Steps to a Great College Application Essay

Steps to a Great College

Application Essay

According to Peterson’s and The College Board

The Role of the Essay

The Common Application– Recommended form for more than 240

colleges and universities– Personal Statement section– This personal statement helps us

become acquainted with you as an individual…(p4 Peterson’s)

– 5 choices

The Role of the Essay

How important is the essay?– The closer you are to the borderline,

the more significant a role the essay will play in the admission decision.

– Will someone even read my essay?It depends…size of school, type of school,

deadline, applicant pool, GPA and SAT scores

Role of the Essay

Who will evaluate my essay?– At least one admission officer

Typically alumni, then perhaps another officer or perhaps the admission director or assistant director

Some colleges have admission committees comprised of 5 to 7 people (admission officials, faculty members, and possibly students)

Role of the Essay

How do schools evaluate the essay?– Methods vary– Larger schools tend to use multiple-

scoring system (content, style, mechanics)

– Other schools may take more of a holistic approach, relying on written comments by evaluators as well as conversation among committee members

10 Steps to a Great Essay

1. Learn more about yourself– Interview friends and family

Best thing about me?Worst thing about me?Most unusual thing about me?How would you describe me to someone

who does not know me?What was your initial impression of me and

how has that changed?

10 Steps continued…

1. Learn more about yourself – Record your dreams– Write down your thoughts and feelings about

issues that are most personal and immediate Self-esteem Identity Independence from parents Academic and extra-curricular success Acceptance by peers Loyalty, trust, honesty Physical appearance, attractiveness, sexuality,


2. Do some serious brainstorming– Record observations in a “believe it or not”

notebook-try to see the unusual in the ordinary as Jerry Seinfeld has mastered.

– Become a keen observer of human behavior Introversion vs. extroversion Aggressiveness, assertiveness, and passivity Friendliness and unfriendliness Intelligences, talents, skills Competitiveness and cooperation Self-affirming and self-defeating behavior


2. Do some serious brainstorming – Read the editorial section of the

newspaper– Scan the magazine rack in the library– Check out college related internet

resources– Surf the web for interesting articles and

essays– Read essays by the great essayists– Revisit essays of your own


Great essayists– Contemporary-Calvin Trillin, Anna

Quindlen, Dave Berry– Modern-John Updike, H.L. Mencken,

Tom Wolfe, George Orwell– Not-so-modern-Henry Thoreau, Ralph

Waldo Emerson, Jonathan Swift– Writers who write about writing- William

Zinsser, E.B. White


3. Check out the college’s own resources for essay ideas– Read college newspaper– Read alumni publications– Tour the campus with eyes wide open– Investigate the history– Talk to current students– Read what the admissions application says

about the essays– Contact the admissions staff with unanswered

questions about the essay– Visit the school’s website


4. Avoid overused ideas: Seek out overlooked ideas– Essays about personal relationships and

influences consider… Your favorite teacher Your coach Distant relatives Your arch-rival at school A neighbor Penpals A member of a friend’s family DO NOT write about your dog or cat!


4. Avoid overused: seek overlooked– Essays about issues

Avoid the environment, world peace, prejudice and discrimination, drugs, crime

Consider individual rights (right to die, AIDS, abortion, gun control, free speech), consumerism and materialism, fairness, justice, and equality, free trade among nations, internet issues (privacy, alienation, education, commerce)


4. Avoid overused:seek overlooked– Essays about your experiences, activities, or

significant events Avoid the college admissions process especially the

SAT and essay writing Avoid your big trip to somewhere far away

especially if you focus on cultural awareness, yucky food, acceptance of others, there’s no place like home.

Avoid wilderness and survival experiences Avoid winning or losing the big game Avoid how all your hard work paid off Avoid summer camp Avoid a part-time job Avoid your most unforgettable experience


4. Avoid overused: seek overlooked– Seek other personal experiences

A seemingly ordinary trip that turned into an unexpected adventure or self-defining event

A song, poem, novel, or other serious literary work that made a genuine and deep impact

The time you received an unexpected gift from an unexpected source, or the time you spontaneously gave of yourself to someone or something

A white lie , an off-the-cuff insulting remark or a discourtesy that helped you to grow and mature in your understanding of yourself and others


4. Avoid overused:seek overlooked– Seek other personal experiences cont.

A contribution or accomplishment of yours not motivated by a potential external reward

An informal social situation that holds special meaning to you, not holidays, weddings, or proms

A time when a teacher or other authority figure enabled you to approach him like an equal and friend


4. Avoid overused: Seek overlooked– Essays about your own personal

qualitiesAvoid lists of your favorite things or least-

favorite thingsAvoid your determination and tenacity and

how it allows you to always accomplish your goal

Avoid how diverse you are in your interests and endeavors


4 Avoid overused: seek overlooked– Seek those little habits of yours that

sometimes annoy others– Seek that time you really put your foot in your

mouth– Seek a personal possession to which you

have grown irrationally attached– Seek particular study habits that you would

like to change– Seek your unusual awkwardness in certain

social situations


5. Observe these do’s and don’ts for theme and content– Do write an essay that only you could write-

originality– Do convey a positive message overall– Do strive for depth, not breadth– Do think personal and anecdotal– Do reject your first idea or angle– Do be interesting, but be yourself– Do write about what you know and have

observed or experienced firsthand– Do write about something you feel strongly

about– Do write about others as well as yourself


5. Do’s and don’ts – Don’t let others decide what you write– Don’t tell the reader “the way it is” Don’t try to

prove anything– Don’t try to write a scholarly purely

informational essay on some researched topic– Don’t try to guess what the admissions

committee wants you to write– Don’t write about things that are found

elsewhere in the application– Don’t appear overly idealistic; recognize the

merits of all sides


5. Do’s and don’ts – Don’t explain blemishes or deficiencies

on your application– Don’t write anything that might

embarrass the reader– Don’t write an essay that reads like a

newspaper editorial– Don’t mention popular t.v. shows,

movies, musicians, or actors– No references to Dr. Seuss


6. Write, write, and write some more– Try stream of consciousness speed

drills– Keep all of your drafts– Start with the four common app ?’s– express your ideas openly on the

internet– Know when you are finished

10 Steps continued

4 common application questions plus– Evaluate a significance experience,

achievement, risk you have taken, or ethical dilemma you have faced and its impact on you

– Discuss some issue of personal, local, national, or international concern and its importance to you

– Indicate a person who has had a significant influence on you, and describe that influence

– Describe a character in fiction, an historical figure, or a creative work that has had an influence on you, and explain that influence

– Topic of your choice


7. Impress with style not gimmicks– Equally concerned with format, structure,

syntax, tone, and word choice as subject matter

– Structure and format Shorter is preferable-concise Use paragraph breaks appropriately Do not use a 5 paragraph essay format Avoid poetry Do not draw on essay Essays as essays not contracts, court documents,

or lab experiments


7. Impress with style not gimmicks– Find an appropriate and genuine style and

tone Strive to write in a casual, conversational tone Don’t try too hard to be funny, no puns Be forceful and opinionated but not insulting or

offensive Avoid whining, complaining, or appearing bitter,

sarcastic, or angry Avoid coming across as overly humble


7. Impress with style not gimmicks– Hook

Strive to engage the reader immediatelyDo not write “Hello, my name is…”Don’t ask for permission to tell about

yourselfStay away from the term paper style

introduction reiterating the topic or question or itemizing the points you will make in subsequent paragraphs

Begin as a comedian would…


7. Impress with style not gimmicks– Begin with an enigmatic statement that makes

the reader wonder to what or whom you are referring

– Begin with an obscure quotation– Begin with a thoughtful question– Begin with a trivial observation that anyone

can relate to but no one would think to use in a hook

– Begin with a paradox– Begin with a gross generalization– Begin with someone else’s opinion or theory– Begin with a confession– Begin with an overly obvious statement


7. Impress with style not gimmicks– Essay endings (not summary or conclusion!)

Do provide closure-”bookends” or come full circle Do answer any posed question or end any created

suspense Do use short, forceful sentences Don’t address the admissions committee Don’t use words like “finally” or “in conclusion” Don’t repeat or sum up in any way Don’t end your essay with a quotation

10 Steps continued..

7. Impress with style not gimmicks– Include a title for your essay only if it helps to

communicate your message or if you have an irresistible idea, otherwise DO NOT title your essay

– Use effective word choice– Avoid certain words:responsibility, goal,

interact, develop, role, integrity, leadership, excellence, interpersonal

– Avoid slang and currently popular buzz phrases

– Avoid superfluous words:obviously, somewhat, I think or I believe, first, second, etc., however, thus, in conclusion

– Avoid technical, scientific, and obscure “SAT-style” words


7. Impress with style not gimmicks– Do’s for stylistic devices

Do use analogiesDo incorporate dialogueDo mix up sentence lengthDo use logical paragraph breaksDo use the active voice


7 Impress with style not gimmicks– Don’ts for stylistic devices

Don’t tell the reader explicitly “I am a unique and interesting person”

Don’t parody a well-known writer or literary work Don’t use alliteration Don’t start too many sentences with the word “I” Don’t use “a lot of” Don’t necessarily write entirely in complete

sentences


8. Avoid careless errors and grammatical blunders– Actually read through for spelling/word

usage errors– Get the school name right!– Have someone read it for grammatical

errors


9. Obtain useful feedback and fine-tune your essay– Ask someone to read it and respond to the

question, “If you didn’t know me, what would you say about the person who wrote the essay?”

– Set the draft aside for several days, then reread

– Post pieces of drafts on relevant internet newsgroups and bulletin boards for feedback-don’t let on that it is for an application

– Don’t ask for too may perspectives on your essay

– If described as “cute, humorous, or clever” revise so it is not!


10. Package and present your essay appropriately– If permitted present essay on a separate sheet

of paper– Number each page and include a header with

your name and social security number– Assemble your essays properly– Comply with page restrictions– Don’t worry too much about word counts– Type every essay using readable fonts and

ample margins– Think twice before submitting supplementary

materials– Do not submit essays on video or audiotape

Steps to a Great College Application Essay

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