Tips For College Application Essay Success
Even those topics that seem like they are completely boring can turn into a tremendous college application. Learning how to write college application essay is tough but when you write you have to think about the 2 goals that you have: Getting the admissions officer persuaded that you are worthy of being admitted and making him aware that you are not just a test score result, that you are truly an intriguing person.
What you should know is that you cannot find a step by step tutorial on how to write a really good essay. 2 essays will never be alike and even when hiring professionals to write for you, there is still a clear difference that appears. Even so, here are some tips for college application essay writing that are incredibly helpful.
- Always Answer Questions – Even if you follow the best possible tips, you will not end up admitted when the obligatory questions are not answered.
- Staying Original – Although a topic might seem boring, it can still be quite interesting when you approach it creatively.
- Stay Yourself – The admissions officer is interested in your writing ability and you as a person. You have to write about one thing that is meaningful and that can describe feelings, not actions. When you do this you make the essay unique. There are so many people out there that will win competitions but what they feel inside is what sets them apart.
- Never Thesaurize – Nobody knows why but there is this common trend of using really big words as this is believed to be the recipe for a really good essay. It is obvious that big words are a plus but just when they are used in an appropriate context and when backed up by a complex style.
- Use Clear, Imagery and Vivid Prose – If you are not really good with imagery, an excellent essay can be written but it will not be easy. You should understand that an application essay is always linked to imagery since you are expected to put in experience and supporting details. Try to appear to all five senses of admissions officers.
- Spend A Lot Of Time On The Introduction – The officer will most likely spend around 2-3 minutes to read the essay that you wrote. The introduction has to grab interest from the very first second. It is possible that you should completely change the introduction as soon as you wrote body paragraphs. Never summarize in the introduction. Think why the reader wants to read the essay after the introduction as when you summarize, the officer does not need to go on reading. The introduction should create intrigue or mystery. Never let the first sentence highlight the subject matter and try to raise questions so that those that read are forced to continue. Appeal to emotions.
- A Link Between Body And Introduction – If the introduction is not linked with the following paragraphs, it will stand out as being silly.
- Using Transitions – Transitions are usually ignored. You have to use transition in paragraphs and always between them in order to preserve an essay’s logical flow. This includes the repetition of keywords and progressing the main idea.
- The Importance Of Conclusions – The last chance that you have to persuade readers and impress them about qualifications is offered by conclusion. Always avoid summarizing as essays are short and you should not remind the reader what was written around 300 words before. Avoid stock phrases. Too many students use in summary, in conclusion, to conclude and so on. Think about conclusions that are different. Expand on discussion broader implications or consider linking the conclusion to the introduction so that a balance is achieved. Redefine terms used previously and you should never use a famous quote even if it is relevant. Too many students do that. Frame the discussion in a larger context or highlight why the topic comes with a widespread appeal. Remember that the essay should not answer questions that nobody managed to do till then.
- Doing Something Else – Writing too much in a short period of time can be tough. You can take a break of around a week or so. By staying away from the draft you can decide if the approach was worthwhile, if you need to think about a different topic or simply get a fresh perspective.
- Offering The Draft To Others – Ask editors, teachers or friends to help you out and read your draft. Tell them what they should think about when reading. They should easily understand what the essay talks about and the sentence structure needs to be varied. Cliches should be detected and transition has to be appropriate. Is there a need to use more imagery or is the use sufficient? Ask about the best and the worst parts of the essays. Is your essay a memorable one? Are there any parts that are unclear or that need elaboration? Is there a part in the college application essay that does not support the main argument or that is completely immaterial? All sentences are crucial to essays? This is a lot more important than what you might be tempted to think. Ask what essays reveal about the personality of the writer and is there another person that could have easily written the essay?
- Keep Revising – Since you cannot use as many words as you want, they should be used wisely. There is no person in the world that can write a perfect essay without having to eventual revise. Delete essay parts that are not related, check for transition and the conclusion has to stick in the mind of the reader. Always look for grammar mistakes and to that several times as even professionals miss spelling errors and mistakes at the first revision. Editing will take a lot of time but if it is done properly, you will love the result. The important arguments have to be placed in the foreground.
- Professional Essay Editing – If you cannot properly revise your essay, ask a professional. Keep in mind that the college application essay stands out as being too important for you not to just spend 50 dollars for improvements.