The College Entrance or Scholarship Application Essay

The purpose of the essay….

• To show your preferences--What do you want to learn? What do you like to do, will these likes/dislikes help you fit into and succeed in the college environment?

• To show your values—What matters to you? How do you see yourself? What do you envision for your future? How do your values fit you for this college?

• Your Thought Processes---How do you think? Are you impulsive, whimsical, thoughtful, methodical, informed? The essay reveals your thinking style, your level of intelligence, the depth of your insights.

• Your writing skills—Do you have the compositional and mechanical skills necessary to do college level work?

Three kinds of questions• Those prompts that force you to reveal who

you are, giving you a chance to reveal your personality, insight and commitment:– “Please complete a one page personal statement

and submit it with your application.” James Madison U

– “How would you describe yourself as a human being? What quality do you like best in yourself, and what do you like least? What quality would you most like to see flourish and which would you like to see wither?” Bates College

• Those prompts that force you to answer “Why Us?” You are asked to explain your choice of school or career, revealing information about your goals and about how serious your commitment is to this particular school. – “ Why is UVM a good college choice for you?

--University of Vermont

– “Please tell us about your career goals and any plans you may have for graduate study.” –Westfield State College

• Those prompts that ask you to show creativity in your answer, to evaluate your path through your choice of some tangential answer, through your choice and explanation of a national issue, a famous personality, an item to put into a time capsule, a photograph or artifact. The answer reveals your creativity and the breadth of your knowledge and education.– “Do you believe there’s a generation gap? Describe the

differences between your generation and others.” --Denison University

– “Indicate a person who has had a significant influence on you, and describe that influence.” —Common application question

Prewriting• Analyze to be sure EXACTLY what the question is asking, then

write a relevant thesis idea.• List relevant main ideas: brainstorm your experiences, qualities,

etc that connect to the question, then select ideas which you can illustrate with vivid person experiences that will suit the prompt.

• Create a self outline: From your self outline, what examples, incidents, details from your life could you use to support the experiences, qualities, etc that answer the prompt?

• Remember that the universities are seeking applicants who fit the mission of their school or prove themselves worthy of their award. So you need to tailor your essay with their perspective in mind to convince them you are right for admission/scholarship

• Choose material to write about that will allow you to keep the university reader’s interest from the first word to the last.

Prewriting—hints to remember• Don’t write on something general that could pass for what other

applicants have experienced. Don’t write what you think the readers want to read (“your university is so prestigious, I knew I wanted to go there, etc) The essay should reveal you as unique and allow the reader to get to know YOU.

• Be resourceful. If you have trouble thinking what to write about yourself, ask people who know you well what they would say about you. Revisit a letter of recommendation someone has written.

• Don’t just repeat information already on your application form or resume. Your essay MUST include specific incidents and examples

• Avoid gimmicks: don’t write in iambic pentameter or make your writing funny or sarcastic. Such writing rarely succeeds.

• Be careful in expressing views, beliefs, opinions that will offend the readers. If you write on how everyone should worship, how wrong or right abortion is, or how you think the Republican or Democratic Party is evil, you will not be admitted on the basis of your essay.

Choose from the following:

• “5 Paragraph theme”--2-3 points from your brainstorming, a paragraph each, with plenty of detailed evidence

• “less is more”—a single interesting point about yourself (brief essay, ½ page at most)

• Narrative essay—a short and vivid story that engages the reader, then explains well what the incident reveals about you

Take into account….• What will the official remember about your essay after a

day of reading hundreds of essays? – If you are writing about a particular challenge you faced or a

trauma you experienced, stress the positive—what you learned/gained from the experience, NOT how you suffered or were victimized. You want admission or a scholarship, not pity.

– Whatever you write about, keep the focus on your positive qualities, not the effect of the experience on your mother, your friend, etc.

– Don’t mention weaknesses unless you absolutely must explain them away. Showcase your strengths. Even if you must explain why you have a good GPA and bad test scores or vice versa, focus on your strengths as you give a quick explanation for the apparent contradictions.

• What will the official remember about you? What will your lasting impression be, based on this one essay?

Drafting• Your very brief introduction will give your reader

an idea of your essay’s content and hook your reader, but it must be absolutely concise: one vivid sentence will do. Spend time and effort perfecting this first impression.

• The body must present the evidence that supports your main idea: narrative, details, SHOW, not tell.

• The conclusion must be brief, as well; a few sentences should nail down the meaning of the events and incidents you describe.

As you write--• Check your voice. Your writing should across as natural and relaxed,

but NOT sarcastic, too casual, too formal.• Don’t try to impress with big words and over-long sentences that

might come across as pretentious and artificial.• Pay attention to requirements. (Some essays must be in a particular

font. Some must be handwritten. Some must be submitted directly on the form. Many must fit a certain length requirement.) Not following directions will eliminate you from consideration.

• Appearance is important: Spell correctly and make sure grammar and punctuation are impeccable. You are on trial here. (Write in Word, using the tools, then copy and paste.)

• Save your essay. There is nothing wrong with using the same ideas, even the same essay, for several application. Just make sure the essay fits the question.

Later…..post writing

• Proofread and Revise• Set the essay aside, then read it a week or two

later and then Proofread and Revise again.• Have your parents or friends read your draft to

check that it is readable, interesting, communicates what you intended, and answers the prompt questions well.

Topics to brainstorm

• What are your major accomplishments in school? In your job/hobby/sport/other competition? In your personal life?

• Why do you consider them accomplishments?• What have you done outside of classrooms

that demonstrates qualities that will help you to success in the university? Explain.

• What do you consider the most important extracurricular or community activities you participate (or have participated) in?

• What made you join these activities? What made you continue to participate in them?

• What did you learn? How have you changed because of your participation?

• What attribute, quality, or skill distinguishes you from everyone else?

• If you had to describe yourself in one word, what would that word be?

• How did you develop this attribute/skill/ identity?

• List 1-2 experiences that helped you develop this attribute/skill/ identity.

• List 1-2 experiences which show this attribute/ skill/identity.

• What was the most difficult time in your life? • Why? What made this time/experience so

difficult? • How did your perspective on life change as a

result of your difficulty?

• 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?

• Pinpoint your favorites: books, movies/plays, works of art.

• Have any of these influenced your life in any meaningful way? Explain.

• Why are these your favorites? What qualities in them do you value?

• Evaluate one person who has influenced your life: what influence did that person exert on you? Why?

• Of everything in the world, what would you most like to be doing right now? Why?

• Where would you most like to be? Why?• Who, of everyone living or dead, would you

most like to be with? Why?• In light of all of the above, what do you love

most/value most in the world? Why?

• One common prompt: In 500 words, tell us who you are. What do you want us to know about you?

• Who are you? • What vision do you have for yourself? Picture

yourself in twenty years: what do you want to be, to have accomplished?

• What do you need to do now to become that person, succeed in that accomplishment?

If you didn’t bring a prompt to class, write on ONE of the following:

• Please complete a one page personal statement and submit it with your application.

• Please tell us about your career goals and any plans you may have for the future. Explain your choices.