SOP Sample for MS in Cyber Security in USA

Statement of Purpose

Name: [NAME] Course: MS in Cybersecurity University: [UNIVERSITY] Preferred Intake: Fall 2022

Due to my insatiable curiosity, I flourished whenever I was involved in making a project. When I was in high school, I garnered a lot of appreciation and even got the 'Unique Project' award. But there was a day when I was in the 11th grade that I will never forget, as it changed the course of my life. At dinner, my father told me that an MNC had reported of a huge cybersecurity breach. Intrigued, I started reading about this and was shocked to know the number of cyberattacks that were occurring worldwide. That's when the seeds of exploring Cybersecurity were sown. Another reason was that the concept of application security aligns with my interests in math, programming and problem-solving.

The path to do this was to do undergraduate in Computer Science. From day one I decided to dedicate myself to do my bit in solving real-world problems. In my 1st year, we were taught a subject called the Joy of Engineering, and it was mandatory to complete a project. As a team leader, I proposed that we make a "toxic gas detector in the septic tank". I chose this because even today, in India, sewage tanks are cleaned manually and I have seen (on TV) that some have died doing this work. After 2 years, we saw success and I applied for a design patent (Registered with [ID_NUMBER]). Simultaneously, I took the initiative and worked hard to find the best way to learn more about Security Practices and methodologies. Related blogs and [NAME]'s courses on Youtube videos helped me immensely to clear my basics and try for the next level.

In my 2nd year, I was offered an internship at a company to be an application security engineer to find out if there was any vulnerability in their application. This stint helped me to gain industry experience and I learned how to secure an application depending upon their business requirement. This amazing experience reiterated to me the need of Cybersecurity, and I decided that I want to pursue Masters in this field. With the stipend that I received, I tried to complete my CEH certification. And this helped me to open a lot of doors in cyber security. I found the Infosec community plays an important role. So, I decided to give back to community and gave free talks on security awareness.

I was introduced to Security Attack and Defense in my 5th semester where I had the opportunity to go one step further and learn the concepts of Application Security and Threat Modelling to do predictive analysis for security issues in applications. I gained immense hands-on experience doing various projects, as part of the coursework. Utilizing all that I had learnt in the classroom, I started freelancing. I started submitting valid security reports that I had done to companies, which helped them to secure their assets. I am now ranked globally under 1000 in [COMPANY]. (Please refer to my resume for details) In the same semester (5th) I developed an automated security framework for securing applications from web-based attacks.

In my 6th semester, when I was given an opportunity to choose my core electives, keen to progress further in the field of cybersecurity, I opted for Vulnerability Assessment and Penetration Testing. These courses gave me very good exposure and hands-on experience as I worked on multiple projects (the first 2 projects in my resume). Apart from academic experiences I also had the opportunity to learn and understand how security has a huge role to play in the IT industry. Hence, I started spreading awareness to students when I was working closely with the school of engineering department as Academic Affairs Secretary for [UNIVERSITY]. At the end of my program, I realized that my favourite subjects were networking, cryptography, database management systems, and algorithms.

Since my days in school, I have veered towards leadership roles. A keen player of kabaddi, I was selected to be the team captain. Later in my Bachelor's, I lead my team in our special project. In my 2nd year, we participated in a [COMPANY] fest ([UNIVERSITY]), and under my leadership, my team proposed a unique business model for which we won 1st prize. In my 3rd year, I was the Academic Affairs Secretary and represented my college in various events. Apart from all that I have done in college, at [COMPANY], I was a Security Analyst, and lead the technical team and am responsible for clients and mitigation meetings.

After all these years, I have experience in building my own tools (Pentest Bot, Hash Decrypter); developed a Pentesting Framework to gather internal assets of a domain using Python & Streamlit library; I have contributed my valid Bug Bounty reports against [COMPANY], [COMPANY], [COMPANY]; designed a secure web application for Shopping management; designed a Railway management system ensuring all software requirements; and led a session on online safety for women at [ORGANIZATION]. I also took part and organised a CTF event for the [ORGANIZATION], [ORGANIZATION]; wrote a research review report on the topic "Implementation of RSA Algorithm"; developed & deployed Medical drug prediction model in Heroku (which is correctly responsive for the patients that are suffering from the same illness); developed & deployed Remote threat detection system in AWS; secured the [ORGANIZATION] website; and last but not least received appreciation from [ORGANIZATION] for reporting vulnerabilities in Indian Govt. websites.

My hobbies include playing badminton and checking out the latest technology feed. I love to spend my free time at my farmhouse. It is unfortunate that none of my family is educated beyond the 10th grade. I am the first one who is going to graduate. Hence, a Master's is all the more important to me and my family.

[UNIVERSITY] ticks all my boxes and I am impatient to become a part of the diverse student community. During Master's in Cyber Security, the areas that I wish to focus on are Information Security, Security Policies, Cyber Security, and Application Security Engineering. Once I complete my course, my short term goal is to work at an MNC in the field of Application Security. I will then be able to understand and learn how large organizations operate. In the long run, I intend to launch my own venture in the domain of Cyber Security, providing effective solutions to an organization depending upon their business requirements. Based on all that I learnt from my University and later, my professional experience, I hope to be good at what I do and be able to expand my client base.