COLLEGE ESSAY

Even though the College Essay is the most challenging part application, it is also the application component where colleges look to gain insight into your unique background, interests and personality. Since the college essay is the one part of the application you have total control over, it is important you take the needed time to clearly articulate your passions and motivations.

What to keep in mind

  • The College Admissions Office will read thousands and thousands and thousands of essays - so you want to make sure yours is short and focused

  • The College Admissions Office wants to hear about YOU . You want to make this essay uniquely yours, expressing who you are and what you are about.

How to pick your topic

  • Consider your audience. You want the admissions people to feel like they know you by the end of the essay. You also want them to know the different qualities you have that will help them decide in favor of your application.

  • The essay topics are broad so that a range of students can write about them in a meaningful way. The first step you have to take is to narrow your topic down.

  • Think about your passions and the everyday occurrences make you unique

College Essay Tips


(Collected from “Writing a Winning Essay” by Jim Bock, Dean of Admission, Swarthmore College and “Tips on Writing a College Application Essay” by the Office of Undergraduate Admissions, Washington University in St. Louis)

Do:

  • Think "small" and write about something you know and feel strongly about

  • Remember your audience & choose an appropriate topic

  • Reveal yourself in your writing

  • Show rather than tell. By giving examples and illustrating your topic, you bring it to life.

  • Write in your own voice- make sure it sounds like you. It’s okay to be funny, if that truly is you!

  • Tell the truth.

  • Proofread. Proofread again. And then give it to someone else to proofread. Ask them to consider grammar and whether or not it truly sounds like you.

  • If you are discussing another person or their life, make sure that you illustrate how that person has influenced your life.

  • If you choose to focus on past life event, make sure it relates to who you are now. Make the connection for the reader as to how & why this past event may have been a “turning point” for you.

Resources