Decoding The College Essay

Decoding The College Essay Feel free to tell us about a time you stumbled, and what happened next. Don’t be afraid to reveal yourself in your writing. Focus on one event, one activity, or one “most influential person.” Tackling too much tends to make your essay too watered down or disjointed. Especially if you’re recounting an event, take it beyond the chronological storytelling. Sometimes creating an outline for your essay can help you get started. It will also help you organize your thoughts and develop a framework. Self-exploration can be fun, but don't procrastinate on the actual writing. Sometimes, a sense of humor doesn’t hurt, if it’s applicable to your subject and/or that moment in your life. A natural understanding of narrative structure â€" not the prefabricated “academic paper” structure â€" and a great story to tell. Essays should have a thesis that is clear to you and to the reader. Your thesis should indicate where you’re going and what you’re trying to communicate from the outset. Submit it, and treat yourself to something nice â€" like your favorite film, a run, quality time with your dog or whatever it is that you enjoy. Ask people you trust for their feedback, but don’t let anyone else tell you how you should write it. This is your story, or some small but significant part of it, as told or reflected upon by you. Our mind is created to recall things in stories. You want to be memorable to the counselors who read your app. The point of this essay is to show who you are, not who you wish you were. Stick to what you know and your true personality will shine through. Don't use big words just for the sake of using big words. Remember, this essay is about you, so use words you normally use. Imagine this is the most important day of your life. My life is a series of intense fascinations, which I dive into headfirst. “â€"ington, party of thirty, your tables are ready,” announced the hostess. Success Built to Last, by Jerry Porras, for its great pieces of life wisdom that encourage me to follow my passions in a way that serves the world and me. You want to make sure you've used proper spelling, grammar and punctuation, so ask an expert to proofread your essay. You don't want to rush or be up against a tight deadline; it will affect your work. Formatting and presentation cannot replace substance, but they can certainly enhance the value of an already well-written essay. Tell us something different from what we’ll read on your list of extracurricular activities or transcript. This is inherently not a bad, nay, it’s a good thing for a college applicant. Do not ever tell other people what they should think. It’s great to be engaged in activist work, but show yourself doing the work rather than using your essay as a platform to make your case. “That was the day I learned how important it is to be kind to everyone.” You just stabbed me in the heart with stupor. Don’t worry so much that other people may have “better” stories than you. Everyone’s life is full of story, narrative, and it’s up to you to tell these stories in compelling ways. Begin thinking about answers to the common application questions and review the pre-writing techniques. To identify the first steps to starting an essay. But what’s so wrong with having a wide range of interests? Tell a story from your life, describing an experience that either demonstrates your character or helped to shape it. With a wealth of experience as a writer, journalist, and educator, Robert Schwartz has written for all four major television networks. In the feature film world he has written or rewritten screenplays for all of the major movie studios. On Christmas 2010, the one person I was working hardest for disappeared from my life.