5 Tricks For Choosing Your College Essay Topic

5 Tricks For Choosing Your College Essay Topic 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. Actually, you should not write about anything that already appears in detail somewhere else in your application. 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. TYPICAL ESSAYS REQUIRED MAJOR ESSAY , YOUR ACADEMIC INTEREST, YOUR MOST IMPORTANT ACTIVITY, and WHY THIS UNIVERSITY THE BEST FOR YOU The most important element in each essay you write is YOU! It is YOU that the admission’s committee is trying to evaluate. 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. 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. Learning the complex dynamics between electromagnetic induction and optics in an attempt to solve one of the holy grails of physics, gravitational-waves, I could not have been more pleased. Thus vindicated, my desire to further formalize my love of science brings me to State University. Thanks to this experience, I know now better than ever that State University is my future, because through it I seek another, permanent, opportunity to follow my passion for science and engineering. Therefore, what better way to communicate the very essence of you than by writing an original and truly impressive college essay. GUIDELINES Take TIME … time to explore ideas, think about your many choices, and time to write and re-write. You can complete your application form in an hour or two. Writing your major essay and several auxiliary ones takes many hours. When you write about a person that influenced your life, tell a real story. If you have participated in a meaningful community service project, make it come to life with specific examples. Give people names, describe places, and relate feelings. Any reference you make to literature, current events, historical events, must be absolutely accurate. Avoid political opinions, religious references, ethnic references or unacceptable language. 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. Be sure to give yourself enough time to write a meaningful essay. Do it yourself, but feel free to ask a friend who loves writing or English to read your essay and provide feedback. Please submit a one-page, single-spaced essay that explains why you have chosen State University and your particular major, department or program. If your write a comical, ironical, or satirical essay, be sure that you show a serious or thoughtful side of yourself as well. Real people read your words, and your words must reflect a real person, not a dictionary. Don’t attempt to be funny when you have never written a funny essay in your life. If possible, use ANECDOTES, or examples, when you write your essay.