Please
select from the following common application essay question topics:
Consider
a significant experience, achievement, or risk that you have taken and discuss
its impact on you.
Colleges use the relation of accomplishments to get insight into
applicants’ personalities
and character traits. Some schools ask targeted questions, while others
leave the topic open for applicant interpretation.
An
important point: refrain from repeating information found elsewhere in
the application. Some “overachievers” try to include virtually all their
accomplishments in one essay, missing the point of the exercise altogether.
A laundry list of academic, extracurricular, and work successes will not
give admissions officers much more insight into your personality. In fact,
they may infer that you do not realize that, in college, you will not be
able to be editor of the yearbook, editor-in-chief of the newspaper,
president of the honor society, captain of the football team, and class president all at the same time. The mature applicant knows that college
will require a student to focus on a few interests but spend more time and
effort pursuing them.
For those of you who were not the school
“all-star,” don't worry. Some of the best Accomplishment essays
have been written about what could be construed as mundane events—learning
how to bake a cake, miraculously getting the engine in your first car (which
you affectionately call your “clunker”) to start, or getting your
elderly and bed-ridden neighbor to smile by performing your cheesy stand-up
routine. The accomplishment does not need to be earth-shattering, but you do
need to show why it is important for you and how it has affected you in a
discernible way.
For
an example of an Influential Experience Essay, click
here.
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Consider
a problem facing society today and reflect on its importance to you.
Unfortunately, this is one of the most difficult categories of
questions to write about. Admissions officers are looking for your take on
age-old problems, such as racism, poverty, and world hunger, as well more
publicized current issues, such as business ethics, the impact of technology
upon society, and the rapid spread of AIDS across the globe. The tragic
events of
September 11, 2001, gave special meaning to
this category, as applicants were asked to discuss issues that hit closer to
home that most of us ever expected.
Though it is tempting to argue in favor of your
point, remember to be as objective as possible and consider multiple sides
of the issue. This will portray you as a mature, astute individual. Stay
away from clichés and generalizations. Instead, write about what the topic
means to you personally—what it has meant in your life and why you think it is important. Spending some time researching the topic
on the Internet or at your local library will ultimately prove worthwhile.
For
an example of a Social/Political Issue Essay,
click here.
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Identify
a person, fictional character, or historical figure who has had a
significant influence on you. Describe that influence.
Admissions
officers will want to know if there is more to you than your SAT scores and
GPA. Therefore, it is important for you to find a way to differentiate
yourself from the other qualified applicants. You can demonstrate that you
are not just another pretty transcript by showing a completely different
side of yourself through the role models and influences that shaped the
person you are today.
The
key here is to personalize: Do not go off on tangents, focusing on someone
else instead of the most important element—why your topic is significant
to you. Focus on what these influences have meant to you and how you
have grown, tying in relevant aspects of your personal or family life when
appropriate. Show your strengths in new ways without restating the obvious.
Do not feel that you need to write about famous people or impress admissions
officers by noting your family’s ties to an influential member of the
government or movie star. Writing about a teacher who sparked your interest
in archaeology by taking your third-grade class on a field trip to see a dinosaur exhibit is more effective than name-dropping in the
hopes of impressing admissions officers.
For
two examples of an Influential Person Essay, click here.
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Why do you want
to spend the next four years at our school?
Surprisingly, most students find this topic difficult to write about.
If you have chosen to apply to an institution based upon its ranking in a
popular magazine or because your parents told you to, you may have to spend
some time thinking deeply about exactly what it is that makes this
particular institution right for you.
A main point of these questions is to see if you
care enough about the college or university to have researched it beyond
what anyone could have read in its marketing literature or on its web page.
Knowing yourself—your passions, skills, and goals—can go a long way in
helping you answer School Target questions. If you see yourself as an
aspiring journalist and are applying to a school that can help you land a
coveted internship writing for the Washington Post, you can discuss how you plan to make it as the
editor-in-chief of the college newspaper. If you want to be a social worker
and are applying to a university in a large urban area, you can talk about
how the geographic location will provide ample opportunity for your
involvement in community outreach programs. However, make sure to show how
and why that particular school offers what others do not.
For
an example of a Future Goals Essay, click here.
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Move
on to Lesson Two: Brainstorming a Topic
