7 Steps to Writing an Exceptional College Admission Essay

As a parent of a college-bound high school student, you understand the importance of crafting an exceptional college admission essay. This essay can be the key to unlocking the doors to top-tier universities.

To guide your teen through this critical process, we’ve outlined seven steps to ensure their college essay stands out.

Step 1: Analyze Your Strongest Values and Strengths

Before your teen starts writing, it’s essential for them to reflect on their strongest values and strengths. This self-analysis will help them identify unique qualities and experiences that will make their essay stand out.

Encourage your teen to consider what makes them unique and how these attributes have shaped their journey.

Key Points:

● Self-Reflection: Encourage your teen to take time for deep self-reflection. Yes, I know this can be challenging and a great tip for deeper thinking is to ask, “So what?” with each self-reflection idea.
● List Strengths: Tell your teen to make a list of their strongest qualities, such as leadership, resilience, creativity, etc.
● Identify Values: Determine core values like integrity, empathy, perseverance, etc.
● Connect to Experiences: Think about specific experiences that illustrate these strengths and values.

Step 2: Brainstorm Ideas

Brainstorming is a critical step in the writing process. It helps generate a pool of ideas that can be refined and developed into a compelling essay.
Encourage your teen to think about their experiences, achievements, challenges, and aspirations.

Key Points:

● Mind Mapping: Create a mind map to visually organize thoughts and ideas.
● Personal Stories: Focus on personal stories that highlight unique qualities.
● List Achievements: Make a list of significant achievements or experiences and how they relate to the essay prompt.

Step 3: Create an Outline

A well-structured outline serves as a roadmap for the essay. It helps in organizing thoughts and ensuring a logical flow of information.
You can guide your teen in creating an outline that includes an introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion.

Key Points:

● Introduction: Start with a hook to grab the reader’s attention.
● Body Paragraphs: Each paragraph should focus on a single idea or story.
● Conclusion: Summarize the main points and reiterate the thesis statement.

Step 4: Write a Compelling Introduction

The introduction sets the tone for the entire essay. It should be engaging and give the admissions officers a reason to continue reading. Teach your teen to start with an anecdote, a quote, or an interesting fact that relates to the essay topic.

Key Points:

● Hook: Use a compelling hook to draw the reader in.
● Thesis Statement: Clearly state the main idea of the essay.
● Preview: Briefly outline what will be covered in the essay.

Step 5: Develop the Body Paragraphs

The body paragraphs are where the main content of the essay is developed.
Each paragraph should focus on a single idea and provide evidence or examples to support it. Encourage your teen to use vivid descriptions and personal anecdotes to make their essay memorable.

Key Points:

● Topic Sentences: Start each paragraph with a clear topic sentence.
● Evidence and Examples: Use specific examples to support each point.
● Transitions: Use transitions to ensure a smooth flow between paragraphs.

Step 6: Craft a Strong Conclusion

The conclusion is your teen’s last chance to leave a lasting impression on the admissions officers. It should summarize the main points of the essay and restate the thesis in a new light. The conclusion should also reflect on what the experience has taught your teen and how it has prepared them for college.

Key Points:

● Restate Thesis: Reiterate the main idea of the essay.
● Summarize: Summarize the key points discussed in the body paragraphs.
● Reflect: Reflect on the significance of the experiences shared.

Step 7: Revise and Edit

The final step in writing an exceptional college admission essay is revising and editing. This process is crucial for catching errors, improving clarity, and ensuring the essay is polished. Encourage your teen to take their time with this step and seek feedback from trusted teachers, mentors, or professional editors.

Key Points:

● Multiple Drafts: Write multiple drafts and refine each one. Each draft should improve clarity, coherence, and depth. For example:

• • First Draft: Focus on getting all ideas down without worrying too much about perfection.
  • Second Draft: Organize the essay, ensuring a logical flow and coherent structure.
  • Third Draft: Refine language, enhance descriptions, and ensure that each paragraph supports the thesis.
  • Final Draft: Polish the essay, focusing on grammar, punctuation, and style.

● Proofreading: Check for grammar, punctuation, and spelling errors. Use tools like Grammarly, but also read the essay aloud to catch mistakes that software might miss.

• • Example: Change “their” to “they’re” or fix misplaced commas.

● Feedback: Seek feedback from teachers, mentors, or professional editors. Constructive criticism can help improve the essay significantly.

• • Example: A tutor or expert might suggest rephrasing a sentence for clarity or adding more detail to a specific anecdote.

● Consistency: Ensure the essay is consistent in tone and style throughout.

• • Example: Maintain a formal

● Polish: Pay attention to detail, making sure the essay is clean and professional. Avoid over-complicating sentences and keep tone if that’s the chosen style or keep the narrative voice consistent if it’s a personal story. the language accessible and engaging.

• • Example: Simplify overly complex sentences to make the essay more readable.

Conclusion

Writing an exceptional college admission essay requires careful planning, creativity, and attention to detail. By following these seven steps, your teen can craft an essay that not only answers the prompt but also showcases their unique qualities and experiences.

Remember, the goal is to tell a compelling story that will make the admissions officers take notice.
With perseverance and guidance, your teen can write an essay that opens doors to their dream college. Encourage them to start early, stay focused, and remember that their unique story is worth telling.