Writing the College Essay
The college essay gives you a chance to tell a school about you. Other parts of your application -- grades, scores, and recommendations -- show what you've done. Your college essay reveals who you are. It can be a strong voice in your favor and a way to stand out from the rest. It can give "life" to your admissions file.

A good essay needs:
- A main idea or thesis
- Specific evidence to support your thesis
- Organization: A clear beginning, middle, and ending
- Coherence: A clear and persuasive point
- Correctness: No misspellings, typos, or grammatical errors

The Process:
- Pre-write
    - Brainstorm
    - Look for connections
    - State them as a theme
    - Reorganize your brainstorming notes into a list of points which support your theme
    - Choose a Thesis
    - Choose a major personal characteristic and make it the center of your essay
    - Then choose an event or activity to show off that quality
- Write a rough draft
- Revise
- Polish

This is a personal essay so the rules are flexible:
- Write simply
- Don't try to tell everything
- Pick out the significants and emphasize them

Writing evaluation:
Your college essay is going to be examined as a clue to your writing ability by an audience who is both critical and crucial. Admission Counselors will be concerned with both content and ability.

Short-answer questions:
Short answer questions which ask for only a paragraph response should be approached with the same care and attention you gave to the full-length essay. The writing process is the same. Try to make your topic vivid in a few lines and never sacrifice specifics.

Do's...
- Read all directions carefully
- Have someone read and proofread all parts your of application
- Use your essay as a chance to show admission officers that you're more than grades and test scores
- Include anything that makes you stand out from the crowd, such as honors, awards, or special talents

Don'ts...
- Procrastinate
- Lie or exaggerate -- it will come back to haunt you
- Leave off important details. For example, if you play in the school band, include what instrument you play
- Get sloppy with typos or the application's appearance. It looks like you just didn't care
- "Borrow" ideas for your essays, whether from a friend or a Web site. Your essay should be your own

Go way over the college's length limit for the essay. Admissions officers have limited time, and lots of essays to review. If you need to, you can include supplemental material.

Works Cited: Information on the "Do's & Don'ts" and "Essay Tips" pages has been taken from collegeboard.com.