How to Stop Struggling With Your College App Essays
Having difficulty writing your college application essays? Not sure how to start, what a good essay looks like, or what an admissions officer wants to hear? If you answered yes to any of these questions then you’ve come to the right place. This article will give you a few useful tips for writing college application essays as well as provide real essay examples that have been critiqued by our mentors!
One of the areas I find high school students struggling with the most during the college application process is writing their essays. You are being asked to basically pitch yourself to someone you don’t know and aren’t even really sure what they want to hear, and oh by the way you only have so many words to do this. These essays are also an extremely important part of your application, it is essentially the only chance you have to show an admission officer the kind of applicant you are in a way that goes beyond your grades and test scores. Some of you may think that you aren’t great writers but like all things, writing is something that takes practice and guidance to improve.
Here are a few quick tips that I’ve found to be effective for improving your college application essays.
Tip #1 Be Authentic
The biggest mistake I see students make is trying to create a narrative that isn’t true to who they are because they believe that narrative is what an admission’s officer wants to hear. I can promise you that an admission officer wants an authentic essay that speaks to the kind of person and student you are.
To do this, write about something you are passionate about or that interests you. This doesn’t need to be some crazy passion or hobby, it is perfectly ok to write about something you think is seemingly “mundane.” The most important thing is that you are truly interested in the topic you are writing about, think it showcases who you are, and are able to communicate this effectively in your essay.
Tip #2 How You Write is Important
How you choose to portray an event or symbol as it relates to who you are as a person or student is more vital than the event itself. This relates to tip #1 in that it is ok to write about something that you don’t see as being overly unique if you write about it in a creative way and you believe this topic best exemplifies who you are as an applicant.
Tip #3 Be Able to Answer the Question: Why Should the Reader Care?
Remember that unless you have an interview with a particular school, your essay is the only opportunity you have to tell admissions who you are in your own words. The following are all questions that someone should be able to answer after reading your essays:
What is it that makes YOU unique? Why do YOU want to go to college or why do YOU want to go to that particular college? How will YOU contribute to the college you are applying to over the next several years?
An admissions officer will read thousands of essays, and if you are able to answer these questions in a creative and effective way in your essay, you will separate yourself from that big stack of applications.
Tip #4 Depth Over Coverage
One of the biggest mistakes I see applicants make is trying to turn their essays into an expanded “resume” or list their 10 best qualities. DO NOT DO THIS! Focus on one or two characteristics that are relevant to the prompt and that you think best exemplify you as an applicant. Explore these characteristics and expand on each one in-depth.
Tip #5 Show Don’t Tell
As I’ve mentioned, college application essays are about exemplifying your best qualities to the admission officers who read your applications. But how do you do this? The most powerful and effective way to communicate these qualities is through a story or personal anecdote. For example, instead of saying “I’m a caring person,” write a story or give an example of when you were caring. With personal statements in particular, you can use a specific story or activity that you are passionate about as a vehicle for exemplifying your best qualities.
That wraps up our tips but we’ve also included a few essay examples with critiques from our mentors that incorporate some of the tips above:
2 Supplemental Application Essays
Although these essays may take time to perfect, take advantage of the unique opportunity they provide to self-reflect and discover who you are as a person. Writing is an iterative process, meaning that you aren’t going to get your final draft on the first try. To be able to produce great pieces of writing it takes multiple drafts and having another pair of eyes review your work and give you feedback. This back and forth is how I personally write, and the method our students have found to be most effective to produce quality college application essays. The tips above are by no means an exhaustive list, but if you try to incorporate them when writing your essays, you will see how much your essays will improve. I can guarantee that you are a much better writer than you think you are, and that with practice and the proper guidance you will be happy with the applications you submit!
Mentors on the Near Peer Mentors platform are equipped to help students with all aspects of the college application process but particularly excel at helping students strengthen their essays. Having recently gone through the process themselves and by having a unique insight into their university, they are able to give the students they assist a unique advantage over other applicants. If you are interested in learning more about how NPM can improve your chances of getting into your dream school visit us at nearpeermentors.com and sign up for more information!
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I hope this article was beneficial and gave you confidence in your ability to write great college application essays! If you have any questions or comments please write a response or contact me directly at franco@nearpeermentors.com.
