How To Write A College Admission Essay

How To Write A College Admission Essay And, one more time, don’t write in cliches and platitudes. Every doctor wants to help save lives, every lawyer wants to work for justiceâ€"your reader has read these general cliches a million times. This handout will help you write and revise the personal statement required by many graduate programs, internships, and special academic programs. If you find that your essay is too long, do not reformat it extensively to make it fit. Making readers deal with a nine-point font and quarter-inch margins will only irritate them. Don’t invent drama where there isn’t any, and don’t let the drama take over. Getting someone else to read your drafts can help you figure out when you’ve gone too far. He has 10 years of collegiate communications experience and has worked with hundreds of college students. He has a bachelor’s degree from the University of Notre Dame and a master’s degree from Northern Illinois University. At the same time, don’t go against what you’ve written on the rest of your application. Keep the details straight, and if there’s something you want to reveal in the essay, just be sure it’s about your thoughts and feelings, not an important fact you left out elsewhere. Try very hard not to dump your entire life story or all your finer points into the essay. Focus on singular moments or activitiesâ€"pick the ones that stand out. I know this sounds absurdly simple, but it really does make a difference to be as relaxed as possible when you sit down to write. The quality of your essay will determine your admission to the college. Just make sure that your essay effectively addresses all aspects of the prompt. You may upload your essay with your online application, email it to , or mail it to the Office of Admission. For strategies for meeting word limits, see our handout on writing concisely. Get it out and revise it again (you can see why we said to start right awayâ€"this process may take time). A well-written, dramatic essay is much more memorable than one that fails to make an emotional impact on the reader. Good anecdotes and personal insights can really attract an audience’s attention. you should determine the core message for the college essay first and support it with evidences. the common mistakes are self centered essay and lack of personality. A completed great admissions essay does everything outlined above. It flows well, is well structured and engaging and it is 100% mistake free. Jacob Imm is a communications specialist in the North Central College Office of Marketing and Communications. BUT be careful not to let your drama turn into melodrama. You want your reader to see your choices motivated by passion and drive, not hyperbole and a lack of reality. Students who wish to have an SAT or ACT score reviewed with their admissions application must submit at least one set of test scores. (We do not require the SAT Essay or ACT Writing scores.) Scores included in transcripts and copies of score reports don’t meet this requirement. You may submitup to two optional letters of recommendationwith your admission application. These letters may be from teachers, mentors, or people who know you well, either within or outside of your high school. The letter should be able to give additional context or information to support your admission that is not already provided in your application or other submitted documents (résumé, transcripts).