You may hear a remark that goes like this — no admission essay is perfect. But, whether that is true or not, there is one assertion that could not be contested. It is the fact that some essays are outstanding, some are mediocre, and many are simply horrendous. The following pointers (if you adhere to them faithfully), will assure you that your essay will rise above the masses of mediocre essays.

A catchy topic for your essay to get into college

It all starts with the first paragraph. To hook your readers, you can start with a quote, an unbelievable (yet true) statistic about you, or a life experience you had when you were a teenager. Make sure that the story you choose will support the focus or topic you have chosen for your essay. Make sure to avoid the topics that have been used so many times by other applicants. Your goal is to let your essay stand out and capture the attention of the readers. Weird topics can be used by make sure you discuss them effectively. Coming up with a somewhat weird but doable topic can give you a lot of chances to show off your creative juices.

Effective supporting statements for your application essays for college

An effective admission essay writing tip suggested by many experts is to start it all with the thesis statement, then proceed with at least 3 supporting statements which would give credence to your thesis statement. These supporting statements serve as evidence of your story. These statements could be your own theories or experiences, or could be something you have researched on- it all depends on what exactly your theme is.

Choosing a less-used topic would often be more interesting to the readers than the mainstream ones used over the years. Whatever you choose however, the important thing is that you come up with supporting statements to firm up your thesis statement.

Related questions:

1. Are weird subjects allowed as themes for the admission essays?
2. What are supporting statements in an admission essay?
3. What is the example structure?

After laboring over themain body, the intro, and the conclusion of the admission essay, the work is not yet over. Now is the time to do the exhaustive work of editing and proofreading. Do not consider this as a herculean task, but as the opportunity to have your essay rise above the hundreds of submissions that were not accurately edited.

Application essay mistake 1: Relying too much on spell checkers

Every task seems to be conveniently doable because of the computer, but spellchecking programs have been known to suffer from glitches. Even if your software does not actually suffer from glitches, nothing can ever compare to the meticulous skills of the human eye when editing your essay. A truly conscientious applicant would manually spellcheck his or her work. Plus, there is nothing more assuring than the knowledge that the essay passed through human eyes. The best thing to do when editing your admission essay is to spellcheck it by computer, and then manually edit it by reading the entire essay several times.

College admissions essays mistake 2: Not letting others read your essay

Not letting other people read your essay is definitely a big mistake. This is because as the author of the essay, you sometimes miss several grammar or typo errors as you reread your essay. To avoid this, let a mentor, a parent, or a friend read your essay and give you some honest and objective opinions regarding the quality of your work. You can look for online editing services for professional help when editing your essay draft.

So to recap, do not rely solely on spellcheckers, and do not do the proofreading all by yourself. A second pair of eyes is always welcome and useful, and you’ll thank that person profusely when you get that acceptance letter.

Related questions:

1. Is it good to just rely on spellcheckers for the editing of the admission essay?
2. Why do certain typos escape the attention of the person during proofreading?
3. What is the upside to manual spellchecking of the admission essay?

It is quite easy to just put in your admission essay the things you plan to do in order to survive the first two years of college, but elaborating on your long-term career objectives is another thing. If you can put the latter on your essay, it will make for a more effective narration.

Why long-term career goals are good application essay topics

It boils down (among other things) to sincerity, after all, you are talking about yourself and your serious plans 5 or 10 years from now. The far-term career goals are ideal topics because you can elaborate on them to your heart’s content and more than that, it will show the Admissions Committee how much foresight you actually have. If you have so many career goals (say, 8 of them), it’s inadvisable to put them all. Focus on 2 or 3 and put meat in it. You are supposed to write a short essay, tomes have no place on the Screening Committee’s desk.

Tips when discussing goals in your personal statement

Just saying “I want to be a doctor because I want to help the needy and alleviate the sufferings of the sick.”- then leave it at that. Let’s talk about this statement, first- it is obvious and sophomoric. Second, why else would you want to be a doctor if not that? (To get rich as the only answer, yes, some people would do that, but that’s another story). It is advisable to get hold of some course catalogues to check which classes would aid you vis-a-vis both your career short term and far term goals. Elaborate your goals in a comprehensive yet brief manner, and the Admissions officers would consider your essay as substantial and worthy of further consideration.

The kind of elaboration you do on the far-term goals could mean the difference between success and failure. What is crucial is not the mere mention of such goals, but how you could relate them to where you are now, to your values, and to the thesis statement of the essay. Adhere to all of this and you’ll be proud of the essay when you hand it over.

Related questions:

1. Why is a career goal worthy of discussion on the application essay?
2. What is an example of a bad sentence in the admission essay (regarding reason for applying)?
3. How does one handle the discussion of career goals?

It is not just Martin Luther or JFK who could be used as a theme for the admission essay, if the guidelines of the Committee allow it, you may even use a fictional character from movies, books, etc. You have to be aware though, that your topic may have come from fiction, but your finished essayshould not come across as a work of fiction.

Why your favorite fictional character is a good admission essay idea

First, there are greater chances of the Admissions officers getting more interested in reading your essay rather than the old, tired and overused themes of historical icons. Second, your favorite fictional character is close to your heart. If Thomas Odd (a character of Dean Koontz) is your choice because both he and you experienced rescuing a friend from criminally-minded persons, then you could point out (then go to the supporting statements) that you could definitely relate to him.

Ways to discuss this topic in your essay for admission

One warning: usually, you would not be barred from using a cartoon character, but if he/she is either funny or just trivial, you might come across as an applicant who is not serious in applying. Relate the character’s life, values and attitudes to your own, and even connect it to your future goals.

The good thing about using a fictional person in the admission essay is that it’s fun. There are so many stress factors in the application process (not just the writing of the essay), and creating this essay could be both work and play at the same time. Take note, play here does not mean your essay should be lousy or haphazardly done.

Related questions:

1. Can Batman be used as part of the discussions on the admission essay?
2. What is the danger of using a cartoon character as the admission essay theme?
3. How does one discuss the strengths and attributes of the fictional character?