• Business School
    • Free MBA Admissions Consultation
    • MBA Admissions Services
    • School-Specific MBA Essay Tips
    • Executive MBA Essay Tips
    • MBA Admissions Calendar
    • Free Guides
    • Video Tips
    • Podcast
    • Selectivity Index
    • EMBA: The Ultimate Guide for Applicants
  • Medical School
    • Free Med School Admissions Consultation
    • Med School Admissions Services
    • Med School Admissions 101
    • Secondary Essay Tips (by School)
    • Student Interviews
    • Free Guides
    • Video Tips
    • Podcast
    • Selectivity Index
  • Law School
    • Free Law School Admissions Consultation
    • Law School Admissions Services
    • Law School Admissions 101
    • Selectivity Index
    • Free Guides
    • Podcast
    • Video Tips
  • Graduate School
    • Free Grad School Admissions Consultation
    • Grad School Admissions Services
    • Grad School Admissions 101
    • Free Guides
    • Video Tips
    • Podcast
  • College
    • Free College Admissions Consultation
    • College Admissions Services
    • Free Guides
    • Supplemental Essay Tips
    • Video Tips
    • Podcast
Accepted

Speak with an Accepted admissions expert for FREE!

Blog HomePodcastContact Us

Accepted Admissions Blog

Everything you need to know to get Accepted

February 7, 2023

Reading Time: 2 minutes

Finding a Theme for Your Statement of Purpose

Finding a Theme for Your Statement of Purpose | Accepted


Check out all of the blog posts in this series:

  1. Identifying the Ingredients of a Winning Essay
  2. Finding a Theme for Your Statement of Purpose
  3. Writing Your Career Goals Essay
  4. How to Start Your First Draft of an Application Essay
  5. Revise and Polish Your Application Essays

All effective essays have a distinctive theme. Referring back to the essays we examined in the previous post, we might say that  was her passion for finding answers to significant public health issues. Our law school applicant’s theme was his yearning for greater intellectual challenges while remaining in the healthcare field.

It might take time and introspection to identify your theme. The questions below are designed to help you define your essay’s main message. Your answers will also help you express your goals, values as they relate to your career choice, motivations for pursuing a graduate degree, and professional dreams. While introspection isn’t as popular an activity as, say, yoga or streaming TV and movies, it’s an important part of this process. Give it some time; your essay will be much better for it.

  • Why are you passionate about – or at least committed to – your career choice?
  • Diving deeper into the previous question, what experiences in your life (personal, educational, professional) have most strongly influenced your career goals?
  • Has any individual played a major role in helping you discover these goals or values?
  • What do you hope to achieve in your career?
  • What would career success look like in five years? Ten years?
  • What personal strengths (e.g., communication skills, empathy, persistence) do you bring to this career?
  • What professional skills (e.g., organizational abilities, clinical knowledge, teaching, mentoring) do you bring to this career? 
  • What experiences can you write about that will showcase these strengths?
  • After the admissions committee reads your essays, what three words do you hope they would use to describe you? Would you like them to consider you “driven,” “intelligent,” and “creative”? How about “dedicated,” “a leader,” and “focused”? No matter what image you want to create, think about experiences that will illustrate those qualities.

Once you begin to think about these questions, some of the answers will come to you quickly. Others will require time to percolate. Write down your ideas, memories, and insights as they come. Eventually, they will build into a satisfying little inventory, and you will be able to identify the ones that are colorful or dramatic enough to become your essay introduction. 

If you are writing multiple essays, such as for different MBA programs, each one must have its own theme. The admissions committees want to see you as a multifaceted individual and have therefore crafted their essay prompts accordingly. These questions provide you the opportunity to display different aspects of yourself, your values, and your personality.

Summary Tips:

  • Carve out some time for introspection about your career goals, values, and motivation. (That means your phone is in another room or at least in “Do Not Disturb” mode.) 

  • Develop a distinct theme for each essay required by any program that demands more than one. Use each essay as an opportunity to show yourself as a multifaceted individual.

In the next post in this series, we’ll share insights into how to write an exemplary MBA career goals essay.

Work one-on-one with an expert who will walk you through the process of creating a slam-dunk application: Our admissions consultants have read thousands of essays and know the exact ingredients of an outstanding essay.

By Judy Gruen, former Accepted admissions consultant. Judy holds a master’s in journalism from Northwestern University and is the co-author of Accepted’s first full-length book, MBA Admission for Smarties: The No-Nonsense Guide to Acceptance at Top Business Schools. Want an admissions expert help you get accepted? Click here to get in touch!

Related Resources:

  • From Example to Exemplary: How to Use Sample Essays to Make Your Essay Outstanding
  • How to Write a Goal Statement for Graduate School
  • 3 Tips for Showing Strengths in Your Application Essays

Article by Accepted / Admissions Consulting, College Admissions, Grad School Admissions, Law School Admissions, MBA Admissions, Medical School Admissions / college application essays, Exemplary Application Essays Series, grad application essays, law application essays, mba application essays, med application essays

Get Accepted!

Sign up for a free consultation today!

Which program are you applying to?

Most Popular Blog Posts

1. 7 Simple Steps to Writing an Excellent Diversity Essay

2. 4 Ways to Show How You’ll Contribute in the Future

3. How to Write About Your Research Interests

4. Tips for Answering the Yale University Supplemental Essays and Short Answer Questions [2022-2023]

5. When Will Medical Schools Give You an Answer?

6. Sample Essays from Admitted HBS Students

7. Tips for Answering the University of Pennsylvania Supplemental Essay Prompts [2022-2023]

8. Top STEM MBA Programs: A Comprehensive List and Overview of STEM-OPT Eligible B-Schools

Sample Essays

MBA Personal Statement Examples

Medical School Personal Statement Examples

Graduate School Personal Statement Examples

Law School Personal Statement Examples

College Application Essay Examples

 

This Site is Featured on GMATClub

Home Page Services and Prices MBA Med School Law School Grad School College

About Us Press Room Contact Us Podcast Accepted Blog
Privacy Policy Website Terms of Use Disclaimer Client Terms of Service

Accepted 1171 S. Robertson Blvd. #140 Los Angeles CA 90035 +1 (310) 815-9553
© 2022 Accepted

BBB A+ RatingStamp of AIGAC Excellence

Copyright © 2023 · Education Pro Theme on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in