Writing an essay for a specific assignment like a college or university admissions essay can often feel quite different and more pressurised than the experience of writing a normal weekly essay. For a start, there is a lot more hanging on the success of your essay writing than there usually would be; the chance of a place to study at a top college or university creates much higher stakes than a simple grade or mark out of fifty. In addition when writing a college or university admissions essay you are likely to feel under pressure to show the whole scope and range of your writing skills and your capacity for intellectual exploration and debate.
So how do you complete that admissions essay in a way that shows you off to the very best of your ability without appearing too contrived or over-enthusiastic? Follow these top tips to university or college application success.
Admissions essay tone
When writing an admissions essay, it is very important to hit the correct tone. This should largely be dictated by the question, and the style of writing the academic institution has determined. Be sure to read the instructions or question extremely closely. If an argument is requested, it is important to reflect this with a strong, confident tone, clearly demonstrating your ability to debate an issue and to make a forceful and convincing case.
If the admissions requirements dictate a more philosophical or investigatory essay though, it is important not to strike too emphatic a tone, but instead to exhibit your ability to consider all sides of a topic fairly and impartially before conclusively deducing the most convincing argument.
How to make the most of your argument
It is one thing to write a university or college admissions essay with a strong, impressive argument, but quite another to use essay writing methods and skills to demonstrate and emphasise its structure.
There are many ways in which you can really make your argument stand out and your thought process shine, getting started with a strong structure to give it the best possible foundation and a clear layout reflective of your different points and ideas. So make sure that you start with a thought-provoking introduction to set up the argument in an insightful and intellectually stimulating way, introducing the issues and ideas at hand and giving a flavour of what the rest of your essay will contain.
To really make your different ideas stand out from one another and to highlight the all-important links and cohesion between them, it is important to designate a new paragraph throughout the essay for each new idea, and to ensure that they do not overlap. Furthermore, it is a good idea to use signpost sentences and carefully selected ordering vocabulary (firstly secondly, finally etc.) to clarify and promote a smooth flow of your argument from one section of your essay writing to the next.
Making sure your admissions essay reflects your academic potential
It is usual for admissions essays to centre on an ambivalent or particularly open-ended question and it is central to your success that you use this opportunity to demonstrate your ability to think for yourself, to shape your own argument and to create an exciting and broad-minded piece of writing.
It is best to steer clear of the standard, tried-and-tested essay writing techniques that every student has been writing throughout their school life and will churn out again for their admissions essay. The standard five paragraph essay or a dry pros and cons debate might be a successful essay structure but it won't help you stand out from the crowd. Remember that admissions staff read thousands of these essays year on year and they are looking for a spark of originality to catch their imagination.
However, it is important not to resort to a gimmicky attention-grabbing stunt that creates a flash in the pan but actually demonstrates no real academic depth however. Rather, your interests are best served by thinking about how to frame a traditional question in a new and exciting way, or how to produce an innovative and original structure for a 'for and against' style essay. This can be achieved by adding in new sections you might not have considered before, such as a paragraph completely turning the argument on its head, or an extra element that considers impact and projection for each scenario.
Another top tip to remember is that you can showcase your academic potential in your admissions essay particularly successfully by pondering the sort of intellectual writing you would be hoping to create if you were to win a place at the institution of your choice. You would probably have to conduct research, so why not carry out your own survey or experiment and include your findings in your admissions essay? You may find yourself interviewing writers or witnesses, or including a literature review in a college essay, so why not prove how serious you are about your application by giving it a go as part of your admissions piece?
The combination of innovation and enthusiasm with new ideas and a fresh perspective is the most successful way to launch your application, by positioning yourself as a strong, original and hard-working candidate who doesn't shy away from independent research or doing a little extra leg work.
Good luck with your applications!
Essay Writing
So how do you complete that admissions essay in a way that shows you off to the very best of your ability without appearing too contrived or over-enthusiastic? Follow these top tips to university or college application success.
Admissions essay tone
When writing an admissions essay, it is very important to hit the correct tone. This should largely be dictated by the question, and the style of writing the academic institution has determined. Be sure to read the instructions or question extremely closely. If an argument is requested, it is important to reflect this with a strong, confident tone, clearly demonstrating your ability to debate an issue and to make a forceful and convincing case.
If the admissions requirements dictate a more philosophical or investigatory essay though, it is important not to strike too emphatic a tone, but instead to exhibit your ability to consider all sides of a topic fairly and impartially before conclusively deducing the most convincing argument.
How to make the most of your argument
It is one thing to write a university or college admissions essay with a strong, impressive argument, but quite another to use essay writing methods and skills to demonstrate and emphasise its structure.
There are many ways in which you can really make your argument stand out and your thought process shine, getting started with a strong structure to give it the best possible foundation and a clear layout reflective of your different points and ideas. So make sure that you start with a thought-provoking introduction to set up the argument in an insightful and intellectually stimulating way, introducing the issues and ideas at hand and giving a flavour of what the rest of your essay will contain.
To really make your different ideas stand out from one another and to highlight the all-important links and cohesion between them, it is important to designate a new paragraph throughout the essay for each new idea, and to ensure that they do not overlap. Furthermore, it is a good idea to use signpost sentences and carefully selected ordering vocabulary (firstly secondly, finally etc.) to clarify and promote a smooth flow of your argument from one section of your essay writing to the next.
Making sure your admissions essay reflects your academic potential
It is usual for admissions essays to centre on an ambivalent or particularly open-ended question and it is central to your success that you use this opportunity to demonstrate your ability to think for yourself, to shape your own argument and to create an exciting and broad-minded piece of writing.
It is best to steer clear of the standard, tried-and-tested essay writing techniques that every student has been writing throughout their school life and will churn out again for their admissions essay. The standard five paragraph essay or a dry pros and cons debate might be a successful essay structure but it won't help you stand out from the crowd. Remember that admissions staff read thousands of these essays year on year and they are looking for a spark of originality to catch their imagination.
However, it is important not to resort to a gimmicky attention-grabbing stunt that creates a flash in the pan but actually demonstrates no real academic depth however. Rather, your interests are best served by thinking about how to frame a traditional question in a new and exciting way, or how to produce an innovative and original structure for a 'for and against' style essay. This can be achieved by adding in new sections you might not have considered before, such as a paragraph completely turning the argument on its head, or an extra element that considers impact and projection for each scenario.
Another top tip to remember is that you can showcase your academic potential in your admissions essay particularly successfully by pondering the sort of intellectual writing you would be hoping to create if you were to win a place at the institution of your choice. You would probably have to conduct research, so why not carry out your own survey or experiment and include your findings in your admissions essay? You may find yourself interviewing writers or witnesses, or including a literature review in a college essay, so why not prove how serious you are about your application by giving it a go as part of your admissions piece?
The combination of innovation and enthusiasm with new ideas and a fresh perspective is the most successful way to launch your application, by positioning yourself as a strong, original and hard-working candidate who doesn't shy away from independent research or doing a little extra leg work.
Good luck with your applications!
Essay Writing
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