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Graduate School Success
(Admitted to Harvard & Vanderbilt) |
"I was very happy with the EssayEdge service. I was accepted, with full scholarship and stipend offers, to every Divinity School to which I applied. I feel that the service was an investment that gave an excellent return--admission to three top schools. The director of admissions at Vanderbilt (where I will matriculate) even commented on how impressed the admissions committee was with my personal statement. I have and will continue to recommend the service to friends. Thank you for giving me such wonderful results!"
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 Brainstorming
Writing
an effective personal statement requires a bit of soul searching and
reflection. The schools want to gain from your essay some insight into
your character and personality. It's difficult for most people to write
about themselves, especially something personal or introspective. If
thoughtfully observed and answered, the following suggestions and questions
will yield material from which you can draw upon in writing your essay.
Although the questions are presented in categories, your responses will
inevitably straddle the various groupings. This is as it should be,
since brainstorming is a very lateral process. Most important while
completing these questions is that you be sincere and enjoy yourself.
1. Perform a Self-Inventory of Your Unique Experiences, Major Influences,
and Abilities
Long- and
Short-Term Goals
i. What attracts
you to this particular school?
ii. Are there
any specific faculty members at this academic institution whose work
interests you? With whom would you most like to study?
iii. What specifically
do you hope to gain from the academic program to which you are applying?
iv. What are your
career aspirations, and how can this academic program help you to
reach them?
v. What is your
dream job? What would you ideally like to be doing in 5 years? 10?
20?
Skills and Characteristics
vi. What personal
characteristics (integrity, compassion, persistence, for example)
do you possess that would enhance your prospects for success in the
field or profession? Is there a way to demonstrate or document that
you have these characteristics? This is an area where it is far better
to "show" the reader how you embody these qualities, rather
than simply "tell" him or her that you possess them. You
need to make strong connections between your experiences and the qualities
you wish to convey. The ideal is to recount personal experiences
in such a way that your "compassion" or "persistence"
or whatever else is fully evident without your having to mention those
qualities by name. Here is a list of the qualities that admissions
committees find most desirable in applicants:
- Seriousness
of Purpose (to pursue graduate education)
- Intellectual
Ability (to handle graduate study)
- Intellectual
Curiosity
(about the field you wish to enter)
- Creativity
(as reflected in the way your mind addresses issues in the field of
your choice)
- Open-Mindedness
(to ideas, people, and circumstances different from your own)
- Maturity
(as demonstrated by being responsible and trustworthy)
- Concern for
Others
(either by devoting time to social service activities such as tutoring
or by being considerate and empathetic to others' feelings; the latter
is more difficult to pull off in an application essay)
- Initiative
(as in the ability to start a project or take on a responsibility
on your own)
- Enthusiasm
(as demonstrated by your eagerness to engage in activities)
- Confidence
(in your ability to handle difficult situations and novel challenges)
- Being Organized
(as in the ability to stay on top of multiple tasks)
- Sense of Humor
(as in your ability to find humor in difficult situations; in many
ways this is an index of maturity)
- Diligence/Persistence
(as demonstrated by your ability to stay with a task until you complete
it; this is particularly relevant for programs requiring a dissertation)
- Leadership
(as shown in your ability to inspire others to work together to reach
a mutual goal)
- Risk Taking
(as shown in your ability to deal with uncertainty in order to reach
your goal)
- Insight
(as reflected in your ability to use introspection to understand aspects
of yourself, such as your preferences and your motivations)
- Optimism
(as reflected in your ability to find positive aspects in seemingly
negative situations)
- Compromise
(as in your ability to be flexible in negotiating with others; at
a more abstract level this can mean the ability to reconcile ideological
opposites or dialectical pairs among others or within yourself)
- Overcoming
Adversity
(as demonstrated by your resourcefulness in dealing with serious problems
such as divorce, death, illness, etc.)
vii. What skills
(leadership, communicative, analytical, for example) do you possess?
As in the previous question, strive to "show" rather than
"tell." However, you can invoke these qualities by name
with less chance of appearing insincere or conceited than if you
attribute to yourself more personal, subjective qualities such as
compassion and integrity.
viii. Why might
you be a stronger candidate for graduate school--and more successful
and effective in the profession or field--than other applicants?
ix. What do
you have to offer the school-to your fellow students, to the faculty,
to the broader community?
x. Why do you
think you will succeed in this academic program?
xi. What are
the most compelling reasons you can give for the admissions committee
to be interested in you?
xii. Why do
you think you will be successful in your chosen career?
Background/Accomplishments: Personal
xiii. What's special,
unique, distinctive, or impressive about you or your life story? What
details of your life (personal or family problems/history, any genuinely
notable accomplishments, people or events that have shaped you or
influenced your goals) might help the committee better understand
you or help set you apart from other applicants?
xiv. Have you
had to overcome any unusual obstacles or hardships (e.g., economic,
familial, physical) in your life?
xv. Have you borne
significant care-giving responsibilities for family members? For an
ailing parent, a sibling, a disabled or aging relative, a child? How
has this impacted your academics? Your professional life? Your goals
and values?
xvi. (If you live
in U.S. but are not a native-born American) How did you deal with
the challenges of moving to the U.S. from your home? Did you experience
culture shock? How did you adapt? What was most difficult for you?
What aspects of your new home did you enjoy the most?
xvii. If work
experiences have consumed significant periods of time during your
college years, what have you learned (leadership or managerial skills,
for example), and how has the work contributed to your personal growth?
Background/Accomplishments:
Academic
xviii. When did
you originally become interested in this field? What have you since
learned about it-and about yourself-that has further stimulated your
interest and reinforced your conviction that you are well suited to
this field? What insights have you gained?
xix. How have
you learned about this field-through classes, readings, seminars,
work or other experiences, or conversations with people already in
the field?
xx. Are there any
gaps or discrepancies in your academic record that you should explain?
Click here
for more on this topic.
xxi. Can you recall
a specific incident that convinced you that you had chosen the right
career path?
2. Consult Friends, Relatives, Colleagues, or Professors for Ideas
Others see us
differently from the way we see ourselves. You may be overlooking
some theme, angle, or aspect of your personality that might be obvious
to others who know you well. Good ideas are good ideas, whatever their
source. Here is a questionnaire that will give these people a structured
format in which to help you come up with ideas:
Preparatory
Questionnaire
I am applying
to _________ and must prepare a personal statement as a part of that
process. I want to be sure to include all relevant data about myself
and my background, so I am soliciting information from various individuals
who know me and whose judgment I value. Thank you for your help.
1. What do you
think is most important for the admissions committee to know about
me?
2. What do you
regard as most unusual, distinctive, unique, and/or impressive about
me (based on our association)?
3. Are you aware
of any events or experiences in my background that might be of particular
interest to those considering my application to graduate school?
4. Are there any
special qualities or skills that I possess that tend to make you think
I would be successful in graduate school and in the field to which
I aspire to become a part?
3. Write An Experimental
Creative Essay In Which You Are the Main Character
Pretend that you
are enrolled in a creative writing class and that your assignment
is to write a moving and inspiring short story (a couple of pages)
about some experience in your life and its impact on you. Pretend
you will be reading the story aloud during class and that your goal
is to have your classmates approach you afterwards with the following
sorts of reactions: "I feel as if I know you, even though I've
never talked to you before," or "I was really moved; thanks
for taking a risk and giving us a glimpse into what makes you tick."
Although you will not be submitting your personal statement in the
form of a short story, this exercise will help you to achieve a level
of sincerity, even vulnerability, in your writing that might prove
elusive if you plunge directly into a first draft of your application
essay.
You should devote
substantial time, at least 4-5 hours, to the questions and exercises
above before proceeding to Topic Selection.
 Topic
Selection
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