SOP- Rangana Sanjeewa STATEMENT OF PURPOSE As an undergraduate at the University of Peradeniya, my life-long interest in science led me to the special

degree in chemistry. I majored in Chemistry and minored in Computer Science, Biology and Electronics (and also Management Studies). Through my chemistry coursework, I developed a special interest in chemical applications and instrumentation. So, for my final year research project, I successfully engaged in developing a data acquisition port and software for my departments DTA machine. After graduation, I joined the Institute of Fundamental Studies [IFS] as a researcher. Under the leadership of Professor Weerasooriya, I was assigned to work on developing separate interfaces for an X-ray diffractometer and gas chromatograph. While at the Institute, I also gained experience in computational packages and particularly the basics of Molecular Dynamics [MD]. In 2007, I was appointed as a faculty member at Rajarata University of Sri Lanka. Working as a faculty member was a valuable opportunity that was practical as both a teaching and learning experience. It was my responsibility to supervise third year practical classes on techniques of analytical chemistry and conduct practical classes for first and second year students; apart from this I also worked on instrumentation handling and installation. During this time I was awarded a research assistantship, leading to an M.Phil Degree in Computational Chemistry at the University of Colombo. The research in which I am involved utilizes MD as a tool to focus on the Effect of denaturants on hydrophobic interactions of biomolecules. My achievement in this research so far will be presented in a paper, entitled Investigation of hydrophobic interactions of caffeine in water and aqueous urea solutions, that I am preparing to submit for publication in a reputed journal. In doing this Masters research, I had the opportunity to discover even more about MD and to learn techniques of analyzing simulated results. Almost all the analyses are done by our own self-developed software, which are written in C and FORTRAN languages. Such work has made me confident in software programming and has increased my enthusiasm for computational chemistry, especially for molecular dynamics. Given my past experience and developing interests, I plan to devote my doctoral studies to Computational Chemistry and aspire to become a professor in that field. At the same time I hope to master in experimental techniques and then to employ computational techniques in solving real world problems. To achieve my aims, I am particularly drawn to Zurich as a diverse and engaging learning environment. Since Zurich offers both depth and flexibility, I am sure I will be able to work with my advisor to create a program that not only fits my interests but would also be of importance in my field. To me, Zurich is a place that offers many possibilities for knowledge and further advancement. I look forward to the opportunity to make the most of all that Zurich has to offer and to contribute my own passion and energy as a doctoral candidate.