10/06/2017
It’s October, is your child applying to colleges?
Did you know the application deadline for most schools is November 30th? The content of that application can define your child’s college experience. Or in other words, where they choose to go, and how they will spend the next crucial years as an independent decision maker. Most of the application is listing impersonal quantities, and what the system refers to as holistic. Except for the most important, and often the most dreaded part - the personal statement.
There is no secret format for the perfect personal statement and it takes a long time to hash out compelling, thought-provoking writing. I know mine took at least three weeks and some friends spent months working to perfect theirs. If one thing is consistent in all effective admission essays, they appeal to emotion. Your unique voice must be heard over the raucous of other essays all screaming for the same attention.
Creatively use hooks or suspense to keep the reader dying to keep reading. Do not appeal to pity, no. You want the reader to root for you. You want your essay to focus on your strengths as you overcame adversity, to paint a picture of a unique individual who would contribute positively to the university campus and culture. You want it to read with perfect flow and voice. Your voice. Your essay should be a balance between academic and conversational diction; try not to sound pretentious or too simple.
The only way to know if you’ve written a good essay is to read it aloud to yourself multiple times. Work on the parts where your words stumble until it is a flowing narrative. Knowvi wishes you all success in your applications, but remember where you go is much less important than what you do while you are there.