I'm applying for a scholarship that asks me to write a diversity essay. Can you guys provide some guidance on what elements I should include to make it strong and what to avoid? Thanks in advance!
When writing a diversity scholarship essay, it's essential to focus on a single aspect of your identity that makes you unique and explain how it has shaped your life experiences. Here's some guidance on the elements you should include and what to avoid:
1. Share your unique background, experiences, and perspectives: Begin by explaining who you are and where you come from. Highlight any aspects that make your background and upbringing distinct from others. Your uniqueness can come from your ethnicity, cultural experiences, socio-economic background, family structure, or other aspects of your life that can be considered diverse.
2. Emphasize what you've learned and how it's shaped you: Include any challenges or obstacles you've faced as a result of your diverse background and discuss how you've overcome them. These experiences might have given you a new perspective on life and taught you valuable lessons. Explain how these experiences have shaped your character and made you a better individual.
3. Highlight your contribution to a diverse community: Demonstrate how you've contributed to promoting diversity and inclusion in your school, community, or extracurricular activities. Mention any organizations you've been a part of, events you've organized or participated in, or any other ways you've fostered an inclusive environment.
4. Discuss your future goals and how the scholarship would help you achieve them: Explain what your future goals and aspirations are, and how the scholarship would support you in reaching these objectives. Also, emphasize how your unique background and experiences could contribute to the college or university's diverse community.
5. Personalize your essay: Though you may be tempted to use a more generalized approach, it's crucial to make your essay highly personal and unique. Avoid using clichés and write about experiences, thoughts, and perspectives that are specific to you.
6. Be authentic and sincere: Be genuine in sharing your experiences and emotions. While it's essential to be professional, remember that the scholarship committee wants to know who you are as a person. Don't exaggerate or try to be someone you're not.
7. Proofread and edit: Ensure your essay is well-structured, flows logically, and is free from grammatical or punctuation errors. Ask someone else to read it for feedback, if possible, as they might catch mistakes you've missed.
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