What Is a Letter of Intent for College?
A letter of intent, also called a statement of purpose, is an application requirement for many United States colleges and universities. The letter of intent is evaluated as a writing sample and it is an opportunity to tell college admissions boards about yourself, your educational achievements, volunteer work and educational goals, all while portraying your personality. It is a short but important document. Colleges and universities might place certain requirements on letters of intent. If you are serious about being considered as a student, you will want to follow the directions exactly.
Name, Date and Style
The structure of a typical letter of intent is a basic block-style business letter. You begin the letter with your name at the top left side of the page and your address below that line.
Salutations
Do not salute the reader of your letter of intent with something generic like, "To Whom it May Concern." Find out the names of the members of the academic admission board for the program you are applying to and address each member by name. You can learn this information by calling the academic department you are applying to and speaking with a secretary, administrative assistant, intern or whomever can give you the information you need. Tell them who you are, why you are calling and ask them for the names of the members of the admissions board so you can include them in your letter of intent. Also confirm the spelling of their names.
The Body of the Letter of Intent
The body of the letter is the meat of the document. Keep the content of the letter appropriate to your desired field of study.
In it, introduce yourself and tell the admissions board a little about your background.
Tell the admissions board about your academic achievements to date.
Tell the admissions board about any extracurricular activities you participated in, awards you have earned and anything else pertaining to the field of study you would like to enter.
Include information about why you are interested in the field of study to which you are applying.
Use active voice while writing and get to the point quickly and fully.
Closing the Letter of Intent
In the last paragraph, thank the admissions board members for their time.
Hit enter twice. Type "Sincerely," because that is all that is necessary to close a letter of intent, then hit enter five more times and type your name as it appears on your application.
Sign your name in pen before sending your letter off with your hopes and aspirations. Sign every letter of intent you send out, preferably with a blue pen, so it is obviously the original letter.
Other bits of advice
If you know what field you would like to study upon entering college, talk to a professor in that department about how you should go about writing your letter of intent. He or she might provide you with some useful information. Also, do not be afraid to play upon your strengths, but do not overplay them.
Your letter of intent should be no longer than one printed page. However, every school has its own guidelines that must be followed, so follow the length requirements. Before submitting the letter, have someone look over it and correct any spelling, grammar and formatting errors.
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