The New York Times has been rife this season with articles about the college application essay.  The Common Application’s newly reinstated 500-word guideline is the topic of much conversation, as are general themes and strategies for the personal statement.

It is now early November.  Some early application deadlines have come and gone, and November 15 deadlines are around the corner.  Is your high school senior still stuck or struggling with his or her personal statement?

Many people, not just college applicants, have a hard time writing about themselves.  Yet that’s exactly what you need to do when writing a personal statement.  No matter how much you might not like it, your personal statement is about you.  There’s really no way around it.

Today I will provide some assistance and resources to help any college applicant to get those 500 words written.

1.  Relax!  Have fun!

“It’s all about loosening up,”  says a California college professor in Crafting an Application Essay That ‘Pops’, a New York Times article which reported on the recommendations of 5,000 admissions officers and counselors who gathered at the latest NACAC conference.  I couldn’t agree more.

To help students have fun with their personal statements, Stanford University has come up with an interesting twist:  They ask applicants to write a letter to their future freshman roommates.

Here are some samples, quoted in the article, of how students approached the essay:

“If you want to borrow my music, just ask. If you want to borrow my underwear, just take them.”

“I eat ice cream with a fork, and I drink orange juice right after I brush my teeth just for the sour taste.”

“If you have anything other than a Dodgers poster on the wall, I will tear it down.”

Note that all these lines are written in the first person – unfortunately to some, a required element of writing about yourself.  And note that all the lines are unique.  It’s unlikely that two applicants would have written the same thing.

Here’s the key to writing a great essay:  Write something no one else could have written.

If that sounds like a daunting task, loosen up!  Take a cue from Stanford’s essay question, no matter what topic you choose to write about.  All you have to do is tell stories about yourself.

2. How NOT to Start your College Application Essay

One common pitfall students fall into is trying to write an essay about their reasons for applying to school, instead of simply telling a story.  One of my recent clients started her essay to graduate school with, “I am applying to the XX school for several reasons.”  I coached her to simply start telling her story.  This approach made the project a lot easier, and made her essay a lot more interesting!

Here’s the start of an essay that meets this requirement:

When I went to Fall Out Boy’s Chicago radio show, there was the comment from the drummer, “The girl from New York is here.”  When I fought my way to the front of the crowd in Florida, there was the bassist’s point of his finger at me as he mouthed one of my favorite lyrics: “I still hate you.”

This opening line works because it tells a story no one else could tell.  It brings us into a world unique to the applicant.  And it sets us up to think something interesting is going to happen in this essay.  The reader is compelled to read the next line.

Contrast this to an alternate version of the essay that might have read, “Music is one of my passions, and because of that I attend a lot of rock concerts.  My favorite band is Fall Out Boy.”

You might laugh, but version two is the way many college essays read.  Or, to avoid boring the committee, applicants swing the other way:  “Raindrops heated by the flashing lights above, falling abundantly and without end, singeing my hair, my skin, my eyes…”

Here’s a tip:  If you are not a brilliant creative writer, just stick to the facts.  They will set you free.

3. Doing it in 500 Words

The Common Application now suggests a 500-word limit for a college application essay.  The more you stick to a story – a story that is directly linked to the point you want to make in your essay – the easier it will be to stay within that limit.  Note that it’s okay to spill over by a couple of words – but think of how impressed an admissions committee will be if you can knock their socks off in 500 or under?

The New York Times’ “The Choice” blog provides spot-on advice for how to stay succinct in Advice on Whittling Your Admissions Essay.  Read this article immediately if you are over the limit and unsure of how to cut your writing down to size!

You might also gain some breathing room from Matt Flegenheimer’s October 28, 2011 article, College Application Essay as Haiku?  For Some, 500 Words Aren’t Enough.

Need Help with your Personal Statement for College?

If you’re still stuck, panicked, or unsure, consider getting some help.  The Essay Expert’s Ivy-educated consultants are skilled in working with students to craft essays that say more than you might even imagine can be said in 500 words.  Just try us!

Preview of Common Application Available Now!

Although the Common Application for college applications will not officially be available until August 1, commonapp.org has made a preview available so that on-the-ball upcoming seniors can get a head start on planning their application content.  The Common App Preview, complete with highlighted new or noteworthy information, is available now.

There are several changes to the Common Application form since last year, including the addition of 48 new colleges and universities.  College consultant Nancy Griesemer  has already written about them quite eloquently, so I will not detail all the changes. I invite you to read her article, The Common Application Shares Changes for Next Year.

Implications for the College Admissions Essay

My particular interest is the essay portion of the application, and so it is pertinent to me that although the Common Application essay topic choices have not changed, the suggested length of the essay has.  Students are now requested to write 250-500 words on their chosen topic.

Two hundred fifty to five hundred words?  That’s one short essay!  You may think initially, “Great!  Less to write!” But in actuality, it is harder to write a short essay than a long one.  I have pointed this phenomenon out and provided a few essay-shortening tips in a prior blog article, Cutting Your Writing Down to Size.  I encourage you to read it!

Phrases to Eliminate from your College Application Essay

If you are gearing up to write a 250-500 word college application essay, make sure to get clear about your priorities.  Don’t make the mistake of spending precious words or phrases like the following:

Boring writing puts man to sleep

“As I sat down to write this essay…” or

“I will always remember the time when…” or

“I was fortunate to have the opportunity to…”

YAWN!!

Look…  you simply don’t have space to burn with such extraneous material.  Eliminate it, and focus, focus, focus.

To help in the process of planning and writing your essay, read my series on specific essay topics, which you will receive as part of your subscription if you sign up for my College Admissions topic list.  You can sign up HERE.

Note:  Another change to be aware of is that the short answer questions will be limited by characters (1000) instead of words (150).  Again, crafting pointed, clear answers is paramount.

If you want highly personalized assistance with your college application essays, contact The Essay Expert for your FREE 15-minute consultation and to work with one of our Ivy League educated consultants.  We will make sure you have the best possible chance of getting in to the college of your choice.

Many job applications require that you answer an extensive set of essay questions, even before you get an interview. These questions might transport you back to the days of college essay applications – days you may have thought were safely behind you.

Are you faced with a list of questions to answer on a job application? Read the following carefully: The absolute most important thing you can do – in fact you MUST do – on that application is to answer the questions. When I say “answer the questions” I don’t mean write something in the box provided. I mean answer the questions.

Seems simple enough, right? But many of the job applications I review make a cardinal error. Sure, there’s an answer in the box provided, but it’s an answer to some other question than the one the company has asked.

For instance, one company asked the candidate to speak of a measure an employer had set and to report how he had compared to that measure. The candidate wrote about the measure and then reported how he had measured up to other people in the company instead of to the standard itself. Red flag goes up – it sounds like this candidate is hiding something. And he was. I coached him to tell the truth, and we found a way to state it so that it still sounded impressive!

I once gave a talk to a group of students applying to law school. I asked them, “If a school requested a 500-word essay, would you submit a 511-word essay?” One of the potential law school applicants said that he would have no problem doing so. Guess what? The admissions committee would be justified in choosing not to read a single one of those 511 words. If you were an admissions officer, would you want someone in your law school who could not follow instructions?

Another common tendency is to provide more information than the company has requested. This tendency can get you into trouble. For instance, a newspaper asked how the candidate had become interested in the field of journalism. The candidate wrote almost an entire paragraph about why she did not want to be a lawyer even though she had attended law school. Somehow she read into the question something that simply was not there. I made sure she wrote a great story about her path to journalism, instead of an apology about why she did not do something else.

It’s more difficult than you might think to answer questions and to answer them accurately and well. If you are working on a set of essay questions for a job or college application, get a second pair of eyes to make sure your answers have addressed the questions asked – no more and no less.

Don’t shoot yourself in the foot! If you truly answer the questions, you will have a shot of getting an interview – where you will get to answer yet more questions, and maybe have a chance to elaborate on the things you were so smart to leave out of your essays.

Welcome to the second part of The Essay Expert’s 2-part article about how to craft great job and scholarship applications. Remember, many of these tips apply to interviews too! For the first 5 tips click here .

Here are my next 5 tips to avoid these common pitfalls in your writing and get yourself noticed!

6. Lack of clear organization or focus

If your writing or speaking lacks organization or focus, you are almost sure to lose your audience’s attention. In a good essay, the writer is clear about the purpose of every word and every sentence. Stay focused as to what you are writing, where you are going, and why you’re saying what you’re saying. Sometimes, focus is difficult to maintain on your own; after all, you understand yourself perfectly and have infinite patience for yourself! It takes trained eyes and ears to evaluate whether you?re really getting your point across.

7. Speaking in generalities

Here’s an example of a sentence that is too general to have its intended effect: “I am a hard working, determined individual driven by success and the love for acquiring knowledge.” Without examples of this hard work, determination, and love of knowledge, this sentence doesn’t say much of anything. The applicant would be better served by giving a concrete example of even one of these attributes. By describing a challenge she faced and how she handled it, she will keep the audience’s attention and make the impression she wants.

8. Complaining or speaking negatively about past experiences

If you say anything negative about a prior position, your reader or interviewer will expect you to be complaining about your new position in short order. There are ways to give even the most negative experiences a positive spin. Not sure it’s possible? Speak with The Essay Expert.

9. Using formal or stilted language in written materials

You are writing to human beings. Write to them in conversational English. Although you do not want to get too casual with your language, you also do not want to sound awkward or pretentious. We recommend reading your writing aloud before pushing the send button. You might realize things about your language – and your punctuation – that you would never have noticed by reading silently!

10. Including extra information or attachments

Unless expressly invited to do so on an application, do not attach outside information, attachments, videos, links to websites, pdfs, etc. as supplementary materials. If you are unsure about the guidelines, there is no shame in calling the company to ask. It’s better to be safe and to follow instructions exactly.

Achieving success with your job and scholarship applications requires a lot of work and a lot of revisions. Work with The Essay Expert if you don’t want to do it all on your own.

Are you applying for a job or scholarship? The following list of pitfalls to avoid apply to *all* aspects of the process: resumes, cover letters, essays, and even your interview and thank you note. Here are The Essay Expert’s first 5 tips to help you distinguish yourself from the competition… 6-10 coming soon!

1. Not answering the question
If an employer or committee asks a question, be sure to answer it! They ask questions in part to hear your answers, and in part to make sure you can follow instructions and stay focused. Sometimes you can answer the question in a creative way, but make sure you have a professional review your answer (for interviews, practice this skill before the actual interview!). The perfect essay or interview response answers the question and shows off your key strengths and accomplishments.

2. Exceeding the word or page limit
Your application can get thrown out if you do not comply with the word and page limits. Do not take that chance! There is no point in writing a brilliant essay if it never gets read. Would you rather write 511 words that never get read or 500 words that do? If you are having trouble staying within the word and page limits provided, work with an expert to help you concisely say everything you want to say. Practice concise verbal answers too before you get to your interview!

3. Pointing out why you do not qualify for the position
Why would you highlight the reasons an employer would not want to hire you, or the reasons why someone else might be a better recipient of that scholarship? Many applicants make that very mistake. You can be sure that the people reading your application or sitting across from you in an interview already know what?s missing from your application ? they have seen your resume. If they are talking to you, it means they are willing to overlook some of your weak points. Showcase your strengths so that the committee trusts you to do the job even if you don?t meet every qualification on paper.

4. Bragging
While you do not want to speak negatively about yourself, you also do not want to brag. A caveat: Many people think they are bragging and they are not ? they are just stating their accomplishments. However, sometimes an essay or interview response can sound too self-congratulatory, even to someone wanting to hear about your best. The best policy is to provide facts that demonstrate something extraordinary about your accomplishments. You may want to hire someone to help you strike a balance between selling yourself and going overboard with self-praise.

5. Making grammatical and spelling errors
Employers and committees want candidates to demonstrate attention to detail and the ability to communicate effectively. Grammatical and spelling errors demonstrate the lack of these abilities. Slow down in an interview so that you sound professional. And never submit a resume, essay or application without having an expert review it! Your investment will give you peace of mind and unprecedented results.

Go to The Essay Expert’s Services and Rates page to make sure your writing and interviewing skills will make a good impression!

Stay tuned for Making a Great Impression Part 2… More Tips for Effective Job and Scholarship Applications