The Simple Guide to a Great Personal Statement

© 2008 flickr user toolfan.hess …………..© 2008 flickr user Adriano Agulló

You filled out the entire application, asked teachers for recommendations, and now you’re staring at a blank page wishing you didn’t have to write that college application essay. Don’t despair. This doesn’t need to be a soul-wrenching experience where you wish someone would put you out of your misery. This post gives you 5 quick tips to help you write a great college essay.

1. Who’s the audience? Remember that the admission officers are also human. They can get bored by uninteresting writing, especially when they read thousands of essays a year. They won’t tolerate spelling or grammar mistakes, or an essay that’s bland or too generic. Their goals are to spot if you can write, and then use the essay to learn more about you that they can’t get from your grades or test scores.
2. POW! Capture attention right away. (Please don’t use POW! unless it makes sense in your essay). At best, you only have a few minutes to make an impression, so an engaging beginning will make the reader want to read more. You’re telling a reader a story so use imagery to bring the writing to life but remember not to use clichés. Keep the reader interested throughout the essay and have a powerful conclusion.
3. Be genuine. Just picking something of personal importance in your life and talking about it in an engaging way will make you stand out from the crowd. Write an essay on something you are passionate about. You stand a much greater chance of connecting with the reader if you show why the topic means so much to you.
4. One simple idea. Make the essay revolve around a simple message you want the reader to get about you. The best brands in the world are able to break down what they do into one or a few words. People can be branded too. President Obama’s election campaign is a great example. Out of all the words he said during the campaign, the word Change stuck. If your simple message is that you are passionate about learning, use the essay to give vivid examples to convince the reader of this point. The truth is that the reader will in a matter of moments assign labels to what they’re reading and remember only a few things to support that label. What do you want them to remember about you?
5. Edit and repeat. Before writing anything give yourself plenty of time to brainstorm on what you want to write about. You will not write a perfect essay in a day. Once you have a solid draft give it to as many people as possible to hear their comments. Give your essay to teachers, friends, family, and anyone you think is a good writer. If any sentence is confusing, rewrite it. You’re almost there once everyone understands what you want them to remember about you. If it’s also a powerful essay, you’re onto something, and just keep working at it a little more.
6. Have fun. Make sure to have fun writing your essay. It makes the whole process more bearable and it definitely shows in your writing.

There are entire books out there on writing the college essay. We know you don’t have time to read all of them so the above 5 tips are meant to get you started. If you have specific questions just post them in the comments section of this post.

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