Sample Project Management Personal Statement (UT Austin)
by Talha Omer, M.Eng., Cornell Grad
In personal statement samples by field.
The following essay was written by an applicant admitted to UT Austin’s Construction Engineering and Project Management program with 75% scholarship on tuition fee.
With over three years of work experience in a civil engineering and design firm, the applicant currently works with AECOM, a top infrastructure consulting firm. This essay will help you get some ideas on how to draft a great personal statement for a top graduate school like UT Austin.
Sample Personal Statement UT Austin in Project Management
I belong to a family of civil engineers. I have been observing the affiliation of my father and elder brother with construction activities since I was a kid, so it was only natural for me to get into this field. After completing my bachelor’s in civil engineering, I secured a job in the government sector. However, as I write this statement while concatenating my undergraduate studies with fifteen months of hands-on experience in construction management, I realize that the higher education system of my country lacks focus on academics and research in construction engineering and project management. Also, there are few or no opportunities to build a comprehensive skill set as a construction management professional. Therefore, I wish to pursue my higher studies in Construction Engineering and Project Management at the University of Texas at Austin.
My four years in undergraduate studies opened a whole new world to me, just as exciting as I had imagined. My favorite course was “Construction Management.” Through this course, I learned the fundamentals of how construction projects are managed top down during the feasibility, design, execution, and commissioning phases. I also learned how materials, manpower, and machinery are managed efficiently without compromising the quality, safety, and environment. However, because there were no faculty members with a doctorate in management studies, the research interests of my school were focused only on structures, geo-tech, and hydraulics. Therefore, I could not quench my curiosity to explore this domain beyond the course contents by pursuing my final year of research in construction management.
Soon after my graduation, my good grades and leadership experience enabled me to be in the top 5% of the graduating class. As a result, I received a job offer in a prestigious government department. In the government sector, I was hired by South Korean consultants for the project management of a state-of-the-art kidney and liver institute in the heart of the country. It is a 1500-bed hospital, research center, and medical university spread over 100 hectares. This opportunity of working with Korean colleagues enabled me to learn construction management from the viewpoint of two contrasting construction industries. My South Korean colleagues used to discuss with me at length how various practices are done differently and more efficiently in South Korea than in my country. As an assistant engineer, I worked on assignments ranging from scheduling, costing, safety, and quality control under the guidance of a veteran in hospital construction – Mr. B. H. Lee.
Working with the Project Management Consultants (P.M.C.), I had the opportunity to practice and learn project management skills in a true sense. I prepared the standard formats and operating procedures for collecting progress data from all stakeholders. I identified the Key Performance Indicators, which were understandable even for non-technical people. The compiled progress reports were, in turn, presented to the top management, including the Heads of the States. I also prepared a comprehensive documentation control guideline for the quality control of the project. Although I had no prior knowledge of all the types of documents that would ever be produced in the project, I managed to identify them by holding extensive meetings with the consultants, contractors, and stakeholders in the government.
The guidelines I prepared also included the documents’ standard formats and operating procedures. The Chief Operating Officer appreciated my achievements and gradually implemented the same systems on all succeeding projects. I also assisted the Korean head of the H.S.E. department in his motto of “planting the safety tree.” We conducted regular training and workshops and developed a proper system of punishment and reward as a motivation for labor to follow the H.S.E. rules. We also developed an environmental monitoring and mitigation program. Together we were able to complete 1 million safe man hours, which was unique in the construction practices of the country. During his monthly site visit, the Head of the State highly appreciated our H.S.E. team on this achievement.
Upon the yearly performance evaluation, I was handpicked and promoted by the Chief Operating Officer to work as Project Coordinator for Recep Tayyip Erdogan Hospital (RTEH) Expansion Project – a teaching hospital spread on 113 acres situated in a remote district of the state. Here, I worked closely with the Project Director to ensure proper coordination between more than 20 stakeholders of this project. These stakeholders included government departments, clients, consultants, contractors, and vendors. Initially, I had to face multiple challenges as the S.O.P.s for the flow of information were not clearly defined. Therefore, I used the skills I had learned in my previous project to streamline the flow of information between all stakeholders. While working on this project, I also learned contract administration. I was responsible for checking and processing interim payments, variation orders, extension of time requests, and descoping of a contract while ensuring compliance with the conditions of the contract.
Although I garnered extensive knowledge related to construction engineering and project management in these projects, I had to improvise a lot because of a lack of proper background in project management and a lack of information on the international best practices and standards developed for these purposes. Through the Construction Engineering and Project Management program at the University of Texas at Austin, I will be able to overcome the shortcomings in my undergraduate studies and professional experience. The program offers diverse courses that would help me bridge the gap in my professional experience and the construction practices in the U.S.A. For example, the courses “Project Information Management Systems” and “Project Controls” would help me build on my knowledge. In addition, being a “Longhorn Engineer” will allow me to learn from the best in the business – the top industry practitioners and professors with numerous breakthroughs in research and patents.
UT Austin offers an opportunity to its student to gain research experience on real-life projects. Therefore, I will be able to learn not only technical aspects of construction engineering but also the much-in-demand project management skills. Also, I was a member of the debating club of my undergraduate school and won numerous accolades for my institute. Thus, my stay at UT Austin will be an opportunity for me to discover the multicultural American society and learn the values of tolerance and generosity. Moreover, I will avidly represent my country as a country full of colors and joys compared to what is reflected in the international media.
With its vibrant culture and sunny, temperate climate, Austin is among the most desirable cities. Studying at Austin would allow me to connect with and learn from construction industry leaders. UT Austin admits scholars from around the world. It provides its students with an opportunity for networking, professional learning, and exposure to the construction practices of various parts of the world. I will be able to learn not only from highly qualified professors but also from my peers coming from diverse backgrounds. UT Austin is rightly referred to as a “Public Ivy” because of the vast opportunities it provides to its students.
After completing my degree, I plan to work with my current employer. Being in the government department will enable me to enforce the international best practices learned from my graduate degree from the University of Texas at Austin. In addition, one of the General Managers at my organization has a Ph.D. in Structural Engineering from C.E.E., Stanford University. He has combined the knowledge gained from Stanford with the authority he was given as the head of the Engineering & Planning wing of a government department to revolutionize structure design practices. I wish to follow him in his footsteps and bring a change to the predominantly orthodox and outdated construction practices.
After all, “what starts at UT Austin changes the world.” I also dream of starting short courses in various construction engineering and project management skills for professionals. The best benefit of American education is that you get that entrepreneurial confidence in taking the initiative to apply what you have learned in your way. Therefore, in the long term, I wish to start an independent PMO (Project Management Office) for consultation with my father and elder brother. It will solve problems faced by construction projects throughout the country on demand. I am confident that a Master’s degree in Construction Engineering and Project Management from the University of Texas at Austin will fulfill my dreams and aspirations.
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