While certain factors may impact the relative influence of essays, you should always put in your best effort. Want help with your college essays to improve your admissions chances? Sign up for your free CollegeVine account and get access to our essay guides and courses. How Important is the College Essay? Factors that Impact the Importance of College Essays While there is a general breakdown as to how important essays are, their actual influence will vary based on several factors: 1.
School size and type. The strength of your profile. Your intended major. Final Thoughts Essays are an extremely important part of the college admissions process. Here are some good ones:. Read student reviews. Both Niche. Take real and virtual tours. And if you can, do it. TIP: Take at least five online tours so you can compare schools. Contact the admissions office and, if possible, talk to your local rep. Most colleges have particular representatives for particular regions of the country and the world.
You can talk to them. And they're really nice! A few reasons why this is a good idea:. In fact, there are people who get paid to answer your questions. My best friend was one of them. Your conversation may help you write your essay. At some schools, the person you speak to on the phone may be the one who reads your application.
They were so nice. Pro Tip: Definitely have a few specific questions in mind before you call and try not to ask about anything you could Google in five minutes. Don't ask, for example, if the school has a Biology major spoiler: it does! Don't be afraid to make a connection and simply be a curious human.
What surprised you about [this particular] college? What do most people not know about [insert school]? Research high and low, search the deepest depths of Google or better yet: ask someone who attends the school and find a syllabus for a class you may take at that school. Why does this help? Take this course description, for example, excerpted from a syllabus by and quoted with permission from Dr.
Frank Anderson at the University of Michigan:. This course provides a comprehensive introduction to the field of reproductive health, both in the United States and from a global perspective. The course will introduce students to cross-cutting themes including 1 historical discourses on reproductive health; 2 the social ecology of reproductive risks e.
Additional more specific topics in reproductive health will be addressed including maternal morbidity, contraceptive use, pregnancy, STI care, HIV, abortion care, and violence against women. Through a comparative look at reproductive health needs in a range of diverse social settings, we will critically examine the logic and impact of current domestic and international standards for reproductive health policy and practice.
You can show off your research skills by mentioning in your essay you found a syllabus:. Step 3: Decide on your approach to the essay. How it works: Research a bunch of opportunities at the school and connect each one back to you in an organized way. While you may not ultimately name all the reasons in your final version, research this many will give you plenty to choose from when you start your draft. Clear thesis that names the academic area s you want to pursue and maybe charts the path of the essay.
Prompt: Describe the unique qualities that attract you to the specific undergraduate College or School including preferred admission and dual degree programs to which you are applying at the University of Michigan. How would that curriculum support your interests?
Mark Twain was a steamboat pilot. Agatha Christie was a nurse. Robert Frost was a light bulb filament changer. The best writers do not only write beautifully, but also integrate their personal experiences and knowledge outside the world of literature. By combining the study of literature , media and perhaps law , I believe the University of Michigan will provide the education necessary for me to evolve as a journalist.
I look forward to courses such as Academic Argumentation and Professional Writing, as I believe these will provide me with a firm basis in journalistic writing technique and improve my abilities to write analytically and develop well-supported arguments.
Furthermore, the Professional Writing course will teach me how to write in a concise, straightforward style, a skill vital to a journalist. At The College of Literature, Science, and the Arts, I will be able to apply the skills learned in class with media studies in and beyond the classroom. The Honors Program provides an opportunity for independent research into the field of mass media, which will allow for intensive group studies and in-depth research opportunities, and the superb networking opportunity provides the chance to meet and engage with prominent figures in media-related studies, which will provide a deeper insight and knowledge into the field.
The Pre-Law Advising Program is interesting because I want to explore the intricacies of law and policies that govern this world. But all these are what UM has to offer me. The various volunteer programs offered by Volunteers Involved Every Week appeals to me, as does the possibility of volunteering at the Boys and Girls Club of Southern Michigan, as I have previous experience with elementary school teaching.
And as an international student, I know the pains of learning English as a second language. The short hook. Many students spend way too long on their opening when a short one will do.
If you use this first approach, get to the main argument as fast as you can. The clear thesis that provides a path for the essay. Three main reasons and bits of supporting evidence per paragraph.
As a result, we learn a bit more about both the school and the author. Prompt: How will you explore your intellectual and academic interests at the University of Pennsylvania? Please answer this question given the specific undergraduate school to which you are applying. Word limit: I want to be a catalyst when I grow up, someone who sparks growth while also trying to sustain the environment through improved efficiency. I believe that the use of teleoperation in camera traps in wildlife censuses and studies can be a potential gamechanger in a geologically diverse country like India.
I also feel that haptics interfaces can catalyze the process of discovering and studying unexplored biodiversity hotspots like the Western Ghats and the high-rising Himalayas. Besides this, I would also really get a chance to perfect my butterfly stroke through stroke rehabilitation at the Haptics Lab! I believe that little sparks of innovation can turn into developed businesses if given the right acceleration and, having already negotiated a deal with the software company Everlution Software Ltd.
Courses like Engineering Negotiations will advance my skills in the subtle art of negotiation and develop my thinking in high-pressure situations. I also look forward to engaging in bird photography and ornithology by being an active member of the Penn Birding Club and potentially conducting fall bird censuses to illuminate for students the birdlife that nestles in the university.
I hope to photograph and document each and every one of the species Morris Arboretum Checklist of birds at UPenn. Furthermore, courses like Documentary Strategies and Photographic Thinking will help me better integrate critical thought into my photos and construct out-of-the-box documentaries to put into perspective environmental sustainability at UPenn.
Next up, I'll show you some real-life examples of what these two different approaches to the same prompt look like. I hear the Rings of Power Department is really strong at that school, too. Check out the Gandalf seminar on repelling Balrogs—super easy A.
Tell me all about Sure, Ultimate Frisbee is cool. But when I get to campus, I'm starting a quidditch league. No matter how the prompt is worded, this essay is a give-and-take of what you and the college have to offer each other. Your job is to quickly zoom in on your main points and use both precision and detail to sound sincere, excited, and authentic.
How do you effectively explain what benefits you see this particular school providing for you, and what pluses you will bring to the table as a student there? And how can you do this best using the small amount of space that you have usually just one to two paragraphs? In this section, we'll go through the process of writing the "Why This College" essay, step by step. First, I'll talk about the prep work you'll need to do.
Next, we'll go through how to brainstorm good topics and touch on what topics to avoid. I'll give you some tips on transforming your ideas and research into an actual essay. Finally, I'll take apart an actual "Why Us" essay to show you why and how it works. Before you can write about a school, you'll need to know specific things that make it stand out and appeal to you and your interests.
So where do you look for these? And how do you find the detail that will speak to you? Here are some ways you can learn more about a school. If you're going on college tours , you've got the perfect opportunity to gather information about the school.
Bring a notepad and write down the following:. Try to also connect with students or faculty while you're there. If you visit a class, note which class it is and who teaches it.
See whether you can briefly chat up a student e. Don't forget to write down the answer! Trust me, you'll forget it otherwise—especially if you do this on multiple college visits. You can also connect with students without visiting the campus in person.
Many admissions websites list contact information for currently enrolled students you can email to ask one or two questions about what their experience of the school has been like. Or if you know what department, sport, or activity you're interested in, you can ask the admissions office to put you in touch with a student who is involved with that particular interest.
Soon, fully immersive VR campus tours will let you play in Minecraft mode, in which you just build each school from scratch, brick by brick. If you have an interview , ask your interviewer questions about his or her experience at the school and about what going to that school has done for him or her since graduation.
As always, take notes! If you have a chance to go to a college fair where your target college has representatives, don't just come and pick up a brochure. Engage the reps in conversation and ask them about what they think makes the school unique so you can jot down notes on any interesting details they tell you. Colleges publish lots and lots of different kinds of things—and all of these will be useful for your research.
Here are some suggestions for what you can use. You should be able to find all of the following resources online.
Read the mission statement of the school—does its educational philosophy align with yours? You should also read through its catalogs. Pro Tip: These interesting features you find should be unusual in some way or different from what other schools offer. For example, being fascinated with the English department isn't going to cut it unless you can discuss its unusual focus, its world-renowned professors, or the different way it structures the major that appeals to you specifically.
Are any professors highlighted? Does their research speak to you or connect with a project you did in high school or for an extracurricular? Sometimes alumni magazines will highlight a college's new focus or new expansion. Does the construction of a new engineering school relate to your intended major? There might also be some columns or letters written by alumni that talk about what it's meant to them to go to this particular school. What stands out about their experiences? Students write about the hot issues of the day, which means that the articles will be about the best and worst things on campus.
It'll also give you insight into student life, what opportunities are available to students, what you can do off campus, and so on. Your target school is most likely on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and other social media. College experiences help people to truly find themselves through personal growth. Higher education will expose you to people, ideas, and topics that you would never encounter in high school.
Each year of college assists in …show more content… It provides millions of opportunities to become educated. In many other countries, education is prohibited, especially to women. It is important to take advantage of these prospects that our country has given us and make the most of our educational experience, and eventually make the most of our careers.
The United States provides us with scholarships, financial aid, and community colleges to get around the high cost of education. These benefits are given to us so that more and more educated Americans can contribute to our society. In the near future, I expect to gain many important aspects from my college education. The first and most important thing I hope to gain from this experience is independence. In my opinion, having a successful career of your own is one of the best things you can accomplish.
The best matter to never have to worry about, is depending on other people. You never know what will happen to you in the future. You always want something to fall back on something and a college diploma is the perfect answer.
The last component that I hope to gain from college is a great life experience that I will never forget. This is only my first semester as a freshman, but I can already predict that college is going to give me all of these gifts.
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