- Jobs
ResumeCreate your job-winning resume using our free resume builder.
PortfolioShowcase your skills and projects with a professional portfolio.ResumeCreate your job-winning resume using our free resume builder.Resume BuilderMake a resume for free.Resume TemplatesAccess our extensive library of professional & ready-to-use templates.Resume ExamplesGet inspired by real resume examples to create your own.Occupation GuideAccess resume writing guides tailored for different professions.Resume HelpGet expert advice on all things resume from our team of recruitment specialists.- ResourcesSuccess StoriesBusiness ExcellenceAbout CakeResumeFeatured Reads
- Hire
- Download our App
What Is a Motivation Letter for a Master’s Degree & How to Write It?
In this article, you will read about:
Most universities have some requirements for applicants who are undergraduates and above to accomplish before getting the admission letter, especially for MBAs. Not only will you have to submit your undergraduate GPA results, application form, and other detailed information, but a motivation letter for a master’s will also be required.
Having a good motivation letter when applying for a master's degree can be the key to you being accepted by the program because it gives a more personal touch to the information that the administrators look at.
Why You Need a Good Motivation Letter for Master's
When administrators look at your application, they want to know about your goal and intentions, and these are driven by your motivation. Submitting a motivation letter for a master’s degree allows the administrators to have some insights about you. They can also better determine if you are suitable to study in their program.
If you have applied for jobs, you might be very familiar with the term cover letter. It is mainly written for job application purposes when you want to impress the employer with your personal information, achievements, experience, and skills.
A letter of interest is mostly used when there are no openings for a company or institute but you have the interest to join it. Its main goal is to show your enthusiasm to the employer, hopefully, they will grant a chance for you to join.
A motivation letter for a master’s is written for study purposes. It is a letter that uses your experience and achievements as inspiration to motivate your future study goals and plans. It provides more insights and reasons for your university program application.
How to Write a Good Motivation Letter for Master's
After getting a hold of what is a motivation letter for a master’s degree, let’s go through the steps of writing it.
✍🏻 Research the master’s program & the university you are applying for.
Before getting into writing, you need to know the course of study and the requirements. Knowing this information can be helpful as a guideline when preparing to write your motivation letter for your master's.
Here is some information to take note of when researching:
- University/Organization name
- University location
- Course name
- Course visions
- Requirements for documents
Mostly, the information that you need can be found on the university’s official website. If by chance, there is some information missing and you would like to know, you can use social platforms like LinkedIn to see if there are any current and past students for you to ask about the information.
✍🏻 Create an organization outline and structure for the master’s motivation letter.
If you have not been writing a lot, structuring the master’s application motivation letter before starting the writing can help you have a clear mind on the points made in different sections. It also keeps you on the right track without shifting to irrelevant points.
The structure of a motivation letter for a master’s:
- Intro
- Body paragraph
- Conclusion
Sorting out your information into these three different sections and creating a connection between them will help readers to read easily.
✍🏻 Start by introducing yourself and your purpose for writing in your opening paragraph.
The introduction should always be straightforward with a few sentences. You should introduce yourself, incorporate the reason for writing, and the reason why you are a great candidate. Nothing more than this is needed for the first paragraph.
Motivation letter template for master’s degree:
Dear [Name of The Administrator],
My name is [Your name] and I am writing to express my enthusiasm for the Master’s program in [Course name] at [University name]. I have always dreamed of [Your long-term goal], and I believe that studying in the program provided by [University name] would be a great stepping stone for me to reach higher and nearer to my goal.
✍🏻 Elaborate on your past experiences or motivation that makes you a great candidate.
In your body paragraph, don’t just state information like bullet points. This is not a resume or a CV.
With more space to work with, you should elaborate on those past experiences or motivation that makes you a great candidate. Experience and motivation are the key elements to connect your points and show that you are the right person.
If you are not quite sure how to write it, using life stories, experiences, accomplishments, passions, and awards as the motivation for your goal may be simpler.
Motivation letter paragraph template for study abroad:
I want to study abroad at [University name] because an American tutor from a summer camp inspired me to always grab the chance whenever it’s possible. During my high school years, I have always wanted to study abroad to know more about other countries’ cultural practices. Having the chance to study abroad not only helps me with my future goal to [Your goal] but also allows me to spend time with people from different cultures.
Motivation letter paragraph template for masters in computer science:
During my university years as an undergraduate, I have participated in projects about UX design, web development, and software development. Completing those projects inspired to pursue a master’s in computer science to adopt and learn more about the new technologies. The well-known professor names, high-quality education standards, and extraordinary post-graduate job opportunities have given me the interest to continue my studies at [University name].
Motivation letter paragraph template for data science master:
I found my passion for dealing with data when I was studying data science as a major at [University name].Intending to be a data analyst, I spent time self-studying for the things that could not be learned from university courses. I believe studying at [University name] will be a big step for me to reach my goal.
✍🏻 Conclude by showing appreciation and invitation to discuss.
To sum up your motivation letter, you should show appreciation by thanking the administrator for their time. You can also express your excitement about the opportunity and invite them to have an interview with you.
Motivation letter closing paragraph template for data science master's:
I am more than just grateful for this given opportunity to apply for [University name] and I want to thank you for the time spent looking into my motivation letter. Please email me if there will be any chances for an interview and my email will always be welcome for any further information required.
Motivation Letter for Master's - Examples
Motivation letter for master’s scholarship
Dear Mr. Shaw,
My name is Janet Curry. Currently, I am a senior in Philosophy and Religious Studies at the University of Pennsylvania. I am writing to express my enthusiasm and need for the master’s scholarship because I plan to remain at the University of Pennsylvania to pursue my studies for the Master’s degree in Philosophy in Liberal Arts for another year.
During my studies as an undergraduate, I worked part-time as a tutor to keep up with the living expenses while also gaining work experience and more course understanding. Relating to my studies, I always spend time trying to understand the children’s behavior for a better tutoring approach in my tutor classes. The children’s smiles after finishing the classes kept me motivated to teach them more. It also gave me the motivation to study deeper about philosophy.
At the same time, I was inspired to become a university lecturer who teaches philosophy because I find philosophy amusing. I know this goal would not be easy because students’ behavior may differ depending on the lecturer. Pursuing my master’s degree would be the stepping stone and the big leap to my future career goal.
Regarding my financial issues, I would like to reduce the amount of time spent on tutoring and focus more on my studies. Having this scholarship means a lot to me as I can study without worrying about my living expenses. The extra time would also be used for class preparations, providing better education for the children whom I tutor.
I will be very honored if I am given this scholarship for my master’s degree at the University of Pennsylvania. It would be great if I can have an interview with the admission team to discuss the information. Thank you for the time and I look forward to hearing positive news from you.
Sincerely,
Janet Curry
Motivation letter for master’s in business administration
Dear Mr. Larry,
My name is Bobby Turner and I am a fresh graduate with a Bachelor’s degree in International Business Management at Lynn University. I plan to pursue my Master’s Degree in Business Administration at SMU Cox School of Business in the upcoming year.
I came from a family that has a small business selling motor vehicles. With my family as the greatest influence, I want to start up my own business in the future. This led me to continue studying Business Administration because I believe good management and leadership will create a better workplace for my future employees.
When I graduated with a bachelor’s degree, I spent some time working in the family business. Although I have not been working for long, I still gained much valuable experience from the opportunity given by my family. I concluded that continuing studying for a master’s degree will help me with my career building, while also learning much more knowledge from professionals, and expanding my social circle which will be beneficial in the future.
After carefully reviewing the course visions and content, I believe this program was designed for people like me who have big dreams. I am specifically interested in the risk management class because anything comes with a risk, and bigger opportunities equal higher risks. I want to learn as much as I can from the courses and be able to approach my goal.
I am eager to learn more and I hope to get the opportunity to have an interview to discuss the information stated in my CV. Lastly, thank you for your time and I look forward to hearing from you soon.
Regards,
Bobby Turner
Tips on How to Write a Motivation Letter for a Master's Program
Take a look at these 5 tips that you should take note of when writing your motivation letter for your master’s:
💡 Avoid grammar and spelling errors.
When submitting documents to apply for your master’s, you should show professionalism because there are requirements when they admit a student into the program. Error-free documents are always better in the administrator’s eyes. Hence, double-checking your motivation letter for your master‘s will be a safe way to avoid grammar and spelling errors.
💡 Address the letter specifically, avoid generic salutations.
As mentioned above, you should research for information before writing. During your research, you should find out the names of the administrators. This allows you to address the letter specifically instead of using the generic term “Mr. or Ms.” which does not specify who should be reading the letter.
Addressing specifically not only shows that you researched the institute, but also shows your enthusiasm in the application as you spent time for the letter’s detailed information.
💡 Do not write more than 1 page.
The purpose of a motivation letter for a master’s is to tell the story to the university admission team and convince them that you really want to be part of the institute as a master’s student. Writing more than 1 page will make your letter seem informal and boring because it shows that you did not summarize the main points.
Therefore, cut down the irrelevant information and keep your letter to 1 page.
💡 Always be honest & genuine.
A motivation letter for a master’s degree is a personal letter to show your enthusiasm. Using lies to make up for your lack of experience is not a great way to convince the admission team because they can see through it right away. There are many other ways for you to show your motivation when writing. Hence, you should always be honest and genuine in the letter.
💡 Be interesting.
To catch the admission team’s attention, you should always make your story interesting. This is because a boring motivation letter may not get a positive reply. When talking about being interesting, you should get personal with the motivation letter but also relate the story and the motivations.
🔑 Key Takeaways
Finally, you are at the end of this guide. Let us take a quick look at what you have read.
- Always research the master’s program, university, and institute for information before writing.
- Organize your information into different paragraphs to make the writing easier.
- Include personal information, experience, and achievements to lead to your motivations.
- Double-check your motivation letter for masters to avoid spelling errors and grammatical errors.
- Be honest and genuine when writing the letter as the admission team can see through lies.
With CakeResume, you can easily create a resume online, free download your resume’s PDF formats, and utilize ATS-compliant templates to create a resume. Land your dream job, create your resume online (free download) now!
— Originally written by Ryan Goh —
More Career and Recruitment Resources
With the intention of helping job seekers to fully display their value, CakeResume creates an accessible free resume/CV/biodata builder, for users to build highly-customized resumes. Having a compelling resume is just like a piece of cake!
