I want to pursue my career in Polymer Science particularly in Biopolymers because I believe in and have often witnessed the enormous synergy effect coming from a multidisciplinary teamwork. Polymer Science is truly a broad multidisciplinary area, in which chemistry, physics, biology and engineering, are blended in order to improve the overall quality of human life and for the technological advancement in many fields. My primary interests are in the areas of developing biomaterials for therapeutic and diagnostic.
My fascination with polymers started when I was 16 years old, and I learnt about polymers for the first time at school. Our teacher told us to shut our eyes and feel different things around us. Practically everything like our clothes, shoes, computers, pens, spectacles, lunch boxes, chairs, glue sticks, was made up of polymers! The fact that one class of materials could have such diverse uses and applications got me fascinated. As I grew older, I realized the importance of polymers as a subject and decided that I would do something related to polymers in my future career. This made choosing Polymer Engineering at my undergraduate level a natural option for me.
I am currently in my penultimate semester of my undergraduate course of Polymer Engineering at Maharashtra Institute of Technology which is affiliated to the University of Pune. The program has given me an exposure in a wide variety of subjects like Polymer Chemistry, Polymer Structure Property Relationships, Polymer Rheology and Processing, Polymer Material and Compounding, Surface Coating Technology, Specialized Polymer Applications, which has further fueled my interest in this field. I am especially curious about the structure property relationships and how a small difference like changing one single bond element can change properties of the entire polymer chain, like in polyethylene, all the carbons are bonded to hydrogen atoms and it forms our regular plastic which is used in applications like bags, bottles. Just replacing the hydrogen with fluorine, gives us polytetrafluoroethylene which is one of the strongest materials known and is used in aerospace and computer applications!
In the past year, I have interned at two polymer engineering companies. At Om Polymers, I learnt about the manufacture of HDPE and PVC pipes from granules by the extrusion process and also about recycling of PVC completely. At Raksha Polycoats, I learnt about the manufacture of rubber coated articles such as life jackets, life boats and decontamination suits. I learned the various ways to formulate rubber, the manufacturing process and coating of the rubber onto various substrates.
In my coursework, I was required to do various mini projects and I have done so on topics like Polylactic Acid and Fibre Reinforced Polymer Composites. I have also presented a technical paper on Polymer Concrete at the Paper Presentation event held in Affinity, a national technical program held by the Polymer Engineering Department of Maharashtra Institute of Technology every year. My current final year project is on Polymers used in Controlled Drug Delivery. The purpose of polymers in such a system is to deliver drugs to target pathological cells in order to increase the effectiveness of drugs thus reducing their undesirable side effects. Currently, the most important application of targeted drug delivery is to treat cancerous tumors.
I am also a part of the Polymer Students Association which organises various activities like industrial visits to prestigious companies like DSM, Electronica, Aim Fibertech etc. and arranges guest lectures by eminent personalities from the academia.
I wish to pursue a graduate program, and eventually a PhD, in Polymer Science or related fields, in order to make a significant contribution to this field. I hope to work on various structure property relationships of polymers to generate exciting new applications, and on biocompatible polymers, which basically mean polymers which can be used in the human body for various uses like targeted drug delivery, artificial muscles, treatment and replacement of organs and many such applications. Graduate studies would afford me deeper knowledge in areas of my interest in order to best meet challenges of the present day.
Your university provides the kind of exposure needed to broaden my thinking and help me towards my goal of creating biodegradable plastics. The work of Professor _____ inspires me and I hope to work on similar lines. The faculty's reputation for excellent teaching, challenging coursework and the excellent facilities are added attractions. In a university of such confluence of people from every culture, nationality, region and ideology, I am sure that exposure to these diverse influences would aid my academic development.
In retrospect I find myself having a firm foundation in engineering fundamentals, I am confident that I would be a value addition. I look forward to be a part of your esteemed university and I assure that I would make utmost efforts to further enhance the reputation of the university.
Gaya, while I admire the background that you have in relation to your interest in Polymers, I believe that the statement of purpose that you wrote needs to have some editing done. In terms of actually portraying your purpose for wanting to pursue higher studies, the paper does not accomplish much. There is too much focus on the early development of your interest and your undergraduate studies for this essay to actually make an impression on the reviewer. It just seems too forgettable at the moment.
What the reviewer will be looking for in your statement is an inclination as to where you see your interests in Polymer science taking you in the future. Since you are already familiar with the read world application of the material, why don't you present something solid in terms of research or project study. Something that the university, through its various internships, grants, and other educational endowments, can perhaps help you achieve during the duration of your masters degree studies with them? It always helps to have a project in mind that you can collaborate on with the notable names at the university. It shows that you did your homework and you really have a basis for your choice of school.
You already mentioned a Prof. X in one of your paragraphs. Find out what he is currently researching or interested in and try to develop a project of yours that could be developed alongside his own. That way when you say that you look forward to working with him, you can cite a concrete reason why and how you plan to do that. It may just impress the reviewer a bit more than it should if your work turns out to be something world changing, and their university was there to support you :-)
Remember, one of your main motivations for opting to enroll at the university should have to do with your future career plans. So, whether you can actually keep up with those plans or not, you need to present a solid plan to the reviewer. Just to show that you are keen on not only attending their university, but also completing the course.
@gaya, I'll be working on the first three paragraphs of your essay, I will get back to you on the other part of it.
1st paragraph
- I believe in and have often..
- Polymer Science is a truly a broad...
- multidisciplinary( you have used this word at the beginning of the essay, try to find a different word perhaps)
2nd paragraph
- ...that one class of the materials..
3rd paragraph
- I am especially curious about the structurestructural property
You have a very elaborately detailed essay and constructed in a very logical order. As you can see I only made a few remarks as your essay is written quiet well.
There are, of course, very little corrections that can help enhance your essay.
For now, this is what I can share and I'll get back to you for the rest of the essay.
