STATEMENT OF PURPOSE
"Vasudev Kutumbkam", a saying in one of the most ancient languages of the world (Sanskrit) which means "World is a Global village" is turning into reality as the distance between its inhabitants shrink to minimal limits. Today we can listen to synthesized speech, watch live television from all over the world, communicate with space vehicles dispersed within the solar system and are able to locate ourselves with outstanding accuracy using the global positioning system. Although entire mankind is benefited from these gigantic strides in the arena of scientific innovation and development, but few care to delve deeper into their miraculous mechanism. Being one of those who spared a thought for the same, I intend to pursue graduate studies in the field of communication and signal processing as a first step towards my eternal quest of understanding the physical bonds of man and his surroundings.
My father is an army officer in the Air Defense arm of Indian Army and being from defense background, I was exposed to the advanced techniques used in modern defense and telecommunications at an early age. The varied antennas of radars and communication equipment provoked my curiosity to gain deeper insight into their underlying concept and phenomena. These formative years laid the foundation for my undying interest in Electronic equipments and technology. Perusing journals like Jane's further fueled my interest in this arena and prompted me to acquire engineering level knowledge, much required for complete understanding of the same.
Academic Excellence has always been a top priority in my life. I have been amongst the top rankers through out my school life and stood 9th in state in the highly competitive examination for admission to the undergraduate program at NIT's (Acclaimed 2nd best engineering College in India after the IIT's). The undergraduate course in electronics and communication engineering (ECE), at National Institute of Technology, Bhopal (NITB) exposed me to a gamut of fields ranging from VLSI, microprocessor and circuits to signal processing, communication and control systems .The exhaustive curriculum helped considerably in honing my analytical skills and mathematical problem solving ability. Studying under the guidance of well qualified and experienced faculty members was an exhilarating experience. We were highly encouraged to build strong basic concepts which were put into practice by working on several basic level projects like Audio Amplifier, Timer projects using 555 timers, Variable frequency audio oscillator. Talking about the practical aspect of education, I must admit of being fortunate enough to have had the experience of working in excellent laboratories, well equipped with latest apparatus. I thoroughly enjoyed completing practical assignments and was always in the good list of my lab guides, as evident from my lab grades, which are mostly A-.
Experiencing highs and lows is a part of life but outperforming self me has been my motto till date. With every passing semester, I have improved my class performance.While I could not score well in 2nd semester due to my own mistakes but I never gave up. I strived hard to overcome difficulties at both personal and academic level. Further, I must say the joy was overwhelming when all my hard work paid off and I stood 2nd in ECE department in 7th semester. Overall I secured a rank in top 15 students in a batch of 104.
During my coursework, I did my minor project on "Maintaining Secrecy in Parallel Telephone Circuit" and major project on "Multifeatured Security System" under the guidance of Mrs. Bhavana Shrivastava. The major project was based on random signal generation using AVR microcontroller with transmission and reception of these signals done using IR emitter and detector. Our simple and neat model consisted of 3 parts including alarm trigger circuit based on IR detection, video transmission and reception and intrusion alarm phone dialer using DTMF Transceiver. While I was working on this project, I was able to understand the principle of DTMF and its importance in telephone signaling. I have also worked on microcontroller programming and interfacing AVR microcontroller and DTMF Transceiver. The microcontroller was programmed using ISP AVR programmer. Although simple but I consider working on these projects as the most valuable experiences of my life which instilled confidence to work on my own without any external support .Besides strengthening my practical and theoretical knowledge, they even enhanced my motivation to further my level of understanding in the field of communication.
After completing my undergraduate, I have joined Accenture as a Software engineer and have been working in JAVA for the past 1.5 years and thus possess zest and necessary skills for socket programming involved in advanced internet communication, writing DSP algorithms in java, some of the upcoming research areas in recent times. Along with technical capabilities, the MNC environment inculcated professionalism, team working skills and ability to meet deadlines in a strict timeframe. I have been recognized and appreciated for my work in the industry; receiving awards like Rising Star of Project and ASE achiever's award (considered as the most prestigious award for a new joiner in Accenture) have been the most remarkable milestones in my professional life till now.
I have had the privilege of attending two internships during contiguous summer breaks-one at Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL), Ghaziabad and second at DRDO laboratories, New Delhi which helped me in enhancing and updating my knowledge about latest techniques in communication and Radar technology. I became acquainted with cutting edge gadgets and technology. At BEL, exposure to Battlefield Surveillance Radars, short and medium range as also Flycatcher Air Defence Radar with its State-of-the-art Cassegrain Antenna and Track While Scan (TWS) facility kept my interest alive. Interaction with some of the senior officials gave me a chance to understand the underlying concepts and practical applications of a multitude of products ranging from satellite communication systems,(using TDMA and F-TDMA technologies to carry digital voice, data and video traffic in star or mesh configuration) to Simputers(a fully featured and robust handheld mobile computer).At DRDO laboratories, I have learnt the latest in VSAT communication integrated with internet protocol (IP) and multiple access techniques.
I have nurtured an interest to work in the field of communication and signal processing since my early engineering days when I was formally introduced with subjects like Digital Signal Processing and Computer Networks. Hence my decision to pursue graduate studies in this field has been taken after a prolonged forethought and careful analysis of my career interests and aspirations which include valuable inputs from my professors. In near future, I intend to take up a career in research and teaching in the same. I am extremely positive about the fact that choosing University of Bristol as my first step in this direction would prove to be a sound and intelligent decision on my part.
Bristol holds the reputation of being one of the top 10 universities in the United Kingdom
Besides producing famous alumni including 8 Nobel laureates and several others, what really captivates me about your institution is its strong research base. The university website educated me about the kind of research work going on under Center for communications research. This includes some of the most active research fields in recent times like advanced wireless access. Your brilliant performance on RAE 2008 and the prestigious awards won by Communication System and Networks Research group are certain factors which have motivated my decision to a certain extent. CCR's massive collaboration with leading industries and sumptuous research facilities makes it highly impressive. I am keen to study at a place like yours which has so much to offer. Further studying in a multicultural milieu would help me in broadening my perspective and thus facilitating personal growth.
On the basis of my past academic record, I consider myself competent enough both in terms of mental caliber and aptitude to embark upon this journey of technical quest which undoubtedly demands keen enthusiasm to face new challenges and virtues of persistent hard work and personal commitment to the cause of knowledge and learning. I have avid faith, that given an opportunity to enhance my level of understanding in the chosen field, I would be able to tap my inbuilt potential to the fullest, thereby contributing positively towards electronics fraternity and ultimately serving in the interests of human society.
I look forward to a mutually beneficial association with your institute.
"Vasudev Kutumbkam" is a saying in one of the most ancient languages of the world Sanskrit adage that means, "The world is a global village." This becomes increasingly true as the distance between its inhabitants shrinks to minimal limits.
Wow, this is very impressive! I think that you should change the end, and not say "mutually beneficial." It seems a little over confident, almost arrogant, because the representative of the institution would like to feel that the institution benefits you. I understand what you mean, though, because it is good to want to make a meaningful contribution at the school.
Also, instead of "man and his surroundings," try something more gender-friendly, like "humankind and... (something).
:) Good luck!!!
for an SOP, this is mighty long! you really need to shorten it drastically.
You're already sending in a resume right. So why not use the SOP as a platform to explain how CERTAIN activities have made you who you are or rather, have enhanced your personality/ character.
Good Luck! :)
