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5 Pro Tips for Writing an Exceptional College Essay

Acton Essay Center

The personal essay is the part of your college application that lets you stand out as an individual — which is important, given that your application will be one among thousands. Your essay can show admissions officers how you think and what makes you unique. You can reveal how you create meaning out of challenging situations and how you view the world.

More than your resume, extracurricular activities, and teacher recommendations, your essay is the one place where the focus is on your voice alone. It’s natural to be intimidated, because the essay can make the difference in whether or not you’re accepted into college. To help you get started, we’ve gathered the most critical tips for writing a college essay that have guided our teaching over the years. Here are the top five. Continue reading “5 Pro Tips for Writing an Exceptional College Essay” →

5 Successful College Essay Examples, and Why They Worked

Acton Essay Center

College essay examples can teach us a lot about what college admissions committees are looking for. They also show there’s no one formula for a successful college essay. For your own college essay, you will need a topic, style, and voice that are uniquely you.

You can write about anything you like, whether it’s your summer job scooping ice cream, what you’ve learned from your dog, your obsession with Harry Potter, or your love of the bassoon. Just make sure you choose a topic that reveals something important about you. Admissions committee members want to hear your unique perspective on the world.  Continue reading “5 Successful College Essay Examples, and Why They Worked” →

How to Get Started on Your College Admissions Essay

Acton Essay Center

As Stephen King wrote in his book On Writing, “The scariest part is always just before you start.” At some point, you will have arrived at the most daunting moment of the writing process: you are ready to begin writing your personal essay for your college applications, except… what in the world are you going to write about?

What story do you have to tell that can possibly be unique or interesting enough to send off to your dream school? This is a common experience that faces many high school students when it comes time to begin writing their college essays. Many fear they have led mundane, overly ordinary lives that don’t lend themselves well to an incredible essay topic. Continue reading “How to Get Started on Your College Admissions Essay” →

Updated: The 7 Common App Essay Questions for 2026-2027

Acton Essay Center

Most students apply to college through the Common Application and write their personal essay in response to one of these seven prompts. While the prompts stay largely the same year after year, these have been updated slightly to provide some new inspiration. Here are your seven options for the 2022 to 2023 school year. Read through them so your brilliant ideas can start percolating in the back of your mind! Continue reading “Updated: The 7 Common App Essay Questions for 2026-2027” →

How to Craft a Memorable (and Effective) College Essay

Acton Essay Center

At this point in your education, you’ve written dozens, if not hundreds of essays. But the college admissions essay is different from most pieces of writing you’ve done for school. For one thing, it asks for storytelling and personal narrative, which is a lot different than academic papers. And for another, it has some seriously high stakes. This little 650-word piece of writing plays a big role in your college application.

To help you through the process, we’ve outlined the eight key steps of crafting an effective college essay. It might sound like a lot of work, but as long as you start early, you’ll totally be able to handle it. Read on to learn how to write a college essay you’ll feel confident sending to your prospective schools. Continue reading “How to Craft a Memorable (and Effective) College Essay” →