A personal statement or essay for a college
application is a unique genre—a kind of autobiographical essay many students
have not written before. I define it as
a kind of “story plus” with the “plus” being a reflection or self-evaluation of
a pivotal experience in one’s life.
Here are some important considerations for
students as they begin drafting their personal statements this college
application season:
1) AUDIENCE---Who will
read your personal statement?
Well, the admissions
committee of every school you apply to, of course. Generally there are two kinds of admissions
officers—the recent grad and the seasoned director. The recent grad is in touch with the current
student body—and he/she can easily project how a candidate might you fit in. The
veteran admission officer has no doubt seen or read it all. It’s hard to impress him/her with an original
or crazy story—so that should free you to write your own story without trying
to find something extraordinary to write about.
2) VOICE---Consider
the importance of writing in your own “voice.”
--Each writer’s sentence
style and structure, choice of adjectives, and imagery is unique. Writers communicate about themselves through
content and style. Both reveal
personality. Be authentic as you
write. Don’t try to imitate anyone
else’s style or use sophisticated vocabulary if it’s not natural to you.
--Do be careful with a
humorous tone or approach (in consideration of your dual audience, especially).
3) STRUCTURE—Narrow
your focus to write about on ONE incident or experience, not several.
--At least as
important as the story you tell is how you evaluate it. It’s not necessary to have sky-dived or
invented a new video game—how you reflect on, or what you learned from the
experience is more important.
--You are answering
the prompt and “proving” an implicit thesis using specific examples from your
own life to illustrate. Avoid
generalizations, quotations, narratives about other people. Instead use details, action, dialogue.
Admissions officers want to know about YOU.
General tips for writing an effective
personal statement:
1)
Narrow and
focus your topic to one incident or example.
2)
Answer the prompt.
3)
Be conscious of your audience.
4)
Use SPECIFIC examples and details throughout
the essay.
5)
Save space for reflection.
6)
Be concise.
7)
Begin and end memorably.
8)
Edit carefully.
Finally, it’s a good
idea to find someone who can be a trusted proofreader to catch the errors and
typos you might overlook being too familiar with the draft.
