Writing Workshop
Constructing your College Essay
Session Overview
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Purpose of the Essay
Choosing a Topic
Brainstorming
The Rough Draft
Editing and Proofreading
Dos and Don’ts
Essay Examples
Purpose of the Essay
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 To showcase your writing skills and ability to organize and
present material in a clear and concise fashion.
 To give the admissions committee insight into your personality
and interests, especially if the university does not offer
interviews.
 To convey a sense of your goals, beliefs, values and
achievements in a way that brings your application to life.
Choosing a Topic
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Some essays may have a specific topic
while others may be open-ended…
Choosing a Topic
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 “Evaluate a significant experience, achievement, risk you have
taken, or ethical dilemma you have faced and its impact on
you.”
 “Discuss some issue of personal, local, national, or
international concern and its importance to you.”
 “Given your personal background, describe an experience that
illustrates what you would bring to the diversity in a college
community, or an encounter that demonstrated the
importance of diversity to you.”
 “Tell us abut a talent, experience or personal quality you
would bring to our campus.”
Another essay topic that many colleges and universities
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include in their application will ask you to describe your
reasons for applying to their school.
 “Students consider many different factors when applying to
college. Briefly discuss who or what influenced your decision
to apply to _________.”
 “Describe your reasons for selecting _________ and your
personal and professional goals and plans for after college.”
Beginning the Essay: Brainstorming
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Spend a few weeks jotting down ideas you could write about.
Deciding what to write about is often the hardest part of the
essay process!
 Use essay questions as an outline to generate as many ideas as
you can think of that would fit those topics.
 Keep a journal handy with a list of all ideas, examples and
personal topics you come up with.
 Think of how others would describe you and stories that
would display that.
Getting it on Paper: The Rough Draft
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 Outline your essay by combining ideas in the format of
introduction, body, and ending.
 Maintain focus on your topic throughout.
 Start writing and don’t stop until you get all of your ideas out.
Don’t worry much about grammar, punctuation or flow – you
can deal with this in the editing stage.
Editing and Proofreading
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After
completing
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draft,
set your essay aside for a few days before
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beginning to revise it.
 Print a hard copy of your essay. Errors will be easier to spot on paper than
a computer screen.
 Make sure the body of the essay supports the intro paragraph and/or
topic. Similarly be sure the final paragraph wraps up the essay and
concludes your ideas.
 Check for fragments, run-on sentences, spelling errors and redundancy.
 Get rid of sentences and words that seem irrelevant. Use the fewest words
possible to express your point.
 Read the essay aloud to get a good sense of how it flows. Sometimes you
will notice errors when you say them out loud rather than simply reading
them.
 Have someone else review the essay before you submit it. A fresh pair of
eyes may be able to offer suggestions you have not thought of.
Some questions to ask yourself while editing:
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 Does the introduction grab the reader’s attention without
explaining the topic all in the first sentence?
 Is there one consistent theme/idea to the essay?
 Is the essay easy to read and does it flow from one paragraph
to the next?
 Would someone else understand what I am trying to convey
just by reading the essay without explaining it to them?
 Does the essay answer the prompt?
 Did my reader learn something new about me?
Essay Dos and Don’ts
Don’t…
Do…
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Use one consistent theme or topic
throughout the essay.
Keep your topic personal –
remember you are the expert on your
life!
Allow others to review your drafts for
feedback and suggestions.
Adhere to the essay topic and word
limit.
Make sure the essay tells something
about YOU.
Use specific examples to tell your
story.
Turn negatives into positives.
Use your own voice and writing style.
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Rely on spell check – many words
may be spelled right but used in the
wrong context.
Try to hit on too many points.
Use the same essay for multiple essay
prompts.
Write what you think the admissions
committee wants to read.
Use the essay as a resume. Write
about something you have not
already presented in your application.
Try to use large, intellectual words
just to impress the audience.
Essay Examples
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Read the essay.
What was the topic of the essay?
What did you like about the essay? What didn’t you like?
Take notes on how you could use a similar topic or technique
to tell your story.
QUESTIONS
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Remember this is just one component of the application
process. The essay will most likely not make or break an
application, but a well-written essay can be the deciding factor
for close-calls. Be yourself in your writing and you will do great!