Admissions Essays

Admissions Essays Mash up a historical figure with a new time period, environment, location, or occupation, and tell us their story. Each year we email newly admitted and current College students and ask them for essay topics. We receive several hundred responses, many of which are eloquent, intriguing, or downright wacky. The University of Chicago has long been renowned for our provocative essay questions. Then read it again for spelling and grammar errors. Once you've chosen the topic for you essay, write a first draft. Don't worry about making it perfect, just write down everything you can think of that relates to your topic. Don't feel like you have to limit yourself to the five-paragraph intro, body, body, body, conclusion format. A common application usually includes extracurricular activities, self-taught language courses, volunteering, your projects, training or hobbies. What makes all these hooks stand out is the element of curiosity that forces readers to wonder how the entire story unfolds. When it comes to telling your story and sharing how valuable your experience will be to a school, portray it in the format that will be the most attractive to the school. Don't try to copy someone else's tone in your writing. You don't have to sound like anyone else, you just have to sound like you. An easy way to write in your own voice is by avoiding clichés. Don't use phrases that you've heard repeated over and over, unless you can put your own, creative spin on them. Reflect on experiences or turning points in your life that shaped your perception of the world. Also, you can recall some jokes or personal anecdote to dilute your story with catchy, humorous elements. Thanks to all authors for creating a page that has been read 91,829 times. Word counts depend on the college or university in question. Start your essay with a good quote or a statement that reflects your whole theme perfectly. Make sure you write real experiences and do not make up stories. Make sure that your essay does not exceed the maximum word and page length. This might mean cutting out whole sentences or it might mean using fewer words to say the same thing. But no matter how many times a promise is broken, I’ve always wanted to believe that someone will keep one to me. Thanks to that first morning on Fall Creek, I’ve found a calling that consumes my free time, compels me to teach fly fishing to others, and drives what I want to study in college. I caught that 10-inch fryling five years ago on Fall Creek using a $5 fly rod given to me by my neighbor Gil. The creek is spectacular as it cascades down the 150-foot drop of Ithaca Falls. Only 100-feet further, however, it runs past a decrepit gun factory and underneath a graffitied bridge before flowing adjacent to my high school and out to Cayuga Lake. Aside from the falls, the creek is largely overlooked. Nearly all of the high school students I know who cross that bridge daily do so with no thought of the creek below. Once you've drafted your essay, reread and edit it more than once. Read your essay first to make sure that it says exactly what you want it to say. For example, your essay might focus on a situation where you found yourself questioning or challenging one of your own beliefs. Recount an incident in your life when this happened to you, and reflect on how the experience changed you. Start with a few lines that introduce the topic of your essay in a compelling and personal way. Reflecting on those experiences will give you ideas for creative, unique ways you can portray them to admissions officers. Some places like the Common App will release the essay prompts from previous years, if you want to get an idea of what topics you might be asked to write about.