Writing Your College Essay

Written By Caitlin Lee

By Yennifer Barajas

Basics 

Most colleges will require you to apply using the Common App. Part of this process includes writing a standard 650-word essay about yourself. This essay will be submitted to most if not all of your colleges and is different from supplemental essays. Supplemental essays are typically shorter essays in which you will answer questions specific to the school you are applying to. However, because the common app essay gets submitted to most colleges, it is very important that you spend time ensuring that it truly represents who you are as not only as a student but as a person. 

To begin, you will need to look at the prompts that the common app has selected for the year that you are applying. 

For the  2022-2023  year, the prompts included …. 

  • Some students have a background, identity, interest, or talent that is so meaningful they believe their application would be incomplete without it. If this sounds like you, then please share your story.

  • The lessons we take from obstacles we encounter can be fundamental to later success. Recount a time when you faced a challenge, setback, or failure. How did it affect you, and what did you learn from the experience?

  • Reflect on a time when you questioned or challenged a belief or idea. What prompted your thinking? What was the outcome?

  • Reflect on something that someone has done for you that has made you happy or thankful in a surprising way. How has this gratitude affected or motivated you?

  • Discuss an accomplishment, event, or realization that sparked a period of personal growth and a new understanding of yourself or others.

  • Describe a topic, idea, or concept you find so engaging that it makes you lose all track of time. Why does it captivate you? What or who do you turn to when you want to learn more?

  • Share an essay on any topic of your choice. It can be one you’ve already written, one that responds to a different prompt, or one of your own design.


You can generally begin planning or drafting ideas by the end of your junior year. The sooner you begin thinking about possible topics, the easier it will be for you to begin writing in the future. 

Timeline 

To help with stress, you can begin planning your essay in advance. This way you can ensure that you will have plenty of time to think of a topic, create a draft, revise, ask for suggestions, and submit it on time without rushing. 

  • Junior Year- Create a Common app account

  • https://www.commonapp.org/ 

  • Tip: Dont use your school account! It will be much harder to keep track of your emails. Instead, create a new email account and use it only for colleges.

  • Junior Year- Create a google drive folder

    • Store all your drafts, ideas, and other college documents in this folder. 

  • Junior Year-:March- June- Planning stage 

    • 1- Pick a topic (read below for more details on how to do this)

    • 2- Create Drafts 

    • 3- Select the Best Draft 

  • Summer: June- August- Writing the final essay 

    • Focus on improving the draft you selected. There is ALWAYS something to improve. 

  • August- October: Revisions 

    • Ask teachers, friends, and family to read over your essay. It may be a good idea to ask an English teacher for advice on what can be improved. 

      • By this point, your essay should be ready to go! Depending on what college you are applying to, some applications will be due around this time. 

Selecting a Topic

For many students (including myself), this will be one of the hardest parts of the process. However, here are some tips that can help you pick a topic that best represents you. 

Before you think of a topic, it is important to remember these points. 

  • This essay is not the section for you to show off your grades or GPA. Instead, colleges want to see who you are as a person. 

  • Do not worry about trying to sound like an academic genius, what colleges are looking for are authentic students who will create a well-rounded class. 

Getting Started

Because colleges want to know who you are outside of school start by doing the following. 

  1. Make a list of words that describe you. 

  2. Ask yourself, what do I want people to know about me?

  3. Ask family and friends about stories that they think best describe you 

  4. Make a list of things that are important to you. 

  5. Make a list of your hobbies and interests. 

Once you have a general idea of what traits you want to portray, start to think about moments in your life when those characteristics were important. 

Take Amanda Jones, a fake student, as an example:

Words that describe me…. 

  • Funny 

  • Outspoken 

  • Leader 

  • Compassionate

What do I want people to know about me 

  • I am an EMT 

  • I want to be a paramedic 

  • I can sing 

Stories that describe me…

  • When I was little, I would fight my brother to see who could announce my mom's to-do list. 

  • When my friend and I would freak out about test season, I would always assure everyone that it would be okay and remind them to take breaks. 

  • On my first day as an EMT, my patient told me that I was crazy, but in the end, they thanked me for my help. 

What is important to me…. 

  • Making sure that I take breaks and enjoy what is around me

  • My family 

  • Making sure that I accomplish all my goals 

  • Going outside 

  • Staying connected to my culture 

Hobbies + Interest…. 

  • Painting 

  • Hiking 

  • Volunteering at the fire department 

  • Working as EMT 

  • Soccer 

  • Chemistry 


Once Amanda has this list, she could write potential essays such as… 

  • Writing about her experience as an EMT and how it helped her realize that she wanted to be a paramedic. Here she could tie in her values such as explaining how working as an EMT helps her stay connected to her community, be a leader, and be compassionate. 

  • Writing about how her culture and family taught her the importance of appreciating what is around her. She can explain how hiking and playing soccer allow her to appreciate her environment and her body and how she makes it her goal to help others experience this as an EMT

Since there is a 650-word limit, it is important that you make every word count. Oftentimes students go over the limit and it is difficult for them to let go of sections they spent a long time on. However, you want to ensure that every sentence is important and sometimes that means cutting out unnecessary information. 

What to Avoid 

  • NEVER copy an essay! If you write an essay based on someone else's essay, it will not be personal. Also, if you get caught plagiarizing, colleges will not accept your application. 

  • Avoid writing cliches or common topics. 

    • Note: Some of these topics will have a significant meaning to some students. If you truly feel like a topic on this list best represents you, then go for it! However, you want to make sure you're being 100% authentic, or else a college admission officer may have to read your essay topic 50 times!

    • Covid 

    • Recovering from a sports injury 

    • The American Dream 

    • Assimilating to the USA/ Immigrant Story 

    • Moving 

  • Waiting until the last minute. 

What NOT to Avoid 

  • Reading example essays. There are many websites that you can use to read real college essays that were successful. You can read these to get a general idea of how you want to structure your essay. 

  • Asking teachers for help! 

  • Creating a calendar to keep you on track.

Caitlin Lee
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