SAMPLE STATEMENT OF PURPOSE - CHEMISTRY

Back to my study life in high school, my interest in chemistry originated from my chemistry
teacher who was a graduate student. I always discussed with him about the contents of the
lesson. Impressed by my passion in chemistry, he introduced me to his lab in the Department of
Chemistry in East China Normal University, where I worked as a research assistant helping him
with the study of the magnetic fluid applied to water-oil separation. With his encouragement, I
studied most college chemistry courses by myself in order to improve my academic level. My hard
working eventually paid off when I published my research results and won the first prize in Youth
Science & Technology Innovation Competition. Due to my excellence in academic performance
and creativity, I was enrolled in the Department of Chemical Engineering in XXX University
without entrance examinations.
My passion for chemistry makes all the courses an enjoyable experience and in turn what I
learned in class deepened my understanding of chemistry and polymer science which is my
major. Moreover, I have developed a strong academic ability. Im good at catching the key point
of the course and making the study interesting and vivid. I learn organic reactions by organizing
and classifying the mechanisms and trying to explain the distracting of the electron instead of
memorizing a large number of reactions mechanically. And I also learned the disciplines by
further reading, especially reading foreign textbooks, such as Physical Chemistry by Atkins and
Principles of Polymer Chemistry by Flory. I have done more than what my peers do in studying
the coursework. These efforts are reflected in the excellent grades I received. I ranked No.1 out
of all the students in the most of my professional courses and my GPA ranked 2nd in 33 students
in my class.
My excellent academic performance and strong aspiration for researching earned me an
opportunity to join the Professor Xiaogong Wangs group, who is the director of the Institute of
Polymer Science and Engineering. There, I studied the synthesis and self-assembly of novel
polymers and researched the surface relief gratings used as liquid crystal alignment layer. In the
initial part of my research project, I had to start with the synthesis of the monomer and then
polymerize these monomers into hyper branched polymers by myself. The typical reaction time of
this process is above ten hours, and constant attention to the reaction such as adding ice to
maintain a low temperature is required. A final filtering process at the end that takes two or there
hours does not make this any easier. At first, I felt somewhat bored and frustrated. Nevertheless,
after I carefully examine the schedule, I found that it really is an art about how to organize all
those procedures. I listed the weekly research tasks, estimated the time I would use, and
arranged the time properly. I no longer feel bored about the time-consuming research task and it

gradually becomes an indispensable part of my study life. However, the research task itself was
also not successful at the beginning. After I synthesized the monomer, I found that the H1-NMR
spectrum of the synthetic monomer was not exactly correct. It showed an incomplete reaction of
functional groups. I spent a whole week in looking up materials and doing experiments both in
the library and the laboratory. Finally, I attempted to change the conditional of the reaction, using
a weaker acid instead of the original acid, and it solved the problem. When I got the correct
spectrum, the previous frustration, anxiety and strain disappeared thoroughly. From then on,
every time I meet the frustration, I can always face it imperturbably, and try to solve it teeth and
nail. The research work not only brings me a great deal of experience and the research ability,
but more importantly, strengthened my forever loyalty and passion for chemistry and polymer
science.
I derive great satisfaction and pride from my research. Thus, I want to continue my research at a
higher level, aspiring to become involved in the area of polymer science. A Ph.D is the essential
and crucial conjunction between my past achievements and my future progress and an
opportunity to make an impact and build a heritage for the academia. I hope to take this
important step at Michigan.
I have a couple of reasons for my choice. Above all, Michigan is an energetic community of
students, scholars, researchers, scientists and artists. With the broad way of communication and
close relationship between students and professors, I can develop lifelong friendship with the
highly intelligent research mates and outstanding professors while contributing and enhancing the
close-knit environment of Michigan. Moreover, Dept. of Chemistry in Michigan has a long tradition
of innovation. Especially in Organic Chemistry, many great achievements which are the
milestones in the history of Chemistry have been achieved in Michigan. Last but not least, the
Macromolecular Research Institute founded by Charles Overberger gives strong support to the
research of polymer science and organic chemistry, which leads Michigan to the most attractive
place of research for me. I hope to work closely with Prof. Zhan Chen on Biomaterials and
Polymer Surfaces, and as well as other Professors in the Surface Chemistry Research Group. The
research areas on which Prof. Theodore Goodson and Prof. Rasmussen focus also interest me.I
know that there are full of challenges and opportunities on the way to my dream, but all these will
fuel my passion and urge me on to explore the unknown domain in chemistry.