SoP Help?
This is pretty close to being a final draft. It's due on Friday, and I'm hoping I can persuade a few of you (at least!) to read it over and offer feedback. I would especially like some suggestions for other ways to say "I am interested in..." in my fit paragraph(s).
Thank you!
My interest in social psychology began with my first psychology course at Undergrad College and has grown through my work as a research assistant and while working on my senior research project. My honors thesis, which examined bystander intervention in incidents of same-sex domestic violence, grew out of a conversation with a classmate and developed into a passionate area of interest for me. This project made me aware of the lack of research relating to the gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender (GLBT) community. I want to conduct research on aggression and interpersonal violence, prejudice, stereotyping, and public policy, particularly as they relate to gender and sexual orientation. I would also like to apply psychological research to policy and program evaluation. My research experience and the skills I have acquired in employment have motivated and prepared me to pursue a Ph.D. in social psychology.
My hometown houses the Cool Research University. The summer prior to my junior year, I contacted social psychologists at Cool Research University to volunteer as a summer research assistant. I was fortunate enough to have an opportunity to work with Dr. X and one of her graduate students. I conducted library research for a literature review on the effect of mentors on women pursuing math and science degrees, and assisted with a research project investigating the relationships between egoistic relative deprivation, group relative deprivation, and collective action. For this latter experiment I administered surveys to student subjects and entered data into SPSS. The experiment on relative deprivation utilized the measure of egoistic and relative deprivation developed by Alexandra Corning to replicate Foster and Matheson’s (1995) findings that individuals who experience double relative deprivation (both egoistic and group relative deprivation) are more likely to engage in collective action. This was a valuable opportunity for me to not only gain experience conducting research, but to apply the concepts I had learned through my research methods coursework to a novel project. I enjoyed watching the experiment progress through the data collection and analysis.
This experience helped me carry out my senior research project. My thesis, supervised by Dr. Y, utilized questionnaires and was conducted primarily at Undergrad College. Participants read and rated a scenario depicting an abuse incident that involved either a gay male, lesbian, or heterosexual couple. I hypothesized that participants would perceive same-sex abuse as less severe than heterosexual abuse, and would therefore report less intention to intervene. Although I did not find support for my hypothesis, the process of conducting the research was rewarding and motivated me to pursue a research career.
I have several primary areas of interest within social psychology. First, I would like to research intimate partner violence as a function of sexual orientation. I am also interested in anti-gay discrimination and violence and how this relates to the experiences of other targeted groups (e.g., ethnic minorities and women). The Research Center for Group Dynamics of the Institute for Social Research has a number of research programs relevant to my interests. In particular, I have a strong interest in working with the Aggression Research Program and Dr. Z on the effects of video game violence on youth. I would also like to study the links between media portrayal of violence towards targeted groups and stereotypes of those groups with Dr. W. I am also interested in the research Dr. K has conducted on stereotype threat and implicit stereotypes, and I would like to work with her on these projects.
My professional goal is to split my time between social psychology research and teaching at the university level and applying my research and expertise to social policy development. My applied work will inform my research and teaching by exposing areas where social psychological theory may need to be revised in light of application successes and failures. Due to the emphasis placed on interdisciplinary research and collaboration between faculty and graduate students, I believe that the psychology department at the Prospective Grad University would be a good fit with my interests and career goals.
I have gained a great deal of technical and life experience since graduating from Undergrad College. I spent time working abroad in Edinburgh, Scotland and as a staffing supervisor in hometown. For the past three and a half years I have been working in an administrative position at Cool Research University while my partner finished her degree. Throughout the past five years I have worked in positions of responsibility that have called for analytical thinking, creativity, and diligence. Through my work at Cool Research University, I have coordinated courses, including compiling and submitting new course approvals, hiring lecturers, scheduling classrooms in coordination with the campus registrar, and analyzing course evaluations using SPSS. In addition, my work with diverse groups of faculty, staff, and students often requires me to act as liaison to facilitate communication between these different entities.
My past experiences have prepared me well for graduate study at the Prospective Grad University. The departmental research emphases on aggression, prejudice, and stereotyping will complement my own interests and allow me to grow as a researcher while contributing to the university’s rich intellectual community. I believe that I have the motivation, skills, and maturity necessary to make a valuable contribution to the Prospective Grad University psychology department, as well as to the field of social psychology. It is for these reasons that I want to pursue my Ph.D. and make the study of interpersonal violence, prejudice, stereotyping, and public policy my life’s work.
Thank you!
My interest in social psychology began with my first psychology course at Undergrad College and has grown through my work as a research assistant and while working on my senior research project. My honors thesis, which examined bystander intervention in incidents of same-sex domestic violence, grew out of a conversation with a classmate and developed into a passionate area of interest for me. This project made me aware of the lack of research relating to the gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender (GLBT) community. I want to conduct research on aggression and interpersonal violence, prejudice, stereotyping, and public policy, particularly as they relate to gender and sexual orientation. I would also like to apply psychological research to policy and program evaluation. My research experience and the skills I have acquired in employment have motivated and prepared me to pursue a Ph.D. in social psychology.
My hometown houses the Cool Research University. The summer prior to my junior year, I contacted social psychologists at Cool Research University to volunteer as a summer research assistant. I was fortunate enough to have an opportunity to work with Dr. X and one of her graduate students. I conducted library research for a literature review on the effect of mentors on women pursuing math and science degrees, and assisted with a research project investigating the relationships between egoistic relative deprivation, group relative deprivation, and collective action. For this latter experiment I administered surveys to student subjects and entered data into SPSS. The experiment on relative deprivation utilized the measure of egoistic and relative deprivation developed by Alexandra Corning to replicate Foster and Matheson’s (1995) findings that individuals who experience double relative deprivation (both egoistic and group relative deprivation) are more likely to engage in collective action. This was a valuable opportunity for me to not only gain experience conducting research, but to apply the concepts I had learned through my research methods coursework to a novel project. I enjoyed watching the experiment progress through the data collection and analysis.
This experience helped me carry out my senior research project. My thesis, supervised by Dr. Y, utilized questionnaires and was conducted primarily at Undergrad College. Participants read and rated a scenario depicting an abuse incident that involved either a gay male, lesbian, or heterosexual couple. I hypothesized that participants would perceive same-sex abuse as less severe than heterosexual abuse, and would therefore report less intention to intervene. Although I did not find support for my hypothesis, the process of conducting the research was rewarding and motivated me to pursue a research career.
I have several primary areas of interest within social psychology. First, I would like to research intimate partner violence as a function of sexual orientation. I am also interested in anti-gay discrimination and violence and how this relates to the experiences of other targeted groups (e.g., ethnic minorities and women). The Research Center for Group Dynamics of the Institute for Social Research has a number of research programs relevant to my interests. In particular, I have a strong interest in working with the Aggression Research Program and Dr. Z on the effects of video game violence on youth. I would also like to study the links between media portrayal of violence towards targeted groups and stereotypes of those groups with Dr. W. I am also interested in the research Dr. K has conducted on stereotype threat and implicit stereotypes, and I would like to work with her on these projects.
My professional goal is to split my time between social psychology research and teaching at the university level and applying my research and expertise to social policy development. My applied work will inform my research and teaching by exposing areas where social psychological theory may need to be revised in light of application successes and failures. Due to the emphasis placed on interdisciplinary research and collaboration between faculty and graduate students, I believe that the psychology department at the Prospective Grad University would be a good fit with my interests and career goals.
I have gained a great deal of technical and life experience since graduating from Undergrad College. I spent time working abroad in Edinburgh, Scotland and as a staffing supervisor in hometown. For the past three and a half years I have been working in an administrative position at Cool Research University while my partner finished her degree. Throughout the past five years I have worked in positions of responsibility that have called for analytical thinking, creativity, and diligence. Through my work at Cool Research University, I have coordinated courses, including compiling and submitting new course approvals, hiring lecturers, scheduling classrooms in coordination with the campus registrar, and analyzing course evaluations using SPSS. In addition, my work with diverse groups of faculty, staff, and students often requires me to act as liaison to facilitate communication between these different entities.
My past experiences have prepared me well for graduate study at the Prospective Grad University. The departmental research emphases on aggression, prejudice, and stereotyping will complement my own interests and allow me to grow as a researcher while contributing to the university’s rich intellectual community. I believe that I have the motivation, skills, and maturity necessary to make a valuable contribution to the Prospective Grad University psychology department, as well as to the field of social psychology. It is for these reasons that I want to pursue my Ph.D. and make the study of interpersonal violence, prejudice, stereotyping, and public policy my life’s work.