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Thinking, Thinking, Thinking

The first step in preparing your application essay is to brainstorm on what matters most – yourself! You need to give yourself sufficient time to develop your thoughts. Consider the list of subjects and questions to ask yourself to get you started. This list is provided through QuintCareers.com and EssayEdge.

The most important part of your essay is the subject matter. You should expect to devote about 1-2 weeks simply to brainstorming ideas. To begin brainstorming a subject idea, consider the following points. From brainstorming, you may find a subject you had not considered at first.

·         What are your major accomplishments, and why do you consider them accomplishments? Do not limit yourself to accomplishments you have been formally recognized for since the most interesting essays often are based on accomplishments that may have been trite at the time but become crucial when placed in the context of your life.

·         Does any attribute, quality, or skill distinguish you from everyone else? How did you develop this attribute?

·         Consider your favourite books, movies, works of art, etc. Have these influenced your life in a meaningful way? Why are they your favourites?

·         What was the most difficult time in your life, and why? How did your perspective on life change as a result of the difficulty?

·         Have you ever struggled mightily for something and succeeded? What made you successful?

·         Have you ever struggled mightily for something and failed? How did you respond?

·         Of everything in the world, what would you most like to be doing right now? Where would you most like to be? Who, of everyone living and dead, would you most like to be with? These questions should help you realize what you love most.

·         Have you experienced a moment of epiphany, as if your eyes were opened to something you were previously blind to?

·         What is your strongest, most unwavering personality trait? Do you maintain strong beliefs or adhere to a philosophy? How would your friends characterize you? What would they write about if they were writing your admissions essay for you?

·         What have you done outside of the classroom that demonstrates qualities sought after by universities? Of these, which means the most to you?

·         What are your most important extracurricular or community activities? What made you join these activities? What made you continue to contribute to them?

·         What are your dreams of the future? When you look back on your life in thirty years, what would it take for you to consider your life successful? What people, things, and accomplishments do you need? How does this particular university fit into your plans for the future?

 

It is best to read through the previous questions and just let the answers linger in your mind. Writing a college admission essay is not one where books are what matters. What matters is your ability to articulate and show and engage the reader into understanding who you are and what you are about.

 

It may seem silly to have to think about yourself and try to describe yourself to others. In this case, you might want to resort to asking your family and friends what they think your biggest accomplishments have been. What is it about you that distinguishes you from others they might know? It might be something as simple as getting them to write a short list of traits they see in you that are positive traits that spark as subject of thought you can then write on. What life experiences have they seen you thrive through? What are key moments that they have been a part of while you experienced them?

 

Your childhood for the most part probably played a role in who you are today. Maybe you always knew that you wanted to grow up to be a doctor. Or maybe you had something completely different in mind and that something was sparked early in life. Markers want to know about who you presently are, but it might be an interesting twist to be able to put some of your childhood memories into your essay to give it some genuine character.

 

Who do you look up to? Who in your life has pushed you harder, seen you through the rough times, or inspired you to do more? These people are role models that you can learn from. You could talk about them and how their personality traits are things that you aspire to and try to develop.

 

Still stuck in a writer’s block? Try reading some sample admission essays. This is not to base your essay off of those already done; it is more to see how you can write it differently to show your true self to the reader.

 

Think of the future. What do you plan on doing after university or college. What will your admission into __________ college actually do for you? Why not look into the future and tell them what this admission will mean to you and what will result from them accepting you. If you show your determination for your goals now, you can show them how you can fulfill them as part of their institution.

 

And remember, this process is not supposed to kill you, or be harder than studying. You’re writing about you so make sure when you find it, you’re passionate about it and you WANT to write it. This way you won’t sound bored through your style of writing. You should be excited, enthusiastic and eloquent in your application essay writing.

 

Continue Reading

Writing your College Application Essay: Part II
Now that you’ve let the ideas of what you’d like to write on sink in...

Writing your College Application Essay: Part III
Now that you've got your brainstorming, ideas and topic in check there's a few more things...