College Essay - YOU

Today seemed to include a LOT of conversations with seniors about their college essays.  Students working to brainstorm what they are talking about in their various essays, students trying to figure out how to make an idea they have work for the prompt they have been given, students that have solid drafts, and others who truly have not even started.  So let's spend a few minutes talking about the essays.  Last month I talked about the importance of coming up with a creative topic.  If you are at that phase of the process, please pick up a brainstorming sheet from the counseling center or download a copy off of the counselor website and always feel free to look back to my blog post where I talked more about that topic.

But for today I want to talk specifically about the importance of your essay focusing on YOU!  When colleges review your application they can read things like your grade point average and test scores, but they still want to know more about YOU – the person behind those grades, scores, and activities.  You should be the star of your college essay! This is your chance to communicate to the colleges who you are and how your mind works.  It is important to remember that your essay will be one of hundreds or more-likely thousands that the admissions committee members will read.  (Can you imagine reading all of those?!?)  Try to interest them in what you have to say and be sure that it is written well so that it will stand out.  Think of this as your opportunity to personally introduce yourself to the admissions and scholarship officers reading your application. Be open, honest and real. 

I encourage you to think of your essay as a blind date.  You are trying to make a positive impression on someone you don’t really know by showcasing who you are and all of the great things about you.  You want them to walk away knowing that you are special and thinking, "Wow, I really want to meet this kid."  The best news of all though is that you don’t have to suffer from the nerves of making a silly mistake on this “blind date” – you can perfect your essay so that you can make sure you are putting forth a positive message with a good tone that also shows your ability to think and write clearly and logically.

As you read through the essay prompts, what you will notice is that each question focuses on you.  I know that it isn't always easy or comfortable and it's definitely not what you are used to writing about, but it is important.

For example, I saw a scholarship application that had prompts, but then they also took it a step further to descibe it in more detail hints about what they were looking for in the responses.  I think it might help clarify if you saw it as well...

"Suppose you had to choose one person - a modern person or person from another era - to travel with you on a cross-country road trip. Who would you choose and why? What would make this person an ideal traveling companion? What insights will you gain? Hint: Do not spend most of your essay describing the person and his or her history/accomplishments; what’s important to us is what your choice reveals about you."

And another example:

"Describe an experience that marked your transition from childhood to adulthood. This could involve your culture (“rite of passage”), an incident in your community or family, or even a revelation of skills, ideas, life lessons, etc. What did you learn/gain from this transition? Hint: Do not spend most of your essay on the details of your experience; what’s important to us is your insight into the lessons you learned and/or knowledge you gained."

So yes, you are telling them a story, but ultimately you are just using that story as a way to tell the reader more about YOU.  Who you are, how you think, ways that you feel, and the impact you have.  Believe me, each of you has a powerful story to share because you are unique and wonderful... now it's time to start working on your essay so that the college can recognize that about you too.

As the week progresses I will continue to give you more college essay writing tips.

Also, a quick reminder, college admissions reps have started visiting WKHS regularly.  Don't miss the chance to meet with them!  Tomorrow OSU, Duke, and BGSU will visit Kilbourne.  OSU and BGSU are among 2 of the most popular colleges for WKHS grads to attend and Duke always has a large number of applicants... if you are planning to apply to any of these colleges, plan on meeting with the reps tomorrow morning in the Counseling Center!