one

THING

         better

by Kalsoom Syed & Khaula Rizwan

Daastan Publishing 2023

First Published in Pakistan by Daastan PVT LTD

House # A-41, Madni Street, Lala Rukh, Wah Cantt, Punjab 47040

www.daastan.com

www.meraqissa.com

Text copyrights © Khaula Rizwan and Kalsoom Syed

Book Design copyright © Kalsoom Syed

Edited by: Mariam Rizvi

The moral rights of the writer, illustrator and editor have been asserted.

All rights reserved.

All work is produced by Khaula Rizwan’s Consultancy and her team.

This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or distributed in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

No portion of this book may be reproduced - mechanically, electronically, or by any other means, including

photocopying – without written permission of the authors.

ISBN 978-969-696-908-2

Printed and bound in Pakistan by Daastan Printing Solutions

preface

Khaula Rizwan acknowledges all those speakers and writers who could marshal facts so clearly to evidence what they were saying - those who have a passion for knowledge. How knowledge can support inclusion and diversity, clarity of purpose and generosity of spirit? That is the mission I set out for my educational consultancy.

Through this book, we recognize that the Statement of Purpose (SOP) is an exercise in deep reflection, compassion and empowerment - I highly encourage my applicants to approach their individual careers from the lens of social justice and inclusion. The time has never been urgent - to tackle any kind of -isms, racism or sexism, ableism or genderism. Your job should be to demonstrate your allyship and impact as you take a systemic approach to address the shocking staggering statistics in your discipline/field in your respective home country. I reflected on my terrible experiences of discrimination to transform into power for the social good: what I went through, no one else should.

I give you this book to help you creatively think of excellent, impressionable content for your SOP – to channel your ordinary and extraordinary experiences into a solid force for admission materials - to draft a stellar SOP for yourself – to get that scholarship award that will and should change your life’s trajectory!

-Khaula Rizwan

You are not short of relevant experiences and skills. You are short of words and perspectives.

This is what I realized when I sat down to write my statement of purpose. Narrowing down aims using the 7C’s of writing on top of convincing the admission committee to let YOU bring a positive change is a skill that is difficult to learn but NOT impossible.

Unfortunately, despite the importance of our ability to write about our experiences in relevance to our career goals, it is not taught as a mainstream skill in schools. The book you’re reading right now is the combination of the SOP writing resources that I wished someone had given to my younger self.

Treat this book as a writing helpline that you can use each time you find yourself lost in your journey, which will happen quite often. A guide we have prepared for all the obvious and non-obvious mistakes that applicants make while writing their SOPs. Let’s not rob yourself of the countless opportunities you might have received only if you had expressed your achievements and future goals with greater clarity, conciseness and confidence. 

- Kalsoom Syed

read me in any order.

Introduction.

Chapter 1: Think Differently To Write Differently.

Chapter 2: Word Choices.

Chapter 3: Good Vs Average Phrases.

Chapter 4: Passive And Active Voices.

Chapter 5: Conclusion.

Resources.

Proofreading Checklist

About the co-authors.

introduction

This book is for you if:

• You are on your 2^nd draft of SOP looking for genuine writing suggestions about what type of content makes the cut
• You are in the middle of writing your SOP, and suddenly lose faith in your writing skills and perhaps future
• You need to bring clarity to your SOPs