| You have an ace up your sleeve in the college | | | | you write. Write a draft, leave it alone for a few |
| admissions process: the essay. Your essay can set | | | | days and then return to your work. |
| you apart from other students with similar test | | | | 3. Hook the reader. Focus on the beginning of the |
| scores and GPA. | | | | essay. Think how many times you stopped reading |
| The essay you write for your college application can | | | | something after only a few paragraphs. Busy college |
| make you stand out from the stacks and stacks of | | | | admissions officers have so much to read they may |
| papers collecting dust on a college admission officer's | | | | only spend a few minutes reading your essay. Grab |
| desk. Here are four tips on how to get through the | | | | their attention in the beginning and try not to let up. |
| essay writing process. | | | | 4. Proofread, proofread, proofread! They're/their |
| 1. Be yourself: Stick to what you know. Write in your | | | | there. You're/your. Don't rely on spell check alone! Let |
| own voice. You can't fake the real thing. The best | | | | teachers, parents and friends proof your college |
| writing is real writing. You don't have to be a great | | | | application essay. You could be the second coming of |
| writer to put compelling thoughts, your thoughts, on | | | | Shakespeare, but most college officials won't waste |
| paper. Relying too heavily on a thesaurus can make | | | | their time with sloppy copy. |
| you sound artificial. Use clear and vivid writing. Here's | | | | Following these tips will put you in the best position |
| a simple rule of thumb: If you had to look up the | | | | to write the best college admissions essay possible. |
| definition of a word in your essay don't use it. | | | | Stick with being yourself, don't panic, give yourself |
| 2. Give yourself time. Don't start thinking about what | | | | plenty of time. Remember: This is merely the |
| you are going to write three days before the essay | | | | beginning of your college writing career. Now, all you |
| is due. Give yourself ample time to brainstorm a solid | | | | need is a topic. |
| idea. You may want to outline your essay before | | | | |