UNIVERSITY APPLICATION GUIDE

Preface
Hello everyone who is reading this.
We at Team Online have been writing personal statements and Statements of Purpose since
2009. To date we have written around 160 or so personal statements, but don’t take my word for
it. Go have a look for yourself: https://1drv.ms/f/s!Avy-eGPAyMNpjCDnoMhTMB_-mT39
Every year, around 8-10 people approach us and every year we have to go over the same basics,
telling them a long story on how things need to be done. So we decided it was time we made a
complete guide document to not only streamline the process but also help others understand the
process. We are a software house in essence and our objective with particular service is not to
generate revenue or profit but to get quality education to as many deserving students as possible
so that they can in turn build a better Pakistan.
Since we as an organization believe in full disclosure and brutal honesty, be advised this
document is not only a guide on how to apply to universities, it’s also a Sales Pitch. If you need
help with your SoP or Personal Statement or the entire university application process feel free to
get in touch.
www.facebook.com/teamonlinepk
teamonlinepk@gmail.com www.team-
online.biz

Contents
Process Break Down and Timelines: ............................................................................................................. 2
University Selection: ..................................................................................................................................... 3
Personal Statement: ..................................................................................................................................... 3
1. General part .......................................................................................................................................... 4
1. Personal Narrative: ........................................................................................................................... 4
2. Professional Narrative: ..................................................................................................................... 4
3. Why This University: ......................................................................................................................... 4
4. Why me:............................................................................................................................................ 4
5. Future Goals: .................................................................................................................................... 5
2. University Specific/Question Specific ................................................................................................... 5

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1. Study the question prompt: ............................................................................................................. 5

2. Words per question: ......................................................................................................................... 5
3. Writing the first draft: ....................................................................................................................... 5
3. Refining the Statement ......................................................................................................................... 6
1. Get statement read & get feedback for 3 people: ........................................................................... 6
2. Incorporate feedback: ...................................................................................................................... 6
3. Line by Line Optimization: ................................................................................................................ 6
4. Grammar Nazi it: ............................................................................................................................... 6
References .................................................................................................................................................... 6
Academic Addendum:................................................................................................................................... 7
Interview & Prep: .......................................................................................................................................... 7
Grants, Loan & Aid: ....................................................................................................................................... 8
Scholarships available from Pakistani organizations:................................................................................... 8

Process Break Down and Timelines:

Basically, applying for a masters is a complete project in of itself, which I think should take 3035
days to complete. The major Project Milestones and duration of the project is as follows:

1. University searching and listing will be done in 5 days.

2. University short listing will be done in 2 days.
3. Personal statement initial discussion will be done in 2 days.
4. University specific applications on average 4 hours per application.
5. Communicating with referees, writing references for every university and having the
forms filled and submitted 7 days.
6. Academic addendum discussion and writing 2 days.
7. Academic addendum back-up document securement 7 days.
8. Interview preparation 2 days.
9. Grant & Aid scoping 3 days.
10. Grant applications 4-6 hours per grant.

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11. Emails and appeals to organizations for aid 1 day.

Now if you have read this far, means you are serious about applying so lets get into the nitty
gritty of things.

University Selection:

Basically, stage one of the process is searching university’s and programs you want to apply to.
Universities can be broken into three tiers; tier 1 schools are the ones that are the very top IVY
League etc, tier 2 schools are mid-leveled decent schools who have a few programs that are very
good but in general the school is considered tier two. Tier 3 school are basically degree mills, if
you want to come back to Pakistan with a “bahir ki degree” you go there.

Now you make a list of 50 schools and programs to begin with. Once that’s done you start
narrowing it down based on:

• Application fee budget (I would say apply to all 50, but that would cost 5K USD to apply
alone so yeah).
• Grants and scholarships available, to international students and/or depending on your
nationality/residency/visa status.
• Quality of Program
• Quality of School
You will notice I used bullet points and not numbering to for the above, that’s because there is no
particular order in which you classify your school and narrow them down. It depends on your
budget and what you want but the above factors are the ones you need to consider when
narrowing down the list.
Once the list is narrowed down you need to divide the universities you will apply to into three
categories:

• Reach School: 20%

• Expected School: 50%
• Safety School: 30%
The above are again bullets and can vary but this is my experience and my suggestion to people
who come to me on what to do.

Personal Statement:

A personal statement has two sections; one is general and one is University/Question Specific.

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1. General part

1. Personal Narrative:

The personal narrative is your life story, you were born into an army family, or a poor
house hold, or a politicians sons. Then you grew up worked hard did this did that etc.
The point here is to show the reader you are a normal human being and give him
insight and perspective into your life.

2. Professional Narrative:

Here you tell the reader about your professional career, advancements, laurels and
accomplishments. You tell him how you got promoted before time, or finished a project
before time, or made a startup that failed and why. Remember he has your Resume, you
are NOT re-iterating what is written there you are telling him the things you left out in
the resume.

3. Why This University:

Here you need to basically do a lot of research about the university and program in
question, you need to learn about the town, about the student population, about the
faculty and how people who get out of here get jobs. And then basically tell the
application reader how badly you want to get into his university because his school is the
best school ever.

4. Why me:

Well this is a natural question that leads out of the previous one, you have told the
reader why you want to go there but now you need to tell the admissions committee
why they should choose you, what do you bring to the table that Timmy Bobby and
Pommy, who have the same grades as you and are at about the same place in their
career as you don’t. Someone once wrote for a Harvard application (that got
accepted), I come from a country of Juggars, we are go getters and he gave examples
of Chingchi Rikshaws and the usage of UPS and solar power. Another student said,
he understood best the dynamics of sales in emerging markets because he was one of
the best salesmen in one of the largest organizations in the Country. One student even

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wrote she knew how to do Kathak dancing. So basically you tell them whatever
makes you stand out.

5. Future Goals:

You need to tell the reader what you intend to do with your degree; will you come
back to Pakistan and run an NGO, or become a CEO of a Multinational aborad, or
will you become a teacher here and teach others what you learned there. That is
something that needs to be communicated to the reader and the admissions committee

2. University Specific/Question Specific

Every university likes to ask specific question, there is an exact question prompt that you need to
answer, sometimes there are a few questions, sometimes there is no prompt at all. Here is how
you tackle that.

1. Study the question prompt:

Firstly, study the question prompt word for word, dissect it, understand what every word
means, look at the ordering of the words and figure out what has the most weightage and
is the most important question that needs to be answered. i.e. what matters to the
university the most.

2. Words per question:

Once you have successfully dissected the question and broken it into chunks you need to
assign a number of words to each question. For example; if there is a total word limit of
900 words, you need to define how many words you will write to answer a particular
question.

3. Writing the first draft:

Once you have all your points organized, and everything above is ready. It takes only a
small while to actually sit down and do the writing. I can write a statement in about the
time it takes me to smoke two cigarettes. i.e. 12 minutes. (I like to enjoy my smokes  )

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3. Refining the Statement

1. Get statement read & get feedback for 3 people:

No matter who you are or how smart you think you are, you aren’t that smart and you are on the
wrong side of your eyeballs. You need to get a fresh set of eyes to look at and critique your draft.

2. Incorporate feedback:

Don’t just blindly add anyones given feedback, be smart, discuss each point, discuss why you
should add or remove something, why you should reword it. Don’t think, don’t ponder discuss.

3. Line by Line Optimization:

Now that you have incorporated everyones feedback and have a solid near perfect statement. Go
over it line by line, word for word; can you use a fancier word somewhere? Can you say
something in few lines? Can you elaborate a point better? Remember you are given a word limit
of what you can write so you need to use it wisely every word, every coma every key stroke
matters.

4. Grammar Nazi it:

We all have that one friend, make sure you send your final final statement to them and have them
grammar Nazi the hell out of it before sending.

References

You usually need 2 to 3 references. The ideal mix between academic and professional references
needs to be defined on a case-to-case basis. If you are applying for something theory based, get
academic references, if it’s an MBA focus on professional ones.
Go speak to whoever is the best person for you, who ever gave you the most A’s or was closed to
you in university. Don’t be afraid to ask, worst case scenario they will say no.

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Once they say yes your job isn’t done, you need to follow up regularly and ensure they actually
send it in. The ideal scenario is when someone says just write whatever you want and I’ll send it.
That way you can write what you want but some people are dead right honest and sticklers for
the rules, you need to nudge them in the right direction. Give them pointers in an email about
what to talk about, remind them of incidents from class. Etc etc. If it’s a work references tell the
person to highlight your achievements etc.

Academic Addendum:

This is a document that you attach only if you are a special case and need to convey to the
university specific issues you had which affected your performance or grades. For example, your
brother was terminally ill for a year and you took care of him full time. Or you were being
sexually harassed and couldn’t succeed at work. Or a loved one passed away. Basically any gap
in your transcript or your resume or your story i.e. your narrative that doesn’t make sense needs
to be addressed here. Universities don’t like Addendums, if it’s not a severe case. So make sure
if you are putting in an addendum it really needs to be there.

Interview & Prep:

You need to be prepared for every curve ball the interviewer will throw you. Make sure you have
a stable internet, don’t just rely on PTCL, keep your mobile data on as well as some other mobile
internet routing device. Ensure your PC is running and prim proper, the mic is working, the
audio quality is fine, there isn’t any lag in camera quality.
Now talking about prep; go to student online forums and see what kind of questions they will ask
you. Prepare those questions, answer them in-front of a mirror or better yet practice with a
friend. Remember to keep your answers short and to the point. Don’t go off on tangents, never
play into the interviewer’s hands, and always stay in command or at least never let them smell
your fear. They will be like sharks in the water, the minute they smell blood they will go for the
kill and decimate you. Always keep your calm and composure. I remember someone started
crying during the interview and had to be consoled. Goes without saying they didn’t get
admitted. I know someone who panicked so much he started speaking in Urdu and couldn’t
string a sentence along.
A good idea is to have a friend in the room behind the camera and laptop screen with a white
board.

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Have key words pre-defined so that if he feels you are going wrong somewhere he writes that
word on the board and you know exactly what to say.

Grants, Loan & Aid:

You need to scour the internet for every possible grant and aid available
Then you need to apply to each one individually just like you apply for a personal statement.
And voila you are done.

Scholarships available from Pakistani organizations:

List of Scholarship Funding Agencies, NGO’s, Foundations in Pakistan providing Study Funds
and Scholarships:-
1: Hashoo Foundation Scholarship Program
http://www.hashoofoundation.org/education_program.php
2: Al khidmat foundation
http://al-khidmatfoundation.org/#sthash.m4ISB1Ss.dpbs
3: Qauid Azam Aligarh Trust Scholarship
http://www.gcu.edu.pk/Fin_aids.htm
4: Provincial governments scholarships in GIKI on need basis
http://www.giki.edu.pk/Adm…/Undergraduate/AidAndScholarships
5: Hamdard Foundation Pakistan
http://hamdardfoundation.org/?page_id=695
6: NGO YLP (Youngs leaders Programme) https://www.facebook.com/pages/Young-Leaders-
Programme/716376955103322?sk=timeline&ref=page_internal
7: dalda foundation scholarship
https://www.facebook.com/pages/DALDA-Scholarships/351850304919327
8: Fauji Foundation Scholarships
http://www.fauji.org.pk/…/welfa…/stipends/stipend-categories
9: Student Loan Scheme
https://www.nbp.com.pk/studentloan/
10: Pakistan Engineering Congress Scholarships
http://pecongress.org.pk/
11: PEEF Scholarships
http://www.peef.org.pk/
12: NTS Scholarships
http://www.nts.org.pk/Produ…/NTS_Scholarship/scholarship.php

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13: Alfalah Scholarship Scheme

http://www.alfalahss.org/
14: IBA Talent Hunt Program
http://nthp.iba.edu.pk/
15: LUMS NOP Program
http://lums.edu.pk/nop/
16: Diya Pakistan Funds
http://www.diyapak.org/
17: USAID Scholarships
http://www.hec.gov.pk/…/USAIDFunded…/Pages/Introduction.aspx
18: Sitara Chemical Industries Ltd. Talent Scholarship
http://gcuf.edu.pk/sitara-chemical-industries-ltd-talent-s…/
19: Scholarships from 'Bismillah Bibi and Mrs. Talat Jamil Scholarship trust
http://www.uok.edu.pk/sfao/scholarships.php
20: Karwan e Ilm Foundation
http://www.kif.com.pk/
21: gurmani foundation
http://www.uaar.edu.pk/src/scho-gur.php
22: Shell Pakistan Scholarships
http://www.shell.com.pk/…/local-initiatives/scholarship.html
23: National ict scholarship program
http://www.ictrdf.org.pk/
24: Frontier Education