Of Goals, Research Interests, and Experiences - Personal Statement Example

ment of Purpose Five years from now, I hope to be a leader in the development of the GIS Field in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Participating in the UMD GIS Master’s program will help me achieve this goal. I am a senior at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, graduating with a Bachelor’s degree in Geography. I have also gained relevant experience in the field serving as an International Mapping Associates Intern, and working on projects using ArcMap, ArcGlobe, ArcSencse, ArcCatalog, Map publisher and Satellite imagery etc.

I am hopeful that my experience would complement my academic studies. In the current environment of advancing technology, GIS plays an important role in the development of nations, which is especially true for the UAE, where expertise in this area is the need of the hour. Pursuing a master’s degree in GIS would equip me with the necessary knowledge and skills to help develop various aspects of the UAE, like building infrastructure, developing crime analysis database to reduce crime etc. Bringing this essential knowledge back to my country would enable us to advance and improve our current security systems and the quality of life for citizens in UAE.

UMD University is renowned for its value based academic programs that offer opportunities of personal and professional growth. The myriad modules of course curricula are essential ingredients that provide students with a strong learning experience. Moreover, the learning platform offered by the university caters to the needs and requirements of diverse populace thus facilitating greater understanding of cross-cultural values and preparing students to meet the challenges of time. As a foreign student from Abu Dhabi, UAE, the invigorating environment and the academic program of the university not only meet my expectations but also represent my ideals.

Participating in the UMD GIS Master program would help me realize my dream of improving the GIS Field in my country. I therefore strongly believe that the state of the art technology and innovative curricula of the UMD university program would help me meet the changing demands of the times, and allow me to make important contributions to my community. It would equip me with excellent academic qualifications and skills that could be judiciously exploited for the advancement of my country.My interest in studying GIS sparked when I was growing up in Abu Dhabi where I used to admire those who supervised construction sites near my home place.

It intrigued me how they could go to places that were bare, and build structures and roads that came to be so useful in the society. I wished I could get the skills that they were using in assessing the usefulness of such places and the ones they were using in operating their equipments that seemed so sophisticated to me. It would be an honor to study this masters program since only a handful of people from my home place have come this far in higher education and I would appreciate inspiring others into doing the same.

It is my determination to pursue my goals that made me to work hard in my education fighting against all odds until I made it to university. My family was not well up and I took the initiative to step in and support my parents in paying school fees by starting a grocery shop. This determination also drove me to join the geography club back in my high school days in which I cooperated with other club members to start a tree-planting project in the school. I am determined to utilize the chance to study UMD GIS Master’s program to achieve my dream of researching in my area of interest that is in geospatial intelligence.

I am hoping to use the knowledge I will get in this program to augment the ideas of positioning assets and individuals around the globe especially to help solve the nagging problem of global insecurity.My final year undergraduate research project can exemplify my capacity to work independently through problems. While working on my research project, I have noticed that I am able to use few prompts in delving deeply in the search for relevant information without a lot of guidance from my supervisor.

The research project has also taught me that I can set my own deadlines separate from my supervisor’s in order to ensure that I hand in the project at the required time. I use reflective journaling in order to help me assess my progress in the project and to assess how much I am learning from the experiences that I encounter through the project. In conclusion, I am confident that the things that I have learnt from all the above experiences have equipped me with what I need to excel in UMD GIS Master’s program.

The experience I got from my international mapping associates internship will help me identify with the knowledge I will get in class. The desire to influence my home country and community will motivate me to work hard. I am positive that I will be committed to my studies because the interest to study in this field is something that I have borne since I was young. My undergraduate degree in Geography is a good match with this masters’ degree because it has given me relevant background knowledge in to some of its areas of study.

Works CitedTomlinson, Roger. Thinking about GIS. Redlands, Cailf.: ESRI Press, 2007. Print.