药理学（Pharmacology）专业申请文书

My mother is back. For two and a half years, she has been tucked away in a place where those more fortunate have never ventured. The woman who returned bears only a slight resemblance to the person I knew before her departure. Even though she is the same person, something terribly devastating had to have happened to change the one I knew so well. I am confident that she will be normal again, but only time will tell.

Physically, my mother was always present. I could see, touch, and even talk to her, but our relationship was not the same. She was no longer the person that watched me develop into a man. My mother was a stranger. Her whole persona transformed, her once driven personality slowly wilted like a flower in the blistering August heat. I should have sensed her degeneration; her past was flooded with indicators and warnings of problems yet to come. But I ignored her inner demons, hoping they would never surface.

For the last two and a half years, my mother has lived in a world of depression and anxiety. During these desperate and often discouraging times, I was introduced to the uniqueness of each human body. Throughout her illness, my mother was placed on an unthinkable quantity and variety of medications, but none seemed to have any effect. I was amazed at how other individuals diagnosed with similar conditions reacted so differently to the same drug therapy. My ignorance of medicine was frustrating. As a science major, I was trained to think analytically and objectively, but I lacked a medical education, and I had no training in the fields of psychiatry and psychology, so I was helpless in this situation from a scientific perspective. Love and moral support were all I had to offer.

After numerous doctors and several misdiagnoses, along with virtually every anti-depressant or anti-anxiety drug on the market, my mother eventually found the correct pharmaceutical and diagnosis, and she was set on the road to recovery. Her experience has had a tremendous influence on my decision to pursue a Ph.D. in pharmacology.
When I entered my freshman year of college, I was overwhelmed by the academic transition from high school to university. Tests were transformed into major exams, book reports became research papers, classrooms developed into forums, and time was truly man's worst enemy. I felt that it would be wise to enter my first year under the status of "undecided, " which would provide me with a chance to complete some “easy” prerequisite courses before tackling the more difficult subject matter. I was wrong. My studies lacked a clear direction, and my grades plummeted. In response, I gave myself an ultimatum; either I would continue on my path to academic destruction, or I would buckle down, evaluate my goals, and do what it would take to achieve them. I chose the latter.

As my undergraduate studies progressed, I developed a fascination with the molecular aspects of biology. The way in which atoms and molecules define us as human beings, and how the complete synchrony of these atoms and molecules are essential for life intrigued me. While studying physiology, I became interested in ligands and how the binding of ligands to their specified receptors induces our many behaviors. My interest in pharmacology developed out of my study of ligands, coupled with my mother’s condition.

My curiosity has aroused several questions concerning drugs and neurotransmitters -- specifically, what are the roles of norepinephrine, dopamine, and serotonin in neurological disorders, and what influence do drugs have upon these neurotransmitters? What is the action mechanism of these drugs? Are more or fewer of these neurotransmitters involved in such disorders, and is restoration of these neurotransmitter systems possible? How do these neurotransmitters affect our moods and emotional states? How do certain diseases affect signal transduction?

My interest in drugs and ligands led me to give a presentation on the effects of cocaine on the human brain. Researching this topic enabled me to gain some insight into the mechanisms of drug action, develop a strong appreciation for previous scientific research, educate fellow students on the effects of cocaine abuse, and apply my prior knowledge of neurotransmitters to an area of interest. In the process, I learned that cocaine blocks the re-uptake of norepinephrine, dopamine, and serotonin, and that dopaminergic hyperactivity might be responsible for the feeling of euphoria associated with cocaine use.

The motivation behind my pursuit of a Ph.D. in pharmacology is clear. I watched my mother hopelessly suffer from anxiety and depression, and now I want to contribute to the growing body of research being conducted on disorders such as anxiety, depression, Alzheimer’s, and Parkinson’s disease. My academic transcript illustrates my success as a student and is a simple indicator of my potential for graduate study. Perseverance, discipline, and dedication helped to build my foundation, but my curiosity and affinity for science fuel my passion for learning.

点评：

全文共823字，可分如下四个部分。

第一部分：母亲的患病经历激发了自己求学的决心。（第1~4段，共351字）

第一部分：不适应大学学习的小插曲。（第5段，共131字）

药理学的相关学习及研究经历。（第6~8段，共254字）

求学动机及个人性格总结。（第9段，共87字）

文章结构不合理，重点不突出。

作者用逾四成的篇幅铺垫了母亲的患病经历，从而引出攻读药理学博士的目标。相比之下，对于自己在药理学领域的学习研究经历的描述却非常单薄。作为一篇理工类课程的PS来说，这显然是不合理的。与其花笔墨去介绍为什么喜欢这个专业，倒不如直接说明自己在这个专业领域内的学习成果更为实际。因为，就理工科申请的本质来说，是你的技术水平决定了你能够进入到什么样的课程，而不是虚无缥缈所谓兴趣。

写作手法一般。

当然，我并非完全否定文章中“非专业技术内容”的作用。正如本文中对于母亲患病经历，这的确是值得一写的素材。它对于阐述学习动机，对于烘托作者的个人形象起到一定的作用。然而，作者并没有很好地运用好这个素材。虽然用了多达351字作为铺垫，但是我并不认为这样的文字能够打动读者的心，反而是让人觉得有点无病呻吟。

原因便在于作者只用了平铺直叙的写法，而且行文欠简洁。作者反复地写“母亲变了”，然而，我们并没有真切地感受到这种变化。事实上，作者完全可以只选用一个富有冲击力的细节（例如母亲的话语，神态等）对母亲经历疾病折磨后的悲惨形象进行刻画，继而把自己的心痛与无助进行对比从而形成强烈的艺术效果。这样，便能在文章一开始的时候便捉住读者的心，而且能更快地切入到文章的核心部分。

贪大求全，写作大忌。

整篇文章中，作者企图建立一个全面的自我形象：坚韧，纪律，奉献，成绩优秀，富好奇心，具有激情，热爱科学……。然而，除了“因为母亲罹患疾病，从而激发起对药理学研究的热情”这一条之外，我们并没有对作者的形象留下太深刻的印象。也就是说，作者并未能成功建立的这个“立体的形象”。

原因在于贪大求全。第5段便是这一典型。这里叙述了作者克服学习困难的一段小插曲，而这段插曲与文章的中心并无必然联系，因此第5段显得非常奇怪。这里作者或许是希望解释大学早期的学习成绩较差的原因，又或是希望展示自己不惧挫折的形象，但无论如何，此段文字与整篇文章格格不入。

专业深度不足

文章的亮点在于作者对原子，分子，配体，神经传递素，药物等药理学相关内容的思考，从中我们可以看到作者对于此领域具有一定的见解。然而，作为一名PHD的申请者，这种深度的思考明显不足。更加理想的做法，应该是对于更多的更富深度的研究课题的综合思考，继而从这些思考引出自己的求学目的。总概来说，此文与国内众多“八股文”式的PS相比，有优胜之处，但是，这远不算是一篇优秀的理工科的申请文书。

译文：

1.母亲回来了。两年零六个月里，她一直被禁蔽在那个幸运一丁点的人便绝不会冒险靠近的地方。归来的这个女人与离去之前判若两人，纵使她确是同一人。在她身上必定发生过某些极具破坏性的事情，致使我如此熟悉的那个人变得面目全非。虽然，我确信她会恢复往昔的样子，但这尚需时日。

2.在肉体上，母亲是还在这里，我仍可看见她，触摸她，甚至与她谈话，但我们的关系与往日大不相同。她不再是那个见证着我长大成人的母亲，她的角色变了，她变成了陌生人，她曾经具有的那种魄力也逐渐地枯萎，就像是鲜花桎梏于八月的酷热中。我本该察觉到她的恶化，过去，在她身上曾出现过无数的异常与征兆，这都预示着即将有问题出现。但我却无视她体内的恶魔，一厢情愿地希望它永不会浮现。

3.过去的两年半以来，母亲生活在压抑与焦虑里。在那些令人绝望使人气馁的日子里，我认识到了人类的身体的独特性。在患病的过程中，母亲接受了无数的各种各样不可思议的药物治疗，但是并无任何明显的好转。我惊讶于与母亲患有相似症状的人对药物的反应为什么如此不同。但是对于药物的无知使我灰心。作为主修科学的学生，我习惯于客观地，分析性地思考，但是，当时，从科学展望的角度来看，对于医药知识的缺乏，对于精神病学及心理学的一无所知，使我在感到无助。我只可以给母亲提供爱与精神上的支持。

4.经历了数不清的医生们的诊断及几次误诊，尝遍了市面上每一种抗抑郁药，抗焦虑药的煎熬，母亲才终于找到了合适的药物及诊治方法。目前，她正一点一点的好起来。她的经历极大地促成了我要追求Ph.D. in pharmacology的学位的决定。

5.当我初入大学校园时，高中到大学的学习转变压得我透不过气。小测验变成了专业考试，读书报告变成了研究论文，教室变成的论坛，而时间则是最大的敌人。那时我认为，第一年不确定专业将使我有充足的时间去先读一些较“轻松”的预备课程，然后再应对那些艰深许多倍的专业学科。然而，我错了，我的学习变得没有方向感，我的成绩一落千丈。于是，我给自己下了最后通谍，要不就继续一蹶不振下去直至我的学习彻底崩溃；要不就奋发图强，树立目标，然后朝着目标进发。我选择了后者。

6.随着学习上的进展，我发现生物学在分子层面上的巨大吸引力。这些细小的原子，分子究竟是通过何种方式定义了我们之为人类，它们之间的完全同步性究竟对生命的本质有何种意义，这些问题激发了我无穷的兴趣。当学习生理学的时候，我对于配体产生了兴趣，我更加感兴趣于这些配体如何通过与不同的受体结合而导致了我们的许多行为。我对于配体的学习，与母亲罹患疾病的经历，使我产生了对于药理学的兴趣。

7.我的好奇心唤起了我对于药物及神经传递素的疑问——尤其是去肾上腺素，多巴胺及5-羟色胺在神经错乱中起的作用，以及药物究竟如何影响了这些神经传递素？药物的作用机制究竟是什么？这些神经传递素在神经错乱中究竟是多了还是少了？修复这些神经传递素系统是否可能？这些神经传递素如何影响我们的情绪？某些疾病如何影响了信号转导？

8.源于对药物与配体的兴趣，我曾经作了一堂关于“可卡因对人脑的影响”的演讲。对于这个课题的研究使我洞察到药物作用的机制，使我对以前的研究有了更深刻的认识和了解，也教育了同学们关于滥用可卡因的恶果，并把我之前对于神经传递素的知识运用在了我感兴趣的领域。在此过程中，我明白到可卡因会阻断去肾上腺素，多巴胺及5-羟色胺的再吸收，而多巴胺能量的过度活跃将导致快感的出现，而这正是由于服用可卡因而产生的。

9.我寻求攻读Ph.D. in pharmacology的动机是明确的。我目睹了母亲从焦虑与抑郁中绝望地生存下来，而我现在正是要深入从事诸如焦虑，抑郁，Alzheimer’s症及Parkinson’s症等精神失调疾病的研究。我的成绩单说明了我过去作为一个学生的成功，并预示着我将来从事研究生学习的潜力。坚韧，纪律及奉献帮助我铸就了坚实的基础，而我的好奇心与对于科学的热爱使我在科学研究的道路上充满激情！