With the front round of admission deadlines quickly approaching, we know that many of our seniors are feverishly working away at all of the essays before them. Whether the personal statement, why essay, or any number of other prompts, it’s important for seniors to know exactly what colleges are looking for as they put together this very important aspect of their applications.
The Personal Statement:
For many students, the personal statement is often the most difficult and time consuming aspect of their application. From deciding on the prompt, to brainstorming your topic; the personal statement is a student’s best opportunity to showcase that it’s a living breathing human on the other side of this application and not ChatGPT.
When writing the personal statement colleges and universities are looking for three distinct things when they read your work. Authenticity, vulnerability, and focus.
Authenticity:
- Especially in the age of A.I., colleges and universities want to make sure that what they’re reading is an authentic representation of the young adult in the application. Whether you’re an aspiring playwright, a future CEO, or the world’s next civil engineer, admission offices want to see the real you and not a propped up version of yourself. That said, regardless of what you’re writing about you should make sure that your writing sounds like how you represent yourself in real life. Admission officers don’t want to read an essay that sounds like it was written by your parents or your counselor. They want to read essays that authentically sound like a smart, nice, and interesting young adult who’s about to graduate high school; lean into that.
Vulnerability:
- The college application process is one filled with stress, long hours, hard work, and a great deal of thought towards what a student’s future holds. It is also a process that requires young adults to be vulnerable in ways that they may have never been required to, especially as they write their personal statements. Whether writing about your favorite family tradition, a moment in your life that challenged you in ways that you never expected, or a topic that you could talk about for days if given the chance, any topic chosen for your personal statement needs to include a degree of vulnerability. Vulnerability breads trust and having the trust of your admissions officer will be integral in getting them to believe that you will succeed on campus if given the chance to attend their university.
Focus:
- While there are a thousand and one different topics that you could write about for your personal statement, the one thing that remains consistent regardless of topic is that your essay needs to have focus. And the focus needs to be you. Regardless of your chosen prompt or topic, anything written about needs to center on providing your reader with a look into who you are. Remember, any stories or details included in your essay are the backdrop; you are the main focus of the personal statement and anything else should only exist to amplify the look into the star of the show (you).
The Supplemental Essays:
Many universities require students to answer additional essays to “supplement” the other aspects of their application. These essays cover a range of topics from your major, your future plans, and why you would like to apply to the university in question. The core purpose of these essays aro to identify that you have done your research on the college experience at the university while also making sure that the student sees a clear connection to the college. Remember, regardless of what the supplemental essay is asking, deep research into the subject of the prompt and evidence of a strong, well thought out connection to the university will be your keys to success.
As our seniors continue to craft their personal statements and the array of supplemental essays, it’s important for families to remember that the road to a successful essay is one made much easier when the preparation begins at an early stage. It’s important for parents to make sure that younger students are exposed to reflective conversation about their academic interests, their high school experience, and the type of things they would want in their college experience. This combined with guided introduction to and training in non academic writing will make sure that students are prepared to not only express themselves via their college essays but also are confident in the larger “why” behind their applications to any institution. By working with the college counseling team at Galin Education our students and families will be supported, informed, and prepared for all of the required essays they’ll encounter in the college application process.
