When it comes to college applications, bad school grades don’t really instantly become disadvantages. You may have failed in some math subjects or maybe physical education – but you can try not to fret for now. There is a way for you to “transcend” these bad grades. It is through your application essays.
Most colleges and universities will require you to write application essays that include your personal statement or statement of purpose. This is a way for the college admissions board to get to know you better. They want to see beyond your grades. Of course, you will need to have passed your SAT and/ or ACT – these are general standards of learning. They are very different from say, the boring math teacher you seldom attended. So in case you have failing grades in your school records, you can maximize the personal statement or statement of purpose in your application essays to “justify” these failing records.
Many people now are aware of the right-brained/ left-brained theory. This theory says that people can often be classified as right-brained or left-brained. Right-brained people are random, intuitive, subjective and holistic. These traits are very typical of the artistic types, those you’d see in the hallways of the arts building. Left-brained people are logical, sequential and rational. They are most probably in the math, sciences and business halls of your university.
Having said this, you can draft the personal statement or statement of purpose in your application essays such that you explain your bad grades in terms of right-brain/ left-brain. If you failed in math, you can say you were really more interested in writing the poem for English class or in that art project you started to work on. If you failed in physical education, you can say that you find it more interesting mulling over the algorithm shown to you in math class just an hour ago. This way, you do not deny your failure in some subjects in the application essay. But, you get to explain it and highlight your real interests. Not everyone can be good t solving algorithms, just as not everyone can write well or paint a masterpiece.
This highlights the importance of the application essays and the personal statement or statement of purpose that you put in them. You should not brush aside the application essays because these can buoy your towards acceptance in the college or university of your choice. You really need to think of what you say in it, and how you say it. For a quick peek at how it should be, check out our free college admission essays. These free college admission essays can give you a guide on how to draft your own. Likewise, you can read these free college admission essays and learn some powerful snippets you can use on your own.
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When you apply to a university or college, you will most probably be asked to draft an essay or two stating your personal statement or statement of purpose. The idea here is for the Admissions Board to get to know you through your application essays, without requiring you to come over for an interview. It takes more than good high school grades to get into your university or college of choice. You also have to have something to offer in terms of your personality, experience and attitude. These are important factors to look at for university or college admissions. These can determine how you will cope with the typical pressure of college life.
Thus, it is important for your personality to stand out in the personal statement or statement of purpose that you include in your application essays. You need to make a quick good impression through your words. For a sample of good application essays, check out our free college admission essays. These free college admission essays are written to highlight an applicant’s “choice” personalities. Check out these free college admission essays to see how it should be done.
Here are some tips on writing your personal statement or statement of purpose for your college admission essays:
1.Jot down what you want the college or university admissions board to know most about you. Keep these down to two or three. You would not want to bog your readers down with too much info. Just list down your strongest points. Make sure that the personality traits you choose will “sell” you to the college admissions board. You cannot just say you are nice and kind because a lot of people are nice and kind. The purpose of your personal statement or statement of purpose is to show that you are a cut above the other potential students. This means that you are aware and open to more learning, diversity and the pressures that are typical of university life. You need to choose personality traits that will “match” the requisite personality of one who is open and aware. Examples here include: “Innovative,” “Quick to Learn,” “Mature,” and “Resilient.”
2.Next, recall instances when these personality traits were highlighted. You would need to give illuminating examples of your “personality at work” for your college application essays. You need to have the college admissions board actually imagine you being this or that kind of person. You need to make them see through your personal statement or statement of purpose in your application essays.
3.Include actual involvements in your examples. These will most likely be verifiable against your application form, which asks details on school and extracurricular activities. Nothing can beat a rundown of your typical day in exemplifying certain traits of yours. By listing involvements like cheer leading, Salvation Army volunteer and the like in your application essays, you begin to transcend beyond what you say about your self (item 1) and the instances you describe (item 2). Your actual involvements make you more real and more true to what you say.
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Every student bound for college is looking for free college admissions essays so they can use these essays as a guide for writing their own admission essays. This search can be very challenging because the college admissions essays found online have to be the right reference. For the essay to become a model, it must deal in particular with the right reasons, at least the top 5, why you are very keen and interested to get admitted into college.
Here are some of the top 5 WRONG REASONS to step into college:
1. BECAUSE MY PARENTS WENT TO COLLEGE
What would the use of this reason articulate? That you are not interested to go to college but it is just because your parents did. The Admissions Committee in college schools would immediately decide not to enlist you with this weak reasoning. Having said this, it is more likely that you will get admitted and pass through college if it is your own strong desire to enroll in college.
2. BECAUSE IT WILL GET ME A NICE HIGH PAYING JOB
If you were in the Admissions Committee, would you find this reasoning acceptable? I am sure you will also question the sincerity of this reason knowing for a fact that money is not the only pushing factor and will not make an impact to the decision-makers.
3. BECAUSE IT WILL MAKE ME RICH
Similar to the reason above, you might end up dropping out of college if your only goal is to become rich. Although getting paid is one of the objectives, it is not the end of it all. To be able to get rich you must prove that you are sincere and persistent.
4. BECAUSE I NEED A PLACE TO DRINK BEER AND MEET PEOPLE
College is not the right place to drink beer and meet people; the bar would rightfully fit this purpose. With a phrase like this in your college admissions essay, I assure you 100% that no school will admit you.
5. BECAUSE IT MEANS I’M SMART
Don’t boast of your smartness and other positive points. If you are to write of it, better to express it in a manner that if expounds your character and not just saying it. Smartness can also mean many things and can also be interpreted in many ways. So before stating this, be smarter and find a way to say it in a convincing manner. The best way is to express some of your weakness and turn it into a positive point.
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