From FSU to Harvard

How to Create the College Essay that Succeeds! (Guaranteed to get you accepted into the college(s) of your choice or somewhere at least.)

YOU MUST REMEMBER THIS! The essay is your chance to say, “Hey, this is me! I’m creative/witty/ insecure/perceptive/ enthusiastic/shy/ adventurous --all of the above.”

START EARLY! You need time to think deeply, and you also need time to make strong revisions. Starting early will allow your writing process to be far more effective.

The Best Ingredients in a College Essay That Works: honesty brevity risk-taking imaginativeness self-revelation fine writing

In the words of Kramer, “Make sure you avoid writing an essay full of

BE YOURSELF! “When I read an essay, I want to know that young woman as if she is sitting there in front of me.” (Juliet Johnson, assistant director of admissions at Spelman College) You want to the admissions person to say…

FIND YOUR PASSION “Passion…there are some things that admissions criteria can’t measure: drive, determination, and heart. One place where those elements can shine through is in the essay,” says David B. Goldberg, admissions counselor at the University of Arizona.

WRITE A LETTER Try to envision a real, flesh-and-blood person reading your work. (Yes, admissions committees are made up of human beings!) You can even address the early drafts of your essay to a specific person to help you focus.

PAY ATTENTION TO DETAILS--ALL OF THEM! Basic elements of a strong essay, including spelling, grammar, punctuation, and structure are just as essential. “Structure simply means that the essay has a definite shape--a beginning, middle, and end.” David B. Goldberg, University of Arizona

SHARE YOUR WORK--BUT NOT TOO MUCH!

SHARE YOUR WORK--BUT NOT TOO MUCH! “Often, a student will work very hard on a draft of her essay, then she’ll give the draft to her father who will take out the red pen, her mother, who gets out the green pen, then the counselor sees it, then the dog sees it. They all make changes and the essay becomes a very different piece of writing than the student intended it to be.” Patricia Pei, Yale University

ESSAY CHECKLIST Does your essay sound like you? Have you avoided flowery or pretentious language? Have you been precise and accurate in your facts and descriptions? Does your essay have a clear beginning, middle, and end?

ESSAY CHECKLIST Have you avoided wordiness? Have you used a variety of sentences? Does your essay have a clear focus? Have you avoided the use of passive voice and used active voice instead? (“John won the race.” NOT “The race was won by John.”)

REMEMBER... Have something to say. Be daring! A little off-beat is O.K. as long as you stay in control of your writing. Relax and don’t try to guess what the admissions committee is looking for. Discuss something of personal importance.

REMEMBER... Be sincere. Write as you would in a diary or a letter to a friend. Do not be arrogant or pretentious. Be excited and enthusiastic when possible. Humor is O.K.!

I’M TELLING YOU FOR THE LAST TIME! No matter the question, the essay is the one part of the college application over which you have complete control. Your grades, your scores, your activities--they’re history, and there is nothing you can do about them when you sit down to fill in the blanks. The essay, however, offers a precious opportunity for you to express your individuality, so don’t squander the chance by just repeating what the rest of the application already shows.

AND FINALLY…. Even the most perfect essay in the world will be useless if you don’t submit it ON TIME!