College Admissions Essays - What Should You Write About?

By True Schools Staff

It's Your Choice

Before anything else, you need to keep reminding yourself that you can choose what your essay is about. So, regardless of how direct or indirect the essay question might be, you have to decide what you want to talk about. Is it an event? Is it a book? Is it a quote? The choice is yours.

Why It Matters

You might not know this, but colleges actually evaluate your values, preferences, mental processes, sense of humor, depth of knowledge and creativity based on your college essay choice alone. Since a person's writing is said to reflect their power of persuasion, mastery of written English, style, and organizational abilities, colleges believe that your choice of subject reveals all of the following:

Your Personal Preferences: Your choice of essay will reveal your personal preferences. Do you love the hard facts of science or do you lean towards the arts? Without a doubt, a person who loves the Cold War will be completely different from a person who likes Jackson Pollock. Don't you agree?

Your Thought Processes: Your choice of essay will also reveal the way that you think. Do you tend to be impulsive or are you more careful and methodical? Either way, any questions regarding college and your future career will reflect certain patterns, so even the simplest questions will show colleges how you think, and how insightful and intelligent you really are.

Your Personal Values: Your choice of essay will also reflect your personal values. In fact, just by choosing dogs over cats, colleges will be able to find out how you see yourself and what really matters to you.

Your Choice of Essay

The final subject that you choose to write your essay on will also reveal a lot about yourself, in general. Remember: although there is no such thing as a wrong answer when it comes down to it, a general, sloppy, tasteless and insincere essay can hurt your overall chances of getting accepted at your college of choice.

The best college essays to date that have made the most unusual yet the most memorable (and successful) impacts were usually about similar topics - but they were all very focused, as well. So, just writing about your football team, your family, your last vacation to France, your twin or your parents' divorce can actually be very effective. All you have to do is make sure your essay is specific and focused. Good luck!