How To Write The Best College Admissions Essay

How To Write The Best College Admissions Essay Too many words had been added that just did not reflect the student’s vocabulary or mode of writing. College admissions readers are bright and intuitive and can tell when an essay has been “helped” too much. I see no problem with parents doing a grammar/spelling check as well as offering suggestions on how an essay could be improved. Just be sure that it still reads like it was written by a 17 year old and it shares the story that is important to them and not just an important sounding topic that a parent thinks would be more impressive . Don't fall into the trap of sanitizing your speech and your opinions for risk of offending an admissions officer. Although you do need to use proper spelling and grammar, your college essay is a perfect place for creative metaphors, witty turns of phrase and humor. Your college counselors are there to help, but they can’t if you don’t ask or wait until the last minute to seek guidance and feedback. Make a plan to meet with your college counselor and go over your college list and essays, and ask for feedback on your writing. Nothing is worse than trying to match an application essay with no name (or, worse, an email address such as ) to a file. Make sure to keep copies of what you sent to which schools and whenâ€"and follow up on them! Be certain the college or university you're applying to received your essay. Coming up with a good topic for your college admission essays can feel like the ultimate form of writer’s block. After all, what could you possibly write about that will represent you in 500 words or fewer? Not to mention why you're a good fit for the college or universityâ€"and why it's a good fit for you. These are the stories behind the list of activities and leadership roles on your application. I have seen too many essays where parents “helped” and as result, the essay lost the student’s voice. Your college counselor can provide valuable insight into how to improve your college application essays, so seek feedback on your drafts as soon as possible. School-based counselors have a lot of students to advise and are very busy, so seek guidance early and often. Writing the college essay takes time and effort, and you should feel accomplished. When you submit your essay, remember to include your name, contact information, and ID number if your college provided one, especially if you send it to a general admission email account. Unlike the rest of your application, which consists largely of objective facts like grades and test scores, your application essay allows you to truly showcase what makes you unique as a student and a person. Use your own voice and your own stories to illustrate why you would be an asset to the school. When searching for stories from your history, choose incidents that allowed you to learn and grown. Don't be afraid to use a failure in your story; colleges know that students are humans and that failure is a natural part of life. The creative process definitely isn’t easy, but these tips and tricks from students who have been through the process should help you get your thoughts flowing and ideas moving. Check out these five tips for choosing an essay topic to help get you started. Aside from mistakes on the essays, college admissions counselors discuss in “The Daily Beast” how one student sent pies, claiming she wasn’t a good athlete but she was a good baker. The admissions counselors thought the pies were quite tasty but this did not lead to an acceptance. Another student sent a life-size blowup of herself attached to balloons. It was supposed to fly…but alas the balloons didn’t work. And yet another student staged a sit-in in an admissions office lobby, refusing to leave until she was able to speak to a few admissions people. You don’t want all that hard work to go to waste. Take a minute and think about the college or university admission officers who will be reading your essay. How will your essay convey your background and what makes you unique? If you had the opportunity to stand in front of an admission committee to share a significant story or important information about yourself, what would you say? The college application essay is your chance to share your personality, goals, influences, challenges, triumphs, life experiences, or lessons learned.