1. Senior College Essays

2. The college already has my application and my transcripts
The college already has my application and my transcripts. Why do they need a college essay?
Essays provide you with a chance to fill any holes or further explain things in your application and transcripts. Ask yourself, Do my transcripts tell my complete story? Do they show how I have overcome adversity or how creative I am? Does my resume do these things, for that matter?

3. Reasons you cannot write an effective essay
You think your most important story is too personal to share with others
You don’t like to focus attention on yourself
You have a hard time recognizing what distinguishes you from others
You don’t believe your writing skills are strong enough to do a good job of explaining your experience

4. Why does overcoming these things directly relate to a successful college essay?
Because believing in the importance of your life experience and writing honestly about it is what will make your essay compelling to college admissions members. Ask yourself, is it only the events in my story that will impress, OR is it also my ability to be honest and recognize the importance of my experience that will impress?

5. SO! What kinds of things can you write about that will impress the CRAP out of your college admissions folks?

6. You have a sense of humor
You appreciate the views of others while continuously forming your own
You are a life-long learner
You notice the little things in life
You are strongly committed to an activity or concept
You can overcome adversity
You are self-motivated
You learn from your mistakes and aren’t afraid to make more

7. What you should stay away from
Cynicism
Thinking you are perfect
Anything depressing or self-destructive
Passing blame on others
Anything that suggests you are introverted
Describing something that is too personal (losing your virginity, etc.)

8. Ultimately, you want to show that you, regardless of how accomplished you are, are very open-mined and not afraid to take the calculated risk every once in a while. 

9. You want them to see a part of your past in which you learned a valuable lesson, and you want them to feel that you have carried that lesson learned with you into others parts of your life. 

10. Adding a touch of humor when reflecting on a serious past situation can show how much you have grown and moved on from that learning experience. 

11. What NOT to write about:
A social problem that EVERYONE is writing about (overcrowded prisons, gun laws, etc.)
Quoting things like song lyrics or obvious famous speeches (MLK’s “Dream” speech)
Anything overly dramatic
Any story in which everything is perfectly happy
A fake or forced life-changing experience

12. Good topics to write about:
A time you got into trouble (nothing too immoral or illegal) and learned a great lesson
A time when you stood up and fought for someone or something when no one else would or could
Something small about life that not many people appreciate; this is a perfect way to express your attention to detail

13. Good topics to write about:
A particular person that has influenced you and how she/he has changed your life
How a particular piece or genre of art has changed your opinion on life
Something that makes you unique (similar to Cadena’s refusal to get a smart phone)
Finally, the best essays are written about…

14. NOTHING!!!
Bringing out a very insightful essay about nothing can really show others how much of a thinker you are. Consider this statement from a college admissions person on the next slide.

15. “During my 15 years of reading application essays at Smith College, many of the most memorable submissions were on mundane topics. One of my all-time favorites was about a laundry mishap at a summer school. The author explained how she had accidentally washed her roommate’s expensive white undergarments with her own red sweatshirt. Of course, the essay wasn’t really just about laundry … it was more about the boundaries of friendship. Other wonderful essays I recall include a hilarious one on playing in a truly terrible school band and another called “Why I Shop at Wal-Mart.””

16. What are some possible essay prompts?
Standard essay prompts for the current year can be found at
Crazy ones from particular colleges can be found at

17. Search the college of your choice to find their essay prompts
Search the college of your choice to find their essay prompts. You may find that they use the standard ones mentioned at