The 8 tips for writing the Common Application essay
One of the better ways for your rising school that is high to take some pressure off this fall is to write their Common Application essay throughout the summer.
Completing the Common App general essay is a big box to check off. This can be especially key in the event your student intends to apply Early Decision or Early Action, but even students who will be still schools that are considering finalizing their list will feel great getting this task done.
And some news that is good You don’t need certainly to hire an essay tutor. Instead, share this advice from professional essay coaches Marlene Kern Fischer and Helene Hirsch Wingens!
1. Start early.
Good writing needs time to work. Don’t hold back until the week before applications are due to start out writing the essays. Regardless of how terrific a writer you will be, the earlier you start, the greater the final end product would be. That’s a guarantee.
2. Put words on a web page.
Everyone has stories to tell. First, glance at the prompts (which are just like last year). You will find seven choices — select the 2 or writer for hire 3 that appeal to you personally most, get confident with a pad of paper or your laptop, and brainstorm. When you decide in your favorite prompt and have now a broad concept of what your narrative should be, just start writing.
It doesn’t need to be writing that is beautiful. The draft that is first be. Much of your objective for the first draft is simply to put words on a web page. Tell a story and flesh it out with concrete details.
You’ll need n’t have cured cancer or battled adversity to create a narrative that reads well. You don’t even need a “wow” moment; you just need to reveal something about yourself and invite your personality to shine.
3. Don’t force a square peg into a round hole.
Now over carefully and decide whether or not your answer responds to the prompt that you have your thoughts down, read them. If it will, you could begin rewriting. If it does not, start over.
Anticipate to discard several drafts that are first you produce one that really speaks to you personally. I often end up throwing away the majority of my initial drafts and frequently use my second paragraph as an opener into the next draft because I decide that the first paragraph doesn’t arrive at the point quickly enough. You may discover a significantly better angle halfway through the essay — even yet in your conclusion.
4. Don’t be dramatic.
Don’t try to make forgetting to eat lunch last Monday appear to be a life changing or experience that is harrowing. You’ll need not need cured cancer or battled adversity to produce a narrative that reads well. You don’t even need a “wow” moment; you just want to reveal something about yourself and permit your personality to shine. The most effective personal statement I ever read was about a young man that has an “aha” moment as a counselor at summer camp as he realized that his campers viewed him as a grown-up.
5. Be yourself.
If you’re not funny, now is not as soon as to start comedy that is writing. If you’re not Shakespeare, do not attempt pentameter that is iambic. It is story that is YOUR YOUR writing, so be authentically YOU.
6. Get help editing.
Get help editing but not help that is too much. Your personal statement needs to be in your voice. It, you’ll get dozens of revision suggestions, resulting in a discordant symphony of different voices if you ask all of your cousins who majored in English to read. Pick a people that are few trust to help you because of the editing process and stick with them.
7. Proofread, proofread, proofread.
You’ve spent considerable time thinking and writing and you’ve crafted a essay that is solid. It might be nothing short of tragic to submit a personal statement with careless grammatical errors and typos. Spend a couple of dollars to submit your article to an copy editing service that is online.
In addition, adhere to the expressed word count; it is there for a reason.
8. Put a fork in it.
If you’ve completed all of the above steps, you are DONE. It’s time to declare your personal statement finished. I’ve seen people hold onto an essay and alter a word here and a word there until the end that is bitter. At some point, that may only allow you to crazy. It’s now time for you to tackle those supplemental essays!
Marlene Kern Fischer is a wife, mother of three sons, food shopper extraordinaire, blogger and essay editor. A founding contributor and advisor at CollegiateParent, her work has also been featured on Huffington Post, Grown and Flown, Parent and Co., Kveller, Her View from your home, the Erma Bombeck Writers’ Workshop, MockMom, Better After 50, Beyond Your Blog in addition to SITS Girls. You can easily read more of Marlene’s work by going to her CollegiateParent author page and on the site, “Thoughts From Aisle Four.”