Writing Workshop

Constructing your College Essay

Session Overview
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 Purpose of the Essay

 Choosing a Topic
 Brainstorming
 The Rough Draft
 Editing and Proofreading
 Dos and Don’ts
 Essay Examples
Purpose of the Essay
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 To showcase your writing skills and ability to organize and

present material in a clear and concise fashion.

 To give the admissions committee insight into your

personality and interests, especially if the university does
not offer interviews.

 To convey a sense of your goals, beliefs, values and

achievements in a way that brings your application to life.
Choosing a Topic
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Some essays may have a specific

topic while others may be open-
ended…
 Choosing a Topic
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 “Evaluate a significant experience, achievement, risk you

have taken, or ethical dilemma you have faced and its
impact on you.”
 “Discuss some issue of personal, local, national, or
international concern and its importance to you.”
 “Given your personal background, describe an experience
that illustrates what you would bring to the diversity in a
college community, or an encounter that demonstrated the
importance of diversity to you.”
 “Tell us abut a talent, experience or personal quality you
would bring to our campus.”
Another essay topic that many colleges and universities
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include in their application will ask you to describe your
reasons for applying to their school.

 “Students consider many different factors when applying to

college. Briefly discuss who or what influenced your
decision to apply to _________.”

 “Describe your reasons for selecting _________ and your

personal and professional goals and plans for after college.”
Beginning the Essay: Brainstorming
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Spend a few weeks jotting down ideas you could write about.
Deciding what to write about is often the hardest part of the
essay process!
 Use essay questions as an outline to generate as many ideas
as you can think of that would fit those topics.
 Keep a journal handy with a list of all ideas, examples and
personal topics you come up with.
 Think of how others would describe you and stories that
would display that.
Getting it on Paper: The Rough Draft
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 Outline your essay by combining ideas in the format of

introduction, body, and ending.
 Maintain focus on your topic throughout.
 Start writing and don’t stop until you get all of your ideas
out. Don’t worry much about grammar, punctuation or flow
– you can deal with this in the editing stage.
Editing and Proofreading
 After completing the draft, set your essay aside for a few days before
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beginning to revise it.
 Print a hard copy of your essay. Errors will be easier to spot on paper
than a computer screen.
 Make sure the body of the essay supports the intro paragraph and/or
topic. Similarly be sure the final paragraph wraps up the essay and
concludes your ideas.
 Check for fragments, run-on sentences, spelling errors and redundancy.
 Get rid of sentences and words that seem irrelevant. Use the fewest
words possible to express your point.
 Read the essay aloud to get a good sense of how it flows. Sometimes
you will notice errors when you say them out loud rather than simply
reading them.
 Have someone else review the essay before you submit it. A fresh pair
of eyes may be able to offer suggestions you have not thought of.
Some questions to ask yourself while editing:
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 Does the introduction grab the reader’s attention without
explaining the topic all in the first sentence?
 Is there one consistent theme/idea to the essay?
 Is the essay easy to read and does it flow from one
paragraph to the next?
 Would someone else understand what I am trying to convey
just by reading the essay without explaining it to them?
 Does the essay answer the prompt?
 Did my reader learn something new about me?
Essay Dos and Don’ts
Do…
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 Use one consistent theme or topic
throughout the essay.
 Keep your topic personal –
remember you are the expert on
your life!
 Allow others to review your drafts
for feedback and suggestions.
 Adhere to the essay topic and word
limit.
 Make sure the essay tells something
about YOU.
 Use specific examples to tell your
story.
 Turn negatives into positives.
 Use your own voice and writing
style.
Don’t…
 Rely on spell check – many words
may be spelled right but used in the
wrong context.
 Try to hit on too many points.
 Use the same essay for multiple
essay prompts.
 Write what you think the admissions
committee wants to read.
 Use the essay as a resume. Write
about something you have not
already presented in your
application.
 Try to use large, intellectual words
just to impress the audience.
Essay Examples
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 Read the essay.

 What was the topic of the essay?
 What did you like about the essay? What didn’t you like?
 Take notes on how you could use a similar topic or
technique to tell your story.
 QUESTIONS
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 Remember this is just one component of the application
process. The essay will most likely not make or break an
application, but a well-written essay can be the deciding factor
for close-calls. Be yourself in your writing and you will do
great!