how to write a good College Essay

WHAT MAKES A GOOD COLLEGE ESSAY

• Remember to keep the focus on YOU.  Give the reader a sense of who you are, your personality, some experiences that made you into you.  Most of the other information in your application is kind of dry (classes, grades, scores, etc.).  This is your chance to give them a peek into you as a person.  Give only enough information about extraneous things to put the situation into context -- don’t use a lot of words to describe a person, environment, event, etc.  Save that word count for later.

• Describe how an experience, or a person affected you.  How were you changed by it?  Who have you become as a result? Walk the reader through your evolution. How are others benefitting from your changes?  How did you feel going into this experience and how did you feel coming out of it?  What will you do with this new skill?

• Give a glimpse into what kind of student you may be on their campus.  (eg:  some experience you had gave you lots of self-confidence and as a result perhaps you’ll start a club on campus or take initiative to work with a professor in your field)

• Keep the essay informal.  Remember, this is not an assignment for an English class.

• You need to write in an engaging way.  The reader will have dozens, if not hundreds or even thousands of essays to read.  Make it fun for them.

• Make the reader feel like they are there with you while reading the essay.

• Express intellectual curiosity or passion in something.

• Use active (not passive) verbs to make it more engaging.

• Never use a long word when you can use a short one.

• If it is possible to cut a word out, always cut it out.  Short and simple is better.

• Use a thesaurus!

• Incorporate the feedback that makes sense to you.  Remember that you may not agree with all the comments but do be open-minded for improvement.  Make sure the changes you make reflect your voice.

• Be genuine.  To do this, be sure to pick a prompt that you can speak about from your heart.  The essay should not sound forced.

• Be sure to read the prompt clearly.  After you have drafted some words, re-read the prompt to make sure you are meeting the requirements.

• Consider how what you say in your essay will make you a good fit for this college.  How does your statement align with the college’s values?

• Make sure your essay reflects a few core values that you want the admissions rep to know about you.

• Remember that this is an iterative process that takes time -- be patient.

START WITH A BRAINSTORMING EXERCISE

To get your thought-process going and identify which prompt(s) to choose, list 20 bullet points about yourself.  Here's an example modified from College Essay Guy:

• I’m the oldest of five siblings. 

• I love all things tech

• I love to figure out how things are made

• I usually listen to down-tempo electronic music when I work. 

• I speak fluent Spanish because I was raised in Spain, Ecuador, Colombia. I also attended 13 schools growing up. 

• I spent a lot of time thinking about money in high school and college, mostly because my family didn’t have much. 

• My first job was working at McDonald’s. I started the day after I turned 15.  I mostly used my  money to buy DIY robot parts.

• Before I was 15, every summer I had a lemonade stand to make money for my hobbies.  I paid friends and put up multiple stands each time.  I threw a party at the end of summer to celebrate our profits.

• I love doing silly voices and can do lots of different accents. 

• I love Pixar films and often cry when I watch them. 

• I joined and eventually led my high school’s Robotics club. 

• etc.

See how a picture of this person begins to emerge with just a few words?  

• Self-motivated, self-starter, responsible, compassionate, a leader, not intimidated to try things

When you do this, see if any recurring themes emerge -- one that may be a good fit for an essay.  In this example, leadership.  

WORDS TO DESCRIBE PERSONAL TRAITS

Use a thesaurus frequently to find the best words to describe anything, especially your character traits.  Here are some examples.