A CSC study plan is easier to draft with the programme requirements and a few notes about your experience beside you. Start with what you have studied, why the degree interests you and what you hope to learn next.
You can write the easiest section first. A short account of a real project often gives you more to work with than trying to produce a polished introduction immediately.
Check which document is requested
A university may ask for a Study Plan, Personal Statement, Motivation Letter or Research Proposal. Read its instructions for the language, length and required questions. These documents can overlap, but a research proposal needs details that an undergraduate motivation statement may not.
Donghua University’s 2026 undergraduate guide, for example, requests a personal statement of about 1,000 words in the teaching language. It covers education, major choice, relevant experience, and academic and career plans. Treat this as one intake’s example rather than a CSC-wide word count.
Gather a few useful notes
Write down a subject, assignment or project you can discuss in detail. Note what you did, what you learned and what you would like to understand better. Ordinary experience is enough to start: a school assignment, independent reading or a small piece of practical work can be relevant.
Then open the programme curriculum. Choose the courses or opportunities that connect with those notes. Check their names and availability on the official website, particularly when research pages describe facilities not normally available to undergraduates.
A possible undergraduate outline
The order can follow the university’s questions. If none is specified, these parts give you a starting point:
- The subject or question that interests you.
- Relevant preparation and what it taught you.
- The reason this programme fits the next stage.
- What you hope to study or practise during the degree.
- How you might use that learning afterwards.
You do not need to repeat every item from your transcript. Explain a few details that help the reader understand your direction. A change of field can also be discussed: say what carries over and which foundations you still need.
Revising one paragraph
Here is a fictional example for practice. Suppose an applicant writes:
I am interested in economics and want to study at your excellent university to develop my knowledge.
The sentence gives a topic, but the reader still has little information about the applicant. A more useful draft might be:
For a school assignment, I compared prices of a small basket of products in two neighbourhood shops. I enjoyed organising the figures, but realised that the comparison did not explain why prices differed. I would like to study introductory economics and statistics so I can ask that question more carefully.
This is only an example; use your own experience. The applicant could next connect the interest to a verified course in the chosen degree. There is no need to invent a research achievement to make that link.
Writing about the university
Choose a feature that matters to your learning and explain the connection. For a course, say which question or skill it would help you develop. For a project or placement, confirm that students at your level can take part.
Avoid building the whole explanation around reputation. The reader already knows the university’s name. Your paragraph should show why this particular option belongs in your plan.
If a research proposal is required
For a research master’s or doctorate, describe the work itself: a question and its boundaries, relevant literature, proposed materials or data, method and an expected contribution. Explain why the department can support the project.
Include a practical limitation where it affects feasibility. If you need company data, for example, say whether access exists and what alternative you could use. If you are still choosing a method, explain what you need to establish before deciding.
Use approaches you can explain in your own words. Follow the programme’s specific proposal instructions rather than treating this outline as a required format.
Reading the draft before submitting
First check the connection between your background, programme choice and plans. Then check facts about courses, laboratories and staff. Read the draft aloud and simplify sentences you would struggle to explain in an interview.
After translation or editing with an AI tool, confirm that the experiences and meaning are still yours. Check the technical details last: exact programme name, language, length, file format and the version intended for that application.
The submission route and dates need their own check. See CSC Type A and Type B and finding the relevant deadlines.
A first paragraph to write today
Choose one programme and list the questions it asks. Add a few notes about your experience, then write the one you can explain most clearly.
On the next reading, ask how that paragraph helps explain your programme choice. You can add the missing connection once you have a draft to work with.
