| Oh, boy… writing a college essay! What
am I worried about?
INTRODUCTION
Writing a college
essay is probably the most tedious and difficult job that you will
encounter while filling out applications your senior year. The
college essay is just one part of the application process but in some
cases it can tip the scales in an applicant's favor. A college essay
can give admissions officers a look at the "real you" that they wouldn't otherwise
obtain from just the application. It could oftentimes mean the difference
between John/Jane Doe the person and
John/Jane Doe the run-of-the-mill-application.
BE OPEN MINDED
Be sure when
writing your essay that you keep an open mind and relax. Sure,
writing an essay is no easy task but keeping an open mind can alleviate
some of the stress from an otherwise very stressful process. You
might find that some of your best work comes out when you are
relaxed.
CHECK OUT YOUR OPTIONS
It is important
that before you start writing your essay to look at the variety of topics
that a college may offer. The first essay choice may not always be
the best one and it is quite possible that the second or third choice is
more to your liking.
BE CREATIVE!!!
Admissions
officers go through thousands of applications each year and chances are
that they have heard it all. They have read excellent essays and
poor essays on all almost every topic imaginable. You want to be
creative and original without sacrificing reader interest. Try
writing about an experience that taught you something about life or
yourself. Writing an essay about a personal experience can give you
that edge and provide you with tools to write an original essay.
BRING OUT THESE QUALITIES
Try
to bring out your good qualities as much as possible. The admissions
officers are trying to gauge your character and find out what sort of a
person you are, your commitment to anything you undertake, and your qualities. Signs of qualities they are
looking for in a good student include: originality, creativity, sense of
humor, intelligence, intellectual promise, curiosity, independence of thought, leadership
abilities, leadership potential, special talents, integrity, social skills, intuitiveness, enthusiasm, spirit of adventure,
kindness, generosity, reliability, ability to express yourself clearly,
effectively, and concisely, etc. So try to bring out such of these
qualities that you possess.
BE PATIENT
Don't rush. Take your time.
Of course, the essay has to be finished and submitted by the application
deadline, but it is not as though the essay has to be completed and turned in
within a class period like many high school assignments. So take your time.
HAVE A GAME PLAN
It is a good
idea when writing your essay to have an outline. Having an outline
will prevent you from deviating from the main focus of your essay.
Also make sure to have more than one draft to catch any grammatical errors
or misspelled words. Use words that you are familiar with.
Using words that you are not familiar with might sound like a good
idea but it is not always effective. It can always backfire and
make your essay sound unnatural.
PROOFREADING THE ESSAY
Make
sure that when your essay is almost complete that you have followed
directions and that your essay pertains to the topic. Also make sure
that your essay is neat. You can write your essay but typing the
essay on a computer is probably your best bet. This makes it easier
to go back and make corrections. This also makes an admissions
officer's job of reading your essay much easier.
ASK FOR A SECOND OPINION
This helps
you broaden ideas on the topic you are writing about. It also helps
you correct grammatical errors that you were not able to pick up even in
your final draft. Always ask friends, parents, and
teachers (preferably an English teacher) to critique your essay.
THINGS THAT YOU MIGHT WANT TO AVOID WHEN
WRITING YOUR ESSAY:
1. Relationships between you and
your girlfriend or boyfriend.
2. Sex
3.
Religious beliefs
4. Political views
5.
Controversial issues
6. How obsessed you
are with yourself
7. Test scores
8.
Subjects that you know nothing about
We here at BestSchoolsUSA.com hope that these
tips have helped you write that dreaded essay and have taken some of the
burden off the college entrance experience. We hope that you and
the millions of other high school seniors have benefited from this website
and we would like to wish you all the best of luck! IT ONLY GETS
BETTER!!! PLEASE NOTE: This information is presented
here for Freshmen College Applicants to avail themselves of this material
when they are preparing to apply for freshmen admission to various colleges
in the USA. The information is displayed at this web site: BestSchoolsUSA.com
accessible and FREE to any individual interested in applying to colleges
in USA for said individual's personal use. No other use - for commercial
or any other purpose - is permitted without the express written consent
of BestSchoolsUSA.com.
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