Ending Paragraph
The ending paragraph of your scholarship SOP will be the last statement so make it convincing so that the committee members remember your name. The ending of your SOP should summarize your scholarship statement of purpose.
Do’s while writing your SOP for Scholarship
There are plenty of guidelines available all over the internet but here are some of the major pointers that you should remember while writing your scholarship SOP:
Thorough Research
Research is an integral part of making an SOP. it includes the university you want to go to for your academic progression as well as the scholarship you are applying for. The detailing in your SOP will give the committee an idea that whether you have done your research or not.
Personalized Answers
The SOP is maybe a formal document but it is still treated as a personal document and that is why it is mandatory to have personalized answers to the questions asked by the university. Personalized answers give an idea that you have internal motivation to join the university.
Respect the Guidelines
The guidelines play an important role in creating an SOP and it is required for every student to go through the guidelines again and again. It is mandatory to make the SOP while keeping the guidelines in mind.
Positive Tonality
The statement of purpose should sound positive from the first to the last paragraph. A positive tone helps the committee to make a positive outlook of your candidature.
Illustrate your Story
It is better to add examples to your story to elevate the impact of your story. Moreover, examples increase the credibility of your SOP. Moreover, the examples also give the committee an idea that you have written an authentic story.
Don’ts while writing your SOP for Scholarship
The SOP for a scholarship is a special document written in a specific format to convince the authority to grant your scholarship. Here are some of the things you need to keep in mind while writing your scholarship SOP:
Informal Language
Your SOP is a formal document and this is why it is mandatory to use formal language in your scholarship SOP. use of any informal language is strictly prohibited because your document will be looked at by a higher authority and this is why you need to show respect and politeness through your statement.
Irrelevant Information
The scholarship SOP is already written in a short format and whatever you write will be considered relevant to your application. So, if you write any irrelevant information this will be considered vague and you might reduce your chances of getting shortlisted.
Sympathizing Statement
Scholarship SOP is written seeking financial assistance from the respective university. Using a sympathetic tone will create a negative impact on your SOP and you might lose your chances of getting a scholarship. Remember you need financial aid and even if you are not able to get the scholarship you will still be able to bear your financial expenses.
Grammatical Errors
Any Grammatical errors in your SOP will lead to a direct rejection because it will put a question mark on your language proficiency which is the most important aspect of your admission to a foreign university.
Out of Bound
Writing your SOP for a scholarship out of bounds will put a question mark on your candidature and also you might lose your chance of getting shortlisted. Under the strict guidelines stated by the university if you write your SOP out of bounds the committee will not consider your request.
Writing an SOP for Scholarship takes a different approach that needs to be fulfilled and if you are finding it difficult you must take professional SOP writing services. Our writers and SOP Experts have the best level of proficiency to craft a formal-looking SOP for you. They also provide a plagiarism-free report along with the SOP which is beneficial to judge the authenticity of the SOP provided. If you want to write an SOP on your own you must look at the sample SOP of scholarship present on our website.