I started my college essay process with my own obituary. It was not included in the final draft, but I’m fairly sure that if I hadn’t written that obituary to start with, I wouldn’t be doing this today.
I wanted, early on, to go into politics. So, when my Senior year English teacher assigned our obituaries during the first week of school, I made myself the most successful and impressive President of the United States. But, it didn’t feel right. I tried Supreme Court Justice, but that was off too. Senate, Congress, Governor — all felt a bit empty. Eventually, I wrote about being a high school teacher, something I had never wanted to do, and in fact had actively avoided contemplating. To my lasting surprise, that was the obituary that felt right to me. And, suddenly, all my plans changed.
Writing a college essay can be a bit like that. It is difficult to know what to say, because most people have so infrequently been asked to write about themselves that they have no idea where to start. Indeed, as I found out, I didn’t really even know myself that well. As I said in my last blog, you want to show colleges the most important parts of yourself: who you are, what you’re passionate about, what you want to accomplish, and how you have accepted and learned from your own imperfections. In 650 words. The sarcastic part of me wants to add: “Goodluck.”
So, where to start? The first paragraph of the essay sets the tone for how you will present yourselves to colleges. I have three suggestions for jumping off places:
1. Write about the worst thing you have done.
I do not mean, by this, to tell the story of how you got arrested for urinating in public after that concert you snuck out of the house for, or the two weeks you spent in juvenile prison as a result. No one, and I mean no one, thinks its a good idea to reveal your sordid (SAT word) criminal past to a college admissions officer. Nor do we want to hear about how you cheated on the love of your life and ruined that oh-so-special three-month-long relationship.
Rather, we want to hear about a time where you discovered that you were wrong, learned an important lesson, and changed the direction of your life as a result. Some students are uncomfortable revealing that they have ever done anything wrong, because they think that college applications are about building themselves up. To them, I might suggest that the best way to build yourself up is to show that you have the strength of character to recognize your flaws and attempt to correct them. For the record, this was ultimately the topic of my own college essay. No, I won’t tell you what I did.
2. Write about the best thing you have done.
This comes in two forms:
If you once hiked up Mt. Kilimanjaro when you were ten, and it inspired you to challenge yourself to overcome other metaphoric mountains, by all means write about it. Such essays can be wonderfully descriptive and, at the same time, reveal something interesting and unique about your life.
If that is not you, however, there might be a time where you did something good. Really good. Not a list of your volunteering opportunities, but rather a moment where you truly helped someone, giving of yourself wholeheartedly. Such moments are rare, but they also can have a humongous impact on our lives, and say something important about what we value. If something jumps out at you, these make tremendously uplifting college essays.
3. Write about the thing your family teases you about from when you were a kid that is still true.
This is my favorite topic, and I find that it works for almost everyone, because everyone has a personality that has endured through childhood which can be revealed through humor.
For example (SPOILER ALERT: IF YOU BELIEVE IN THE TOOTH FAIRY, STOP READING NOW), when I was seven, around my second or third tooth falling out, I decided that the whole tooth fairy thing was preposterous (SAT word) and that it was really my mother. I challenged her, but she assured me that no, there really was a magical being that collects children’s teeth. So, I proved it. One night, after I was tucked in, I pulled a loose tooth out and put it under the pillow. If there was a tooth fairy, there would be money in the morning. If not, it must be my mother, because she didn’t know I had pulled out the tooth. In the morning, the tooth was still there and I showed it, in triumph, to my mother. She looked at me for a moment and said, “Yes, Rob, I am the tooth fairy. And I know you feel really smart right now. But, if you had actually been smart, you would have kept playing along, because you don’t get any money now.” My major character flaw is probably revealed perfectly in that moment, but in such a funny, memorable way that a college admissions officer will hopefully laugh. If you can get a college admissions officer to laugh with you (NOT at you), you’re well on your way to an acceptance.
I have more basic advice to provide on this topic, and I’ll write about it next week. But, if you’re looking for a catchy introductory paragraph, these three topics are excellent places to begin. If you’re really stuck, however, let me know and I’ll be happy to provide some guidance on what might work for you in one of my free half-hour sessions. We are getting into the busiest time of year for me, so the sooner you reach out, the better!
Mr. K
Y O U M I G H T A L S O L I K E :
The opening sentence of your college essay is important only if what follows after it is worthwhile.