Tips to Help Students Write a Great College Essay

Writing a Great College Essay

So it’s time to write your college essay and wow the admissions officers with your charm, your wittiness and overall greatness. The only problem, you are sitting there staring at your computer screen and words are failing you.

Close your eyes. Take three deep breaths and let’s do this thing, OK?

There are three basic steps to this process. Basically you just want to, in 500 words or less, tell them who you are and convey to the admissions committee that you can reason and express your thoughts clearly. The steps are:

1. Prewrite
2. Draft
3. Edit

Prewrite - Organize your ideas. Set a timer for 15 minutes and make a list of your strengths and your. List your outstanding characteristics. Focus on your personality… how you “roll”, not things you have done. For example, say: “I am a responsible person who is sets a goal and enjoys the  challenge of achieving it.” Don say: “I am a cheerleader and was elected class treasurer.” If you find yourself talking about events instead of characteristics, then make a second list of things you have done, places you have been, your accomplishments and create a separate section of your application essay called “Activities” or “Accomplishments”.

If you are having trouble describing yourself, ask your parents. Start there because you know they will say positive things! Ask your friends. Ask your teachers. “What are my strengths?” Tell  them to use two sheets of paper if they need to.

Next to each trait on your edited list, list five or six pieces of evidence from your life. If you say you are “confident”, for example, tell something you did that required confidence. If you describe yourself as “helpful”, tell something you did that shows you have a helpful nature.
 
You are just compiling ideas at this point, so look for patterns in the material you have brainstormed and then group ideas and events together. For example, does your passion  for debating show up in your participating in the state debating competition? Does your “industriousness” show up in your having a summer job?

Draft - Now its time to start writing. Write your essay in here basic parts: introduction, body and conclusion. In the introduction, give your reader an idea of the content of your essay. This needs to be somewhat concise. Use vivid, succinct sentences, such as: “The favorite science project was a complete failure.”

The body presents the evidence that supports your main idea. Use narration and incident to show rather than tell. The conclusion can be brief as well, a few sentences to nail down the meaning of the events and incidents you've described.

Edit - Re-read what you have written. You will see errors in grammar and spelling. Correct them with both your spell checker and download a grammar program (Google it, many are free). Then read through it again. Then let a parent, teacher and a friend read it. Ask them to “take the gloves off” and tell you the truth. If you are not sure about their suggestions for change, get a  second opinion. Sometimes your friends don’t have a clue but sometimes they DO! So edit judiciously.

Remember, you may describe yourself as “competent” in your essay, but if you misspell the word “competent”, you won’t be believed! Edit down. Make your expressions simple, clear and  succinct. Don’t write, “Notwithstanding the Foregoing” when the word “however” will do just fine. Just like a painting can be overworked, after a couple of passes at the content, button it up and call it done. You can overwork an essay, too. Remember that it doesn’t have to be War and Peace. Five hundred words is plenty. More than three pages, single spaced in 12 point type is too much. Google sample college entrants essays to get a feel for the various styles.

The three basic essay styles you should consider are:

• Standard Essay: Take two or three points from your self-outline, give a paragraph to each, and make sure you provide plenty of evidence. Choose things not apparent from the rest of your application or light up some of the activities and experiences listed there.
  

• Less-Is-More Essay: In this format, you focus on a single interesting point about yourself. It works well for brief essays of a paragraph or half a page.
  

• Narrative Essay: A narrative essay tells a short and vivid story. Omit theintroduction, write one or two narrative paragraphs that grab and engage the reader's attention, then explain what this little tale reveals about you.
  

Finally, let me say that as a college planner with ABC College Planning I have seen many essays and I try to look at them through the eyes of a college admissions committee. Some are boring and uninspiring, others are self-serving and scream “pick me, pick me!”, which is just as off-putting too. The most appealing are those who are candid to the point of painful and strike a chord with the reader. You don’t have to be a professional writer to write a great essay. But if you bare your soul and tell your feelings and speak your mind, it will be read with interest. You may want to google “college essays” and read a few samples of what some of the better ones sound like.

What questions do you or your student have about writing an awesome college essay?

Don't forget to schedule your FREE college planning appointment to learn more tips about how you can improve your essay.