College Application Essay Writing Tips

While there isn’t a formula for crafting the perfect college application essay, there are several simple ways you can significantly improve your writing. These ten tips should set you in the right direction:

Tip 1: Take your time and plan ahead
Perfect writing cannot be rushed. This isn’t like that book report you wrote an hour before class and still got an “A” on. Creating a memorable college admissions essay takes ample preparation, as well as the freedom and time to revise and rewrite. Set up a writing schedule far ahead of your actual college application deadline and work at your own pace. That way, you can avoid last-minute stress and make sure your writing truly reflects the best of who you are.

Tip 2: Brainstorm!
Quite possibly the most overlooked step of the writing process, brainstorming is one of the most effective ways to ensure clarity and direction in your essay. Instead of reading a prompt and immediately formulating a response, take an hour to think about the question and the different ways you could proceed. Once you’ve settled on a topic, outline your college essay with key points and examples. This will help prevent writer’s block and also save you the trouble of having to correct a scattered college essay later on.

Tip 3: Be yourself
Remember, the college application essay should be a reflection of your personality and character, not a collection of generalizations and idealistic ways to save the world. Believe in who you are and what you have to offer. Let your writing come alive with your own personal flair. Colleges often make admission essay prompts open-ended so that you have the chance to showcase your individuality. Trust us, a college essay laden with personality is far more memorable and effective than an unoriginal, generic response.

Tip 4: One essay, one message
You only have a limited amount of space to thoroughly answer a given prompt, so make the writing process easier by focusing on a single topic. Don’t try to dump everything about yourself into a single essay; the rest of your application will sufficiently fill in the blanks. Instead, center your college essay on a single idea and then apply your creativity and insight to paint a complete picture.

Tip 5: Be specific
Although it may be difficult, fight the urge to overgeneralize. For example, instead of saying, “I learned a lot from this experience,” explicitly state what you learned. Be wary of vague adjectives such as “good,” “beneficial,” “interesting,” “difficult,” and “exciting,” and replace them with specific examples illustrating your point.

Tip 6: Start off strong
It is absolutely vital that your college admissions essay immediately draw the reader in. College admissions officers read thousands of essays, so it’s crucial to stand out from the very beginning. Rack your brain for memorable anecdotes and powerful language to impress colleges from word number one.

Tip 7: Less is more
A Northwestern University journalism professor used to joke that good editors crossed out every third word of their writing. Granted, you’d probably end up with an incoherent essay if you followed that advice literally, but the principle rings true nevertheless. Cutting unnecessary words is the best way to strengthen and clarify your writing. Your essay will flow much more smoothly, and you’ll find your sentences packing a lot more punch for the word count.

Tip 8: Remember the topic sentences
The lessons you learned in 5th-grade English class still apply when writing your college application essay. Give every paragraph a strong topic sentence to prevent your writing from straying off on tangents. As an added failsafe, make sure every topic sentence ties into the main message of your essay.

Tip 9: Sleep on it
So you’ve finished writing a draft and you’re feeling pretty good. You’ve read it through a couple times and everything seems to be in order. Congratulations! You’re making progress. But do yourself a favor and walk away from your essay for a day or two. Try to forget it completely. Then, when you revisit your essay, it’ll be as if you’re seeing it for the first time. You’ll be amazed at the new ideas you have and the mistakes you find.

Tip 10: Don’t be afraid to ask for help
While stepping away from your college application essay might refresh your mind, there’s nothing like getting a second opinion on your writing. An outside person is able to provide a different perspective and may see flaws or areas for improvement that you may have missed. So, don’t be afraid to ask a friend, a mentor or a family member for help. And remember, EssayLift would love to help you too!