Distilling your whole identity in one short statement is certainly a herculean task. How can you get to all the depths of who you are and what makes you worth admissions to a college or program in so many words? Writing a personal statement isn’t easy, but there are ways to break down the complexities of the process and of your own story to help you craft the best personal statement. In this blog, we will break down the process in several parts. Know Thyself Don’t be afraid to take some time to write in some diaries. Reflect on your achievements, and on your worst days. Reflect on the subjects you love, the people you love, and the experiences you love. A personal statement should be reflective of what the title suggests, PERSONAL. Being able to express a clear version of who you are into your writing means you can have the ability to make yourself irreplaceable to the admissions committee. How much can you share in your personal statements? As long as it feels relevant and honest, feel free to make your essay personal. Know About the School/ Program Don’t tell the admissions committee what you think they want to hear, because that can often come off as trite and cheesy. You want to make sure you’re as specific as possible when making applications. Ask yourself, how can I contribute to this school? Is there a particular program the school offers that your experiences would relate to? Use the language, the titles of professors, and all the specific details you know about the program and school in your statement. This helps admissions connect your story with theirs. Add Spunk Are you someone that likes to make jokes? Do you get teased for being grammar obsessed? Or do you like poetry? Rhyming? Arguing? This is what you want to sprinkle into your essay. Add elements of flavor and spunk, or even uniquely well-written language and grammar, into your writing, and you’ll add one more detail that makes you memorable. Draft While surely you will craft a spirited, engaging personal statement by following those tips above, the most useful tip will be to ensure you write not, not two, but multiple drafts. Have a select number of individuals that you love in your life read through the personal statement and address if they feel it’s the most reflective of who you are. Ask them to check for grammatical errors and flow. But, make sure you feel it’s most reflective of who you are and the story you want to tell. Multiple drafts will help you in this process.
Nowadays, the college your child attends can exercise significant influence on their careers. Some universities boast top-tier programs, luxurious amenities or celebrity alumni. But no collection of universities in the United States has amassed quite the level of prestige that the Ivy League commands today. Consisting of eight universities, the Ivy League is synonymous with elite education and professional success. The coalition of Harvard, Brown, Dartmouth, Princeton, Yale, Columbia, UPenn and Cornell uses a highly selective application and admission process in order to procure the top talent from each year’s crop of prospective freshman. A common sentiment regarding an Ivy League education suggests that the “hardest part is getting in.” While there’s no measure of how accurate this statement may be, it is clear that presenting the strongest possible application is essential for admission. Here are a fews tips for how to make your student’s Ivy League application unforgettable. Specialize or Diversify When it comes to Ivy Leaguers, there is no shortage of excellence. A strategic approach may be to have your child specialize in a particular area of academics, extracurriculars, athletics or volunteering and seek to become the best. National awards, global social change headlines and state championships are just a few measures of success in a given specialty, all of which look marvelous on an application. Conversely, if your student tends to be more of a jack-of-all-trades, encourage them to diversify their interests. Instead of striving to be the world-reigning spelling bee champion and nothing else, urge your young one to excel in many areas. Take care not to press them for national mastery across the board, or you can cause undue stress. Remember that an applicant who operates a weekly volunteer group, earns top scores in class and enjoys playing a rare varsity sport, for example, is just as interesting as a savant in one distinct area. Consistency Once you decide whether to specialize or diversify your child’s time and skill set, stay consistent. Ivy League universities prize regular, long-term effort in order to achieve a goal. Why, do you ask? Because college requires regular, long-term effort in order to achieve a degree. Ivy League universities prize themselves on sky-high retention rates, and they want students who intend to complete the program. By demonstrating that your child can commit to playing lacrosse all four years while maintaining a strong GPA, for example, application readers appreciate the ability to manage time effectively. Originality The college application gamble is exactly that, a gamble. There is no tried-and-true method for acceptance, and no lather-rinse-repeat process to gain entry. But in an increasingly competitive application pool full of more aspiring Ivy Leaguers than ever before, the name of the game is not only excellence, but originality. Think critically about how your child can contribute a unique perspective, energy or presence to a college campus. Are they well-versed in a niche area of literature? Or perhaps they take initiative by establishing innovative organizations or clubs? Maybe they’ve experienced living in a wide variety of cultural contexts and can speak multiple languages? Regardless of what sets your student apart, definitely underscore that throughout the application. After all, the world is globalizing, and in order for the Ivy League to continue to remain top-tier, they must find young people who can bolster their global prestige and influence. All in all, the key to a strong Ivy League application is leveraging specialized or diversified skill sets with a display of consistency and originality. Wishing each and every one of your students good luck!
