How to Write a College Application Essay

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  • Your admissions essay is one of the most important parts of your college application. How to write a college application essay takes you through the writing and editing process step-by-step to help you make the most of this opportunity.

  • Introduction

    • A college admissions staff member will spend one-third of their time on your application just considering your essay. So a good admissions essay important, but it's also a chance for you to wow the admissions board. It may also make up for what the rest of your application materials lack. If your resume doesn't show your dedication to a certain idea, talk about it in your essay. If your junior year grades dropped for a specific, excusable reason, explain it in your essay. Whatever approach you decide to take, get started early.

  • Step 1: Choose a Topic

    1. Check the application materials from your chosen colleges to review their guidelines for the admissions essay.
    2. Read the instructions carefully. The application may indicate a specific length for your essay, a mandatory topic for you to write about, or other details you shouldn't neglect. If there's a mandatory topic, make sure that you address the subject the college has supplied. You won't impress the admissions staff by ignoring their request.
    3. Choose the best topic for you. The college may have supplied mandatory topics for you to write on, but often they give you the option to write on any topic of your choice. The application essay serves to introduce you and your interests to the college's admissions board, so it should shine with your personality and character. CollegeBoard.com advises students that their choice of topic reveals something about them to the admissions staff. Your topic doesn't need to be revolutionary, but it should have rich details and specific information about who you are and what you value.
    4. Choose a topic that you can use for all or most colleges you are applying to. If you're applying to ten different colleges, you probably don't want to write ten different essays. Of course, if there's one school in particular that you have your heart set on, give some extra attention to that essay, perhaps personalizing it to the college's values, community, or campus. The 2008 Common Application offers five topic suggestions, and a sixth option allowing the student to select her own topic. In general terms, the choices are:
      1. Write about an experience.
      2. Write about an issue.
      3. Write about a person.
      4. Write about a fictional character.
      5. Write about how you personally would add to the diversity of the college.
      6. Open topic.

  • Step 2: Brainstorm Your Topic

    • Pre-writing helps you to structure and focus your essay. You shouldn't skip this step, even if you don't usually outline before you write.
    1. Spend 10-15 minutes listing your personal strengths. How do you spend your time, and what does it indicate about you? What are your personal goals for the future? What issues get you excited and motivated? What would people who know you say you're best at?
    2. Ask others what your strengths are. Do you have teachers who know you well? Ask them. Ask your parents. Talk to your friends. If you're really brave, talk to people you don't get along with very well.
    3. Decide on a single idea or point to prove—a thesis. You could pick several of the qualities you listed and prove that they make you perfect for your chosen college. However, you don't have to be so direct. Just try to highlight your best qualities as you prove a larger point. You could write about how a single event or person in your life has changed you on a deep level, make an observation about what's important in this world and the process that has brought you to that conclusion, or talk about what you think is the value of a college education or what it takes to make the most of one.

  • Step 3: Organize Your Essay

    • The organization of your essay should help your reader to understand your thesis and keep track of your arguments. The essay structure is a map to its contents, and your reader shouldn't get lost along the way.
    1. Choose a structure. There are some common essay structures that work well for many applicants. However, feel free to deviate from the norm. Allow your own writing style to show through your words and organization.
      1. The traditional way to write the body for an essay is to choose three examples to prove your thesis and then devote a paragraph to each one.
      2. A narrative essay, on the other hand, tells a story. For an admissions essay, that would most likely mean writing about an experience that you've had and illustrating your point (thesis) by way of the story. For instance, you could show how important formal education is by telling about your experience on a mission trip to a country where very few people ever go to school. Prove your thesis by writing about the effect that lack of education has on that community and region.
    2. Don't let your thoughts wander all over the place. The admissions board wants to know that you can structure your ideas and put them in appropriate written form.
    3. List what points you want to make. If you're using a traditional structure, you should outline what you'll say in each paragraph. If you're using another format, you may simply want to make an outline of things you want to cover in the order they'll appear in the essay.
    4. Refer back to your outline throughout the process of writing your essay.

  • Step 4: Write Your Essay

    • Once you've done some pre-writing, you can begin to write the actual essay. Some people like to write the introduction and conclusion first to help focus their writing. Others prefer writing the body of the essay and then writing a very brief but powerful introduction and conclusion to frame it. For the next three steps, choose the order that works best for you.

  • Write the Introduction

    1. Make sure to write a strong thesis sentence if you're using a traditional essay structure.
    2. The thesis sentence often appears at the beginning or end of the introductory paragraph.
    3. Engage your reader from the start. This is especially important for narrative essays. Find an interesting way to begin your story. If you begin with something like, "I once went on a trip to Paris," your reader may lose interest after the very first sentence.

  • Write the Conclusion

    • Your conclusion, along with your introduction, should frame your essay. Finishing well is perhaps as important as beginning strongly.
    1. Reiterate your thesis if you're using a traditional structure. Don't use the same words, but remind your reader of the overall point you want to make.
    2. Connect your topic to larger issues not addressed in your essay. If you've written about how a year spent in a foreign country has made you a stronger person, hint at how you think the qualities you acquired will serve you in college.
    3. The purpose of your narrative should become clear by the concluding paragraphs if you're using that form for your essay. You should hit your reader with a powerful finish, perhaps giving a twist to the story or coming to some surprising conclusions. Again, you can connect your narrative experience to what you expect from college in the end paragraphs.

  • Write the Body

    • The body of your essay supports the argument you make in your thesis.
    1. Follow a logical order as you write your body paragraphs.
    2. Use connecting phrases to move from one paragraph to the next. Virtual Salt provides some good examples of transitional words and phrases, including:
      1. First, second, third, etc.
      2. Then, next, after
      3. In the same way, similarly, likewise
      4. To this end, for this reason
      5. Consequently, accordingly, therefore, as a result
    3. Support your thesis with specific examples. Don't use vague illustrations to prove your point. For instance, in a narrative essay about a mission trip, it's better to talk about particular people you met or things you saw rather than making generalizations.

  • Step 5: Take a Break

    • It's always best to walk away from a piece of writing and only come back to it when you can look with a fresh eye. CollegeBoard.com recommends taking a few days off from writing.

  • Step 6: Edit Your Essay

    • Keep in mind that this isn't a term paper. You should keep your essay short and concise (though not too short). Try to make an impact with every word.
    1. Eliminate language that's too flowery. Large numbers of adjectives and adverbs offer a clue to the fact that your language is too elaborate.
    2. Check for spelling errors. Your computer's spell-check is a beautiful thing, but you also need to read through the essay yourself for spelling mistakes. The computer won't catch errors that result in incorrect words spelled correctly. For example, if you write that you once had to "cell your favorite baseball card" (rather than sell it), the spell-check won't be of much help.
    3. Fix grammatical errors. The OWL at Purdue University has a great guide to finding common writing errors. Some typical problems include:
      1. Repeated or forgotten words
      2. Misused commas
      3. Misplaced adjectives and adverbs
      4. Sentence fragments
      5. Run-on sentences
      6. Errors of subject-verb agreement
    4. Ask an adult to read your essay. Sometimes you're too close to your writing to catch errors. Whenever possible you should have someone else read your writing, both for simple grammatical errors, and for larger problems with the text as a whole. Ask your chosen reader what point he thinks you were trying to make with the essay. This person can also make sure that your essay doesn't strike a discord with the rest of your application materials.

  • Step 7: Proofread Again

  • Conclusion

    • Don't skimp on time when writing your essay. Spend whatever number of hours it takes to show your skills at their best. College admissions officers read piles of poorly written essays every year. Don't let your application get buried in the heap.

  • Resources for How to Write a College Application Essay


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