Personal Statement
Applicant: xx     Program: Ph.D. in Rural Economy, xx University

In the summer this year, I did an internship as a student of economics. My aim was to probe into the changing circumstances of the rural economic development of China. As my hometown, xx Region, has the most vibrant economic development in eastern China, I decided to undertake a field study there in order to understand the complexity of China’s rural economy. In my study, an interesting phenomenon captured my attention. Contrary to the mainstream rural privatization, the xx Village in the xx District achieved astonishing growth in its collective economy. The entire village has become a share-holding enterprise operating in a diversity of fields not simply confined to farming. In 2002, the combined agricultural and industrial output reached 370,000,000RMB (equivalent to 46,300,000 U.S. dollars). 

To unveil this intriguing phenomenon, I investigated several of the village’s collective enterprises and paid visits to the Rural Development and Reform Committee of xx City. By the time the summer ended, I returned to my university with a large quantity of first-hand statistics and, under the research guidance of my advisor Prof. xx, I came up with a treatise xx. In my thesis, I analyzed the fundamental characteristics of the unique pattern of collective economy and proposed my own perspectives concerning how that unique pattern can be perfected. 

While improving my independent research competence, this field study set me contemplating on what I can do as a student of economics. Indeed, the collective economy of the xx Village can serve as a role model for other rural areas of the country, which no remarkable growth has been achieved over the past decade. In what way can this new pattern of rural economic development be practiced elsewhere in China? How effective guidelines can be formulated that apply to the different circumstances of rural economy in different parts of the country? How universal prosperity can be achieved in the rural areas which account for 80% of the country’s entire land so that China can gain a structural balance in its economic growth? Those are the issues to which I yearn to seek answers.

The highly mature patterns of economic development of the United States and the remarkable achievements it has made in the research of rural economy become my underlying motives for seeking a graduate program in your esteemed university. To study those advanced patterns and to understand Chinese rural economy within the framework of U. S. rural patterns will be the focus of my proposed program. Naturally, my aim is to assimilate successful American experiences in rural economy and to apply them to Chinese context. To prove my qualifications for your highly respected graduate program, I can point to the academic trainings I have received and the achievements I have made during my undergraduate program at xx University— the most prestigious institution of the country in terms of teaching and research in agriculture.

Having completed a systematic study in the specialty of International Economics and Trade, I have score 86.8/100 in my overall GPA, ranking top second in my class consisting of a total of 31 students. In particular, I would like to cite my strong foundation in mathematics, which is of vital importance to studying rural economy on a more advanced academic level. My academic transcript indicates my straight A’s in Advanced Mathematics, Probability, Statistics and related subjects, so does in Macroeconomics and Econometrics. Such an academic groundwork testifies to my full potential to apply mathematic analysis in combination with economic theories when researching on specific issues. 

I have also endeavored to develop tentative research methodology by undertaking individual course projects. When studying the course International Trade Theory and Practice，I made a case study of the dumping allegations that China faces in the wake of its WTO accession and its anti-dumping measures. Early this year, I made a comprehensive and in-depth study of the anti-dumping laws in leading western countries, WTO’s anti-dumping protocols, and a number of anti-dumping cases by western countries against developing countries. The findings of this survey study went into my term paper xx. Concentrating on the recent U.S. anti-dumping action against Chinese furniture，I investigated into the extent of legal relevance of anti-dumping actions taking by the United States to its industrial protection, and the ramifications of such actions on the complicated Sino-American economic relationship, the possibility of anti-dumping legislation on the part of China, and how trade conflicts can be resolved under the WTO framework.

I have made further efforts to hone my research caliber by undertaking my graduation thesis entitled xx. The thesis will center on how agricultural profitability, ecological preservation and social benefits can be unified in modern agriculture for a developing country like China. It is maintained that, like transformations in other spheres of national economy, transformation from conventional pattern to modern pattern is prerequisite in order to fulfill sustainable development in China’s modernization campaign in the realm of agriculture. I further propose that important innovations must be introduced into the concept, mechanism, market and technology of modern agriculture as a means to enhance the competitiveness of agricultural industrialization and escalate the overall level of rural economy. My advisor Prof. xx has demonstrated his appreciation of my chosen topic and a full-length, detailed, and well-argument thesis is expected.

I am fully aware that as an undergraduate I have only grasped basic principles of economics and my research is all too tentative. Only an education on the graduate level can satisfy my aspiration to go truly deep into my study and research interest. In this respect, the United States’ advanced management of rural economy, its effective policies and policy-making mechanisms, and the fruitful research accomplished so far, all of those will become an essential knowledge input for me. Through your program, I wish to acquire original research perspectives and efficacious methodologies. Another thing of special interest to me is that, from a global perspective, important gaps exist in rural economy among different developing countries and even more striking disparities between developed and developing countries. Therefore, international rural development will also be my focus.

My research of xx University reveals that your School of Economics occupies a distinctive leading position as a teaching and research-intensive institution in rural economy, with a philosophically diverse and outstanding faculty. This diversity allows graduate students to develop a broad range of economic perspectives and tools for solving applied problems in agricultural and natural resources economics. On the other hand, your major research projects mostly aim at the developing countries, highly relevant to what is happening now in China. I can discern a strong affinity between your teaching and research and my own academic background and interest.

My present application for an advanced degree program is closely alloyed with my academic and professional objectives. My short-term objective is to complete my Ph.D. program in rural economy with satisfactory results. However, to acquire academic excellence and research methodology is not an end in itself. With first-rate specialized education at your university, my long-range professional objective is to be a well-trained and accomplished scholar, making lifelong commitments to the study rural economy.