[Cover Letter] Please Review my Letter of Motivation to apply for a Master Program

[jose_ic]

Hello Everyone

I would really appreciate if anyone can read this letter of motivation to apply for a Master in Computational Engineering (until 1st of May) and tell me in general if it's understandable and if I had spelling and grammar errors.

Thank you so much in advance, any little help is a big advantage for me.

Jose

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Dear Computational Engineering Team

This letter express my interest in applying for a position in the Master in Computer Science at the UniversityX. Soon I will finish my studies in Civil Engineering and I think this program is my best option to use and improve my skills in order to achieve my professional goals.

From the beginning of my study in 2008 two things related to my future profession were clear to me: that I wanted to use the power of computers to investigate and that I wanted to have experiences working abroad. This interests haven't changed. In fact, I have fulfilled them during my student time and I'm excited about seeking them further. My goal is to become a specialist in an Engineering field in order to work in Projects that challenge the technology as we know it today and demand new science solutions and perspectives.

In 2011 I joined the Research Group X at the University Y. It demanded me to attend the courses related to Numerical Methods, Solid Mechanics and even to study topics that are not taught in the Civil Engineering core curriculum. This kind of challenge is the reason why many students in the University Y aren’t attracted to the Research Group X. But I was really motivated and convinced about my desires and I had the lucky to count with the help from my supervisors, which are professional researchers and have a lot of expertise in Computational Mechanics. During my period in the Research Group X I’ve worked in a project that gave my lots of satisfaction. I presented it in research meetings and received many awards. In 2014 I even had the opportunity to present the project in another country (CountryX) thanks to a dissertation that I’ve done in a civil engineering congress. The work in the Research Group X sharpened my interest in Computer Science and it allow me to make my Degree Thesis in this field.

I have applied for a InstitutionX fellowship in order to study for the Winter Semester 14/15 at the UniversityX. Germany is well known as a leader in science and technology and I have always admired and respected this characteristics. From the moment of registration I knew that this opportunity would change my life. It challenged me to learn German for years and pass a rigorous selection process, but I was so excited that I put all my effort on it. Once I started the fellowship, I had the chance to work in the research group of the “Research GroupY” department and to be involved in a project to analyse a bridge using the Finite Element Method. It was a very important and satisfactory experience for me because I could adapt myself, put my developed skills in Numerical Methods into service and be part of a German scientific group. I needed to attend courses taught in German that were related to the research project, but I was also very interested in the courses from the curriculum of the Master in Computational Engineering. Since that moment I’ve started developing the idea that the Master in CompEng could be the best choice for my future. I attended two courses in CompEng and keep this goal in mind until today.

Additionally to the fellowship I chose to do a practice for one semester in a German enterprise. I’ve passed the application process like every German student and joined the project manager division of the “EnterpriseX” company in CityX. I wanted to challenge myself to make sure that I could manage to work, adapt and stand alone in a professional environment within another city. This was also a very satisfactory experience for me. Although it was not specific in the Computer Engineering field, I could gain a general vision of the amazing projects that the infrastructure in Germany demands and how they are conceived and executed. I was very happy that I could once again endure the difficulties of for example moving out, finding a new department, meeting new people. I was very comfortable, working properly and enjoying new colleagues, friends, a new and amazing city and the beauty of the summer in Germany.

I'm eager to consolidate my skills. In some of the courses held in the Master Program in Computational Engineering I have experience. The project that I’ve been working on since I joined the Research Group X introduced me to the partial differential equations, the finite element method, the thermomechanical modelling of materials, specially of concrete, the viscoelasticity theory, the nonlinear behaviour of concrete when it comes to the heat of hydration and damage, and the programming languages, especially in Matlab. Having this in mind I am confident that, if I have the chance, I will be able to focuses on the topics that I need the most and develop my knowledge without major problems. I’m also very excited about the optional courses and the many possibilities that the UniversityY offers, since I can speak German. I’m still in touch with the people of the “Research GroupY” department and it is also my intention to become a “Hiwi” in their research group. I could take advantage to finance part of my studies with a job related to the civil engineering and also continue gaining experience as researcher. This is one of the reasons why I’m applying to study at the UniversityY. Another one is that I’m already used to the city and the university. That will allow me to concentrate in what is most important and adapt myself quickly, which I consider very important when it comes to studying/working abroad.

I think that I could contribute with my work to the Research centres at the UniversityY, because it will be my pleasure to exchange ideas and interact with the researchers and professors. My experiences have taught me about the importance of consider different perspective and working in a multicultural environment. On the other hand, I envision a possibility to establish a relationship between researchers from CountryX and Germany. My supervisors at the Research GroupX are also investigators of the ResearchGroupZ that depends on the InstitutionY, the main organization dedicated to the promotion of science and technology in CountryX. It would be worth to expand the network between research centres, in case that such possibility appears.

I’m convinced that I will suit well in the Master Program at the UniversityY. Considering my experiences it is a valuable and unique opportunity for me, I’m confident that this area is my passion and I will put all my effort to achieve my goals successfully.

Thank you for considering my application

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[teechar]

Hi jose_ic, and welcome to the forum.
This is way too long! No one/committee has time to go through it. All you need is around 500-600 words max in such a motivational letter.

 

[teechar]

Dear Computational Engineering Team,

I wish to apply for the Master in Computer Science program at Cambridge University (or The University of New South Wales). Soon, I will graduate with a bachelor's in Civil Engineering, and I believe your program is ideal for pursuing my professional goals.

From the beginning of my undergraduate, two things related to my future profession were clear to me: that I wanted to use the power of computers to investigate and that I wanted to gain experience working abroad. My ultimate career goal is to become a specialist engineer working on projects that challenge the available technology and demand new technical solutions and perspectives.

In 2011, I joined the X Research Group at Y University. I had to attend courses related to numerical methods, solid mechanics and even to study topics that are not taught in the civil engineering core curriculum. I felt really motivated and I was lucky to get plenty of help from my supervisors, who are professional researchers and have strong expertise in computational mechanics. In that group, I also worked on a project that gave me a lot of satisfaction. I presented it in research meetings and received many awards. In 2014, I even had the opportunity to present the project in another country (CountryX) thanks to a dissertation that I contributed in a civil engineering congress. The work in the X Research Group sharpened my interest in computer science and motivated me to choose this field for my degree thesis.

I applied for a InstitutionX fellowship and studied for the 2014/2015 winter semester at UniversityX. Germany is well known as a leader in science and technology, and I have always admired and respected this. From the very start, I knew that this opportunity would change my life. I had the chance to work in the “Research GroupY” department and to be involved in a project to analyse a bridge using the finite element method. Since then, I’ve had an interest in the Master in CompEng as the best choice for my future, and I've already attended two courses in CompEng.

Additionally, I chose to do a practical placement for one semester in a German enterprise. I passed the application process and joined the project manager division of the “EnterpriseX” company in CityX. I wanted to challenge myself to make sure that I could manage to work, adapt and function independently in a professional environment in another country. I learned about the amazing projects that the infrastructure in Germany demands and how they are conceived and executed.

I'm eager to consolidate my skills, and the project that I’ve been working on since joining the X Research Group introduced me to partial differential equations, finite element analysis, thermomechanical modelling of materials, especially of concrete, viscoelasticity theory, the nonlinear behaviour of concrete when it comes to the heat of hydration and damage, and to programming languages, especially in Matlab. Thus, I am confident that, if I am given the chance, I will be able to focus on the topics that I need the most and succeed. I’m also interested in the elective courses and the many possibilities that UniversityY offers. I’m still in touch with the people of the Y Research Group, and it is also my intention to become a “Hiwi” in their research group. I could take advantage of that to finance part of my studies with a job related to civil engineering and also continue gaining experience as researcher. This is one of the reasons why I’m applying to study at the UniversityY. Another is that I’m already used to the city and the university.

My experiences have taught me about the importance of considering different perspectives and working in a multicultural environment. I envision establishing a relationship between researchers from CountryX and Germany. My supervisors at the Research GroupX are also investigators of the ResearchGroupZ that depends on the InstitutionY, the main organization dedicated to the promotion of science and technology in CountryX. It would be worthy to expand the network between such research centres.

I’m convinced that I will do well in this master's program. It is a valuable and unique opportunity for me, and I’m confident that I will put all my effort to achieve my goals.

Thank you for considering my application.


Yours faithfully,


Jose Gonzalez