An admission essay is different from a motivation letter. The main purpose of the latter is to convey information to the admissions committee about you as a person and a student, to describe your achievements and goals for the future.
As for the admission essay, it reveals your knowledge, analytical and reasoning skills. We have contacted the WritingCheap essay writing services for a detailed guide on writing an excellent admission essay.
Essay topic
The university or college can set a topic. Sometimes, an educational establishment offers students a direction of reasoning in a particular area. The third option is when you choose a topic for the assigned subject at your own discretion. When selecting on your own, remember that it is important to take the topic on which you can most logically explain your position.
Do not bring up topics that are not appropriate for discussion. They include controversial topics — love, politics, religion, etc. You may have something to say regarding a matter, but it may differ from the opinion of one of the committee members. Even if you are genuinely interested in such questions, save them for future research. The admission essay is not the best setting for them.
Defining the style of an academic essay
Topics suggested by the university often have clues that will help you figure out your academic essay’s style. For example, you may encounter the following wording:
Explain. This requires an analysis of the given topic, not just a description or summary. The key questions, “Why?” and “How?” are your aides to explaining cause and effect.
Compare and contrast. In this formulation, find and compare the similarities and differences of two ideas, events, or interpretations.
Discuss. You have to review and explain a certain event or notion and give examples and evidence from outer sources.
Describe. In this case, you should write about a particular event or notion and focus on its features. You don’t have to explain, interpret, or relate to it.
Argue. If you are asked to argue something, the main content of the essay should be a coherent argumentation of your opinion with the help of examples and facts. You should also demonstrate your awareness of the opposite point of view.
Critique. You have to take a critical approach to the task or topic. It’s important to bring out both the positives and the negatives in a balanced way. Try to remain objective.
Structure of an admission essay
The structure includes four main parts: introduction, thesis, argumentation, and conclusion. In fact, the thesis statement represents the main idea of the work. If you already have an opinion on the subject, start with the thesis and then bring arguments. The main thing is the consistency and coherence of the text. If you use excerpts from other people’s work or quotes from books, use appropriate footnotes. Break up the text into paragraphs according to the flow of thought.
Thesis Statement
After choosing a topic, you have to come up with a thesis statement. It is the main idea of your essay, the main essence of which is contained in several statements.
The thesis statement must answer the question “What is the main idea of your work” in few sentences without unnecessary clarifications and corrections.
As a rule, the given topic of an essay is a controversial question or a judgment and does not imply an unambiguous solution. You don’t have to find an objective answer, which, most likely, simply does not exist, but to set and argue your point of view.
Introduction
The main task of the introduction is to hook the reader and arouse interest in reading. It should be a single sentence related to the thesis, which will serve as a kind of hook. You can find a quote or the fact that best fits your thesis statement. Don’t be wordy and write to the point, developing your ideas and gradually moving into the main body of the essay.
When writing the introduction, you must remember that your main task is to attract the audience and interest them to continue reading. It’s important to find a golden mean here. Try not to present dry facts, but do not turn into the yellow press, which glitters with clickbait headlines, behind which there is nothing worthwhile, and it looks cheap and vulgar. Entry committee members are already tired of Stay hungry, stay foolish by Steve Jobs, yoga and 5 AM runs that have changed the lives of millions of people, and other things that are cited in every social media post.
Argumentation
With an argument, you are trying to convince the reader that you are right and present the evidence and reasons that helped you form your thesis statement. Try to devote a paragraph to each argument and make sure your thoughts are coherent and complete. Support your arguments with historical facts, data, quotes, or life examples.
Make sure that any of the sentences are directly related to the main topic. Even if you have an overwhelming desire to write an incredibly interesting fact, reread it several times and think about whether it would be appropriate in the context.
Conclusion
You need to summarize your idea in the last part of the essay in a concise and succinct way. Summarize the arguments and repeat the thesis briefly. The conclusion is not informative but a summary part. Do not add new reasons and ideas at the end.
Quoting
You must search for and refer to reliable sources to provide factual information and proper citations. Mindlessly rewriting Wikipedia will certainly not surprise the admissions committee. We advise you to cite scholarly literature, articles, and reliable sources. Try to choose relevant and up-to-date sources of information that have not lost their relevance over the years. Once your reference list is ready, make sure that it meets the stylistic requirements of the institution.
The main secret to writing the perfect admission essay is preparation and practice. If you have never written such essays in your life, you will find it difficult to state your thoughts. Practice, look for last year’s admission essay topics and keep writing.