how to start brainstorming college essays

5 Techniques for Brainstorming Your College Essay Topic in 15 Minutes

It’s the fall of your senior year of high school. Hopefully by now, you have settled—or are at least close to settling—on the list of colleges and universities you’ll be applying to. Now it’s time to sit down and start in on your college essays if you haven’t already.

For the Common Application, there are seven possible essay prompts to respond to. How do you begin to choose one, and how do you start writing?

The first step is to back up. Before you write anything of value, you must first pre-write .

Pre-writing is the stage at which you are exploring your experiences and ideas, when you begin to come to terms with what your experiences mean , and when you start to think of how they might inform the essay you will soon begin to write.

The first, messiest, least demanding, but perhaps most important stage of pre-writing is brainstorming . Here’s a sample of five brainstorming techniques to get your mind moving and your words flowing as you start to plan your college essays:

1. “Who am I?” Answer This Question by Free Writing (1 minute)

Some college essays include remarkable personal experiences, moving imagery and metaphors, and transcendent moments of insight, but all college essays include words on a page. Start there.

There is a gap between your thoughts and the shape they take on the page. In order to gain clarity on what’s inside your head, it’s vital that you begin by externalizing those ideas—by making them into words on a page, by writing something .

Often, the gap between the mind and the page cripples students. Maybe you know inside that you have compelling, meaningful experiences and ideas to share, but you’re just not sure how to get them out in ink on paper.

Here is where free writing comes in. Sit down with a pen and paper—or an open Word or Google doc on your laptop, if you wish—and set a timer for 1 minute. Write whatever comes into your head in response to the question, “Who am I?” What are the essential facts and stories someone would need to know in order to know you? If you want, begin every sentence with “I am…”

Don’t worry about grammar or mechanical errors. Write with the certainty that no one in the world will ever read what you’re writing.

This is key: you must allow yourself to write at first without an audience in mind. Your college essays are your brief moment to give admission committees a chance to see your essential self. In order for them to see who you are, you need to let that self out at first in an unstructured, unregulated flow of language.

2. Open Up to Yourself (2 ½ Minutes)

The most important first step is breaking down your mental walls, the walls that bottle up your joys and your insecurities on a day-to-day basis. Maybe you did that already in answering the question “Who Am I?” But let’s push things a bit further.

To get at that essential self that you want to represent to colleges and universities, we first need to get the highs and lows out on the page as soon as possible.

Take just one minute to write out what you’re most proud of.

Take another minute to write out what you’re most ashamed of.

Now take thirty seconds to write out your deepest secret. (Don’t worry, you can destroy this document later.)

The point here is not that you will eventually share your deepest, darkest secret with the schools you apply to (though you could). The point is to get you to open up to yourself, to start digging deep so that you eventually get to the seeds of your college essays.

3. Explore Your Home (3 Minutes)

For better or worse, there is no place like home. It’s where most go to feel safe or to feel vulnerable, to relax or to cry. It’s the place we sleep, but it’s also the place we sometimes stay up at night, stirring over whatever bothers us.

Take five minutes to tour your home, either in person or in your mind’s eye. Why? Because our homes are extensions of ourselves.

Home can be the place you currently live, or the place you used to live, or just the place you feel most comfortable. Wherever it is, get in there and feel around:

What does it look like?

What does it smell like? What makes it smell that way?

What’s in the living room? What’s in your bedroom or the place where you sleep?

What about it do you love?

What about it do you hate?

4. Make a List of Superlatives (5 minutes)

Superlatives are the best things, the most interesting things, or the worst things. They are things at their highest degree. Colleges want to know you at your superlative: your most essential self, or your most important identity, experience, or obstacle that defines who you are.

So, get those out on the page, and get ready to open up to yourself. Try answering the questions below. Feel free to write as little as you want—we’re still in the pre-writing stage—but if the mood strikes you, let the words flow as they will.

What has been the greatest moment of your life?

What has been the worst moment of your life? (No one said writing this would be easy.)

What is the most important relationship in your life?

Who is your favorite person to spend time with?

According to you, what is the most important idea, belief, or fact?

What has been your greatest obstacle?

What is the worst problem facing the world today?

What is your favorite hobby?

What makes you the most worried?

What makes you the most excited?

5. Describe the Person You Want to Be (3 ½ Minutes)

Colleges want accomplished applicants, but they don’t want finished products. What’s your vision for your future, ideal self?

Your answer to this question could take many forms, so try writing it out in whatever form comes naturally to you.

If you’re stuck, try exploring these questions to find the answers that fit your vision of your best self:

What is more important to you: financial stability or doing what you love?

If you could be financially secure and skilled at any job, what would that job be?

Do you want to one day have a spouse? Do you want to have your own kids?

In your ideal world, where would you live in ten years? Why?

As the English novelist E.M. Forster once wrote, “How can I tell what I think till I see what I say?” Remember that the purpose of all these exercises is not only to get your brain moving but to get some words on the page, words that will allow you to “see” what you already know. Once you make that knowledge visible to yourself, you’re ready to start drafting the essays that might just propel you into your school of choice.

Stephen P.  is a writer and teacher based in Los Angeles. He has taught literature and writing courses at several universities and has taught writing and reading at Elite Prep Los Angeles since 2010.

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Home / News / Academic Writing Tip: 8 Brainstorming Techniques

Academic Writing Tip: 8 Brainstorming Techniques

So, you’ve read and re-read the academic writing assignment that you received from your professor, and now you’re staring at a blank page.

Does your mind feel as blank as the page? Are you Frozen by fear? Rubbing your eyes with exhaustion?

Whether you’re writing an essay for a community college in Boston, Massachusetts or a university in New England, USA, you need to start somewhere. Brainstorming means you use your imagination and prior knowledge to collect thoughts. After gathering a great quantity of ideas, you select the highest quality ideas.

Filling that empty white document can feel like leaping into unknown icy water. Brainstorming is the way to warm up for a deep dive into the EAP topic.

Brainstorming begins with simple questions. What do you know about the topic? What do you want to learn about the topic?

As you brainstorm, you journey farther down the academic writing quest. How do you narrow down a topic into a thesis? How do you gather the examples and evidence necessary for an academic essay?

Here are EAP brainstorming strategies to jumpstart the engine of your creativity.

Brainstorming tip #1: Freewriting

Do you have no ideas? Or the opposite problem—too many ideas?

Freewriting means what it sounds like—you’re free to write whatever comes to mind. The point is not to make it perfect—not even necessarily to make it good—but just to put thoughts on paper—no rules, no revising. You can even write about how you don’t know what to write about.

The only limit you should set for yourself is that you write for a specific period of time—let’s say 30 minutes—or for a specific number of pages—let’s say 2 pages. Non-stop activity gets the juices flowing, and a concrete goal gives you satisfaction. Here’s an example of freewriting:

This essay is supposed to be about the Boston Tea Party but I don’t know anything about US history except that the American Revolution happened a long time ago (when???) somewhere in Massachusetts or maybe I’m wrong. I can’t think of anything else to say and now the clock says two minutes, I’ll keep babbling anyway. Boston, MA, politics, tea. My grandmother used to make tea when I stopped by after my English courses. But that’s not useful for this essay. Or maybe there’s a connection. Hmmm… I remember the professor talked about the taxes in the New English states (colonies?) and my grandmother used to complain about paying high taxes at the market and…

Freewriting stimulates your brain the same way physical exercise wakes up your mind.

Brainstorming tip #2: Making a Cube

Draw a cube in your notebook. Each of the six sides has a task:

Side 1: Describe the topic.

Side 2: Compare the topic.

Side 3: Connect the topic.

Side 4: Classify the topic.

Side 5: Argue for or against the topic.

Side 6: Personalize the topic.

Instead of those 6 tasks, you could replace those verbs with other academic tasks: apply, analyze, question, connect, define, classify, associate, or explain cause and effect—whichever inspire ideas.

Imagine your topic is attending university in the U.S. Next to each point on the cube, you would write words and phrases inspired by the verb at hand:

Side 1: Describe: Exciting, difficult, expensive, growing opportunities, expensive, valuable.

Side 2: Compare: Different from my country. USA = more essay writing, dorms with roommates, critical thinking, fewer standardized exams and lectures, smaller classes.

Side 3: Connect: student visa policies, US immigration law, IELTS, TOEFL iBT, travel restrictions from covid-19, globalization means more English at work.

Side 4: Classify: community colleges (Holyoke, Greenfield), state universities (UMASS Boston), private ivy league (Harvard) graduate schools, MBA, BA, MFA programs.  

Side 5: Argue for : opens doors, better jobs, international workplace, investment in future, social networking, broadens horizons.

Side 6: Personalize: my cousin > engineering degree, MIT internship, campus resources help with culture shock (which worries me.) IELTS stresses me out!!!!  Way to avoid?

This brainy approach works if you like approaching topics from different angles.

Brainstorming tip #3: Clustering

When you cluster, you draw bubbles and connect words and concepts associated with the topic—anything that comes to mind.

This visual method works when you have a lot of random thoughts and you are trying to “see” connections.

Brainstorming tip #4: Bulleting

With this technique, you make bulleted lists with concepts, terms, and ideas. This can help you narrow down from the first list to a second list. The list on the left contains general bullet points, while the list on the right expands on a single bullet to delve deeper.

This method works great if you’re an orderly person who likes making lists.

Brainstorming tip #5: Venn Diagram

  The famous Venn diagram technique works well for brainstorming differences and similarities between two topics. You draw two intersecting circles and write the qualities they share in the middle where the circles intersect and the qualities that are unique in the left and right spaces. For example, let’s say you’re brainstorming differences and similarities between two cities in Massachusetts, Boston and Northampton.

This famous brainstorming method is used in the academic and business worlds because it so clearly shows differences and similarities.

To analyze relationships among three topics, you can make a Venn diagram with three circles. The 3-circle helps visualize and understand complex connections. You brainstorm three basic questions. Which qualities are unique to each? Which traits do any two topics have in common? Which similarities are shared by all three topics?

Brainstorming tip #6: Tree diagram

The tree diagram begins with a central idea that branches off into categories or supporting ideas.

Imagine you’re brainstorming different types of schools in US higher education.

Tree diagrams are perfect for brainstorming classification essays. You could also draw tree diagrams to brainstorm effects, starting with a cause at the top and branching off into increasingly specific downstream effects. Pretty cool, huh?

Brainstorming tip #7: Journalist Dice

Dice aren’t just toys for games and gambling–they can be a tool for writing. Rolling journalist dice is a stimulating way to flesh out narrative essays. Each side of the die corresponds to one of the 6 question words. To make the game fun, roll a die, and write down one answer the question every time you roll. Roll at least a dozen times to write down a variety of details and ideas.

In addition to building a narrative essay, this brainstorming technique can help you develop a compelling story for your college application essay. For the tired and uninspired writer, the game element of rolling dice makes the writing process more engaging and enjoyable. 

Brainstorming tip #8: T diagram

This method works well if you like thinking in terms of opposites.  Can you say “On the one hand” and “On the other hand”? 

What’s next in the writing process?

After your fast and furious brainstorm, the next step is to create an outline. When you outline, you pick your best and brightest ideas. Then you begin organizing them into a coherent, linear argument. You select and sort supporting points, evidence, examples, and elaboration. To learn more about outlining, click here for the next article in our academic writing series. 

The best way to improve your writing is to join an academic or business English course . With guidance from an expert instructor and feedback from a community of peers, you can master the art of academic writing.

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College Essay Brainstorming: Where to Start

Bonus Material: College Essay Brainstorming Questions  

The college essay is an extremely important component of your college application. Yes, college admissions officers do care about standardized test scores, academic transcripts, extracurricular activities, and letters of recommendation.

All of these application components can help officers assess a student’s academic and professional potential (and much more).

The college application essay, however, gives students a chance to share their unique voice with an admissions officer. It’s like a brief interview, where students can give officers a powerful glimpse of who they are outside of their application in roughly 650 words.

So what do you say in those 650 words? How do you pick the right essay topic?

It’s all about the brainstorming process. In general, the more time you can devote to gathering potential essay topics  before  you start writing, the better. Gathering this material can also be helpful for writing supplemental essays down the road.

In this post, we provide actionable tips for guiding your college essay brainstorming process. After reading this article, students will be well poised to gather topics and eventually select the “right” essay topic .

We also give students access to 30 free college essay brainstorming questions to get started. Grab these below.

Download College Essay Brainstorming Questions

Here’s what we cover:

The Importance of College Essay Brainstorming

• 8 College Essay Brainstorming Tips
• Bonus : 30 College Essay Brainstorming Questions

We define the college essay as a “demonstration of character, values, and/or voice.” It is an introspective, personal essay that (ideally) adds significant value to a student’s overall application.

Many students are not well-versed in writing this kind of essay. Indeed, most students are familiar with the concept of the academic essay, with its neat five paragraphs. Very few have had a lot of time in high school classrooms to write deeply reflective pieces, and concise ones at that. (Remember: you only have 650 words or fewer to craft your response!)

That’s why brainstorming is so essential  to the college essay writing process. It’s your key to pinpointing the right topic, which we define as one with the potential to generate an essay that aligns with these 7 winning qualities .

It can also be valuable for gathering potential topics for supplemental essay responses, which many competitive colleges require.

For these very reasons, we spend a significant amount of time brainstorming in our college essay mentoring programs and summer workshops. Students who are able to gather a lot of material in this time tend to have an easier job down the road choosing the right topic, creating an outline, and eventually writing that first draft.

What’s more, they might surprise themselves in what they are able to pull from their many life experiences! It’s not uncommon for an essay student to choose a certain topic they never would have considered prior to brainstorming.

The tips outlined in the next section reflect this great value of brainstorming, and are the same we offer our college essay students at the start of their process.

8 College Essay Brainstorming Tips

Don’t let that blank page intimidate you! Follow these tips to guide your brainstorming process and remember that this stage should and will take time.

1. Know the standards

Students should feel very comfortable with colleges’ general expectations for the essay  before  they start brainstorming. If you haven’t done so already, please check out the following PrepMaven posts:

• What is the College Essay?

7 Qualities of a Successful College Essay

• 11 College Essays That Worked
• What College Admissions Officers Look For

It can also be helpful to review the Common Application’s essay prompts . While students don’t necessarily have to respond to a  specific  prompt, these provide insight into the type of essay colleges are seeking.

2. No topic is “too small” (but some are “too big”)

Students only have 650 words (or fewer) to write their essays. That’s not a lot of space! For this reason, don’t shy away from seemingly “small” topics as you brainstorm.

One student who earned Ivy League acceptance, for example, wrote about her passion for hot sauce in her college essay!

On the same note, if you come up with “big” topics, such as cultural identity, a long-term extracurricular activity, or a religious belief, do your best to highlight specific components of these topics, or one representative experience. The best college essays don’t say everything there is to say about such large topics. Rather, they focus skillfully on one smaller component of a potentially bigger picture.

3. Write down all the details for every topic

When you land upon a topic, mine it for details. Write down everything you can think of about that experience, idea, or memory. Many of our students like to use bulleted lists in a Google Doc for doing this.

It’s important to squeeze out every possible detail so that you can fully assess a topic’s potential! In many cases, such details will become college essay topics themselves.

4. Work by category

If you’re feeling overwhelmed by all of the possible topics out there–and don’t worry, this is common–gather ideas by category. Here are some sample category examples:

• Travel experiences
• Extracurricular activities
• Family life
• Culture and heritage
• Interests and hobbies
• Challenges (non-academic)

Categories can help you build a general portrait of who you are, at least to start. Once you have a few ideas per category, start diving deeper into those ideas and generating further details about each one.

5. Ask the right questions

It is often easier for students to generate a rich pool of potential topics by answering questions designed to encourage deep reflection and introspection. Of course, this begs the question: what should I be asking myself?

Take a look at these 30 questions  we ask our students in our college essay workshops and mentorship programs at the beginning of their process.

Once you’ve answered these questions fully and to the best of your ability, you’ll be poised for essay topic selection.

6. Keep it to yourself, mostly

Many college essay students risk writing about what their parents, friends, or teachers want them to write about. Others risk writing “what colleges want to hear.” Yet authenticity is one of the most important qualities of a successful college essay!

That’s why we encourage students to brainstorm independently. You are the only one in the world most familiar with your life experiences, after all! Consult family members, friends, or mentors only once you are further along in the essay writing process, or if you need clarification on the details of a specific experience. This will ensure you gather topics that are true to you first and foremost.

7. Maintain orderly notes

Brainstorming can be messy. Establish a system early on for maintaining orderly notes! Some tools that can come in handy:

• Bulleted or numbered lists
• Index cards
• Color-coding (digital or manual)
• Google Docs

8. Consider takeaways for each topic

As you compile topics, save time and start thinking in terms of “takeaways” for each. This will allow you to assess a topic’s potential for demonstrating your character, values, and/or voice.

Ask yourself for each topic : What values does this showcase? What does this say about me specifically? What meaningful reflections does it invite? What aspect of my voice is apparent here?

Download 30 College Essay Brainstorming Questions

You can jumpstart your college essay brainstorming process right now by downloading our college essay brainstorming questions.

With this free download, you’ll get:

• 30 of the best brainstorming questions we ask our students
• Guidance for next steps

Kate is a graduate of Princeton University. Over the last decade, Kate has successfully mentored hundreds of students in all aspects of the college admissions process, including the SAT, ACT, and college application essay. 

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A Step-by-Step Guide to Brainstorming and Starting Your College Essay

We’ve put together a guide to simplify the college essay writing process. Writing your college essay is a gradual process that takes a lot of reflection and time. 

These steps aren’t intended to be completed in one day or even one week. By following these steps, the writing process will be less stressful. If you’ve been procrastinating, our step-by-step guide will help you get started. 

Quick Organization Tip: Create a folder on your computer or Google Drive for your college essay preparation. Save one document for each of the phases below, including 1) information gathering, 2) understanding yourself, and 3) initial outlining. In each of the documents, go through the steps and bullet point the notes and ideas that come up.

Phase 1: Information Gathering

Step 1: find sample college essay prompts..

A good place to start is the Common Application essay prompts . Even if you decide on a different application like the Coalition App or the Common Black App , the brainstorming you do based on the Common App will be general enough to prepare you for most essays. 

Make sure you save all of your brainstorming documents. You may decide not to talk about your interest in tennis in your college essay, but be able to use your anecdotes in a supplemental essay question. 

Step 2: Select your top 2-3 favorite prompts.

For now, in the early stages, you’ll want to keep your options open and your brainstorming free-flowing. If you pick one essay at this stage, you might overlook another important piece of your personal story that you’d have otherwise included. 

Pay attention to the essays that make you feel excited. Notice which essays immediately elicit a number of examples and stories from your personal life. By starting out with a few favorite essay prompts, you’ll keep your options open and get your ideas going, rather than putting yourself in a pigeon hole and feeling stuck later on in the process. 

Step 3: Take a look at different essay structure options.

It might feel too early to be thinking about structure when you haven’t even decided on a topic yet. But, in taking 10-15 minutes to understand the difference between a montage and narrative structure , you’re preparing yourself to brainstorm. Even if it’s subconscious, your mind will start to piece together the themes and anecdotes you might consider including in your essay. 

Phase 2: Understanding Yourself

Step 1: understand what brought you here. .

This exercise is to help get your gears turning. Ask yourself:

1. Why am I going to college? 

Try to think beyond answers like “to get an education” or “to make more money.” Did your parents go to college? Your brother? Your nextdoor neighbor? Who in your life inspired you to go to college? Why are you making this choice for yourself? Understanding your why will help you articulate your story later on. 

2. Who are my role models?

How have they shaped my story? How have they shaped how I view myself? How have they impacted my life? What choices have I made as a result of their influence? Why do I look up to them? 

Step 2: Understand what makes you who you are. 

There are a few categories to consider when you’re thinking about what makes you unique. Take time to consider these:

1. Major Life Events . 

What are some of your major life events that have influenced who you are or where you are now? Have you ever moved to a new school? Did your dad lose his job? Did you lose a loved one to a sickness? 

2. Talents and Hobbies.

What interest or talent has influenced you the most in your life? Do you plan to pursue it in college?

3. Overcoming Failures / Challenges.

Can you think of a time you’ve overcome a failure? What was a major challenge you faced in elementary school, middle school, high school, etc.? How did you move beyond the challenge and what did you learn through that process? 

4. Characteristics. 

What are 3-5 characteristics or qualities you have? Where did you learn or develop these qualities? For example, did you learn independence and responsibility from babysitting your two sisters? Did you pick up strong listening skills from volunteering at a nursing home? Think about what experiences might have taught you to act or behave a certain way. 

Step 3: Talk to friends and family. 

Ask your friends and family what they think about who you are. Try to find out what personal story they’d imagine you writing about. The ones who know you most will provide a perspective you might not have thought about yourself. They’ll be able to give you guidance and direction, especially when you’re feeling stuck.  

Phase 3: Creating your Initial Outline and Draft 

Step 1: select your essay prompt. .

With the information you’ve gathered and the time you’ve taken to reflect on your personal story, you’ll have a pretty good idea which prompt works best at this point. If you’re still torn between a couple of choices, feel free to bullet point your ideas for each prompt and decide from there. 

Step 2: Write stream of consciousness.

This could be a paragraph or a few pages. Write without worrying too much about the meaning or making sense. This is an opportunity to scribble down your initial ideas, what stuck with you from the questions above, what you want to focus on.

Step 3: Pick your structure.

Take a closer look at some of the different college essay formats and structures at the  College Essay Guy . From there, write a rough outline based on the information you have and the structure you’ve selected.  

Begin Your First Draft

The first draft is your “throw away draft” (except, you’re not going to throw it away!). If you think of this draft as your “throw away draft” you won’t feel as much pressure to make it perfect. The first draft is for YOUR EYES ONLY . You can say whatever you want, in any order. Often, writing out the draft is going to help you prioritize your anecdotes and determine whether or not you want to move around the structure you started out with.

See our guide to answering each of the Common App prompts here .

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• Jun 29, 2023

How to Start, Structure, & Brainstorm a College Essay

Updated: Jul 5, 2023

Writing a personal statement for college applications is not an easy task for most high school students. The American education system, for all its accomplishments and shortcomings, does not equip high school students to write about themselves confidently, competently, nor insightfully. While there are an abundance of hurdles between a student’s blank Google doc and a polished personal statement they can be proud of, I want to take some time to highlight the most common places we see students struggle while writing a personal statement for college.

For this blog, I think it is fitting that we begin at the earliest stages of the writing process: brainstorming, organizing, and structuring ideas.

Brainstorming

When we work with students, we emphasize how a proper brainstorming session can make the rest of their work infinitely easier. Here is a very practical example that is applicable to most students entering college.

Example of Grace’s Brainstorming Process:

To fulfill a graduation requirement in college, a new first-year student (Grace) has signed up for an intro-level history course. As the course reaches its conclusion, each student is tasked with writing a paper that examines a particular piece of history from the course.

For this paper, Grace needs to explore the modernization of Japan in the mid-19th century, a topic students covered in their college class.

Grace might begin her brainstorming with the largest conceptual question related to her essay topic: Did Japan begin a process of “modernization” during the mid-19th century? If so, then the next step is to determine the most compelling factors that Grace would use to support her essay.

After thinking about what she learned in her college class, Grace determines that she is going to analyze internal and external forces that contributed to this period in Japan.

As Grace continues to brainstorm, she realizes that an essay that only conceptually analyzes these high-level factors won’t be enough to create an impressive paper. Grace realizes that she will need evidence and examples to reinforce her analysis of both internal and external factors during Japan’s “modernization”.

One readily available resource is her textbook. Grace can look at specific chapters that focus on this time period and highlight the examples she plans to use as evidence in her paper. She highlights and sticky notes each example before cataloging them in the outline of her paper.

Grace also realizes that a single source will not be enough for her history paper, so she goes to the library. While at the library, she utilizes two methods of finding additional resources:

Firstly, she looks for any physical books available at the library on her subject. She might ask a librarian or use a library computer to search for relevant resources. Utilizing keywords like “history of Japan”, “19th century Japan”, and “modernization of Japan” she finds the Asian studies and Japanese history section of the library.

Secondly, she looks online using her college’s access to academic databases (such as JSTOR). Utilizing the same keywords, she likely finds several resources that can be conveniently printed or downloaded for her perusal.

Grace can now review her resources, find out which of them are useful, and then organize her findings into her original outline.

With her expanded outline in hand and sources at the ready, Grace can begin writing her paper in earnest.

Vague Example of Grace’s Potential Outline:

Introduction:

Contextual set-up for essay topic.

Specific thesis language/argument/assertion.

Internal Forces:

Domestic Instability

Book/Article/Paper relating to domestic instability. Properly formatted citation.

“Quote or highlight from that resource”. Page number.

External Forces:

International Trade

“Quote or highlight from that resource.” Page number.

Conclusion:

Restatement of argument/thesis.

Contextual outro for essay topic.

Now, why did I go to such lengths to cover the brainstorming planning process of a theoretical college student’s paper? The answer is two-fold:

This process of brainstorming and organization is flexible and can be applied not only to academic papers but also personal statements.

This example highlights the concept of a Pyramid of Purpose. In this blog, we’re going to talk about the Pyramid of Purpose as a helpful tool/framework that can be utilized by students for almost any personal or academic writing.

The Pyramid of Purpose

The Pyramid of Purpose is a conceptual tool that students can use to understand and plan the structure of their personal statement while ensuring that the entire essay is conceptually cohesive.

Unlike other metaphorical pyramids, students are going to begin this exercise at the top of the pyramid, where we have a personal statement’s purpose. If you are a visual person, imagine the top of your pyramid as a large precious gem (i.e., a diamond, ruby, emerald, sapphire, or any other gem of your choice). The purpose acts as the focal point for what message you want to deliver through your personal statement. As a writer, once you’ve established the purpose of your essay, that purpose becomes your guiding light to keep your mind on track. Although the purpose is the most crucial unifying aspect of the personal statement, it is also the most fragile. The purpose hangs perilously on the precipice of total collapse without the support of the rest of the pyramid. Despite that, the rest of the Pyramid of Purpose is lost and without… well, purpose.

The next building block of the pyramid focuses on the paragraphs within the personal statement. Paragraphs are both the literal and metaphorical building blocks that you will use to support the purpose or main message of the essay. The job of a paragraph is to create structure and contain ideas. Paragraphs without purpose are just blocks of text.

When thinking about paragraphs in a personal statement, don’t underestimate their importance. Each paragraph serves a distinct purpose, from making the essay easily understandable to the reader, to separating conceptual ideas. Every paragraph has a purpose and that purpose works in service to the overall message of the essay. If you can’t connect a paragraph to the purpose of a personal statement, then you likely need to revisit why this paragraph exists and what it is composed of.

Continuing down the Pyramid of Purpose, we encounter the second largest support block: sentences. If paragraphs are the building blocks and organizational structure of an essay, sentences are the building blocks and organizational structure of a paragraph. This pattern might seem redundant, but misunderstanding this pattern and utilizing it inefficiently is probably the most common pitfall we see in any student’s writing.

Each sentence should serve a very specific purpose. An unfortunate aspect of the American education system is the reliance on minimums in academic writing. Most students are familiar with having to use at least X number of sources or being required to submit at least X number of pages. The intent behind this system is understandable: students often must be forced to leave their comfort zone and utilize new tools/strategies that will better equip them for future obstacles.

Unfortunately, using minimums as metrics of measurement has led to an exceptionally detrimental side effect. Many young Americans now consider increasing font sizes, changing margins, and flooding their essays with fluffy sentences as viable strategies for meeting minimums and safeguarding their precious GPAs. When we translate this to a personal statement, students realize quickly that changing the font and margins isn’t viable, so sentences become the greatest casualty of this misinformed mentality.

Each sentence needs to have a very clear purpose that supports the paragraph and thus supports the main message of the personal statement.

Introduce a concept.

Connect the importance of the concept to the point of the paragraph.

Provide insight into the importance of this concept.

Provide examples to support your insight about this concept.

Connect the concept of the paragraph to a large purpose of the essay.

Begin a transition into another topic or paragraph.

The example above showcases how to conceptually view sentences as the building block of a paragraph. The purpose of each sentence is clear and concise, while still connecting the surrounding sentences to the paragraph and overall purpose of the essay. If you find yourself with an exceptionally large, lengthy, or convoluted paragraph, take a moment to dissect and convert the paragraph into the format above. This strategy will often help students eliminate fluff, synergize similar sentences, and break down unwieldy paragraphs.

As with most metaphorical pyramids, the foundation often consists of the most humble and under-appreciated aspects of a system. In the Pyramid of Purpose, the foundation of the pyramid takes the shape of words.

“Wow, words make sentences, sentences make paragraphs, and paragraphs make essays, how insightful” *Said in the sarcastic tone of many readers who made it to this point*

While the sarcasm isn’t appreciated, I can see how many readers would be thinking something similar by this point in the blog. Although I hate to be the bearer of bad news, I regret to inform you that this mentality is the fuel for an abundance of mediocre essays. While sentences might be the greatest casualty of reliance on minimums, words are the greatest casualty of those who underestimate the power of connotations, denotations, and nuances of the words we use to communicate.

If you jump into a swimming pool on a hot day is the water cold, freezing, chilly, frigid, cool, or crisp?

Is a person close to you a friend, companion, colleague, buddy, pal, or acquaintance?

If you are playing baseball, are you going to run, dash, dart, hurry, scurry, or scuttle between bases?

Most of this blog has been about creating a system or method to help guide and standardize the writing process. Despite our attempts, communication is an inherently emotional process. The words a writer chooses, and how the reader interprets and connects to those words, sit at the core of effective communication. To oversimplify the contribution that word choice plays in communication is to both simultaneously deafen and mute your own ability to communicate. For the personal statement, students who want to elevate their message must consider the plethora of words that they could choose to deliver their message, while simultaneously being aware of how those choices might be received, interpreted, and felt by a reader.

The Pyramid of Purpose in Action

Now that you’ve seen a practical academic application and explored the theoretical underpinnings of the Pyramid of Purpose, you can apply this to your personal statement. Here is an example outline to show how all of these pieces fit together:

Personal Statement Example Outline:

Main Message/Purpose: I see obstacles and failures as opportunities for growth instead of things to be feared or avoided.

If you’ve ever been to a putt-putt course and seen a child throwing a temper tantrum, you might feel second-hand embarrassment. But being the child throwing the putter at your neon green golf ball fills you with shame for decades.

Thesis/Main Idea:

Some of the most beneficial and impactful opportunities for me were originally viewed as failures, but these opportunities have made me who I am today.

Provide context about who I was at the beginning of this growth journey.

Insight: I had such avoidance of failure and low self-confidence that I didn’t even try things I was good at.

Evidence: Being good at running, but actively choosing to not participate in track or cross country.

How did I work to overcome these obstacles and why did I decide to change?

Insight: Moving to a new school made me realize that actively avoiding opportunities was going to make it difficult to make friends.

Evidence: Feeling isolated by not participating in events, then finding out that I could make friends and connect with people if I took more risks.

Joining theater and confronting stage fright and the fear of failing in front of a large group.

Who am I now and how have I incorporated this new mindset into my life?

Insight: Embracing opportunities for failure or embarrassment because I have a better understanding of all the benefits that could come from taking a chance.

Evidence: Choosing to jump ahead one Math level in senior year despite Math being my most challenging subject and being in a class full of juniors.

Remind the reader of your main message and most important takeaways.

Reaffirm your growth and forecast how it might be beneficial for the upcoming transition to college.

If you’ve made it to this point, then you and Grace are now standing side-by-side at the precipice of the most intimidating part of the writing process: putting words on paper. Your words won’t be perfect, your sentences may be confusing, and your paragraphs might be bulky, but that’s okay. When we work with our students, we make it abundantly clear that the first draft is exactly that, only a draft.

A draft should have structure, even if the contents might require a bit more work. A house solely consisting of a frame and foundation is far from the finished product, but the frame and foundation create a structure to guide the rest of the construction. The content of a personal statement might require more polishing and editing, but the Pyramid of Purpose provides a structure and foundation for students to work within.

At the end of the day, no one is expecting perfection from a rough draft, but they are expecting a purpose, paragraphs, sentences, and words unified under one goal: to make a statement.

With all my support,

Sawyer Earwood

Independent College Counselor

Co-Founder of Virtual College Counselors

[email protected]

• College Admissions
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How to Brainstorm for an Essay

Once you get going on a paper, you can often get into a groove and churn out the bulk of it fairly quickly. But choosing or brainstorming a topic for a paper—especially one with an open-ended prompt—can often be a challenge.

You’ve probably been told to brainstorm ideas for papers since you were in elementary school. Even though you might feel like “brainstorming” is an ineffective method for actually figuring out what to write about, it really works. Everyone thinks through ideas differently, but here are some tips to help you brainstorm more effectively regardless of what learning style works best for you:

Tip #1: Set an end goal for yourself

Develop a goal for your brainstorm. Don’t worry—you can go into brainstorming without knowing exactly what you want to write about, but you should  have an idea of what you hope to gain from your brainstorming session. Do you want to develop a list of potential topics? Do you want to come up with ideas to support an argument? Have some idea about what you want to get out of brainstorming so that you can make more effective use of your time.

Tip #2: Write down all ideas

Sure, some of your ideas will be better than others, but you should write all of them down for you to look back on later. Starting with bad or infeasible ideas might seem counterintuitive, but one idea usually leads to another one. Make a list that includes all of your initial thoughts, and then you can go back through and pick out the best one later. Passing judgment on ideas in this first stage will just slow you down.

Tip #3: Think about what interests you most

Students usually write better essays when they’re exploring subjects that they have some personal interest in. If a professor gives you an open-ended prompt, take it as an opportunity to delve further into a topic you find more interesting. When trying to find a focus for your papers, think back on coursework that you found engaging or that raised further questions for you.

Tip #4: Consider what you want the reader to get from your paper

Do you want to write an engaging piece? A thought-provoking one? An informative one? Think about the end goal of your writing while you go through the initial brainstorming process. Although this might seem counterproductive, considering what you want readers to get out of your writing can help you come up with a focus that both satisfies your readers and satisfies you as a writer.

 Tip #5: Try freewriting

Write for five minutes on a topic of your choice that you think could  be worth pursuing—your idea doesn’t have to be fully fleshed out. This can help you figure out whether it’s worth putting more time into an idea or if it doesn’t really have any weight to it. If you find that you don’t have much to say about a particular topic, you can switch subjects halfway through writing, but this can be a good way to get your creative juices flowing.

Tip #6: Draw a map of your ideas

While some students might prefer the more traditional list methods, for more visual learners, sketching out a word map of ideas may be a useful method for brainstorming. Write the main idea in a circle in the center of your page. Then, write smaller, related ideas in bubbles further from the center of the page and connect them to your initial idea using lines. This is a good way to break down big ideas and to figure out whether they are worth writing about.

 Tip #7: Enlist the help of others

Sometimes it can be difficult coming up with paper topics on your own, and family and friends can prove to be valuable resources when developing ideas. Feel free to brainstorm with another person (or in a group). Many hands make light work—and some students work best when thinking through ideas out loud—so don’t be afraid to ask others for advice when trying to come up with a paper topic.

Tip #8: Find the perfect brainstorming spot

Believe it or not, location can make a BIG difference when you’re trying to come up with a paper topic. Working while watching TV is never a good idea, but you might want to listen to music while doing work, or you might prefer to sit in a quiet study location. Think about where you work best, and pick a spot where you feel that you can be productive.

Tip #9: Play word games to help generate ideas

Whether you hate playing word games or think they’re a ton of fun, you might want to try your hand at a quick round of Words With Friends or a game of Scrabble. These games can help get your brain working, and sometimes ideas can be triggered by words you see. Get a friend to play an old-fashioned board game with you, or try your hand at a mobile app if you’re in a time crunch.

Tip #10: Take a break to let ideas sink in

Brainstorming is a great way to get all of your initial thoughts out there, but sometimes you need a bit more time to process all of those ideas. Stand up and stretch—or even take a walk around the block—and then look back on your list of ideas to see if you have any new thoughts on them.

For many students, the most difficult process of paper writing is simply coming up with an idea about what to write on. Don’t be afraid to get all of your ideas out there through brainstorming, and remember that all ideas are valid. Take the time necessary to sort through all of your ideas, using whatever method works best for you, and then get to writing—but don’t be afraid to go back to the drawing board if a new inspiration strikes.

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How to Brainstorm Your College Essay Topic

The college essay is perhaps the most challenging—and intimidating—part of the college application process. Staring at a blank sheet of paper (or a blank computer screen) can feel overwhelming. You might think you have nothing to write about or nothing new and exciting to offer. If you’re wondering just how to brainstorm your college essay topic, then keep reading!

Here’s the good news: You are uniquely you, and you have stories to tell that nobody else can write. If you can uncover one of those stories, you’ve found your perfect college essay topic.

The process of considering what makes you unique, reflecting, and trying on different ideas until you find “The One” is called brainstorming . In this article, you’ll find useful tips , ideas, and exercises to help you brainstorm your way to a great college essay topic.

What makes a great college essay topic?

First, let’s talk about what makes a great topic for your essay. Remember that most of your application is made up of impersonal numbers: your GPA, your SAT/ACT scores, your class rank, etc. Admissions officers will also see a list of your activities and accomplishments. But when it comes to showcasing who you are as an individual, the essay is your big chance to make an impression.

With that in mind, a great topic is one that:

• Offers insight into who you are as a person

Admissions officers suggest students should “write about a specific experience, hobby or quirk that reveals something personal, like how they think, what they value, or what their strengths are.” Think of your college essay topic as a window or lens that admissions officers can use to get a glimpse into who you are and how you think.

On the other hand, your topic does NOT have to be:

• About something extremely extraordinary

In fact, admissions officers say that sometimes the most ordinary topics make the most memorable essays. These include topics like fly-fishing, a student’s commute to and from school, and even a family’s dining room table. So, shift your focus from trying to impress or trying to be extraordinary. Instead, try to zoom in on a slice of your life that reveals something important about you.

Wait—do I even get to choose my college essay topic?

Good question. The Common Application and most individual college applications give you a few prompts to choose from. However, these prompts are so broad and open-ended that you still have the freedom to write about almost anything .

For instance, the current Common App prompts ask you about your background, identity, talents, interests, obstacles you’ve faced, problems you’ve solved, events or realizations from your life, and more. And if you can’t manage to make your topic idea fit into those categories, the final prompt is: “Share an essay on any topic of your choice.”

Of course, before you begin brainstorming, look over the prompts you’ve been provided. See how specific or broad they are. Are there any guidelines you need to keep in mind as you brainstorm your topic? Go from there.

How to Brainstorm a College Essay Topic That’s Right for You

Brainstorming is a very personal and very creative endeavor. What sparks inspiration for you may not spark inspiration for someone else, and vice versa. So, read through the ideas, questions, and exercises for brainstorming your college essay topic below, and choose a few that appeal to you.

Keep going until you land on a topic idea that gets you inspired and excited. If you’re excited about your college essay topic, your passion and personality will naturally shine through.

1. Free Write About Yourself

On the top of a piece of paper or a Word document, write the question, “Who am I?” Set a timer for three minutes, and write until the timer goes off. Don’t second guess or edit. Write anything that comes to mind. Remember that no one else will read your college essay topic brainstorm.

Writing freely without overthinking is an important way to unleash your ideas. What would someone need to know in order to really know about you?

2. Explore Your Home

Take a tour of your home. Look closely at the objects in each room. Which objects are especially meaningful to you? As you look around your house, do any important or interesting memories come to you? Is there anything special or unique about your home that catches your eye?

Find photos, scrapbooks, and old journals or diaries if possible. If you come across any significant memories, jot them down or free write about them for a few minutes. Make a note of anything that inspires you.

3. Listen to a Playlist of Your Favorite Songs

Make a playlist of around 10 songs that you love. These can be songs you loved at different points in your life, or they can be your 10 favorites right now.

Often, our favorite songs resonate with us because we relate them to a memory, a feeling, or a core value. And music in general is an excellent source of inspiration. As you listen to your songs, does anything meaningful come to mind?

Do you think of a special person, place, or event in your life? Did a particular song help you through a challenging time in your life? Do you think your favorite songs say anything important about you? As with the previous exercise, record or free write about anything that catches your attention.

4. Ask Your Friends and Family

Sometimes, it’s hard to think or write objectively about ourselves—after all, we’re a little too close to the subject. It’s helpful to ask your friends or family members for ideas and inspiration too.

Ask questions like:

• If you had to describe me in three words, what words would you use?

Ultimately, you need to choose a college essay topic that appeals to you. But gaining some perspective from the people who love you might get your ideas flowing.

5. Reflect on Highs and Lows

Good college essays show maturity, reflection, and growth. They demonstrate your ability to think about the events that have happened to you, the lessons you have learned, and the impact these events have had on who you are as an individual. Often, we can find great stories of growth in the best and worst moments of our lives.

Think about the following:

• When did you first feel like you were no longer a child? Why did you feel that way? How do you think you’ve changed from your childhood self, and why?

Some of these answers might feel too personal. That’s OK—remember, your brainstorm is for your eyes only. You don’t have to share anything with admissions officers that makes you uncomfortable, but reflecting on the most important moments in your life can help you come up with some excellent material.

6. List Your Top 5 Traits

It’s tough to describe ourselves in a few words, especially because all of us are complex. But if you had to choose just five defining characteristics or traits to describe yourself, what words would you use?

First, list your five words. Then, try to trace your characteristics back to defining experiences or events. For example, if you’re curious , how do you think your curiosity began? Did anyone in your life influence you to be curious? Can you think of the first time or the most recent time that you exhibited curiosity?

Sometimes, a story that highlights one of your key personal traits can make an excellent college essay. Whether it’s an example of how you’ve displayed that trait, or an “origin story” of how you developed that characteristic, you’ll show admissions officers an important piece of who you are.

7. Think About Places

Essays about place, even one as simple as a dining room table, also make a compelling college essay topic. See if you have any meaningful “place” stories by answering the following questions:

• Are any of your favorite memories associated with a specific place? Which memories? Describe the place in detail.

Remember that no matter what you write about, you are ultimately the star of your essay. So, if you choose to write about a place, consider what this place means to you, how it has impacted you, and what it can tell readers about your personality, beliefs, and values.

8. Think About People

Similarly, you may choose to write about an influential person in your life. But the bulk of the essay should focus on how this person has impacted you and how you have changed or grown as a result of your interactions with this person.

Answer these questions:

• Who is someone in your life who is very different from you? How have you navigated those differences? What have you learned in the process?

Again, your essay shouldn’t simply describe another person. The admissions officers want to know more about you . But if you have a compelling story about an important person, and if that story provides meaningful insight into you, then you might have a stellar topic on your hands.

9. Answer Questions About Yourself

You’re probably thinking that you’ve already answered a lot of questions about yourself. But here are some more that might spark inspiration for the right college essay topic:

• What are you most curious about?

You don’t need to answer all of these questions. But if a few of them speak to you, start writing and see what emerges.

Remember that it’s important to “zoom in” on your ideas. So, don’t write an essay about all the traditions you’ve grown up with. Write about one tradition and a specific memory associated with it. The more you zoom in, the more detailed you can get. The more details you include, the more your essay becomes one that only you could write.

10. Write a Hook

If you’re still having trouble getting started, focus on writing a strong hook . What’s an interesting first sentence about you that could really grab a reader’s attention?

Here’s an example of a good hook : “I first got into politics the day the cafeteria outlawed creamed corn.”

Doesn’t that sentence make you want to know more? Imagine being a college admissions officer, slogging through essay after essay, many of them very similar. Many of the essays sound stiff, full of high-level vocabulary words but lacking in personality. Then you get to an essay about how creamed corn sparked a student’s interest in politics. Wouldn’t it be a breath of fresh air?

Try writing a few interesting hooks. One might hook you too, and before you know it, you’ll have written a whole first draft!

Next Step: Narrow Down Your College Essay Topic Ideas

Let’s say you’ve completed several of these exercises, and now you have a list of ideas. What’s the next step?

Narrow down your college essay topics like this:

• Does your top idea speak to you enough to run with it? If so, get going! If you’re stuck between 2-3 top choices, outline a beginning, middle, and end for each topic idea. List several specific sensory details you would include. Now, which idea speaks to you the most? Which provides the strongest and most compelling narrative? That’s your topic!

Once you’ve decided on a topic, it’s time to tell your story. Remember to focus on being honest, authentic, and very much you . Zoom in as much as possible, and give clear details that bring your story to life. Show a character arc—who you were at the beginning, how you grew and changed, and who you are now. Feel free to use personality and humor. The admissions officers want to hear your voice!

Final Thoughts: How to Brainstorm Your College Essay Topic

It’s hard to come up with a college essay topic that’s unique, exciting, and impressive. So, take that mindset and throw it far, far away.

Now, approach your college essay with the goal of helping admissions officers get to know the real you. If you’re authentic and write about something that’s meaningful to you, your essay will naturally stand out.

Complete several exercises to brainstorm your college essay topic without editing yourself . Eventually, you’ll find a topic that gets you excited. It’ll be a topic that accurately represents you and that makes you want to think, write, or talk about it more.

That passion, enthusiasm, and authenticity will shine through to admissions officers and make your essay truly memorable. I hope these tips on how to brainstorm your college essay topic were helpful. Good luck and happy writing!

Jason Patel is the founder of Transizion , a college counseling and career services company that provides mentorship and consulting on college applications, college essays, resumes, cover letters, interviews, and finding jobs and internships. Jason’s work has been cited in The Washington Post, BBC, NBC News, Forbes, Fast Company, Bustle, Inc., Fox Business, and other great outlets. Transizion donates a portion of profits to underserved students and veterans in of college prep and career development assistance. Jason is a Brazilian Jiujitsu martial artist, outdoorsman, and avid reader. You can find more content on his blog and YouTube channel.

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College admissions

Course: college admissions   >   unit 4.

• Writing a strong college admissions essay
• Avoiding common admissions essay mistakes

Brainstorming tips for your college essay

• How formal should the tone of your college essay be?
• Taking your college essay to the next level
• Sample essay 1 with admissions feedback
• Sample essay 2 with admissions feedback
• Student story: Admissions essay about a formative experience
• Student story: Admissions essay about personal identity
• Student story: Admissions essay about community impact
• Student story: Admissions essay about a past mistake
• Student story: Admissions essay about a meaningful poem
• Writing tips and techniques for your college essay

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How to Brainstorm and Write the First College Essay Draft

• April 5, 2023
• College Admission Guidance , Parents Must Read , Under Graduate

When it comes to application evaluation, colleges consider many criteria that include high school grades, extracurricular activities, and test scores. But in recent years, more colleges are becoming test-optional and/or test-blind . So, your college essay, traditionally a requirement of any college application, will be more important than ever. Many high schoolers struggle to get started. In this post, we will discuss how to brainstorm and get started with the first college essay draft.

Before we get started with the main agenda, let’s dig a little deeper into why college essays are so important and some of the basics.

College Essay Basics and FAQs

Why are essays so important in college admissions.

Essays give admissions officers a deeper insight into who you are as a person beyond your grades and test scores. They allow you to showcase your personality, interests, and unique perspectives in a way that cannot be captured by standardized measures.

College admissions officers use essays to evaluate a student’s writing skills, critical thinking abilities, and communication skills. Essays can also help admissions officers assess how well you would fit into the school’s community and culture.

Additionally, essays allow applicants to stand out from other applicants who may have similar academic records or extracurricular activities.

In summary, essays are important in college admissions because they provide a more holistic view of the applicant and their potential to thrive at the college.

College Essays: FAQs

How long should your essay be.

It depends. Your main Common App essay can be up to 650 words, while the essays for the University of California (UC) schools are around 350 words each, and your supplemental essays will vary.

How many essays do you need to write?

Around 15-20. You’ll most probably write one main personal statement for your Common App, perhaps some separate essays if you’re applying to public schools (the UCs require four, for example). Additionally, you’ll write supplemental essays for most selective schools, which number anywhere from 6-20, depending on the number of schools you apply to.

What are college admissions officers looking for in college essays?

They’re looking for the answers to these three questions:

• Who is this person?
• Will this person contribute something of value to our campus?
• Can this person write and communicate well?

How do college admissions officers evaluate your essays?

Each school has its own criteria and different readers will prefer different elements. Some admission officers will assess your writing ability, while others will be more interested in your story.

In short, both are important – a good story, well told. That should be your goal.

How much do essays matter in the evaluation process?

Typically, they carry a weightage of 25-30%. Essays tend to matter more for small schools, or schools that look at applications holistically.

Schools look at your GPA, course rigor, and test scores more than anything. When you’re being compared to other students with similar GPA/SAT scores, that’s when the essays can make or break your chances.

Please note that well-written essays can not make up for poor grades and/or lack of impactful extracurriculars. However, a bad essay will surely negatively impact your admission chances.

How to Get Started with Brainstorming for Creating the First Essay Draft?

Option-1: you can get started by asking the following questions yourself:.

• If you really knew me…
• Something you are grateful for…
• Something you celebrated wildly…

Option-2: You can ask a few questions about Essence Objects:

• What’s something you never leave home without?
• What’s a snack you crave?
• A food that reminds you of your family?
• A food that reminds you of home?
• A tradition that reminds you of home?
• What else reminds you of home?
• An object that represents your best friend?
• An object that represents your father? Your mother?
• Something you loved and lost?
• A toy you used to play with as a kid?
• Something that makes you laugh?
• A book you love? Best movie ever?
• Favorite guilty pleasure movie?
• An object that represents something abstract that you broke (a heart, a promise)?
• An object that represents regret?
• A favorite gift you received? A favorite gift you gave?
• An object that represents a secret?
• Something about you no one else knows
• Something that makes you feel safe?
• The worst thing that ever happened to you?

Option-3: Ask yourself what you value the most. Below are a few examples:

• Personal Development
• Helping Others
• Inspiration
• Second Chances
• Flexibility
• Adaptability

Step-by-Step Guide on How to Brainstorm College Essays

• Reflect on your experiences: Start by reflecting on your experiences and thinking about which ones have been the most meaningful or transformative for you. This could include personal challenges you have overcome, memorable moments, or experiences that have shaped your values and beliefs.
• Make a list of potential essay topics: Once you have reflected on your experiences, make a list of potential essay topics. Try to come up with at least five to ten topics that you could write about.
• Narrow down your list: Look at your list and identify the topics that you are most passionate about and that best showcase your unique qualities and perspectives. Cross out any topics that are too broad or cliché.
• Use prompts for inspiration: Many colleges provide essay prompts to help guide applicants. Use these prompts as a starting point for brainstorming and see if any of them spark ideas for potential topics.
• Consider your audience: Remember that your audience is the admissions committee, so think about what they are looking for in an applicant. What qualities and experiences are they likely to value?
• Collaborate with others: Consider sharing your ideas with friends, family members, or teachers to get their feedback and suggestions. They may be able to provide a fresh perspective or help you identify topics that you may not have considered.

Overall, the key to effective brainstorming for college essays is to be open-minded, reflective, and creative. Don’t be afraid to take risks and explore topics that are meaningful and unique to you. Remember that the goal of the essay is to showcase your personal qualities and experiences in a way that sets you apart from other applicants.

How to Approach Writing the First College Essay Draft?

Firstly, you should ask yourself:

• Have you faced significant challenges?
• Do you want to write about them?

If you answered yes to both, Narrative Structure may work well for you.

If no to either, Montage Structure could be a better approach. 

How to Follow a Narrative Structure while Writing the First College Essay Draft?

You can think of this approach to writing an essay as breaking down into three basic sections:

• Challenges + Effects
• What I Did About Them
• What I Learned

While those may be fairly clear just based on their names, here’s a brief breakdown, followed by a sample essay to illustrate:

• Challenges + Effects This part gets into specific detail regarding a specific challenge the student has faced, and the various effects of that challenge. Tough stuff you’ve been through. Big experiences. Their subsequent impacts. Various obstacles you’ve had to overcome.
• What I Did About Them Actions you took to overcome those challenges and their effects, often to meet specific needs. These actions help to illustrate your values and growth.
• What I Learned Lessons and insights you’ve gained through these experiences. Reflection on how your experiences have shaped you and why that matters.

How to Follow a Montage Structure while Writing the First College Essay Draft?

Montage is something you’ve likely all encountered before, but some may not be familiar with the word itself. It’s a technique that involves using separate elements (pictures, words, music, etc.) to create a new whole. In filmmaking, the montage effect is used to condense space and time so that information can be delivered in a more efficient way.

If you’re going to build a montage, you need to find a way to make the different experiences you’ll use feel connected. Think of it this way: if you just had a paragraph on growing up in South East Asia, speaking of which religion, speaking of which literature is important to me, speaking of which… you’re going to feel understandably confused. So you need to have something that threads the pieces together.

Tips on Montage Structure

• Visual threads are easier to write. Storytelling is a visual medium. Use a lens that will help conjure images in the reader’s mind. I’ve had too many students try to write “soundtrack” or “mix-tape” essays in which their favorite songs provide the soundtrack for their lives. The problem with writing this type of essay, however, is that the reader can’t hear the music (and often doesn’t know or have the same emotional connection to the songs referenced). So you can use more abstract things (like Waves, or Home), but those will often take more time to write well.
• Write what you know. Know how to cook? Use food. Play chess? Use that! Use your Essence Objects list as a starting point for ideas. 
• Look for thematic threads that are “elastic”—that allow you to connect a bunch of sides of yourself. Use a metaphor, in other words, that will allow you to discuss several different aspects of who you are.

Monate Structure vs Narrative Structure

A montage essay (i.e., an essay NOT about challenges) is more likely to stand out if the topic or theme of the essay is:

X. Elastic (i.e., something you can connect to a variety of examples, moments, or values) Y. Uncommon (i.e., something other students probably aren’t writing about)

On the other hand, a narrative essay is more likely to stand out if it contains: 

X. Difficult or compelling challenges Y. Insight

These aren’t binary—rather, each exists on a spectrum.

“Elastic” will vary from person to person. I might be able to connect mountain climbing to family, history, literature, science, social justice, environmentalism, growth, and insight … and someone else might not connect it too much of anything. Maybe trees?

“Uncommon” —every year, thousands of students write about mission trips, sports, or music. It’s not that you can’t write about these things, but it’s a lot harder to stand out. 

“Difficult or compelling challenges” can be put on a spectrum, with things like getting a bad grade or not making a sports team on the weaker end, and things like escaping war or living homeless for three years on the stronger side. While you can possibly write a strong essay about a weaker challenge, it’s really hard to do so.

“Insight” is the answer to the question “So what?” A great insight is likely to surprise the reader a bit, while a so-so insight likely won’t. (Insight is something you’ll develop in an essay through the writing process, rather than something you’ll generally know ahead of time for a topic, but it’s useful to understand that some topics are probably easier to pull insights from than others.)

To clarify, you can still write a great montage with a very common topic, or a narrative that offers so-so insights. But the degree of difficulty goes up. Probably way up.

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Sources: 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 .

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7 Questions to Help You Start Writing Your College Essays

This article was written based on the information and opinions presented by Pascale Bradley in a CollegeVine livestream. You can watch the full livestream for more info.

Writing your college essays can seem like a daunting task, especially given how important essays can be in college admissions decisions. This is why the hardest part of the process is often just the act of getting started. In this article, we discuss a variety of brainstorming exercises that you might find useful when working on your college admission essays. 

You should experiment with various types of brainstorming exercises and determine which ones work best for you. These include free writing, creating lists, making outlines, and having brainstorming conversations with someone you trust, like a CollegeVine expert . To help you get started with brainstorming, however, check out these prompts and questions.

1. What is the most recent news story you read and found interesting?

This is a great question to reflect on because it can help you identify social or political issues and causes that you care about deeply. This does not mean you have to talk about politics or social justice issues in your essays, but starting your brainstorming process by thinking about the issues that resonate with you can help you reflect on your values, which are what you want to highlight in your essays. Writing about social or political issues can actually be quite difficult due to the human factor in college admissions, but writing about yourself and your values will always interest admissions officers. 

2. What are you most proud of having accomplished, and why?

When brainstorming using this question, it can help to try to keep an open mind when considering your accomplishments. You want to focus specifically on what you are most proud of—not your friends, your parents, or your teachers. How you respond to this question could demonstrate to college admissions officers what you consider most important about yourself and what you want others to know about you. 

3. What are you looking for in your college experience?

Reflecting on this question is extremely important throughout the entire college process, but this is especially true when writing your supplemental essays. One of the main purposes of your college-specific essays is to emphasize your fit with a school, and understanding your goals for going to college can help you better articulate the ways in which a particular college will suit you. It is also crucial for college admissions officers to understand your motivations for going to college and whether attending college is a deliberate decision that you are making, given your goals and aspirations.

4. Describe a time when you were anxious or nervous. Why did you feel this way and how did you navigate the situation?

It can be valuable to reflect on this topic to help unlock a sense of vulnerability in your essays. Admissions officers rarely get to see the real you within your college applications, and gaining an understanding of how you overcome challenges can help you stand out as a candidate. Your essays should demonstrate that you have the ability to handle difficult emotions and situations, so admissions officers understand how you would react to and cope with the pressures of being in a rigorous academic environment.

5. What is a topic or question that you recently googled for your own edification? 

Brainstorming for this prompt reveals the topics and questions that you are naturally fascinated by. It is essential to have a good understanding of your interests as you are forming your college applications, but it is particularly valuable when you are writing any version of the “ why this major ” essay. Admissions officers generally want to know that you are self-driven and intellectually curious, and your essays are the best opportunity you have to convey your interests outside of the classroom.

6. What have you learned from the community in which you grew up? What do you value about it?

Our communities often significantly impact the people we become and our values. It is important to convey these things through your essays, and reflecting on these questions can provide you with examples and anecdotes that you can pull from when discussing your background. In all of your essays, you want to help admissions officers better understand the type of person you would be within their college community.

7. What have you most recently changed your mind about? When, how, and why did this happen?

Admissions officers are interested in learning about your own personal growth and intellectual development. Colleges and universities want students who will continue to push themselves and grow in a new environment. By reflecting on this question, you can better express how open you are to different ideas and the circumstances under which you are willing to change your mind.

For more information about how to write strong college admission essays, review our comprehensive article, “ How to Write the Common Application Essays ,” and read “ 19 Stellar Common App Essay Examples ” to get inspired.

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How to Write a College Essay | A Complete Guide & Examples

The college essay can make or break your application. It’s your chance to provide personal context, communicate your values and qualities, and set yourself apart from other students.

A standout essay has a few key ingredients:

• A unique, personal topic
• A compelling, well-structured narrative
• A clear, creative writing style
• Evidence of self-reflection and insight

To achieve this, it’s crucial to give yourself enough time for brainstorming, writing, revision, and feedback.

In this comprehensive guide, we walk you through every step in the process of writing a college admissions essay.

Table of contents

Why do you need a standout essay, start organizing early, choose a unique topic, outline your essay, start with a memorable introduction, write like an artist, craft a strong conclusion, revise and receive feedback, frequently asked questions.

While most of your application lists your academic achievements, your college admissions essay is your opportunity to share who you are and why you’d be a good addition to the university.

Your college admissions essay accounts for about 25% of your application’s total weight一and may account for even more with some colleges making the SAT and ACT tests optional. The college admissions essay may be the deciding factor in your application, especially for competitive schools where most applicants have exceptional grades, test scores, and extracurriculars.

What do colleges look for in an essay?

Admissions officers want to understand your background, personality, and values to get a fuller picture of you beyond your test scores and grades. Here’s what colleges look for in an essay :

• Demonstrated values and qualities
• Vulnerability and authenticity
• Self-reflection and insight
• Creative, clear, and concise writing skills

Prevent plagiarism. Run a free check.

It’s a good idea to start organizing your college application timeline in the summer of your junior year to make your application process easier. This will give you ample time for essay brainstorming, writing, revision, and feedback.

While timelines will vary for each student, aim to spend at least 1–3 weeks brainstorming and writing your first draft and at least 2–4 weeks revising across multiple drafts. Remember to leave enough time for breaks in between each writing and editing stage.

Create an essay tracker sheet

If you’re applying to multiple schools, you will have to juggle writing several essays for each one. We recommend using an essay tracker spreadsheet to help you visualize and organize the following:

• Deadlines and number of essays needed
• Prompt overlap, allowing you to write one essay for similar prompts

You can build your own essay tracker using our free Google Sheets template.

College essay tracker template

Ideally, you should start brainstorming college essay topics the summer before your senior year. Keep in mind that it’s easier to write a standout essay with a unique topic.

If you want to write about a common essay topic, such as a sports injury or volunteer work overseas, think carefully about how you can make it unique and personal. You’ll need to demonstrate deep insight and write your story in an original way to differentiate it from similar essays.

What makes a good topic?

• Meaningful and personal to you
• Uncommon or has an unusual angle
• Reveals something different from the rest of your application

Brainstorming questions

You should do a comprehensive brainstorm before choosing your topic. Here are a few questions to get started:

• What are your top five values? What lived experiences demonstrate these values?
• What adjectives would your friends and family use to describe you?
• What challenges or failures have you faced and overcome? What lessons did you learn from them?
• What makes you different from your classmates?
• What are some objects that represent your identity, your community, your relationships, your passions, or your goals?
• Whom do you admire most? Why?
• What three people have significantly impacted your life? How did they influence you?

How to identify your topic

Here are two strategies for identifying a topic that demonstrates your values:

• Start with your qualities : First, identify positive qualities about yourself; then, brainstorm stories that demonstrate these qualities.
• Start with a story : Brainstorm a list of memorable life moments; then, identify a value shown in each story.

After choosing your topic, organize your ideas in an essay outline , which will help keep you focused while writing. Unlike a five-paragraph academic essay, there’s no set structure for a college admissions essay. You can take a more creative approach, using storytelling techniques to shape your essay.

Two common approaches are to structure your essay as a series of vignettes or as a single narrative.

Vignettes structure

The vignette, or montage, structure weaves together several stories united by a common theme. Each story should demonstrate one of your values or qualities and conclude with an insight or future outlook.

This structure gives the admissions officer glimpses into your personality, background, and identity, and shows how your qualities appear in different areas of your life.

Topic: Museum with a “five senses” exhibit of my experiences

• Introduction: Tour guide introduces my museum and my “Making Sense of My Heritage” exhibit
• Story: Racial discrimination with my eyes
• Lesson: Using my writing to document truth
• Story: Broadway musical interests
• Lesson: Finding my voice
• Story: Smells from family dinner table
• Lesson: Appreciating home and family
• Story: Washing dishes
• Lesson: Finding moments of peace in busy schedule
• Story: Biking with Ava
• Lesson: Finding pleasure in job well done
• Conclusion: Tour guide concludes tour, invites guest to come back for “fall College Collection,” featuring my search for identity and learning.

Single story structure

The single story, or narrative, structure uses a chronological narrative to show a student’s character development over time. Some narrative essays detail moments in a relatively brief event, while others narrate a longer journey spanning months or years.

Single story essays are effective if you have overcome a significant challenge or want to demonstrate personal development.

Topic: Sports injury helps me learn to be a better student and person

• Situation: Football injury
• Challenge: Friends distant, teachers don’t know how to help, football is gone for me
• Turning point: Starting to like learning in Ms. Brady’s history class; meeting Christina and her friends
• My reactions: Reading poetry; finding shared interest in poetry with Christina; spending more time studying and with people different from me
• Insight: They taught me compassion and opened my eyes to a different lifestyle; even though I still can’t play football, I’m starting a new game

Brainstorm creative insights or story arcs

Regardless of your essay’s structure, try to craft a surprising story arc or original insights, especially if you’re writing about a common topic.

Never exaggerate or fabricate facts about yourself to seem interesting. However, try finding connections in your life that deviate from cliché storylines and lessons.

Admissions officers read thousands of essays each year, and they typically spend only a few minutes reading each one. To get your message across, your introduction , or hook, needs to grab the reader’s attention and compel them to read more..

Avoid starting your introduction with a famous quote, cliché, or reference to the essay itself (“While I sat down to write this essay…”).

While you can sometimes use dialogue or a meaningful quotation from a close family member or friend, make sure it encapsulates your essay’s overall theme.

Find an original, creative way of starting your essay using the following two methods.

Option 1: Start with an intriguing hook

Begin your essay with an unexpected statement to pique the reader’s curiosity and compel them to carefully read your essay. A mysterious introduction disarms the reader’s expectations and introduces questions that can only be answered by reading more.

Option 2: Start with vivid imagery

Illustrate a clear, detailed image to immediately transport your reader into your memory. You can start in the middle of an important scene or describe an object that conveys your essay’s theme.

A college application essay allows you to be creative in your style and tone. As you draft your essay, try to use interesting language to enliven your story and stand out .

Show, don’t tell

“Tell” in writing means to simply state a fact: “I am a basketball player.” “ Show ” in writing means to use details, examples, and vivid imagery to help the reader easily visualize your memory: “My heart races as I set up to shoot一two seconds, one second一and score a three-pointer!”

First, reflect on every detail of a specific image or scene to recall the most memorable aspects.

• What are the most prominent images?
• Are there any particular sounds, smells, or tastes associated with this memory?
• What emotion or physical feeling did you have at that time?

Be vulnerable to create an emotional response

You don’t have to share a huge secret or traumatic story, but you should dig deep to express your honest feelings, thoughts, and experiences to evoke an emotional response. Showing vulnerability demonstrates humility and maturity. However, don’t exaggerate to gain sympathy.

Use appropriate style and tone

Make sure your essay has the right style and tone by following these guidelines:

• Use a conversational yet respectful tone: less formal than academic writing, but more formal than texting your friends.
• Prioritize using “I” statements to highlight your perspective.
• Write within your vocabulary range to maintain an authentic voice.
• Write concisely, and use the active voice to keep a fast pace.
• Follow grammar rules (unless you have valid stylistic reasons for breaking them).

You should end your college essay with a deep insight or creative ending to leave the reader with a strong final impression. Your college admissions essay should avoid the following:

• Summarizing what you already wrote
• Stating your hope of being accepted to the school
• Mentioning character traits that should have been illustrated in the essay, such as “I’m a hard worker”

Here are two strategies to craft a strong conclusion.

Option 1: Full circle, sandwich structure

The full circle, or sandwich, structure concludes the essay with an image, idea, or story mentioned in the introduction. This strategy gives the reader a strong sense of closure.

In the example below, the essay concludes by returning to the “museum” metaphor that the writer opened with.

Option 2: Revealing your insight

You can use the conclusion to show the insight you gained as a result of the experiences you’ve described. Revealing your main message at the end creates suspense and keeps the takeaway at the forefront of your reader’s mind.

Revise your essay before submitting it to check its content, style, and grammar. Get feedback from no more than two or three people.

It’s normal to go through several rounds of revision, but take breaks between each editing stage.

Also check out our college essay examples to see what does and doesn’t work in an essay and the kinds of changes you can make to improve yours.

Respect the word count

Most schools specify a word count for each essay , and you should stay within 10% of the upper limit.

Remain under the specified word count limit to show you can write concisely and follow directions. However, don’t write too little, which may imply that you are unwilling or unable to write a thoughtful and developed essay.

Check your content, style, and grammar

• First, check big-picture issues of message, flow, and clarity.
• Then, check for style and tone issues.
• Finally, focus on eliminating grammar and punctuation errors.

Get feedback

Get feedback from 2–3 people who know you well, have good writing skills, and are familiar with college essays.

• Teachers and guidance counselors can help you check your content, language, and tone.
• Friends and family can check for authenticity.
• An essay coach or editor has specialized knowledge of college admissions essays and can give objective expert feedback.

The checklist below helps you make sure your essay ticks all the boxes.

College admissions essay checklist

I’ve organized my essay prompts and created an essay writing schedule.

I’ve done a comprehensive brainstorm for essay topics.

I’ve selected a topic that’s meaningful to me and reveals something different from the rest of my application.

I’ve created an outline to guide my structure.

I’ve crafted an introduction containing vivid imagery or an intriguing hook that grabs the reader’s attention.

I’ve written my essay in a way that shows instead of telling.

I’ve shown positive traits and values in my essay.

I’ve demonstrated self-reflection and insight in my essay.

I’ve used appropriate style and tone .

I’ve concluded with an insight or a creative ending.

I’ve revised my essay , checking my overall message, flow, clarity, and grammar.

I’ve respected the word count , remaining within 10% of the upper word limit.

Congratulations!

It looks like your essay ticks all the boxes. A second pair of eyes can help you take it to the next level – Scribbr's essay coaches can help.

Colleges want to be able to differentiate students who seem similar on paper. In the college application essay , they’re looking for a way to understand each applicant’s unique personality and experiences.

Your college essay accounts for about 25% of your application’s weight. It may be the deciding factor in whether you’re accepted, especially for competitive schools where most applicants have exceptional grades, test scores, and extracurricular track records.

A standout college essay has several key ingredients:

• A unique, personally meaningful topic
• A memorable introduction with vivid imagery or an intriguing hook
• Specific stories and language that show instead of telling
• Vulnerability that’s authentic but not aimed at soliciting sympathy
• Clear writing in an appropriate style and tone
• A conclusion that offers deep insight or a creative ending

While timelines will differ depending on the student, plan on spending at least 1–3 weeks brainstorming and writing the first draft of your college admissions essay , and at least 2–4 weeks revising across multiple drafts. Don’t forget to save enough time for breaks between each writing and editing stage.

You should already begin thinking about your essay the summer before your senior year so that you have plenty of time to try out different topics and get feedback on what works.

Most college application portals specify a word count range for your essay, and you should stay within 10% of the upper limit to write a developed and thoughtful essay.

You should aim to stay under the specified word count limit to show you can follow directions and write concisely. However, don’t write too little, as it may seem like you are unwilling or unable to write a detailed and insightful narrative about yourself.

If no word count is specified, we advise keeping your essay between 400 and 600 words.

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How to Start Brainstorming For Your College Essays

Julia de Raadt

Head of research and lead admissions expert, table of contents, college essays.

Stay up-to-date on the latest research and college admissions trends with our blog team.

Our collaborative team of content writers and researchers stay up-to-date on the latest news to help you ace your applications. We hope you enjoy the blog.

Summer is the perfect time to start writing your college essays because college application season is right around the corner! The Empowerly Team understands how difficult writer’s block is, so we listed out some concrete steps for you to get started, and how to craft the perfect essay!

Here is how to get started

1. take time for introspection..

• Create a list of your top 10 values (quality relationships, honesty, growth…)
• Brainstorm your strengths and personality traits

2. Find inspiration.

• Read quotes. Good ones will help you consider your life meaning and achievement in a thoughtful way.
• Read other essays. Draw inspiration from others’ perspectives, frames, and storytelling devices.

3. Map out your story/life.

• Start with all the memorable events and activities in your life and then fill in more trivial details between.

4. Just start writing and let your ideas flow.

• Get them all down on paper. It’s okay if it comes out as a mind dump. You’ll edit it later!

5. Be honest.

• Write about what’s true to you, not what you think admissions officers want to read.
• Show that you are genuine in your writing.

6. Storytelling.

• This writing style keeps readers engaged.
• Use vivid imagery by appealing to visual senses.
• Convey emotions to bring the reader into your shoes.

7. Avoid clichés.

• Admissions officers will be reading hundreds, if not thousands, of college essays. Make sure yours stands out from the crowd, grabs their attention, and doesn’t use the same, tired clichés that they’ve probably read hundreds of times.

8. Support your claims with evidence.

• Don’t just say you like science. Show it with evidence from science fairs, competitions, internships, and other extracurriculars. Admissions officers want to see that you have the ability to find and demonstrate your passion.

9. Read your essay out loud.

• The end recipient is a human and reading it out loud can help you identify awkward sentences.
• It’s important to have others read your college essay and provide feedback.
• It’s also important to limit the number of people editing because you might lose your personal voice amidst many other opinions.

There you have it! I often find starting an essay, especially a college essay, to be the most difficult part. I hope these tips will ease the process and help you think of the college application process as an opportunity to just learn about yourself. If you want more personalized help, check out our services and set up a consultation to get started with Empowerly today.

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College apps can be overwhelming, but you don’t have to do it alone. empowerly college counseling is in it with you., related articles.

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How to Approach College Admissions Essays

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4 Values-Focused College Essay Brainstorming Exercises

When you’re writing your college essay , it’s a great idea to get a clearer, more specific sense of your personal values. Those values are what show who you are as an individual–what drives you–and what makes you the unique person you are. 

So first, if you haven’t already, make a list. You can use this 5-minute Values Exercise . It’s a key step to knowing what makes you tick–hum–act the way you do: things colleges want to know about you.

Now that you have the list, how do you weave those values into your essay? Ideally, you don’t want to just get listish with a common thesis statement such as “I value loyalty, persistence, and adventure.” You know you want to express something meaningful, but maybe your brain’s stalling on the how. You know you need to demonstrate those values with examples from your life, but maybe you don’t know what to say beyond, “This shows I have this value. Thanks–bye!” 

In other words, you need insight on those values. You need to go meta on your life.

These 4 brainstorming exercises will help you get some good distance on yourself, give you some meta revelations, and get you thinking deeply about your life experiences–all while having a little fun, too. 

You can try these exercises independently or find someone you trust–a teacher, friend, counselor, family member, classmate. See if your English teacher is open to using these activities in class. 

Check out the exercises

But first: what is insight.

Insight is the why of the what: not the details of your life themselves (though those are really important for your reader to understand you), but what those details taught you, how they shaped you, the reflection and commentary you provide as you present yourself to schools. This part of your writing is where you demonstrate your ability to reflect, show what makes you curious, and share what you’ve learned in life. The deeper you can make it, the better. 

One way to gain insight on your values is to get some perspective: stepping back from your life and trying to see your values from someone else’s point of view. 

Insight generally requires asking really good questions and being a bit of an investigative journalist about your life. These Why? queries might at first feel reminiscent of that insistent toddler you once were: Why is the sky blue? Why can't I take my stuffed animal? Why can’t I have more candy?

Only now you’re asking, Why do I value this part of my life? What do my activities, choices, challenges, and growth say about me and what I believe (and how I will thrive in college)?

In other words, insight is about finding your answers to the question So what? It’s about telling admission folks through your writing that you really do see the big picture, the Themes/Values of Your Life. 

You know how your English teacher seems to be always asking for more specific themes and thesis statements? That applies here too: if you can write down some unique statements about what you value, then you’re on your way to understanding yourself more deeply. We don’t mean vague lists; we mean taking those big words like LOYALTY, PERSISTENCE, and ADVENTURE and turning them into very specific characterizations about yourself, lines like this one in a model essay we use here at CEG:  

Deep down I was an East-Asian influenced bibliophile and a Young Adult fiction writer.

Maybe this student’s list-ish first draft went something like this?

I love books and writing, which means I value CURIOSITY, INTELLECT, EXPLORATION–and more! 

Or, here's another essay that sounds super-polished and insightful, but trust us, this final draft didn't begin with this cool statement of Theme. It took a while to discover this insight:

Was I an animal in a past life and that's why I feel close to them? Do I just enjoy the prospect of unspoken understanding, interpreting the complex, and actually succeeding? For many reasons, my connection and experiences with these animals have been a major part of shaping who I am today.

Maybe the first draft was a bit simpler, maybe an outline like this:

Quail taught me PATIENCE, lambs taught me TRUST, seahorses taught me about SCIENCE, and birds taught me about INTUITION and COMMUNICATION.

You can tell these students took a step back from themselves to reach these conclusions. You can tell they have a fresh angle on parts of their lives and discovered unique values, not typical ones.

To read more awesome essays, go here . 

To see other examples of insights concerning different values, go here .  

To do the Values Exercise (if you didn’t above), go here . 

Need a way to get some fresh angles going? Try these activities. 

Exercise 1: Host Your Own Values Podcast

Do you love podcasts or interviews? Do you have a skill, interest, AKA superpower, that you really love? This activity could be for you.

Independent Activity:

Pull out a journal or find another note-taking space and start jotting your answers to some of these questions.

Imagine you’ve been invited onto a podcast to talk about a niche interest or hobby you love.

Growing daffodils, doodling fae creatures, hiking steep inclines, crocheting baby blankets, baking the best cupcake, or collecting coins (that’s right, you’re a numismatist). Even though it’s all audio, no video, bring something tangible with you to this interview, a physical symbol of that interest or expertise. A flower, a doodle, a picture from a hike, a baby blanket, a cupcake liner, a coin. In other words, an Essence Object .

Write down 3 interview questions you want to be asked about this hobby or activity. 

They could be how-to and why questions, allowing you to talk about the expertise you have and the joy you find in the specifics of your favorite thing. They can also be the 7 who-what-when-where-why-how questions, classic journalism questions.

Next, answer these questions for the podcaster:

What skills of mine does this activity show? For example, if you sell vintage coins on eBay, you might say, “I flex my business savvy when dealing with customers on eBay, knowing when to hold firm on certain prices and when to negotiate.” Or if you garden, you might say, “I know from all my reading and talking to other gardeners when and how to grow a healthy crop of calendula and how to create healing salves and medicinal tea.”

How does this activity showcase a skill I bring to other activities in my life? You might say, “I bring my business savvy to helping my mom at her food truck. When she’s dealing with a difficult or demanding customer, I give her ideas on how to respond.” Or, “I bring my research skills to my AP History class, where I wowed my teacher last month with my report on medieval medicine.”

Look at the values you brainstormed for the Values Exercise . What does this activity show that I value? About people, places, things? Feelings? How many different values does this hobby contain?

Bonus if you can pick less common values, ones that someone wouldn’t at first associate with your interest. Example: Being a numismatist means I need COURAGE and EMPATHY. Then connect those dots! “Though I get nervous before I put anything up for sale, wondering if buyers older than me will not trust my prices, I remind myself to be strong and that I’ve done my homework.” What about EMPATHY–can you make that connection for this numismatist?

Get really specific. What specific action, strategy, tip, move, approach of this interest or hobby shows your value in action? 

For example, you might say, “My eBay business shows I love connecting with other numismatists and analyzing the values of different coins.” (Values: CONNECTION and ANALYSIS)

Answer any questions you brought to your interview.

Partner or group activity:

Share your hobby or interest with each other. Take turns interviewing each other.

Remember, no activity is too niche or too small! 

Develop 2 questions that ask about the values this hobby exhibits, and ask the interviewee to explore less common connections. 

If the interviewee can’t, then suggest to each other what skills, needs, and values you see in the other person’s interest. Give each other some perspective.  

Now get writing

Write one paragraph of your essay where you connect the dots between the specific example of your activity to give insight about your expertise. Take the notes above and satisfy the journalist hovering over your shoulder, wanting to know how this activity shows certain kinds of values in your expertise, and why this expertise matters in other parts of your life. Show an admissions officer the types of skills, interests, and values you will be bringing to campus. 

Exploring your superpower can lead to a great essay. Check out this student’s college essay on the skill or superpower of translating . 

Worried that your interest is too niche, too odd, or too superficial? Unlikely. Check out how this student handled the subject of her love of makeup .

Exercise 2: Review Your Favorite Show

Do you love a certain show? This activity could be for you.

List your top five shows of all time.

Pick one moment and one person that’s memorable —whoever immediately comes to mind in your favorite show will work. 

Make a list of values these characters have. 

Do you relate to any particular person or situation? Craft an analogy. “I am so like — [ insert character name ] of — [ show name ] because we both value… [ insert values] . Like the time when they…. And the time when I….” (Be sure to fill in these last blanks with very specific examples.) 

What do you value about these shows? Do an analysis and get real specific.

Let’s say you love laughing. You value HUMOR, right? Now make a list of 5 reasons why you laugh. Then see if each connects to a different value than HUMOR. Maybe you love the element of SURPRISE. Maybe you love IRONY–how the opposite of what’s expected always seems to happen. Maybe you love physical comedy of one actor, which is their ATHLETICISM. 

Or what if you’re fascinated in the same way that psychologists, anthropologists, social scientists, or philosophers are by human behavior? (You never know, you might study reality TV one day like Danielle J. Lindemann did .) What can you conclude about human behavior using one of these disciplines? 

What’s another way–specific activity–you express this value in your life? Connect the dots between the favorite show and something else you do. Whoa. You just wrote a transition! 

List all the shows you would drive or travel anywhere to audition for. Then explain why with a sentence that says, 

“I’d audition for this show because I value….“

“One example proving that I value … is….” 

Bonus: Come up with a show idea that is driven by one of your top 5 values from the Values Exercise . If you’re having fun, write the first lines of that awesome script and start taking auditions!

By the way, the goal is not to write your college essay about your favorite shows, but to use your favorite shows as a way to deepen your understanding of your values. Using a favorite show as the main topic of your essay is a really tough thing to pull off–not that it can’t be done!—but we don’t advise making that your first move.

Partner or Group Activity: 

Name your favorite show for each other and interview each other using these questions:

What’s one favorite character and one favorite moment?

What values does the character seem to have?

Do you relate to any particular person or situation? Fill in the blanks: “I am so like [ insert character name ] of — [ show name ] because we both value… [ insert values] . Like the time when they…. And the time when I….” (Be sure to fill in these last blanks with very specific examples.) 

What’s another way–specific activity–you express this value in your life? Connect the dots between the favorite show and something else you do.

Would you audition for this show? Why or why not? What does that say about your values?

What idea do you have for a show driven by one of your top 5 values? 

Prompt your partner(s) to say more about values, using personal examples from their lives to prove the value exists. 

Jot down all the best ideas you share about yourself.

Write one paragraph of your essay where you connect the dots between a specific example of your favorite show to demonstrate insight about the values the show expresses and then also to your own life. Take the notes above and satisfy the psychologist, anthropologist, social scientist, or philosopher in you, wanting to know why this shows matters and how you exemplify the same value in things you do. Show an admissions officer that your intellect is always buzzing, making connections between even what seems like nothing but entertainment to the choices and activities of your daily life. 

Exercise 3: Pitch Your Own Docuseries

Do you love documentaries and biographies? This could be for you. 

Biographies of famous folks have recurring themes as well as plot twists and turns. What you’re going to do is take your list of values and write some ideas, brainstorming about how your documentary or biography might look, if you had a few episodes or chapters, each focused on a value. Your goal is to experiment, dream, and imagine—not write an entire script.

Follow these steps:

1. For each of your top 5 values, write down two or three events in your life that show how that value influenced the decisions you made. 

For example: “Episode or Chapter 1: ADAPTABILITY. 

“That time when I had to adjust to the fact that all my friends were trying out for varsity sports while I wanted to go into the arts instead. I made new friends in theater, one of whom is my best friend now.”

When my dad moved out, I started helping my mom with cooking, which is what my dad used to do, and learned how to make a great lasagna.”

Tell anecdotes from each moment, as if you were narrating. 

2. End each anecdote with something like, “It was then I realized that—[ name the value ] was important in my life.”

For example: “When I became friends with Julia during our production of Into the Woods , she taught me how to really listen to your scene partner on stage. It was then I realized how adaptable you have to be on stage, just like I was adapting to the fact it was time to make new friends.”

For example: “When I became our family chef, I had to be flexible and learn new recipes. I even had to be patient and listen to my little sister’s annoying requests for hotdogs and other foods I don’t like to eat. It was then I realized the importance of adaptability in tough situations.” 

3. Write down what a narrator, a la Morgan Freeman, who steps back to talk about you and your values in the third person, would say.

Tell us what this narrator says by having the person say things like (which you finish):

“You can see the value of ____________ in _________’s life when they chose to…”

“Note how __________ lives by the value of ___________ when they…”

In other words, What values does this more distant narrator see happening in your life? How is this narrator connecting the dots for you? 

4. Now try writing a logline.

With movies and screenwriting, loglines are key to summing things up so writers, marketers, others can pitch and sell the story. In one to three sentences, you can explain the events of your life and the values that direct your choices. Look at how the word “sacrifice” is one of those value words in Infinity War’s logline : 

“The Avengers and their allies must be willing to sacrifice all in an attempt to defeat the powerful Thanos before his blitz of devastation and ruin puts an end to the universe.”  

How many values do you see there? What other key words signal values? Besides SACRIFICE, do you see hints of

FRIENDSHIP? ALLYSHIP??

Check out one from a student who used their desk as the focusing topic: “This desk I sit at has not only seen me through the last six years, but its story and the story of the objects I keep on it provide a foundation for my future pursuits."

See what your logline leads you to see. 

Partner or Group Activity:

Trade roles of documentary narrator and be sure to use values as your analytical lens, as your transitions, and as your summary. 

Write one paragraph of your essay about a value, where you take the notes from your episode or chapter brainstorming and form them into a new draft of a paragraph. Make sure to include both the details of what happened and also the insight on the values you exemplified in this moment of your life. 

Or, try starting the essay with a logline. The logline might not survive the next draft, but that’s okay: using this focusing pitch and summary of the entire essay is an important step to understanding what you’re trying to communicate about your values and your identity. 

Exercise 4: Make a Grand Statement:

“my life is/is the opposite of …” or “my life is a hybrid of…”.

Do you thrive on opposites? Do you tend to resist things that follow a formula, style, or fashion? Do you like going against what’s popular or what’s trending? 

Pick your favorite type, box, category, or trope and insist on your opposition to it. Or, declare yourself a new type by naming how you are a hybrid, a mashup, or a remix of different styles of music, art, games, sports, etc. Take your favorites and blend them. 

Pull out a journal or find another note-taking space and start jotting your answers to some of the below questions.

Need some ideas? Answer these questions first: Describe your life story in contrast to these types of stories by finishing these sentences:. 

My life is the opposite of a rom com because….

My life is the opposite of [insert band name or music genre] because…

My life is the opposite of a Disney movie because…

My life is the opposite of a sports documentary because…

My life is the opposite of a reality talent show because…

My life is the opposite of [insert movie title] because…

My life is the opposite of [insert game] because…

Now write a scene from your life, a moment of “opposite” to the category you defy. It doesn’t have to be a long story–it can be under 5 sentences–but it should have some convincing specifics. For example:

“My life is the opposite of a rom com because I have all the embarrassment and none of the romantic payoff. In other words, I am the kid who is full of unrequited love and then when I get a chance to talk to the person I crush on, I fall apart with nervousness, walk into lockers–and then nothing happens. There’s no neat wrap-up or happy ending.” 

“My life is the opposite of a Disney movie because there is no sing-able soundtrack where everything rhymes. I see a lot of random in my life, a lot of coincidence, and a lot of surprises. There’s no clear evil and no clear good. There’s no fairy godmother or wise elder who shows up to give me advice.”

Then write a values observation. It goes like this, “The fact that my life is the opposite of…is evidence that I value…” For example:

“The fact that I see my life is the opposite of rom coms is evidence that I value SELF-AWARENESS and REALISM. I am not going to be that friend who pretends there’s going to be a prom-proposal for you or me. Instead, I will be the friend who says, ‘What else can we do on prom? Something cool? Because I’m not waiting around for a date.’”

“The fact that I see my life is the opposite of a Disney movie is evidence that I value surprises. I am a person who is quite flexible. I am the person you come to if you want to talk about gray, not black and white. I am Mr. Nuance.” (SURPRISE, FLEXIBILITY, NUANCE) 

Take turns sharing your Grand Statements , then share your reactions as a listener. 

Focus on what intrigued you, and ask clarifying questions.

These can be as simple as, “Tell me more about…” so that your partner shares some good examples. 

Take turns asking each other to fill in the blanks: “The fact that I see my life as opposite of ….is evidence that I value ….”

Take the notes above and make one of them a paragraph in your essay. Connect the dots between other parts of your essay and this insight into your opposite quality. Are you showing how you’re diverse or unique in other ways, elsewhere? Then make that connection. 

Are you ready to take your essay topic meta? Do you have some ideas now on how to get some distance on your life, show some insight, and better frame your values?

That’s the goal here: getting perspective, getting the big picture, and figuring out your answers to So What?  

Written by Lyn Fairchild Hawks, founder of Success Story essay consulting . Lyn is a graduate of Stanford University and the Vermont College of Fine Arts program in Writing for Children and Young Adults. She loves helping students tell cinematic, insightful stories. She is also the author of young adult novels, short stories, and books for educators, including lessons for teaching Shakespeare. For 15 years she designed and ran online programs for gifted youth at Duke University and prior to that, served as a high school and middle school English teacher. She lives in Chapel Hill, NC.

How to Optimize College Essay Brainstorming Sessions

Avoid the Blinking Cursor

One of the biggest obstacles to getting started is the fear of failure. You might keep picturing your audience, a grumpy and bespectacled admissions officer, holding a rubber stamp that reads DENIED. When you brainstorm, try to keep the focus on  you . Don’t think ahead to future readers, but rather concentrate on the immediacy of your own voice and ideas. It can be useful to avoid brainstorming in Word or any software that has overly formal connotations. Try generating thoughts in gmail (address an email to yourself), or as an Instagram post, or with pen and paper.

Get Out of the House

Familiarity breeds procrastination. It’s all too easy to avoid even a freewrite session by rewatching the  Pride and Prejudice  miniseries (all six hours!) while boomeranging your best brooding face. But when you leave the house, you send a clear signal to your brain that you have every intention of writing ( look, brain, we are doing this).  A change in scenery also sparks new ideas. It helps you get unstuck by putting you in contact with the unexpected. Imagine you’re brainstorming in a coffee shop when a man sits next to you with a giant deck of cards and a wand. Suddenly, the word  magician  appears in your freewrite, and you’re making surprise connections between cheerleading practice and pulling a rabbit out of a hat.

Capture the Moment

Don’t be afraid to brainstorm outside of an official brainstorming session. If you’re hanging out at the pool with friends, and an interesting phrase or image pops into your head, give yourself permission to jot it down in a notebook or talk into your phone like an unhinged detective. Current social media is geared towards preserving immediacy; there’s no reason to believe you shouldn’t also try to capture the incipient moment of an amazing essay. Forget about complete sentences and revised paragraphs. Effective brainstorming can be as simple as a list.

Embrace Uncertainty

One of my favorite authors, the novelist E.L. Doctorow, once said in an interview that “Writing is like driving at night in the fog. You can only see as far as your headlights, but you can make the whole trip that way.” We live by scheduling and structure. Our days are often mapped out down to the minute. But the brainstorming process is a welcome opportunity to relinquish control. In fact, a successful brainstorming session is one in which you are surprised by the outcome. You might look back over your notes and ask yourself, “How did I get from astronomy club to wisdom teeth extraction?” In the early stages of writing your essay, before you even a topic, you needn’t worry about destination; it’s all about the journey.

About Becca Myers

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Category: Admissions , advice , Brainstorming , College Admissions , Essay Tips , Essay Writing , Productivity , Quick Tips , Tips , Uncategorized

Tags: brainstorm , brainstorming , brainstorming tips , college essay advice , college essay advising , college essay brainstorming , college essay help , college essay hunt , college essay ideas , college essay topic , college essay topics , finding the perfect topic , finding your perfect topic

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Last updated December 6, 2023

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Blog > Common App , Essay Advice > 25 College Essay Brainstorming Questions

25 College Essay Brainstorming Questions

Admissions officer reviewed by Ben Bousquet, M.Ed Former Vanderbilt University

Written by Ben Bousquet, M.Ed Former Vanderbilt University Admissions

Key Takeaway

If you’re in the process of starting your college essay, you know how hard it is to come up with a good topic.

Should you go the lighthearted, humorous route? Or should you reveal something serious about yourself? Of all your experiences, how do you know the best one to write about? 

Worse, how do you know if your idea is cliche? Or, alternatively, what if you’ve tried too hard to be unique?

And with all the conflicting advice out there about what should and shouldn’t be in a college essay, the process gets even more confusing.

But there’s a foolproof method to cut through the noise and find a college essay topic that’s right for you.

It all starts with a brainstorming exercise.

Let’s get into it.

What is brainstorming?

Have you ever tried to turn nothing into something? It’s almost like writing defies the laws of physics. But that’s what you have to do when you come up with a topic.

Brainstorming helps you get there. It is a type of pre-writing process. We call it a “brainstorm” because it’s a way to corral the thought tornado that’s spinning out of control in your brain.

Like its counterpart “free writing,” brainstorming is a place for anything and everything. It’s a chance for you to do a brain dump and get your thoughts on to paper.

Brainstorming is the main way writers go from no ideas to lots of ideas in a short amount of time. It also saves you time and effort in the long run because it helps you weed out all the bad ideas before you waste your time trying to write an essay around them.

When you brainstorming, you’ve got two goals: 1) identify the thoughts that come to you, and 2) write them down. Some people do image-based mind maps, others create linear outlines, and others have their own individual processes altogether.

Today, your brainstorming process will consist of answering some pointed questions to get you thinking about the best college essay topics for you.

How do you brainstorm a college essay?

Brainstorming your college essay is an essential step because your essay topic determines how much an admissions officer is able to learn about you.

Picture yourself as an admissions officer. You’ve already read 25 applications today, and now you’re on your 26th. You flip to the essay, and you see immediately that it’s an essay about winning a soccer tournament. You’ve already read three essays about soccer tournaments today. Hopeful, you proceed through the essay. To your dismay, the essay’s message—that hard work and determination will get you far in life—is almost exactly the same as the previous three. The soccer essays start to blend together, and you can’t quite remember whose is whose.

That’s the problem with overused, cliche, and surface-level topics. They aren’t interesting or memorable. Because they remain on the surface of who you are, they don’t tell an admissions officer the information they need to know to admit you.

Instead, we believe that all college essays should revolve around one of your core strengths.

A core strength is an inherent and positive trait, talent, or characteristic that shapes how you live in the world.

Here are a few examples:

• Social intelligence
• Intellectual curiosity
• Passion for justice
• Positive outlook

Whether your strength is your wisdom, entrepreneurial spirit, compassion, or problem-solving skills, your college essay should reflect a strength that makes you you.

Because the purpose of a college essay is to help you get admitted to college. (If you need a refresher on the ins and outs of college essays, look to our How to Write a College Essay guide.) Writing an essay that speaks to your strengths gives admissions officers more reasons to admit you.

A strengths-based essay will help them get to know the real you, and they’ll be able to envision how your strengths will contribute to their college community. It’s all about crafting a cohesive application narrative .

So when it comes to brainstorming, you need to think of topic ideas that accomplish two tasks:

Showcase one (or two) of your core strengths.

Give admissions officers meaningful and vulnerable insight into who you are.

Much easier said than done, right? That’s where brainstorming comes in.

Brainstorming relieves the pressure of getting it right the first time. It helps you compile and sort through all your memories, experiences, strengths, and values until you find one that works.

Let’s talk about the college essay brainstorming exercise.

Brainstorming Exercise Breakdown

To help you brainstorm college essay topic ideas that are strengths-based and meaningful, we’ve put together a list of questions.

These questions come from some of the most common college essay topics. They aren’t essay prompts, and they’re not intended to be the question from which you write your final college essay.

Instead, they are leading questions that will get you thinking about what strengths you have and how they show up in your life. You’ll be able to use your answers as a starting point to find your topic and write your first draft.

Feel free to copy and paste these questions into a word processor and answer each of them in turn. Or answer only the ones that call to you the most. Write down as much or as little as you want for each, but try to focus on concrete experiences and genuine reflections.

We’ll go over a couple of examples, but let’s first look at the questions.

25 Brainstorming Questions

• What are your biggest strengths? Why?
• If you could only choose one topic to talk about for the rest of your life, what would it be?
• Have you traveled? If so, what did you do or learn?
• If you could choose any meal to represent you, what would it be and why?
• What is the most interesting part of your daily life?
• Describe a time when you felt inexperienced at something.
• Is there a question about the universe that keeps you up at night?
• Where do you feel most at home?
• What’s the most sensory experience you’ve ever had?
• Have you had a job? What was your most memorable experience? What did you learn?
• What’s the funniest thing that’s happened to you?
• Write about a time when you felt out of place.
• Are there any social issues you’re passionate about? If so, what have you done to contribute to the cause?
• Finish this sentence: “I feel most creative when I…”
• Write about your most memorable classroom experience.
• Describe a time when you felt like you genuinely helped someone.
• What would your friends say is your greatest strength? What would your family say is your greatest strength?
• What role do you play when working in a group or team?
• What’s the most profound thing that’s happened to you?
• Are you a leader? If so, how, when, and in what parts of your life?
• What about yourself makes you proud?
• Explain the hardest problem you’ve ever solved.
• Picture yourself at 90 years old, nice and wrinkly. What would your 90-year-old self say about who you are today?
• What are three things you know to be true?
• What motivates you?

Is your brain storming yet?

To take your answers a step further, you can also ask yourself a bonus follow-up question. For each question you answer, consider this: How does what you’ve written here connect to one of your core strengths? Which core strength is it?

Brainstorm Example

Now on to the examples. Notice how each response has an associated core strength. The question responses are free-form. Not every idea they include will be usable, and grammar and organization don’t matter at all. Each response includes good sensory details and lots of ideas about what comes to mind for each question.

#14) Finish this sentence: “I feel most creative when I…”

Core strength: Creativity

I feel most creative when I play my cello. I love practicing and listening to my metronome and trying to figure out the difficult passages. It’s like a mixture of science and art. Playing in an orchestra really moves me because of the way the music comes alive and you can feel everyone’s art coming together to make new art. But my solo recitals are my favorite. I love being on stage in front of a crowd and getting to share my art with them, especially when I come up with a creative take on a classic piece. I used to hate recitals but ever since I changed my perspective from fear of failure to making art, I’ve learned to enjoy them more.

#8) Where do you feel most at home?

Core strength: Compassion

I feel most at home in my grandma’s kitchen. It always smells of freshly-baked bread, and everything has a slight but permanent dusting of flour. I feel at home there because that’s where I learned to do my favorite hobby: baking. My grandma taught me everything I know about how to bake. Nothing says “home” like a warm chocolate chip cookie with a little bit of sea salt. My grandma is my favorite person and she’s always inspired me. Now that she’s unable to bake for herself, I bake for her. Her kitchen is my office. I know every inch of the kitchen like the back of my hand. I’m learning new baking tricks on YouTube, and I tell her all about them when I visit after school. She’s taught and given me so much, so I just want to return the favor.

See how easy that was? They’re quick answers that are rich with description and ideas. When you write your own, it’ll be the kindling for your college essay.

When you’re ready, go through each question that calls to you and write down exactly what comes to mind. From there, you’ll have a list of topics to choose from.

Key Takeways

Now it’s your turn. Copy and paste the questions to get started. We use a similar brainstorming process with all the students we work with, and it’s a surefire way to find the right college essay topic for you. Once your brainstorm is done, check out the college essay writing guide or the Essay Academy to transform your brainstorm from a rough topic to a full-blown essay.

Liked that? Try this next.

The Incredible Power of a Cohesive College Application

How to Write a College Essay (Exercises + Examples)

12 Common App Essay Examples (Graded by Former Admissions Officers)

How to Write Supplemental Essays that Will Impress Admissions Officers

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Articles & Advice > College Admission > Articles

5 Fun and Unique Ways to Brainstorm Your College Essays

It's time to write your application essays, and these five brainstorming games are going to help you do it. Try them out by yourself or with friends now!

by Jessica Rinker CollegeXpress Student Writer

Last Updated: Sep 27, 2023

Originally Posted: May 30, 2016

You’ve listened to college search lectures in high school, taken notes in English class, and chatted with your counselor. Your workspace at home is all set up you’re your laptop or notebook, a drink to stay hydrated, and a snack to fuel your thoughts. You’ve even read the essay writing how-to’s and now you need to choose a prompt, brainstorm, write, proofread, and submit. Basically, you just have to do it.

There’s only one problem: You’re not doing it. You want to write your application essay, but you stare at a blank page and that blinking, mocking curser. You have writer’s block, quite possibly from the anxiety of writing this essay that’s going to determine your future. Here are five stress-free ways to get your brain working and ideas flowing when starting your college essay.

1. The group essay party

This group activity helps you get inspired by others’ words and have fun exploring your own. Print out some essay prompts. Include both the Common Application prompts and some prompts directly from colleges. Create two piles in front of the writers: a Common Application prompt pile and a college prompt pile. Place the prompts face down. Writers must choose one from each pile and choose which to write about first. The challenge is the writers must find some way to address the prompts, even if it seems silly or they would never choose that prompt in real life.

Set a timer for 10 minutes and everyone should just write anything that comes to mind , then repeat for the second prompt. When time is up, read essays aloud or pass papers around the circle. Focus on what’s good about other’s work, like a line that stands out or a clever angle for a story. Then, everyone takes the positive critiques to implement into a real first draft. Ultimately, you’ll be able to choose the essay prompt that fits you when the time comes, but this game fosters out-of-the-box thinking by considering questions you might have discarded otherwise. Who knows? Your least favorite prompt may inspire your best essay!

2. The vocal essay

Often a great essay is right on the tip of your tongue, but your hands and brain don't cooperate. When that happens, abandon your hands, and use your voice instead. After all, prompts are questions from college admission officers. Answer them as if in conversation with them! Record a voice memo or video that articulates your feelings and goals verbally. Then transcribe what you said onto your piece of paper. From there, just rewrite and edit to make it work in an essay format. Once you get the ball rolling, there will be no stopping you.

Related: How to Make a College Application Video That Will Impress

3. The shapeshifter POV

Have trouble writing about yourself? Then don’t. Let something else do it for you: Choose something central to who you are—it could be a pair of dance shoes, a baseball bat, or a book. You could also choose a place, like a studio, the dugout, or the library. It can be anything that connects to you to the prompt you’re attempting to respond to . Then, write from the perspective of that thing in your life. When a senior at my high school was asked to write about her future ambitions, she wrote from the perspective of a microphone to depict her passion for performing. This is a great exercise for students who enjoy creative writing because you can use your imagination to uncover a real part of yourself.

4. The time traveler

This brainstorming game is great for essay prompts that ask for lessons you’ve learned, challenges you’ve overcome, or a moment you have to grow up. Instead of using college prompts to generate ideas, you’re going to just think of a memory to begin a story. Ask yourself, “When was the first time I really stopped and thought about something being wrong or right?” or “If I had a memoir what childhood memory would need to be in there?” The flashback to your childhood provides an anecdote that will entice the readers to read more and give you a story to ground your lessons of growth in.

5. The twinning

With this brainstorming technique, all you need to do is read college essays from students who were accepted to college. Not only will they give you an idea of what colleges want, but they can also inspire you to uncover your own story. Consider the tone, approach, and length of each essay. Notice the various angles and voices you can differentiate between them. A successful essay can be funny or serious, direct or abstract. For instance, The Beard , an essay about adulthood, is entwined with a whimsical anecdote of a high school senior’s pride in his first “real” beard.

Related: Admission Granted: Examples of Successful College Application Essays, Volume I

At any rate, applying to college feels overwhelming for every high schooler at times, especially when it comes to the essay. Even as someone who has read a lot about writing a quality application essay, I had trouble starting mine. It’s so easy to put it off in an effort to avoid the stress, but speed writing the night before the application is due does not produce a quality essay—and it’s way more stressful. Procrastination collects anxiety interest and when payments are due, it’s not pretty.

The best time to start your college application essay is your junior year before you really start the official application process. This way you have plenty of time for a few drafts and an opportunity for a teacher to read it too. Then, when you are ready to apply to your schools, you already have an essay to turn in (or at least practice writing one!).

Whether it's with your friends or on your own, find your first words and just keep going! Explore our College Admission  section for more help nailing your application essays.

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•   Best Ways to Prepare for 5 Different Supplemental Essays
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Brainstorming for College Essays

Introduction

As the number of college applications submitted each year continues to grow exponentially and competition stiffens among the thousands of high- achieving students seeking admission, it has become increasingly important for applications to illustrate a complete, holistic picture of themselves. That has put a great deal of emphasis on the essays, which indeed, are vital pieces of the puzzle. While your grades, test scores, and extracurricular activities begin to show who you are on paper, the personal statement essay and other supplemental essays bring you into three-dimensional form for college admissions officers. The essays are your chance to make your voice heard and if executed properly, will help colleges determine whether you are a good fit for their university.

Please Note: This guide is intended to help you brainstorm and begin writing your college essays. This is a part part detailed guide. This is the first part, the other three parts are below:

• Part 2: The Perfect College Essay Structure
• Part 3: Sample College Essays
• Part 4:  Supplemental College Essays

Through exercises, worksheets, and discussions of sample essays, my hope is that by the end of this course, you will have in-depth knowledge of what colleges want to see in your essays, at least one or two (and hopefully more) essay ideas, and a solid start to your first draft.

To get the most out of this course, take your time with the exercises and the overall process. A large part of writing a successful essay is self-exploration and self-reflection. Another large part is understanding that an outstanding application essay requires thought, patience, lots of rewriting, and more rewriting. But most of all, you can and should have fun with this. You get to write about you and the things that interest and move you.

Enjoy the process!

2020 Common App Essay Prompts

The Common Application, known as the Common App ( commonapp.org ), is accepted by close to 900 schools, and will likely be the main tool you use for applying to schools. It allows you to compile all your information in one  place and easily disseminate it to the colleges of your choice. Other alternatives include the Coalition Application and applying directly using the school’s own application, but for this course, we will focus on the more popular Common App. Once you’ve written the essay for the Common App, it can be easily adapted to fit other applications.

On the essay portion of the Common App, you will be required by most colleges to answer one of the prompts in 650 words or less.

The 2020-2021 Common Application Essay Prompts are: ‍

• 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?
• Describe a problem you solved or a problem you like to solve. It can be an intellectual challenge, a research query, an ethical dilemma - anything that is of personal importance, no matter the scale. Explain its significance to you and what steps you took or could be taken to identify a solution.
• 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 already written, one that responds to a different prompt, or one of your own design.

Which prompt should you choose?

Unless bells and whistles went off when you read a particular prompt because you’re certain you have the perfect story that fits it, then don’t worry about choosing just yet. It’s best to start with your brainstorming and then decide if you have an idea that matches a prompt. Meanwhile, the Common App gave students a gift when they added prompt number seven a few years ago, allowing you to submit any kind of essay on any topic. So, if your idea does not accurately and completely answer a certain prompt (which it must do), then play it safe and choose the last “freebie” option.

What are colleges looking for in your essay?

Before beginning your brainstorming and drafting, it’s important that you have a clear understanding of what kinds of things you should be communicating through your essay. The college admissions officers reading your essay can learn a lot about you through your words, overall theme, and depth of thought. The story you choose to tell is merely the backdrop and framework for a bigger picture. Your ultimate objective is to create a portrait of yourself in 650 words or less that shows your persona, unique aspects of your character, and why and how you will contribute to a university community.

For example, your essay can show colleges that you are:

• Intellectually curious about the world you live in Introspective
• Someone who takes initiative Motivated
• Hard working Creative Compassionate
• Someone who will contribute ideas, service, collaborative efforts, leadership
• Someone who brings a unique perspective or cultural experience An innovator
• Someone who loves to learn (even beyond school subjects) Committed (to a cause, to family, to friends, a belief, etc.) Able to adapt to new environments, overcome challenges

While these are the types of qualities colleges often want to see in students, this is not an exhaustive list and it doesn’t mean that you should fabricate or embellish information to fit into one of these categories.

THE MOST IMPORTANT THING FOR YOU TO DO IN YOUR ESSAY IS TO BE AUTHENTIC! ! Colleges want to know who you are and that you’ve taken the time to personally reflect on who you are and who you desire to be.

So let’s start with an exercise that will help you with that reflection process and uncover some of your personal qualities that could shine through in your essay.

Worksheet 1:  Self-Exploration

Part 2: Ask 2 other people (a parent, relative, or friend) for 3 adjectives they would use to describe some of your character/personality traits. Record them below

Worksheet 2: Self-Exploration

For this next section, set aside at least 30 minutes when you will be undisturbed and can give your full attention to contemplating each question. Remember to answer genuinely and not from the perspective of what you “think” colleges want to hear. Take your time and write as much as you can to fully answer the questions. Sometimes the best nuggets/ideas/revelations come toward the end after you’ve gotten some of your initial thoughts down on paper. Use a separate paper or document to record your answers if needed.

• What do you love to do so much that when you’re doing it, you lose track of time?
• How are you unique or different in some way? Maybe you have a unique perspective, belong to a certain culture or group, or have a unique hobby.
• What moves you? What makes you angry? Or joyful? Why?
• What do you want colleges to know about you that they won’t find on the rest of the application?
• What is your superpower? What superpower do you wish you had?
• What is your ultimate goal in getting a college education? (be honest)
• What/how would you contribute to a college community? (think broadly here – could be a diverse perspective, cultural tradition, friendship, collaboration, leadership, new ideas, school spirit, etc.)
• What positive impact do you hope to have on others/society?

Worksheet 3: Creating Your Personal Purpose Statement

Now, using your adjectives from Worksheet 1 and the answers in Worksheet 2, let’s create a Personal Purpose Statement. You can actually create more than one statement if you feel you can’t narrow yourself down to one. The idea is to loosely define the kind of person you are and what you hope to achieve. It can serve as a guiding vision of what you want to communicate through your essay.

Complete the following statement:

I am a _____________, ______________, and _______________ person who loves _________________ and hopes to make a difference/impact by _______________.

Example: I am a kind, outgoing, and funny person who loves to make people laugh and hopes to make a difference/impact by creating uplifting comedic productions and/or therapies that will help people heal from trauma

In this example, the student might decide that their essay should display their sense of humor because that’s one of their unique personality traits. Maybe they can talk about how humor has healed them in some way. Keep in mind that your essay should “show” rather then “tell.” So you wouldn’t just say, “I’m funny and make people laugh.” You’d write an essay that perhaps make the reader chuckle or talks about a humorous situation or a time you made someone laugh or did something silly.

This Personal Purpose Statement can serve as an anchor for you as you move through the essay process. Return to it often to make sure you are communicating these core ideas in your essays. You may even want to check your overall application to review if it is reflecting these important qualities. 

Ideas For Your Essay

Again, make sure you have some quiet time and space without distractions. For this exercise, refer back to your Personal Purpose Statement from Worksheet 3. You may want to have Worksheets 1 and 2 on hand as well for added inspiration.

The next step is to come up with some stories/personal experiences that relate to your Personal Purpose Statement since these are the main things you want the colleges to know about you. Below you’ll find some questions to help guide you in brainstorming and mining your memory for ideas. It can also be helpful to ask family members for stories they might remember about you. Keep in mind you want to be honest and vulnerable and while you may reference things from your childhood, colleges are interested mainly in events that have impacted you during or just before your high school years.

Using our previous sample statement, “I am a kind, outgoing, and funny person who loves to make people laugh and hopes to make a difference/impact by creating uplifting comedic productions and/or therapies that will help people heal from trauma,” the student should think of personal experiences that demonstrate that they are kind, outgoing, or funny, as well as events and people that inspired them. For instance, maybe they’ve volunteered cheering up young children who are ill. In this case, they could tell a story about a certain child they interacted with who had a particular impact on them.

Okay, your turn.

Answer the following questions based on your Personal Purpose Statement:

Note: If you don’t have an answer directly related to your statement, answer the question anyway as best as you can. Every bit of information is helpful!

• What stories or experiences have I had that demonstrate the adjectives that describe me in my statement?
• Do I have any interests, hobbies, passions that relate to the statement? Is there a moment when I was doing those things that changed me, made me think differently, learn something, or choose to be or do things a certain way?
• What led me to know that this was how I wanted to make an impact? Try to zero in on the smaller moments or feelings that might have influenced you – hearing a friend’s personal story, a dog licking you in the face, some hurtful words you never forgot.
• Is there a person who inspired me to be this way or helped me know I wanted to pursue a certain path?
• What has been my greatest challenge/obstacle and how did I overcome it? Did it help create who I am or was I able to get through it because of who I am?
• What have I learned about myself over the last five years? What have I proven to myself? How did my personal characteristics contribute to this or were they created or changed somehow? Is there a story that demonstrates this?
• What have been my biggest accomplishments (not necessarily academic or school related)? What did they teach me? Is there a story you can use without bragging about the accomplishment that shows how you were transformed in some way? For instance, maybe you started a club to help homeless people. Tell us about how you befriended “Joe” and how he gave you a whole new perspective on homelessness.
• Have my family, culture, traditions, or identity contributed some way to my understanding of myself and the world, and/or who I want to be in the world? How?

Additional Brainstorming

Not every student has a story about a challenge, obstacle, or moment that changed them. If this is you, do not worry, because everyone does indeed have some kind of story to tell about themselves. Sometimes it’s challenging to think and talk about yourself, or you may think you don’t have something “interesting” to share (you do!). Often you just need to keep exploring. Some of the best ideas come when you least expect it – like when you’re taking a shower, or playing a sport, or doing chores.

So use the previous and following questions to get you started thinking, then put them away for a couple days and see if any inspirations come. Come back and review the questions again with a fresh mind. You can do this as many times as you need. Take your time and write down EVERY idea, even if you think it’s not a great one. You’ll end up with a good list that will be helpful for your supplemental essays as well.

• What’s your favorite movie? Book? Podcast? Show? Why?
• What’s hanging on the walls in your bedroom? What’s on your shelves?
• What’s your favorite app? Video game? Why?
• Where is your favorite place to hang out?
• Is there a special place you visit on a regular basis?
• What is something you learned/taught yourself just for the fun of it?
• What is something about you that few people know? (Maybe you love watching horror movies or have a collection of sports memorabilia or spend every afternoon baking with your grandmother….)
• What’s your favorite kind of music?
• What’s your favorite thing to do with your friends?
• What fictional character would you love to spend the day with?
• What real-life person, dead or alive, would you love to spend the day with?
• If you could give your younger self advice, what would it be?
• What is your least favorite activity?
• What’s one of your fondest memories?
• List a couple of times where you failed at something and a couple of times you succeeded.

Some Ideas You Could Work With

Review your answers on both sections and list at least 3 ideas you could use for your essay:, the power of storytelling.

The best essays rely on one of the most natural, but powerful, techniques storytelling. Everyone has stories. You tell stories all the time when you talk about something that happened to you today. You listen to your family’s stories. You have stories that stick with you because they are especially memorable.

Often stories, especially in books and movies, follow the classic Hero’s Journey, which basically takes the character from an ordinary life, through a challenge or obstacle, and then through some transformation. This is a great reference point when thinking about how you might tell one of your own stories in an essay. In addition, you can find some great inspiration on storytelling on “The Moth” podcast or at themoth.org, which hosts storytelling competitions around the world. Watch some of the storytellers and see how they use description and detail, build interest and suspense, and then tie it all together so the story has a clear purpose and message.

Ultimately, what makes stories such an effective device in your essay is that they “show” rather than “tell.” You don’t want to say in your essay, “I’m funny. I like to make people laugh.” By telling a story that shows your sense of humor and how you felt making another person laugh, you make that point in a much more meaningful way.

Keep this in mind as you begin to explore further for the story or stories you can showcase in your essay.

Developing Your Ideas

Time to dive in! Let’s pick an idea and start coming up with some details that you could use in the essay. This process should help you get a feeling about whether you have enough material to work with on a certain topic/theme. Remember this is a trial-and-error process, so you may switch directions several times before finding the essay you want to write. In addition, as you spend some initial time fleshing out your topic here, pay attention to how you feel about the subject. This essay should be something you will enjoy writing.

See ”Example Answers” following this questionnaire if you need a little more help.

Answer the following questions to help you elaborate on the idea:

• How does this story illustrate what you want colleges to know about you?
• List at least 3 points you can make with this story:
• Write at least a paragraph summarizing your main story/theme.
• Describe some of the background leading up to the story.
• Zoom in on some details. Pretend you are taking a photograph of a moment from this story. Describe it in detail. Who was there? What were you feeling? What were you thinking? What are the images, colors, environment in the scene?
• What was the major turning point/highlight in the story?
• Discuss in more detail the outcome and how it impacted you. What did you learn? How were you changed?
• What is the life lesson? How will use this going forward? Is there something in this story that helps guide you in the way you will approach your life in college?

Example Answers

Here are some sample answers that our sample student might come up with. Remember the student’s personal purpose statement is, “I am a kind, outgoing, and funny person who loves to make people laugh and hopes to make a difference/impact by creating uplifting comedic productions and/or therapies that will help people heal from trauma.” Main Idea/Story/Theme: Volunteering at All Children’s Hospital – How Jill’s laughter healed me and made me realize what I wanted to do for others

1. How does this story illustrate what you want colleges to know about you?

• I believe laughter and comedy are healing
• I’m a kind person, volunteering/spending my free time with Jill, other kids
• I’ve done research on laughter as a healing medicine
• I have a goal to expand comedy programs/therapies in hospitals

2. List at least 3 points you can make with this story:

• Comedy is a valuable artform
• Healing modalities don’t always need to medicinal or serious
• I would contribute to a college by living this philosophy/perhaps creating similar programs

3. Write at least a paragraph summarizing your main story/theme (doesn’t have to be perfectly written at this point; these are just notes). The summer after my freshman year, I joined a couple of friends in the Healing Hearts program. We visited sick children twice a week. They wanted us to read to them, keep them company, play games. I met Jill on my second visit. She was 7 years old and had a rare lung disease. We didn’t even talk about that much. Mainly, she told me about what a pain it was to be poked and prodded and tested all the time. She just wanted to be a normal kid playing with her friends at home. That part of me that just wants to see people smile kicked in. I started coming up with jokes, books, and other things that I thought would entertain Jill. That one day, Jill finally broke out into an all-out giggling attack I saw her so differently. She was, if even for a moment, not feeling or thinking about pain or being sick. She looked completely different too. Then I got caught up in the laughing too and I felt it too. Relief. It clicked right then. Maybe I had always wanted to make people laugh because it made me feel better when they were happy. Was that selfish? As we kept laughing, I realized we were giving each other a mutual gift. Laughter is contagious. I also started wondering about its real healing effects.

4. Describe some of the background leading up to the story. ‍ I’ve always loved watching a good comedy, stand-up comedians and making people laugh. When someone isn’t happy, it becomes my mission to turn their frown upside down. I never really understood the power of humor, however, until ironically, I started what some would consider a very sad volunteer job spending time with young children who have major and sometimes life-threatening diseases. Even my mom tried to talk me out of doing it, thinking I’d end up depressed.

5. Zoom in on some details. Pretend you are taking a photograph of a moment from this story. Describe it in detail. Who was there? What were you feeling? What were you thinking? What are the images, colors, environment in the scene? Moment with Jill laughing. Sitting in her room which was drab white and gray. Only color was from a few pretty pictures she had drawn that were hanging on the wall. Her mom was sitting in the corner reading a book on her kindle. I had brought my own joke book that day, determined to get her to laugh. The jokes kept bombing though. She’d chuckle politely. Then the nurse came in to check on her. She took her temperature and blood pressure, said a few words to the mom, and left. Jill rolled her eyes. Then I rolled my eyes dramatically. Jill rolled her eyes and this went back and forth a few times until I just crossed my eyes and pretended to pass out on the floor. Jill started to laugh so much I saw tears forming in her eyes. I started laughing too and then I snorted. That was it. We both lost it. Even her mother couldn’t help but laugh too.

6. What was the major turning point/highlight in the story? Jill transformed before my eyes when she was laughing. This little girl who always looked sad and in pain was suddenly light and free. I witnessed the power of a good laugh and felt it for myself as well.

7. Discuss in more detail the outcome and how it impacted you. What did you learn? How were you changed? I wanted to investigate and learn if there was any real data to support laughter being healing. I did a research paper and found some interesting studies (can give some stats). It also made me realize this was something I would always participate in, whether as a volunteer or hopefully as more of a career.

8. What is the life lesson? ‍ How will use this going forward? Is there something in this story that helps guide you in the way you will approach your life in college? I will definitely pack my sense of humor and my desire to make others smile when I go to college. There’s plenty of seriousness in the world. I prefer to see the brighter side.

What Makes A Good Essay?

As mentioned previously, a good college admissions essay is authentic, reveals something about the student that can’t be found in the rest of the application, and shows that the student is introspective and self-aware.Remember that the admissions officers are reading hundreds of essays, so at the minimum, you want to submit a well written, well-thought-out essay that is error-free. At best, you are hoping to give them an interesting essay that holds their attention and is memorable for them. Don’t let that intimidate you. As an essay advisor who has read countless essays, I never tire of reading the fascinating stories students share. Everyone has a story to tell and there are infinite ways to weave your own personal tale and introduce yourself to the reader.

Some of the basic elements that comprise a “good” essay are:

• An attention-getting opening line or paragraph (the “hook”), which we will discuss in more detail later
• A strong conclusion
• Conversational tone – this essay is not a research paper or literature essay with a strict structure. Think of it as a blog entry.
• Clean writing, meaning there are no spelling, punctuation, or grammar errors (make sure your essay is proofread several times by different people before you submit it)
• Overall, it flows well and makes sense
• Accurate word count (you don’t have to be exact, but don’t go over or way under)
• If answering a prompt, make sure your essay stays focused on the subject of the prompt
• It’s written in your voice, meaning it sounds like you (readers can tell when parents, advisors, or teachers have helped a little too much)

What Makes A Bad Essay?

I’d love to say there are no bad essays, but there are occasions where students veer off track. here are some common pitfalls you should avoid:.

Don’t brag about yourself or your accomplishments. Example: Here’s a line from one student’s first draft: “Even though I was one of the smarter kids in the highest class…” Now, even though the student was trying to make a point about how shy they were, this line comes across as boastful. Stay away from these kinds of statements or find a way to say it that doesn’t sound like you are bragging. Exceptions would be if it is part of a bigger story in which the actions or outcomes are revealing something about your character or a lesson learned. Along the same lines, don’t list your accomplishments in your essay. That’s what the other parts of the application are for. Don’t use words or ideas that don’t sound like you. It’s nice to stretch yourself a bit in your writing, using synonyms to avoid repetitive words and showing that you have a wide vocabulary. But some students get caught up in impressing the readers and sprinkle their essays with complicated words they don’t even understand. Again, admissions officers read right through that. Be yourself! Don’t rush through the essay writing. It will show. Don’t get too cutesy. There’s a fine line between originality/creativity and trying so hard to be different that it misses the mark. Don’t use too many clichés. For instance, “life is hard,” “you don’t appreciate things until you lose them,” “every cloud has a silver lining.” Communicate these things in your own original thoughts and words. I would add that using quotes at the opening of essays is also cliché if not executed properly. Don’t use profanity, discuss bodily functions in too much detail, or overshare about personal situations, such as your sex life. (Yep, people do these things.)

There are also some topics that are best to avoid if possible, mainly because they are overused or not well-executed. The caveat here is that I have seen some exceptional essays on these subjects so don’t get discouraged if you want to tackle one of these. Just make sure your essay has a personal twist and demonstrates an insightful, mature view of how you were affected and changed.

Some of these “tricky” topics include:

• Sports stories . A lot of students tell the common story about a great victory or defeat. Not only is it overused, but students also fall into the trap of giving more of a play by-play account, rather than speaking about themselves and their emotions and perspectives. If you’re going to use an athletic experience, make sure it tells something about you as an individual – how you were transformed, what you learned, how it affected who you are today.
• Personal tragedy stories . Again, you may have a poignant story to share about loss, illness, grief and those do make for some compelling, heartfelt essays. If you choose to write about it, make sure to focus mainly on the personal growth and transformation you experienced as a result of the tragedy. The mistake students sometimes make is getting bogged down in the minute details of the event. You’ll want to give no more than 25 percent of the essay to relaying the tragic details and spend the rest of your word count letting the reader know what role this tragedy played in your life on a broad scale and perhaps, how it influenced you to a certain path.
• Volunteer/mission/community service experience. This has just been done too many times. But if you have a unique twist that covers more than “it opened my eyes to things I never knew,” then go for it. Maybe you made a lifelong connection or chose a career because of it.
• Writing about a person who has influenced you . The biggest pitfall here is spending too much time talking about the other person so the reader learns more about the person you’re writing about than they do about you. This type of essay is successful when you show how that person influenced your values or character and how that’s being expressed in your life.
• I’m going to add Covid-19 to the list this year as no doubt, thousands will write about this issue. Keep in mind that the Common App has added space for a brief optional response on this topic (see Part VI for more on this). My fear is that on the personal statement, admissions officers’ eyes may begin to glaze over when they see another Covid-19 essay. On the other hand, I do think there will be some powerful stories that emerge from this shared global experience. If you have a compelling personal story related to the pandemic that truly changed/impacted your life, thinking, or life path in some way – and requires more than the 250 words you’re being allotted on the Covid-19 essay – then just make sure to tell it in a way that focuses mostly on your unique experience/ transformation. Similarly to the personal tragedy subject, you shouldn’t spend time talking about details that everyone is already familiar with; focus on the impact it had on you.

What makes an essay stand out from the rest?

The French phrase, je ne sais quoi , comes to mind when trying to answer this question. It means, “an indefinable, elusive quality, especially a pleasing one.” Often, it’s difficult to pinpoint what makes an essay special or memorable; it just has that je ne sais quoi and you know it when you read it.

That said, there are some common elements that are typically found in outstanding essays:

• Creativity/originality – something new that the reader hasn’t seen a hundred times
• Compelling storytelling
• They evoke emotions, perhaps inspire
• Show depth of thought
• Include vivid descriptions and details

The good news is that you don’t have to be a master writer, have experienced an earth-shattering experience, or have all life’s answers to create an excellent essay that the reader will appreciate. Simply being willing to be vulnerable and share honestly goes a long way. And some of the best essays I’ve read are based on simple, everyday stories and experiences. The following section has a few exemplar essays with comments following each to point out what makes them successful.

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20 Brainstorming Ideas For College Essays

Why? Because I’m working on essays with several seniors right now and, for the most part, it’s a painful process for them. Between homework and assignments for school, activities, and sports, it’s hard to find time to write your essay .

And while it’s hard to sit down and turn that blank piece of paper into something poetic, it’s ten times harder if you don’t even know what you want to write about. Sure, you have the Common App essay prompts to work off of, but which one is going to help you write the essay which will propel your application from good to great?

If this is you and you’re having a tough time just getting some ideas on paper, here are a few prompts to get your creative juices flowing:

• What is your favorite subject and why?
• How do you spend your time outside of school?
• What are your most unique talents?
• What is important to you?
• How has a moment in your life inspired you to be a different person?
• What is a life lesson that you’ve learned (especially if you learned it the hard way)?
• What are your greatest strengths?
• What are your weaknesses?
• What is the most unusual thing you’ve ever done?
• What is the most interesting place you’ve ever visited or travelled to?
• What is an accomplishment or achievement you are most proud of?
• What is an obstacle or challenge you have had to overcome?
• Who is someone in your life you are inspired by and why?
• What jobs have you held and what have you liked and disliked about them?
• How are you different from your friends or classmates?
• What is your relationship like with your family (think immediate and non-immediate family)?
• How would your best friend describe you?
• How would your parents describe you?
• How would your brother or sister (if you have either) describe you?
• If you had a “do-over” in your life, what is something you would do differently and why?

Some of these prompts require you to dig a little deeper than others, but at the end of the day they are all designed to do one thing: get you thinking about yourself. Because that’s what your essay is for; an opportunity to tell admissions counselors about awesome and wonderful you.

If you have questions about writing your college essay or would like some help getting unstuck from writer’s block, use the comment box below or email me directly at [email protected] . I would love to hear from you!

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How To Start A College Essay About Yourself

The Silicon Review 17 April, 2024

Writing a college essay about yourself can be an intimidating task. It's your one chance to make an impression on the admissions officers and convince them that you're the right fit for their school. But where do you even begin? Don't worry, we've got you covered. Beginning a college essay about yourself involves capturing your unique voice and experiences in a compelling introduction that hooks the reader's attention, and having someone at Academized to write my essay ensures expert guidance and support to kickstart your narrative with confidence and clarity. In this post, we'll guide you through the process of starting a college essay about yourself, from brainstorming ideas to creating an introduction.

Brainstorming Topics

The first step in starting a college essay about yourself is to brainstorm potential topics. This is where you'll want to think about what makes you unique and what experiences have shaped who you are today. Here are some prompts to get you started:

• A significant challenge you've faced and how you overcame it
• A personal accomplishment you're proud of
• A life-changing event or experience
• Your cultural background and how it has influenced you
• A person who has had a significant impact on your life
• A passion or interest that drives you

As you brainstorm, think about the stories and experiences that best showcase your personality, values, and goals. Remember, the essay is an opportunity to give the admissions officers a glimpse into who you are beyond just your grades and test scores.

Choosing a Compelling Topic

Once you've brainstormed a list of potential topics, it's time to narrow it down to the one that you think will make for the most compelling essay. Here are some things to consider when choosing your topic:

• Significance: Choose a topic that has had a significant impact on your life or has helped shape who you are today.
• Uniqueness: While it's okay to write about a common experience, try to find a unique angle or perspective that sets your essay apart.
• Personal growth: Look for a topic that showcases how you've grown or learned from the experience.
• Passion: Choose a topic that you're passionate about, as this will make your essay more engaging and authentic.

Writing a Strong Introduction

Writing a college essay about yourself requires an engaging opening that showcases your personality and sets the tone for your narrative, and referencing insightful resources like https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/best-essay-writing-services-top-5-paper-websites-mary-walton can provide valuable inspiration and guidance to help you create a memorable introduction with confidence.

With your topic selected, it's time to start writing your essay. The introduction is arguably the most important part, as it sets the tone for the rest of the piece and hooks the reader's attention. Here are some tips for writing a strong introduction:

The Personal Anecdote

One effective way to start your essay is with a personal anecdote or story that relates to your chosen topic. This can be a powerful way to draw the reader in and set the scene for the rest of your essay. For example, if you're writing about a significant challenge you've faced, you could start with a vivid description of the moment when you first realized the challenge ahead of you.

The Thought-provoking Question

Another option is to start with a thought-provoking question that relates to your topic. This can pique the reader's curiosity and get them thinking about the issue or experience you'll be exploring in your essay. For example, if you're writing about a passion or interest that drives you, you could start with a question like, "What is it that makes us passionate about certain things in life?"

The Surprising Statement

You could also grab the reader's attention with a surprising statement or statistic that relates to your topic. This can be a great way to challenge the reader's assumptions and set up the rest of your essay as an exploration of that surprising idea. For example, if you're writing about your cultural background, you could start with a statement like, "While many people assume that culture is something that's passed down from generation to generation, my experience has shown me that it's something that's constantly evolving."

Finding Your Voice

No matter which approach you choose for your introduction, it's important to find your voice and write in a way that feels authentic and true to who you are. Don't try to sound like someone you're not, or use language that feels unnatural or forced. The admissions officers want to get to know the real you, so let your personality shine through in your writing.

Developing the Body

With a strong introduction in place, it's time to move on to the body of your essay. This is where you'll expand on the topic you've chosen and provide the details and examples that support your main idea or argument. Here are some tips for developing a strong body:

Use Vivid Details

To make your essay more engaging and memorable, be sure to use vivid details and descriptions. This could include sensory details (sights, sounds, smells, etc.), dialogue, or specific examples that help illustrate your points.

Show, Don't Tell

Rather than simply telling the reader what happened or what you learned, show them through your writing. Use concrete examples and anecdotes to bring your experiences to life and demonstrate the lessons or insights you've gained.

Structure and Flow

Pay attention to the structure and flow of your essay. Use transitions to smoothly move from one idea to the next, and consider using subheadings or other organizational techniques to help guide the reader through your essay.

Personal Growth and Reflection

Throughout the body of your essay, be sure to emphasize how the experience or topic you're writing about has impacted you personally. Share your thoughts, feelings, and insights, and reflect on how the experience has shaped who you are today or influenced your goals and aspirations for the future.

As you wrap up your essay, it's important to bring your ideas together in a strong conclusion. This is your chance to leave a lasting impression on the reader and reinforce the main themes or lessons you've explored throughout your essay.

Summarize Key Points

In your conclusion, you'll want to briefly summarize the key points or experiences you've discussed in the body of your essay. This helps to reinforce the main ideas and ensures that the reader walks away with a clear understanding of your central message or argument.

Final Thoughts and Insights

Use the conclusion as an opportunity to share any final thoughts or insights you've gained from the experience or topic you've written about. This could include lessons learned, personal growth, or how the experience has influenced your goals or perspectives.

Call to Action

Finally, consider including a call to action or a statement that encourages the reader to think more deeply about the topic or theme you've explored. This could be a question for them to ponder or a challenge to approach a similar situation or experience with a new perspective.

Revising and Editing

Once you've drafted your college essay, it's important to take the time to revise and edit your work. This will help ensure that your essay is polished, well-organized, and free of errors.

Read it Out Loud

One helpful technique is to read your essay out loud. This can help you catch awkward phrasing, run-on sentences, or other issues that you might have missed when reading silently.

Get Feedback

It can also be valuable to have someone else read your essay and provide feedback. This could be a friend, family member, teacher, or even a writing tutor. They may be able to offer fresh perspective and insights that can help you improve your essay.

Check for Clarity and Focus

As you revise, make sure that your essay has a clear focus and that each paragraph and idea contributes to your overall message or argument. Remove any unnecessary or tangential information that doesn't directly support your main point.

Polish Your Writing

Finally, take the time to polish your writing and ensure that your essay is free of grammar, spelling, and punctuation errors. These small details can make a big difference in how your essay is perceived by the admissions officers.

Writing a college essay about yourself can be a challenging but rewarding experience. By following the tips and strategies outlined in this post, you'll be well on your way to creating a compelling and authentic essay that showcases who you are and what you have to offer. Remember to take your time, focus on finding your unique voice, and don't be afraid to share your personal experiences and insights. With dedication and effort, you can create an essay that will make a lasting impression on the admissions officers and help you stand out in the competitive college application process.

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