The College Application Essay Guide

The College Application Essay Guide​

Many of us are through the applications of 2009 but we are still awaiting responses from our colleges. In this guide I will provide you with the tools and examples to write a seemingly excellent college essay. The essay is the centerpiece of your application. The essay is your chance to tell them an anecdote which describes yourself or the chance to tell them the things which they might not know about you. My personal guide will contain the 8 essentials subjects and guidelines which you must follow. The guide is seemingly impossible to have pictures for, but I will include examples of anything that might not be 100 percent clear.

Table Of Contents:
1. The Point
2. The Topic
3. Structure
4. The Rough Draft
5. Your Voice
6. Organization
7. Grammar and Punctuation
8. Final Copy​

Topic 1: The Point
If you are applying to college, there is no way around the application essay. In this guide I will explain how to use the college application essay as an opportunity to your advantage and display the exact message you want to put forth.
Revealing Yourself- The admissions council will be readings thousands of essay and such, so you will need to reveal qualities which will appeal to them. You want to reveal a certain amount about yourself, but not too much. When you are writing your essay make sure that, through our words, you show them your true personality and when writing one naturally does this. Make sure you stay true to yourself, and by this I mean don't lie. When one provides such an extravagant story and overdoes the essay, it might seem corny (for lack of a better word) to the admissions officers.
The committee wants to see:

• Honesty

• Originality

• Organization

• Personality

Topic 2: The Topic
You are going to want to pick a topic which would be considered interesting. Make sure your opening sentence grabs the attention of the admissions committee. Choosing a topic is the hardest part because once you know what you want to write about, it's just a recollection of our memories.
Brainstorming- You are going to want to get all your ideas and thoughts down onto paper, thus you don't forget any options which you come across. You should start brainstorming about 4-6 months prior to the due date of the application, allowing yourself to scan all the topics which you may wish to write about. Keep a book by your bed, by the couch, in the kitchen, or anywhere. This is a simple tactic which will allow you to simply jot down any ideas which come across your mind.
Genres-

• Achievement, significant experience, or risk you have taken.

• Person, national, or local issue.

• Someone who has had great influence upon you.

Topic 3: Structure
Since you know what you want to write about, you are going to have to make sure that you format your words nicely. Many times someone will have a great topic and an excellent story, yet they cannot tie their thoughts together and get the placed properly on the paper. You will have to decipher how you want to write about the topic, somewhat like a strategic plan.
Self Relation- Make sure whatever topic you chose, you must relate the topic back to yourself. Try and incorporate your life story and accomplishments into your essay.
Essay Framework-

• A great way to start is with a flashback. You should be very descriptive of your recollection of the moment and allow the reader to know what you were truly feeling.

• Another approach is the cause/effect. This is a simple tactic but very effective, it allows the reader to see your thought process and shows a particular moment where your attitude had changed in a certain point in time.

Narrative Essay- This type of essay would be considered the most effective and easiest topic to use for your essay. When using a narrative essay format you are going to be telling a story. This is simple because everybody has a particular story which might have important significance. When you tell a story that may be exciting, any person who is attempting to be intrigued by an essay, because it's their job, would rather read an interesting story about someones life. These are great because everyone has a different story and the same story is rarely repeated.
Essay Format- The traditional essay is about 5 paragraphs long. The first main portion of your essay will be your thesis statement and an introduction which will welcome your reader. Then that is followed by three pieces of evidence known as the body paragraphs. Finally, your essay should include your essay with a conclusion. It works well when your are attempting to prove a point. You can use this format or go with the creative essay format. A creative essay format showcases the content which the writer wants to portray to the reader.

Topic 4: The Rough Draft
Creating a rough draft is essential in formulating a good structure for your college essay. In this portion of the guide I will show you what you must include in your rough draft to make sure you cover the areas which colleges want to see. Mainly, a rough draft is to give you an idea of what you're writing and what mistakes you're going to have to correct. Your rough draft doesn't have to be perfect, hence it's a rough draft.
Introduction- You shouldn't try and write your introduction first, you won't have a strong one. If you think about it logically an introduction explains the substance of your essay, but when you write your introduction paragraph last it makes it much easier to clearly define what your essay is all about.
Outline- There is no specific outline which you should write your rough draft in. It should be written how ever you feel comfortable. For example, you can write a base and then edit it with scattered thoughts along side of the essay, then you can decipher where you want to include them. You want to make sure you get all your thoughts down on paper, so if something pops in your head make sure you get it anywhere it can fit on the paper.

Topic 5: Your Voice
You know that your audience is a group of admissions counselors. Your voice is basically the personality which comes across to whomever reads your essay. You word choice, tone and attitude impact what the reader thinks of you.
Stay True- You want to make sure you attempt to be yourself when applicable. You want to make sure you come across as original as well. You want to make sure your essay is basically the same as your application because they will read and consider both.
Tone, Consistency, and Authenticity- These 3 elements are extremely important. You want to make sure your essay is authentic and shows true originality. It should reflect who you are and not who you think the admissions officers want you to be. Make sure you stay consistency throughout your essay. You should use the same speaking style and make sure it is that of a respectable tone. Make sure you keep a positive mood whilst writing your essay, however your current mood is will reflect in your essay.
6 Do Not's-

• Fancy Words; every now and then a fancy word is fine, but overdoing it is a mistake which will hurt you.

• Sense; make sure your essay doesn't sound like they should let you in just because of who you are. Make sure your words are sincere and show what you have previously accomplished.

• Boasting; make sure you are proud of your accomplishments whilst not bragging about them.

• Simple Writing; don't write so simple and casual.

• Inappropriate Humor; jokes which are considered childish are not recommended.

Topic 6: Organization
Organization tells you everything about a person. It can answer many questions such as; is he neat? does he organize? is proper format show? does the writer collectively assemble his thoughts? Everything you write should ultimately connect to a unifying theme.
The Main Point- You want to make sure you have a thesis statement. This thesis will set for the main idea of your essay and will broadly touch upon what you will speak about. A common mistake which many make is restating the question, which may be fine in your remedial English class, but not for your college essay. Make sure this statement is clear and that the information in your thesis is relevant.
Paragraphs- A paragraph is used as an organization tool in the light that you use one paragraph per collective thought. This way when you are opening up a new thought and new occurrence you should be creating a new paragraph. You are going to want to make sure that each paragraph focuses on one main idea with smaller generalizations inside of it.
Topic Sentences- The topic sentence is essentially the thesis statement which will establish the main idea. The topic sentence will need to encompass all the points which you want to discuss in that specific paragraph. Every sentence which follows the topic sentence should be evidence which supports the main sentence. Sometimes you can include the topic sentence at the end of your paragraph which will emphasize your point.

Topic 7: Grammar & Punctuation
You want to make sure that your grammar and punctuation is correct. Now, the admissions committee knows you have spell check on your computer, but they want something which is grammatically correct and shows that a student has proofread their own work. Your punctuation and your grammar show others your knowledge as well, because some computers don't fix sentences which are fragmented incorrectly nor do some computers fix punctuation errors. The other main factor is that the committee wants to concur with your thought that you can write well.
Errors- Errors can be the downfall of your essay and here are some you should be aware of:

• Verb tense- make sure your essay is written in a specific tense; either present tense or past tense.

• Subject/Verb Agreement- you want to make sure your singular and plural subjects are in agreement. Correct Example:
  

• Parallelism- In every sentence, all of the different components must start, continue and end in the same way.

• Commas- make sure you use commas before conjunctions.

Topic 8: Final Copy
You should be critical of your own essay. When rereading it make sure that you take every error into account a constructively criticize yourself.
Important Procedures-

• Hiring an editor is essential because he/she will point out all the errors in your paper from a professional standpoint. If you can't afford an editor you should give your paper to the head of your English department or someone you know who is renowned as an editor.

• Make sure any reference which you use is correct, no matter what subject which you are referring to.

• Get feedback from anyone you can. Once I wrote my essay I had given it to 8 different people to read and review, this way ou can have multiple perspectives on your essay. When you have more input it's far easier because you will have more edits which you can incorporate into your final copy.

SUBMIT- Finally submit your essay and wait for your replies. I wish you all the best.

 

Cool, Looks like it took you ages.

 

Oh wow, great work! Very helpful, cheers.

 

VERY DETAILED

Nice job.

 

Thanks for all the positive input, it's much appreciated. If anyone has any questions feel free to ask away.

 

I take the ACT in 3 weeks, thanks

I'll be sure to use your guide to help me when I'm stumped by the questions.

 

Very detailed guide, best I've seen in a while.

 

Thanks Rawr.
If there are any questions regarding any type of essay writing, I would be able to help you over PM.

 

Does anyone have an example college application essay? I have to write one before this friday.

 

Yes I have an example, if you want it just post here and I can PM it to you. It's somewhat personal, so I'd rather PM it. It got me into some great colleges such as; Trinity College, Quinnipiac University, SUNY Albany, Holy Cross, Marist College and The University of Delaware. But remember it wasn't just my essay it was also grades (3.5), sports (Football) and SAT (1210/reading and math).

 

Man.. I still haven't written mine yet... I'll most likely be using this guide =/

 

If your a senior, you are way behind my friend. Just let me know if you want my help, I also have a few examples which you could use, just PM me.

 

Very good and detailed guide! I'll def. be using this when i apply in a couple of years 5*

 

You have plenty of time, procrastination is very likely though.

 

You wrote one essay to send to all those schools? Isn't that kinda dumb?

I drive by Marist everyday going to school, and I want to go there since I do not want to go to a faraway college.... BTW: a 1210 for reading and math is not that great... thats like 600 for each one... last year (9th grade) i got 580 in math, and 540? in reading... :/


The guide:

I just skimmed it... But, add a line break before the yellow stuff... then it would be easier to read because it would be less blocky.... Some stuff a bit wordy, meaning over explaining or just too many words... Just a though, not that bad though... I do not agree / do not understand some of your points of view though... My tips:

1. Say a lot in as few words as possible
2. Use non-common words... Showing that you have a good vocabulary and can use it is a good thing, not a bad thing... unless you use about 1932093 per sentence... Thats a bit over doing it...
3. Sell your self to them... Make your self stand out so they notice you...
4. Don't have so many people review it... Have 1 or 2 do it to catch grammar mistakes and stuff, but if too many people look over it they will keep wanting to change it... More than 3 or 4 is kinda pointless.

 

Most schools on the "The Common Application Online" allow for an essay of personal choice. Therefore you will be allowed to submit one essay for all of your schools. 80 points on the SAT is also considered a massive jump. Another thing which helped me get into all these schools was football.

 

O, I just know most everyone I know is writing a shit load of essays... sucks for them... 80 points is a great jump? I will see in like a year and a half when i take it again... i think i will get 700+ on math... since i will have taken calc by then... and FIX YO QUOTE. D:

 

Fixed.

If anyone has an requests on a guide or for another college application guide. please let me know and I will see how soon I can make an efficient guide.

 

Very Nice... but No Point going to college in Australia when its not as Kool as the USA No Frats w.e its called.... :'( Sucks to be an Australian " in that part"

 

Damn man, lucky here in Canada we dont have to write anything like this. We just apply and hope.