MOTIVATION LETTER

Dear MountainHiker,
I have prepared a Motivation letter, which is (I think) too long. But actually, I left out a lot of
things I also wanted to mention. For example, my voluntry works in parishes and in a
refugee camp, which I haven't mentioned or my plans about taking the GRE Exam. What is
your opinion? Shall I write a longer letter and can I somehow reduce the length of the letter
without leaving out information.
I hope you will look over my letter and give some comments.
Thanking you.
cheers
--------------------------------------Here goes the letter:
Dear Sir or Madam,
My name is Nicole Xxxx and I am writing to apply for the MSc International Management
course at xxx University.
Currently I am studying Economics at the xxx University in xxx, Germany. I will probably
graduate in April 2005 with a Bachelor of Economics (hons.) degree. I opt for a Bachelor
course instead of a Diplom because I already had in mind to study abroad for a Master
programme. Already after completing my School Education with my Abitur I was sure about
my professional aim. I wanted to work in an international field of work related to marketing
and consulting. My main subjects are Marekting, Microeconomic Theory, Business Civil Law
and Theory of National and International Taxation and finance. Although I want to focus on
the Marketing and Consulting field later, I want to gain enough knowledge in all major fields
of Business. Thats why I choosed a broad range of subjects.

To gain more practical experience I also did two internships beside my studies. First, I worked
in a Management Consultancy, where I was assigned as an Assistant in a market research
project. I learned systematic researching, analytical thinking, selecting suitable information
and correct evaluation. My second internship was in a marketing agency, where I am still
working. Here I learned to organise in an international field of work. I am responsible for
customer contacts, information circulation and consulting. While doing these internships I
was once again reaffirmed in my decision to work in this field. A futher Internship will follow
in the Marketing department of a renowned Company from May 2005 July 2005.

Moreover, I also enjoy Management and Organisation tasks in my free time. I am a member

of World Malayalee Council, which is the biggest global organisation among foreign Indians.
We have committees in almost every country. Currently, I hold the position General
Secretary, World Malayalee Youth Forum. Through this organisation I learned how to organise
seminars and congresses and how to conduct discussion forums and presentations. We are
working in a global field, that means I am used to international atmosphere and know how to
handle different cultures and customs. In this respect, I also want mention my ethnic origin.
As I was born as an Indian and my parents are from India but we live in Germany, I have
insight in two different cultures and I have a broader perspective in all things.

Furthermore, I am also a Member in AIESEC, the largest international student organisation.

Here again I am handling management tasks and international dimensions. I learned
responsibility and leader qualifications.

In Addition to my University studies I also completed a training in Indian classical dance. As

a professional dancer I hold stage shows all over Germany and abroad. Thus I already
travelled around a lot and saw a lot of places. I think in my future career as a Manager in an
International working field, this experience will also help.

Working Internationally, I thought it is important to know several languages. I speak German,

English and Malayalam (an Indian language) fluently. Furthermore I learned french in High
School and Spanish in the University. In fall 2003 I visited a language course in Granada,
Spain to improve my language.

To choose the right University for my academic studies I already visited some Universities in
London and also Xxxx Univeristy. I talked to Mrs. Xxxx who guided me in my academic
planning. After having known about the course structure and visiting the campus I am sure
that the University of Xxxx would be the opt University for me to continue my studies.

Thanking you for considering my application and looking forward to your positive reply.

Yours Sincerely,

MOTIVATION STATEMENT

Since I was in Senior High School, I have believed that mathematics is an important
factor in a life. All human activities in several fields such as information technology,
economics, physics, social and others will run well if they are cited in a good mathematics
framework. This circumstance stimulated me to attend faculty of mathematics and natural
science. I choose statistics as my specialization even though at this time, there werent many
people know about statistics and few students choose statistics as their specialization. I saw
in several developed countries such as The Netherlands and Belgium, the mathematics
degree-holders not only have many opportunities but also were cited as important scholar in
their societies.
As a student at XXXX Department faculty of XXX of XXX University, I had
numerous opportunities to do many activities. From XXX to XXX I had chances to become
a lecturer assistant in mathematics and statistics laboratory. My resposibilities are taught
and supervised students in the following subjects; Basic Programming, Computational
Statistics, Statistical Methods and XXX.
Besides studying, I was active in the student senate and became the head of research
and development division. In XXX I, in a team, became the third winner of Indonesian
student research competition. Overall I am pleased with my academic record and I believe
that it has prepared me very well for graduate school.
Presently, I work as a XXX for XXX. My responsibilities are teaching, conducting research
individually or in a team and etc (mention your responsibilities) Working as a statistics
lecturer needs deep knowledge of fundamental mathematics and experiences in advanced
research of applied statistics. Even though my undergraduate programme has given me a
strong background in the fundamentals of various mathematics especially statistics, this is
not enough for me to be a professional lecturer. I have to continue my study to enrich my skills and broaden my
knowledge.

Currently, our institution which one of the functions is to XXXX to the government
of Indonesia, has formulated its Long Term Plan known as the XXX PLAN, which directed
toward the establishment of the Integrated National XXX System. This plan is including the
development of statistics in various fields such as economy, demography, agriculture, and
health. It leads the need of statistician who expert in those fields. Today, there is no Master
of Science in XXX in our institution. These circumstances persuade me to apply Master of
Science in XXX under XXX Scholarship programme.

Master of Science in XXX is needed in Indonesia because of the following reasons:

1.

It will improve education in XXX and Indonesia in general, and strenghten the establishment of
the Integrated National System

2.

I will fill the masters of XXX scarcity and strengthen the sustainable development of Indonesia.

Considering all factors above. I believe that the chosen study will benefit Indonesia in general

I consider myself to be a good candidate for XXX Scholarship because I am young,

energetic, hardworking, visionary, and motivated person who believes that I can do
something for the benefit of my country to whom I have been working. I did my best with
all maximum efforts I could give for my institution. But this is not enough. Frankly, I am
not satisfied yet with what I did. I believe that I can do much better if I am trained and
developed through a master of science in Belgium.

Banyak pertanyaan yang muncul di Holland Education Fair kemarin seputar tips & trik serta
contoh motivation letter milik student/alumni Erasmus Mundus (EM).
Seleksi beasiswa EM yang pada umumnya (beberapa program menyelenggarakan interview)
hanya berbasiskan pada aplikasi membuat kehadiran motivation letter ini menjadi salah satu
elemen penting bagi konsorsium untuk menilai:

Kualitas, bobot, kemampuan, dan pengalaman applicant

Seberapa jauh research yang telah dilakukan applicant untuk program yang dituju

Apakah tujuan applicant untuk mengambil program ini sesuai dengan tujuan program

Berikut adalah beberapa rangkuman tips & trik dari student/alumni EM pada HEF Jakarta (14-15
November 2009):
1.

Buat benang merah baik dari latar belakang pendidikan / pekerjaan ke program yang akan diambil.

2.

Dalam menulis, pikirkan kalau anda ada di posisi konsorsium, mengapa saya harus menerima A,
bukan B. Kualifikasi apa yang dimiliki A yang membuatnya bisa unggul dari kandidat lainnya.

3.

Jangan buru-buru menulis. Ambil waktu untuk memikirkan apa sih keunikan anda yang bisa
membedakan anda dari kandidat lainnya, misal: keaktifan di aktivitas lingkungan, partisipasi dalam
event nasional, dll. Jangan buat motivation letter yang biasa-biasa saja (yang semua orang bisa
bikin).

4.

Bila memang IPK anda tidak terlalu menonjol, sertakan alasan yang tepat mengapa terjadi
demikian. Hindari menyalahkan kesibukan di organisasi, kesibukan di bisnis karena akan
mengesankan anda tidak bertanggung jawab pada kegiatan utama anda.

5.

Bila jurusan S1 anda tidak nyambung dengan EMMC yang mau di-apply, adalah tugas anda untuk
membantu konsorsium menemukan alasan untuk menerima anda.

6.

Sertakan tujuan anda dalam mengikuti program (tentunya tidak sekedar untuk mendapatkan gelar
S2), apakah untuk memajukan bangsa, mengabdi pada bangsa, menjadi expert di bidang tertentu,
dll.

7.

Hindari keluh kesah, jangan terlalu banyak bercerita tentang masa lalu anda (misal: kesulitan
ekonomi, fasilitas tidak mendukung) sebaliknya ceritakan tentang cita-cita, harapan dan tujuan
yang ingin anda capai.

Just write things that have made you who you are now.
Why do you want to continue your education/training to a Master level degree.
What motivate you to do such thing, to do another hard work.
What motivate you to choose EMMC, why that EMMC.
What motivate you to study in Europe, with that mobility.

Et cetera
Thats why its called motivation letter.
Write less bullshit, more some things reached by your own hands.
Berikut adalah contoh motivation letter milik student/alumni EM (mohon tidak di-plagiat !!!),
untuk menjawab pertanyaan Motivation Letter seperti apa sih yang bisa tembus beasiswa EM?.
Beberapa bagian mungkin telah di-edit oleh penulisnya.

Carroline, European Master in Computational Logic, 2007 PDF

Efrian, Master of Science in European Forestry, 2006 PDF

Dina Mardiana, Master CLE Culture Letterarie Europee, 2008 PDF

Link motivation letter lainnya:

A Sample of MOTIVATION STATEMENT for Master Scholarship