{"id":1235,"date":"2013-11-18T15:53:01","date_gmt":"2013-11-18T19:53:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/admissions.me.holycross.edu\/?p=1235"},"modified":"2013-11-18T15:53:01","modified_gmt":"2013-11-18T19:53:01","slug":"put-the-y-o-u-in-your-essay","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.holycross.edu\/admissions\/2013\/11\/18\/put-the-y-o-u-in-your-essay\/","title":{"rendered":"Put the “y-o-u” in Essay"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Kate<\/a>
\nBy the time you\u2019re ready to actually apply to college, many of the pieces of your college application already are the way they are. You\u2019ve taken the classes you\u2019ve taken, you\u2019ve earned the grades you\u2019ve earned, you\u2019ve been involved in activities that have been important to you, and your counselor and teachers have been reflecting on their relationships with you and starting to write their letters of recommendation. Essentially, your college application has been a work in progress for the past few years and at this point much of it is already– to a certain extent– out of your hands.<\/p>\n

Sure, you might take the SATs one more time to see if your scores improve (though we\u2019re test-optional<\/a> at Holy Cross). You\u2019ll continue working hard through senior year to keep your grades up (because we will see them). And hopefully, you\u2019ve contacted us to set up a personal interview<\/a> (we HIGHLY recommend this).<\/p>\n

But one piece that\u2019s still completely in your control and ready to be molded by you is your college essay.<\/p>\n

This is great power, and it\u2019s exciting! Consider the college essay an opportunity<\/i>, and take full advantage of it. This is your chance to share something unique about yourself and to give us a glimpse into one aspect of your life that we wouldn\u2019t otherwise have been fully privy to. We know you aced AP Calc and we know you\u2019re captain of the soccer team and we know your teachers love you \u2026 but such is the case for many of our other applicants, too. So now let\u2019s get personal. What wouldn\u2019t we discover or understand about you just from reading your application? Let us in.<\/p>\n

If you keep putting off the writing or are filled with dread every time you think about it, ask yourself why this is. Chances are, if you\u2019re having difficulty getting started or making progress, your topic might not be as meaningful to you as you thought. Don\u2019t write what you think<\/i> we want to hear, write what matters to you<\/i>. Start a couple of drafts on different topics, walk away, see which one you look forward to returning to the most, and stick with that one. A great personal essay often comes from a place of passion, pride, pain, amusement, nostalgia, curiosity, confusion, desire, joy, love. Write about what makes you tick, what gets you up in the morning, what brings tears to your eyes. Write about experiences that have changed you, relationships that have bettered you, accomplishments that have truly mattered to you, moments that have stayed with you, challenges you\u2019ve overcome. Write about who you are and who you want to be.<\/p>\n

The point is, write about YOU. You\u2019ll notice that all five of the essay prompts on the Common Application direct you to write about yourself. So even though we are looking to evaluate the strength and style of your writing, please don\u2019t send us the English paper you just got an A+ on. Boring!<\/i> Make sure that the people who know you best would be able to read your essay and know it\u2019s yours. Also make sure that if those people are helping you proofread and edit, don\u2019t let their opinions influence you to the point that you end up losing \u201cyou\u201d in the essay.<\/p>\n

Finally, help make it easier on us admissions counselors by crafting a piece that\u2019s interesting to read! Inject your voice, your personality, your creativity, and in some cases, your humor. A few comments we often make when we\u2019re reading college essays:<\/p>\n