Here is a sample personal statement of an analytics professional with three years of experience working in Amazon. This candidate was able to secure admission into top analytics programs like Georgia Tech, NCSU, and NYU. He has graciously shared his successful essay so that prospective applicants can benefit from it.
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Sample Personal Statement Analytics at GA Tech.
In what follows, I discuss how my experiences have shaped my interests and what I intend to do upon graduating from the MSA program.
My first exposure to Advanced Analytics was when I enrolled in the Master program in Operations Research at Cornell. I was particularly drawn to the program having been introduced to “Monte Carlo Simulation”, “Optimization” and “Advanced Probability & Statistics” – courses boasting an impressive reputation for solving most real-world problems. I took the initiative to develop an integer-program which solved for Manhattan-paths that fulfilled soil-redistribution requirements for this project. Our project won 2nd place in the Silent Hoist & Crane Company competition for best Masters-of-Engineering project and received special coverage in the Cornell Daily Sunnewspaper.
Following graduation, I returned to my home country and decided to put my Cornell degree to use immediately. Hence, I started working full-time as a junior analyst in the “Advanced Analytics” department at Amazon – the largest e-commerce operators in the world. At Amazon, I have worked on some of the most challenging strategic problems that the e-commerce Industry faces today in saturated markets. My work thus far has entailed using an assortment of clustering and predictive modeling techniques to develop pre/post-paid churn models, product affinity models, as well as creating a behavioral segmentation model for our pre-paid customer base.
Currently I am the lead on a project on Social Network Analysis, which involves studying the product spread within our customer base along with identifying influencers, bridges & followers in our community. At Amazon, not only have I acquired a diverse set of analytical skills; I have also developed an admiration for tackling complex problems arising in practice. This has inspired me to pursue a degree that particularly focuses on the practical aspects of analytics.
Specifically, I am interested in the application of Advanced Analytics techniques on major applications of business like retention analytics, growth analytics, acquisition analytics, pricing & forecasting. Upon graduating I see myself as part of a dynamic analytics team in one of the premiere consulting firms focusing to turn data into better decisions and business results. I do not want to limit myself to any specific business but am passionate about learning to solve intricate problems arising in different industries.
I am also very much excited about writing articles & white papers on solutions to industry problems and best practices in analytics. I want to share my expertise with people who would benefit from it. Currently I am in the process of getting an article published on the “Journey from BI to analytics” in a renowned analytics magazine. In order share my knowledge in an interactive way, I have delivered a couple of guest lectures and special courses on the use of analytics in supply chain industry at prestigious national universities. I would continue this trend set by myself in order to give back to the society.
After working for 3-4 years as an analytical consultant I aspire to start my own analytics consulting firm that would help struggling companies (especially in developing countries) compete efficiently. I have experienced firsthand the desperate need of analytical decision making by companies in low end markets where the difference between revenue & cost is very marginal. Analytics I firmly believe is the only solution to get an edge – Amazon being the first Company in the world to set-up an analytics department.
MSA’s Advanced Analytics program is critical for me if I am to meet both my short & long term objectives. The interdisciplinary nature of MSA at Georgia tech stems from the diverse backgrounds of its faculty and students; in turn, this enables the program to span the spectrum of cutting-edge applied analytics. Given the range of professional experiences I have had over the years, being a MSA student in this department would be the ideal propeller to my analytics career.