There's a lot riding on good writing! Often, an application essay is the difference between acceptance and rejection. As part of a series on specific writing assignments and contexts, a handout helps scholars craft the perfect personal statement. The resource includes key questions to ask during the writing process and a discussion of common problems to avoid, such as using 15 words to express something that should only take eight.

Concepts

college admissions, essay writing, types of writing

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Additional Tags

english language arts

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Instructional Ideas

• Take a question or prompt from an actual graduate program and write sample essays to practice the format
• Draft a bad application essay and use strategies discussed in the handout to help improve it

Classroom Considerations

• Focuses on application essays for graduate programs, internships, and special programs, not college admissions essays

Pros

• Links to other handouts to provide additional instruction on key aspects of the writing process
• Breaks down the process into three key sections: pre-writing, drafting, and revision

Cons

• Offers very few examples to support the information shared
• Contains long paragraphs of text that make it difficult to skim

Common Core

W.9-10.10 W.11-12.10