Tips for Writing the College Admissions

Essay

How to write an essay that doesn’t sound like an essay.

What is a college essay?

Johns Hopkins Admissions pages tell us:

Essays are distinct and unique to the individual writer.

Essays assist the admissions reader in learning more about the student beyond the transcripts and activity sheets.

The most important thing to remember is to be original and creative as you share your own story with us.

Remember!

You control your essay!Give the reader a

glimpse into your character, background, and writing ability.

This is not the traditional five paragraph essay!

Your Audience

Admissions officers are looking to create a class of students who will fit in well academically and socially at the college.

They are not looking for a balance of students who help strengthen the college or university.

Most likely your essay will be read by at least two admissions officers.

Your reader may be an old timer who has worked in the admissions

office for his whole career, or she may be a recent college graduate who

just joined the admissions office. Your readers share a similar desire to get to

know you through your essay.

Select the Best Topic

College Admission essays and the Common Application give students a choice of topics.

Don’t pick one quickly – think about it! Make an inventory

key experiences, achievements, adjectives that describe you, anything significant in your

background, what you can potentially “offer” (e.g.

athletics, music, dance) a college.

Select the Best Topic

With your inventory in mind read the options carefully. decide which topic(s) provides the best

opportunity to portray your self in a desirable manner.

Ask yourself, “If I choose this one, what story can I tell?”

If the application requires more than one essay, select distinct topics and subject areas. give the admissions people a broader, and

more complete, picture of you. For example, if you are an athlete, for

example, don’t write more than one essay about sports.

Answer the Question!

Admission essays are based on a prompt for a reason.

Be certain that you have written a response to the prompt or question.

No matter how beautiful the essay might be, it has to address the prompt or it won’t be chosen.

Answer the Question!

Read the prompt carefully. Pay particular attention to two

part questions. For example, if the prompt

says to “evaluate a significant experience, achievement or risk you have taken and its impact on you”, be certain that you thoughtfully and critically analyze both the situation and its impact.

Tips:

Have a clear thesis that the reader can easily identify that addresses the prompt.

The thesis does not have to be stated – it can be implied.

Make the Introduction Count!

Think about it - Admissions essay readers read a lot of essays and may have read many already when yours reaches the top of their pile.

It’s essential to attract their attention up front.

It is critical that the first few sentences capture their interest.

A boring opening could cause the reader to not pay close attention to the remainder of the essay or even read the whole essay.

Design the introduction to draw them into your essay.

Have a Voice!

Don’t “thesaurus-ize” your essay – use words that are familiar to you and don’t sound fake, but use your best vocabulary.

Be interesting.Use your personality to develop a style.

Watch Your Tone!

Admission teams don’t want someone who comes off as a spoiled child, a stuck-up rich kid, lazy, sarcastic, a cynic.A bit of well placed humor is

fine, but don’t try to be a comedian.

Watch Your Tone!

Don’t come off as self-interested or materialistic.

Check your ego at the door – don’t brag!

Schools don’t want to hear what they can do for you, but what you can do for them.

Stress how you can benefit from your education while still contributing to the campus community.

Don’t Fake It!

Recount real incidences in your life.

Don’t try to make things up – it will sound phony.

Don’t embellish – if you won the school spelling bee, don’t make it the state spelling bee.

Don’t plagiarize – there is actually a version or turn-it-in for college essays!

Tips:

Don’t overuse “I”.Convey ideas about you, not a laundry list of things about you.

Tips:

Be concise, but be descriptive.

Show, don’t tell!Instead of telling the reader that you are something or have a special ability, show the reader through an interesting story that demonstrates it.

Tips:

Vary sentences in length and style.

Vary sentence beginnings.Vary transitionsUse transitions that move

it forward, but use words other than nevertheless, furthermore, consequently, first, second, etc.

Tips:

Use active voice.Passive-voice expressions = verb phrases in which the

subject receives action expressed in the verb.

employs a form of the verb to be, such as was or were.

Overuse of the passive voice makes prose seem flat and uninteresting.

Keep Within the Word Limit!

Prompts often specify a desired number of words or a range

The Common App is 650 words. The U of A personal statement is 500 words. Some only ask for 250 words. Many on-line applications will not even accept

more than the stated limit. If there is only an upper limit, don’t stress if

your essay appears too short. Better to be concise than repetitive. Lincoln got his points across succinctly in the

Gettysburg address — in less than 275 words.