The college essay is a strange assignment for a lot of students. Your English teachers have been telling you for years: no first person. And then comes the college essay, and suddenly you are confronted with the reality of putting that oh-so intimidating letter out there, capitalized at the top of the page: I.

Frightening, isn’t it? Putting your life story out there on the page for all to see. Just try typing the capital letter “I” and looking at it for a minute on your computer screen. Doesn’t the blinking of the cursor look more ominous now than ever before?

I’ve read all kinds of college essays: the ones that make me want to laugh, the ones that make me want to cry, the ones that make me want to crumple up the piece of paper it’s printed on and throw it in the wastebasket. Nevertheless, it becomes apparent to all of those like me who read a high volume of college essays that there is no one single way to write a memorable essay. Sometimes it’s the funny ones that leave an impression, and sometimes it’s the tear-jerkers. Sometimes it’s nice to read an essay that just seems earnest and sincere. Sometimes the student who struggles to write essays in class hands in a perfect product, and sometimes the student with the 700 on the verbal section of the SAT hands in a piece destined for the wastebasket.

Essays are an especially important part of every college application. The essays you submit, along with recommendations from your counselor and teachers, are vital because, in contrast with the cold objectivity of GPA and SAT scores, these essays are warm-blooded and subjective. They give the reader information that a set of numbers does not, and they enable you to develop a real human presence with someone you most likely have never met. Your goal in applying to college is to be the kind of person who comes alive to those reading your application, and the essay is often your best shot at accomplishing that.

Essays also provide proof that you can write well — a skill that, as the new SAT and ACT formats demonstrate, is greatly prized among applicants. With that in mind, it is essential that you have others read your essays before you send them off. The feedback others give you will help you not only to fix grammatical errors but also to make sure that your essay is dynamic and interesting.

A college essay is a personal essay, not an expository essay, but it still requires intelligence and skill. The following guidelines will help you to give the right impression.

• Ultimately, your essay needs to tell us something about you. Use of first person (“I”) is not only allowed, it is necessary. Leave the reader with a memorable image of you, so that when your name comes up in a committee discussion, you will be more than just a couple of numbers on a page, and the committee members will think of you as being active in a specific time and place — whether that is at the library contemplating lofty ideas, on the stage under the glow of the spotlight, or on the field about to score a goal (or even about to lose your shot at doing so).
• It may help to think of your essay as an argument. In fact, any essay is an argument of sorts. In a college essay, you use personal experience as evidence to back up your argument, and you should develop these points in specific detail to make them convincing. If nothing else, your essay is making the implied argument: “You should accept me to your school because ….”
• You may want to use rhetorical tools typically associated with fiction. For instance, dialogue, point of view, narrative, setting and character development techniques may be part of your essay. Avoid abstractions and cliches. Be specific and use imagery to put the reader into the moment.


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• Your essay needs structure and should start with an introduction. A good introduction will have a hook — something that pulls your readers in and makes them want to read more. You might try to begin with dialogue or with a unique description of an object or setting. Sometimes quotations provide a good hook. The unexpected often compels us to keep reading, but don’t try shock just for the sake of shock — your readers will feel that they have been tricked.

l Many supplementary essay topics ask: Why do you want to go to our school? While you can give some “generic” responses (“I believe in the importance of liberal arts education because …”; “College will be my opportunity to thrive …”), you should sprinkle this kind of essay with specific details about the school (“When I visited the campus …”; “In speaking with Ms. Smith in the Admissions Office …”; “I was particularly impressed by what I read about your International Studies program …”).

l Your essay does not have to be on a serious topic. What you write about is less important than how you write about it. If written about well enough, the mundane details of everyday life, such as taking the bus to school or working at the grocery store on the weekend, can be just as interesting as some great accomplishment.

• Remember also that you are human, not superhuman; no one expects you to be perfect — not even college admissions officers — and trying to sound as though you are perfect often backfires. It is OK to admit that you have made some mistakes, as long as you have done your best to learn from them; writing an essay about a mistake you have made may even help you to learn from it. Your greatest accomplishments are often covered by short answer questions or a resume; the essay should explain what makes you a real, live, three-dimensional human, complete with faults and foibles. Admissions people know that, as a teenager, you are still in the process of actualizing whatever potential you have. More than anything else, they want to see that potential.
• Finally, consider your audience. College admissions officers may read dozens of essays in a single day. Ideally, yours should stand out as being particularly interesting, poignant and well-written — the unique product of a unique individual. In the end, you want the people who read it to remember something about you when your name comes up for discussion.

Good luck as you start (or revise) your essays, and remember to get others involved in a productive way — have parents, siblings, classmates and especially teachers make comments on your drafts. You might want to throw an “essay party” with your friends. Order a few pizzas and read your essays out loud to each other. This process does not have to be painful.

Matt Patterson is the director of college counseling at Bishop Seabury Academy.