Writing A College Essay

Writing A College Essay Admission counselors heavily weigh the heartstrings pulled when presented with a well-written story outlining the applicant’s young life. For many, this will make or break their acceptance to a top-tier school. Many of the supplemental essay questions from colleges will ask the student why they are choosing to apply to that college in particular. David Nathan is a high school English teacher and Nick Accrocco is a college counselor who have collaborated on a book about college admissions. In order to write a great college essay, you don't need a committee. That question can generate a lot of generic responses from students, said Sawyer of “College Essay Guy.” Don’t be generic, he said. When you start reading through past admission essays, one of the first things you will notice is that nearly all of them tell a story. Writing concisely expresses to the admission counselor that you are able to organize your thoughts and that you respect their time. I have read thousands of essays on topics about winningâ€"or losingâ€"the big game, about bullying, about taking an interesting trip and many, many more. What does matter is how the student uses the essay to talk to me about who they really are and how this thing, this experience, has influenced them in some way. There all kinds of ways to write a college essay and there is no perfect form as long as your piece is engaging, logical, revealing … and answers the prompt. I’m not the only one reading college essay, so I’ve asked a couple of the Hood admission counselors for their best tips. Even though the Common Application has a suggested minimum of 250 words and no upper limit, admission counselors are reading through stacks of essays. Be sure to tell the whole story; do not leave the reader with too many gaps to fill in. Besides, trying to get all the members on the same page is a lot like herding cats. For those on a tight budget, families can purchase the hyperspeed application review, which costs $1,000 for two to three hours of work. Enlist a friend or family member to read over it, too. It always helps to have someone else give you their feedback before your essay lands in the inboxes of admissions counselors. To get the ball rolling on writing your essay, start with something a bit easierâ€"make a list of what matters to you. The best ones tell a specific story about an incident or moment in time that provides an insight into who the author is and how they view the world. You’ve finished writing your essay, and you want to immediately submit it and be done with it. Admissions teams review your GPA, the difficulty of the courses you took, and your standardized test scores, which is data that can be graphed. This information will show them how your scores compare to their average requirements and with other students who are applying to their school or program. Surprisingly, some applicants never care to ask this question, and they write essays that don’t enhance their applications. Before you check that box, read over what you wrote, and read over it slowly. Notice any lines that might sound confusing to someone who doesn’t know you and rewrite them. These FAQs about the college application essay should help you tell your story with an end goal of making a good impression on a college admissions officer. To learn more about writing an attention-grabbing college essay, download a free electronic copy of Lifton’s book, How to Write an Effective College Application Essay, The Inside Scoop for Parents. The author of this post, Kim Lifton, is president of Wow Writing Workshop, based in Huntington Woods in Michigan. Her strategic communication and writing services company is a leading expert on the college application essay. As you know, each college has average requirements for admission.