This first tip is the most important. It is essential that you customize your statement of purpose to every school, program, or project that you apply to. You don't have to start from scratch for each statement of purpose, but you should make sure that significant portions of the document are school-specific.
Show Your Qualifications
Explain why you are qualified for this Ph.D. program. Include a brief summary of your undergraduate and previous graduate career (if applicable). Talk about the research projects you conducted and your thesis or any resulting publications.
Your research interests should be a major part of your statement of purpose. Set up the topic you want to research by indicating a theme, defining a problem, or posing a question.
Show Them You Belong
Your statement of purpose should connect your research interests to the school you are applying to. You should name professors with parallel interests who you would like to work with and use specific examples of their work to explain why.
Unless a specific word count is mentioned in the application, the statement of purpose should not be longer than one to two pages. Make every word count.
Don’t Tell Your Life Story
On a similar note, avoid excess storytelling in your statement of purpose. Don’t waste your limited space telling the committee how you’ve always wanted to be a physicist or about the moment that sparked your passion for history.
When you have written a draft you are satisfied with, ask one of a professor in your field who knows you and your interests to read it over. They can help you see your statement of purpose from the perspective of someone with experience on admissions committees.
This is the crucial last step for any application. Read your statement of purpose several times to make sure there are no typos or grammatical errors. It can be hard to spot errors on the screen
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