The Education Blog

One of the most important, though difficult points when applying to educational funds for scholarships is the writing of the motivation letter.

The motivation letter represents the cluster of your ideas and ideology, your aims and reasons for applying for the particular scholarship. Every educational fund states its own special demands and expectations from students. But whatever it is, each personal motivation letter has the same structure and target.

Here are some hints for developing motivation letter writing skills so you won’t get stuck in front of the screen.

First, find out all you can about the fund, the school or the organizations granting the scholarship. The more you know about them, the more facts you find in yourself, which would be a plus for you in the eyes of the fund.

Second, list the main points you want to mention in the essay. (Never try to start from the first sentence, if you don’t want to get stuck. The first sentence is the most difficult, so it can be written even at the end.)

Write the main body of the essay, based on your main points and work out the construction of the whole text. It should have an introduction, main body and conclusion. The most important part is the main body, of course, because there you state your main ideas.

On the other hand, the impression from your motivation letter is made in the very first paragraph. Try to use a question, which you will answer later on in the main body, or a quote from someone well known. Even a joke may be a nice touch if it’s to the point.

Now proofread the text, try to say everything once, without going around the same idea. In most cases the word count is limited, so explain each thought of yours concisely. And state what the fund needs from you. If they ask you to write some facts from your life, demonstrating, for instance, your social activity, don’t write  pompous speeches about your life. Simple facts are enough.

Most importantly, don’t write your personal essay in one day. Think it over and over again, maybe you will think of new things that you want to mention. Ask your close friends to read it and share their ideas with you–your friends may know you better than you do.

Finally, submitting your application on the deadline day is not the best thing. It might suggest that you did not take it seriously, so take your time, but be in time.

photo © Come passare la giornata‘

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