college admission essay prompts

college admission essay prompts

Tips for Writing a Successful College Admission Essay

1. Introduction

Almost all students who apply to study in college will, at some point, have to face the value of what are known as college admission essays. Studying in college, of course, will add more quality to your future career. In this case, of course, it will be very important if we can have a degree from college. Additionally, college graduates generally have higher salaries and, more importantly, they have far more job opportunities compared to those who do not have a college degree. This is why many students and parents have attempted to send their children to study in better schools, including boarding schools and private schools. To gain entry into the high school of choice, students must prepare applications and, at some point during the process, they will be required to write a college admission essay. This thought alone is already very pressuring because parents believe that the school is a significant stepping-stone for the student’s success. Students, most of whom are not sure where they will go in life, feel that going to a better school will help bring their future goals closer. This sort of mindset is beneficial because it will encourage the student to write the best college admission essay that they can.

2. Understanding the College Admission Essay Prompts

These are some questions that many students will ask themselves before writing their admissions essay. Everyone will ask these questions, and everyone will have different answers. It is the job of the student to answer the question, and then the job of the admissions board to decide whether he’s fit to attend the school. As there are many questions and no set criteria on how to answer any one of them, there are many essay prompts given. This often leads students (including myself!) to stress as we try to find the prompt that is the best for us. It’s never easy deciding on what prompt to write on, but at any time someone may feel that one prompt is a better writing choice than the rest.

Before you write your college admissions essay, take a few minutes and jot down some answers to the following questions: – How can I reassure the admissions board that I will succeed in their school? – How will I show that I am determined and ambitious; that I will not get poor grades or drop out? – How will I prove that I possess qualities of a strong, motivated, intelligent individual? – What are my long-term goals? – Might I win an award eventually, or start a business, or improve a scientific process? – What will I have accomplished, if I have succeeded? – How is my career path going to be advanced with a degree from X university?

3. Crafting a Compelling Personal Statement

Perhaps the best piece of advice I can offer on writing your admissions essay is to answer the question that was asked. Too often students write generally about circumstances in their essays, without visually depicting the impact and showing how it links to their character, which is what admission officers are looking for. Step one is understanding what to write, followed by making an outline on how to answer it. The piece of advice, which I will reiterate throughout this blog post, is to have manifold people review your essay for editing. Every writer needs an editor, and the best way to ensure that you get that outside opinion. Control is in your hands admissions folks may be the audience, but the essay is your chance to give them a glimpse of you. The number one piece of advice from admission officers about your essay is “Be yourself.” The number two suggestion is “Start early.” Check out these other tips before you begin. Now you have some resources.

Crafting an essay that includes both these qualities won’t come easily, but with introspection and the goal of reassuring admissions personnel that you have the necessary characteristics of maturity and insight for their program, you will be on your way to writing a great personal statement. Unlike the rest of your application, which primarily consists of filling in boxes, the personal statement gives you the freedom to be creative in both content and writing style. Now is the time to show your stuff!

4. Showcasing Your Achievements and Experiences

Some of the best and brightest students do themselves a disservice by not effectively showcasing their potential in their application essays. Due to a large volume of applications and limited time for review, many admission officers simply aren’t able to read essays that aren’t specific and don’t get a picture of you as an individual. Thus, they are looking for your anecdotes about unique experiences that will distinguish you from the next student. One way to do this is to discuss a type of accomplishment that changed you or helped you grow as a person. An especially intriguing or relevant experience can really set you apart. What did you learn from the experience? Do you possess any personal characteristics that would make you more likely to succeed given the experience or event you are describing? Lastly, consider the words of Winston Churchill: “Success is not final, failure is not fatal: It is the courage to continue that counts.” Are you able to relay a story in which you were successful but very humble, or where something didn’t go your way, but you were still able to be very gracious? Another tactic used by several other students is to take a seemingly mundane or unimportant event and paint a vivid picture of it through the use of descriptive language. In doing so, you are able to prove to the reader that you are a unique individual with something different to offer. A dialogue between an older family member and you can also be very interesting, because it has caused you to reflect on the changes in society in the times of your elders. You must remember though, the focus is on you. Keep the spotlight on you.

5. Conclusion: Making Your Essay Stand Out

But among the entire student body, you are only one of thousands beginning identical journeys to college, thus similar to applicants at many schools. You all wish to receive acceptance, most of you “on the road” to find an ideal place of study.

Let’s face it – the task at hand is about your journey to college and you will find yourself hard-pressed to do this if you do not take the time needed to distinguish yourself. A college must be convinced by the student that an idea of joining the institution’s campus makes sense. An essay rich in argument and self-promotion typically fails to persuade. On the other hand, an essay that lacks self-reflection will be equally ineffective. You, the future student, must be able to visualize life at the said college.

Too often, the only revision students do is crossing out some commas and adding a few semi-colons. A limited understanding of what is actually being asked often leads to creating an essay not significantly different from the original to necessitate extensive revision. This is a missed opportunity. An essay, after all, is not a school paper. You have already written dozens of papers – now how often have you been required to persuade while simultaneously shining unique light on your life?

Hopefully, if you have not procrastinated, there is some time to make changes to your essay. The key is not to be consumed just by proofreading, but asking others whether your essay has effectively addressed the question. Have you brought yourself to the forefront? Is it clear that you possess unique qualities that you’ve illustrated through the examples and stories presented?