Is This Really a Big Deal?
Depends. If you are highly competitive for this university—meaning your grade point average,
SAT/ACT scores, and any other criteria by which the school evaluates students are substantially
higher than the average student admitted—then your admission may not come down to your
essay. If, however, you are “on the bubble” (which is more often the case) your essay can be a
major factor.
Generating Ideas
Tragic events are not necessary for a great college application essay. It’s all about how you
write the essay. Look everywhere for great topics. Below is a list of ideas to get you going
(we’ve gathered these from a variety of places over the years; sorry we can’t give you a more
specific citation). Our suggestion is to write down the first two or three things that come to
mind.
Most significant personal event/incident in your life
Most personally spiritual event in your life
Most amusing event in your life
Greatest learning experience/incident
Most important person in your family
Most important person NOT in your family
Most important person in history
Most important change you’ve made
Most significant historical moment
Biggest hope/dream/goal for yourself
Biggest hope/dream/goal for the world
Most important non‐school teacher in your life
Biggest problem/challenge you’ve overcome
Most significant idea you’ve encountered
Most embarrassing moment
Most important writer
Most important achievement (yours or someone else’s)
Most important class you’ve taken
Most important value you hold
Most significant book you’ve read
Best piece of advice you’ve received
Invention you would most like to develop or see developed
Most important nonacademic interest
Word that describes you
Word you friends/family would use to describe you
What you most want to be remembered for from your first 18 years on the planet
Favorite piece of music
Most important advice you would give a high school freshman
Best job you’ve ever had
Most interesting place you’ve visited/would like to visit
Most important lesson learned
Worst mistake you’ve made and how it changed you
The Big Dos and Don’ts
A few sources that informed this list of advice:
Fiske, Edward B. and Bruce G. Hammond. Real College Essays That Work. Sourcebooks, Inc., Naperville, Illinois. 2006.
Stewart, Mark Alan and Cynthia C. Muchnick. Best College Admission Essays. Peterson’s, Lawrenceville, New Jersey. 2004.
Avoid clichés and overdone topics- I want world peace; I spent one week among the poor and now I understand poverty; it’s not whether you win or lose; all my hard work and discipline paid off in the end.
It’s all about finding a personal angle:
o Choose a topic that is less obvious and allows you to showcase what you value
o Your arch‐rival at school; expressing individual rights; pursuing justice; a
seemingly ordinary activity that turned into a self‐defining event; a contribution
or accomplishment that earned no external reward; your annoying habits;
something you love but are not very good at
o Write an essay only you could write
o Make sure your overall message is positive
o Use imagery, but don’t over use it. Same for dialogue. Both tools are effective in just the
right amounts, but this isn’t a short story.
o Don’t spend your time on what other parts of your application communicate
o Know when you are finished. Concision is key. If a limit isn’t given, aim for 500‐750
words.
o Use logical, frequent paragraph breaks. This doesn’t have to be a five paragraph essay!
o Avoid whining, complaining, or appearing bitter, sarcastic, angry, caustic, boastful or
aggressive
o Find the balance between confident and humble. You have good ideas, but you have a
lot yet to learn and experience
o Don’t introduce yourself to the committee: “Hello, my name is _______ and I’m
_______”
o Provide closure. This doesn’t have to be a full paragraph, but it needs to feel like we’ve
come to the end. Avoid “finally,” “in conclusion” and any sort of summary.
o Avoid careless errors (getting the name of the school wrong, etc.) and grammatical
mistakes
Great Openings
A few sources that informed this list:
Fiske, Edward B. and Bruce G. Hammond. Real College Essays That Work. Sourcebooks, Inc., Naperville, Illinois. 2006.
Stewart, Mark Alan and Cynthia C. Muchnick. Best College Admission Essays. Peterson’s, Lawrenceville, New Jersey. 2004.
These openings exemplify starting with an idea that keeps the reader going:
I keep remembering odd things: the way she loved daffodils, her delight at the antics of our
dog, jokes she told at the dinner table, her subtle brand of feminism, the look in her eyes when
she talked about my future.
He was the best of brothers; he was the worst of brothers. Unfortunately, he was the worst—
for a long time before I thought otherwise.
I wore saddle shoes five days a week for nine years of my life.
When I was ten years old, I met Vince Lombardi. I saw him at the post office.
There I sit, having just eaten a big bucket full of butterflies.
“I don’t do throw‐up.” My own words were coming back to haunt me as I heard one of my campers yell, “Ewww, Bridger threw up.”
Sometime between waking up at the crack of dawn and fourth period I became a teenage
werewolf. No wait, I mean feminist.
I once believed in the power of the majority to make acceptable decisions. Now I realize that
that viewpoint was flawed.
3 Places to Browse as You’re Thinking about the Application Essay…
The Common Application
https://www.commonapp.org/CommonApp/default.aspx
Nearly four hundred colleges and universities use this application (though some ask for
additional information as well). Under the ‘Download Forms’ section, click on
‘Application (student form) Only’ and you can find the writing section. The essay
questions you see on this application are similar to the ones you find elsewhere.
University of Chicago
https://collegeadmissions.uchicago.edu/admissions/essays.shtml
This is the gold standard in great essay questions. Even if you don’t apply to UC (though
they are a great school), their questions might spark ideas for other schools who ask you
to write about ‘anything.’
University of Washington and Washington State University
http://admit.washington.edu/files/PDFs/2010.FroshApp.Instructions.pdf
https://www.em.wsu.edu/statement/psmain.asp
Most Liberty students apply to UW or WSU, if not both, so we’ve highlighted them here.
They are a great example of the variety you will find. UW wants a couple of well‐
developed ideas, and WSU is looking for six quick explanations.
College Board College Search
http://collegesearch.collegeboard.com/search/index.jsp
From the people who bring you AP and SAT tests, comes this website with plenty of
resources for making your way through the whole process. The have a nice “College
Match” feature, as well as essay advice and samples. They also are connected to many
school’s webpages that detail that school’s policy on how they give credit for AP scores.
My College Calendar
http://www.mycollegecalendar.org/
Connecticut College: Essays That Worked
http://www.conncoll.edu/admission/essays.htm
4Some people like to see examples; some people don’t. A few colleges post their success
stories. Connecticut College is one of them. The essays are on the right hand side.
Books with Examples
Real College Essays That Work, Edward B. Fiske and Bruce G. Hammond
Best College Admission Essays, Mark Alan Stewart and Cynthia C. Muchnick
Publishers bombard the market with an array of books each year. Start at the KC library
before spending too much money. You’ll find that after you read a few, you get the idea.
The ones listed above are ones we have used, but they are all similar.
College Application Essay Checklist
(compiled by Julie Larsen)
√ Locate the prompt(s) for each application you are submitting. Make sure you
understand what the instructions ask you to do.
√ Read the prompt(s) carefully. You need to address all parts of the prompt in your essay.
√ Brainstorm ideas for possible answers. Your first idea may not be the best.
√ Try to answer the question through a personal narrative instead of just a straight
explanatory essay. Your own personal voice will come through more clearly and the
essay will be much more interesting.
√ Include concrete examples to explain what you mean.
√ Go through a few drafts over a period of time. This is not something that should be
rushed.
√ Have friends/ family/ teachers/ counselors read through your essay. Get some feedback
on what impression they have of you based on your essay.
√ Carefully proofread your final draft before submitting it with your application.
√ Repeat this process for each college you are applying to. (Recycling essays is not a great
idea).
Questions to ask yourself about your final draft:
√ Have I answered all parts of the prompt and stayed on topic?
√ Have I followed the directions laid out by the college (length, etc)?
√ Does my essay tell the college about me personally and what kind of person I am?
(Telling a story really helps here)
√ Have I included some concrete examples to explain what I’m talking about?
√ Is my essay realistic and true? Now is the time to be honest, not to try to impress the
college.
√ Have I gotten feedback from a few other people?
√ Are my grammar, spelling, and punctuation perfect?
√ Is this the message about myself that I want to send to the college? (Don’t let anyone
else tell you what to write)
Other Checklists/Tips:
o http://www.west.net/~stewart/beste.htm
o http://www.epistemelinks.com/Edge/Essays/lt_selecting.asp
o http://www.collegeboard.com/student/apply/essay‐skills/9405.html
o http://ezinearticles.com/?College‐Admissions‐Essays‐that‐Take‐1st‐Place‐‐A‐Personal‐
Statement‐Checklist&id=18852
