Hello! Could one of our moderators revise my personal statement for my application for PhD program of Computer Science? Thanks a lot!
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Dear Sir/Madam,
I would like to express my keen interest in [University Name], particularly in the PhD program of Computer Science,
and my sincere gratitude for your consideration of my application.
I currently hold both a MS and a BS degree in Computer Science from Xidian University (graduated in the top 4%), and have been
working for Alcatel-Lucent (a Fortune Global 500 company) for over 4 years. I think my excellent academic track record and strong
telecomm related work experience match well with the program's exquisite list of qualifications.
I grew up in a small city in central China where living conditions were far from ideal. There is weekly blackout on electricity,
and computer usage is still considered a luxury. The main reason for the slow economic growth in that region is lack of
adaptation of new technologies, especially advancements in internet and wireless communications.
All these gave birth to my lifelong dream: study and contribute to information and communication technology. I want to apply
the knowledge obtained from academic institutes and skills from world class companies to improve the lives of millions of people.
Deep in my heart, there is always a strong desire to stand at the forefront of the technology, experiencing the power of the
ever growing computing and mobile capabilities. Nowadays, these technologies include cloud computing, SDN, virtual networking,
Small Cell, multimedia distribution and presentation, and broadband wireless networks. These innovative technologies inspires
new forms of social media on internet, thousands of new mobile applications, better web authoring solutions, faster media sharing,
and improving interactive user experiences, which in turn are changing lives of all people. I am so excited to have a chance to
participate in the next wave of technological innovations. I am determined, prepared and ready.
I earned my BS in Computer Science from Xidian University, a school that specializes in telecommunication, computer and electrical
engineering. From the moment I set my feet on the campus, I started to acquire as much knowledge as I could. I selected all
the classes that, in my opinion, would be relevant and beneficial to my future career. I worked long hours, including weekends,
studying new technologies. I joined various discussion groups and also worked on a project under the guidance of my professor.
I was awarded "First Class" scholarship multiple times during the bachelor program. As a reward for my outstanding achievement
in undergraduate studies, I was admitted automatically to the MS program in the university as I focused on more advanced
academic research.
My postgraduate research topic was multimedia communication, in particularly, video processing technologies. I took classes like
Theory of Communication Network, Multimedia Network, Wireless Personal Communication and Digital Signal Processing. I spent majority
of time doing research on multimedia presentation and digital image processing. One of my successful projects was video backlight
processing, which was used to improve camera modules when backlight of a video was fading or losing its true color due to poor
lighting conditions. My goal was to develop an solution to restore the backlight of the video as close to its real light as possible,
without bring perceivable negative effect onto the good part of the video. This was a huge challenge for me. After lots of trial
and error, I enhanced and applied and a mathematical quadratic formula that could smoothly compensate the backlight and improve
the overall video quality. The solution worked so well that my professor took my research work to Huawei and Huawei eventually
adopted it into the relative products. I felt very proud of this piece of research work. Its potential applications in medical imaging,
energy/mining, security surveillance and mobile communications might improve lives of many people.
I chose to join Alcatel-Lucent (Shanghai) after graduation primarily because it is a prominent global company, famous for its advanced
technologies in wireless communications and IT based solutions. My first project was the platform management system, which was a part
of the Mobile Switching Center's OA&M. It connects underlying Linux based processors, hardware devices and signaling to the northbound
application interface. I designed the interfaces for Linux APIs, and developed tools using python, unix shell scripts to help managing
the processes. As part of platform management team, I also participated in MSC Pooling project which promotes resource sharing, access
technology sharing, and signaling sharing. It introduced the concept of Virtual Media Gateway (VMG) which partitions the physical
resources into multiple virtual entities so that each could be occupied and used by remote systems. I took part in converting the legacy
media gateway to Virtual Media Gateway using C, C++, and Java. The resulting system provides geographic redundancy for its customers.
I was twice invited to come to Alcatel-Lucent Plano to work on the project with the colleagues there and gained invaluable knowledge
on the product itself, and how to work effectively as a team.
My second significant project was Small Cell, which uses virtual machines to exchange VoIP packets and video packets. There were strict
requirements that the system should deliver real time packets and match the capacity level of physical machines, thus provide significant
cost savings. When I left the project, we were still finalizing the overall design while working on some prototypes.
I have been to the US twice. It is the global innovation center, attracting talents and ideas like a magnet. It is the best place for
me to study the latest technologies and trends in IT and communications. I can witness the latest innovations, methodologies, and
management techniques, while accumulating firsthand experiences in their industrial applications. Therefore, I decided to apply to
study in the US. I would like to obtain my doctoral degree first, and then pursue an academic career. The areas that I am most interested in are
multimedia and realtime highspeed communications. I am also very interested in wireless communications, cloud computing, virtual networks,
and SDN.
It would be a great honor for me if given an opportunity to pursue further studies at your highly esteemed university.
