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The College Application Essay. Remember, you are asking to become a part of this school’s community. At the end of the essay, you want the reader to say, “Wow, I want to meet this student!” Remember who the audience is – the admissions representative.
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Remember, you are asking to become a part of this school’s community. At the end of the essay, you want the reader to say, “Wow, I want to meet this student!” • Remember who the audience is – the admissions representative. • This is your chance to tell them who you are as a person, what matters to you, what you believe.
Practical purpose of the essay: To show the admissions reps that you know how to write well. You do, so show them! • Be specific in what you write. • Your essay should demonstrate a good deal of effort on your part. If it is not worth that to you, why should they admit you? • When appropriate, tailor your essay to the school.
Voice: It needs to “sound” like you! Be authentic. • Be honest. • Be accurate. This is not a good time to get the facts wrong! • No typos or misspelled words • Grammar matters • Do not include info from your transcript – they have that already. (Exception: explaining a dip in grades)
Do not exceed the word count. They read a lot of essays! • Use first person – “I” – it is about you! • Tell a story • Have a hook at the beginning • Use simple, understandable, natural (but proper) language. • Draft – revise – edit – have someone read it, then do all that again!
Your essay should be a “careful reflection” – in other words, show quality and depth of thought • Keep the tone POSITIVE • Positive traits to illustrate: leadership, motivation, self-discipline, growth potential, intellectual curiosity, maturity, creativity, strong work ethic
Identify something you are passionate about • Use paragraphs. Vary sentence structure. Use active voice. Include an intro, body and conclusion.
