How To Write Your College Admission Essay

How To Write Your College Admission Essay Bring something new to the table, not just what you think they want to hear. Admission officers realize that writing doesn’t come easily to everyone, but with some time and planning, anyone can write a college application essay that stands out. One way to do that is to work step-by-step, piece-by-piece. Your essay is a unique reflection of who you are as a person. Even if your parent or friend is a gifted writer who would be happy to help you write your essay, do not let them write your essay. This is one of the most common mistakes that students make. In the pursuit to write the perfect essay, many forget to connect it to the original prompt. While the Common Application prompts for the main essay are general enough to allow students to write about whatever they choose, it still needs to be clear how that essay addresses the prompt. In writing, there are few things as intimidating and insurmountable as a blank page. Templates can give you a good starting point for your college admissions essay. You can browse the Internet to find templates and sample essays to help your ideas begin to take shape. The end result should be a carefully designed, insightful essay that makes you proud. Take advantage of being able to share something with an audience who knows nothing about you and is excited to learn what you have to offer. One of the most common struggles students encounter is resisting the urge to squeeze everything they’ve seen, done, and heard into their essay. But your application essay isn’t your life story in 650 words. If your top activity is swimming, don’t write about the big championship meet. Find something else that reveals something new and that shows you put a lot of thought into your essay. If your study of AP biology conflicts with your religious views, write about that and how you reconciled the two. Check and double check that a clear connection is made between the topic or lesson of your essay, and the question the prompt is asking. The personal statement is your opportunity to reveal something about yourself that can’t be found anywhere else in your application â€" use it! Many students use this essay to expound upon activities or interests that are already heavily demonstrated in their application through courses, the activity list, and more. Instead of reinforcing a top activity or interest, instead, write about something that reveals another dimension of your life or personality. Instead, pick one moment in time and focus on telling the story behind it. Some essay examples below are by students who chose to write about a challenge, while other examples may be helpful if you’re looking to write about yourself more generally. Join thousands of students and parents getting exclusive high school, test prep, and college admissions information. Online instruction like the Time4Writing essay writing coursesfor elementary, middle and high school students can help children prepare for state and college-entrance standardized writing tests. Your own words are the best way to convey who you are as a student and a person; using someone else's words won't give your essay an authentic voice. Additionally, if you're caught letting someone else write your essay, you may be automatically disqualified from admission. That's exactly the kind of college application help you don't need. However, as many students find that they lack the proper writing skills, they often decide to obtain writing assistance from essay writing companies. If you’re applying to 10 colleges and wait until two weeks before applications are due, you’re going to have a lot of writing to complete in a very short amount of time. Waiting until the last minute leads to stress and rushed essays that don’t accurately convey your message. Give yourself plenty of time to brainstorm, draft, revise, and get feedback on your essays. Templates can also help you get an idea of how to create a solid college admission essay format. For example, you may want to include a heading with the name and address of the person who will be receiving your letter. Admission officers read plenty of application essays and know the difference between a student’s original story and a recycled academic essay, orâ€"worseâ€"a piece written by your mom or dad or even plagiarized.