SOP stands for Statement Of Purpose. It is written with the purpose to convince the respective authorities to grant you a Visa permit in the respective country, and admission to the respective university. Whereas the LOR stands for Letter Of Recommendation from a designated person to recommend a particular person to the respective institution and even organization and it is written to the committee with the aim to tell more about the candidate. An SOP is a bit more detailing than a LOR consisting of the whole journey of the candidate till now. A LOR needs to be short and to the point creating an impact on the respective committee.
Importance of an SOP?
An SOP is used to tell the respective authorities about your personal reasons for choosing a particular course at a particular university. This document will be used as a reference point to further grant your request by the respective committee. It helps the respective authority to judge your intent for your particular choice of university, course, and country. It also demonstrates your proficiency in communication skills as well as how well you know about yourself. It is a make-or-break point for your selection in a particular university and also assures the admission committee about the sincerity and honesty of your choice for a particular country.
Importance of a LOR?
A LOR is seen as a validation given by the respective university and the organization. The LOR is usually written by a more qualified person and their word counts as if they have been closely working with you and assuring the respective authorities. A LOR is short and crisply written with all the relevant information justifying the candidate’s proficiency and potential in a particular field.
Types of SOP
Admission SOP
Not just Foreign but Indian universities also demand an SOP for admission. In this SOP you have to write the motivation to pursue this course as well as your future goals you have with respect to the course.
Scholarship SOP
Scholarship SOP is written to convince the scholarship committee to grant you financial aid that will be helpful in completing your academic progression at their university. This SOP is short and crisp but holds a lot of importance.
Visa SOP
When you are seeking permission from the immigration department to grant you a visa request, then this SOP is written. It carries your reason for visiting their country. One most important parts of this SOP is your reason to return to your home country, which is mandatory to be written in your SOP.
Visitor SOP
Visitor SOP is written when you want to visit a country for a temporary period. The reason could be anything from business to tour purposes. You must include your reason to return.
Spouse SOP
When your spouse is residing in a foreign country for the purpose of studying or any other endeavor, it becomes necessary to draft a SOP for Spouse Visa application, effectively conveying to the authorities the depth of your commitment and affection, thereby substantiating the legitimacy of your relationship.
Work SOP
In this SOP, the authorities are more interested to know why you want to work in their country. You should include the advantages of working in that country which will help you to elevate your professional skill set.
Types of LOR
Academic LOR
An academic LOR is a recommendation letter given by the respective academic faculty stating the candidate’s proficiency ad achievement during his academic pursuits. This type of LOR is written for academic institutions for pursuing higher education in the respective college.
Professional LOR
Most business institutions required a LOR from the previous company to see if the candidate who is coming to their organization has worth enough to perform in the same manner and help in the growth of an organization.
How to write a good statement of purpose?
There are a few things that need to be taken care of while writing a Statement of Purpose. The SOP is
- Begin your SOP by addressing the respective authority in your home country and put forward your purpose to visit in the subject section (make it short and clear).
- In the first paragraph state your intent in a crisp and impactful way. Remember, this is the first statement of your SOP, so make it catchy and appealing to grab the reader’s attention.
- Then substructure your story by explaining your academic background and the reason for choosing a particular course in your HSC and in your graduation and what skills you gained from your academic pursuits.
- State your professional pursuits (If you are a working professional) and what skills or lessons you earned from them.
- State your reasons for going to a particular country, choosing a particular course in a particular university, and how it is relatable to your current academic or professional pursuits.
- State your financial details to prove that you have enough financial resources to sustain all your expenses till the completion of your journey and also State your future goals in long-term and short-term formats as well as your plan on returning to your home country (make sure to state this reason with a proper explanation).
- In the end, give a thank you note to the authorities and ensure that you will return to your home country after the completion of your journey.
How to write a good Letter of Recommendation?
Though the letter of recommendation has to be short and crisp, it involves a lot of technicalities that should be followed. Here is how you can create a professional LOR:
- A brief explanation about yourself and your relationship with the candidate. You can also add your designation if you want to. This will establish the clarity of your relationship.
- Try to emphasize the positive aspect of the person including how they improved in their academic and professional journey. You can also mention how they have performed in projects and other activities.
- You should focus on justifying how they will help in the growth and development of the organization. You should not sound like an advocate who is boasting about his client.
- Whatever information you are providing should have relevance, any unnecessary information will be seen as a filler in LOR.
- It is better if you do not mention grades or any kind of credits because it is already mentioned in your prior application so mentioning them again is not a good idea.
What are things to be taken care of while writing an SOP?
Your SOP is treated like a formal document, It has to follow the necessary guidelines required by the authorities. Moreover, it is not just about the guidelines but it should carry that personal touch. Here are some of the things that need to be taken care of:
Formal language
Even though it is a personal document, it has to be written in a formal language, because you will be judged on the basis of this document so you can not use n informal language. Moreover, formal language does not mean you will use a tough language that is not easy to decode, try to keep it simple yet impactful.
Give examples
Whether you are writing truth or false in your SOP will be judged on the basis of examples you give. Giving examples conveys that the candidate is sure that he has been a part of this work and his motivation has concrete roots which are indeed important.
Word limit
Before beginning an SOP always read the guidelines on the respective websites to have a better idea of the word limit. They specify the word limit and even if they do not specify it try to keep it between 1000-1200 words. Keeping SOP short and crisp helps the reader to keep up with the whole SOP and not get bored with it.
Early submission
This is very underrated when it comes to SOP. People tend to ignore it most of the time. Early submission helps you to get shortlisted early by the respective committee.
Proofreading
Proofreading helps you to get rid of any grammar errors or even factual errors. The more you proofread the more chances you have to present a decent SOP with zero errors.
What are things to be taken care of while writing a LOR?
Your LOR is seen as a formal document written by some higher authority that gives assurity to the respective committee about the candidate. It has to follow the necessary guidelines required by the authorities. Moreover, it is not just about the guidelines but it should carry relevant information in the most crisp manner. Here are some of the things that need to be taken care of:
Word limit
Though LOR is short and crisp, here you need to concise all the information under 300 words or the limit specified in your guidelines. The LOR should convey the reason for the recommendation by the respective person in the most concise manner.
Only relevant information
The LOR is short so whatever information you add here has relevance to the person otherwise it will be seen as a filler, which will not be entertained by the authority.
A strong reason for recommending
If you are recommending someone for an organization or even institution you should carry a strong reason for it which will be convincing to the respective committee. You can add examples of how he performed in your organization as well as the potential you see in a candidate.
Positive tone
The tone of a LOR is positive and convincing to the respective committee. The person who is writing a LOR can ask the candidate to give some points that will add more impact to the LOR.
Write your designation
Whoever is writing a LOR has to write its designation. While writing designation make sure to write a higher designation than yours, which will add assurity to your LOR. it also gives the respective authority confirmation that an experienced person is recommending someone.
Things that must be avoided while writing an SOP & LOR
Copy Paste
The selection rate is very low and that is why candidates, in order to get their document shortlisted, tend to copy from the selected ones, which is a bad idea because their documents represent them, and if you copy them your document will be incongruent and this is a direct rejection from the authorities.
Too much irrelevant information
If you write anything in your statement and recommendation letter it will be treated as a point of reference to judge your candidature. So always write the information which is relevant to the authorities and you.
Getting too informal
SOP and LOR is a personal document but that does not mean you will use informal language with the authorities. A certain level of professionalism has to be maintained while justifying your intent with relevant examples.
Hovering over one thing
When candidates write anything they do not know the structure and they spend most of their time hovering over one matter only making the SOP not balanced. Even if you are a good candidate, you will be rejected on this basis.
Too many flattery statements
Candidates while trying to impress the authorities tries to incorporate a lot of flattery phrases and statements that the respective committee never entertained. They want a balanced candidate who has the requisite skills and values to be a successful candidate for their institution.
“If writing an SOP and LOR troubles you, then SOP Writing Services is there for you”