| As a former dean with over fifteen years of | | | | exclusive club. To get a "yes" vote you need to get |
| admissions experience, I can tell you that the college | | | | them to "feel" that you belong. Do that by having |
| essay can make or break your application. This is the | | | | your essay reveal something about who you are, |
| one opportunity you have to "talk" directly to the | | | | what you are like, or how you think. |
| admissions officer whose decision will decide if you | | | | Most of your application is full of papers that report |
| get that "thick" envelope every applicant covets. The | | | | impersonal data. Grades, test scores, courses |
| hard part is that same admissions officer has a huge | | | | completed. The essay is THE golden opportunity for |
| pile of applications to review and yours is buried | | | | your application to come alive and "speak" directly |
| somewhere in the middle. Your essay has to stand | | | | with that admissions officer. Make sure you take |
| out amidst the crowd of other applicants. Use these | | | | advantage of this opportunity. Pretend you are |
| strategies to make sure yours jumps up, grabs the | | | | having a conversation with a family friend. Write using |
| admissions officer's attention, and gets you that | | | | the first person. But, do be careful not to start every |
| offer of admission! | | | | sentence with "I." |
| First, you've got to think of the audience that will be | | | | The best way to connect with your reader is to tell |
| reading your work. Most likely, it will be a fairly recent | | | | a story. A really interesting story that paints a |
| college graduate just starting their career. Not the | | | | picture. A vivid picture with specific details. Give your |
| chairperson of the English department. So, throw out | | | | reader the feeling that they are actually there with |
| your thesaurus. Don't use words like "plethora" or | | | | you. |
| "analogous." Your essay is not a vocabulary test! | | | | Finally, make an effort to tie your essay in to why |
| An admissions officer will probably have thirty or | | | | that individual college is the best choice for you. Do |
| more applicant files to review that day so your essay | | | | this for each college application. Be specific. Don't just |
| has to get their attention. Make yours be like guzzling | | | | use the same old generalizations everyone else does. |
| three cans of Mountain Dew! Seriously. You can't | | | | Show you've done your homework by explaining |
| afford to be boring. The best way to avoid that is | | | | exactly why their learning environment is the right |
| write about something that is interesting to you and | | | | one for you. |
| to make it personal. | | | | Yes, it will take some work to impress those |
| Goal number two is to make an emotional connection | | | | admissions officers. But, your essay is important. |
| with the person reading it. They are going to "vote" | | | | Getting that thick envelope later on will make it all |
| on whether or not you should be allowed to join their | | | | worthwhile! |