college application essay tips

college application essay tips

Effective Strategies for Writing a Standout College Application Essay

1. Introduction to College Application Essays

Choosing What to Write About Colleges and universities look for personal qualities in their candidates. They want to know something about the applicant outside of grades, test scores, motivation, teacher recommendations, or otherwise. There are some topics to avoid when applicants are writing their college application essays. Some students lead the essay by focusing on past successes and not current strengths, such as a trait or passionate interest. Students should also avoid titles and places, poetry, and relatively common author topics. Colleges are not interested in being referred to as tender readers, particular careers, or graduation memories. Applicants who borrow someone else’s ideas, whether from another applicant or a famous writer, and who are deemed routine, will also be dismissed by the college. Individual traits can further decrease your acceptance with the college. Save the essay for an interesting and dynamic application. Understand the value of good writing in the application phase. Use the S.T.A.R. strategy.

Identify the strategies for examining an application essay prompt; Evaluate college application essay topics; Identify topics you should avoid writing about in a college application essay; Distinguish between assertion and evidence to avoid errors in writing application essays. Understand common concerns about application essays. Recognize the value of a strong rhetorical stance. Understand the S.T.A.R. (Stop, Think, Act by Reading)

The college application essay can make your application stand out and be noticed. The essay is the only place to be creative, innovative, and interesting in the entire application. Admissions officers are looking for the right fit for the college that suggests the best chance of college success. It has not always been the standard for college applications. For decades, completing a standard application was enough to satisfy most college admission requirements.

2. Understanding the Purpose and Importance of the Essay

In all of the more than 50 college admissions essays I have worked on, every single student has made the same primary mistake: the student writes the essay from his or her own point of view. The essay is not about the college. The essay must tell the college why that student should be admitted. The best essays, the students write about something incredible that the college would be proud of; not just that the student would be proud of. The essay is like a first impression. You only have one chance to wow the college admissions officer reading your application, so you don’t want to ruin your reputation or cheapen yourself in their eyes in any way. The essay should present information that you have not shared with other parts of the application, or something that will stand out from the other truly excellent essays. What are the intrinsic reasons the college should consider the student? What would set them apart? What would make them proud that they admitted their student?

When it comes to the college application process, some things are just scary. Interviewing with a college admissions officer is a perfect example. While it may not be the most nerve-wracking, it’s hard to define and requires much more effort and skill than typing your GPA into your Common Application and sending it in. As anyone reading this has probably discovered, the essay is also one of the most important parts of the application. While doing research and deciding which schools you’re interested in applying to is drawn-out and at times, redundant, the essay question(s) on each one of them is bound to be thought-provoking. So why not make it the best it can be with some simple techniques? After all, the goal of the essay is to set you apart from other applicants and at the same time stay fresh in the memories of the people who read it.

3. Key Elements of a Compelling Essay

FAQ 00014 What are the key elements of a compelling college application essay?

Strategies: – Spend twice as much time writing as thinking about a topic. – Employ professional practices for writing this essay, such as understanding the prompt, and crafting a theme, main characters, setting, plot, conflict, and resolution.

SUGGESTIONS AND STRATEGY PRACTICE: – Complete four short, 650-word essays. – Do not dwell on the past. – Ask for constructive feedback from teachers and students. – Read sample essays. – Circumvent controversial topics, including current events and religious and philosophic topics. – Write different essays for different colleges. – Gallagher suggests starting off with an action-packed story. Then, segue to the lessons learned and character-building experiences. – Write as much as you can, then procrastinate. Write again, and procrastinate. – Don’t try too hard. Be sincere.

Cookie-wall PRACTICE – Use action verbs and adjectives that paint a picture. – Appeal to all the reader’s senses. – Answer all parts of the prompt or question succinctly and directly. – Use the active voice. – Have a clear and consistent focus. – Draw the reader in, make them want to read more, and make yourself memorable. – Use anecdotes to provide evidence for the main theme. – The structure should help communicate the theme, plot, and conflict of the essay. – Use a strategy such as startling fact or quote, accentuating the thought or idea or title set-up. – Resist stereotypical phrases and clichés. Use an original idea. – There should be no abbreviations or candid language. – Use creative, concise, direct words. – There must be only one theme in the essay’s narrative. – Avoid the first person, as in “I want to attend…”

Compelling College Essays: – Express your individuality and your strengths. – Reveal something that can’t be deduced simply from a written resume and list of extracurricular activities. – Give admission officers insight into your character, purpose, and talent that can’t be portrayed in transcripts, formal resumes, or letters of recommendation. – Become a window into the character and values of an applicant and reflect who they are when nobody is watching. – Demonstrate critical and persuasive writing skills, attention to grammar, and thoughtfulness.

It needs to boast a well-crafted, punchy prose that will stand out to admissions officers. The high stakes make it the most daunting part of any college application. The good news is that there are strategies that can help you to craft a standout college essay, regardless of your subject matter. When you begin brainstorming what to write your college application essay about, the challenge may seem overwhelming, and the stakes are high. No matter what subject you’re writing about, two primary features of the college application essay stand out: the commanding prose that belies its diminutive length and the revealing insight into the character and drive of the author. Far more than a project report or a technical paper, the application essay is the opportunity for students to reveal something unique about themselves that can’t be found anywhere else on a college application.

4. Writing Techniques and Strategies for Success

Developing and deciding on a final completed essay topic can be a difficult aspect for you that many fail to address and make step one of the five-step writing process. Before actually writing your essay, there are issues to be determined. The actual “topic” to be addressed in your essay is just one of many important factors. It has been proven in the past that those applicants who wrote about their goals and strengths stood a better chance of getting in to the school of their choice. This essay plays an important role in putting together a college application package as it makes a declaration of requests from the student and results in the reader or admission officer wanting to learn more.

The college application essay is a highly personal statement that should be written about you, and you should only be coached with that fact in mind. This essay is considered by many admission counselors to be the most important part of your application, and therefore, should get the most attention. There are many areas that you as a student need to address when writing your essay. The process of coming up with a topic and completing your essay is as important a learning experience as anything you have done in high school.

5. Common Mistakes to Avoid and Final Tips

As final reminders, it is important to avoid some major do’s and don’ts. You want to make sure that you understand and adhere to the specific essay instructions provided by each college before incorporating your college essay into your application. Furthermore, it is crucial that you avoid any form of academic dishonesty. Every sentence within your essay should be honest and reflect the integrity of your character. In order to stand out, you must be nothing but yourself, and looking to accept credit for a person you are not will do nothing but harm you in the long run. The truth always wins in the end.

Before submitting your application and essays, it is important to perform multiple rounds of edits and revisions. Getting your work proofread and reviewed by others can only make it stronger. Although it is ideal to have a parent, teacher, or mentor review your college applications, it is also good to have a peer conduct an edit as well. Other high school students may have a better understanding of how you will be perceived by an admissions counselor who is just trying to get to know you.