Selection committees read hundreds of these. Here is how yours ends up in the short pile instead of the bin.
Most motivation letters fail in the first paragraph, because they open with a sentence the reader has already seen four hundred times. Committees are not looking for eloquence. They are looking for evidence that you understand what the programme does and why you fit it.
Open with the specific, not the grand
Replace I have always been passionate about with the concrete thing that pulled you toward the field. One sentence, real detail, no adjectives.
Structure it in three moves
- Where you are now — the work, study or problem that shaped your direction.
- Why this programme — name the modules, supervisors or structure. Vague praise signals a copy-paste application.
- What happens next — what you will do with it afterwards that they would want to be associated with.
Things that quietly disqualify you
- Naming a different university or programme somewhere in the letter
- Repeating your CV in paragraph form
- Exceeding the stated length because you had more to say
- No proofreading pass — two readers, minimum
A closing check
Hand the letter to someone who does not know your field. If they cannot explain back to you what you want to do and why this programme, rewrite it.