CommonApp’s Personal Essay asks: “What do you want the readers of your application to know about you apart from courses, grades, and test scores?” Then CommonApp offers seven “prompts.” Many of these prompts are part of the problem. Prompt 1: “Some students have a background . . . that is so meaningful they believe their application would be incomplete without it.” So, you get a story about a student’s big Irish family. Prompt 2: “Recount a time when you faced a challenge . . . what did you learn from the experience?” So, you get a story about changing a tire in a rainstorm. Prompt 5: “Discuss an . . . event or realization that sparked a period of personal growth and a new understanding of yourself or others.” So, you get a story about a breakup. Yes: You want to write an essay that’s “personal.” But most of you misinterpret that word. Think about your favorite book that prompted you to become a human rights attorney. What could be more personal than writing about that? And notice: That personal essay is inherently intellectual. And that matters because you’re applying to be a student studying ideas with professors so you can gain skills and knowledge to go do something in the world. No: You don’t need to write about your favorite book or composer or philosopher. You can write about your summer job scooping ice cream, your grandmother, your car. You can write about your Irish family, changing a tire, or even a breakup. Often those pedestrian topics lead to the best essays. But only when you surprise and dazzle your reader by intellectualizing them. That means saying something smart, interesting, thoughtful. Doing something creative and novel with that topic. Extracting an original insight from that experience that proves you’re the type of person who can learn and say smart thing about anything. How do you do that? I teach three writing classes on strategies, moves, and tactics with examples to show you how in my Admissions Masterclass (Link in Bio.)
