Motivation Letter. Dear Sirs and Madams: My name is Alexandra Zimireva. I’m a student of gymnasia 9 in the city of Ekaterinburg. Let me tell you a few words about myself. Being an ordinary girl, I possess unique desires and views on life and the world around me. My native town is Ufa, a most beautiful one in Bashkortostan, with its mountain air and astounding countryside, which surely may provide a quiet life for anybody. However, such a calm and easy life is not for me; like my parents, I would have chosen the same challenging way of life as they have preferred, but I was too young to make my own decisions at that time, so my parents have determined this way for a better life for myself and I fully approve of their choice. At the age of six, my family moved to the capital of the Ural Oblast’, where I started going to school. I have become an accomplished young lady thanks not only to my devotion to the studies, but also to many other occupations and activities. It is my Grandmother who has developed valuable qualities of my character, which save me from gossiping, scheming, and arguing with my schoolmates. Due to my Grandmother’s attention and care I have become a young lady of determination and moderation. Ever since my childhood I’ve been leader; I’m an energetic and creative person; I always find pleasure in work. ‘The more difficult the task is, the more exiting it is for me’ is one of my favourite sayings. I hate unfairness and I try restoring justice in any situation. At the age of five I learned to read, to do arithmetic, and to play chess, which made my entrance to a secondary school, where maths is taught thoroughly, a piece of cake. However, I didn’t study there, because that school was too far away from my home and my parents did not like it, so they transferred me to one near my house. Meantime, I attended the children’s music and dancing group in the Sverdlovsk (now Ekaterinburg) Theatre of Music Comedy. Every weekend I performed on stage. Dancing was my passion, and all my relations and friends were proud of me, because I danced on the stage of a theatre of national scope. I started my physical activities when I was five years old. I did some figure skating, then embarked on synchronous swimming and developed my body’s flexibility in the Circus Company. Unfortunately, all my occupations were very time-consuming and I followed my parents’ advice to take up volleyball instead. Although successful in each activity, I made focus on my studies, as my parents wished, and I finished my mid-school with excellent results, so I found it only natural to continue my education at one of the best elite school of the city and become student of the Humanities class. It is my literature teacher who has helped me to understand that I feel much better in the Humanities than the Sciences; even in my early childhood I was fond of inventing short stories, and later, I wrote adventure stories. Although my studies at school are extremely hard and my homework often happens to be so bulky that I have little spare time for my hobbies or going out with my friends, still, I am very happy at school and find all school subjects fascinating and exiting! One of my extra favourites is English. That’s where I enjoy most. Since twelve, I have been reading books and watching films in English. In 2006, I visited Oxford and liked everything about it – the people, the language, the countryside, and the English mode of life. Now I’m sure Great Britain is the country I adore, and which, I hope, will help me to fulfill my dream of becoming highly professional specialist useful to people around me. For the time being, I am preparing for my further education and career devoting myself to school studies, learning English, dancing and sports. I am very hopeful of receiving your scholarship! I am looking forward to your contest results. Thank you ever so much for your attention! Yours sincerely, Alexandra