This blog post provides detailed guidance on how to concretely and persuasively convey your interest in derivatives and financial markets within your statement of purpose, focusing on practical strategies and expression methods.
Reasons for Pursuing Further Education (Why I Chose This Major)
After completing my military service and returning to school, I recall the words of my professor during the very first finance lecture: “Don’t compete with the students sitting next to you; compete with students across the entire globe.” Those words became a catalyst for broadening my perspective. From that moment, I developed a genuine interest in my major and consistently achieved excellent grades each semester.
While preparing to become an investment advisor after my discharge, my interest in finance deepened. Although I later left for Canada for language training and didn’t obtain the certification, I studied for the FP exam during the summer vacation after returning. The more I studied finance, the more I realized it was a field with vast potential, leading me to decide to pursue graduate studies at your university.
Primary Research Interests and Research Plan
I believe finance is as vital to the economy as its blood vessels. Within this field, I am particularly drawn to derivative financial products. Though relatively new to the Korean financial market, these unfamiliar instruments offer considerable fascination the more I study them. Derivatives are essentially combinations; through these combinations, they can take the form of stocks or bonds. Their ability to transform into diverse shapes, almost like magic, is what captivates me.
Unlike securities, which trade physical assets, derivatives allow transactions worth several times the amount of capital invested in the spot market. Consequently, they can generate profits ranging from several to dozens of times greater than those from ordinary stock or bond trading. This is why I chose derivatives. By enrolling in your graduate program, I aim to build scientific and specialized knowledge in derivatives to cultivate the ability to accurately analyze financial markets.
Plans after the Doctoral Program
My dream is to become an outstanding leading engineer in the polymer industry, one who is creative, enterprising, and possesses both a broad education and strong character. The demand for personnel in the polymer field continues to grow, and there is an increasingly urgent need for highly skilled professionals with specialized knowledge in this area. Therefore, after graduation, I wish to work as a researcher at the Daedeok Research Complex, establishing new standards in the polymer field.
After that, I wish to move to the most prestigious American university in the polymer field to solidify my research foundation. For Korea, where the foundation of basic science is weaker compared to other leading nations, I aspire to make a significant contribution through pioneering academic research in this field.
Self-Introduction (Life Philosophy, Values)
The greatest joy I find in experiments comes when the methods I meticulously devised to achieve results truly pay off. I believe experiments lose their appeal if one merely follows instructions without critical thought. When experimental outcomes are unsatisfactory, I gain immense fulfillment by identifying the root cause of failure and resolving it.
Even with experiments that can yield excellent results, lacking interest and enthusiasm makes analyzing the results difficult and achieving good outcomes equally challenging. I believe that by constantly asking “Why?” and thinking about the causes during experiments and analysis, one can derive the desired results. I believe that approaching experiments with interest, enthusiasm, and passion leads to correspondingly good results.
