Source: Reddit
Very often, students complain to me that they don’t know where to begin when attempting to write personal statements or statements of purpose. The essay question, word count, university expectations and importance of the essay in the college application together tend to weigh on the students’ minds, distracting them from finalizing and writing about the main theme of the essay. Additionally, some find it hard to put their thoughts on paper, while others have too many ideas and are not sure which to focus on.
Over the years, after having helped numerous students overcome this hurdle and transform their ideas into words, I have found that the optimum way to go about writing application essays are:
Apart from the above-mentioned mental block, sometimes students also get stuck with an idea in their minds, so much so that they try to twist and turn it to somehow fit the essay prompt. This can backfire, as the correct method is to come up with an idea that matches the prompt. By working with a pre-set idea, students might end up putting in more effort to stretch the wording to fit the bill, rather than enhancing the idea and showcasing their best.
“Too many cooks spoil the broth!” Similarly, too many ideas for a single essay can lose the plot. The admissions committee is not grading a student’s essay-writing skills (though they do wish to see that the students can communicate clearly in English), but are interested in knowing who the students really are, something that their educational records and extra-curricular certificates might not clearly personify. The personal statement is a chance to showcase individual traits by describing a life event, interest, talent, lesson, problem or accomplishment and the distinctive response it generated. It is an opportunity to recognize adversity or short-comings, and learning important lessons from them that would help the student through college and through life. It is a chance to talk about something close to one’s heart – from something as simple as a cheese pizza to something as complex as one’s community and culture.
The personal statement has to be a story, with a compelling intro that would make it stand out from the thousands of other essays, and interest the admissions committee to read it carefully. It has to be unique… and personal.
- Shortlist ideas related to the essay question – The more the merrier!
- Discuss the ideas with your parents, siblings, friends, professors and/or counselor – Take their inputs with an open mind and a grain of salt, however.
- Expand on the ideas and weigh the pros and cons vis-à-vis the essay question – Weed out the weaker points.
- Finalize an idea, and jot down points to expand on it – Time to reflect!
- Now, sit down with the points, ponder, and write the first draft – Try and write 25-50% more than the word limit.
- Take a day or 2 off, then come back and read the essay – This helps in looking at the essay with fresh eyes, and in coming up with additional ideas and/or improvements.
- Edit, improve, edit! – Each review and edit must be done with enhancement in mind.
- Always let someone else proofread the essay after it is finished – The brain reads what it wants to, not what the eyes actually do. A second person will read with an open mind, and potentially identify a lot more errors.
- Doing 2 proofreads either by different people or over 2-3 days is ideal – Can’t afford to have even a single mistake in such a short and important essay!
Apart from the above-mentioned mental block, sometimes students also get stuck with an idea in their minds, so much so that they try to twist and turn it to somehow fit the essay prompt. This can backfire, as the correct method is to come up with an idea that matches the prompt. By working with a pre-set idea, students might end up putting in more effort to stretch the wording to fit the bill, rather than enhancing the idea and showcasing their best.
“Too many cooks spoil the broth!” Similarly, too many ideas for a single essay can lose the plot. The admissions committee is not grading a student’s essay-writing skills (though they do wish to see that the students can communicate clearly in English), but are interested in knowing who the students really are, something that their educational records and extra-curricular certificates might not clearly personify. The personal statement is a chance to showcase individual traits by describing a life event, interest, talent, lesson, problem or accomplishment and the distinctive response it generated. It is an opportunity to recognize adversity or short-comings, and learning important lessons from them that would help the student through college and through life. It is a chance to talk about something close to one’s heart – from something as simple as a cheese pizza to something as complex as one’s community and culture.
The personal statement has to be a story, with a compelling intro that would make it stand out from the thousands of other essays, and interest the admissions committee to read it carefully. It has to be unique… and personal.