Mistakes that get an SOP rejected before anyone finishes reading it
Vague opening lines about lifelong passion. Restating your CV in paragraph form instead of explaining decisions. Naming a university but not a single specific course, professor, or research group. Copying language directly from the scholarship’s own website without connecting it to a real example from your life. And submitting the exact same SOP to five different scholarships with only the name swapped — reviewers can usually tell.