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Should I mention specific professors I want to work with in my Statement of Purpose‑ How do I do it without sounding generic?

I know name-dropping can show I've done my homework, but I don't want to just list names from the faculty page. How specific should I be about their work, and is it risky to mention only one professor?

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By Ria Desai Answered 1 year ago

Absolutely name them, but depth is everything. Mentioning 2-3 professors is ideal. For each, go beyond their general field. Reference a specific paper, methodology, or ongoing project of theirs and explain how it connects to your interests. For example, instead of "I wish to work with Prof. X on machine learning," write: "Prof. X's 2023 work on sparse attention mechanisms directly informs my proposed approach to efficient language modeling." This shows you've engaged with their scholarship at a granular level. Avoid naming a professor who is retiring or unlikely to take students. This specificity transforms your SOP from a generic interest letter to a targeted research alignment document.

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