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Essay writing is a difficult task for most students. Therefore, they experience the most stress while writing a college essay. However, this type of paper is essential for your higher education and is mandatory while applying for a college.
It is also considered as an opportunity to showcase your competence, talent, and expertise. However, some steps need to be taken to write such compelling essays. Similarly, a proper format and approach are required to grab the college admission officers’ attention.
On the other hand, it can ruin the chances of getting admission to your desired college if it’s written incorrectly. Read this blog to master the art of how to write a good college application essay.
A college application essay is also known as a personal statement or a statement of purpose. It is usually written by a student applying to a college or a graduate school.
Such essays are an important part of the college admission process. It helps the admission committees to know about the applicant’s background, interests, and expertise.
The purpose of writing such college essays is to determine a student’s ability to support ideas with logical reasoning. Furthermore, it is also used to check sentence structure and grammatical skills.
There are cases when the college does not give the topics. For this, choose an event of your life, and explain it with in-depth details. Similarly, it is also better to focus on a single story that will project your interest or talent to the reader.
These types of college essays that worked are a little different from a typical essay. Keep in mind the following questions to understand the nature of application essays.
There is no specific word limit to write a college application essay. However, a typical length varies from 250 to 650 words. On the other hand, a broad college application essay topic can also exceed this word count.
Below-given are the three types of college application essays.
It requires you to write an essay about yourself. Here, the admission officers want to know about the student’s personality. Similarly, it is a type of personal statement as it reveals interesting facts about students.
The college asks students to write such essays to know about their goals and commitments to the institute. Similarly, it also tells them why a particular applicant wants to join the college.
However, be careful while addressing the reasons. It is better to conduct thorough research on the subject and the high school beforehand.
A creative essay helps to evaluate a student’s ability to write and think creatively. Similarly, it provides them with a chance to share their viewpoints on a topic by adding creativity.
Here, a student will be graded based on his education, knowledge, and ability to present the case creatively.
A college application essay format usually follows the below pattern.
Margins: Use a 1-inch margin on all sides.
Line Spacing: Use 1.5 or double line spacing.
Paragraphs: Indent the first line of each paragraph.
Fonts: Use a standard font like Times New Roman, Arial, or Calibri in 12-pt size.
Alignment: Use “left align.”
Citation style: MLA, APA, Chicago, or Harvard.
Every college has its requirements for formatting an essay. Some may also ask to include page numbers with a college application essay heading on each page. However, never include your name until you are requested to do so.
Refer to the document for a better understanding of the format for a college application essay.
A good starting is key to making your college application essay stand out. Thus, it is essential to pay special attention to this section.
Here are some easy tips to start a college application essay correctly.
Start your essay with an image-based description that focuses on specific moments. It will help to clarify the dialogues, actions, or supporting details.
It also includes an image-based description of 1-3 sentences. It is used to explain, comment, or provide a context of the described event.
It requires the author to begin an essay with important information or a surprising fact.
You can also start by asking a question. It will give you a chance to hook the reader by exploring possible answers or solutions.
Here, a writer begins an essay by admitting the fact that he might be judged.
It comprises 1-2 sentences that give an idea of the main arguments included in the essay. Moreover, it usually comes at the end of the first paragraph.
You can also start with an unusual concept. Then, it follows up with a description that explains where the idea comes from and why the author considers it.
A writer can also start by stating a strange fact about himself.
You can also start by mentioning a shocking image and write a few sentences to discuss its importance.
Follow the steps given below to write an exceptional college application essay.
The first and foremost step is to read the instructions and understand the essay prompts. It may suggest two or more topic ideas that may be impersonal but are aimed at testing you.
Consider the following elements to comprehend the college application essay ideas.
In case colleges do not assign an essay topic, try to find one you are passionate about. Also, think about memorable incidents, struggles, achievements, or failures that have affected your life.
Once you’re done with the prompt, brainstorm ideas to write the best college essays. The purpose is to collect all the information and align it with your college admissions essays. Make sure that you do this before starting the writing process.
Here are the fundamental ingredients of the brainstorming process:
The next important step is to create an outline that divides the essay into different sections. A basic outline structure includes an introduction, body paragraphs, and conclusion.
The following is a detailed description of each section.
The introduction paragraph should start with a hook to engage the readers. It may include a controversial statement, a thought-provoking question, or a confession.
Try to write in a style that reflects your personality. Tell something about yourself. You can also challenge the reader by addressing them directly.
Furthermore, relate the topic or narrative to the subject knowledge. It will show your ability to use the gained knowledge for adding value to society.
Also, add a brief description of your academic skills and relate them to the course you are applying to. However, make sure to keep this section narrow and focused.
The body paragraphs should also provide detailed explanations and college essay examples to show your ideas. Each paragraph should begin with a topic sentence that identifies what the section is about.
Be concise and use vivid images. As you aim to meet a limited word count thus, make the most of it. Also, avoid using cliches and words like ‘I’ and ‘me’ too much. Instead, use simple language to convey the message.
Moreover, you should also focus on adding a creative perspective.
The conclusion of the common app essay will remain with the reader. Thus, try to begin and end the conclusion naturally.
Restate your thesis statement, and relate your closing statement to the opening one. Moreover, review the introduction to follow and use the same tone and theme in your conclusion.
Don't end your essay with a summarizing statement. Instead, discuss what you have learned from your experiences. Similarly, avoid adding stock phrases and quotations as they demonstrate a lack of creativity.
However, end your conclusion on a positive note. Do not forget to tell how your admission can contribute to the college and the community. Lastly, leave your readers with an open-ended question or a final thought to ponder.
Have a look at the below-given outline template to get a detailed idea of writing one.
After deciding on an outline structure and format, start writing the essay. Try to keep the college common application essay narrow and focus on reaching the word count.
Start with the main idea and follow it from the beginning to the end. Never copy from any other source. Instead, state an original story and bring something new and unique.
Also, include all the supporting details required to back up the main arguments. You can also use humor if appropriate.
Edit and proofread your rough draft and eliminate all grammatical errors. This is how you will be able to produce a flawless essay for getting into your desired college.
End your college application essay by identifying whether you have included all the elements in your essay. Here is a checklist for you to access your application by asking yourself the following questions.
Keeping in mind these elements will help to end a successful college application essay.
Check out the given college application process samples to write a perfect essay.
Refer to our good college application essay examples in case you need more samples.
Have a quick look at the following topics for your college application essay.
Here are some college application essay tips for writing a perfect essay.
Get help from our compiled list of college application essay prompts to get more interesting ideas.
Writing a college application essay requires proper planning and consideration. We understand that it can be daunting as your entire career and future depend on it. Similarly, it also requires you to showcase yourself as the most deserving candidate to get admission.
Therefore, most students end up contacting a professional writing company to get done with this task. If you need a reliable college admission essay writing service, MyPerfectWords.com is the right place for you. Get help from our professional writer to create an error-free essay in no time.
Moreover, you will also be able to interact with our college admission essay writer to track your work progress. Check out the common app essay examples and customer reviews on our website before choosing us. We assure you to provide quality supplemental essays, scholarship essays, and personal statements.
Place your order with our essay writing service and get the best college application essay help.
It is important to make ‘I’ statements in your college application essays. Colleges expect you to sound like yourself, so always be true to yourself when writing for the college boards.
We all know that 1st person plural is not a good idea in essays. To keep the reader engaged, you should be impersonal and avoid using ‘we’ or ‘us.’
Don't do it! There is no need to make your main essay all about these topics. Other ways may work better than writing, specifically on depression.
WRITTEN BY
Cathy A. (Literature, Marketing)
Cathy has been been working as an author on our platform for over five years now. She has a Masters degree in mass communication and is well-versed in the art of writing. Cathy is a professional who takes her work seriously and is widely appreciated by clients for her excellent writing skills.
Cathy has been been working as an author on our platform for over five years now. She has a Masters degree in mass communication and is well-versed in the art of writing. Cathy is a professional who takes her work seriously and is widely appreciated by clients for her excellent writing skills.
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