College Essay & Application Consulting

College Essay & Application Consulting If you’re worried that your essay topic is a bit run-of-the-mill, you have two options. The first is to find another topic that feels authentic to you. An introduction like this is colorful and intriguing. It gives the reader a sense of expectation and excitement, without giving too much away from the beginning. Writers live by the rule of “in medias res,” or starting in the middle. Don’t be afraid to reveal yourself in your writing. Focus on one event, one activity, or one “most influential person.” Tackling too much tends to make your essay too watered down or disjointed. Especially if you’re recounting an event, take it beyond the chronological storytelling. You want to make sure you've used proper spelling, grammar and punctuation, so ask an expert to proofread your essay. Essays should have a thesis that is clear to you and to the reader. Your thesis should indicate where you’re going and what you’re trying to communicate from the outset. Feel free to tell us about a time you stumbled, and what happened next. The second is to find a unique angle within the topic. We’ll make sure you get the right guidance at the right time. We are defined as individuals largely through relationships and experiences with others. DO write about something about which you feel strongly. If you write on a topic in which you have little interest or knowledge, your lack of sincerity and enthusiasm will show. Essay writing tips adapted from Kelly Tanabe’s “Four Steps to Writing a Winning Admissions Essay, Part I”. See how eliminating extra words actually makes your point stronger? Eliminatingprepositionsis a great, easy way to tighten your writing. Start with a creative lead.Capture the readers’ interestin the first two sentences. is a published poet and a high school English teacher. She has a BA in English from Skidmore College and an MFA from the Warren Wilson Program for Writers, where she studied poetry. Before earning her graduate degree, she attended the New York Summer Writers Institute, The Breadloaf Writers Conference, and the Five Powers of Poetry Conference for Teachers. With a wealth of experience as a writer, journalist, and educator, Robert Schwartz has written for all four major television networks. In the feature film world he has written or rewritten screenplays for all of the major movie studios. It was a fearsome sight indeed after the tower fell for the last time, after that, strip jenga was forever banned in the lounge. Formatting and presentation cannot replace substance, but they can certainly enhance the value of an already well-written essay. Tell us something different from what we’ll read on your list of extracurricular activities or transcript. Students use their grades and test scores to select where they apply. That means every college has a pool of applicants with similar grades and test scores. DO write about other people as well as about yourself. Make sure you arrange your thoughts so that they make sense and lead one into the other. Take a notebook and write a page or two on each of your possible subjects. Where were the ideas pouring out and where were they feeling stuck? Let this exercise be the compass that points you in the direction of your topic. I don’t think that originality should come at the expense of honesty. The conclusion finishes off the whole essay by nodding towards what came before without being repetitive and summarizing the takeaway. The outline is not for writing perfect sentences but rather for putting your ideas in the right sequence.