In this example format, the third paragraph will be a description of your professional goals. (This paragraph and the next, however, could be reversed.) Though your letter takes the general shape of a summary of your interests and background, it also builds an argument for your admission to a particular graduate program. The logic of this argument runs this way: I know what interests me; I know that I would like to engage in this work as my profession; and I believe that the necessary, most logical way to assure me of success in this profession is to earn this graduate degree. This paragraph describes what you know about the professional careers to which this course of graduate study may lead. Generally, people who pursue graduate degrees tend toward any of four professional occupations: academic, public service, private industry, or self-employment (i.e., writers, lawyers, physicians, etc.). Though you do not have to commit yourself to one career only, you are best served by presenting to the admissions committee as specific as ideas as possible about what you intend to do with their degree. If you know that you would eventually like to be a business consultant specializing in labor market analysis, say so. Such a statement indicates to the committee that you are goal oriented, that you are capable of identifying what you want and of developing a systematic means to attain it. This paragraph, in conjunction with the previous one, assures the admissions committee that you are an applicant with a purpose.
Your personal statement should close with a brief summary of your background and goals, again just a sentence or two. This last statement reaffirms both your preparation and your confidence that your choice of this graduate program is right.