Post-reading Activities I. Reading for the Main Idea—Skimming Skim the reading and choose the best answer. ( ) What is the main idea of the reading? (A) An applicant should never show his/her ability or personality in an SOP. (B) A good SOP should include specific facts about the applicant and his/her reasons for choosing the program. (C) To attend a college, an applicant should start to develop interests related to his/her future career in high school. (D) An applicant should have his/her teachers read his/her SOP before sending it out. B

II. Reading for Details Scanning Scan the reading and choose the best answer to each of the following questions or statements. ( ) 1. According to the reading, a good SOP should include some specific information about the applicant, except for ___. (A) his/her reasons for applying to the college (B) an introduction of his/her love life (C) how the program he/she is applying for is connected to his/her interests (D) details that show his/her ability and personality B

( ) 2. Which of the following is a specific statement that shows an applicant’s ability well? (A) “I’m good at using computers, and I even won first place in my school’s website design competition.” (B) “I love using computers when doing research.” (C) “I’ll be a good member of any academic department.” (D) “I want to enhance my skills in computer science in the future.” A

( ) 3. According to the reading, what should an applicant do at an interview? (A) Confess who really wrote his/her references. (B) Persuade several teachers to read his/her SOP. (C) Talk a lot about what he/she has written in his/her SOP. (D) Check the grammar and spelling in his/her SOP. C

( ) 4. Which of the following statements should be used in the SOP if an applicant wants to show he/she can manage things? (A) “I once placed first in my school’s English Speech Contest.” (B) “I studied website design in school, and my dream is to work in this field in the future.” (C) “I helped run my school’s Drama Club.” (D) “I am a volunteer in an orphanage, and I like to help children in need.” C

( ) 5. According to the reading, which of the following statements is NOT true? (A) An applicant should explain in the SOP why the chosen program will be useful in his/her future career. (B) An applicant should use specific statements instead of general ones in the SOP. (C) An applicant should have teachers read his/her SOP before sending it out. (D) To make a good first impression, it’s all right for an applicant to lie at an interview. D

III. Topics for Discussion 1. What should an applicant write in his/her SOP? 2. What do you want to study after graduating from vocational high school? Why do you want to study this? Share your answer with your classmates.