My first letter of motivation

I am really glad to bump into this forum! I am not a native speaker of English so I need a bunch of advice to write my motivation letter for my master's degree application. I hope someone here will help me fix this mess. Thank you in advance.

Dear Sir or Madam,

I wish to apply for the Master of XX Studies program at YY University for the 2014 fall term. This program is a big step towards my future career as an ZZ archaeologist who is familiar with the usage of modern science and technology to help unearthing the past. During my time as a bachelor student, I learned that YY University has the most suitable postgraduate program for me. My ultimate career objective is to be affiliated with a university with rich history in research. So I believe that your program will help me enhance my career.

In 2013, I earned a bachelor degree in AA archaeology from University of BB. With a grade point average of 3.79, I have placed myself at the top of my class and even in the top 3 of the Faculty of Humanities. Benefiting from the broad nature of archaeology in AA, I have been exposed to a wide range of subjects from prehistoric to the colonial era. Nevertheless, the classical period of AA, namely the Hindu-Buddhism period, interests me the most.

I also took the convenience to study the specialized course in the field of epigraphy. Therefore, I have acquired the basic skill of AA paleography, epigraphy methods, and inscription interpretation, as well as studying historical texts. My undergraduate thesis on a 9^th Century AA inscription was supervised by Prof. CC and the transliteration and translation chapter was specially supervised by Prof. DD from the EE. Under his guidance, I also spent nine months learning AA and studying various inscriptions. Moreover, I was able to join several excavations and those opportunities enabled me to meet many professors and fellow archaeologists. Such networking has given me better understanding of what the AA archaeology needs.

While my focus might seem to be epigraphy, my passion still lies in the field of archaeology. My love for archaeology has been flourished since I sat on elementary school. This passion, combined with discussion with various professors I have come across to during my time as bachelor student, have shaped my present academic interest. Coming from natural science background in high school, I expect to be able to adapt my knowledge even more in the field of archaeology. One thing worth mentioned, archaeological methods in AA has not been improved to its maximum capacity since the majority of scholars are not very open-minded to the development of modern technology. Thus, I am hoping to study more of scientific methods and techniques in order to understand the nature of artifacts through the material culture studies. In the process, I also hope to be able to incorporate other discipline to help with my studies such as history, anthropology, and geography.

Apart from my studies, I acted as a member in the Archaeology Student Organization in my university and I often took part as committee in their events. Their events include not only those which help archaeology students enhancing archaeological skills, such as archaeological site visits, museum visits, excavation trainings, and seminars, but also those which introduce archaeology to public, such as general lectures and exhibitions . Having acted as the coordinator of scientific affair in several archaeological site visits held by the association, I always had to work with other people and those experiences have strengthened my interpersonal skills as well as time management skills.

There are three key reasons why I want to study at this program. First, I selected your program because of its primary focus on the scientific aspect of archaeology. Second, Prof. DD, whom I have been acquaintance to for this past one year, encouraged me to study at YY University where he got his degree. Lastly, I wish to grow to be a full-fledged archaeologist who can combine the science of technology with social sciences.

Given my past record of achievement, diverse experience, and my life-long desire to become a top archaeologist, I am confident that I will exceed your expectations.

Thank you for your attention and consideration. I look forward to your acceptance.

Sincerely yours
ladyinthewater