Letter of motivation

Hello,

I need some help with my Letter of Motivation for an Erasmus Mundus Master Programm. I already put some great advise from moountain hiker in it, but I am not a great writer and native german. Some corrections would be great and very appreciated!!!

My grades are average so I need a strong letter. This is one of my later drafts and I am so far content with the outline but it might be bit long right now and I still think about writing what I learned through my gap year in OZ/NZ and what coureses I especially like in the MSs.

Thanks so far,

Dear Sir or Madame,

I am writing to apply for your Erasmus Mundus Master of Science in Ecohydrology. Having reviewed several graduate programs, in consultation with professors and marine scientist, I am confident that this program is a concrete step towards my international career and continuance of my research in the realm of Ecohydrology and Marine science.

As my first exposure to Hydrology I consider an experience I had during my time in Australia in 2008. Before studying at the University XXX I decided to travel through Australia, New Zealand and Indonesia. My goals were to improve my knowledge of the English language, get to know new cultures, to see the beautiful landscapes and nature of those areas and to achieve work experience. Moreover I learned a great deal about myself. Although travelling with a friend I obtained a new confidence and self-dependence.

Visiting a farm in the Snowy Mountains in New South Wales was in particular special for me. Before arrival I had no knowledge about the drought the area was in for about seven years at that time. Since I am a “clean-drinking-water spoiled northern German” this was a very unique and unexpected experience. Not only being in a drought area and dealing with only a shower in four to five days and all the special water saving plans was stunning also coming from an in general water-rich coastline into such a drought area less than 200 km from the coast in a high-developed country was unexpected. This experience gave me the push to specialize in environmental science to hopefully be able to help managing or prevent this kind of situations around the world.

I have never regretted this decision. In high school I graduated with biology and geographic as my majors. But my love for nature and the ocean grew already early in my life due to my childhood close by a forest and the Baltic Ocean. The B.Sc. in agricultural sciences with specialization in environmental sciences perfectly meets my interests. In addition I was able to gain a position as a Research Assistant in the Department of Marine Ecology. With this equally interesting and challenging job I was able to still my hunger to learn aspects of Marine Science beside my studies. Furthermore it was exciting to gain some practical experience.

While academic career is vitally important to me, so are my extracurricular activities. Since I was five I played field hockey. With determination and ambition I made up of my lack of natural talent. For the moment I am playing with my team at very high level in the Regional League North. Beside willpower the involvement in such a demanding hobby taught me responsibility, team spirit, patience with myself and others and good time-management with was necessary to be able to be socially active with friend and to enjoy my other hobbies.

I particularly like about the Ecohydrology EMMSc that it combines travelling and studying thru the mobility scheme. Of course due to my own interest in travelling but also the idea of strengthening the connection of Europe to third countries and interaction between different cultures struck my attention. Moreover interesting is my expectation to study and see the various local ecosystems and environments. On the one hand participation in the Erasmus Mundus Master Course will be very testing (challenging) but also exciting and interesting with opportunities I would never be able to acquire in a regular master program. I am happy/challenge to meet the high expectations.

Moreover the offered Master unites my interest in a way I have not found before. The connection of Hydrology with Marine Science with an ecological approach is what makes it in especially interesting for me. My interest where always centered in marine biology but I saw more opportunities in a B. Sc. in Agriculture Science with the specialization in the environmental realm. I am confident that my studies at the University XXX providing me with a great knowledge of interaction between the bodies of water, the climate, the soil, the biosphere, the ocean and the anthropogenic influences. While the contribution of the agriculture courses are more basic but needed to understand the bigger picture and the impact of the changing land use especially the later courses in Hydrology, Ecology and Soil Science are going to be a great benefit for my further studies.

As described in my letter of Recommendation I worked as Research Assistant for the InstituteXXX. Beside the described task I was also involved in the assessment of the impact of acidification in the Oceans through CO₂ for fish larvae. I find the influence of the climate change on the worlds ecosystems a very important and study worth thematic and hope to gain a deeper insight in the fish-reaction to high CO₂-concentration due to my BSc-thesis in cooperation with the Association of Marine Aquaculture and Prof XXX.

Thank you so much for your consideration and I look forward to your acceptance of my application.

Yours sincerely,