Tips
on Writing the College Admissions Essay
Content provided by EssayEdge's Harvard-educated Editors.
By EssayEdge.com: the Net's Admissions Essay Resource
It may be only 500 words, but the admissions essay portion
of a college application can mean the difference between acceptance
and rejection. How you write your personal essay shows the admissions
committee why you are different from everybody else. It provides
information about you that test scores, grades, and extracurricular
pursuits just cannot. You can use the essay to describe a favorite
activity, to tell a story about yourself, or even a story about
your dog, but make sure to really use it -- in a way that
captures the readers attention and shows that you are exceptional.
Step One: Brainstorming
You should expect to devote about one to two weeks simply
thinking up possible essay subjects. From this process of brainstorming,
you may find a topic you had not thought of at first. Here are
some questions to consider:
What are you like?
What is your strongest personality trait? Does any attribute,
quality, or skill distinguish you from everyone else? How did
you develop this attribute?
How would your friends characterize you? What would they write
about if they were writing your admissions essay for you?
Consider your favorite books, movies, works of art, etc. Have
these influenced your life in a meaningful way? Why are they
your favorites?
Have you experienced a moment of epiphany, as if your eyes
were opened to something to which you were previously blind?
What Have You Done?
What are your major accomplishments, and why do you consider
them accomplishments?
What have you done outside of the classroom that demonstrates
qualities sought after by universities? Of these, which means
the most to you?
Have you ever struggled mightily for something and succeeded?
What made you successful? Have you ever struggled mightily for
something and failed? How did you respond?
What was the most difficult time in your life, and why? How
did your perspective on life change as a result of the difficulty?
Where Do You Want to Go?
Of everything inthe world, what would you most like to be
doing right now? Where would you most like to be? Who, of everyone
living and dead, would you most like to be with?
What are your dreams of the future? When you look back on
your life in thirty years, what would it take for you to consider
your life successful?
How does this particular university fit into your plans for
the future? Why do you want to spend two to six years of your
life at a particular school?
Step Two: Selecting an Essay Topic
As these thoughts start to solidify into an essay topic, think
about execution. What sounded like a good idea might prove impossible
in the writing. Most importantly, think of how you can make the
subject matter original. Even seemingly boring essay topics can
sound interesting if creatively approached. With an essay question
in mind, think over the following questions:
Will your topic only repeat information listed elsewhere on
your application? If so, pick a new topic. Dont mention GPAs
or standardized test scores in your essay.
Can you offer vivid supporting paragraphs to your essay topic?
If you cannot easily think of supporting paragraphs with concrete
examples, you should probably choose a different essay topic.
Will an admissions officer remember your topic after a day
of reading hundreds of essays? What will the officer remember
about your topic? What will the officer remember about you? What
will your lasting impression be?
Choose a Story
The best essays tell a story about the applicant. The essay
does not have to be the story of your whole life, but rather
a small glimpse of it, one that is rich with meaning and alive
with imagery. It often helps to think about the impact that past
events have had on you. In one admissions essay written by a
student who was accepted to Harvard, Princeton, Dartmouth, and
Stanford, an ordinary story is told in a unique and captivating
way. In this narrative about hiking up a mountain, the student
also conveys a deep appreciation for science, as well as a dedication
to the hard work required to fully understand the universe:
Although the first few miles of the hike up Mt. Madison
did not offer fantastic views, the vistas became spectacular
once I climbed above tree line. Immediately, I sensed that understanding
the natural world parallels climbing a mountain. Much like every
step while hiking leads the hiker nearer the mountain peak, all
knowledge leads the scientist nearer total understanding.
Entitled "Hiking to Understanding," this essay tells
the story of one hike, but at the same time, gives a complete
idea of the authors values, interests, and philosophy. Thus,
the essay presents run-of-the-mill subject matter in an out-of-the-ordinary
way.
Step Three: Writing the Essay
You must bear in mind your two goals: to persuade the admissions
officer that you are extremely worthy of admission and to make
the admissions officer aware that you are more than a GPA and
a standardized score, that you are a real-life, intriguing personality.
But before you can convince an admissions officer of this, you
must first grab his or her attention.
The Introduction
Most admissions officers spend at most 2 minutes reading your
essay. With this reality in mind, spend the most time on your
introduction. One technique is to create mystery or intrigue
in this first paragraph. At the very least, you should not give
away the whole story right at the beginning. Give the admissions
officer a reason to keep reading. As an example, the first sentence
of the "Hiking" essay reads as follows:
Surrounded by thousands of stars, complete silence, and
spectacular mountains, I stood atop New Hampshire's Presidential
Range awestruck by nature's beauty.
This first sentence sets the mood for the essay, it draws
the reader into the scene, but it does not state the authors
argument or even the plot of the story to follow. The reader
has to continue reading in order to learn what happens next.
The Body
After the first paragraph has been perfected, you must ensure
that the body paragraphs relate to the introduction. It helps
to have a theme or phrase that runs throughout the entire essay.
In "Hiking to Understanding," the author uses the mountain
as a unifying image:
Some people during their lives climb many small hills.
However, to have the most accurate view of the world, I must
be dedicated to climbing the biggest mountains I can find. Too
often people simply hike across a flat valley without ascending
because they content themselves with the scenery. The mountain
showed me that I cannot content myself with the scenery.
Also notice that the author uses simple language. Many students
think that big words make good essays, but powerful ideas are
often best expressed in simple and elegant prose.
Another way to impress an admissions officer is by using specific
examples and evocative touches of imagery that stay clear of
cliche. The application essay lends itself to imagery, since
the entire essay requires your experiences as supporting details.
Successful essays stick to the mantra, "show, dont tell."
Here's one example from the "Hiking" essay:
When night fell upon the summit, I stared at the slowly
appearing stars until they completely filled the night sky. Despite
the windy conditions and below freezing temperatures, I could
not tear myself away.
This passage shows how description of the stars and cold can
make us both imagine the scenery and understand the authors point
of view. It tells us what the author feels and thinks, more so
than if the author had spelled it out for us.
Finishing Up
The conclusion is your last chance to persuade the reader
or impress upon them your qualifications. Expand upon the broader
implications of your discussion. The "Hiking" essay
does this successfully, both expanding on the description of
the scene as well as on the scenes meaning for the author:
When observing Saturn's rising, the Milky Way Cloud, and
the Perseid meteor shower, I simultaneously felt a great sense
of insignificance and purpose. Obviously, earthly concerns are
insignificant to the rest of the universe. However, I experienced
the overriding need to understand the origins and causes of these
phenomena.
Dont be surprised if the writing process takes many days.
Few writers can dash out a quality essay in just a few sittings.
It takes awhile to find the perfect structure, wording, and imagery.
If you have the time, spend a week away from your draft; when
you return to it, you will read it with fresh eyes. Ask friends
and family for help. Other readers will find small mistakes that
your brain has ceased to recognize, and they will answer the
essential question, "what makes this essay memorable?"
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