My country, Ghana, is making impressive efforts to improve a currently unsatisfactory and extremely basic public health care system. My goal in making this application is to acquire the skills and knowledge to enable me to manage a governmental public health agency in Ghana and thus make a significant contribution to an improvement in public health. I have carefully researched the available programs and conclude that yours will provide the expertise, challenges and support that will equip me to attain my goals. My background is not a conventional one for doctoral study in this specialty. Much of my career has been spent in retail pharmacy and I hold an MBA. My work to date has provided the degree of satisfaction and reward that I initially sought from a career. However, over the years that I have been a pharmacist, I have noted the gradual expansion of my duties to encompass preventative care and other aspects of public health efforts to improve outcomes and care quality. I have developed a special interest in these matters which I have studied informally by wide reading of relevant journals, texts, sources of healthcare related statistics and by seeking information from other professionals in relevant fields. I now seek to convert this informal, but deep, interest into a formal academic qualification so that I can provide ‘cutting edge’ management, statistical and research skills in this specialty to ‘make a significant difference’. I also seek to acquire the leadership and training skills to enable me to help many others too to assist in the improving the health of Ghana’s citizens. I have been a Pharmacist Preceptor for five years and, in this role, I have responsibilities for training and mentoring new pharmacists and ancillary staff. I have also led a Cardiovascular and Diabetic Education Workshop for my Ghanaian community for two years. I enjoy passing on my knowledge, skills and enthusiasm to others and providing direct preventative health education. I relate easily to people and have a well-developed sense of humor. I enjoy working in, and leading teams, but am also capable of working alone when a situation requires it. I undertook successful research during my MBA studies and would not be applying for a doctoral program without having the confidence to state that I have the characteristics of an excellent researcher and have demonstrated these in my master's program. I have not traveled widely but have lived in the UK and US and spent time in a student exchange in Sweden. I enjoy learning about other cultures and sharing knowledge of my own and look forward to the opportunity to do so in my time at XXXX University. I know that there will be many professionally qualified applicants for doctoral studies at the Center. However, I do feel that I am an excellent candidate. I have worked at the ‘front line’ in healthcare for many years and have a practical and patient centered approach to it rather than one that is purely academic and feel that this has equipped me with essential insights when dealing with the ‘big picture’; I have training and health education experience; and I am an experienced researcher. My main recommendation is a genuine passion to improve the health of my compatriots and to equip others to do so. PHD Public Health Management Personal Purpose Statement Watch: Public Health Administration Jobs for PhD Graduates | Texila American University

I hope to earn the Master’s Degree in Social Work through The University of ____’s School of Social Service Administration (SSA) because I see it as the optimal springboard upon which I might best launch my career dedicated to helping to prevent child abuse and most of all helping children that have been abused to heal and to thrive in life.  The University of XXXX is my first choice for graduate school to earn my master's for a host of reasons ranging from the convenience of your location to the sheer excellence of your program. I was raised mostly in ____ and I have innumerable, invaluable ties with the community, connections that will help me to excel. I also want to attend the SSA at UXXX because your program is one of the top ranked schools in the world. The central focus of my undergraduate studies spanned Sociology and Women, Gender, and Sexuality and I could not be more passionate about women’s issues, even though I look forward to working with abused children, not just girls. I am extremely interested in Professor ____’s research in violence and trauma in women because I hope to someday publish in this area myself.  Earning my MSW Degree at ____ in SSA is what I see as the clearest path that will take me the furthest over the long term as a social work administrator. I want to learn to see the big picture in addition to the smaller details; and I also profoundly admire the interdisciplinary focus of your faculty, as well as the fact that your department is especially distinguished in its number of women and minority teachers.  Fully dedicated to life-long learning in my field, I hope to acquire experience in research as a graduate student and I am convinced that the best place to do that is at the service of the research projects of your faculty at the U____ SSA. Jewish, I think of myself as certain type of minority; and I adore diversity, thriving in its celebration. Completing my undergraduate studies in Sociology and Women’s Studies also enabled me to make the most of my study abroad experience in Tel Aviv, Israel, (January-July 2014), serving as an Intern at the Tel Aviv Sexual Assault Crisis Center. Among other duties, I was assigned the task of reviewing, evaluating, and revising sexual assault prevention programs. This year, May-August 2015, I enjoyed the enormous privilege of serving as a Behavioral Health Specialist with the ____Foundation in Scottsdale, AZ, helping youth with substance abuse and mental health issues. These experiences, combined with my leadership role in the Jewish community, have convinced me that I have the heart and soul to do this work. I look forward to a long lifetime providing proactive and recovery-focused engagement with youth who suffer from substance abuse and mental issues in Intensive Outpatient Programs, observing client behavior, facilitating, organizing, and helping my clients to develop an array of critically important social skills, coping strategies and monitor related activities. Nothing brings me greater joy than providing a supportive environment for recovery, nurturing a wounded heart. I wrote two senior theses as an undergraduate. The first was for my Sociology Degree and dealt with the possibility of universities serving as a food oasis in rural areas. The second was for Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies with the title “Do They Care What It’s Like Down There? The Bodywork of Nude Artist Models” exploring the perspectives and experiences of nude art models. I plan to spend the balance of my professional life studying and learning about recovery after abuse. My senior thesis about art modeling came about because after I was raped, modeling helped me increase my body confidence. It changed the way that I viewed my body, coming to see more as the form of an empowered and strong woman rather than a rape victim. I chose my thesis because I wanted to see if other people had positive experiences as art models. I thought that it could be a new tool to help victims of abuse to increase self-confidence and move on. My leadership experience as a ____ Executive Board Member, the only organization on my campus to promote Jewish life, has also served me well in the development of my professional confidence and my motivation to excel. As VP of Membership Development, I recruited new members, encouraged inactive members to attend events and helped to establish connections amongst members, resulting in a 150% increase in membership involvement.  I was also part of an elite leadership community serviced based organization called Civic Fellows. We had annual events for the elderly and disabled in our community. Throughout all 4 years in college, I volunteered at Deer Meadow Primary School with a program called Special Student Friend. I went once a week for an hour and worked with children from unstable home environments. I have also worked with Relay for Life, spending the summer of 2015 working at the ____ Foundation, a residential and outpatient program for youth who have substance abuse and mental health issues. In addition to helping victims to heal, I am also deeply passionate about the need to prevent child abuse, consciousness raising, and involving the community. Most of my experience has been working with people who have already been abused or hurt but I also want to work to prevent abuse in the first place. It is particularly important to address this issue in ways that are culturally appropriate for minority and immigrant communities, cultivating multicultural understandings of child welfare. I want to learn everything that I can at U___ about mental health, substance abuse, kids, counseling and especially recovery after abuse. I believe that a lot of the mental health problems that adults have in our society are a result of a lack of intervention when they are children. I hope that by working with children who come from at-risk, abusive, unloving homes where they have been neglected, I can help them to develop healthy emotional boundaries and deal with their mental health issues before problems escalade into adulthood. Ten years from now I want to work at a place like the Chicago Women’s Health Center. In fact, my interests are split between working with youth and abused women because both groups are so vulnerable positions and need help to achieve empowerment. I have decided to pursue an MSW rather than a counseling degree because I want to also study and have an impact on policy. When I was raped as an undergraduate student, I went from being emotionally whole, stable, confident, and ready to take on the world to crippling, weak, unstable, distraught, and doing poorly in my classes. The idea that children are emotionally, mentally, physically, and sexually assaulted is especially repugnant to me and fighting this scourge and helping the victims to heal is what is for me the noblest work on earth. I thank you for considering my application to the SSA at U___. MSW Personal Statement Social Service Administration

As a historian of Latin America and someone who lived for years in Nicaragua, helping the following applicant with her Personal Statement of Purpose in Epidemiology was a special privilege for me: Born and raised in Nicaragua, and now completing a master's degree in public health at the University of ____, I hope to find the necessary funding to pursue a Ph.D. in Public Health with a concentration in epidemiology. It is my life’s goal to return to my country to help improve health care for my people. The doctoral degree is knowledge and power, which are both necessary to be successful taking on the intractable public health challenges that afflict my poor little country that has brutally suffered for so long, warfare and natural disasters leaving us the poorest country in Latin America beyond Haiti—and not that far behind. More than anything, a doctoral degree is for me the leverage needed to undertake leadership positions. In my country one in about five hundred Nicaraguans have access to decent health care because they can pay for treatment at our outstanding private hospitals or seek treatment in countries with better health care. In many cases public hospitals are a death trap with little medication available, overworked, and underpaid physicians, and supporting staff with abysmal levels of training. At only twenty-three, especially for someone from Central America, I have made great strides in my education - because my institutions have funded me all along. I have worked hard out of love for the children of my country, since so many of them die each year from an array of vaccine-preventable diseases such as whooping cough and pneumonia. My undergraduate choice of microbiology as a major with a minor in chemistry was a result of my experiences growing up in my country and anticipating graduate study in public health. I will be completing my M.P.H. this coming April of 2011. As a clinical microbiologist intern at the National Diagnostic and Reference Center in Managua I was able to get an in-depth look at the health system in my country. We oversaw processing samples from all public hospitals in the country. These hospitals shipped their samples to us since they could not undertake the task of diagnostic microbiology because they lacked the most basic diagnostic tools. There are extremely elevated levels of antibiotic resistance in our public hospitals with strains of Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus and a notoriously high prevalence of multi-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa. In these circumstances people go to the hospital only to die. I saw hundreds of patients come in sick and undernourished just to face further insult from nosocomial infections. Yet, I have learned as a graduate student in public health that these problems can be resolved through simple interventions such as encouraging health workers to wash their hands to block the transmission of microbes from one patient to the next. I was excited to learn that the incidence of dengue can significantly be reduced by eliminating standing water and therefore blocking the reproduction of the Aedes aegypti mosquito. I want to learn how to design and direct research to be able to address the complex array of public health issues facing my country. With a Ph.D., I can become a leader in improving my nation’s health system by translating research into interventions in hospitals. These interventions may range from attempting to wane the prevalence of antibiotic resistance in health centers to implementing new diagnostic tools. With no research staff to go to the field and collect data, epidemiologic analyses can only be done in hospitals and every patient that comes in becomes a data point. I am convinced that a Ph.D. from your highly esteemed program will allow me to fulfill my goals and assume an instrumental role in the development of more effective health care systems for Nicaragua. The University of ____ has a wide array of international missions and research in underdeveloped countries, for example, Dr. ____ is working on waterborne diseases in Ecuador. This will allow me to build a strong network of knowledgeable people in the field. I already had a chance to interact with faculty and students who are developing projects in Latin American through the Center of Global Health in which I am a student associate. People working in these places can also elucidate how epidemiologic data can be gathered in underdeveloped countries which lack extensive databases and registries. PHD Public Health Epidemiology Statement of Purpose

A United States citizen, I have spent most of my life in my native Saudi Arabia where I earned my medical degree and have since been practicing medicine. I hope very much to continue my education in public health in America so that I might heighten my long-term contribution to the health of my society and have a positive impact on the evolution and progressive enhancement of Saudi public health structures in the future. I see your MPH Program at the University of XXXX as the perfect place for me to receive a world-class education in public health because of your in-depth and broad-based curriculum. Most of all, I see your program as the ideal place to learn research design and conduct, along with both data and policy analysis. Earning the MPH at the University of XXXX will help me to realize my goals of becoming recognized as a public health expert so that I might assume positions with prominent levels of responsibility in program planning and administration for the development and improvement of public health systems, especially in my native Saudi Arabia. I seek a comprehensive education in all the areas in which your distinguished program at the University of XXXX is especially strong: not only the basics of public health but also biostatistics, epidemiology, environmental health sciences, health services administration and economics, and relevant aspects of the social sciences. I need this kind of comprehensive background because I hope to contribute to a much-needed overhaul of Saudi Health care structures and their administration, streamlining, saving money, and enhancing our quality of care simultaneously. I feel that my work will very much be in line with the mission of the U of XXXX to struggle in all that we do to expand the accessibility of health care for those who most need it but can least afford adequate medical attention. I am convinced that through adequate planning and administration, the quality of health care for all members of society can be improved while we expand access, including the wealthier members of our society. My international ambitions are another crucial factor in my application since I hope to travel and work, at least eventually, throughout the Middle East, Jordan, Lebanon, Egypt, networking, sharing, and brainstorming alongside my colleagues from other countries in the region that face many of the same challenges in the future. With respect to my home culture where I plan to distinguish myself as a crusader for improvements in our health care system, I am especially concerned about our careless use of water, the numerous ways in which we simply waste it, as well as the issue of the numerous toxins that remain in our drinking water. Unfortunately, it is not just the water supply but the seafood that we consume as well. These issues strike me as some of the most important challenges in our field as health care professionals. I see my life as fully dedicated to addressing these kinds of concerns, and new ones that will arise unforeseen in the future, for many decades to come, always looking for effective, efficient, and sustainable ways to proceed in a progressive manner. Finally, I very much appreciate the U of XXXX’s historical priority of promoting scholarship that is concerned with preserving and improving the health of all people across the globe. It would be a profound honor for me to have the privilege of contributing to the diversity of your program as an Arab woman and I deeply appreciate your consideration of my application. Saudi Arabia Public Health Systems Personal MPH Purpose

I have now been in the US Navy for the past 12 years and it is my home; and the context in which I hope to continue to make progress professionally as a social worker. It is my intention to excel in your flagship master's Program in Social Work at UXX based not only on my experience with the military but also my intense dedication to the subject of mental health issues, addictions, and domestic violence. I have seen and witnessed up close the daily struggles of our service members and their families now for most of my adult life, which helps me to understand the complexity of their situations and I believe will help me to think creatively in your program about military issues from a social work perspective. Persistent and an extremely hard worker, I take immense pride in the fact that I am a survivor and have personally bounced back from the trauma of sexual abuse and the crippling effects of depression and anxiety that so frequently compound the suffering of the victim. This is why I now want to be seen as a source of hope for the women and children of military families. I have now spent many years working as an Instructor for the Navy with an extremely diverse population, helping soldiers to deal effectively with their personal, legal, financial, and professional issues daily. I also serve as a Family Advocacy Program Representative working as a liaison between the Navy and the families of service members. I deal with Domestic Violence issues among service members daily, many if not most of these cases have something to do with substance abuse. This is why I want very much to develop a research focus as a student in your program at USC in the areas of mental health, addiction, sexual abuse, and domestic violence. I have also distinguished myself as a volunteer to the extent to which I have been able, working, for example with a group called Saturday Scholars tutoring children. I have long had a profound passion for feeding the homeless and I have also engaged in this area to the extent of my abilities, what I have left after being a soldier and a mother of four. In Japan, I spent a lot of time visiting orphanages. Born and raised in the Philippines, I joined the Navy shortly after our arrival in San Diego, CA. I still speak Tagalog every day with my family and there are so many Filipino soldiers in the military that sometimes I feel as if I never left the Philippines. I also see myself as following in my father’s footsteps since he worked at a US Naval Base in Subic Bay as a civilian safety engineer. I grew up familiar with the US Bases. But my patriotism really developed shortly after the 9/11 when we permanently immigrated to America only one month after the attack. I remember to this day watching it on CNN in the Philippines. My brother and I enlisted in the military at the same time, right after getting our social security numbers, primarily because we were grateful for the opportunity that America was giving us. We saw our enlistment not only to prepare for our education, but also to honor the victims of those attacks (including 17 Filipino and Filipino Americans). My first duty overseas was in Yokosuka Japan for 6 months. My next adventure abroad was a year in Bahrain, being able to visit Dubai twice, as well as Paris and Venice. Now I am deployed in Kuwait for 7 months. I work as the Leading Petty Officer of the "Separations Platoon" dealing with service members who are being processed out in the Navy and Marine Corps for legal and administrative issues. I am a divorced mother of four. My ex-husband is suffering from PTSD and was medically discharged from the Navy in 2007. Being in the Navy for 12 years, I have seen and witnessed the daily struggles of our service members and their families and the great sacrifices that they make to serve our country. This is why it would bring me special joy to help develop, put in place, and administer effective, timely, and culturally sensitive treatment plans for social service programs in the military, helping to improve the lives not only of service members but also their families. Troubled by the way in which today the genuine willingness of people to help others is a rarity and doing for others is seen as a burden. I seek to live my life as testimony to the best in human nature, a celebration of service to those who most need our help, especially the protection of families. I know how it is to be in their shoes and to feel the sense of hopelessness that comes all too often along with military service. I want to serve as an inspiration to my patients and clients and be able to touch their lives and make a positive difference. I want to serve as a role model to women who were abused and abandoned and empower them to see hope. I want to be an advocate for those who do not have a voice and those who are too weak to defend themselves and their own. This is why social work shall be my mission, passion, identity, and sense of fulfillment in life. I want to become a Commissioned Officer in the Navy as a Social Worker to do research and develop more Social work programs that serve to more effectively identify those service members and their families who are in greatest need of assistance, in a proactive if not preventative fashion, addressing the issues before they spiral out of hand and great damage is done. I have watched with horror and investigated cases of soldiers who have ended up murdering their wives shortly after returning home from combat zones. I want to see this as largely preventable, not always, but in most cases. I want to help control the stress that drives these incidents by creating and identifying more resources for soldiers, in a variety of areas, especially coping strategies. My heart is set on your program at UXX for obvious reasons, the fact that your program is not only the first military social work specialization at a civilian research university but also the first web based MSW program and the principal pioneer program implementing virtual reality into graduate education. Furthermore, your program is the only MSW program to receive a direct appropriation from Congress for military social work research through the department of defense. One of your research clusters is veterans and military families, another is substance abuse, a third is child welfare; where else would I want to earn my MSW? Why not join the online academic community of the most rapidly expanding social work graduate school in the nation? I am a living testament to the way in which one can bounce back and make one's own life and the lives of others around them much better, despite difficult circumstances and challenges. I have always sought to serve and was originally attracted to the study of health care. This is why I began studying and finally finished my undergraduate studies in Healthcare Management. The weakest part of my application to your program is my grades as an undergraduate student. At the time, however, I was wrestling with great challenges, and I ask that this be taken into consideration as a factor in the evaluation of my ability to perform as a student in your program. My husband became completely unstrung by his PTSD at the very same time that all four of our children were still small. My grades suffered because this was my time of greatest trial and struggle in every way. All these issues have now long been resolved and I am free to concentrate my energy on my studies. In 2012, I was sent unaccompanied for a year to the Middle East where I worked in a small clinic and it was there that I found my calling, when I was introduced to the Social Work field in the clinic. This year-long tour was challenging, especially being away from my family. I got divorced while in the Middle East, and married again, to Social Work. It was the wonderful support that I received from my own military social worker that gave me the final push to put my own troubles in the past and to give my all to my future and the troubles of others. Ten years from now I aspire to have my Doctorate in the field of Social Work Program and open my own clinical practice as a social worker dedicated to military families. I thank you for consideration of my application to your unique and distinguished MSW Program at UXX. MSW Degree Online Statement of Purpose, US Navy

A doctor from Nigeria who hopes very much to earn her MPH Degree in your distinguished program at XXXX University, I appreciate the fact that your university is especially well regarded high in the areas of medicine and public health and that you have a creative and innovative curriculum well designed to prepare our public health leaders of tomorrow. Finally, I also appreciate your diverse student population and the warm weather, Florida weather being like what I am accustomed to in Nigeria. I see your program as the optimal springboard upon which I might advance as a pioneer in the development of improved public health structures in Nigeria, preventing the spread of disease by thoroughly analyzing the risk factors involved and implementing targeted public health education programs to prevent outbreaks of the disease in question. I seek to promote life and health through lifestyle modifications, educating the community about the necessary tools or precautions that are required for disease prevention. Completing your program will enable me to acquire the tools that I need to work effectively with both the government and NGOs in the development and implementation of disease prevention programs, especially in our battles against HIV and Malaria, both preventable diseases. As a public health doctor in Nigeria, I will face an uphill battle to make progress at lowering rates of contagion while I am careful to discourage any discrimination against the infected person that might occur. Our extremely high rates of illiteracy in Nigeria make disease prevention programs especially challenging, forcing us to be as creative as possible. I look forward to studying the history of outbreaks of certain diseases and what this suggests in terms of how to best prevent their recurrence, particularly in the case of Ebola and cholera. I seek exposure to the absolute best ideas for creating awareness of symptoms and preventive measures. My special love for children and public health will drive me to help reduce infant and child mortality in Nigeria, especially under the age of 5 years old. Earning the MPH Degree will also enable me to contribute in the future to improving our sanitation systems and increasing the access of my people to a safe water supply, helping to stamp out typhoid and other water borne diseases. I want to thank you for considering my application. Medical Doctor to MPH Personal Purpose Statement Sample

I am a woman of Hispanic heritage, born in the Dominican Republic and have been resident in the United States since the age of ten. I speak English and Spanish. I hold a BS degree in Industrial Engineering Technology and a BA degree in Modern Languages (Spanish) with a minor in Business Management. I am the first person in my family to graduate from college and am proud to have done so and to have taken advantage of the opportunities that have been available to me. I am a practicing Catholic and am positively seeking a Catholic educational environment. I would endeavor to further the Church’s teachings in relation to social and economic justice as a trained social worker. I also believe that my ethnic and economic background and life experiences to date provide an excellent ‘fit’ with the specific aims expressed in the School’s Mission Statement which I share and would enthusiastically seek to advance. I have never formally studied Social Work and it may be unusual for someone with my academic and professional background to apply for this program. My interest in Social Work was initially fired by my experiences in the Army. During my service, which included time in Kosovo, I witnessed distress among soldiers arising from post-traumatic stress, anxiety and depression. Two military colleagues required help whilst we served in Kosovo, both suffered bereavements of close relatives whilst far from home and suffered depression and stress as a result.  I witnessed successful interventions in these cases to provide these soldiers with ways of coping and regaining their former confidence and joy in living. It was then that I became aware of the value of the work of professional Social Workers, and it occurred to me then that this was a wonderful way to spend a working life. The seed was planted. When I left the army, I decided that I would help others, if not professionally, then as a volunteer. I resumed my career but have spent a significant amount of my spare time in volunteer activities.  I have worked in a Women’s Shelter, helping in practical ways, with listening and with doing anything that was useful for the clients. I have worked in a homeless shelter providing general help to residents. Currently I act as a volunteer with an organization that represents the interests of abused and neglected children in court. I have been trained by a non-profit organization called CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates) to act as an advocate for children in the courts. The children concerned have suffered abuse or neglect and the courts seek to have them safely and permanently homed. I act as a friend to the child and as a factfinder reporting directly to the judge.  I am required to thoroughly research the child’s background, to speak for the child in court and to assist the court and child towards a swift and appropriate conclusion. My voluntary work has been another, and incredibly significant, formative experience in my life and has provided me with great satisfaction, indeed joy.  A successful outcome is life-changing for an underprivileged and deserving child. The other successes in my life have been dwarfed by those obtained in doing this work that positively changes the lives of others. The children have acted as examples of resilience, patience, and humor in the face of always difficult, and sometimes extremely distressing, situations that have been inspirational to me. I have interacted with family Social Workers during this voluntary activity and have acquired an understanding of their role and an admiration for their work.  It has also demonstrated to me how different providers and organizations interact efficiently to reach early and desirable conclusions. My volunteer activity re-fired my interest in becoming a professional Social Worker. Indeed, I have become passionately committed to doing so. I have thought about this application very carefully. I am aware that it is possible for an ‘outsider’ to sentimentalize caring professions and to imagine that instant solutions exist to serious situations. I know that situations calling for professional intervention are often extraordinarily complex and that the complexities may not be immediately apparent, that careful and sensitive investigation is required to define a problem and identify workable solutions.  I believe that my military service, voluntary work and even my recent management experience has given me opportunities to appreciate some of the realities of Social Work. I know that along with a mature, genuinely caring, and positive attitude it is also necessary to be realistic in terms of people and outcomes. I possess these characteristics and can be a highly effective Social Worker. Not least, I have a sense of humor and know the value of a smile. My management experience is also, I believe, relevant to this application. I have five years of management experience and related training. It seems to me that a good manager has some of the characteristics necessary to succeed in Social Work. Successful management calls for maturity, a realistic attitude towards people, good planning skills, flexibility and an interested and caring attitude to staff and their personal welfare and progress. Being a manager also requires good observational skills and the consequent ability to recognize a potential problem at an early stage and to intervene decisively to prevent it becoming more serious. I can bring these skills and training to the program and would regard them as highly relevant to it. As a trained scientist, I am used to compiling and interpreting statistical information, I also understand the importance of maintaining detailed and accurate records. I believe that the combination of the discipline I learned in my scientific studies combined with a natural compassion for others provides a further reason for anticipating successful participation in the program. My military experience is also highly relevant to my application.  Military life teaches, indeed demands, successful teamwork. I was regarded as a good ‘team player’ with a readiness to share and to assist. In addition to my experience of being initially raised in another cultural environment and subsequently adjusting to a new one, I have worked with people of many diverse backgrounds and cultures in the Army and in subsequent employment. I have also travelled widely in Europe and in the Caribbean.  I have no difficulty in relating well to others whatever their heritage or background. My own background was financially modest, and this provides me with insights which would be useful for a Social Worker. I would hope to be an example to others who share my background of what can be achieved, in the course of my future work. The program’s emphasis on the needs of Hispanic children and families fits well with my own background, volunteer activities and life experiences. As I understand Social Work, it is ‘all about people’ and involves forming positive relationships with people as an advisor, advocate, counselor, or listener with the end of helping them to live their lives more successfully and by helping them to find practical and successful solutions to their problems. I also understand, especially from my current volunteer work, that non-verbal communication is especially important for understanding emotions and problems faced by children. I am also aware that reaching successful conclusions may involve interaction with families, friends and other relevant organizations and parties. I have carefully considered the characteristics required of an excellent social worker and I am confident that I possess them. I am compassionate, committed, caring, realistic, academically able and disciplined, enthusiastic, and a good ‘team player’. My voluntary activities, military background and management training and experience enable me to offer truly relevant skills and knowledge to the master's program and I look forward to sharing these with my class. Most importantly, I will bring a genuine and fervent desire to help others by obtaining the necessary training and knowledge to do so. I know that I can benefit from the program and share those benefits with others in my future career as a Social Worker. MSW Personal Purpose Sample Caribbean Hispanic #msw #statementofpurpose #help #editing #examples #tips

I am now completing my master's degree in epidemiology at the University of XXXX and would like very much to begin working towards my PHD right away. I am most enjoying the fullest academic immersion possible in Epidemiology and wish to earn the terminal degree in my field to achieve my optimal career advancement. The XXXX School of Public Health at the University of XXXX is my first choice for doctoral study for a variety of reasons, principal of which is your thoroughly global focus and treatment of issues in epidemiology from a public health perspective with special attention to the world’s most vulnerable human beings. I also very much appreciate the way in which your program is recognized worldwide and how you place special emphasis on issues in cardiovascular epidemiology, the area in which I am already published and highly motivated to continue. I would especially enjoy the opportunity to participate in research in this area as a student at UXX. As a Chinese doctor and experienced researcher in China, I look forward to sharing in endless discussions in the Public Health Community at UXX with other doctors, scientists, and students from all over the world, helping us to better understand the unique challenges that we face, especially those of us from the Developing World where at-risk populations tend to be concentrated. While I look forward to the full gambit of courses in your curriculum, in addition to cardiovascular epidemiology, the other area in which I seek to cultivate a lifelong specialization is in Pharmacoepidemiology. Thus, UXX is by far the best fit for my interests, particularly as result of the enormous research resource represented by the “Center” (for Pharmacoepidemiology). After graduating from high school, I was admitted to Peking University to study Medicine. This program consists not only of four years of undergraduate study but also three years of postgraduate study, including my rotations in Internal Medicine. I was selected as research fellow by our clinical pharmacology unit at my university during my residency rotation and so I stayed on at our university to conduct research for another year-and-a-half, which included 6 months spent in the United States at XXXX University (2012-2013) as a Clinical Research Trainee. Thus, since completing medical school, I have been actively engaged with and constantly learning as much as I can about clinical pharmacology, trial design, new drug regulations, etc., in both China and the USA. I have conducted my own studies and published my results as well as assisting other researchers. I have gotten especially skilled in protocol development, trial design, and authoring the full report for each study. I chose to pursue the MPH Degree in Public Health Epidemiology in my studies here in the USA because of my incredibly positive experiences in both clinical medicine and in my research fellowship, to fully prepare myself for doctoral study. I have vastly benefitted from systematic training in my master's Program, especially in methodology and quantitative skills. For me, the beauty of epidemiology is found in “saving lives, millions at a time” and this ideal has always inspired and empowered the long hours that I spend in research because I am focused, dedicated, and very committed and I grow more so every day as a student in my master's Program. I look forward to a long professional lifetime ahead of me as a public health research scientist working with global issues and collaborating with numerous other scientists and institutions in both the USA and China. High quality epidemiological research data is the type of knowledge upon which public policy and decisions should be based. Thus, my mission is to always engage in research with an eye to having a progressive impact on public health policy. Throughout the course of my doctoral studies at U__, I will continue to make progress at the development of a more in-depth and sophisticated understanding of public health issues at the same time that I become increasingly skilled as an independent researcher who is able to effectively lead research teams in the study of how to best prevent population morbidity and mortality. Ever since I entered medical school, I have been actively curious about the study and practice of epidemiology. During my first year of rotations, I completed my first study by analyzing 444 heart failure patients and arrived at the conclusion that pre-diabetes hyperglycemia frequently exerted a negative effect on the prognosis of patients with cardiac failure. My research has left me shocked and dismayed by the gaps between trials and “real world” safety and efficacy. I participated in several research projects exploring cardiac safety issues and pharmacological intervention that were collaborative projects between Peking University and the Spaulding Clinical Research Unit in Wisconsin, studying the potential ethnic difference of Moxifloxacin induced QT prolongation between Caucasians and Chinese. I just completed the first draft of the manuscript this past summer. I also completed an animal study investigating the potential efficacy of Metformin on Cardiotoxicity induced by the breast cancer chemotherapy medication doxorubicin; a dose-responded effect was found between the administration of Metformin and an improvement of cardiac diastolic function (serum brain natriuretic peptide (BNP) and cardiac ultrasound). I have been especially honored to have the opportunity to study towards my MPH Degree at the University of XXXX where I work closely with faculty members in both epidemiology and biostatistics doing data analysis. For my thesis, I am investigating the potential risk factors of arterial stiffness progression using 656 samples that serve as a basis for my conclusion that an accelerated increase of Systolic Blood Pressure and Aortic Calcium Score are positively associated with arterial stiffness progression as measured by brachial-ankle Pulse Wave Velocity (Bap WV). I will publish this article as the first author. My chief interests are cardiac safety and anti-cancer therapies (like Metformin), especially with elderly cancer survivors. My other research interest in pharmacoepidemiology is pharmacogenetics, making the most of public health genetics combined with precision medicine. Most specifically, I hope to conduct research in pharmacogenetics dealing with QT internal studies. I have a solid background in cardiology, experience with QT studies, completed coursework in public health genetics, and have experience working on pharmacogenetics studies (Human Leukocyte Antigen (HLA) Gene Subtype and Antibiotic Induced Drug Eruption in Chinese Population). Thus, I am confident that I will succeed. Cardiovascular disease is a leading cause of death in both the US and China, and I am fascinated by environmental and ethnic factors as they influence cardiovascular health. A better understanding of the origins of ethnic differences and environmental influences may provide us with more effective tools for the prevention and treatment of cardiovascular disease. My other main research interest is the relationship between diabetes and cardiovascular health; factors mediating the risk of cardiovascular disease among patients with diabetes. I have enjoyed looking at genetic and biologic risk factors as well as innovative epidemiologic methods and statistical analysis in diabetes-related cardiovascular health research. I am also interested in research into general relationships between cardiac safety and pharmacological treatments, especially for QT interval pharmacokinetic studies. I look forward to spending the balance of my professional life immersed in the cardiovascular health-learning loop from developing new epidemiological evidence for risks to influencing treatment guidelines with clinical trials and confirming impacts on patient outcomes. I want to contribute to decreasing the enormous burden of diabetes and cardiovascular disease by helping to develop creative behavioral and pharmacologic interventions that are safe for the patient. I am beginning to understand much more fully the many complex relationships between clinical medicine, epidemiology, pharmacology, clinical research, public policy, and globalization. While this may seem far-reaching, there are clear interdependencies that were not at all obvious to me several years ago. I hope to begin studying at U__ in the fall of 2016 and I look forward to 4-5 years of fascinating research in your program. I visited U__ and met several professors and students a few months ago and I see it as the ideal place for me to continue to advance as a research scientist in public health. China’s leading causes of death has shifted to chronic disease such as ischemic heart disease, stroke, cancer, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. After completing your program at UXX, I hope to serve as a clinical epidemiologist in non-communicable disease in China, leading multidisciplinary investigations into chronic disease, always collaborating closely with government organizations and hospitals with specialized research programs, always working to ensure the cardiovascular safety of commonly prescribed medications. I thank you for considering my application to your unique and highly competitive doctoral program at U__. Pharmacoepidemiology Public Health Statement of Purpose

I am now completing my master's degree in epidemiology at the University of XXXX and would like very much to begin working towards my PHD right away. I am most enjoying the fullest academic immersion possible in Epidemiology and wish to earn the terminal degree in my field to achieve my optimal career advancement. The XXXX School of Public Health at the University of XXXX is my first choice for doctoral study for a variety of reasons, principal of which is your thoroughly global focus and treatment of issues in epidemiology from a public health perspective with special attention to the world’s most vulnerable human beings. I also very much appreciate the way in which your program is recognized worldwide and how you place special emphasis on issues in cardiovascular epidemiology, the area in which I am already published and highly motivated to continue. I would especially enjoy the opportunity to participate in research in this area as a student at UXX. As a Chinese doctor and experienced researcher in China, I look forward to sharing in endless discussions in the Public Health Community at UNC with other doctors, scientists, and students from all over the world, helping us to better understand the unique challenges that we face, especially those of us from the Developing World where at-risk populations tend to be concentrated. While I look forward to the full gambit of courses in your curriculum, in addition to cardiovascular epidemiology, the other area in which I seek to cultivate a lifelong specialization is in Pharmacoepidemiology. Thus, UXX is by far the best fit for my interests, particularly as result of the enormous research resource represented by the “Center” (for Pharmacoepidemiology). I was selected as research fellow by the clinical pharmacology unit at my university in China which included 6 months spent in the United States at Duke University (2012-2013) as a Clinical Research Trainee. Thus, since completing medical school, I have been actively engaged with and constantly learning as much as I can about clinical pharmacology, study design, new drug regulations, etc., in both China and the USA. I have conducted my own studies and published my results as well as assisting other researchers. I have benefitted enormously from systematic training in my master's program, especially in methodology and quantitative skills. I aspire to share in saving lives, as many as possible; and this empowers me to spend long hours in the lab, focused, dedicated, and committed. I look forward to a long professional lifetime ahead of me as a public health research scientist working with global issues and institutions in both the USA and China. My mission is to engage in research that is geared towards having a progressive impact on public health policy. Throughout the course of my doctoral studies at U__, I will continue to make progress at the development of a more in-depth and sophisticated understanding of public health issues at the same time that I become increasingly skilled as an independent researcher who is able to effectively lead research teams in the study of how to best prevent population morbidity and mortality. I am particularly keen about studying advanced epidemiological methods for observational studies of medications using large health care databases and I am eager to get involved in research projects that are related to my background and interests. My clinical and research experiences have left me shocked and dismayed by the gaps between trials and “real world” in the safety and effectiveness of medical intervention. I want to put what I learn about methodology to work, gain additional research experience, and engage directly with some of the most important clinical questions of my day, laboring to bridge the gap between the success of controlled trials and the reality of real work practice. I participated in several research projects exploring cardiac safety issues of pharmacological interventions that were collaborative projects between Peking University and the Spaulding Clinical Research Unit in Wisconsin, studying the potential ethnic difference of moxifloxacin induced QT prolongation between Caucasians and Chinese. I just completed the first draft of the manuscript this past summer. I also completed an animal study investigating the potential efficacy of metformin on cardiotoxicity induced by the breast cancer chemotherapy medication doxorubicin; a dose-responded effect was found between the metformin and an improvement of cardiac diastolic function. I currently work closely with faculty members in both epidemiology and biostatistics doing data analysis. For my thesis, I am investigating the potential determinants of arterial stiffness progression using 656 population-based samples that serve as a basis for my conclusion that an accelerated increase of blood pressure and aortic calcification are positively associated with arterial stiffness progression as measured by brachial-ankle Pulse Wave Velocity (baPWV). I will publish this article as the first author. My principal interest is in the clinical effectiveness/safety of cardiovascular medications, especially among the elderly and cancer survivors; those are usually excluded from phase III clinical trials. I am also very much interested in the cardiovascular safety of novel anti-cancer therapies in “real word” health care. I also hope to attend U__ to learn as much as I can about pharmacogenetics, making the most of public health genetics combined with precision medicine. I hope to conduct research in pharmacogenetics dealing with QT internal. I have a solid background in cardiology, experience with relevant studies, and completed coursework in pharmacology and public health genetics, making me an excellent fit with your program. I look forward to spending the balance of my professional life immersed in the cardiovascular health-learning loop from developing new epidemiological evidence for risks to influencing treatment guidelines with clinical trials and confirming impacts on patient outcomes. I want to contribute to decreasing the enormous burden of cardiovascular disease by helping to develop creative behavioral and pharmacologic interventions that are safe for the patient. I am beginning to understand much more fully the many complex relationships between clinical medicine, epidemiology, pharmacology, clinical research, public policy, and globalization. Thus, I am a natural for the study of pharmacoepidemiology and medical interventions in human populations. I hope to begin studying at UNC in the fall of 2016 and I look forward to 4-5 years of fascinating research in your program. I visited UNC and met several professors and students of pharmacoepidemiology a few months ago and I see it as the ideal place for me to continue to advance as a professional researcher in pharmacoepidemiology. I hope to serve as a clinical epidemiologist in pharmacoepidemiology and non-communicable disease in China, leading multidisciplinary investigations into chronic disease, collaborating closely with government organizations and hospitals with specialized research programs, working together to ensure the cardiovascular safety of commonly prescribed medications. I look forward to leading multidisciplinary epidemiological investigations and medical interventions especially concerning the elderly, cancer saviors and organ failure patients, always working to develop a better understanding of what works in current medical practice and what does not. I thank you for considering my application to your unique and competitive doctoral program at U__. Chinese Doctor PHD in Epidemiology Personal Purpose

I am a young Black woman who is very cosmopolitan in my outlook. My greatest strengths include my open mind and receptiveness and curiosity about all other cultures; I am someone who relishes multi-cultural experiences and diversity. While my mother is African American, my father is from Trinidad which has provided me with a Caribbean flavor. I am interested in questions of social justice and human rights, yet I am a pragmatist who also very much wants to support economic development and the growth of industry and trade. I have made my decision to pursue Industrial/ Organizational (I/O) Psychology because it is one of the fastest growing areas for the application of professional life of fulfilling service and I am convinced that the ____ School is the program that is best tailored to my interests and long-term aspirations. I am fully confident that the ____ Program will provide me with the optimal tools for solving organizational problems, learning how to constantly grow professionally in today's global, multicultural work environment. My long-term goal is to someday become a freelance industrial psychologist, working for a broad variety of companies across the globe. As a person of color and as a woman, I am interested in minority concerns and gender issues in the workplace. I look forward to developing training programs that help workers and supervisors to develop heightened understandings of and respect for each other. I assist companies in becoming more profitable, especially in the long term, by helping them to develop a more humane face, with more satisfied and loyal employees. I want to assist in the creation of more healthy work environments that are conducive to higher productivity. The full realization of my dreams and professional vision would someday include hiring other free-lance industrial organizational psychologists to attend to my client base. I am convinced that the ____ School I/O Psychology Program will be my wisest move, to attain the kind of position that I need to advance professionally in my area of expertise, accumulating professional experience in certain critical areas. My long-term, passionate interest in gender issues as well as psychology moved me to complete my B.A. in Psychology with a minor in Women's Studies. I am now enormously excited about graduate school; I have a refined passion for so many aspects of psychology, in particular, theories of group psychology, performance appraisal, job satisfaction assessment, and executive training. I look forward to doing research in the areas of organizational assessment and intervention and I am extremely interested in group development and diversity, especially with respect to the food and hospitality industry. I possess the skills that are most important for success in graduate school: determination, global awareness, and a profound desire to make a significant contribution to the psychology community. At 24, I am already accustomed to working hard, long hours, having been a server and bartender for the last six years. I am grateful that my love for people will now move to a higher plane of service, laboring to enhance the humanity and dignity of the corporate environment. The greatest contribution that I might be able to make to society would be to share in the creation of work environments where employees learn how to best support themselves and their families in a pleasant and healthy environment that is facilitated by the company and its human resources staff. I want to thank you for your consideration of my application. MA Industrial Organizational Psychology Personal Purpose

My introduction to social work was one of a deeply personal nature.  In 1994, I met my first husband – now deceased – a single dad with three children under sixteen.  They had lost their mother, and my husband had found it extremely difficult to care for his children, making the emotional decision to send them to be cared for by relatives.  While the children were shuffled from one home to another, they suffered emotionally, socially, and psychologically.  When my husband and I learned of their problems, I advocated bringing them to us, and took on the responsibility of finding them a school, getting them ready every day, doing all I could to be a good mum. Despite the stability in their lives, my stepdaughter started having nightmares, slept poorly, and would frequently faint during the day - once she was nearly struck by a car during a fainting spell.  She indicated she heard her mother’s voice telling her to come home and if she did not, she felt a huge snake being wrapped around her.  I quit my job, and cared for her full-time, getting a specialist to help.  It was determined she was suffering emotionally and psychologically from the changes in her life, and Social Services were alerted, thus her counseling began.  While doctors and nurses tend to a patient’s body, a social worker is assigned to attend to the ordeal, the mind and the heart, an integral and equally important member of a multidisciplinary team of healthcare professionals.  I was struck by the breadth of the work, and the range of knowledge of the social worker.  Equally impressive and eye-opening were the social workers' insights into the situation, and thoughtful examination of the steps, and stresses that led to the point of crisis. It took several years for her nightmares to end, and her life returned to normality. However, a new waking nightmare began when my husband tested positive for HIV.  After the initial shock, I tested negative.  I turned to my faith, asking God for guidance.  Our lives changed in many ways, keeping our plight to ourselves for fear of being socially ostracized or stigmatized, and to protect our children.  Having lost many friends, relatives, and neighbors to AIDS in Uganda, I was aware of the devastating effects of the disease on families and entire communities.  Getting the children tested was the next step, and thankfully, the results were negative.  I have advised and counseled people affected by HIV/AIDS, and have encouraged many of my relatives, colleagues, and friends to be tested as a preventative measure.  Doing all I can, I have advised people of the risks of unprotected sex and the prudence of being tested before marriage, and to carefully consider the consequences of living with HIV/AIDS. My husband died in 2012 in an automobile accident.  To our children’s credit, and my efforts to emphasize their education, they have all excelled in school and their careers.  Being remarried, I was blessed with a little girl, but I ended this marriage due to my husband’s violent tendencies.  As a single mum, I have found that my daughter is a massive motivation for my going back to school, teaching me to love again, and the joy of teaching.  I want to make her world a better place, for her and for her neighbors to share.  Turning to the MSW Program at the University of ____ was a natural and logical choice. I hope to bring with me to the student body one year of paid Social Care Sector work experience.  In addition, whilst performing work as a Home Care Assistant for Service Users in their own homes, providing personal care for the elderly and the disabled, I came to realize that my contribution was more than just fulfilling a job: I was adding value to the lives of people.  I was encouraging my clients to better themselves physically, emotionally, and psychologically, doing things for themselves, challenging them, and bringing them a sense of accomplishment.  Through my experiences, I have developed an impressive knowledge base especially in social services, and an innate ability to work with difficult or vulnerable clients.  Furthermore, having worked with flexible and effective teams, I will be a valuable addition to the community of Social Workers. Previously, I had worked as an Advisor with XXXX, assessing clients’ entitlement for benefits, assisting them with job searches, and giving out information about training and courses. Many experienced barriers to employment such as a lack of qualifications, disabilities, and English as a second language.  For these clients, I worked tirelessly, multitasking, and advocating for them with employers, getting them into the job market.  Social Work offers this type of personal and professional satisfaction, as well.  I anticipate learning how to better assist people in accessing the services they need, to fit their unique circumstances.  My compassion and sensitivity combined with listening and interpersonal skills, make me suited to the work.  My own experiences have developed my perseverance, and where a client lacks the strength to face the next day, I will be their support. I have the attributes, extensive experience, and skills in place to contribute positively to Social Work. After earning the MSW I plan to become an HIV/AIDS Social Worker or Coordinator, advocating for victims of the disease, especially children and teens.  I have seen and experienced the deficit of relevant services for people from socio-economically depressed backgrounds, and statistically, many are minorities.  Information and services need to reach and attend to these groups at all costs, the poor, the sick and the needy.  In the golden age of equal opportunity, we need also remember equal access.  It is up to the social worker in conjunction with parents, teachers, and prominent community members to identify at-risk populations, not just teens, but also immigrants struggling to become acculturated, and other silent minorities.  It is our responsibility to educate everyone about the potential risks.  Where we cannot prevent what damage has been done, the social worker can do a great deal to reduce the impact of the all-too-real challenges. Social workers need to do more to convince health insurance providers and employers of the importance of providing time off, as well as covering the cost of social programs.  More provisions need to be made to aid the parents of young children, or those who care for an elderly parent(s) as many people only get help after they hit bottom.  Rather than simply finding appropriate programs for those in need, more quality programming needs to be developed, funded, and sustained.  And waiting list times need to be reduced. I want to be al sounding board, a soft place to fall, for the people I counsel.  When I see a client in a hole they cannot get out of, I will get in the hole with them.  I will be able to tell them not to worry, I have been here before, and I know the way out. Completing my undergraduate education in England, as well as living and working here, I developed an ability to interact effectively with not only my fellow colleagues, but since having experienced life as, basically, an immigrant, I feel particularly sensitive to the needs of many minorities; combined with this is my ability to speak four languages competently.  As a result, I can speak confidently in front of groups of people and am amazingly comfortable in my own skin. There is a need to reach out to our diverse clients, to understand and appreciate our differences, be it cultural or socioeconomic, an appreciation of the rich tapestry of life that we are all a part of on earth.  A future Social Worker needs to be able to interact effectively with people of differing cultures, ethnicities, nationalities, and creeds.  This is critically important given the vast influx of person with varied backgrounds into the British healthcare system.  Given my cultural competency, I feel I will be completely adept at reaching out to my diverse clients, no matter their country of origin.  This is what I bring to the student body, as well, one in which I anticipate many opportunities for group assignments, teamwork and projects. The University of ____ is my sole choice for scholastic development.  In the most practical terms, I want to attend because I live close by.  Even more importantly, though, I have been impressed by the relevance of the curriculum, one that helps mature students and those with existing degrees to undertake advanced studies. I anticipate an educational experience with U__ that is unsurpassed, the ideal exposure, and unsurpassed access to resources. Thank you for your time and consideration. MSW Masters Social Work HIV/AIDS UK Personal Statement

Politics has been my central fascination since adolescence. Now at 23, I find myself becoming even more mesmerized by political thinking, with a growing maturity and pragmatism that locates me within the area of discourse of Public Policy and Administration. I have a progressive mentality and I am someone who likes to reflect on social change; and I dream of contributing to social change in meaningful ways on a structural level. As a Black, Puerto Rican man, I am especially concerned with Latino and other minority issues, as well as Latin American concerns, especially the way in which Latinos face an uphill battle in the public sphere. Born and raised in San Juan, I did my B.A. in Political Science with a minor in French and graduated magna cum laude from the University of _____. As a result of my current master's studies at ____ University, to be graduating in May of 2008 in Public Administration (GPA 3.88), I am a strong candidate for your doctoral program. My first choice for graduate study is the XXXX School of Public Policy because of my intense attraction to your new doctoral program that enables students to pursue a joint Ph.D. in Public Policy and Political Science. I see your program as the perfect solution to this pull between my idealistic and theoretical purely intellectual interests, on the one hand, and my pragmatic side, on the other, the part of me that is most concerned with practical professional applications. By achieving a simultaneous doctoral degree in both Political Science and Public Policy, I have confidence that I will arrive at the type of integral scholar that I aspire to become, someone who would be able to make his fullest contribution to the advancement of social science in pragmatic or applied directions built upon a solid theoretical foundation. I am especially attracted to the way that study in your interdisciplinary program combines the policy focus of the Ford school with world renowned departments in the social sciences. PHD Public Policy Personal Purpose Statement Sample