Common College Essay Mistake

Common College Essay Mistake July 10, 2012 In your college essays, dont start too many sentences with words like I. Thats how kindergartners write! One very common college essay mistake  is to start the vast majority of sentences within your essay with words like I or My. We cant tell you how many college essays weve read in which virtually every sentence reads something like this: I was born in China and lived there until I was four years old. I came to America at five after a year in Korea. I remember being really excited when I came to America. I saw new things; everything was different. In addition to this excerpt being extremely and utterly boring, notice how each sentence starts with I. Mix it up. Dont start many sentences with I. Starting sentences with words like I and My not only is a bad way to write, but its also boring. Who wants to read sentence after sentence that all start the same way? And in addition to being boring, it can even come across as conceited. Even in your college essay when the essay is supposed to hang a lantern on who you are and what youre all about, beginning so many sentences with a word that is all about you can be irritating to college admissions counselors. Maybe theyll think you only care about yourself. Who wants to help someone gain admission who doesnt care about anyone but themselves? Do you get the idea? Mix it up a bunch! Start your sentences with all kinds of words and pay careful attention to your uses of words like I. It sure may seem like a small mistake of little relevance, but even that kind of mistake can be the difference between gaining admission to the highly selective college of your dreams and not getting in. Its that simple so we urge you to take our advice on this subject. Youll be happy you did and your writing will be stronger for it! Check out this post on College Essay Mistakes.