Writing an outstanding motivation letter for your Master’s degree application is crucial if you want to make a great impression in addition to presenting in greater detail your skills and the experience that recommends you to apply for the programme.
Not sure how to get started? Check out our top 10 tips for writing the perfect motivation letter and best practices for a persuasive statement of purpose.
Here are a few universities we recommend for History studies:
- Wichita State University, the US
- Birkbeck, University of London, the UK
- Utrecht University, the Netherlands
- Central European University (CEU), Austria
- Sabanci University, Turkey
The following motivation letter is from a student coming from Egypt applying to a Master’s in History and Oriental Studies offered by a university in Italy.
Motivation Letter of Student Applying to a Master in History
Dear sir or madam,
I am writing to apply for the Master’s Programme in History and Oriental Studies at [university name 1]. I would like to express my appreciation to this program because it gives me the opportunity to obtain my Master’s degree and achieve my goal. I have graduated from the faculty of Tourism and Hotels, [university name 2], Egypt.
Egypt has a lot of civilisations like Pharaonic, Roman, Greek, Coptic, Islamic and these civilisations made me very interested in ancient history and archaeology so I specialised in Tourist Guidance within the field of Ancient History and Archaeology. I checked the prerequisites for applying to the Master’s program and I found that I meet almost all of it. During the four academic years I studied the history and archaeology of Roman Empire in Ancient Egypt, also the Greek, Pharaonic, Coptic and Islamic history and archaeology, and had a lot of training by [university name 2], the Supreme Council of Antiquities and different museums such as the Greco-Roman Museum and the National Museum in Alexandria. This gave me a deep background that supported my academic studies. Also, I studied the ancient Egyptian language (Hieroglyphics) and Literature besides the Roman and Coptic fine arts during the Ancient Egyptian History. My native language is Arabic, my first language is English and I studied French at the Faculty and had a course in Italian language at Dante Alighieri and I have a great intent to improve myself at anything that supports my studies and help me to have my Master’s degree abroad.
I have been working more than two years since my graduation. I spent the first year as a tourist guide to provide assistance, information and cultural, historical and contemporary heritage interpretation to people on organised tours in different nationalities and got promoted to be a branch manager at the same agency. I am seeking a career with an international dimension that gives me an opportunity to work for an international organisation so that after graduation I decided with a great desire to complete my studies by having a Master’s degree from an international university outside of Egypt. I preferred to have my Master from an Italian University because Italy is the main place of the Roman Empire so that having my Master from [university name 1] is something perfect because I will study the history inside its place of birth. It is not the first time that I hear about [university name 1]. I know about it since I was in the faculty because of the mobility system between [university name 2] and [university name 1] during that period, but I preferred to wait for a chance to have my Master’s degree from [university name 1]. I will be very grateful and lucky if I got this chance that I was seeking two years ago and I am sure that studying in [university name 1] will give me a chance to deepen my knowledge in an inspiring, creative environment of one of the largest Italian universities.
I chose [university name 1] specifically because it is the oldest university in the Western world and it is a keystone and a point of reference for European culture. Also, because of its outstanding educational system with full support of the international students and the friendly atmosphere at both the university as well as the city. I appreciate your time and it will be a great honour for me to be a Master’s student at [university name 1].
View Masters in Ancient History
Top countries where to study a Master's degree in History
If Italy isn't one of your choice destinations, you can always check out:
If you're not sure Italy is the right destination for you, here are some convincing reasons to study in Italy.