Dear fellow members and English gurus,
I want to apply to the Masters of Embedded Systems being offered by TUK. The program can be funded through a scholarship for which there is no separate application. Rather, the prospective students will be judged primarily on the basis of their motivation letter so I need help from you guys. Please provide constructive criticism. Thanks a lot.
University of Kaiserslautern,
Dear Sir or Madam,
I wish to apply for the program of European Master's Program in Embedded Computing Systems for the academic year 2013-2014 which is an ERASMUS MUNDUS Program and being funded by European Commission (EC). This program is a concrete step towards my future Doctorate and continuation of my research and development work that I've been doing for the past couple of years. If I had to describe the reason to apply for this program in a nutshell, it would be: I need to know more.
Conceiving new ideas and developing systems which would deliver that promise is a personal goal I have set for myself ever since I was admitted to BSc. Electronics and Communication Engineering at UET Lahore, Pakistan. I believe that my intellectual and academic growth is a process of constant evolution. For the past two years, I have been working as design engineer in the industry, acquiring diversified professional experience in electronics system design. Fueled by my passion for electronics, I am excited and prepared for the challenges and opportunities brought forth by higher education.
I started off my academic career in exceptional form. I was awarded a gold medal in my primary school for excellent academic performance. I also got merit scholarships for two years in Higher Secondary School and for four years throughout my BSc. course at UET. I would often participate in extracurricular activities as well. At university, I played in the annual badminton tournament for two consecutive years. I was also elected as the Event Organizer in e-club society. I held that position for two years, organizing events and presentations while also volunteering to help the juniors with their projects.
During my Bachelor's program at UET Lahore, courses like Computer Programming, Digital Logic Design, Microprocessor Systems and Computer Architecture instilled the aspiration for the embedded world in me. I put these skills to use in a project named "Development of an 8-bit RISC Instruction Set Architecture suitable for Implementation on an FPGA". I developed this RISC ISA, making all the decisions based on the fact that this ISA was supposed to be optimized for the applications typically implemented through a processor core on an FPGA. I even named this architecture 'Athar88' on the suggestion of my supervisor! My final year project was "Wireless Data Acquisition and Control System" and it offered even more intuition and grasp of real-time data manipulation and control using microcontrollers.
By virtue of aforementioned training and experiences, I have developed a strong flair for the field of embedded systems, specifically, but not limited to, Real-time operating systems for embedded systems (some derivation of this is also a part of the research currently being carried out at TUK) and Embedded design using FPGA. Additionally, I am interested in the field of Fault Tolerant Embedded Systems which aims at dependable implementation of these systems. I want to enroll for this program because the technological research and development going on in Europe is simply staggering. Germany, for instance, is the World leader when it comes to the advancements in automotive industry and it would be interesting to see what sort of onboard computers are in vogue in German automobiles. Besides, the fact that both NTNU and UOS are also partners of the consortium, makes it even more desirable for me. Moreover, the courses offered in the program such as Real-time systems and Computer Architecture would offer me the theoretical background to pursue my research interests as well as improve my practical skills by engaging in industry driven research work. All these positives make me confident of my decision.
Currently I am involved in an R&D oriented project at Alpha Engineering Pvt. Ltd. in collaboration with National Textile University, Pakistan to design and develop a cotton contamination removal machine. This project is instantiated and funded by Higher Education Commission of Pakistan. I am also working on design and development of control system for a grid-tied and off-grid solar inverter.
Throughout my professional career, by having an opportunity to interact with the whole cross section of the industry in Pakistan, I have come to believe that Pakistan can be changed into a developed state only through a transition from conventional industry to high tech value added industry. We are confronting the regrettable fact that there is a vast gap between industrial practices and the research work being done at universities. A pool of academicians, who are capable of conducting industry driven research as well, have got a major role to play in this transition.
Having that in mind, I have recently joined University of Faisalabad as Lecturer/Lab Engineer while also working at Alpha Engineering in the evening hours and I believe that the best possible education in the fields of my interest will help me become a part of that pool of academicians in future. And thereupon, I will be able to play my part in the social and economic uplift of my countrymen through high tech industrialization in my country.
Over time, I have assumed the roles of a team member, a team leader, a subordinate, a project organizer and most recently of that of an instructor. In retrospect, I feel that my industrial experiences have not only groomed me as a team player but greatly added to the heterogeneity of my work. These testing scenarios have enabled me to function at various levels while working under deadlines and meeting the design demands without any compromise, all the while working harmoniously with my fellow teammates.
I am certain about exceeding all your expectations, may it be academic excellence, motivation for research or interpersonal skills. Furthermore, my industrial background and dexterity in developing industry-ready solutions is bound to add more diversity to your program.
Thank you for considering my application and I look forward to your acceptance.
Sincerely yours,
Athar Rasul
This is good, but pay attention to the following as well;
The admission committee forms their first impression about you by reading your SOP. Therefore, you need to display a little bit of creative talents there for them to remember you out of hundreds of applicants. You need to show them you are a right type of student for their college. So tell them how you developed your passion for this field and how much you are attached to it.
