College Essay Tips Answered
Does anyone have any tips or prompts for writing a good college essay besides the one on the common app? I am struggling to write one.
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2 answers
Hello! I would like to know what prompt you are replying to. I opted to choose an essay I had written previously. I had submitted it to my college professor for a once-over as well. My advice to you would be to write about your passions, interests, and what inspires you. Find out if your school has a dual enrollment English teacher. They might be able to review your essay before you send it off.
Do not become frustrated with yourself. If you feel stuck, ask for help, take a break, and remember that you CAN do it. Try using Grammarly as well to check your papers.
(1) Have a strong and interesting opening.
(2) Reflect about situations do not just recall.
(3) Be authentic and make your voice heard. You can do this by slipping in some jokes or asking someone about how they view you.
(4) Think of this essay as a conversation. You want to reach a wide audience.
(5) Do not be afraid to start over with your essay. Most of the writing process is rewriting. It is OKAY to have several copies of the same essay with different changes.
Good luck to you. I believe in you!
The main essay I submitted with my college applications was my choice essay on the common app.
I was kind of in a similar boat, in I had no idea what I was going to write about for my essay. I wanted to keep myself thinking and working towards getting a final piece put together, so I started writing about random things that made me, me. Whether it was a single experience, a single memory, or a single aspect of your life that is constantly there, just something, I found that it was really easy to relate a few of these things together to create a piece about myself. In the end, I ended up getting to multiple experiences I had gone through that all related to each other, and I started thinking more about them and how they impacted me. Which eventually turned into a 621-word essay.
The best advice I can give is don't get blinded by having a blank piece of paper in front of you. Start putting random ideas down, memories, your favorite place to visit, or what you love to do; when you start writing about random things, it helps you continue writing and create a final piece.
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Thank you so much! I was told not to look at the prompts as then you may get stuck on trying to answer those, but so far I have stuff about “winning a Girl Scout trophy, being a first generation college student, and how my grandma dying caused me to lost opportunities”