Accepted! 50 Successful College Admission Essays

by Gen Tanabe, Kelly Tanabe

Students will prepare powerful and successful admission essays with the tools provided in this invaluable, newly-updated resource for the college-bound. Examples of 50 real essays are included, discussing such topics as leadership, personal obstacles, athletics, public service, special talents, and future goals. The strengths and successes of each example are analyzed, as well as the inspirations of each writer. A comprehensive writing workshop provides tips toward selecting topics, developing stories, editing drafts, and applying finishing touches. Further examples of 12 unsuccessful essays, a list of 25 easy mistakes to avoid, and new interviews with admissions officers are presented to help would-be entrants avoid costly blunders.

Genres: College, Nonfiction

224 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 2001

Reviews

[Jill · Rating 5 out of 5]

Super helpful book. The sample essays are so impressive as well. My husband and I really liked the essay about the applicant’s love for cheese. Having a HS Senior currently crafting 13 different essays for the 7 schools he is interested in applying, there are so many great tips for us parents as editors, consultants in the process. I suggest my Junior in high school read this book while he is taking his HS writing/ composition course.

Loved all the insight from the admission officers as we. Definitely recommend!

[Dhruvina Patel · Rating 3 out of 5]

has good key points for beginners

[Dolly]

Seemed a little outdated

[Ilib4kids · Rating 2 out of 5]

378.1616 TAN 2014
2014 version of this book.

My review: This book gives a general outline what consists of good essays. It also come with 57 sample essays of different kinds. I feels most essays are kind of cliché, if not in technique perspective, few I like, like paperboy, "why", "My hill" 这些孩子我感觉一个个都是三头六臂，但是他们的文章没有深度，像是parrot.

Personal statement is also known as essay, usually 500 to 1,000 words, sometime plus 1 or 3 short essay. Score and grade is academic achievement, essay is personal life recount, a window to an applicant's mind, serious thinking, reflection. Essays need not to be grandeur, depth in philosophical thinking, mundane life but written in originality, revealing who you are could be perfects topic for essays, and I thought My daughter's diary of Super moon could be titled as "a sweet family". Yes, personal essays could be challenge, Not so if you keep your diary, not only record your life, but also some record of your reflective thoughts.

Consideration of school admission officers.
1. A good institution-to-student fit
2. Can the students do the work?
3. Can the school meet the student's need outside of the classroom.

Some points of a good personal essay:
1. Choose question that thoughtfully reveal most of you. Take a stand, voice an opinion.
2. Stick to the words requirements.
3. Be original. Written from heart, proofread from the head.
4. Be creative, but get to point quickly, do not carried away with your own creativity. see more p 37 - 50.
5. Some admission offices may read essays before SAT and grade score.
6. page 72 - 210 57 sample essays, arrange from personal beliefs & reflections, influential books, Family, Influential people, Things that represent me, writing essays, extracurricular activities & athletics, Music, Math & Science, Jobs & careers, Issues, Overcoming a weakness or challenge, places.

Web resources:
1. Supercollege.com (The publisher of this book)
2. OWL - Online Writing Lab owl.english.purdue.edu/
3. Lynch, Guide to Grammar and Style https://andromeda.rutgers.edu/~jlynch...
4. Elements of style http://www.bartleby.com/141/

5. Common Application www.commonapp.org
6. Online Thesaurus www.thesaurus.com
7. Merriam-Webster Online www.webster.com

[A]

This book is very helpful for people who have questions about how to write a successful college admission essay. The authors has been very detailed about what to do and not while writing a successful college essay. It has also solved many questions that I have about how the admission goes. Those examples are also helpful and fun to read.

Some notes I took while reading: (how to write a successful college essay)
- Be yourself
- Humor kills the essay
- Don’t write a sob essay
- Don’t flex
- Don’t let your editors ruin your essay
- Don’t end your essay with “THE END”
- Don’t start the essay with “My name is”

Last but not least, I do think the authors could be more specific on how to write a successful college essay rather than listing a few points on what you should and should not do.

[Natalia · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is helpful when preparing to write college admissions essays. It has a lot of the same advice as in the other essay books by the same authors. However, the essays are all not the same. This book is more geared toward regular colleges, not just the most selective ones.

[Kay · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really helpful!the essays are all really interesting and inspirational.