Here’s a tip: really do your homework about the institution.  Educate yourself about the particular academic programs, social events, activities and community community service opportunities that you envision yourself taking on once you arrive on campus.  Does the department that you consider majoring in offer a course that you think you’d like to take?  Is there a performing arts activity or club that you imagine yourself going for?  Then go for it.  Really imagine yourself caught up in the life of the institution. While you may not choose to write your essay from that space of imagination, it’s a good starting point to get yourself going.

Happy writing!

-Dr. Kirschner

Writer’s block can plague any writer, no matter how experienced.  For some people, just getting started can feel like an overwhelming task.  Others find that they have no trouble getting started, but midway, their brain locks up.  Here are a few tips to help you work through writer’s block:

-Just start writing!  As I’ve said before, you should write your drafts as though they’re going in the recycling bin to begin with.  That way, you’ll write without censoring yourself.  Just write any old garbage at first.  Once you get into the playful nature of writing, you may say something important or well that you hadn’t thought of before.    Just the act of writing can get your brain revved up for the good prose that’s to come.

-If you get stuck mid-stream, pick a word or phrase and just write it over and over until other words come to you.  Some of my client’s favorite filler-words and phrases include : “junk,” “filler,” “ideas,” and “moving along.”  See what works for you.

-Get off the screen: In this computer-driven world, we are so accustomed to associating writing with typing.  Whenever I begin my work with a client, I always provide her/him with an old-fashioned composition book.  The notebook is a great place to jot down ideas, do concept webs and just get started with writing.  One of my students recently told me how relaxing it was for him to just write things out by hand.  He said that his ideas flowed more smoothly and that he felt less rushed.

-Give yourself time.  Although we’re often accustomed to composing emails in a hurry, the kind of self-revealing and engaging writing demanded by the admission essay calls for a sometimes slower pace of writing.  If you’re reading this in October, when I’ve freshly posted it, then you still have a little time to take the time to write in a leisurely way.  Even if you’re working with a deadline, when you write, you should be kind to yourself and don’t feeel rushed even if the clock is ticking down.

-Draw a picture.  Whether you’re a good hand at drawing or not, sometimes trying to capture the elements of your narrative or what you want to say in lines rather than in words can make a world of difference.  You might notice that you spend more time and effort on details that hadn’t occurred to you before you began your drawing.

-Use a recorder.  If talking comes more easily to you than writing, then talk into a microphone to get your thoughts down.  When I wrote my dissertation, I often found myself inspired at the most inopportune times.  I would leave myself messages on my home answering machine.  I eventually graduated to a cell phone with voice notes, which worked great.  These days, many smart phones and iPad-like devices come with apps that take dictation.  Give that a try.

-Talk to someone.  Sometimes working out your idea with a listening partner can make a world of difference.  While complaint may be in order for a while, see if you can actually talk through your writing project.

-Take a breather.  Whether it’s a few deep breaths, a walk or some other activity that gets your mind off you work, it’s okay to take a break every once in a while.  Fresh air, looking at nature, hearing nature or music or even getting up to dance can refresh and recharge your writer’s mind.

Happy writing!

-Dr. Kirschner

Although it may not always be appropriate to begin your essay with a story of how you goofed, colleges want to see your growth, maturity and insight.  Ultimately, you want to show yourself in a flattering light.  The path, however, may not be direct.  When you brainstorm your essay topics, don’t rule out anecdotes that show some of your vulnerabilities, especially if they fit into your personal hero’s story.

Happy writing!

-Dr. Kirschner

Journal writing of any sort provides you an opportunity to catalog and reflect on your thoughts and experiences.  When you write in a journal, you both recollect and process your experiences: you create  a record to jog your memory for later and you provide yourself the opportunity to process your experiences in a way that moves from thoughts that take place in your head to ideas that you can revisit on paper.  Journals provide you a private outlet for your experiences and your thoughts.  Your journal can become the place where you work out your tragedies and triumphs, note what you find remarkable and imagine the possible.  Keeping a journal provides you the opportunity to become honest and frank with yourself about your life.  Journal writing also helps promote the habit of writing and reflection.  These habits not only provide you with good life skills, they will come in handy as you move through college and beyond.

You can write about anything: little anecdotes from your day, things taking place in your family or community that affect you, exchanges with friends, things that you feel strongly about, little details about the places or activities in your life.  Then you can reflect on those activities, people, places or events.   You name it, it can all prove interesting fodder for your journal and for your essay later on.  Whether it’s dramatic or mundane, if it moves you in the least, consider writing about it and meditating on it for a while.

So if you’re wondering what you can do to prepare for your admission essay, keep a journal. Do it now; do it for the rest of your life, if you like it.   Your admission essay will ask you to both share and reflect upon your experiences and developing those habits early on in your journal will help you when the time comes to write statement.

Happy writing!

-Dr. Kirschner

As well, the personal statement benefits from the kind of writing that anthropologists do.  Anthropologists often seize upon small details to create a vivid picture of social life.  They then place those pictures into a wider context to show what’s relevant about  the phenomenon or process under examination.  Likewise, strong personal statements ask you to create a vivid impression of yourself using a narrative of some sort.  Ideally, you’ll reflect on that narrative in some way to show a wider understanding of the significance: whether it’s what you learned from an experience or how you plan to put your experiences into practice as you embark on your career.

So, when you approach your essay, think and write like an anthropologist.  If you need a hand, keep in touch!

-Dr. Kirschner

Writing is not only a tool for communication, for transmitting ideas or transcribing what has already been thought: It is itself a way of thinking, of developing ideas, trying them out, arranging them, testing them.  It is a way of separating your thoughts from yourself –making them take a visible form outside your mind– so that you can think about them and improve them.  It is, in fact, always practice, and realizing this can make you a stronger, more confident writer.  (Scholes et al, The Practice of Writing. 1994: St Martins Press, New York.  Pp 13).

Happy Writing!

-Dr. Kirschner

There is no style store; style is organic to the person doing the writing…Trying to add     style is like adding a toupee.  At first glance the formerly bald man looks young and even     handsome.  But at second glance –and there’s always a second glance– he doesn’t look     quite right…The point is that he doesn’t look like himself. (1998:19).

When you write your essay, you will go through a process of finding your voice.   This voice is how you express yourself and come across as the real you.  And that’s what admissions committees want to hear.

Happy writing!
-Dr. Kirschner

I’m currently working on an essay that’s about coming to terms with the frailty of life and the preciousness of kid’s creations.  But the essay doesn’t come out and say it.  Instead, it illustrates these points by way of details.  The story involves a paper crane, which my daughter left behind when she visited me in the hospital after I experienced a life-threatening illness.  My then 8-year old, Ella, had been making so many paper cranes in the previous months, that they literally littered my house in her creative wake.  Yet, this lone, paper crane left me to tears as I sat alone in my recovery room.  I will draw upon the details of the crane, where I found it, and the scene of me sitting in the hospital room, alone, to contrast with the lively, rambunctious visit with my family earlier that evening.  I do not plan to spell out the themes, yet if I craft the essay well, the reader will be able to infer the points of the essay.

In crafting your personal statement, you draw a fine line between the artistic and the explanatory.  Sometimes, it’s perfectly acceptable to talk about what’s at stake in your story.  Other times call for a light touch.

Happy Writing!

-Dr. Kirschner

Happy writing!

-Dr. Donna  Kirschner

When you find yourself in the midst of a writing project, great or small, consider finding a partner with whom you can bounce ideas.  Or you can always drop me an email.

Happy Writing!

-Dr. Kirschner

So, I urge you to avoid counting on your word processing program to catch all of your typos and grammos.   If this is not your area of expertise, you should ask a trusted friend, parent, teacher or coach to go over your essays.  Do this only after you have done so yourself.  You don’t want to tax these relationships!

Happy Writing!

-Dr. Kirschner