College Application Essay Coaching

College Application Essay Coaching Universities are not just looking for students that hope to acquire good skills; they are looking for those who have a promising future. Your future success makes them look good and encourages more students to want to study with them. Your essay should reflect a powerful sense of commitment to your goals and your future success. When tailoring responses to individual college prompts, it’s important to use specific details you’ve learned through visiting and research. Claiming that you have good study habits is another empty claim. Detailing the exact study habits that have helped you succeed in school, backed up with the GPA on your application, carries much more weight. Using words in your essay that you don't typically use in your daily conversations can sound awkward and forced. Stating that you believe in integrity, for example, is an easy claim that's made by thousands of politicians and used car salespeople every year. If you want to demonstrate your integrity, share a story that illustrates how you passed up an opportunity to exploit an advantage that was unfairly gained. At this point you already have all the information you need to create a powerful essay but now you need to start building it. Remember, that every story has a main plot, a few characters that the reader can connect with, and a slow build up to the climax. This is the same approach you need to use in your essay. Line up your scenes in chronological order so that the story is easy to follow. Each university has its own set of prompts you should write about. Here is an example of a prompt from the University of California. Their goal is to pull together a certain mix of people. They don’t want a collection of copycats all doing the same thing in their respective high schools. Your essay should show something that is unique; a demonstration of a distinctive quality that no other student may choose to offer. These three facts give us the first clues as to what should be included in your essay. Have another person (or several!) read your essay, whether it’s a teacher, guidance counselor, parent, or trusted friend. You know what you meant to say, but is it clear to someone else reading your work? Have these people review your application essay to make sure your message is on target and clear to any audience. Believe it or not, the brainstorming stage may be more tedious than writing the actual application essay. The purpose is to flesh out all of your possible ideas so when you begin writing, you know and understand where you're going with the topic. Don’t worry about grammar, punctuation, organization, or anything else. For help getting started, see our handout on brainstorming. Simply asserting that you have what the university is looking for is not convincing; anyone could make the same claim as plausibly as you if you don't back up your claims with evidence. Not only does this show colleges that you’ve have done your homework, but it also demonstrates your interest in the college â€" and colleges want to admit students who are likely to enroll. Show your knowledge of the college by mentioning specific courses, professors, places of interest, and more. Show how you fit into the campus culture and how you will impact the community through specific examples. You may want to start by just getting somethingâ€"anythingâ€"on paper. Think about the questions we asked above and the prompt for the essay, and then write for 15 or 30 minutes without stopping. What do you want your audience to know after reading your essay? As you go through your revision keep these basic guidelines in mind. It’s time for you to narrow down your options for an essay topic and begin to build your story. Words have nuance to them, and simply inserting a word from the thesaurus is a great way to destroy that nuance. Thesaurus abuse is a lazy and easily spotted trick, and seasoned admissions officers will see right through it. If you feel that you're overusing a particular word, think of alternatives on your own without consulting a thesaurus; using words that you're familiar with will help you avoid misusing them. This final step will likely take much longer than writing the entire essay. You may have to revise several times before your essay delivers your message perfectly.