College Application Essay Writing 101
The application is a lifeless thing--a few sheets of paper and a few numbers.
The essay is the best way to breathe life into it. - Admissions Officer
Welcome to EssayEdge's Admissions Essay writing course. After editing tens of thousands of admissions essays for applicants, we created the ultimate course for students seeking an extra edge in the ultra-competitive college and graduate school application process.
The course contains six lessons and over 100 pages of content. Each of the lessons should help you with a different portion of the essay.
Enter the course by clicking a link below or to the left.
Lesson One: Tackling the Question
Question-specific strategies and samples of various types of questions with comments by admissions officers:
EssayEdge Extra: Who's reading my essay?
Lesson Two: Brainstorming and Selecting an Essay Topic
- Brainstorming worksheet
- Selecting a Topic: Do's and don'ts with comments by experienced admissions officers
Lesson Three: Structure and Outline
Lesson Four: Style and Tone
- Sentence variety with exercise
- Word choice: Common pitfalls
- Transitions: Improving flow
- Verbs: Active voice vs. Passive voice
- Essay cliches: Top 10 essay cliches
Lesson Five: Introductions and Conclusions
- Descriptions, examples, and critiques of nine popular styles of introduction
- Conclusions: Do's and don'ts
Lesson Six: Editing and Revising
- Paying attention to substance, structure, interest, and proofreading
- Actual essay gaffes (funny)
- Final steps
From ESSAYS THAT WILL GET YOU INTO COLLEGE, by Amy Burnham,
Daniel Kaufman, and Chris Dowhan.
Copyright 1998 by Dan Kaufman.
Reprinted by arrangement with Barron's Educational Series, Inc.
