Lesson
Three: Templates
Writing
admissions essays is not formulaic; the best essays will
have the most personal detail and passionate writing. However,
if you are suffering from severe writer’s block and need
help piecing together an effective essay, we have provided
generic templates for the most common types of essays. If
you stick strictly to these templates, you will end up with
pretty awful essays; they are solely intended to jumpstart
your writing in its earliest stages.
Warning:
If you rely heavily on these templates in your final draft,
you will write one of the worst admissions essays possible.
Use these templates only to get your own creative juices
flowing.
Describe
An Influential Person
The
person who has had the biggest influence in my life is _______.
Because ______ was __________ he/she taught me __________
but also much about __________. I have been close to _______
ever since I was _____ years old and we ______. I feel a
debt of gratitude to ________ for always being there for
me through _________.
__________
has always been my role model. I have long admired his/her
success in ________, _________, __________, and the way
he/she ________. My goal in life is to be just like him/her,
to get the most I can out of life. Because of ______’s strong
influence, I find _________ fascinating. I am always impressed
that he/she started __________ at my age and rose to be
____________ in just a few years. _______ has supported
my interest in ________, and was very proud of me when I
__________.
I also
admire __________’s devotion to ____________. This was ___________
and quickly became _____________. This endeavor took up
his/her life for ______________ until he/she _____________
in __________. Since then, ______________ has _____________
in part because of ___________’s efforts.
____________’s
accomplishments have meant _________to me. __________ has
been ___________ in my life, showing me that ___________
and ___________. I hope to inherit his/her virtues and _____________
in order to make him/her proud.
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Discuss
an Activity Outside of the Classroom
________
has been a crucial part of my life ever since ________.
Back in _________ when I started ___________ I never imagined
that __________. _________ used to encourage me/cheer me
on/drive me back and forth as I practiced/continued to __________.
During this time I met ___________, learned ____________,
and became better at ______________.
The
best part of ____________ is _________________ because ____________.
Doing ____________ means __________. The __________ team/group/club/organization
introduced me to __________. For most of my peers in _______,
the goal was ____________. But for me, my main objective
was ____________. I will never forget the time when I/we
__________. This team/organization gave me the opportunity
to _________ and learn ___________, which has benefited
me in ___________.
In addition
to the fun/competition/other, ___________ has confronted
me with many challenges. I am not naturally a good ___________.
I am not ______, _________, or _________. However, I discovered
that in order to excel at ___________, I needed to ________.
As a result, I am known on my team/organization as _________.
Each day, I become stronger at ________ and _________.
Whether
I continue _______ or not, I know that I have already built
strong __________ and skills in ___________. My experiences
with ___________ have taught me lessons that I can apply
beyond ___________, and I will always have __________ for
years to come.
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Discuss
an Issue of Importance
During
the last __________ years, I have devoted a significant
amount of time to ___________, an issue that is often _______________
because of ___________. In my quest to ____________, I faced
many obstacles of my own such as ______________. But after
_____________, I realized that I could _________________
and ______________.
One
reason why this issue is so ________ is that ___________.
Most people do not realize that _____________. Moreover,
those who find themselves ___________ do not have ________________.
With ___________ and ____________ people who/a society that
is _____________ has little chance to ___________.
In this
difficult ___________, I realized there were many _________________
who needed my ______________. By _______________, I helped
___________ to _____________. Finally, in ___________, I
reached a turning point when I ____________ with ______________
at _____________. At this time, I had the opportunity to
_______________. I helped with _____________ and ___________.
I realized that in order to _______________, I had to _______________
and ______________. I started by ____________ and ____________,
which had the affect of _____________ and ________________.
Since
this time in _____________, I/we have accomplished/managed
to/seen ____________. Many problems remain, such as ____________
and ______________. But with ____________ in mind, I know/our
organization is prepared to/our society can ________________.
My interest in __________ has taught me that I am __________,
that my group is ___________, and that society/our culture
is _______________. In the future, I would like to continue
____________ for the sake of ______________ and hope to
incorporate ___________ into my time at ____________.
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 Move
on to Lesson Four: Style and Tone
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