“Let your Statement of Purpose Do The Talking.”
This quote emphasizes the role played by a student’s SOP in the college application process. A Statement of Purpose is the first document that throws light on a student’s background, and reasons for choosing a course at a university abroad, how it will be beneficial for his/her career and future goals. In today’s world, AI has emerged as a tool that challenges the traditional art of academic writing. There are numerous proponents of the use of AI in writing academic documents.
Some students who feel that they aren’t good at expressing their thoughts in the form of words, find the use of AI as a convenient way of writing a SOP. However, there are still a vast number of people who feel that a human-written SOP has more chances of being accepted. They believe that AI-written SOPs can decrease your chances of admission. But, why is it so? In this blog, we will have a look at the reasons why an SOP written using AI has a higher chance of being rejected. If you wish to write your SOP as per the assigned format and guidelines, you can seek professional help from Contentholic.
Why is an AI-written SOP likely to be Rejected?
Before you start writing your SOP by using AI, with the thought that it will save you a lot of time and effort. You are likely to be proved wrong, as an AI-written SOP is a waste of time as it reduces your chances of admission. Let us have a look at the potential causes due to which your college application is most likely to be rejected if you use AI to write your Course SOP.
1. Creativity is Characterized by Originality.
AI often relies on learned patterns it finds on the internet. Most of the content it provides for your SOP is likely to be taken from previously submitted SOPs. The use of AI in writing an SOP raises questions about originality and creativity. AI can only generate texts that mimic human writing, it lacks the intellect to understand the nuances of human emotions and perspectives which are the key ingredients of an SOP.
For instance, if you have to write about what motivates you to study a particular field of study, you are most likely to come up with an interesting way to talk about it. A new perspective is brought into the picture when a SOP is written by you or by professional SOP writers. This enhances your writing. You will think of presenting your thoughts in a manner that makes you distinctive. This is what is needed in a Course SOP, whereas AI will not be producing any new ideas, due to which you will be rejected.
2. Consistency and Accuracy instills believability.
If you want the admission panel of a University to think of you as a genuine candidate interested in studying abroad, you need to write your SOP in a way that shows a continuous flow of information. Each and everything has to be as per the format set by the University. You should be able to properly answer the questions they have asked, showing your inclination, preparation, and motivation for your chosen course.
For instance, when a student wishes to pursue an MBA from a university abroad, s/he will start with a personal introduction and then go on to describe academic and professional experiences. Then write how the world of business fascinates him/her, how studying an MBA will help in setting up his/her own business, and understand the nuances of this sector. You see that everything is inter-related whereas AI being unaware of the format and guidelines for a Course SOP will just present information in a random order, which will decrease your chances of admission. It will simply write the reason for pursuing an MBA is because it is a highly after degree without giving any further explanation.
3. Art is all in the details.
A human-generated SOP will delve into essential details crucial for a college application. For instance, if a student wishes to study International Relations at a university abroad, s/he will be focusing on the course, its demand, relevance, curriculum, faculty, research, and job opportunities, and how the program is catered to his needs and skill sets. This shows your genuine interest in studying abroad.
A human-written SOP will focus on how the importance of International Relations has grown post-pandemic and the wars. It will then go on to write about how studying it, will help the applicant address issues in his/her home country and how s/he will provide solutions for it. AI, on the other hand, will just write that the applicant wishes to study International Relations at a particular university without divulging any further details.
4. Customization
An effective Course SOP is incomplete without personal references to incidents and experiences that made you decide to pursue a particular field of study abroad. It is when you write the SOP filled with a personal insight, that makes it an engaging read. Also, when an SOP is written by a professional writer, s/he will first understand your profile and interests and then mold the SOP as per your needs and demands. Whereas, AI has no idea about your thoughts regarding your choice of course and will not be able to give a personal touch to your SOP which will decrease your chances of being accepted by the University.
Take the case of a student who is about to study Medicine at a university abroad, s/he will write as to how right from childhood, s/he has an interest in helping people and Medicine being a noble profession allows him/her to do so. They will focus on the particular branch of Medicine they wish to study, the importance of having good Doctors in society, and finding treatments for curing diseases. On the other hand, if you tell AI to write an SOP for a medical student, it will just give some general information about Medical Science and provide any other details.
5. Structure your SOP for Readability.
When an SOP is written by yourself or by a professional, it is written keeping in mind the target audience. The language in a SOP needs to be formal yet conversational. The words used should be simple which the admissions officials can easily understand and not be filled with difficult words or long sentences. Whereas, AI-written SOP might use words, phrases, and sentences that are not easy to comprehend, which further reduces your chances of admission.
For instance, a student who writes his/her SOP for studying Art History will write like my interest in art history is because of the way how it transforms our perspective upon events in society. You see there is simple use of words that can be easily understood. On the other hand, the same SOP for an Art History student when written by AI, will write like ‘As I delve into the intricate tapestry of art history, I find myself drawn towards the intersection of culture, politics and artistic expressions.’ For instance, you see that this is a much-complicated sentence that might be difficult for the reader to comprehend.
6. Transparency increases Credibility and Accountability.
Your Course SOP should be filled with information that proves your worth in front of the admissions committee. You should be honest while writing your SOP. Refrain from lying or boasting about yourself or making exaggerated statements as that will be easily figured out by the admissions panel. In case, you have had a study gap, you are most likely to provide a valid explanation for it, something which AI will simply fail to mention.
Also, while writing your marks, percentage, and amount of finances, you are well aware of the exact figures to mention in your SOP. On the other hand, if an AI is given the task of writing a SOP, it will present facts and figures that may be incomplete or not correct and fail to write about your obtained scores. This way questions about your credibility are raised which leads to a rejection of your application.
Let us use an example to understand this. In a human-written SOP for a student interested in studying Mathematics abroad. S/he will write that he scored ( ) marks in school and college. Then, while explaining financial support, s/he will write like in case they have taken an education loan. S/he will mention that a loan of (INR. /-) has been sanctioned by a (Name of Bank) that has to be repaid within ( ) months and at an interest rate of ( %). Whereas, AI will fail to mention any of these details.
7. Ethical Considerations
If you think about writing your SOP using AI, then you should keep in mind the fact that there might be someone else with the same interest in a course at a university abroad who also takes the help of AI to write his/her SOP. This way, both of you will end up with the same information, failing to show your worth of being accepted into the university. Also, the content that the AI provides is based on previously written SOPs it finds on the internet.
For example, a student who wishes to pursue Data Science from a university abroad and uses AI to write an SOP will end up writing the same content that AI gets from a previously submitted SOP for Data Science it finds on the internet. This very same information can be seen in another student’s SOP who also wants to study Data Science and has used AI to write his/her SOP.
You end up simply copying what the others have written. This way, your Course SOP will have plagiarized content which is not allowed and you might be rejected or even blacklisted by the University admissions committee. Whereas when you write your SOP on your own or with the guidance of professional SOP writers , your content will have no plagiarism detected as it is in your own words. Also, A human-written SOP will take into account the prescribed word limit whereas an AI-written SOP won’t.
Conclusion
A lot of emphasis is being paid upon writing an SOP which can either make or break your study abroad plans. While writing your SOP on your own is the right way of proceeding with your university application, you can also hire an experienced SOP writer to write it. But there are still some students who rely upon AI to write their Course SOP. While, it seems like an easy way out, saving time and effort, it fails to serve the purpose. Your SOP should be the best portrayal of your thoughts, aspirations, and ambitions in your own words and not based on the understanding of a machine.
AI stands in no way to compete with the way a human mind functions and operates. Your purpose in writing a Course SOP is to prove your genuine intention of pursuing higher studies in front of the University admissions committee. Whereas, an AI-written SOP is likely to do the opposite as it lacks originality and in-depth analysis, which decreases your chances of admission. Therefore, you must focus on writing your SOP on your own or seek professional advice. We, at Contentholic have a team of the best SOP writers in India. Our writers are quite adept at writing cover letters for various universities, as per the prescribed format and guidelines. So, do feel free to reach out to us.
