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Crafting a compelling personal essay for college applications
Personal essays are a pivotal component of the college application process, serving as a window into an applicant's personality, experiences, and aspirations that grades and test scores cannot fully convey.
They offer a unique opportunity to showcase individuality, demonstrate critical thinking and writing skills, and articulate how personal experiences have shaped one's character and goals.
In a pool of similarly qualified candidates, a well-crafted essay can be the deciding factor that sets an applicant apart.
Choosing the Right Framework
The choice of framework for your personal essay depends on the story you want to tell and the aspects of your personality or experiences you wish to highlight. Here’s a brief guide to help you decide:
Hero’s Journey: Ideal for narratives centered around overcoming significant obstacles or personal growth. This framework is perfect if you’ve faced a considerable challenge that led to a profound transformation, showcasing resilience, learning, and evolution.
Montage: Best for illustrating diverse experiences or qualities that collectively define who you are. If you have varied interests, achievements, or facets of your identity that don’t necessarily connect through a linear story but together paint a comprehensive picture of your character, this is the framework to use.
Narrative with a Twist: Suited for essays that hinge on a pivotal moment of insight or revelation. If there’s a specific experience that dramatically changed your perspective or led to unexpected growth, this framework can effectively highlight the impact of that moment.
Future Scenario: This framework is forward-looking and ideal for applicants who have a clear vision of their future. If you wish to discuss how your past experiences and current interests will contribute to your long-term goals, especially in a specific field or career, this framework can help articulate that trajectory.
Framework Explorations
Hero’s Journey: Begins with a status quo, leads to an encounter with a significant challenge, follows the process of facing and overcoming that challenge, and concludes with a return to a new status quo where the hero is transformed. This narrative arc is compelling for its demonstration of resilience, growth, and the capacity to change.
Montage: Utilizes thematic or conceptual connections to weave together various snapshots of your life, achievements, and interests. Each “scene” contributes to a larger theme or message about your identity, values, or aspirations, making it ideal for showcasing a multifaceted personality.
Narrative with a Twist: Centers around a story that leads the reader in one direction before revealing an unexpected shift in perspective or outcome. This framework is effective for emphasizing adaptability, insight, and the power of change in shaping your worldview or path.
Future Scenario: Projects a future ambition or goal and works backward to connect it with current interests and past experiences. This approach not only highlights your aspirations but also demonstrates how your past and present are stepping stones to your future goals, showcasing foresight and ambition.
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In crafting your personal essay, consider which aspects of your life story you most want to share and how you want the admissions committee to remember you. The right framework will allow you to present your experiences, reflections, and aspirations in a way that is both authentic and compelling, providing a strong foundation for your application.
