5 possible themes for your college admissions essay
The college admissions essay. High school juniors: it’s looming on your summer horizon. This is your summer to figure out what you’re going to say to convince colleges around America to let you through their hallowed halls next year. For those who still have a few more years of high school to go, the stressful prospect of writing college admissions essays is imminent and forthcoming whether you like it or not.
College admissions essays are a strange concept. When you have your academic record, your extracurricular involvements, and your teacher recommendations going for you, why do you still need something so subjective, so seemingly inconsequential, as a 500-word personal statement? The college admissions essay is one of the most difficult pieces of writing you will ever face, not only because the assignment itself is so open ended, but because so much depends on it.
There are some general themes, however, that college admissions officials like to see. The essay is a way for them to get to know you, to judge (based on so little) if you’d be a good fit for their institution. As such, it’s crucial for you to portray yourself accurately (and in a positive manner) and for you to let your personality shine through the pages. You need to use the essay as an opportunity to invite and allow a complete stranger to sort of get to know you. Here are 5 themes you can use in your essays that make the whole process of showing yourself off, a lot easier.
5. Recall a transformative event that changed your outlook on something important.
A possible topic for a college admissions essay can be when you changed your mind about something. For instance, what happened when you found out that Santa Claus wasn’t real, and how did that change your outlook on the importance of the imagination? Don’t just talk about the transformative event. Talk about how that event changed your perception of the world in as specific a way as possible. Remember when you read Marx for the first time and realized that there are exploitative forces at work in a capitalist society? Or remember the time you read Adam Smith and realized that the invisible hand of capitalism can regulate the market efficiently? College admissions officials love to hear about you changing your mind about something, because it shows that you have the flexibility of belief to adjust your outlook based upon new evidence that presents itself to you. The mark of a true philosopher!
4. Relate a memory from childhood to your current life as a young adult.
Childhood memories may sound boring and insignificant, but they are some of the most significant memories you possess, because your childhood has turned you into the person that you are today. Revealing childhood memories and dramas can reveal much about you as a person. Talk about an event that occurred while you were younger, and how that changed you into the person you are today. Did your parents get a divorce? Did you lose someone important in your life? Did you welcome the addition of a brother or sister into your family? Did you go on an international trip that opened your eyes to the world? College admissions officials want to know.
3. Talk about politics, seriously.
Some people think that college admissions essays shouldn’t be polarizing, but I disagree. I think institutions welcome different voices (they are, after all, places of higher education that should welcome a marketplace of ideas), and you will be hard-pressed to find a college anywhere in America that doesn’t have its Democrats, Republicans, Marxists, Libertarians, Liberals, Conservatives, et. al. I think talking about politics is fair game for college admissions essays (you were, after all, in high school during the most exciting election we’ve seen in our lives thus far).
2. Talk about someone you admire, like a family member, a historical figure, or a close friend.
This topic is sort of a given, because if you have a hard time talking about yourself, one way to bypass that mental blockage is to talk about someone else. And why not? If you think Alexander Hamilton is the bomb dot com, or that the Rolling Stones are the best band in the world, or that Francois Truffaut is the biggest genius ever to grace cinema, by all means share your thoughts. Say it, as long as you can say it well.
1. Be honest about your insecurities.
So college admissions officials love it when you talk about your insecurities. Talking or admitting your insecurities not only shows them that you can be honest in your essay about who you are, but it also acts as a nice foil to the bragfest that was your academic record and list of extracurriculars. It shows that you are okay with yourself. Or at least, okay enough with yourself to talk candidly. Did you ever deal with racism? Homophobia? Are you an athlete, musician, or artist who has ever felt insecure about your abilities? Do you have dreams you are worried if you can fulfill? Letting college admissions officials in on these insecurities won’t make you any less attractive of a candidate at their institution, because everyone suffers from these same insecurities. In fact, it’s a refreshing change from some of the more boasting essays they probably have to read all day!
