some SoP questions

[iamanerd]

---

Members don't see this ad.

I am going to be applying to school psych doctorate programs this year, and I'm having a little trouble writing my Statements of Purpose.

First off, many of the schools I'm applying to do not say how long they want the SoP to be. 500 words? 1000 words? What would the standard be if they don't specify? Also, some of the schools have, like, three specific questions they want answered in lieu of a general SoP. But again, they do not specify how long they want each answer to be. Should an entire essay be written for each question? Or just a paragraph or two?

Also, I'm just struggling with weaving all of my experiences into an a good essay. None of my previous research experiences really relate to what I want to research in grad school. As an undergrad, my school did not have a clinical psych department, so I volunteered as a research assistant in a social psych lab and completed an honors thesis there. I graduated last year, and since then I have been working full time as a paid RA working with patients with schizophrenia. While I do find the research I'm doing interesting, it is not what I want to continue doing in the future. But, the fact is, I needed a job to pay the bills, and I could not afford to be too picky, especially in the current economy.

I do at least have previous experience working in the school system.. for four years I worked as a teacher's assistant in a special ed classroom at a public elementary school. I really loved that job, and it definitely is what began to push me into going the school psych route. I'm just worried because I'm not quite sure how to link my previous unrelated research experience into what I'm really interested in studying, if that makes sense. Any tips on how to do that?

Oh, and one more thing.. how in depth should I get when writing about my previous research experiences in my SoP? Like, should I explicitly say I was trained on administering the SCID and WASI and things like that? Should I go into detail about my specific duties?

Thank you for any advice, this board is extremely helpful! 🙂

 

[leavingprov]

I am going to be applying to school psych doctorate programs this year, and I'm having a little trouble writing my Statements of Purpose.

First off, many of the schools I'm applying to do not say how long they want the SoP to be. 500 words? 1000 words? What would the standard be if they don't specify? Also, some of the schools have, like, three specific questions they want answered in lieu of a general SoP. But again, they do not specify how long they want each answer to be. Should an entire essay be written for each question? Or just a paragraph or two?

Also, I'm just struggling with weaving all of my experiences into an a good essay. None of my previous research experiences really relate to what I want to research in grad school. As an undergrad, my school did not have a clinical psych department, so I volunteered as a research assistant in a social psych lab and completed an honors thesis there. I graduated last year, and since then I have been working full time as a paid RA working with patients with schizophrenia. While I do find the research I'm doing interesting, it is not what I want to continue doing in the future. But, the fact is, I needed a job to pay the bills, and I could not afford to be too picky, especially in the current economy.

I do at least have previous experience working in the school system.. for four years I worked as a teacher's assistant in a special ed classroom at a public elementary school. I really loved that job, and it definitely is what began to push me into going the school psych route. I'm just worried because I'm not quite sure how to link my previous unrelated research experience into what I'm really interested in studying, if that makes sense. Any tips on how to do that?

Oh, and one more thing.. how in depth should I get when writing about my previous research experiences in my SoP? Like, should I explicitly say I was trained on administering the SCID and WASI and things like that? Should I go into detail about my specific duties?

Thank you for any advice, this board is extremely helpful! 🙂

There are a number of good threads on this board about SoPs that may help you out. Also, I applied to clinical programs, not school programs, so you will definitely want to hear from some school ppl as well. But, in terms of length, if not specified, I would say 3-5 pages double spaced. If there are 3 specific questions given and you are not asked to answer them separately, I would use them as a thin sort of outline. That is, just be sure to address all the questions in a single essay. Again, the length, if not specified, should run about 3-5 pages.

Re: content-- You should stop and think critically about what you did enjoy/learn from your research. Many people get involved in research as undergraduates that they don't want to pursue later on. The trick is to still tie it to your current interests (in research, in school psychology, in pursuing a doctorate). So, for (a lame but hopefully illustrative) example, you could say that getting involved in research on schizophrenia gave you an opportunity to get exposure to more severe psychopathy and sparked your interest in working with younger children in a preventive setting. Or something about underlying risk factors. OR, if there really is no connecting content between that experience and your current interests, just talk about how you learned some very useful quantitative and critical research skills. And yes, you can and should be specific. If you want to mention some interview and assessment skills you gained, I would mention them in a sentence or two and then tie them directly into your current interests/directions.

Good luck! I know this sounds like a lot but really the majority of the work is in thinking hard about the 'weaving' and how it all ties together.