English 220: Critical and Analytical Writing

Dal Liddle

Mini-Essay B – Make a Statement

Length: About 300 words by default, using the document already created for you in Google
Docs. Letterhead (!) is optional. If you use this assignment for a real application, substitute the
real parameters of that application.

Audience: An admissions committee (for grad/law/med/nursing school, etc.), a fellowship

Assignment: Introduce yourself in writing to an audience, actual or virtual, that it is important

Actual: If you will really be applying soon (next 6 to 18 months) for admission to a graduate
program, or for a grant, fellowship, internship, study abroad program, or something similar, use
this assignment to draft the required personal statement or application letter. Use the Internet or
other resources to find the requirements for the/a school or program you are looking at, and
then produce a draft that fulfills its requirements and puts your best foot forward. (Print a copy of
the organization’s personal statement guidelines and submit them along with your one-page
paper, or provide a complete and correct link to them in your text.)

Virtual: If you have no immediate plans to apply to an actual grant, school, or program, practice
this useful skill anyway with the aid of some imagination. Choose a school, program, fellowship,
or other opportunity, real or fictional, and write a letter of application or personal statement to
accompany an application to them. In the “Virtual” version of the assignment the organization to
which you apply may be real (NASA astronaut school) or fictional (Starfleet Academy), and — in
this version of this assignment only — your credentials may also be lightly fictional, or at least
aspirational. If the organization is real, provide the text of, or a link to, its actual application
guidelines.

Once you receive feedback on this exercise from me, you will be allowed to revise, so you do
get a second chance to make a first impression! Tips:

●​ As before, write tightly and clearly—since you have only about a page to provide as
much high-quality information as possible, avoid clutter and use active verbs and
specific, concrete language.
●​ You won’t have a Works Cited page for this assignment. If you take inspiration for your
letter or statement from anyone else’s, though, remember that any uncredited borrowing
of the original structure or wording of someone else’s text may be plagiarism. Please
make sure your statement is your own statement
Earth Sciences personal statement A

I have been planning a career in geological sciences for several years, but as an undergraduate I
concentrated on getting a solid background in math and science. After graduation, I took a job to
allow myself time to thoroughly think through my plans and to expose myself to a variety of
work situations. This strategy has been very valuable to me in rounding out my career plans.
During the past 18 months I have had firsthand experience with computers in a wide array of
business applications. This has stimulated me to think about ways in which computers could be
used for scientific research. One idea that particularly fascinates me is mathematical modeling of
natural systems, and I think those kinds of techniques could be put to good use in geological
science. I have always enjoyed and been strong in areas that require logical, analytical thought,
and I am anxious to combine my interest in earth science with my knowledge of, and aptitude
for, computer-related work. There are several specific areas that I have already studied that I
think would lend themselves to research based on computing techniques, including mineral
phase relations in igneous petrology and several topics in structural geology.

I have had both lecture/lab and field courses in structural geology, as well as a short module
dealing with plate tectonics, and I am very interested in the whole area. I would like to explore
structural geology and tectonics further at the graduate level. I am also interested in learning
more about geophysics. I plan to focus on all these areas in graduate school while at the same
time continuing to build up my overall knowledge of geology.

My ultimate academic goal is to earn a Ph.D., but enrolling first in a master's program will
enable me to explore my various interests and make a more informed decision about which
specific discipline I will want to study in depth. As far as long-term plans, I hope to get a
position at a university or other institution where I can indulge my primary impulse, which is to
be involved in scientific research, and also try my hand at teaching.

My decision to focus on math and science as an undergraduate and to explore the computer
industry after college has equipped me with a unique set of strengths to offer this program. The
depth of my interest in geology has only grown in my time away from academia, and although I
have identified several possible areas of specialization through prior studies, I look forward to
contributing my fresh perspective on all subjects.
Earth Sciences personal statement B:

Walking along the Mississippi River, I appreciate the beauty of what I can see—continuing flora
and fauna biodiversity—and the uncertainty of what the eye can’t so easily see—significant
anthropogenic and industrial pollution and ecosystem disruption. The Mississippi River is one of
the most highly polluted waterways in America. Each year, millions of pounds of toxins
contaminate drinking water, bioaccumulate, and increase the risk of cancer and developmental
or reproductive disorders throughout the food chain. Water is an intersection of profound
cultural, economic, political, and scientific importance. To more deeply understand these
connections and contribute scholarly work in the environmental sciences, I want to pursue a
Ph.D. at Stanford University in the Civil & Environmental Engineering (CEE) program with an
emphasis in environmental engineering and science (EES) or environmental fluid mechanics
and hydrology (EFMH).

I believe that my undergraduate training has helped me develop into a rigorous analyst guided
by pragmatism and systematic thinking. While I thrive in studying chemistry, I also believe that
real-world problems aren’t solved by one discipline alone. For this reason, I aspire to study
chemistry in the context of CEE. My affinity for environmental science evolved during an
Environmental & River Politics course I took at Augsburg College. In studying the main water
issues of the 21st century, many of my academic interests came together—chemistry, biology,
political science, economics, anthropology, history, and ethics. My favorite experience in the
course was taking a canoe/camping trip down the Mississippi to analyze the effect of land use
on the health of the ecosystem and human communities in the watershed. I brought along a
laptop and tools for water analysis and at several points during the trip measured water turbidity,
pH, temperature, ion concentrations (nitrates, phosphates, ammonium), dissolved oxygen, and
ion conductivity. In many areas and especially near the confluence of the Minnesota and
Mississippi Rivers, a relationship was observed between agricultural/urban runoff and highly
turbid, ion-rich, low-oxygen waters. The experiment illustrated to my fellow, non-science
classmates the effect of runoff on real, physical properties of the river system. [....]

I laid a strong foundation for my graduate studies through a challenging liberal arts education
including three undergraduate research experiences. During the summer of 2008, I traveled to
Strasbourg, France through an NSF REU. I studied under Dr. Catherine Grosdemange-Billiard
at the Université Louis Pasteur (ULP) and synthesized two inhibitors of 1-deoxy-D-xyluose
5-phosphate reducto-isomerase (DXR). DXR is an enzyme in the isoprenoid-synthesizing MEP
pathway, and because it is absent in animals and humans, it is a novel drug target against
opportunistic pathogens such as P. falciparum, one of the parasites responsible for malaria. This
past January, I traveled to Gainesville, Florida to present my work at the 2009 University of
Florida HHMI Celebration of Undergraduate Creativity in the Arts & Sciences.

My research in France also led me to think about the fate of pharmaceuticals after their
metabolism and excretion. I became interested in studying the effects of emerging organic
pollutants in the food chain and how they could be prevented from entering rivers and lakes in
the first place. I wrote my senior thesis on some of these key, unsettled issues and my belief
that more research must be done in these areas adds to my resolve to pursue graduate studies
in the CEE program. [....]

Since graduating, I have been working in an undergraduate research and national fellowships
office, where I work with faculty to identify potential applicants for fellowships and research
opportunities and then assist students in the application process. My knowledge of funding
opportunities for doctoral work along with the experience of helping students apply for
prestigious fellowships will hopefully prove advantageous when I apply for funding opportunities.
I have also been deliberate in staying engaged with environmental science in different
capacities. In addition to reading my favorite journal, Environmental Science & Technology, I
have started a weekly journal club to discuss environmental science journal articles with my
peers at the campus café. I also volunteer with an on-campus, NSF-funded atmospheric
chemistry research project on isoprene oxidation mechanisms and urban air pollution.

At Stanford, I hope to pursue research focusing on emerging aquatic pollutants as they relate to
environmental science and engineering, environmental policy design and implementation, and
the applied Earth sciences. Stanford clearly emphasizes such interdisciplinary learning—both
within the CEE department and across campus—as evidenced by the joint research initiatives
amongst the Woods Institute, IPER, Center for Environmental Science & Policy, and Western
Region Hazardous Substance Center. I propose working with Dr. Richard Luthy on a project in
applied aquatic chemistry to address the biotransformation, fate, and availability of persistent
organic compounds, such as PFCs, PCBs, PBDEs, or other anthropogenic wastes in the
environment. I am also interested in working with Dr. Martin Reinhard to study emerging organic
substances in the subsurface environment or the fate of microcontaminants in groundwater.
Pursuing a joint project between professors with environmental chemistry knowledge and Dr.
Alexandria Boehm to focus on particle fate in water with regards to coastal water quality also
appeals to me.

In the future, I aspire to teach and conduct research at a university, work with the USGS or EPA,
or advise politicians on issues of environmental science, such as those on the Senate
Environment and Public Works Committee. I have been told that I have a gift for explaining
technically difficult concepts to scientists and nonscientists alike; this skill will be essential as a
Teaching Assistant in graduate school, later as an educator and researcher in academia, and in
communicating science to the general public. Attaining a Ph.D. at Stanford in CEE will prepare
me to effectively address real-world, modern problems in water resource quality and
management.