By The Princeton Review
Admissions committees care about more than test scores and GPA. They want to know who you are and why you belong in graduate school.
The essays are your best chance to sell the person behind the resume. They should tie all the pieces of your application together and create a comprehensive picture of who you are.
Here is a list of do's and don'ts to keep in mind as you begin to write:
Do:
- Communicate that you are a proactive, can–do sort of person. Schools want leaders, not applicants content with following the herd. What motivates you?
- Put yourself on ego–alert. Stress what makes you unique, not what makes you number one.
- Communicate specific reasons why you're a "fit" for a school. Simply stating "I am the ideal candidate for your program" won't convince the admission committee to push you into the admit pile. Tell them what you are going to do with your degree (why are you going) and what makes you qualified.
- Bring passion to your writing. Admissions officers want to know what excites you, and if you'll bring a similar enthusiasm to the classroom.
- Break the mold. Challenge perceptions with unexpected essays that say, "There's more to me than you think." Show the admissions committee something about yourself that they could never learn from your application. Show them how you are different from the rest of the pack.
- If you've taken an unorthodox path, play it up. Admissions officers appreciate risk-takers.
- Talk about your gender, ethnicity, minority status or foreign background—but only if it has affected your outlook or experiences.
- Fill your essays with plenty of real–life examples. These will support your thesis and bring your story to life.
- Demonstrate a sense of humor or vulnerability. You're a real person, and it's okay to show it!
- Fill your essays with plenty of real–life examples. These will support your thesis and bring your story to life.
So be yourself and think before your write. Take the time to really do it right and demonstrate that you are a mature, intelligent and focused person.
Don't:
- Write about your high school glory days. Admissions committees don't care if you were editor of the yearbook or captain of the varsity team. They expect their candidates to have moved onto more current, professional achievements.
- Submit essays that don't answer the questions. An off-topic essay, or one that merely restates your resume, will frustrate and bore the admissions committee. More importantly, it won't lead to any new insight about you.
- Fill essays with industry jargon. Construct your essays with only enough detail about your job to frame your story and make your point.
- Reveal half–baked reasons for wanting a professional degree. Admissions officers favor applicants who have well-defined goals. However unsure you are about your future, it's critical that you demonstrate that you have a plan.
- Exceed the recommended word limits. This suggests you don't know how to follow directions, operate within constraints or organize your thoughts.
- Submit an application full of typos and grammatical errors. A sloppy application suggests a sloppy attitude.
- Send one school an essay intended for another—or forget to change the school name when using the same essay for several applications. Admissions committees are (understandably) insulted when they see another school's name on forms.
- Make excuses. If your undergraduate experience was one long party, be honest. Discuss how you've matured, both personally and professionally.
- Be impersonal in the personal statement. Many applicants avoid the personal like the plague. Instead of talking about how putting themselves through school lowered their GPA, they talk about the rising cost of tuition in America. Admissions officers want to know about YOU.
- Make too many generalizations. An essay full of generalizations is a giveaway that you don't have anything to say
- Write in a vacuum. Make sure that each of your essays reinforce and build on the others. Think of each statement as one note in a song.
- Offend, beg or whine. Don’t offend the admissions committee, plead for admissions or complain about your education.
Now go let your readers get to know you!