college essay on add

Ultimate Guide to Writing Your College Essay

Tips for writing an effective college essay.

College admissions essays are an important part of your college application and gives you the chance to show colleges and universities your character and experiences. This guide will give you tips to write an effective college essay.

Want free help with your college essay?

UPchieve connects you with knowledgeable and friendly college advisors—online, 24/7, and completely free. Get 1:1 help brainstorming topics, outlining your essay, revising a draft, or editing grammar.

Writing a strong college admissions essay

Learn about the elements of a solid admissions essay.

Avoiding common admissions essay mistakes

Learn some of the most common mistakes made on college essays

Brainstorming tips for your college essay

Stuck on what to write your college essay about? Here are some exercises to help you get started.

How formal should the tone of your college essay be?

Learn how formal your college essay should be and get tips on how to bring out your natural voice.

Taking your college essay to the next level

Hear an admissions expert discuss the appropriate level of depth necessary in your college essay.

Student Stories

Student Story: Admissions essay about a formative experience

Get the perspective of a current college student on how he approached the admissions essay.

Student Story: Admissions essay about personal identity

Get the perspective of a current college student on how she approached the admissions essay.

Student Story: Admissions essay about community impact

Student story: admissions essay about a past mistake, how to write a college application essay, tips for writing an effective application essay, sample college essay 1 with feedback, sample college essay 2 with feedback.

This content is licensed by Khan Academy and is available for free at www.khanacademy.org.

Tips for how to write a college essay

How to write a college admission essay.

Are you eager to master the art of crafting an outstanding college essay? Your essay serves as a platform to showcase your writing skills while providing a glimpse into your unique personality. To ensure your essay stands out among the multitude of applications, it is crucial to create a precise, coherent, focused, and accurate piece of writing. In this guide, we will explore effective tips on how to write a compelling college essay, consisting of an introduction, essay body, and conclusion.

The Importance of a College Admissions Essay

According to NCES in 2020, an estimated 19.7 million students were projected to attend universities and colleges, emphasizing the need for a stellar college admissions essay. This essay provides you with an opportunity to distinguish yourself from other applicants and increase your chances of being accepted. Let’s delve into the following college essay tips to enhance your understanding of the writing process.

How long should my college essay be?

When it comes to a college essay for the Common Application, a recommended length is around 650 words. However, it’s important to remember that unless the subject matter is truly captivating, the admissions committee may lose interest in a lengthy essay. Keep supplemental essay word counts within the limit of approximately 250 words to maintain conciseness and relevance.

What to write in a college essay

Selecting the right topic for your college essay is crucial. Consider writing about a subject that reflects your interests, hobbies, personal challenges, or life experiences. Even seemingly ordinary topics can become captivating narratives when woven into your own unique life story.

There are no strict rules for choosing a topic for a college essay. Some common application essay topics include recounting lessons learned from obstacles faced or describing problems you have successfully solved. For instance, one Common App essay prompt is:

“The lessons we take from obstacles we encounter can be fundamental to later success. Recount a time when you faced a challenge, setback, or failure. How did it affect you, and what did you learn from the experience?”

To tackle this prompt effectively:

• Begin by identifying the challenge or encounter you faced.
• Reflect on the outcome that arose from the situation.
• Discuss the strategies you employed to overcome the challenge, including any obstacles you encountered along the way.
• Articulate the valuable lessons you learned from the experience and how it influenced or continues to impact your life.

If you’re struggling to decide on a topic, don’t hesitate to seek input from friends and family. However, remember that while their guidance is valuable, the essay should be a genuine reflection of your own thoughts and experiences.

A well-structured college essay typically consists of an introduction, main body, and conclusion, with each section playing a vital role in conveying your message effectively. In general, the essay should be divided into five paragraphs. The introduction introduces the topic, while the conclusion wraps up the main points, leaving a lasting impression. The three paragraphs in between should focus on different aspects related to the topic.

When it comes to formatting, college essays often adhere to the guidelines of MLA, APA, or Chicago style. If you’re unsure about which format to use, consult your college admissions counselor for guidance and clarity.

How to start a college essay

The introduction of your college essay should serve as a captivating gateway to your topic. It is an opportunity to pique the reader’s interest by offering a tantalizing glimpse of the details that lie ahead in your essay. However, avoid providing excessive information in the introduction, as the main body of the essay should contain the bulk of the details.

How to develop strong essay body

Consider the body of your essay as the main narrative that thoroughly addresses the essay prompt. Ensure your paragraphs are well-organized, and transitions between ideas flow seamlessly. This will enhance the readability and cohesiveness of your essay, allowing the reader to follow your thought process effortlessly.

How to end a college essay

The conclusion of your college essay is a prime opportunity to reflect on the main points discussed throughout your essay and convey what you have learned from your experiences. Leave the reader with a thought-provoking statement or idea that lingers in their mind even after they finish reading your essay.

Consider concluding your college admissions essay with a quotation that resonates with your topic, such as:

“In every difficulty we are wounded. In every victory we are healed.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

By implementing these tips and pouring your unique personality into your writing, you can create a college essay that captivates the admissions committee and helps you stand out among the multitude of applicants. Good luck with your college essay journey!

College essay tips from our counselors:

What are some do’s and don’ts for the admissions essay.

Do engage the reader in a compelling story!

Don’t bore the reader; that is key to your success. The topic of your essay does not really matter, as long as you avoid the over-used topics- i.e. scoring the winning goal, my summer of community service. Other topics that might be considered “inappropriate” touch on Sex, Religion and Politics. You do not want to inadvertently offend your reader, so you need to also curb your use of “taboo” language. Your essay should be one that only you could write- it needs to reflect who you are. Don’t try to use big SAT words just to impress. Better to impress admission with your personal qualities. Clarity of thought is always preferred.

Do take your time and write several drafts. Do pick a topic that you relate with the most. Do not rush. Do not repeat your resume.

Do take your time on the essay. Although it is not long compared to some papers you have written by now, your essay must possess a depth of self-understanding that your high school research papers probably do not.

Do plan ahead. Diving right into writing the essay may be okay for some, but most students need time to brainstorm, to consider a few topics before committing to one, and to have a sense of the structure before actually beginning the writing process. Be sure to give yourself enough time to write a meaningful essay. One month’s time is not unreasonable.

Do plan on editing and revising. Do it yourself, but feel free to ask a friend who loves writing or English to read your essay and provide feedback. As a matter of fact, it’s best to ask a few different people. Everyone has an opinion, but if you hear the same critique from a number of individuals, then you should probably take their advice into consideration.

Do have fun with it! The essay should be a personal journey of getting to know yourself better. This process should not only be revealing to a college admissions representative, but to you as well. We write to discover, and the college essay should be a lens through which you can see yourself a bit more clearly.

Don’t fill your essay with every single personal accomplishment. You want to highlight yourself without sounding like a braggart.

Don’t brag about your GPA or your standardized test scores. Your application already has space for that. Actually, you should not write about anything that already appears in detail somewhere else in your application. There is no need for redundancy.

Don’t rely on your parents or your best friend to be the only people who provide feedback on your essay. They know you so well that they can “read between the lines,” that is, they can infer what is not written from reading the words on the page. They already know your life story, or much of it at least. A college admissions representative does not have that luxury. Be sure to spell out in clear language what you are trying to say.

Prepare, Provoke and Personalize

Writing the college essay is necessary to gain entrance through the ivy gates. At the moment we are working with high school seniors feverishly writing compositions that highlight their unique attributes and strengths. Crisp Consulting + Coaching would like to offer some clear strategies for crafting personal essays that garnish positive attention from admission committees.

1. Prepare. Transition from thinking about your college essays to writing clearly and effectively with brainstorming. Collecting ideas will assist you in focusing a well-written personal essay. 2. Provoke. Personal essays should provide answers about you to the admission committee. These insights should display your strengths, passions and uniqueness. 3. Personalize. Remember, an effective personal essay is about you. Writing eloquently about a historical figure detailing myriad obstacles and accomplishments is for naught. The admission committee wants to know about the applicant not an icon or event.

As more and more students apply to college, a strong personal essay will gain the attention of an admission officer. Crafting an essay based on your personal strengths and passions is a strategy that will assist you in the college admission process.

No Salespeople, Please!

There are many do’s and don’ts regarding the college application essay. A particularly critical “do” is to make sure that your essay stays on point. Applicants will sometimes digress, then fall in love with their digression and not be willing to cut it. Five hundred or less words isn’t much, so be sure that the essay remains focused on fully answering all aspects of the prompt, as they are asked.

One “don’t” that I think is particularly important is to resist the urge to sell yourself. Essays that state, “No one could possibly be better qualified for your program than me,” or some variation of that, risk a backlash from Admissions Directors. “Oh, really? Well, I’ll be the judge of that.” Instead, illustrate why you are so well qualified and let readers come to that conclusion themselves.

NACAC appears to promote custom essay writing aka students hire someone else to write their essays

The National Association for College Admission Counseling posted an article on their website promoting the use of an online essay writing service. The article, written by Alan Fogg, asserts that any kind of essay, ranging from term papers to college admission essays, could be customized for students. He espouses the positive aspects of using such a service, such as having time to spend with friends, writing a paper that will be appreciated by teachers, or just removing the stress writing an essay.

It seems shocking that the NACAC would allow what, in essence, is simply an advertisement for a morally corrupt service that encourages students to pay someone to write their college admissions and academic essays for them. It contradicts the NACAC’s “Principles of Good Practice” and certainly sends the wrong message to students.

Hiring someone to write a student’s essay for him.her immoral and unfair to others. Hiring another person to write the college application essay does a great disservice to both the student and the college admission officials. The college admission essay serves as a crucial part of the application process – it allows the schools to understand students on a more personal level; personal details can be conveyed by the applicant better than anyone else. Further, personal characteristics are not reflected in a student’s transcripts, test scores or resumes. Having someone else write these essays, no matter how “customized,” reflects nothing about the student – except their willingness to take the easy way out.

Those that support this kind of site may argue that they are providing a service to students, but the truth is they are doing them an incredible disservice. Yes, writing an essay can be difficult and stressful, but students will benefit by learning to work through challenges and to take pride in their work.

Some Specific Writing Tips

1. DO write “small” — that means be specific and detailed; 2. DO be concise – avoid flowery, overwrought language; 3. DON’T tell me – show me with detailed examples; 4. DON’T use vague language 5. DON’t use the passive voice 6. DO use words wisely – don’t show off by using big fancy words that might be on your SAT vocab list but don’t fit your essay. (ex: plethora, myriad, epigram)

Do tell the truth; don’t lie Be concise; don’t be verbose Focus on the subject you know most – you; Don’t write in the style of e e cummings Use descriptive words; NO 4-letter words or distasteful words Be contrite; don’t be trite Create imagery; don’t describe things in minutia

There are numerous others in my book, which is free with a consultation.

1) Make sure your story is about YOU! 2) Make sure you know what you want the college to know about you before you decide what story to tell. Find a story that illustrates your point. 3) Make sure your story has a theme. What happened? Why does it matter? 4) Focus your story on one moment. 5) Answer the prompt.

DON’T

1. Feature someone other than yourself. 2. Forget to answer the question. Read the prompt before, during and after you write your draft, then ask someone else to tell you whether or not you responded to it. 3. Use the wrong school name in your essay. This mistake shows that you don’t care enough to proofread your application. Admissions committees might forgive a typo, but they don’t like to hear that you wish you were going to school somewhere else. 4. Copy most (or all) of someone else’s essay. There aren’t too many things you can do to ensure rejection, but plagiarism, also known as cheating, is one of them. Just assume you will get caught. 5. Rely on the thesaurus. If you use a thesaurus to find words rather than trust the words you know and use every day, you will not sound like yourself. What’s more, you might use a few big words incorrectly, which will never impress an admissions officer. Colleges are not looking for the next Ernest Hemingway or Toni Morrison. You will sound smart when you use your own words and your own voice to tell a genuine story that shows who you are. 6. Get too much help.There is a fine line between asking someone you trust to review your essay and getting too much help. When your mom, dad, teacher or tutor starts giving you words to use or edits too much, your voice disappears.

Do’s: Answer the prompt. While you wan’t to show your individuality, you don’t want to write a beautiful essay that fails to answer the prompt. Be specific. Make sure your essay is reflective of who you are and separates you from the pack. Proofread. Make sure you review your essay a couple of times to check for errors.

Dont’s Avoid politics and religion. You don’t want to alienate your reader. Allow others to put their “imprint” on the essay. While it is helpful to get feedback, make sure the essay maintains your voice.

Do: 1. Start early. The more time you have, the less stress you’ll have. 2. Be honest and yourself. One of the biggest mistakes students make is “writing what they think others ?want to hear.” 3. Take a risk. Don’t settle for the essay that everyone else is writing. 4. Keep in focus. Use the essay to help the admission officers get to know you as a person. 5. Write and rewrite. Don’t try to write a masterpiece on your first try. 7. Get a second opinion. Even best-selling novelists ask other people to read their manuscripts be- fore they’re sent to the publisher.

Don’t 1. Find an essay online and copy it or have someone else write it for you. College admission officers have read hundreds—even thousands—of essays. They are masters at discovering any form of plagiarism. 2. Try to write what you think the admissions committee wants to hear. This is not only lame, but not a good way to allow the committee to know who you really are, which is what they are looking for more than anything else! 3. Wait until the last minute to begin writing. 4. Skip “optional” essays. 5. Forget to proofread your work and have at least two others proofread your work!

Although the college essay is perhaps the most the daunting part of the college application process, it can also prove to be the most rewarding, provided you follow a few simple rules. First, be yourself. Admissions officers don’t want the extraordinary; they simply want to learn something about you that they cannot glean from the collection of grades and scores in your application file. If it’s authentic, an essay about a daily ritual, ordinary hobby, or family tradition can prove just as captivating as a story about cheating death or overcoming insurmountable odds. Second, bring your writing to life. Use anecdotes, sensory language, and strong verbs to show (not tell) your reader how you feel, what you have seen, and/or what you have experienced. Finally, keep it clean. A clean essay is a concise essay, and one that is free of artificial and/or flowery language. At the height of admissions season, officers will be reading up to 100 essays per day. An unnecessarily long essay may cause your reader to tune out, or worse yet, neglect other parts of your application file.

Do’s and Don’ts

Do write in the active person. Do use your own voice. Do start early. Do brainstorm. Do show your English teacher. Do proofread. Do write about something you know. Do take advantage of the opportunity. Do your own work. Don’t write about romantic relationships. Don’t use profanity. Don’t brag. Don’t let someone else overly influence your writing. Don’t over-analyze. Don’t plagiarize. Don’t do it last minute!

Essay Dos and Don’ts

Do tell a story that belongs only to you. Don’t write chronologically. Do make it memorable for the reader. Don’t use language that is not yours. Do make it fun to read. Don’t use slang. Do use active verbs. Don’t repeat what is already listed in the app. Do use short sentences. Don’t state a point of view without back up details.

1. DO write “small” — that means be specific and detailed; 2. DO be concise – avoid flowery, overwrought language; 3. DON’T tell me that you are smart or compassionate or brave — instead, show me with detailed examples; 4. DON’T use vague language 5. DON’T use the passive voice 6. DO use words wisely – don’t show off by using big fancy words that might be on your SAT vocab list but don’t fit your essay. (ex: plethora, myriad, epigram)

The essay…

Do…. Keep your essay under 2 pages Write about one specific topic, experience, story Have an English Teacher proof read it Hook the reader with your opening Include your name or other specifics such as date of birth or social security at the top of the page

Do not… Write about commonly used topics (ex. winning the sports game, how great your mom is) Write about controversial topics (abortion, drug use)

Do be yourself.

DO: Write the essay yourself, ask for proof reading, write in a formal style, make sure that the essay tells admissions officers something about yourself, brain storm, begin your essays the summer before your junior and senior year

DON’T: Try to be funny when you are not a paid comedian, allow someone else to write you essay for you, use profanity, write about the college campus without putting yourself in the context of you on campus, wait until the last month to begin your essay, be afraid to toss out an essay that is not working and begin anew, think that no one will read your essay

it is used as the personal statement for college

you should determine the core message for the college essay first and support it with evidences. the common mistakes are self centered essay and lack of personality.

Do’s and Don’t for the College Essay

DOs Keep Your Focus Narrow and Personal Your essay must prove a single point or thesis. The reader must be able to find your main idea and follow it from beginning to end. Try having someone read just your introduction to see what he or she thinks your essay is about.

Essays that try to be too comprehensive end up sounding watered-down. Remember, it’s not about telling the committee what you’ve done — they can pick that up from your list of activities — instead, it’s about showing them who you are.

Prove It Develop your main idea with vivid and specific facts, events, quotations, examples, and reasons. There’s a big difference between simply stating a point of view and letting an idea unfold in the details: ? Okay: “I like to be surrounded by people with a variety of backgrounds and interests” ? Better: “During that night, I sang the theme song from Casablanca with a baseball coach who thinks he’s Bogie, discussed Marxism with a little old lady, and heard more than I ever wanted to know about some woman’s gall bladder operation.”

Be Specific Avoid clichéd, generic, and predictable writing by using vivid and specific details. ? Okay: “I want to help people. I have gotten so much out of life through the love and guidance of my family, I feel that many individuals have not been as fortunate; therefore, I would like to expand the lives of others.” ? Better: “My Mom and Dad stood on plenty of sidelines ’til their shoes filled with water or their fingers turned white or somebody’s golden retriever signed his name on their coats in mud. I think that kind of commitment is what I’d like to bring to working with fourth-graders.”

DON’Ts

Don’t Tell Them What You Think They Want to Hear Most admission officers read plenty of essays about the charms of their university, the evils of terrorism, and the personal commitment involved in being a doctor. Bring something new to the table, not just what you think they want to hear.

Don’t Write a Resumé Don’t include information that is found elsewhere in the application. Your essay will end up sounding like an autobiography, travelogue, or laundry list. Yawn. ? “During my junior year, I played first singles on the tennis team, served on the student council, maintained a B+ average, traveled to France, and worked at a cheese factory.”

Don’t Use 50 Words When Five Will Do

Helpful Hint: Do not send an essay expressing that your deepest desire is to go to Princeton and then send it to Yale. You would be surprised how often this really does happen.

The college essay is a vital component of the application process. It’s your chance to share with an admissions committee who you really are beyond GPA and SAT scores. Many students have trouble with this assignment: determining what they should write about and figuring out how to tell their story in the 500 words they have been given. And rightly they should, it’s no easy task! One piece of advice I would share is don’t expect the college essay to be something you can whip up in a few hours. This essay requires careful planning, days of writing and re-writing, sharing it with trusted adults to get feedback, and making sure the final version of the essay is error-free in terms of grammar. Telling your story through a piece of writing can be a difficult part of the college application process. Yet ultimately it helps colleges get to know the ‘real you’ and that’s a good thing. So don’t wait until the last minute and remember to seek out help!

Make sure the essay is about you. Don’t write about illegal activities or situations which put you in a bad light.

Here are a few tips that should help:

DO 1. Make sure that your essay actually addresses the topic you have chosen or been asked to write about. Avoid digressing. 2. Include information about yourself, what you have experienced, or the way you see things that will distinguish you from others. (I know this may seem difficult. It may help to brainstorm some possible ideas with others whose opinions you trust.) 3. Remember that your essay will be read by an actual person – in many cases, several. Consider how you can appeal to the reader(s) emotions in your essay. This does not mean writing a sad plea of “Oh, please accept me!”, but to grab the reader’s attention through any number of a variety of emotions – humor, irony, excitement, fear, heartbreak, triumph, defeat, adventure. You name it – whatever fits your theme. 4. Write analytically, rather than just descriptively. Instead of just stating that an event happened, tell how that event affected you or made you feel. 5. Proofread carefully for obvious mistakes in spelling, grammar, sentence structure, paragraphing, and so on – all of the things your English teacher has been nagging you about! Ask someone else to assist you with your editing; we often don’t see our own errors. 6. Proofread to make sure that a reference to how much you love a specific school only appears on the essay(s) which will go to THAT school! (See number 6 below.)

DON’T 1. Don’t merely regurgitate information that already appears elsewhere on the application. Your essay should reveal in more depth other aspects of your personality, interests, abilities, and experiences. It’s okay to reference something that appears in another part of the application, but only to establish a context for what you want to describe/reveal about that experience. 2. Don’t let someone else write your essay. It should speak in your own “voice”. 3. Don’t overdo the humor. I mentioned using humor as a possible “do” in the section above, but use humor selectively. Unless you’re very clever with it, the script for a stand-up comedy routine probably won’t make the cut and may not even seem very funny. 4. Don’t ramble! Don’t stick in irrelevant information just to pad the essay. When you’re doing your final editing, remove irrelevant information that may have crept in. 5. Don’t repeat things you’ve already said (unless you’re doing it very deliberately for a certain effect). 6. Don’t accidentally mention that another institution is your absolute favorite, top choice! This happens more often than you would think. (See number 6 above.)

1. Find a story or time in your life that illustrates something you’re passionate about. 2. Don’t be afraid to talk about challenges that you’ve overcome–don’t be afraid to talk about sincere things you still struggle with. Ex: if you’re a child of immigrant parents and you struggle with cultural identity–it’s totally fine not to know where you stand. Feel free to talk about it–thoughtfully, of course. 3. Write in your own voice–the essay is supposed to help colleges get to know you. 4. Be grammatically correct, but don’t be a robot. 5. Bounce some ideas off a couple people who know you best. They might be able to point you towards something significant in your life that 10 minutes of thinking overlooked. 6. Start early–you’ll want at least 2-3 revisions.

Don’ts

1. Don’t think of it or write it like an English paper. This is about you, not a book. 2. Don’t start at the last minute. 3. Don’t be cheesy. 4. Don’t be afraid to talk about you. 5. Don’t think that you are uninteresting or that you don’t have a story to tell. You are and, you do. 6. Don’t copy someone else’s admissions essay.

One of the biggest don’ts from an admission counselor perspective is to use the wrong college name in the essay. Lots of students write one essay and send it to several colleges. There is nothing wrong with that as long as you are following the guidelines that particular college has set for you. However, if you forget to change the college name and you send an essay to Harvard that says you would love to be a part of the Yale class of 2015 then you can bet that essay is going in the trash along with your chances of being admitted.

DON’TS: Please DO NOT write on global, macro themes like solving the worlds problems, or the world’s AIDS problem, or the country’s hunger problem, etc etc, ad nauseum. Also DO NOT tell us about how great your Dad or Mom is.

Nearly any topic COULD produce a well-turned essay in the hands of highly skilled highly intelligent, highly experienced writer which most high-school students are NOT.

DO’S: So make it easier on yourself and more enjoyable for the poor professionals in the admissions departments across America who have to read this stuff. Write about the one topic in the WORLD that you can write about better than anyone else–with MORE INSIGHT than anyone else. Write about You.

More later…..

I think that the biggest trap that students fall into is to write about someone or something that influenced them (not a bad topic by the way), and then spend the entire essay telling the admissions office about their Great-Aunt Fanny. I am sure that Fanny was a lovely women, but the point of the essay is to tell us about you. You are the ultimate subject matter. Whatever you write, make sure that the message that is clearly conveyed is about who you are.

Do provide new information that is not on your application. Do ensure you have a consistent theme. Do proofread. Do understand the mission of the school and how you will fit in. Do write as a story, not a term paper.

Do not embellish your essay or have someone else write it for you. Do not go over the word count – make it concise and smart. Do not whine – be positive. Do not miss answering the topic. Do not write it as a term paper.

DON’T tell the reader what they already know about you. Instead, tell them what they should know about you. Respond to the question at hand and let them know why you matter, what kind of a difference you will make, that you can reflect on your life and who you are as a person and that you know how to use that understanding to make progress towards your goals and dreams.

Before you start writing, DO look at what the question is asking for and prepare yourself to respond appropriately. When you are thinking about your answer, ask yourself repeatedly if you are answering what the question is asking for.

It’s okay to want to talk about an obstacle or challenge you have faced in your life, but DON’T dwell on telling the story of this challenge – talk about what you learned from it, why you are a better person for having gone through it and how you’ve grown it. Nobody is going to learn anything of value from you if you fill your essay with complaints, excuses and self-loathing.

One thing you absolutely should DO is read your essay out loud to yourself. Why do this? To see if your voice and your personality are really on that piece of paper. Are you in that essay or does it just sound like it could be anyone else? When you read it yourself and actually hear your words, you are more inclined to identify areas where your writing doesn’t flow well or where you start to stray from your message.

Make sure that your essay is grammatically. A poorly written paper with grammar errors is a real “killer”. The readers expect the applicant to have a good foundation in writing. I believe it is always advisable to have someone re-read and “proof” your writing for you.

Don’t frequently use personal pronouns such as “I” or “you” in your essays. This tends to make the essay boring. Try to use an active voice and respond in a way to catch the attention of your reader. Use examples, write in a format that is descriptive, is logical, and flows.

Frequently students will write their essays as if it is a history of events in their lives. Pick a couple of incidents, activities, etc. and “tell” how these were meaningful in your life. How did these events help you develop as a student and person. When students merely present a historical list of events, the reader does not get a sense of what type of person he/she is. Don’t tell the reader information that can be read on the transcript or on another part of the application.

Try to allow your personality to shine through your essay. What about you is so interesting and wonderful that the reader would say, “I think I would like to know this person. He/she will add something pretty interesting to our school.”

The first paragraph of your essay should grab the attention of an AO so that they automatically want to read more about what is going on. Your should Write with you own personality and characters. This is your essay not others, be a real person. Look things from a different angle will make you stand out from rest of tons of essays. Be logical and clear. Do not write your essay especially your PS in the last minute so that you have plenty of time to revise and to think. Some humor is fine but don’t go too far with it. Don’t write too much on your achievement, in stead, you should focusing on how to let AO see your accomplishment from your words.

Here are two easily avoidable DON’TS, both of which involve the crafting of your academic “persona,” or the aspects of character that you try to provide for an admissions counselor.

First, AVOID answering questions that portray you as a baby, a child, or otherwise immature. Answers that begin with phrases like “ever since I was three years old,” or “I can remember dressing up as a fireman when I was five,” or “for me, the first day of kindergarten was the scariest day ever.” It is overly sentimental, in the first place, and probably a bit of an application cliché (even though these memories are for you rather dear, remember that counselors probably read similar scenes all day!). You want to portray yourself a promising young adult, about to start making the first steps toward independence and adulthood; this involves creating a persona for yourself wherein you are disciplined, eager for challenges, proven in your abilities, etc. When you create a scenario wherein you are perceived as a child who is “playing” at being in the world (and probably still in diapers), you risk creating the exact opposite impression: immaturity, unpreparedness, and emotional instability.

Second, be careful not to swing in the other direction and become overly grandiose. AVOID vague, overly ambitious and naive descriptions of your goals or your accomplishments. For example, don’t create a persona wherein you are trying to save the world (e.g. “I want to cure cancer and find a solution to our energy crisis”) or wherein your minor extracurriculars are overly-inflated (“my one semester as vice secretary for the Student World Affairs Club changed my life” or “the two hours I volunteered at the soup kitchen really changed lives”). Be specific and be realistic: don’t say “I want to work with children,” if you can say “I hope to increase my volunteer efforts with after school programs and lobby for more funding for Teach for America.” Qualify your accomplishments into realizable chunks: “I am new to the Student World Affairs Club, but I hope to make its newsletters more effective.”

Rather than make these two common application mistakes, instead prefer specificity to vagueness, and a realistic portrayal of your current place in life: as a capable but eager-to-learn young adult getting ready to move into the world. You are neither a grandiose giant nor a silly baby, so don’t portray yourself as one!

DO be personal, DON’T discuss dead relatives

When approaching the personal statement, the cardinal rule students should keep in mind is: if any other person on the planet could have written the same essay, trash it and start over again. The essay at its very core should be PERSONAL. It should reveal positive qualities about the applicant (maturity, responsibility, compassion, commitment, etc) through the lens of an engaging narrative. That being said, many admissions officers have been cited saying that topics to steer clear of are dead grandmas, dead dogs, and “how I won the big game”. Again, not only are these hackneyed, but they are experiences that could happen to anyone. Another way to avoid inappropriate topics is to imagine your readership as your grandparents; don’t write anything you wouldn’t want them to read.

Be honest: Do not try to market or package yourself in a particular way in order to impress colleges. While this is not a time to be humble, you also need to be very careful not to come across as egotistical. If you are a genuinely interesting, kind, and complex person, you should be able to write a sincere essay that expresses all of your complexities, and you should trust that the colleges will be impressed. On the other hand, if you try to imply things about yourself that simply aren’t accurate or true, colleges are likely to see through it and regard your application with a cynical eye.

Advice from college admissions officers

Here are some do’s and don’ts for the admissions essay from college admissions officers: — “Don’t write an essay that any one of a thousand other seniors could write.” — “Write on a topic that is important to you and one with which you have firsthand experience.” — Think of the choice or subject and the first writing as simply sharing some part of yourself with a friend.” — “Be yourself.” — “We aren’t looking for perfection; we are looking for people who are truly interesting – to themselves and to others.” — “Don’t have others edit it and correct it until you cannot hear your own voice anymore.” — “Avoid writing an essay that will embarrass the reader.”

The Essay: Be Responsive, but Make It Yours

The college essay is one piece of the process that you can control so you want to get it right. The most obvious “do” is to respond to the prompt. Use it to your advantage. Write something that helps them to know you better, but be responsive. Too, be sure that you are giving them a piece of yourself. Make it your story. The worst thing you can do is write an essay–on whatever topic– that is generic, an essay where if your name was replaced by another, the reader could not tell the difference. The essay is an opportunity to share a piece of yourself, to give them a better reason why the school should choose you over the many others who are no less qualified and also seek the spot. Help them understand why you should be a part of their community.

Do talk through ideas and drafts with a someone you trust. Don’t talk about your ideas and drafts with too many people.

Make it an essay you’re proud of

THE DON’TS:

Don’t try to guess what the college wants. Read the prompt or question, and respond to it. They want to learn about you.

Don’t try to impress anyone or sell yourself. Very few people can do that well, and it’s easy to come off as arrogant, obnoxious or shallow.

Don’t plagiarize, cheat or lie. College admissions officers can sniff this out in a second. More importantly, is that how you want to live your life?

Don’t tell them about yourself. Reveal who you are through your story. That happens when you talk about how you act, respond, think and feel against the backdrop of your topic.

Don’t be afraid to be vulnerable. The people reading your essays have been through emotional and challenging experiences of their own. If you have a meaningful or memorable story to tell, tell it. Even if it’s unresolved in your mind.

Don’t write about someone or something other than yourself. Your job as a camp counselor, your experience on the swim team, or your favorite book are just backdrops for writing about yourself.

Don’t bore those poor folks reading hundreds or thousands of essays. Have compassion for them.

THE DO’S:

Grab your reader from the first line! Do the first six to twelve words make the reader want to read this? Maybe it’s a grab-‘em-by-the-collar kind of first line. Maybe it’s a gentle arm around their shoulder. Bring them in to your world through the story you’re telling. Once you have them, keep them.

Remember that this is a story about you, not an academic essay.

Find someone to support you at each stage of the process. Having a mentor or guide who understands the writing process is invaluable. This doesn’t mean that they’re doing the writing for you!

Give yourself lots of time. This is a lot harder than writing about the War of 1812. The best essays I’ve read have come from a school that starts the process in the Spring of junior year.

Keep at it until you love your essay and are proud of it. Read it out loud, or better yet record it and play it back. Does it sound like your voice? Does it show (as opposed to tell) who you are deep down, how you live your life, your values or how you’ve grown? What kind of person is in the story, and do you like that person? Ask others the same questions.

On my college essay I fudged on a little detail that I thought would make me look better. It didn’t change the story at all, and made no difference in me getting in to Williams early admission. But to this day I wish hadn’t done that. I wish I had written an essay I could have been proud of.

Do address the essay prompt. Do brainstorm ideas before writing. Do write your own essay. Do let your unique voice and personality come through in your writing. Do have a teacher, counselor, parent or friend with strong writing skills proofread your essay. Do write as many drafts of your essay as it takes to make it shine brightly. Don’t wait until the last minute to start writing. Don’t be overly influenced by others’ ideas or essays other people have written. Don’t let anyone else write any part of your essay. Don’t exceed the word limit. Don’t settle for “good enough”.

Do tell a great story that communicates some unique qualities you offer a college. Do tell a specific story that grabs the reader’s attention. Don’t let anyone else write the essay for you. Don’t focus on a negative event or a struggle without spending more time on what you learned or gain from it? Don’t write about a person without spending 2/3 of the essay focusing on how that person shaped you–specifically. Each essay should focus on different qualities and events, and should help you become 3-D for the admissions officers.

Here are some general pieces of advice that I give to students who are writing their essay……

1. Make sure you complete a spelling and grammar check on the essay. Since many students have access to these tools via their computer software, it is really hard to accept the lack of this attention to the essay. It really sets the tone of things to come in the rest of the application. 2. Make your story interesting. If it is a creative piece, then don’t take the obvious angle but one that grabs the reader by surprise. Once I had a student who wrote her essay about herself from the perspective of her dog. Except, she didn’t let you know as the reader that it was her dog until the very end! Very creative, funny and accomplished her essay assignment very well. 3. Be descriptive enough but succinct. You don’t need to write an essay that goes on for days. With the volume of essays that most of the readers are looking at in one sitting, taking three pages to make one point is not highly recommended. 4. I always suggest mapping out the parts of the essay: intro paragraph, many body/arguments, concluding paragraph. Jot down your general ideas under these categories and then expand. Look at it again. Maybe you will rearrange the middle section to hang together better and then edit further. Never feel that you will need to complete the essay beginning to end in one sitting and without some planning. The best ones always take a little time to develop. 5. Give yourself enough time to make a wonderful essay and to think about it. A rush job looks just like what it is…..rushed! 6. Look at your previous work from high school to see if there is a written piece of work you have completed that might fit the bill on your college essay. Maybe it was A work but could use some more editing to really make it shine. As long as the work is yours, genuine and a true example of your writing talents, it doesn’t matter when it was started or what it was originally intended for as an assignment. This is really to give the college a sense of your writing abilities and to learn a little more about you via the subject they have chosen as the topic that year. 7. If you are having trouble understanding what the essay is asking, feel free to contact the admissions office to discuss it with them. It never hurts to ask to clarify anything that is of question to you. Better to ask then to assume and get it wrong. We all know what happens when we “assume” ….. 8. First re-read your own work. Then have someone read over your essay when it is completed or when you ready to receive some constructive criticism about it. Your parents, a sibling or friend who is very good at writing or even a willing high school teacher that you trust are all good sources of others who can help you. Even if they don’t know the intent of the essay they are probably good readers and can tell you that a point is not clear enough and they are unable to follow your argument. If it is unclear to them, then editing again is probably in order. Better they tell you than the admissions office right? There are many others but this list covers the big items. Have fun with writing your essay. It is not meant to be a chore so don’t treat it like one!

TO BEGIN WITH…

I) Remember that this is the part of the application you have total control over. (That’s good.)

2) Don’t write your essay at the last minute. This is an important part of the application. Leave yourself enough time to be able to think about it for a while, talk about it with others if you Wal1t, write it, leave it for a few days and come back to it.

3) Take seriously any specific instructions the admissions office includes. If they ask for a one-page essay, don’t send three pages. And don’t fit it onto one page by shrinking it into tiny type on your word processor. People have to be able to read it. You do not want to annoy the admissions office.

4) If you have any questions relating to any application do not be afraid to call the admissions office. They’re used to getting calls like yours.

FOCUSING YOUR THOUGHTS and CHOOSING A TOPIC

1) Read all of the essay questions asked by all of the colleges you are applying to. If you can write one essay which is appropriate for a few colleges, all the better. Two schools may have open-ended topics, one may be more focused, and if you gear your essay toward the more focused topic you may be able to/want to use it for all three schools. Then…

2) Sit around and THINK for a while. What is this college’s question asking? Make sure your essay answers it, but tell your own story. If the question gives you some latitude, mull over various ideas until you hit upon one that “feels” right, or about which you’re more excited about than others.

4) Write about something that is important to YOU (not to your brother, mother, counselor, or any of the other people who are giving you advice.) It will be easier to write and will have a more natural voice.

5) Don’t try and second-guess the admissions office. Not “what do they Want to hear?” or “what would they like?” but “what do I want to tell them?”, “what do I want ‘them to know about me before they make their decision?” “what shall I talk about that will give them a feeling for what make me tick?” Remember, you’re in the driver’s seat for this one.

I) Don’t try and cover too much. All-encompassing essays will either be too long or, if shorter, superficial. Think about the things you’ve read and enjoyed; writing is usually interesting because of its detail, not its generalities.

2) Be personal. It’s your application, your experiences, your thoughts, interests and personality. The admissions committee is trying to get to know you through your own words. Even if the topic is an intellectual one, the school is looking for a personal response.

3) Convey your feelings. If you’re excited about something, convey that. If you feel strongly about something (positive or negative), express that. Dry essays devoid of feeling don’t tend to be very interesting.

4) Don’t try to be something you aren’t. If the humor feels self-conscious, forget it. Don’t force a “creative” essay. Write in a voice which feels natural to you.

5) Be reflective. Write in some depth. Use some detail or specifics,not just general (and superficial, and easy) statements. Flesh out your thoughts. Ask yourself WHY and HOW a lot as you write, not so much WHAT, WHEN or WHERE

6) What you say as well as how you say it are both important. A great idea poorly expressed will not seem so great.

AND FINALLY…

Once you’ve sent your application in, stop worrying about it. If you did your best, that’s all you can ask of yourself!

Do tell a story in an interesting and engaging way. Don’t just relay the facts, but pretend you are sitting in a coffee shop talking to a friend. Don’t repeat what is found elsewhere in your application, unless you’re adding pertinent information to round it out. Do be yourself. Do write in your own style and using your own words. Don’t steal an essay from the internet. Don’t let someone else write it for you. Take the time to make sure your essay is something you’re proud of.

This is your chance to stand out so make sure that your admissions essay truly reflects you. An essay that is truthful, appealing, and motivating can increase your chances of acceptance. What should and shouldn’t you do in writing your admissions essay or personal statement? Do: • Prepare an outline and create a draft. • Answer all the questions being asked. • Make sure your essay has a theme or a thesis. • Provide evidence to support your claims. • Make your introduction unique. • Write clearly and make sure it is easy to read. • Be honest, confident, and be yourself. • Be interesting and positive. • Make sure your essay is organized, coherent, and concise. • Write about yourself and use examples from your own life experiences. • Use a mixture of long and short sentences. • Discuss your future goals. • Mention any hobbies, past jobs, community service, or research experience. • Speak in the first person (I…). • Mention weaknesses without making excuses. • Discuss why you’re interested in the school and/or program. • Show, don’t tell (Use examples to demonstrate your abilities). • Ask for help. • Proofread and revise your statement at least 3 times. • Have others proofread your essay. Don’t: • Have any grammar or spelling errors. (Proofread!) • Be wordy or use jargon (don’t try to impress the readers by using big words). • Swear or use slang. • Digress or be repetitive. • Be boring. • Generalize. • Include cliches. • Use gimmicks. • Be comical (a little humor is okay but remember it can be misconstrued). • Be defensive or arrogant. • Complain. • Preach. • Have your essay focus too much on other individuals. • Discuss politics or religion. • Give excuses for a low GPA. • Make lists of accomplishments, awards, skills, or personal qualities (Show, don’t tell). • Write a term paper or an autobiography. • Summarize your resume. • Include information already cited on the application. • Forget to proofread.

Do tell the truth; don’t lie Be concise; don’t be verbose Focus on the subject you know most – you; don’t write in the style of e e cummings Use descriptive words; NO 4-letter words or distasteful words Be contrite; don’t be trite Create imagery; don’t describe things in minutia

Do: write your essay Don’t: have someone else write it for you. Do: write about a topic of interest or special appeal to YOU. Don’t: write what you think “they” want to hear. Do: be honest. Don’t: be overly “clever”. In short, make sure your ideas are your own. This is a personal essay. Stay on topic and don’t get sidetracked by too many ideas. Come up with ways or examples to express your topic without sounding negative, angry, “cute”, too eager to please. . .in other words, be who you are without going overboard. Don’t rely on cliches, but don’t use a thesaurus in an effort to sound too sophisticated. And once you write your draft, don’t fall in love with it! Have someone you trust look at your ideas and accept constructive feedback to improve your work. You are putting your best foot forward!

DON’T 1. Don’t merely regurgitate information that already appears elsewhere on the application. Your essay should reveal in more depth other aspects of your personality, interests, abilities, and experiences. It’s okay to reference something that appears in another part of the application, but only to establish a context for what you want to describe/reveal about that experience. 2. Don’t let someone else write your essay. It should speak in your own “voice”. 3. Don’t overdo the humor. I mentioned using humor as a possible “do” in the section above, but use humor selectively. Unless you’re very clever with it, the script for a stand-up comedy routine probably won’t make the cut and may not even seem very funny. 4. Don’t ramble! Don’t stick in irrelevant information just to pad the essay. When you’re doing your final editing, remove irrelevant information that may have crept in. 5. Don’t repeat things you’ve already said (unless you’re doing it very deliberately for a certain effect). 6. Don’t accidentally mention that another institution is your absolute favorite, top choice! This happens more than you would think. (See number 6 above.)

Admission essay should not be written in one sitting and its good to have it reviewed by as many as people since others can see some of your mistakes which is ignored by oneself.

DO make sure that your own personality shines through. Colleges look at the personality of each student as well as their qualifications. This is your chance to show them who you are, not just what you’ve done!

DO proofread! Over and over again.

DO have someone proofread your essays! Don’t be afraid to ask for help on wording and style either, just make sure that your voice is always the one being heard, not your proofreader’s.

DO use the first person. Colleges want to hear about YOU. This is very different from an academic essay.

DON’T use a form essay! Colleges can tell when you weren’t thinking about them specifically as you wrote your essay and were just casting a really wide net. Especially if you put the wrong colleges name on the essay!

DON’T put the wrong school’s name in your essay!

DON’T use too many exclamation points- you want to seem passionate about something, but exclamation points are informal, and too many can seem overly frivolous.

DO write about something you truly care about. The more you enjoy your subject matter the easier it will be to write the essay.

DO use rough drafts. Write one, leave if for a day. Come back the next day with a fresh eye and go over it. You will be able to streamline your line of thought that way so you can fit into word counts.

DON’T try to sound “academic” or give the “what they want to hear.” DO write what only you can write.

DON’T be being. (“I am… I was… I have been…”) DO use active, interesting details.

DON’T just talk about why the school is a good fit for you. DO talk about what you plan to contribute to the school, and why you are the perfect candidate for it!

DON’T tell. DO show.

DON’T send it off without having someone else read it first! I read and review essays for a living and my students tell me the insight is invaluable.

The big on is take your time. Writing a great essay is a long process, don’t try to do it all at once. Beyond that, I’ll start with the Don’ts and move on to the rest of the Do’s:

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• College Essay Examples | What Works and What Doesn’t

College Essay Examples | What Works and What Doesn't

Published on November 8, 2021 by Kirsten Courault . Revised on August 14, 2023.

One effective method for improving your college essay is to read example essays . Here are three sample essays, each with a bad and good version to help you improve your own essay.

Table of contents

Essay 1: sharing an identity or background through a montage, essay 2: overcoming a challenge, a sports injury narrative, essay 3: showing the influence of an important person or thing, other interesting articles, frequently asked questions about college application essays.

This essay uses a montage structure to show snapshots of a student’s identity and background. The writer builds her essay around the theme of the five senses, sharing memories she associates with sight, sound, smell, touch, and taste.

In the weak rough draft, there is little connection between the individual anecdotes, and they do not robustly demonstrate the student’s qualities.

In the final version, the student uses an extended metaphor of a museum to create a strong connection among her stories, each showcasing a different part of her identity. She draws a specific personal insight from each memory and uses the stories to demonstrate her qualities and values.

How My Five Senses Record My Life

Throughout my life, I have kept a record of my life’s journey with my five senses. This collection of memories matters a great deal because I experience life every day through the lens of my identity.

“Chinese! Japanese!”

My classmate pulls one eye up and the other down.

“Look what my parents did to me!”

No matter how many times he repeats it, the other kids keep laughing. I focus my almond-shaped eyes on the ground, careful not to attract attention to my discomfort, anger, and shame. How could he say such a mean thing about me? What did I do to him? Joseph’s words would engrave themselves into my memory, making me question my appearance every time I saw my eyes in the mirror.

Soaking in overflowing bubble baths with Andrew Lloyd Webber belting from the boombox.

Listening to “Cell Block Tango” with my grandparents while eating filet mignon at a dine-in show in Ashland.

Singing “The Worst Pies in London” at a Korean karaoke club while laughing hysterically with my brother, who can do an eerily spot-on rendition of Sweeney Todd.

Taking car rides with Mom in the Toyota Sequoia as we compete to hit the high note in “Think of Me” from The Phantom of the Opera . Neither of us stands a chance!

The sweet scent of vegetables, Chinese noodles, and sushi wafts through the room as we sit around the table. My grandma presents a good-smelling mixture of international cuisine for our Thanksgiving feast. My favorite is the Chinese food that she cooks. Only the family prayer stands between me and the chance to indulge in these delicious morsels, comforting me with their familiar savory scents.

I rinse a faded plastic plate decorated by my younger sister at the Waterworks Art Center. I wear yellow rubber gloves to protect my hands at Mom’s insistence, but I can still feel the warm water that offers a bit of comfort as I finish the task at hand. The crusted casserole dish with stubborn remnants from my dad’s five-layer lasagna requires extra effort, so I fill it with Dawn and scalding water, setting it aside to soak. I actually don’t mind this daily chore.

I taste sweat on my upper lip as I fight to continue pedaling on a stationary bike. Ava’s next to me and tells me to go up a level. We’re biking buddies, dieting buddies, and Saturday morning carbo-load buddies. After the bike display hits 30 minutes, we do a five-minute cool down, drink Gatorade, and put our legs up to rest.

My five senses are always gathering new memories of my identity. I’m excited to expand my collection.

Word count: 455

College essay checklist

Topic and structure

• I’ve selected a topic that’s meaningful to me.
• My essay reveals something different from the rest of my application.
• I have a clear and well-structured narrative.
• I’ve concluded with an insight or a creative ending.

Writing style and tone

• I’ve crafted an introduction containing vivid imagery or an intriguing hook that grabs the reader’s attention.
• I’ve written my essay in a way that shows instead of tells.
• I’ve used appropriate style and tone for a college essay.
• I’ve used specific, vivid personal stories that would be hard to replicate.
• I’ve demonstrated my positive traits and values in my essay.
• My essay is focused on me, not another person or thing.
• I’ve included self-reflection and insight in my essay.
• I’ve respected the word count , remaining within 10% of the upper word limit.

Making Sense of My Identity

Welcome to The Rose Arimoto Museum. You are about to enter the “Making Sense of My Identity” collection. Allow me to guide you through select exhibits, carefully curated memories from Rose’s sensory experiences.

First, the Sight Exhibit.

“Chinese! Japanese!”

“Look what my parents did to me!”

No matter how many times he repeats it, the other kids keep laughing. I focus my almond-shaped eyes on the ground, careful not to attract attention as my lip trembles and palms sweat. Joseph couldn’t have known how his words would engrave themselves into my memory, making me question my appearance every time I saw my eyes in the mirror.

Ten years later, these same eyes now fixate on an InDesign layout sheet, searching for grammar errors while my friend Selena proofreads our feature piece on racial discrimination in our hometown. As we’re the school newspaper editors, our journalism teacher Ms. Riley allows us to stay until midnight to meet tomorrow’s deadline. She commends our work ethic, which for me is fueled by writing一my new weapon of choice.

Next, you’ll encounter the Sound Exhibit.

Still, the world is my Broadway as I find my voice on stage.

Just below, enter the Smell Exhibit.

While I help my Pau Pau prepare dinner, she divulges her recipe for cha siu bau, with its soft, pillowy white exterior hiding the fragrant filling of braised barbecue pork inside. The sweet scent of candied yams, fun see , and Spam musubi wafts through the room as we gather around our Thankgsiving feast. After our family prayer, we indulge in these delicious morsels until our bellies say stop. These savory scents of my family’s cultural heritage linger long after I’ve finished the last bite.

Next up, the Touch Exhibit.

I rinse a handmade mug that I had painstakingly molded and painted in ceramics class. I wear yellow rubber gloves to protect my hands at Mom’s insistence, but I can still feel the warm water that offers a bit of comfort as I finish the task at hand. The crusted casserole dish with stubborn remnants from my dad’s five-layer lasagna requires extra effort, so I fill it with Dawn and scalding water, setting it aside to soak. For a few fleeting moments, as I continue my nightly chore, the pressure of my weekend job, tomorrow’s calculus exam, and next week’s track meet are washed away.

Finally, we end with the Taste Exhibit.

My legs fight to keep pace with the stationary bike as the salty taste of sweat seeps into corners of my mouth. Ava challenges me to take it up a level. We always train together一even keeping each other accountable on our strict protein diet of chicken breasts, broccoli, and Muscle Milk. We occasionally splurge on Saturday mornings after interval training, relishing the decadence of everything bagels smeared with raspberry walnut cream cheese. But this is Wednesday, so I push myself. I know that once the digital display hits 30:00, we’ll allow our legs to relax into a five-minute cool down, followed by the fiery tang of Fruit Punch Gatorade to rehydrate.

Thank you for your attention. This completes our tour. I invite you to rejoin us for next fall’s College Experience collection, which will exhibit Rose’s continual search for identity and learning.

Word count: 649

• I’ve crafted an essay introduction containing vivid imagery or an intriguing hook that grabs the reader’s attention.

Prevent plagiarism. Run a free check.

This essay uses a narrative structure to recount how a student overcame a challenge, specifically a sports injury. Since this topic is often overused, the essay requires vivid description, a memorable introduction and conclusion , and interesting insight.

The weak rough draft contains an interesting narrative, insight, and vivid imagery, but it has an overly formal tone that distracts the reader from the story. The student’s use of elaborate vocabulary in every sentence makes the essay sound inauthentic and stilted.

The final essay uses a more natural, conversational tone and chooses words that are vivid and specific without being pretentious. This allows the reader to focus on the narrative and appreciate the student’s unique insight.

One fateful evening some months ago, a defensive linebacker mauled me, his 212 pounds indisputably alighting upon my ankle. Ergo, an abhorrent cracking of calcified tissue. At first light the next day, I awoke cognizant of a new paradigm—one sans football—promulgated by a stabbing sensation that would continue to haunt me every morning of this semester.

It’s been an exceedingly taxing semester not being able to engage in football, but I am nonetheless excelling in school. That twist of fate never would have come to pass if I hadn’t broken my ankle. I still limp down the halls at school, but I’m feeling less maudlin these days. My friends don’t steer clear anymore, and I have a lot more of them. My teachers, emboldened by my newfound interest in learning, continually invite me to learn more and do my best. Football is still on hold, but I feel like I’m finally playing a game that matters.

Five months ago, right after my ill-fated injury, my friends’ demeanor became icy and remote, although I couldn’t fathom why. My teachers, in contrast, beckoned me close and invited me on a new learning journey. But despite their indubitably kind advances, even they recoiled when I drew near.

A few weeks later, I started to change my attitude vis-à-vis my newfound situation and determined to put my energy toward productive ends (i.e., homework). I wasn’t enamored with school. I never had been. Nevertheless, I didn’t abhor it either. I just preferred football.

My true turn of fate came when I started studying more and participating in class. I started to enjoy history class, and I grew interested in reading more. I discovered a volume of poems written by a fellow adventurer on the road of life, and I loved it. I ravenously devoured everything in the writer’s oeuvre .

As the weeks flitted past, I found myself spending my time with a group of people who were quite different from me. They participated in theater and played instruments in marching band. They raised their hands in class when the teacher posed a question. Because of their auspicious influence, I started raising my hand too. I am no longer vapid, and I now have something to say.

I am certain that your school would benefit from my miraculous academic transformation, and I entreat you to consider my application to your fine institution. Accepting me to your university would be an unequivocally righteous decision.

Word count: 408

• I’ve chosen a college essay topic that’s meaningful to me.
• I’ve respected the essay word count , remaining within 10% of the upper word limit.

As I step out of bed, the pain shoots through my foot and up my leg like it has every morning since “the game.” That night, a defensive linebacker tackled me, his 212 pounds landing decidedly on my ankle. I heard the sound before I felt it. The next morning, I awoke to a new reality—one without football—announced by a stabbing sensation that would continue to haunt me every morning of this semester.

My broken ankle broke my spirit.

My friends steered clear of me as I hobbled down the halls at school. My teachers tried to find the delicate balance between giving me space and offering me help. I was as unsure how to deal with myself as they were.

In time, I figured out how to redirect some of my frustration, anger, and pent-up energy toward my studies. I had never not liked school, but I had never really liked it either. In my mind, football practice was my real-life classroom, where I could learn all I ever needed to know.

Then there was that day in Mrs. Brady’s history class. We sang a ridiculous-sounding mnemonic song to memorize all the Chinese dynasties from Shang to Qing. I mumbled the words at first, but I got caught up in the middle of the laughter and began singing along. Starting that day, I began browsing YouTube videos about history, curious to learn more. I had started learning something new, and, to my surprise, I liked it.

With my afternoons free from burpees and scrimmages, I dared to crack open a few more of my books to see what was in them. That’s when my English poetry book, Paint Me Like I Am , caught my attention. It was full of poems written by students my age from WritersCorps. I couldn’t get enough.

I wasn’t the only one who was taken with the poems. Previously, I’d only been vaguely aware of Christina as one of the weird kids I avoided. Crammed in the margins of her high-top Chuck Taylors were scribbled lines of her own poetry and infinite doodles. Beyond her punk rock persona was a sensitive artist, puppy-lover, and environmental activist that a wide receiver like me would have never noticed before.

With Christina, I started making friends with people who once would have been invisible to me: drama geeks, teachers’ pets, band nerds. Most were college bound but not to play a sport. They were smart and talented, and they cared about people and politics and all sorts of issues that I hadn’t considered before. Strangely, they also seemed to care about me.

I still limp down the halls at school, but I don’t seem to mind as much these days. My friends don’t steer clear anymore, and I have a lot more of them. My teachers, excited by my newfound interest in learning, continually invite me to learn more and do my best. Football is still on hold, but I feel like I’m finally playing a game that matters.

My broken ankle broke my spirit. Then, it broke my ignorance.

Word count: 512

This essay uses a narrative structure to show how a pet positively influenced the student’s values and character.

In the weak draft, the student doesn’t focus on himself, instead delving into too much detail about his dog’s positive traits and his grandma’s illness. The essay’s structure is meandering, with tangents and details that don’t communicate any specific insight.

In the improved version, the student keeps the focus on himself, not his pet. He chooses the most relevant stories to demonstrate specific qualities, and the structure more clearly builds up to an insightful conclusion.

Man’s Best Friend

I desperately wanted a cat. I begged my parents for one, but once again, my sisters overruled me, so we drove up the Thompson Valley Canyon from Loveland to Estes Park to meet our newest family member. My sisters had already hatched their master plan, complete with a Finding Nemo blanket to entice the pups. The blanket was a hit with all of them, except for one—the one who walked over and sat in my lap. That was the day that Francisco became a Villanova.

Maybe I should say he was mine because I got stuck with all the chores. As expected, my dog-loving sisters were nowhere to be found! My mom was “extra” with all the doggy gear. Cisco even had to wear these silly little puppy shoes outside so that when he came back in, he wouldn’t get the carpets dirty. If it was raining, my mother insisted I dress Cisco in a ridiculous yellow raincoat, but, in my opinion, it was an unnecessary source of humiliation for poor Cisco. It didn’t take long for Cisco to decide that his outerwear could be used as toys in a game of Keep Away. As soon as I took off one of his shoes, he would run away with it, hiding under the bed where I couldn’t reach him. But, he seemed to appreciate his ensemble more when we had to walk through snowdrifts to get his job done.

When my abuela was dying from cancer, we went in the middle of the night to see her before she passed. I was sad and scared. But, my dad let me take Cisco in the car, so Cisco cuddled with me and made me feel much better. It’s like he could read my mind. Once we arrived at the hospital, the fluorescent lighting made the entire scene seem unreal, as if I was watching the scene unfold through someone else’s eyes. My grandma lay calmly on her bed, smiling at us even through her last moments of pain. I disliked seeing the tubes and machines hooked up to her. It was unnatural to see her like this一it was so unlike the way I usually saw her beautiful in her flowery dress, whistling a Billie Holiday tune and baking snickerdoodle cookies in the kitchen. The hospital didn’t usually allow dogs, but they made a special exception to respect my grandma’s last wishes that the whole family be together. Cisco remained at the foot of the bed, intently watching abuela with a silence that seemed more effective at communicating comfort and compassion than the rest of us who attempted to offer up words of comfort that just seemed hollow and insincere. It was then that I truly appreciated Cisco’s empathy for others.

As I accompanied my dad to pick up our dry cleaner’s from Ms. Chapman, a family friend asked, “How’s Cisco?” before even asking about my sisters or me. Cisco is the Villanova family mascot, a Goldendoodle better recognized by strangers throughout Loveland than the individual members of my family.

On our summer trip to Boyd Lake State Park, we stayed at the Cottonwood campground for a breathtaking view of the lake. Cisco was allowed to come, but we had to keep him on a leash at all times. After a satisfying meal of fish, our entire family walked along the beach. Cisco and I led the way while my mom and sisters shuffled behind. Cisco always stopped and refused to move, looking back to make sure the others were still following. Once satisfied that everyone was together, he would turn back around and continue prancing with his golden boy curly locks waving in the chilly wind.

On the beach, Cisco “accidentally” got let off his leash and went running maniacally around the sand, unfettered and free. His pure joy as he raced through the sand made me forget about my AP Chem exam or my student council responsibilities. He brings a smile not only to my family members but everyone around him.

Cisco won’t live forever, but without words, he has impressed upon me life lessons of responsibility, compassion, loyalty, and joy. I can’t imagine life without him.

Word count: 701

I quickly figured out that as “the chosen one,” I had been enlisted by Cisco to oversee all aspects of his “business.” I learned to put on Cisco’s doggie shoes to keep the carpet clean before taking him out一no matter the weather. Soon after, Cisco decided that his shoes could be used as toys in a game of Keep Away. As soon as I removed one of his shoes, he would run away with it, hiding under the bed where I couldn’t reach him. But, he seemed to appreciate his footwear more after I’d gear him up and we’d tread through the snow for his daily walks.

One morning, it was 7:15 a.m., and Alejandro was late again to pick me up. “Cisco, you don’t think he overslept again, do you?” Cisco barked, as if saying, “Of course he did!” A text message would never do, so I called his dad, even if it was going to get him in trouble. There was no use in both of us getting another tardy during our first-period class, especially since I was ready on time after taking Cisco for his morning outing. Alejandro was mad at me but not too much. He knew I had helped him out, even if he had to endure his dad’s lecture on punctuality.

Another early morning, I heard my sister yell, “Mom! Where are my good ballet flats? I can’t find them anywhere!” I hesitated and then confessed, “I moved them.” She shrieked at me in disbelief, but I continued, “I put them in your closet, so Cisco wouldn’t chew them up.” More disbelief. However, this time, there was silence instead of shrieking.

Last spring, Cisco and I were fast asleep when the phone rang at midnight. Abuela would not make it through the night after a long year of chemo, but she was in Pueblo, almost three hours away. Sitting next to me for that long car ride on I-25 in pitch-black darkness, Cisco knew exactly what I needed and snuggled right next to me as I petted his coat in a rhythm while tears streamed down my face. The hospital didn’t usually allow dogs, but they made a special exception to respect my grandma’s last wishes that the whole family be together. Cisco remained sitting at the foot of the hospital bed, intently watching abuela with a silence that communicated more comfort than our hollow words. Since then, whenever I sense someone is upset, I sit in silence with them or listen to their words, just like Cisco did.

The other day, one of my friends told me, “You’re a strange one, Josue. You’re not like everybody else but in a good way.” I didn’t know what he meant at first. “You know, you’re super responsible and grown-up. You look out for us instead of yourself. Nobody else does that.” I was a bit surprised because I wasn’t trying to do anything different. I was just being me. But then I realized who had taught me: a fluffy little puppy who I had wished was a cat! I didn’t choose Cisco, but he certainly chose me and, unexpectedly, became my teacher, mentor, and friend.

Word count: 617

If you want to know more about academic writing , effective communication , or parts of speech , make sure to check out some of our other articles with explanations and examples.

Academic writing

• Writing process
• Transition words
• Passive voice
• Paraphrasing

 Communication

• How to end an email
• Ms, mrs, miss
• How to start an email
• I hope this email finds you well
• Hope you are doing well

 Parts of speech

• Personal pronouns
• Conjunctions

A standout college essay has several key ingredients:

• A unique, personally meaningful topic
• A memorable introduction with vivid imagery or an intriguing hook
• Specific stories and language that show instead of telling
• Vulnerability that’s authentic but not aimed at soliciting sympathy
• Clear writing in an appropriate style and tone
• A conclusion that offers deep insight or a creative ending

There are no set rules for how to structure a college application essay , but these are two common structures that work:

• A montage structure, a series of vignettes with a common theme.
• A narrative structure, a single story that shows your personal growth or how you overcame a challenge.

Avoid the five-paragraph essay structure that you learned in high school.

Though admissions officers are interested in hearing your story, they’re also interested in how you tell it. An exceptionally written essay will differentiate you from other applicants, meaning that admissions officers will spend more time reading it.

You can use literary devices to catch your reader’s attention and enrich your storytelling; however, focus on using just a few devices well, rather than trying to use as many as possible.

Most importantly, your essay should be about you , not another person or thing. An insightful college admissions essay requires deep self-reflection, authenticity, and a balance between confidence and vulnerability.

Your essay shouldn’t be a résumé of your experiences but instead should tell a story that demonstrates your most important values and qualities.

When revising your college essay , first check for big-picture issues regarding message, flow, tone, style , and clarity. Then, focus on eliminating grammar and punctuation errors.

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By submitting my email address. i certify that i am 13 years of age or older, agree to recieve marketing email messages from the princeton review, and agree to terms of use., crafting an unforgettable college essay.

Most selective colleges require you to submit an essay or personal statement as part of your application.

It may sound like a chore, and it will certainly take a substantial amount of work. But it's also a unique opportunity that can make a difference at decision time. Admissions committees put the most weight on your high school grades and your test scores . However, selective colleges receive applications from many worthy students with similar scores and grades—too many to admit. So they use your essay, along with your letters of recommendation and extracurricular activities , to find out what sets you apart from the other talented candidates.

Telling Your Story to Colleges

So what does set you apart?

You have a unique background, interests and personality. This is your chance to tell your story (or at least part of it). The best way to tell your story is to write a personal, thoughtful essay about something that has meaning for you. Be honest and genuine, and your unique qualities will shine through.

Admissions officers have to read an unbelievable number of college essays, most of which are forgettable. Many students try to sound smart rather than sounding like themselves. Others write about a subject that they don't care about, but that they think will impress admissions officers.

You don't need to have started your own business or have spent the summer hiking the Appalachian Trail. Colleges are simply looking for thoughtful, motivated students who will add something to the first-year class.

Tips for a Stellar College Application Essay

1. write about something that's important to you..

It could be an experience, a person, a book—anything that has had an impact on your life. 

2. Don't just recount—reflect! 

Anyone can write about how they won the big game or the summer they spent in Rome. When recalling these events, you need to give more than the play-by-play or itinerary. Describe what you learned from the experience and how it changed you.

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3. Being funny is tough.

A student who can make an admissions officer laugh never gets lost in the shuffle. But beware. What you think is funny and what an adult working in a college thinks is funny are probably different. We caution against one-liners, limericks and anything off–color.

4. Start early and write several drafts.

Set it aside for a few days and read it again. Put yourself in the shoes of an admissions officer: Is the essay interesting? Do the ideas flow logically? Does it reveal something about the applicant? Is it written in the applicant’s own voice?

5. No repeats.

What you write in your application essay or personal statement should not contradict any other part of your application–nor should it repeat it. This isn't the place to list your awards or discuss your grades or test scores.

6. Answer the question being asked.

Don't reuse an answer to a similar question from another application.

7. Have at least one other person edit your essay.

A teacher or college counselor is your best resource. And before you send it off, check, check again, and then triple check to make sure your essay is free of spelling or grammar errors.

Read More: 2018-2019 Common Application Essay Prompts (and How to Answer Them)

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The 13 Best College Essay Tips to Craft a Stellar Application

College Essays

In many ways, the most labor-intensive part of your college application process is the essay. It’s not just about forwarding transcripts or entering a list of extracurricular activities—you have to craft something personal and compelling to show the admissions committee who you are beyond your resume.

In this article, we’ll go over our 13 best tips for writing college essays. We’ll give tips for every step of the process including planning, writing, and editing your essay, as well as some quick and easy tips to boost any essays you already have written! With these college essay tips, you’ll be that much closer to the best admissions essay ever!

5 Tips for College Essay Planning

Doing a good job planning makes the college essay process that much easier. These five college essay tips will help you get started and pave the way for a great final product.

#1: Make a Plan of Attack for Your Essays

The first thing you’ll need to do is identify all the essays you’ll need to write and their deadlines. It may help you to make a spreadsheet with the essay guidelines for each school, the word count, the prompts, the due date, and any special instructions. This will help you figure out:

How many essays you’ll need to write, and how long those essays need to be.

Whether you can reuse any essays: In general, you can reuse essays for prompts that are about your life, broadly similar in theme, and have a similar word count. You probably can’t reuse essays that are very specific to the college, like “Why This College” essays .

Which essay you should write first: You’ll probably want to start first on the essay with the earliest application deadline. Alternatively, if you have plenty of time or the deadlines are close together, you could start with the longest essay (which will take the most time) or the essay that will be used for the most schools (like a Common Application essay). Do what you feel most comfortable with.

With all this information gathered, you’ll be able to make a plan of attack for your essays and make sure nothing gets lost in the application shuffle. (In fact, I actually advise keeping track of all necessary components of your application in a spreadsheet for the same reason).

#2: Start Early

You want to start writing way before the deadline. If possible, give yourself at least two months, and maybe even more time if you can. This will make sure that you have enough time to adequately plan your essay, draft it, and edit it.  

And, of course, the more essays you have to write, the earlier you should start!

#3: Choose the Right Topic

Choosing the right topic has two facets: first, choosing the right prompt (if there’s a choice) and second, choosing the right topic to write about for that prompt.

The Right Prompt

If there’s a choice of prompts, you may want to actually start by brainstorming the specific topic or thing in your life that you want to write about, and then reverse-engineer back to the most appropriate prompt. Most college essay prompts are pretty vague, so a broad range of topics and issues can be applied.

You can also use prompts to help you brainstorm if you’re having a hard time figuring out what to write about. Think about the prompt that seems most appealing to you at first. What intrigues you about it? What do you think you could communicate about yourself through that question?

Here’s some tailored guidance on some of the most common college essay prompt types . And if you’re writing a Common Application essay, here’s advice on how to choose the right Common App prompt for you .

The Right Topic

When you’re trying to choose something about your life to write about, consider the following:

What are you excited to write about? A good college essay can be about a wide variety of topics, but it should show that you’re passionate about something. This could be anything from a hobby you have to your favorite book or even your most beloved stuffed animal, just so long as you can make it memorable and positive. Also, your writing will be a lot better if you are writing about something you care about and are interested in!

Whatever you write about should be primarily about you. You should be the focal point. Even if you’re writing about someone who has influenced you, for example, you need to relate it back to yourself. What does this tell admission officers about you?

What makes you stand out? This should be something that goes beyond what’s in the rest of your application. Your test scores and GPA are already there. What really shows something unique about you?

Choose a topic you can be honest about . If you’re not being genuine, it will end up coming through in your writing. So don’t write about how much your membership in Youth Group meant to you if you only went to make your mom happy and you actually didn’t care that much.

In general, you should avoid topics that are overly controversial, like things that are politically charged, doing things that are illegal, or anything involving graphic descriptions of any bodily function. So if you’re going to write about recovering from hip surgery, probably leave out the gory details of you being constipated and your oozy scars.

Check out our 35 brainstorming techniques for college essays for even more help coming up with a topic!

If you’re really stumped, consider asking your friends and family what they think could be good topics. They may help you figure out something memorable and interesting. But also, don’t feel like you have to write about a topic just because someone else thinks it would be great. You need to be genuinely interested in what you’re writing about to write an engaging essay!

#4: Decide on Your Approach

In general, there are two main approaches you might take to write your essay. It might primarily take a narrative format, or it might take a thematic format.

In a narrative format, you’ll be relating a particular anecdote or experience and what it means to you. In a thematic format, you’ll present a particular theme—say, your love of parakeets or your secret talent for balancing books on your head—and expound on that theme in a descriptive way to reveal more about you and your personality.

Sometimes your approach will be determined by the prompt or topic that you choose. For example, if a prompt says to relate a particular event or anecdote, you’ll probably use a narrative approach. By contrast, if you want to write about how your favorite book changed your life, that will probably be a thematic essay.

#5: Write an Outline

Doing a little bit of outlining before you put fingertips to keyboard to write your essay is always a good idea. You don’t necessarily need to make a super-detailed plan before you starting writing, but a general idea of where you are going and the points you want to make will be very helpful when you start drafting. Otherwise, you may find yourself spending a lot of time staring at a blank Word document.

Yes, good, very detailed essay plan. 

4 Top College Essay Writing Tips

Here are four tips for writing college essays and making sure your work  stands out in a good way:

#6: Use Specific Details

The more details you use, the more your writing will come alive. Try to use words that are vivid and specific, instead of ones that are vague like “nice,” “good,” and so on. This will really flesh out the scene and help the reader picture what’s going on.

So take something like this:

One of my biggest accomplishments in life was teaching my little brother to ride a bicycle. I encouraged him to keep going when he fell down. Now he’s a great cyclist!

To something more like this:

One of my biggest accomplishments in life was teaching my eight-year-old brother to ride the racy red bicycle he got for his birthday. He wanted to give up when he took a tumble and skidded across the sidewalk. But while I bandaged up his knees with Batman band-aids, I convinced him to give it another try. I told him to think about how he would be able to bike all around the neighborhood exploring. Now I smile whenever I see him zooming down our street—wearing his helmet, of course!

See the difference? Wouldn’t you rather read the second one?

#7: Be Genuine

It’s important to get beyond the superficial in your personal statement. You should be writing about something that’s genuinely important or significant to you, so try to get beyond the surface. Instead of writing vague platitudes about how you really like the violin but it’s hard, really get at the meat: did you ever think about quitting? What’s frustrated you the most? What really keeps you going?

This means you shouldn’t try to write about things where it’s too painful to be honest. So if your parents got a divorce last year, it may be too raw to write about, which is perfectly fine. If, however, they got divorced when you were 5 and you can honestly reflect on how it changed your life, go for it.

Of course, you want to be honest in a reasonable and appropriate way. If you overshare, it will make it seem like you have bad judgment or don’t understand social norms—not good impressions to give the admissions committee. So probably don’t write about how much you despise your mother and think she is evil since she had an affair with your school librarian. It’s fine to feel how you feel, but there are some things that are a little too charged to write in your college essay.

#8: Be Unique, but Not Bizarre

You definitely want your writing to set you apart—but you want it to set you apart in a good way. This means you want high-quality writing about unique experiences and qualities you bring to the table that aren’t covered elsewhere in your application.

This does not mean you should get really avant-garde with your essay formatting. Don’t send in a piece of art instead of an essay, or make a video, or write a poem instead of an essay, unless those things are explicitly allowed.

Similarly, while your essay doesn’t have to be 100% deadly serious in tone, you should be careful with humor. This doesn’t mean absolutely no jokes or tongue-in-cheek moments or that your essay should read like an 18th-century book of sermons. But if your essay relies too much on humor, you’ve got a lot riding on whether or not the person reading your essay “gets” it. They may well be annoyed. So deploy humor carefully and selectively.

#9: Avoid Cliches and Platitudes

The more cliches you use in your writing, the more boring and less insightful your essay will be. Cliches are phrases that are so overused that they are essentially meaningless, and they are likely to make any reader roll their eyes. Phrases like “a dime a dozen,” “outside the box,” “cold as ice,” “dirt cheap,” “flash in the pan,” and so on are frequently deployed in conversation because they convey a common idea quickly. But you don’t want your essay to be common, so avoid cliches. Try to think about how you can communicate the same idea in a more specific and interesting way.

Here’s a list of over 600 cliches . But for the most part, you won’t need a list; you’ll know something is a cliche because you will have heard it a million times already.

You should also avoid platitudes or sweeping generalizations about life. These are statements that are so broad and far-reaching as to be both obvious and completely uninsightful.

So avoid making statements like “And that’s how I learned that hard work pays off,” or “There’s no ‘I’ in team.” You may think you sound sage or wise, but the truth is, platitudes are going to sound immature and poorly-formed to the reader. Similarly, don’t say things that sound like they could come from an inspirational quote account on Instagram. (See, ahem, “You miss 100% of the shots you never take,” “Shoot for the moon,” and so on.)

How do you avoid the platitude problem? Try to keep what you’re saying specific to you. So instead of saying “And that’s how I learned that hard work pays off,” try, “This experience helped me to realize that when I put concentrated effort into something that’s important to me, I can accomplish it even when there are roadblocks.” Keep the focus on what you can and will do in your own life.

Avoid  trite sayings like this one.

2 Tips for Editing Your College Essay

You may think that once you’ve gotten a draft done that you’re good to go. Not so! Editing is one of the most important parts of writing the best college essay possible, and here are two essential college essay tips for editing.

Tip #10: Ask for Help

It’s always wise to get another set of eyes on your college essays. In fact, several sets of eyes is even better! Other people can help you make sure your essay flows, you have enough detail, that everything is relevant, and that you sound as engaging and interesting as you really are! They can also help you catch typos and other minor errors—although you’ll want to double and triple-check for that yourself before submitting.

Here’s advice on how to ask for help with all parts of the college essay process , including editing.

Tip #11: Be Prepared to Cut a Lot

Brace yourself for cutting up your initial draft into tiny little ribbons and rearranging the remaining pieces Frankenstein-style. A first draft is really just a starting place to get your ideas down before you revamp the entire thing into a more streamlined, better organized, highly polished version. So you have to be ready to let go of pieces of your essay, no matter how much you love a particular turn of phrase or analogy. The ultimate goal is to turn the rough stone of your first draft into a polished and clear piece of writing—and that’s going to take a lot of chipping and sanding!

2 Final Tips for College Essay Success

Here are two quick but essential college essay tips you can implement easily.

Tip #12: Have a Standout First Sentence

One thing you can do to give any essay a boost is to make sure that your first sentence is attention-grabbing. If you can pique the interest of the admissions counselor right away, you’ll help keep their attention throughout your essay.

Here’s our guide to getting that perfect first sentence!

Tip #13: Triple-check for Typos and Errors

The most important quick thing you can do for your essay is to make sure there are no typos or grammatical errors. It will make your essay look sloppy and unfinished, and that’s the last thing you want! College admissions officers expect a polished product, and there’s nothing less polished than misspelled words and comma splices.

13 College Essay Tips: Key Takeaways for a Great College Essay

To recap, here’s our 13 tips for the best college essay ever:

College Essay Planning Tips:

• Create a plan of attack for all of your essays so you can keep track of everything.
• Start early—at least two months before the due date, if not more.
• Choose the right prompt and topic for you.
• Decide between a narrative or a thematic approach to the topic.
• Outline before you start writing!

College Essay Writing Tips:

• Use vivid, specific details.
• Be genuine—get beyond the superficial.
• Be unique, but not bizarre.
• Avoid cliches and platitudes; they are boring and unimaginative.

College Essay Editing Tips:

• Get other people to look at your essay.
• Be prepared to change, cut, and rearrange a lot!

Final Tips for College Essays:

• Make sure your first sentence is stellar.
• Triple check for typos and grammatical errors!

What’s Next?

You’ve read our tips for success—now see 10 college essay mistakes to avoid .

Looking for some college essay examples? See 133 essay examples and expert analysis here , along with 11 more places to find great college essay examples .  

Check out our complete guides to ApplyTexas essays , UC Personal Insight questions , and the Common Application essay !

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Ellen has extensive education mentorship experience and is deeply committed to helping students succeed in all areas of life. She received a BA from Harvard in Folklore and Mythology and is currently pursuing graduate studies at Columbia University.

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Common App Essay Prompts 2024-2025

Are you applying to college in the US this year? If so, you will likely need to use the Common Application . This is the largest college application platform in the US. You will also need to write a Common App essay, also known as a personal statement. If your next question is, “ What is a personal statement? ”, you’re in the right place! In this article, we will introduce you to the personal statement by exploring the Common App essay prompts and college essays that worked.

In addition to sharing the Common App essay prompts, we will break down each of the Common App essay prompts. Then, we’ll review personal statement sample essays and describe why they worked . In doing so, we hope to demystify what colleges are looking for. This will empower you to write a personal statement that is meaningful to you.

Lastly, this article will provide you with plenty of Common App essay tips. From start to finish, we will show you how to answer the Common App essay prompts and perfect your essays. By the end of our time together, you will feel confident that you can write a standout personal statement. 

Ready to get started? Let’s begin with a deep dive into the Common App!

What is the Common App?

Before we look more deeply into the Common App essay prompts, we will introduce you to the Common App itself. The Common App is a centralized online application platform that allows students to apply to over 1,000 American colleges and universities. 

By allowing students to apply to many schools on one website, the Common App saves students a significant amount of time while applying to college. Indeed, much of the information you enter on the Common App can be sent to multiple schools. This includes your contact information, demographic information, extracurriculars, and even your Common App essay. 

What is the Common App essay?

The Common App essay is a general college essay requested by many US schools. As the main college essay, its purpose is to introduce you to college admissions officers. To do so, you will write about a topic that truly matters to you. It should also display important personal traits. For example, if you have loved riding horses since you were a small child and are very compassionate towards animals, you might share that in your college essay. Indeed, there is no perfect topic amongst the Common App essays that worked. The best topic is one that resonates most deeply for you.

There are some broad guidelines for the Common App essay. Your Common App essay should:

Common App Essay Guidelines

Be about you.

Your Common App essay, unlike supplemental essays, is intended to introduce you to every school. You should not talk about why you want to attend a specific school in your Common App essay. Think about this essay as a response to the question: “Who are you?” You can edit the essay before submitting each school’s application on the Common App platform. However, generally, you shouldn’t have to since the same Common App essay can be used for any school.

Be the Right Length

The essay must be between 250 and 650 words. If your essay is too short, it may come across as incomplete. Any essays that go over the word count will not be accepted.

Respond to one of the Common App Essay Prompts

Technically you can write about any topic. But, you will want to make sure you write in a way that responds to one of the Common App essay prompts. Each of the Common App essay prompts is designed to guide you towards self-reflection. Be sure to read through the Common App essay prompts and choose the one that best allows you to explore your ideal topic.

In future sections, you’ll find plenty of additional Common App essay tips.

What’s the difference between a Common App Essay and a Personal Statement?

Generally speaking, the Common App essay is a type of personal statement. In this article, as in the college admissions process, we use those terms interchangeably.

Now, let’s answer the question of, “What is a personal statement?” A personal statement is a general term for an essay written for an admissions process. Most personal statements introduce the applicant to a committee. Depending on what you are applying for, the personal statement may ask you to discuss your background, career goals, and personal values.

Importantly, none of the Common App essay prompts are specifically asking you to share your goals for the future. Indeed, you do not even technically have to talk about college in your essay. As you will see below in our example of college essays that worked below, the Common App essay is solely about introducing yourself to admissions officers. 

Remember, the college admissions process is holistic in nature. That means many schools are looking at more than just your grades and test scores. As such, admissions officers care deeply about how you respond to the Common App essay prompts.

2024-2025 Common App Essay Prompts

Before you write your Common App essay, you’ll want to familiarize yourself with the Common App essay prompts. There are seven Common App essay prompts in total:

1. Some students have a background, identity, interest, or talent that is so meaningful they believe their application would be incomplete without it. If this sounds like you, then please share your story.

2. the lessons we take from obstacles we encounter can be fundamental to later success. recount a time when you faced a challenge, setback, or failure. how did it affect you, and what did you learn from the experience, 3. reflect on a time when you questioned or challenged a belief or idea. what prompted your thinking what was the outcome, 4. reflect on something that someone has done for you that has made you happy or thankful in a surprising way. how has this gratitude affected or motivated you, 5. discuss an accomplishment, event, or realization that sparked a period of personal growth and a new understanding of yourself or others., 6. describe a topic, idea, or concept you find so engaging that it makes you lose all track of time. why does it captivate you what or who do you turn to when you want to learn more, 7. share an essay on any topic of your choice. it can be one you’ve already written, one that responds to a different prompt, or one of your own design..

In a future section, we will break down what each of the Common App essay prompts is asking for. Importantly, we’ll also look at how to make sure you answer your chosen one successfully.

Do the Common App Essay Prompts change?

Yes, each year the Common App essay prompts can change. However, the Common App essay prompts have not changed in the past year. This is because the Common App has received a lot of positive feedback about the prompts. 

The Common App essay prompts may change in subsequent years. However, it is likely that at least some, if not all, of the questions will remain the same. So, if you are a high school sophomore or junior, you can use the 2024-25 Common App essay prompts to guide you in thinking about what you might like to write for your personal statement. Just be sure to check the Common App essay prompts at the time you apply! This way you can make sure you are answering a current prompt.

Breaking down the Common App Essay Prompts

Before you start writing your Common App essay, you will want to understand what the Common App essay prompts are asking. To help you, we will break down each of the Common App essay prompts, explaining what it means and how you can answer it successfully.

Common App Essay Prompt 1

Some students have a background, identity, interest, or talent that is so meaningful they believe their application would be incomplete without it. if this sounds like you, then please share your story..

The first of the Common App essay prompts asks you to discuss a background, identity, interest, or talent. You might choose this prompt if there is something about you that you feel strongly represents you. For example, maybe your religion is very important to you. Or, perhaps your ability to solve a Rubik’s cube quickly is a talent that holds important meaning to you. 

If you choose this prompt, be sure to go beyond simply explaining what the background, identity, interest, or talent is. To be successful with this prompt, you must go deeper. Show why this topic matters to you and what it demonstrates about who you are. 

Common App Essay Prompt 2

The lessons we take from obstacles we encounter can be fundamental to later success. recount a time when you faced a challenge, setback, or failure. how did it affect you, and what did you learn from the experience.

If you have experienced some kind of hardship in your life, you might wish to respond to the second of the Common App essay prompts. While the challenge, setback, or failure you describe does not have to be monumental, it should be important to you. That is, you do not have to have tried out for the Olympics to respond to this question, but you should be able to demonstrate why your challenge, setback, or failure shaped you. Additionally, if your college essay ideas are fairly common, like a sports injury, make sure to provide your own personal take on the experience. The more specific you can be, the better.

To ace this question, you should respond to the final part of the prompt clearly, explaining how this experience affected you and what you learned from it. If you choose to talk about a failure or setback, be sure to also focus on positive aspects of the experience. Undoubtedly, this prompt is intended to understand how you persist. It gives you the opportunity to show resilience.

Common App Essay Prompt 3

Reflect on a time when you questioned or challenged a belief or idea. what prompted your thinking what was the outcome.

The Common App essay prompts are also an opportunity to showcase how you think. With this prompt, you can share an experience in which you used your critical thinking skills to challenge a belief or idea. Again, make sure that you choose an experience that truly matters to you. Rather than simply discussing what happened, give the reader a glimpse into your thought process.

Common App Essay Prompt 4

Reflect on something that someone has done for you that has made you happy or thankful in a surprising way. how has this gratitude affected or motivated you.

The fourth of the Common App essay prompts asks you to share your gratitude for someone else. If this prompt resonates with you, you should fully describe the circumstances of the experience. Who was the person? What did they do for you? How did the experience change you? 

As with all prompts where you are writing about other people, don’t focus your entire essay on that person. Remember, this is still a personal essay, and you are the star of the show. 

Common App Essay Prompt 5

Discuss an accomplishment, event, or realization that sparked a period of personal growth and a new understanding of yourself or others..

While all the Common App essay prompts nod towards personal growth in some way, this prompt specifically names it. To answer this prompt fully, describe the accomplishment, event, or realization in detail. Then, spend a significant chunk of your essay talking about how you changed because of the experience. 

Common App Essay Prompt 6

Describe a topic, idea, or concept you find so engaging that it makes you lose all track of time. why does it captivate you what or who do you turn to when you want to learn more.

With this question – the sixth of the Common App essay prompts – you have an opportunity to talk about a topic, idea, or concept that fascinates you. If there is a topic you absolutely love to discuss, you might want to choose this prompt. 

As with all the Common App essay prompts, you should reflect on why you love this topic. You should also provide details about how you engage with the topic. For example, if you have loved learning about how buildings are constructed, you will want to fully explain what interests you about the topic. You will also want to share how you study construction in your daily life.

Common App Essay Prompt 7

Share an essay on any topic of your choice. it can be one you’ve already written, one that responds to a different prompt, or one of your own design..

The final of the Common App essay prompts is the most general in nature. The prompt asks you to share an essay on any topic. You could use an essay you have written for an English class. However, you must make sure that the response is still demonstrating core personality traits you want to share with colleges. The essay must include personal reflection as well, as this is part of what makes a great college essay.

How do I write a Common App essay?

To write a Common App essay, you will want to follow some tried and true steps . To complete all these steps before your application deadlines, we recommend starting early. Ideally, start in the summer before your senior year. 

Here are the most important Common App essay tips:

Common App Essay Tips

1. understand your personal brand.

Before you start responding to one of the Common App essay prompts, spend time reflecting on what is most important for colleges to know about you. This is also known as your personal brand. Your personal brand could be that you are a competitive swimmer with a soft spot for animals. By grounding yourself in your personal brand, you can more easily identify college essay ideas that fit your brand.

2. Pick a prompt

Spend some time reviewing the Common App essay prompts. Then, choose one that best allows you to express your personal brand. Remember that some schools may have additional essay requirements which ask you to write about your intended major or your extracurriculars. If you plan to write about your love of studying architecture in a supplemental essay , it probably won’t make sense to write about it in your personal statement. You don’t want to repeat college essay ideas.

3. Outline your college essay ideas

While some students skip outlining, it can be extremely helpful, especially if you get easily overwhelmed by the blank page. Take time to think about the ideas you hope to express and draft an outline of how the essay will begin, develop, and close. What makes a great college essay, in part, is how well thought-out it is. 

4. Draft your essay

When drafting your essay, try not to worry about writing it perfectly the first time. Most college essays that worked required numerous drafts. By avoiding perfectionism on the first draft, you might save yourself time in the long run. And, you’ll give yourself the freedom you need to fully explore and express your ideas.

5. Edit your essay

During the revision process, you can make sure your essay is as clear, compelling, and concise as possible. Always check the Common App essay prompts to make sure you are responding to the entire prompt. You should also focus on correcting grammar and spelling mistakes, which can be distracting for readers.

Beyond simply following these steps, some students may find that reading personal statement sample essays can be helpful. They can provide inspiration for topics and insight into what makes a great college essay. To that end, we are going to share examples of Common App essays that worked.

Common App Essay Examples

Before we share our Common App essays that worked, we want to remind you that your personal statement does not need to be like these college essay examples. Indeed, what makes a great college essay is how clearly the writer’s voice comes across when responding to the Common App essay prompts. The reader also needs to hear your passion for the topic throughout your essay. 

As you read these personal statement sample essays, don’t focus solely on what students wrote about. Instead, search for college essay tips based on how they wrote their essays. Avoid comparing your life or your writing skills to those of the writers of these personal statement sample essays.

While we chose them because they are representative examples of college essays that worked, they are not intended to be copied in any form. We hope you find these personal statement sample essays useful in understanding how to answer the Common App essay prompts.

Common App Essay Example #1

My journey of questioning the Catholic beliefs that my family members hold close to their hearts has been incredibly intimate and thought-provoking. For many years, I felt as if I had to manifest into the religious person I was not, merely to keep my parents content, and this demoralized me for a large portion of my life. Having to hear Bible verses in a church I was forced to sit in every Sunday and trying to find the validity in these stories is what my time in mass truly consisted of. Why can’t I bring myself to believe that these stories are true, when everyone sitting here is able to? 

Growing up in a hispanic household in which the statement “Gracias a Dios que…” (translation: “Thank God that…”) is expressed everyday, even in the most simplest occurrences, caused me to continue contemplating the veracity of these beliefs as I matured. Thoughts would course through my mind about the reasons why we were thanking God when he did not hand anything to us himself and my parents were working hard for everything that we had. Even when it came to our health, this statement would be reiterated. Trips to medical offices and recovering from illnesses were filled with this statement, and it aggravated me to witness this spiritual being getting the credit for a doctor’s knowledge and actions. Even more questions that I wouldn’t dare to ask kept consuming my thoughts, the biggest one being, “Am I wrong for believing that my family should not be thanking God?” 

One of the most significant aspects of my journey is the day I discovered that my grandfather is also an atheist, as it brought relief upon seeing that I was not alone in doubting the beliefs that my family members hold. However, once the conversation turned to speak about how wrong he was, this feeling of relief quickly brought out my underlying fear that my parents would view me negatively if they knew that I was not the dutiful and religious daughter they believed I was. I also didn’t remember the last time I had spoken to my grandfather, and a feeling of solitude washed over me once again. 

The denouement of my journey arrived when I determined that I did not believe in a god and was no longer afraid of not being accepted by my parents for this. I built the courage to inform them that I do not share the beliefs they hold dear to their hearts. When I realized that I did not have to believe in a god in order to be a good person, my fear of not being accepted went away, as I began to accept myself. 

The most ironic aspect of this journey is the amount of times my family has told me that I am wrong for being an atheist, when I have never told them that they are wrong for being Catholics. I may not partake in their beliefs, but I will always respect the fact that they have them. This journey has been crucial to my personal growth and has shaped me into a very accepting person. One of the biggest factors that has diverted me from having a desire to be part of a religious community is how exclusive they tend to be. It is not only the conceptual aspect of religion that I do not believe in, but also the way many humans have interpreted it and used it to justify discriminatory acts throughout history. 

Everyone in this world should be accepted for who they are, as long as they do not harm others. Being an atheist and dealing with the backlash of my family telling me that I am wrong

has only led me to be even more passionate about the things I stand for. I implore that no one should put others down for being their true selves.

Why this Common App Essay Worked

In the first of our Common App essays that worked, the student writes about her exploration of her religion. She shares her thought process on how she came to be atheist even though she grew up in a very Catholic family. 

Her experience responds well to prompt #3 about challenging a belief or idea. She answers all parts of the prompt, describing when she began to question her religion and the outcome of doing so. This student was able to develop her own beliefs and stand up for them while remaining respectful of her family’s beliefs. This demonstrates her courage, critical thinking skills, and compassion for others. Her essay is well thought out and well written, letting her voice and self-reflection shine through.

Sample Common App Essay #2

I suppose it is like selecting the perfect pair of socks. Then, I envision myself kneeling before the bottommost drawer of my bureau, my chilled feet egging me on, and perusing the trove of choices that awaits my roving fingertips. I meditate on the day’s promises before making my selection – now, did the weatherman say 65 or 55 degrees? Was that rain the Farmers’ Almanac called for? Perhaps I should just wear sandals. After a few more moments of inspection: Ah – there it is! Of perfect hue, texture, and temperament, it is exactly the article for which I sought.

There exists a great parallel between this, the daily hosiery search that begins my mornings, and my lifelong pursuit of the perfect word. Socks and words, both objects of my affection, are united in their enduring qualities: both involve a weighty decision, require a certain shrewdness and pragmatism from the selector, and offer nearly endless options that only intensify the quandary. However, in seventeen years of interaction with both, I informedly pronounce that I find the latter to be infinitely more cumbersome, convoluted, and, thus, beautiful. 

My rendezvous with language began as all children’s do: with crying. On the heels of crying came babbling, soon ousted by laconic speech and finally replaced by comprehensible expression. To my youngest self, language was mechanical and lifeless, a rigid blend of lexicon and grammar that broke as many rules as it created. This sentiment prevailed until I walked into Mrs. Regan’s fourth-grade class.

On that fateful first day, I recall being struck by her inviting personality and stylish plaid frock (I was personally wanting in the department of fashion). Beyond the warmth of her disposition, her pedagogical philosophy was unconventional and striking, even to an easily-distracted girl who wore the same green shirt every day. Her intention was not to satisfy district-determined measures or adhere to the antiquated curricula her coworkers professed. Instead, she pushed her students to invite intellectual challenges and conundrums, exposing us to the complexities of academia that she adored.

Her passion was best evidenced by the infamous vocabulary lists that circulated every Monday, boasting words typically native to a high school workbook. Suddenly, pedestrian exercises in ‘Choosing the Right Word’ were transformed into riveting explorations of the English language’s multiplicity, breadth, and allure. Within weeks I was concocting sentences just to employ ‘voracity’ and asking for synonyms for ‘vociferous’ that could aptly describe my rowdy classmates.

With thanks due to Mrs. Regan’s tutelage, my enthusiasm for words matured into an infatuation. I began to pour through the well-worn dictionary that presided over my nightstand, tasting the foreign syllables as they rolled from my lips. Coincidentally, I was soon given the title of the ‘human dictionary’ at school and have since served as a consultant for my friends and peers, answering questions of “What word fits best here?” or, the age-old query, “Affect or effect?” But the further I read, the more humbled I become, dwarfed by the vastness and mystery of my mother tongue.

Though my ensuing years of education have been enormously fruitful, Mrs. Regan remains my childhood hero on two counts: she encouraged my obsession with the written word and indulged my fourth-grade wish for a challenge. The insatiability I feel puzzling over jargon on PubMed, hearing the ping of Merriam-Webster Dictionary’s word of the day arriving in my inbox, and maybe even shedding a tear at the aesthetic tenor of ‘supercalifragilisticexpialidocious’ can be traced to those days of yore, spent copying definitions in a blockish scrawl. Today, as in that year far gone, I am still in pursuit of the perfect word – ever elusive, sitting on the tip of my tongue. But pouring through the dresser drawers of my mind, abundant with the tokens of my educational and lingual experience, I know it will not be long until I find it.

What Worked Well in this Common App Essay

In the second of our personal statement sample essays, we learn about the writer’s obsession with the written word. The author responds to prompt #6 about a topic, idea, or concept that is captivating. One of the most powerful aspects of this essay is the student’s voice. As such, this aspect much aligns with the essay’s topic: the writer’s love for words.

The author takes us on a journey where we understand how their love for the written word developed. The essay opens with a compelling metaphor about searching for the perfect pair of socks, just like you would a word. This opening serves as a hook to draw the reader in. Then, the writer keeps us engaged with many specific examples of how their love for vocabulary only grew throughout their life. By the end of the essay, the author convinces us of their creativity, passion, and intellectual nature. 

Common App Essay Example #3

Under the harshly fluorescent lights of an aisle in Walmart, I take position amidst the rows of plastic silverware, paper towels, and household goods while my mother searches for supplies she needs for a Fourth of July party. Neither the faint swells of an outdated and overplayed pop song nor the hustle and bustle of a retail store on a holiday weekend reach my ears because as usual, my nose is buried in a book.

My mother calls to me, but her voice barely registers and I ignore her, shifting in the spot I have designated for myself aside the packages of Hefty trash bags on the bottom shelf. She finally finds me, and I reluctantly tear my concentration away from the page. “I’ll just stay here,” I say, buying myself precious time in which I can finish the next sentence, paragraph, or chapter of the novel, and I sink contentedly back into a state of mind where I am entirely myself and nothing, not even other customers searching for trash bags, can disturb me.

This memory is not an uncommon one for me. As a child, I could always be found in stores or restaurants with my latest literary pick in hand. I constantly nagged my parents to bring me to the library or bookstore; this was a constant even as I went through “phases” as I grew up, dabbling in music and theater with temporary or half-hearted enthusiasm. Other children dressed up as astronauts or princesses, but I took on roles of different people as I struggled to find myself.

As I grow older and continue to explore different interests, my love for reading has sparked my intellectual curiosity and taught me valuable life lessons. Reading was an escape during a time when I didn’t quite know who I wanted to be. Now it marks the cornerstone of who I’ve become. I’ve read just as many books about fictional villains and heroes as those about regular people who face the same struggles I do. For me, it’s these kinds of books, stories of people not so different than myself, that have changed and defined my outlook on life. 

One such book is I’ll Give You the Sun by Jandy Nelson, a story of twins and their difficulty finding their own identity in a world where they are bound together. Noah, one of the twins, describes how he feels he is always “undercover.” He says, “‘Maybe a person is just made up of a lot of people. Maybe we’re accumulating these new selves all the time. Hauling them in as we make choices, good and bad, as we screw up, […] grow, dive into the world.’” I was unable to realize a person could be defined by multiple aspects of himself.

My tendency to try to fit into a specific role proved to be unsuccessful, but one of my different “selves” was always a part of me, even when taking on the role of someone I didn’t want to be. A love for reading is not a temporary persona I put on to appease parents, friends, or college admissions officers. The reader of a story has an unique perspective of the mind of a character. Because of this, I have realized the true depth and intricacy every person and situation can hold.

I struggled with defining my own identity, with labeling who I was, but now I know every person is much too complex to be defined by a label as simplistic as “athlete” or “musician.” So although it might be assumed that an individual pursuing an engineering degree does not enjoy reading, I am grateful for my love of books, as it is with this passion that I find myself ready to “dive into the world.”

This essay responds to the first of the Common App essay prompts, which asks about an identity or background that is very important to you. In this sample essay, we learn about a student’s love of reading. The essay draws us in right from the start by the image of the student reading a book in the middle of a Walmart aisle while their parent shops. This image serves as an effective hook. 

From there, we hear more about why reading has been important to this student. As someone who has struggled to find their place, reading gave them opportunities to escape and to learn about the world. The writer reflects deeply on what reading has meant to them, especially as a future engineer. In doing so, we understand the student to be intellectually curious and brave enough to forge their own path.

What makes a great college essay?

After reading through these Common App essays that worked, we hope you can answer the question, “What is a personal statement?” with greater confidence. You may have also noticed some common trends. Indeed, these personal statement sample essays were each unique and responded to different Common App essay prompts. However, they also shared some of the traits of what makes a great college essay.

Here are a few more college essay tips, as exemplified by our Common App essays that worked: 

Extra College Essay Tips

1. be authentically you.

In each of our examples of college essays, we saw the speaker focusing on what matters to them, whether it be their religion, reading, writing. They didn’t talk about the most monumental event of their life to try to impress admissions officers. Instead, they each wrote with convincing specificity about topics that matter to them. Their authenticity shines through to make these personal statement sample essays interesting and informative.

2. Include details

In each of the personal statement sample essays we shared, the authors included very specific details to illustrate their stories. Whether they wrote about reading in a grocery store aisle or picking out a pair of socks, we were able to visualize their stories thanks to the level of detail they included. Details not only make these personal statement sample essays more compelling, but also more fun to read.

3. Share meaningful reflections

Each of the college essays that worked had many reflections throughout. These reflections about why religion was no longer meaningful to them or what books taught them about the world give their stories weight. Without reflections, the reader might have to guess what each essay is trying to convey. With reflections, we learn much more about the author.

In addition to the Common App essay tips we shared above, we will now share a few more college essay tips that can make your writing process easier and strengthen your essay. 

Additional Common App Essay Tips

Here are a few additional Common App essay tips to help you write stand out college essays:

1. Avoid using AI

Many students consider using artificial intelligence because writing great college essays is not easy. However, writing your essay with the help of AI is dangerous. Sometimes, the essay won’t sound like you, which is one of the most important aspects of a great college essay. If you do feel the need to use AI to help you brainstorm or refine your writing, make sure you carefully review your drafts so that they still sound like you. Indeed, we can guarantee that none of the Common App essays that worked highlighted in this article were written with AI. 

2. Ask trusted people to read your essay

Always get a friend, teacher, or college admissions expert like those at College Advisor to read through your essay. They can help you make sure your writing makes sense and is grammatically correct. Additionally, it can be a good idea to have someone who does not know you well read your essay, as admissions officers won’t know you when they read your essay. As you probably noticed when you read our Common App essays that worked, you did not need to know the student to fully understand their journey or their essay’s message. This is because these Common App essays that worked are well written with their intended audience in mind.

3. Read your essay out loud

One of the simplest and most helpful Common App essay tips is to read your draft out loud. Does it sound like you? Are they any clunky sentences? Is it responding clearly to one of the Common App essay prompts? Reading your essay out loud can help you find mistakes more quickly than reading in your head.

If you’ve found this resource helpful, the next section has even more College Advisor resources for you to explore.

Other CollegeAdvisor Essay Resources to Explore 

There are plenty more college essay tips in the College Advisor essay resources section of our website. Here are a few that you may find particularly helpful while applying to college:

CollegeAdvisor Essay-Writing Resources

College essay examples: 10 best examples of college essays and why they worked.

If it helped you to read out personal statement sample essays, you might want to check out this article which has ten more examples of college essays. These examples respond to more of the Common App essay prompts.

Common App Transfer Essay Examples

Our second resource contains additional examples of college essays, specifically written for the transfer process. If you are considering transferring, you may want to read through this article to learn about how to write a strong transfer essay. This is particularly important because the Common App essay prompts are different for transfer students.

Crafting a Compelling Common App Personal Statement

For those who prefer webinars, this webinar offers additional college essay tips. The webinar explores the question “What is a personal statement?”. It also highlights more Common App essay tips and common mistakes students make when writing their personal statements.

AO Advice: Revising the Personal Statement

In our final resource, you can hear from a former admissions officer about how to revise your personal statement. As we discussed with each of our Common App essays that worked, the revision process is often what takes an essay from good to great.

Spending time with some of these resources is a great way to feel more comfortable when it comes time to start writing your own essays!

Common App Essay Prompts 2024-2025 – Final Takeaways

For those applying to college, writing a strong personal statement is one of the most daunting tasks. In this article, we sought to answer questions like “what is a personal statement?” and “how do I come up with college essay ideas?” Our exploration focused on breaking down the Common App essay prompts. We looked at several personal statement sample essays and shared several Common App essay tips. 

Among the most important Common App essay tips we shared were:

• Be your authentic self.
• Write about topics that matter to you.
• Edit and revise your essay carefully.

If you can follow these three rules, you are likely to impress college admissions officers with your essay. Should you find yourself feeling stuck, lost, or unsure while applying to college, you can always lean on a trusted source like College Advisor to share useful resources and provide one-on-one advising. With a lot of self-reflection and some additional support, you’ll have a fantastic personal statement in no time–happy writing!

This article was written by senior advisor, Courtney Ng . Looking for more admissions support? Click here to schedule a free meeting with one of our Admissions Specialists. During your meeting, our team will discuss your profile and help you find targeted ways to increase your admissions odds at top schools. We’ll also answer any questions and discuss how CollegeAdvisor.com can support you in the college application process.

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How to Tackle an Essay (an ADHD-friendly Guide)

6 steps and tips.

Most of the college students I work with have one major assignment type that gets them stuck like no other: the dreaded essay. It has become associated with late nights, requesting extensions (and extensions on extensions), feelings of failure, and lots of time lost staring at a screen. This becomes immensely more stressful when there is a thesis or capstone project that stands between you and graduation.

The good news?

An essay doesn’t have to be the brick wall of doom that it once was. Here are some strategies to break down that wall and construct an essay you feel good about submitting.

Step 1:  Remember you’re beginning an essay, not finishing one.

Without realizing it, you might be putting pressure on yourself to have polished ideas flow from your brain onto the paper. There’s a reason schools typically bring up having an outline and a rough draft! Thoughts are rarely organized immediately (even with your neurotypical peers, despite what they may say). Expecting yourself to deliver a publishing-worthy award winner on your first go isn’t realistic. It’s allowed to look messy and unorganized in the beginning! There can be unfinished thoughts, and maybe even arguments you aren’t sure if you want to include. When in doubt, write it down.

Step 2: Review the rubric

Make sure you have a clear understanding of what the assignment is asking you to include and to focus on. If you don’t have an understanding of it, it’s better to find out in advance rather than the night before the assignment is due. The rubric is your anchor and serves as a good guide to know “when you can be done.” If you hit all the marks on the rubric, you’re looking at a good grade.

I highly recommend coming back to the rubric multiple times during the creative process, as it can help you get back on track if you’ve veered off in your writing to something unrelated to the prompt. It can serve as a reminder that it’s time to move onto a different topic - if you’ve hit the full marks for one area, it’s better to go work on another section and return to polish the first section up later. Challenge the perfectionism!

Step 3: Divide and conquer

Writing an essay is not just writing an essay. It typically involves reading through materials, finding sources, creating an argument, editing your work, creating citations, etc. These are all separate tasks that ask our brain to do different things. Instead of switching back and forth (which can be exhausting) try clumping similar tasks together.

For example:

Prepping: Picking a topic, finding resources related to topic, creating an outline

Gathering: reading through materials, placing information into the outline

Assembling: expanding on ideas in the outline, creating an introduction and conclusion

Finishing: Make final edits, review for spelling errors and grammar, create a title page and reference page, if needed.

Step 4: Chunk it up

Now we’re going to divide the work EVEN MORE because it’s also not realistic to expect yourself to assemble the paper all in one sitting. (Well, maybe it is realistic if you’re approaching the deadline, but we want to avoid the feelings of panic if we can.) If you haven’t heard of chunking before, it’s breaking down projects into smaller, more approachable tasks.

This serves multiple functions, but the main two we are focusing on here is:

• it can make it easier to start the task;
• it helps you create a timeline for how long it will take you to finish.

If you chunk it into groups and realize you don’t have enough time if you go at that pace, you’ll know how quickly you’ll need to work to accomplish it in time.

Here are some examples of how the above categories could be chunked up for a standard essay. Make sure you customize chunking to your own preferences and assignment criteria!

Days 1 - 3 : Prep work

• ‍ Day 1: Pick a topic & find two resources related to it
• Day 2: Find three more resources related to the topic
• Day 3: Create an outline

Days 4 & 5 : Gather

• ‍ Day 4: Read through Resource 1 & 2 and put information into the outline
• Day 5: Read through Resource 3 & 4 and put information into the outline

Days 6 - 8 : Assemble

• ‍ Day 6: Create full sentences and expand on Idea 1 and 2
• Day 7: Create full sentences and expand on Idea 3 and write an introduction
• Day 8: Read through all ideas and expand further or make sentence transitions smoother if need be. Write the conclusion

Day 9: Finish

• ‍ Day 9: Review work for errors and create a citation page

Hey, we just created an outline about how to make an outline - how meta!

Feel like even that is too overwhelming? Break it down until it feels like you can get started. Of course, you might not have that many days to complete an assignment, but you can do steps or chunks of the day instead (this morning I’ll do x, this afternoon I’ll do y) to accommodate the tighter timeline. For example:

Day 1: Pick a topic

Day 2: Find one resource related to it

Day 3: Find a second resource related to it

Step 5: Efficiently use your resources

There’s nothing worse than stockpiling 30 resources and having 100 pages of notes that can go into an essay. How can you possibly synthesize all of that information with the time given for this class essay? (You can’t.)

Rather than reading “Article A” and pulling all the information you want to use into an “Article A Information Page,” try to be intentional with the information as you go. If you find information that’s relevant to Topic 1 in your paper, put the information there on your outline with (article a) next to it. It doesn’t have to be a full citation, you can do that later, but we don’t want to forget where this information came from; otherwise, that becomes a whole mess.

By putting the information into the outline as you go, you save yourself the step of re-reading all the information you collected and trying to organize it later on.

*Note: If you don’t have topics or arguments created yet, group together similar ideas and you can later sort out which groups you want to move forward with.

Step 6: Do Some Self-Checks

It can be useful to use the Pomodoro method when writing to make sure you’re taking an adequate number of breaks. If you feel like the 25 min work / 5 min break routine breaks you out of your flow, try switching it up to 45 min work / 15 min break. During the breaks, it can be useful to go through some questions to make sure you stay productive:

• How long have I been writing/reading this paragraph?
• Does what I just wrote stay on topic?
• Have I continued the "write now, edit later" mentality to avoid getting stuck while writing the first draft?
• Am I starting to get frustrated or stuck somewhere? Would it benefit me to step away from the paper and give myself time to think rather than forcing it?
• Do I need to pick my energy back up? Should I use this time to get a snack, get some water, stretch it out, or listen to music?

General Tips:

• If you are having a difficult time trying to narrow down a topic, utilize office hours or reach out to your TA/professor to get clarification. Rather than pulling your hair out over what to write about, they might be able to give you some guidance that speeds up the process.
• You can also use (and SHOULD use) office hours for check-ins related to the paper, tell your teacher in advance you’re bringing your rough draft to office hours on Thursday to encourage accountability to get each step done. Not only can you give yourself extra pressure - your teacher can make sure you’re on the right track for the assignment itself.
• For help with citations, there are websites like Easybib.com that can help! Always double check the citation before including it in your paper to make sure the formatting and information is correct.
• If you’re getting stuck at the “actually writing it” phase, using speech-to-text tools can help you start by transcribing your spoken words to paper.
• Many universities have tutoring centers and/or writing centers. If you’re struggling, schedule a time to meet with a tutor. Even if writing itself isn’t tough, having a few tutoring sessions scheduled can help with accountability - knowing you need to have worked on it before the tutoring session is like having mini deadlines. Yay, accountability!

Of course, if writing just isn’t your jam, you may also struggle with motivation . Whatever the challenge is, this semester can be different. Reach out early if you need help - to your professor, a tutor, an ADHD coach , or even a friend or study group. You have a whole team in your corner. You’ve got this, champ!

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4 Clues Your Company Is ADHD-Friendly

Shimmer launches first affordable adhd coaching and accountability platform for adults.

Does Exercise Help ADHD?

ADHD & New Year’s Resolutions

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College admissions

Course: college admissions   >   unit 4.

• Writing a strong college admissions essay
• Avoiding common admissions essay mistakes
• Brainstorming tips for your college essay
• How formal should the tone of your college essay be?

Taking your college essay to the next level

• Sample essay 1 with admissions feedback
• Sample essay 2 with admissions feedback
• Student story: Admissions essay about a formative experience
• Student story: Admissions essay about personal identity
• Student story: Admissions essay about community impact
• Student story: Admissions essay about a past mistake
• Student story: Admissions essay about a meaningful poem
• Writing tips and techniques for your college essay

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Video transcript

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ADHD is my superpower: A personal essay

Our clinical and medical experts , ranging from licensed therapists and counselors to psychiatric nurse practitioners, author our content, in partnership with our editorial team. In addition, we only use authoritative, trusted, and current sources. This ensures we provide valuable resources to our readers. Read our editorial policy for more information.

Thriveworks was established in 2008, with the ultimate goal of helping people live happy and successful lives. We are clinician-founded and clinician-led. In addition to providing exceptional clinical care and customer service, we accomplish our mission by offering important information about mental health and self-improvement.

We are dedicated to providing you with valuable resources that educate and empower you to live better. First, our content is authored by the experts — our editorial team co-writes our content with mental health professionals at Thriveworks, including therapists, psychiatric nurse practitioners, and more.

We also enforce a tiered review process in which at least three individuals — two or more being licensed clinical experts — review, edit, and approve each piece of content before it is published. Finally, we frequently update old content to reflect the most up-to-date information.

A Story About a Kid

In 1989, I was 7 years old and just starting first grade. Early in the school year, my teacher arranged a meeting with my parents and stated that she thought that I might be “slow” because I wasn’t performing in class to the same level as the other kids. She even volunteered to my parents that perhaps a “special” class would be better for me at a different school.

Thankfully, my parents rejected the idea that I was “slow” out of hand, as they knew me at home as a bright, talkative, friendly, and curious kid — taking apart our VHS machines and putting them back together, filming and writing short films that I’d shoot with neighborhood kids, messing around with our new Apple IIgs computer!

The school, however, wanted me to see a psychiatrist and have IQ tests done to figure out what was going on. To this day, I remember going to the office and meeting with the team — and I even remember having a blast doing the IQ tests. I remember I solved the block test so fast that the clinician was caught off guard and I had to tell them that I was done — but I also remember them trying to have me repeat numbers back backwards and I could barely do it!

Being Labeled

The prognosis was that I was high intelligence and had attention-deficit disorder (ADD). They removed the hyperactive part because I wasn’t having the type of behavioral problems like running around the classroom (I’ll cover later why I now proudly identify as hyperactive). A week later, my pediatrician started me on Ritalin and I was told several things that really honestly messed me up.

I was told that I had a “learning disability” — which, to 7-year-old me, didn’t make any sense since I LOVED learning! I was told that I would take my tests in a special room so that I’d have fewer distractions. So, the other kids would watch me walk out of the classroom and ask why I left the room when tests were happening — and they, too, were informed that I had a learning disability.

As you can imagine, kids aren’t really lining up to be friends with the “disabled” kid, nor did they hold back on playground taunts around the issue.

These were very early days, long before attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) was well known, and long before people had really figured out how to talk to kids with neurodiversities . And as a society, we didn’t really have a concept that someone who has a non-typical brain can be highly functional — it was a time when we didn’t know that the world’s richest man was on the autism spectrum !

Growing Past a Label

I chugged my way through elementary school, then high school, then college — getting consistent B’s and C’s. What strikes me, looking back nearly 30 years later, is just how markedly inconsistent my performance was! In highly interactive environments, or, ironically, the classes that were the most demanding, I did very well! In the classes that moved the slowest or required the most amount of repetition, I floundered.

Like, I got a good grade in the AP Biology course with a TON of memorization, but it was so demanding and the topics were so varied and fast-paced that it kept me engaged! On the opposite spectrum, being in basic algebra the teacher would explain the same simple concept over and over, with rote problem practice was torturously hard to stay focused because the work was so simple.

And that’s where we get to the part explaining why I think of my ADHD as a superpower, and why if you have it, or your kids have it, or your spouse has it… the key to dealing with it is understanding how to harness the way our brains work.

Learning to Thrive with ADHD

Disclaimer : What follows is NOT medical advice, nor is it necessarily 100% accurate. This is my personal experience and how I’ve come to understand my brain via working with my therapist and talking with other people with ADHD.

A Warp Speed Brain

To have ADHD means that your brain is an engine that’s constantly running at high speed. It basically never stops wanting to process information at a high rate. The “attention” part is just an observable set of behaviors when an ADHD person is understimulated. This is also part of why I now openly associate as hyperactive — my brain is hyperactive! It’s constantly on warp speed and won’t go any other speed.

For instance, one of the hardest things for me to do is fill out a paper check. It’s simple, it’s obvious, there is nothing to solve, it just needs to be filled out. By the time I have started writing the first stroke of the first character, my mind is thinking about things that I need to think about. I’m considering what to have for dinner, then I’m thinking about a movie I want to see, then I come up with an email to send — all in a second. 

I have to haullll myself out of my alternate universe and back to the task at hand and, like a person hanging on the leash of a horse that’s bolting, I’m struggling to just write out the name of the person who I’m writing the check to! This is why ADHD people tend to have terrible handwriting, we’re not able to just only think about moving the pen, we’re in 1,000 different universes.

On the other hand, this entire blog post was written in less than an hour and all in one sitting. I’m having to think through a thousand aspects all at once. My dialog: “Is this too personal? Maybe you should put a warning about this being a personal discussion? Maybe I shouldn’t share this? Oh, the next section should be about working. Should I keep writing more of these?”

And because there is so much to think through and consider for a public leader like myself to write such a personal post, it’s highly engaging! My engine can run at full speed. I haven’t stood up for the entire hour, and I haven’t engaged in other nervous habits I have like picking things up — I haven’t done any of it! 

This is what’s called hyperfocus, and it’s the part of ADHD that can make us potentially far more productive than our peers. I’ve almost arranged my whole life around making sure that I can get myself into hyperfocus as reliably as possible.

Harnessing What My Brain Is Built For

Slow-moving meetings are very difficult for me, but chatting in 20 different chat rooms at the same time on 20 different subjects is very easy for me — so you’ll much more likely see me in chat rooms than scheduling additional meetings. Knowing what my brain is built for helps me organize my schedule, work, and commitments that I sign up for to make sure that I can be as productive as possible.

If you haven’t seen the movie “Everything Everywhere All At Once,” and you are ADHD or love someone who is, you should immediately go watch it! The first time I saw it, I loved it, but I had no idea that one of its writers was diagnosed with ADHD as an adult , and decided to write a sci-fi movie about an ADHD person! The moment I read that it was about having ADHD my heart exploded. It resonated so much with me and it all made sense.

Practically, the only real action in the movie is a woman who needs to file her taxes. Now, don’t get me wrong — it’s a universe-tripping adventure that is incredibly exciting, but if you even take a step back and look at it, really, she was just trying to do her taxes.

But, she has a superpower of being able to travel into universes and be… everywhere all at once. Which is exactly how it feels to be in my mind — my brain is zooming around the universe and it’s visiting different thoughts and ideas and emotions. And if you can learn how to wield that as a power, albeit one that requires careful handling, you can do things that most people would never be able to do!

Co-workers have often positively noted that I see solutions that others miss and I’m able to find a course of action that takes account of multiple possibilities when the future is uncertain (I call it being quantum brained). Those two attributes have led me to create groundbreaking new technologies and build large teams with great open cultures and help solve problems and think strategically. 

It took me until I was 39 to realize that ADHD isn’t something that I had to overcome to have the career I’ve had — it’s been my superpower .

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190 Good Transition Words for Essays

August 23, 2023

Essay writing consists of two primary procedures: coming up with the content we want to include and structuring that content. These procedures might take place in either order or they could occur simultaneously. When writing an essay it is important to think about the ways that content and structure complement one another. The best essays join these two elements in thoughtful ways. Transition words for essays (including for college essays) are some of our most primary tools when it comes to structuring a piece of writing.

When beginning an essay it is often recommended to begin with a messy first draft. The purpose of this draft is to get everything out on the page. You should put down as many ideas and trajectories as you can without worrying too much about phrasing or whether they will make it into the final draft. The key here is to be loose—to get ahead of our self-editors and expel everything we can from our minds.

List of Good Transition Words for Essays (Continued)

While this is a good strategy for beginning an essay it will likely leave you unsure how everything fits together. This is where transition words come in. As you will see in this list (which is necessarily incomplete) the range of transition words for essays is vast. Each transition word implies a different relation, often in subtle ways. After accumulating content, the next step is to figure out how the elements fit together towards an overall goal (this could be but is not necessarily an “argument”). Consulting this list of transition words for essays can provide a shortcut for determining how one piece might lead into another. Along with transition words, rhetorical devices and literary devices are other tools to consider during this stage of essay writing.

Transition Words for College Essays

While this list will be a useful tool for all types of essay writing it will be particularly helpful when it comes to finding the right transition words for college essays . The goal of a college essay is to give a strong overall sense of its author in the tight space of 650 words. As you might imagine, it’s not easy to encompass a life or convey a complex personality in such a space. When writing a college essay you are working with a huge amount of potential content. Students often want to squeeze in as much as they can. To this end, transition words for college essays are essential tools to have at our disposal.

Here is our list of transition words for college essays and other essays. It is organized by the different types of transition words/phrases and their functions. While this organization should be convenient, keep in mind that there’s plenty of overlap. Many of these words can function in multiple ways.

1) Additive Transitions

These words function in an additive manner, accumulating content to build upon what has already been stated. They can be used to construct an argument or establish a scene through the accumulation of details.

• Additionally
• In addition to
• Furthermore
• Not to mention
• In all honesty
• To tell the truth
• Not only…but also
• As a matter of fact
• To say nothing of
• What’s more
• Alternatively
• To go a step further

 2) Comparative Transitions (Similarity)

  These transition words draw a parallel or bring out a similarity between images or ideas. They can be used not only in a straightforward sense but also to establish relations of similarity between objects or ideas that might appear to be dissonant.

• In the same way
• In a similar vein
• Along the lines of
• In the key of

 3) Comparative Transitions (Difference)

  While also functioning comparatively, the following words demonstrate difference between ideas or images. These transition words are useful when it comes to establishing contrasting points of view, an important component of any argument.

• On the other hand
• On the contrary
• In contrast to
• In contradiction
• Nevertheless
• Nonetheless
• In any event
• In any case
• In either event

4) Sequential Transitions

  The following are particularly effective transition words for college essays. They will allow you to order ideas chronologically or in a sequence, providing a sense of continuity over time. This is particularly useful when an essay leans into something more creative or involves telling a story.

• Subsequently
• At the same time
• Concurrently
• In the beginning
• At the start
• At the outset
• Off the bat

5) Spatial Transitions

Rather than organizing ideas or images in regards to sequence, these transitions indicate spatial relationships. They are particularly useful when it comes to painting a scene and/or describing objects, but they can also be used metaphorically. Consider, for example, how you might use the transition, “standing in […’s] shadow.”

• Standing in […’s] shadow
• In front of
• In the middle
• In the center
• To the left
• To the right
• On the side
• Adjacent to
• Around the bend
• On the outskirts
• In the distance
• On the horizon
• In the foreground
• In the background
• Underground
• Through the grapevine

 6) Causal Transitions

These transition words for essays indicate cause and effect relationships between ideas. They will be particularly useful when you are structuring a logical argument, i.e. using logos as a mode of persuasion . Causal transitions are an important element of academic, legal and scientific writing.

• Accordingly
• Resultingly
• As a result
• Consequently
• In consequence
• As a consequence
• For this reason
• So much that
• Granting that
• That being the case
• Under those circumstances
• With this in mind
• For the purpose of
• For all intents and purposes
• In the event that
• In the event of
• In light of
• On the condition that
• To the extent that

7) Examples/Illustration/Supporting Transition

  These transition words for college essays can be used to introduce supporting evidence, emphasis, examples, and clarification. There is some overlap here with additive transitions and causal transitions. These transitions are also useful when it comes to building an argument. At the same time, they can signal a shift into a different linguistic register.

• For example
• For instance
• In other words
• As an illustration
• To illustrate
• To put it differently
• To put it another way
• That is to say
• As the evidence illustrates
• It’s important to realize
• It’s important to understand
• It must be remembered
• To demonstrate
• For clarity’s sake
• To emphasize
• To put it plainly
• To enumerate
• To speak metaphorically

8) Conclusory Transitions

These transition words for essays serve to bring an idea or story to a close. They offer a clear way of signaling the conclusion of a particular train of thought. They might be followed by a summary or a restatement of an essay’s argument. In this way they also provide emphasis, setting the reader up for what is about to come.

• In conclusion
• To summarize
• To put it succinctly
• To this end
• At the end of the day
• In the final analysis
• By and large
• On second thought
• On first glance
• That’s all to say
• On the whole
• All things considered
• Generally speaking

List of Good Transition Words for Essays (Final Thoughts)

Even when elements appear to be disparate on first glance, transition words are a great tool for giving your essay a smooth flow. They can also create surprising juxtapositions, relationships, and equivalences. The way a reader will understand a transition word depends on the context in which they encounter it.

Individual words and phrases can be used in a wide variety of ways, ranging from the literal to the figurative to the colloquial or idiomatic. “Through the grapevine” is an example of the colloquial or idiomatic. When we encounter this phrase we don’t interpret it literally (as hearing something “through” a grapevine) but rather as hearing news secondhand. There are, of course, a vast number of idioms that are not included in this list but can also function as transitional phrases.

This list of transition words for college essays (and really any form of writing you might be working on) is a resource that you can return to again and again in your life as a writer. Over years of writing we tend to fall into patterns when it comes to the transition words we use. Mixing things up can be exciting both as a writer and for your readers. Even if you don’t choose to stray from your trusted transitions, considering the alternatives (and why they don’t work for you) can offer a deeper understanding of what you are trying to say.

List of Good Transition Words for Essays (An Exercise)

As an exercise in self-understanding, you may want to try highlighting all of the transition words in a piece of your own writing. You can then compare this to the transition words in a piece of writing that you admire. Are they using similar transitions or others? Are they using them more or less often? What do you like or dislike about them? We all use transition words differently, creating different tonal effects. Keeping an eye out for them, not only as a writer but also as a reader, will help you develop your own aesthetic.

• College Essay

Emmett Lewis

Emmett holds a BA in Philosophy from Vassar College and is currently completing an MFA in Writing at Columbia University. Previously, he served as a writing instructor within the Columbia Artists/Teachers community as well as a Creative Writing Teaching Fellow at Columbia, where he taught poetry workshops. In addition, Emmett is a member of the Poetry Board at the Columbia Journal , and his work has been published in HAD , Otoliths , and Some Kind of Opening , among others.

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How to Apply to College When You Have ADHD

Applying to college is stressful for everyone — if your child has adhd, you’re probably concerned about finding a school that’s a great fit for his personality and academic performance. here, tips for putting his best foot forward during the application process..

As a teen with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), you were able to take the SATs untimed and you earned a good score.

But academic challenges in high school have left you with a so-so grade point average. Now, wary of the college admissions process in general, you’re wondering whether or not to disclose the fact that you have ADHD.

Or perhaps you’re the parent of this teen. How do you begin this process? How can you help your child find the best school to fit his ADHD needs and personality?

Two words always apply to college planning: Start early. According to the HEATH Resource Center , the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) requires that the Individualized Education Program (IEP) team begin to consider post-secondary school goals when the student is entering high school! Even if your teen is further along in his high-school career, here are a number of cool-headed strategies you can employ when facing application time.

Create a Top List of Colleges

Talk with your teen and members of her IEP team to decide what level of services she’d feel comfortable with in college. If your teen was recently diagnosed, it will be helpful to compare semesters before and after interventions were in place — what made the biggest difference? Many colleges provide as-needed services for students with ADHD and/or learning disabilities while others offer structured programs.

Keep in mind that colleges are not obliged to alter their program requirements for students with learning disabilities once they have been admitted. Therefore, you’re advised to take a realistic view of your teen’s unique interests and abilities during the early stages of the decision process. The fact that your child may be admitted to a specific school doesn’t mean he will thrive there. Pursue colleges that will meet your child’s needs.

Develop a “hot list” of six to 12 colleges or universities that offer such programs and/or student supports. Find out the ranges of standardized test scores and GPAs for those admitted, keeping in mind that there’s probably a margin of flexibility.

After you’ve determined what your child needs in a school, refine your list by figuring out what she wants . Your teen should have a clear idea of her academic strengths and weaknesses. Students with ADHD tend to do better in subjects they enjoy, so this can be a clue as to a possible major in college. Highlight the schools on your list that offer a course of study in this field. Then consider extracurricular opportunities. Does your child play a sport or participate in drama club? Would he prefer to stay close to home or venture out to another state (or coast!)? Does in-state tuition make the most sense for your family? Contact the student activities offices to see what’s available outside the classroom, and talk to the offices of financial aid to see what type of package each school can offer.

Visit as many of the schools on your list as you can. In Learning How to Learn: Getting Into and Surviving College When You Have a Learning Disorder , Joyanne Cobb advises prospective freshmen that “College is not just a place to get an education, but a home and lifestyle for four years or more.” An afternoon or an overnight stay on a campus will give you a much better feel for the school than the colorful brochure you received in the mail.

After the data collection part of the application process, sit down with your teen and go over the “hot list,” which by now should include a range of significant factors (entrance difficulty, available majors, financial considerations, location, athletics, activities, and community resources). Evaluate the list and begin ranking the schools by desirability.

Should You Reveal Your ADHD Diagnosis on College Applications?

Before your teen begins to fill out applications, he needs to determine whether or not to disclose the fact that he has ADHD. If he’s applying to specialized schools for students with learning disabilities, or if a school requires documentation of ADHD or a learning disability before it will provide on-campus services, the answer is obvious. But if he requires only minor accommodations, he’ll want to give some thought to this decision.

By law, colleges and universities cannot deny entrance solely based on disabilities — but they are also, by law, under no obligation to alter their admissions standards. Translated, this means that students with disabilities must meet the same criteria established by admissions committees for all prospective students.

However, most colleges do take note of extenuating personal circumstances, such as ADHD. Colleges and universities often maintain some leeway with regard to the qualifications for prospective students. The staff at the HEATH Resource Center suggests that high school students with learning disabilities consider disclosure, in order to show how their academic strengths and personalities mesh with their chosen curricula. A savvy student is in a position to enhance his applications by making a statement of purpose. By putting the proper spin on his learning difficulties, a student can show how, through proper diagnosis and tenacity, he has turned setbacks into triumphs.

Keep in mind that your child’s personal statement, test scores, transcript, and recommendations are each just a part of the larger picture. A student with ADHD may have a high GPA, but low SAT scores, or vice versa, but neither situation need define him. By disclosing his disabilities and putting forth a detailed plan for managing his ADHD and/or learning disabilities at the college level, a student may tacitly amend discrepancies within his admissions packet. Unless admissions committees are aware that such schisms exist, the candidate may be summarily rejected.

Ready…Set…Apply!

A candidate must complete an application form for each school he wishes to apply to. Many institutions still use their own form, which you can request by mail, by telephone, or via the Web, but many schools now accept the Common Application . Submitted electronically or in hard copy, this is now the accepted application form for nearly 700 selective colleges and universities.

Most colleges expect their applicants to supplement their application with an official transcript of classes and grades, a personal essay, and two letters of recommendation from teachers, counselors, or other adults who can comment on the student’s scholastic ability. Additionally, colleges and universities may be especially interested in evidence of a candidate’s community service, extracurricular activities, sports participation, or other talents.

Successful Marketing

A vital part of the application process is distinguishing the applicant. Accommodative services granted by a testing agency to students with ADHD or learning disabilities are solely meant to give students equal footing in that section of the application process. From there, it’s up to the student to set himself apart, to highlight his assets and bring his top-notch qualities to the attention of the admissions team. If your teen’s SATs aren’t stellar, do all you can to help him play up his other strengths.

• The importance of the on-campus interview cannot be overstressed. Role-play questions to get your teen’s confidence up before the appointment.
• If your student has a mentor or a special relationship with a particular teacher, have him request a letter of recommendation from that adult. A heartfelt recommendation that comments on a student’s personality as well as his in-class performance can catch the eye of the admissions office.
• Your child’s extracurricular participation can set him apart from the rest of the applicant pool. Remember to mention his activities that take place outside of school — Eagle-Scout status or a steady after-school job says a lot about commitment and responsibility.

Also, remember that a high level of interest in a particular institution is an attractive quality in an applicant. If possible, participate in formal activities for prospective students, such as overnight stays or campus tours. Applying for early decision or early action at her first-choice college also implies serious interest, and might give her a winning edge.

Final Thoughts

Parents, remember that your own network of contacts can be beneficial. The recommendations of relatives, friends, and alumni of your selected institutions won’t guarantee admission, but they may improve a student’s chances of acceptance. Students, remember that actions affect outcomes. Continue to play a proactive role in the high school-to-college transition — seeking out appropriate supports, assessing your growth — even after the application process is over and you’re finishing up senior year.

Most students with ADHD and/or learning disabilities have realistic concepts of their strengths and weaknesses and will be able to identify the school that seems “right.” In the end, trust your instincts about a school and about the focus of your application. Help your teen coordinate an application that zeroes in on who he is and what he has to offer, and prepare to find sweet surprises in your mailbox come spring of senior year.

Survival Guide for College Students with ADHD & LD (Magination Press), by Kathleen Nadeau, Ph.D.

ADD and the College Student (Magination Press), by Patricia Quinn, M.D.

Learning How to Learn: Getting into and Surviving College When You Have a Learning Disability (Child & Family Press), by Joyanne Cobb

Testing Tips

Contact the PSAT, SAT, or ACT boards to secure a testing environment to meet your child’s needs for standardized testing. Accommodations may include:

• Individual administration of the test
• Computerized, audio, or large-print test editions
• Extended testing time

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More From Forbes

How not to write your college essay.

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If you are looking for the “secret formula” for writing a “winning” college essay, you have come to the wrong place. The reality is there is no silver bullet or strategy to write your way to an acceptance. There is not one topic or approach that will guarantee a favorable outcome.

At the end of the day, every admission office just wants to know more about you, what you value, and what excites you. They want to hear about your experiences through your own words and in your own voice. As you set out to write your essay, you will no doubt get input (both sought-after and unsolicited) on what to write. But how about what NOT Notcoin to write? There are avoidable blunders that applicants frequently make in drafting their essays. I asked college admission leaders, who have read thousands of submissions, to share their thoughts.

Don’t Go In There

There is wide consensus on this first one, so before you call on your Jedi mind tricks or predictive analytics, listen to the voices of a diverse range of admission deans. Peter Hagan, executive director of admissions at Syracuse University, sums it up best, saying, “I would recommend that students try not to get inside of our heads. He adds, “Too often the focus is on what they think we want.”

Andy Strickler, dean of admission and financial aid at Connecticut College agrees, warning, “Do NOT get caught in the trap of trying to figure out what is going to impress the admission committee. You have NO idea who is going to read your essay and what is going to connect with them. So, don't try to guess that.” Victoria Romero, vice president for enrollment, at Scripps College adds, “Do not write about something you don’t care about.” She says, “I think students try to figure out what an admission officer wants to read, and the reality is the reader begins every next essay with no expectations about the content THEY want to read.” Chrystal Russell, dean of admission at Hampden-Sydney College, agrees, saying, “If you're not interested in writing it, we will not be interested when reading it.” Jay Jacobs, vice provost for enrollment management at the University of Vermont elaborates, advising. “Don’t try to make yourself sound any different than you are.” He says, “The number one goal for admission officers is to better understand the applicant, what they like to do, what they want to do, where they spend the majority of their time, and what makes them tick. If a student stays genuine to that, it will shine through and make an engaging and successful essay.”

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Don’t Be Artificial

The headlines about college admission are dominated by stories about artificial intelligence and the college essay. Let’s set some ground rules–to allow ChatGPT or some other tool to do your work is not only unethical, it is also unintelligent. The only worse mistake you could make is to let another human write your essay for you. Instead of preoccupying yourself with whether or not colleges are using AI detection software (most are not), spend your time focused on how best to express yourself authentically. Rick Clark is the executive director of strategic student success at Georgia Institute of Technology, one of the first institutions to clearly outline their AI policy for applicants. He says, “Much of a college application is devoted to lines, boxes, and numbers. Essays and supplements are the one place to establish connection, personality, and distinction. AI, in its current state, is terrible at all three.” He adds, “My hope is that students will use ChatGPT or other tools for brainstorming and to get started, but then move quickly into crafting an essay that will provide insight and value.”

Don’t Overdo It

Michael Stefanowicz, vice president for enrollment management at Landmark College says, “You can only cover so much detail about yourself in an admission essay, and a lot of students feel pressure to tell their life story or choose their most defining experience to date as an essay topic. Admission professionals know that you’re sharing just one part of your lived experience in the essay.” He adds, “Some of the favorite essays I’ve read have been episodic, reflecting on the way you’ve found meaning in a seemingly ordinary experience, advice you’ve lived out, a mistake you’ve learned from, or a special tradition in your life.” Gary Ross, vice president for admission and financial aid at Colgate University adds, “More than a few applicants each year craft essays that talk about the frustration and struggles they have experienced in identifying a topic for their college application essay. Presenting your college application essay as a smorgasbord of topics that ultimately landed on the cutting room floor does not give us much insight into an applicant.”

Don’t Believe In Magic

Jason Nevinger, senior director of admission at the University of Rochester warns, “Be skeptical of anyone or any company telling you, ‘This is the essay that got me into _____.’ There is no magic topic, approach, sentence structure, or prose that got any student into any institution ever.” Social media is littered with advertisements promising strategic essay help. Don’t waste your time, energy, or money trying to emulate a certain style, topic, or tone. Liz Cheron is chief executive officer for the Coalition for College and former assistant vice president of enrollment & dean of admissions at Northeastern University. She agrees with Nevinger, saying “Don't put pressure on yourself to find the perfect, slam dunk topic. The vast majority of college essays do exactly what they're supposed to do–they are well-written and tell the admission officer more about the student in that student's voice–and that can take many different forms.”

Don’t Over Recycle

Beatrice Atkinson-Myers, associate director of global recruitment at the University of California at Santa Cruz tells students, “Do not use the same response for each university; research and craft your essay to match the program at the university you are interested in studying. Don't waste time telling me things I can read elsewhere in your application. Use your essay to give the admissions officer insights into your motivations, interests, and thinking. Don't make your essay the kitchen sink, focus on one or two examples which demonstrate your depth and creativity.” Her UC colleague, Jim Rawlins, associate vice chancellor of enrollment management at the University of California at San Diego agrees, saying “Answer the question. Not doing so is the surest way we can tell you are simply giving us a snippet of something you actually wrote for a different purpose.”

Don’t Overedit

Emily Roper-Doten, vice president for undergraduate admissions and financial assistance at Clark University warns against “Too many editors!” She says, “Pick a couple of trusted folks to be your sounding board when considering topics and as readers once you have drafts. You don’t want too many voices in your essay to drown you out!” Scripps’ Romero agrees, suggesting, “Ask a good friend, someone you trust and knows you well, to read your essays.” She adds, “The goal is for the admission committee to get to know a little about you and who better to help you create that framework, than a good friend. This may not work for all students because of content but helps them understand it’s important to be themselves.” Whitney Soule, vice provost and dean of admissions at The University of Pennsylvania adds, “Avoid well-meaning editorial interference that might seem to polish your writing but actually takes your own personal ‘shine’ right out of the message.” She says, “As readers, we connect to applicants through their genuine tone and style. Considering editorial advice for flow and message is OK but hold on to the 'you' for what you want to say and how you want to say it.”

Don’t Get Showy

Palmer Muntz, senior regional admissions counselor at the University of Alaska Fairbanks cautions applicants, “Don’t be fancier than you are. You don’t need to put on airs.” He adds, “Yes, proofread your work for grammar and spelling, but be natural. Craft something you’d want to read yourself, which probably means keeping your paragraphs short, using familiar words, and writing in an active voice.” Connecticut College’s Strickler agrees, warning, “Don't try to be someone you are not. If you are not funny, don't try to write a funny essay. If you are not an intellectual, trying to write an intellectual essay is a bad idea.”

Anthony Jones, the vice president of enrollment management at Loyola University New Orleans offers a unique metaphor for thinking about the essay. He says, “In the new world of the hyper-fast college admission process, it's become easy to overlook the essential meaning of the college application. It's meant to reveal Y...O...U, the real you, not some phony digital avatar. Think of the essay as the essence of that voice but in analog. Like the completeness and authenticity captured in a vinyl record, the few lines you're given to explain your view should be a slow walk through unrestrained expression chock full of unapologetic nuances, crevices of emotion, and exactness about how you feel in the moment. Then, and only then, can you give the admissions officer an experience that makes them want to tune in and listen for more.”

Don’t Be A Downer

James Nondorf, vice president and dean of admissions and financial aid at The University of Chicago says, “Don’t be negative about other people, be appreciative of those who have supported you, and be excited about who you are and what you will bring to our campus!” He adds, “While admissions offices want smart students for our classrooms, we also want kind-hearted, caring, and joyous students who will add to our campus communities too.”

Don’t Pattern Match

Alan Ramirez is the dean of admission and financial aid at Sewanee, The University of the South. He explains, “A big concern I have is when students find themselves comparing their writing to other students or past applicants and transform their writing to be more like those individuals as a way to better their chances of offering a more-compelling essay.” He emphasizes that the result is that the “essay is no longer authentic nor the best representation of themselves and the whole point of the essay is lost. Their distinctive voice and viewpoint contribute to the range of voices in the incoming class, enhancing the diversity of perspectives we aim to achieve.” Ramirez simple tells students, “Be yourself, that’s what we want to see, plus there's no one else who can do it better than you!”

Don’t Feel Tied To A Topic

Jessica Ricker is the vice president for enrollment and dean of admissions and financial aid at Skidmore College. She says, “Sometimes students feel they must tell a story of grief or hardship, and then end up reliving that during the essay-writing process in ways that are emotionally detrimental. I encourage students to choose a topic they can reflect upon positively but recommend that if they choose a more challenging experience to write about, they avoid belaboring the details and instead focus on the outcome of that journey.” She adds, "They simply need to name it, frame its impact, and then help us as the reader understand how it has shaped their lens on life and their approach moving forward.”

Landmark College’s Stefanowicz adds, “A lot of students worry about how personal to get in sharing a part of their identity like your race or heritage (recalling last year’s Supreme Court case about race-conscious admissions), a learning difference or other disability, your religious values, LGBTQ identity…the list goes on.” He emphasizes, “This is always your choice, and your essay doesn’t have to be about a defining identity. But I encourage you to be fully yourself as you present yourself to colleges—because the college admission process is about finding a school where your whole self is welcome and you find a setting to flourish!”

Don’t Be Redundant

Hillen Grason Jr., dean of admission at Franklin & Marshall College, advises, “Don't repeat academic or co-curricular information that is easily identifiable within other parts of your application unless the topic is a core tenant of you as an individual.” He adds, “Use your essay, and other parts of your application, wisely. Your essay is the best way to convey who your authentic self is to the schools you apply. If you navigated a situation that led to a dip in your grades or co-curricular involvement, leverage the ‘additional information’ section of the application.

Thomas Marr is a regional manager of admissions for the Americas at The University of St Andrews in Scotland and points out that “Not all international schools use the main college essay as part of their assessment when reviewing student applications.” He says, “At the University of St Andrews, we focus on the supplemental essay and students should avoid the mistake of making the supplemental a repeat of their other essay. The supplemental (called the Personal Statement if using the UCAS application process) is to show the extent of their passion and enthusiasm for the subject/s to which they are applying and we expect about 75% of the content to cover this. They can use the remaining space to mention their interests outside of the classroom. Some students confuse passion for the school with passion for their subject; do not fall into that trap.”

A Few Final Don’ts

Don’t delay. Every college applicant I have ever worked with has wished they had started earlier. You can best avoid the pitfalls above if you give yourself the time and space to write a thoughtful essay and welcome feedback openly but cautiously. Don’t put too much pressure on yourself to be perfect . Do your best, share your voice, and stay true to who you are.

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