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How to Write a Better Scholarship Essay For
College
Writing a better scholarship essay than your peers is critical
to establish why you, the college applicant, deserve the money
and not somebody else. Listing other valuable scholarship
credentials, such as a high SAT score and a solid GPA, do not
always personalize the scholarship application as the essay
does. When written correctly, the scholarship essay appeals to
the emotional psyche of the reader. To achieve this result, you
need to write your scholarship essay clearly, concisely and
correctly, and with subtle hints of your
personality.
CREATING A STELLAR SCHOLARSHIP
ESSAY
First, abolish the notion that only people with talent can
write well. If a person can talk, he/she can write well.
Because writing involves more thinking than regular talking, it
is important to follow these guidelines during the writing
process:
1) Read other scholarship essays.
Reading other winning scholarship essays is the best way to get
a feel for what scholarship judges look for. It may also
provide ideas during times of writer's block or mental stress.
Be careful not to copy other people's words unless you properly
quote them in your scholarship essay. This applies to direct
quotes, indirect quotes, and paraphrased statements.
2) Use outlines, and brainstorm.
Outlines are a wonderful tool for a writer to gather his
thoughts. A traditional outline consists of a Roman numeral
identifying the main heading; a capital letter identifying a
subheading; and numbers indicating topics under the subheading.
You can denote further points related to these topics by using
small letters. An informal outline works best for the
scholarship essay... what matters is the writer knows what he
wants to say before he actually starts saying it.
3) Research rules.
Some scholarship essays seem so easy... so why does a writer
still encounter mental roadblocks when writing an essay? This
is perfectly natural, even on topics that a writer feels he
knows first-hand. To get the brain cells fired up and
functioning, sometimes it's helpful to research topics directly
and indirectly related to the main topic.
4) Write from the heart for emotional
impact.
Don't try to sound like the latest best-selling author in your
scholarship essay. This includes trying to sound "deep,"
(unless of course "deep" is your natural writing style), and
littering the essay with big words. Scholarship judges can see
through this, and you will turn them off if you try to sound
like someone else.
5) Be creative and unique.
Don't be afraid to deviate from the "academic style" of the
scholarship essay -- as long as creativity doesn't distract
from the main theme, and you are using proper grammar.
Remember, scholarship judges are human and they tend to notice
essays that tug on their emotional strings in some way. The
best scholarship essays usually contain anecdotes, emotional
personal accounts and even dialogue. If the scholarship essay
instructions allow for creative expression, go wild with
it.
6) Use proper grammar, punctuation and
style.
Scholarship judges will immediately disqualify scholarship
essays with too many grammatical errors, even if the content is
compelling. You must know the rules of English grammar, and you
should know how to write formally. This means you know how to
write a sentence with a traditional structure versus a
"contemporary" one (the writer should opt for the former). For
example, today's sentence structure makes it somewhat
acceptable to use "And" or "But" at the beginning of a
sentence, but you should avoid it when writing the scholarship
essay. Many editors (especially editors in academia) still feel
uncomfortable using a conjunction at the beginning of a
sentence, so why even take the chance? A writer can play it
safe when choosing to write traditionally.
7) Don't reinvent the wheel - use a standard essay
format.
A basic essay format consists of: 1) a thesis statement; 2)
three or four paragraphs expanding on points detailed in the
thesis statement; and 3) a concluding paragraph. This
traditional structure, although seen as generic by some college
writers, works very well. Why? Because it allows you to clearly
lay out your thoughts during the writing process and for the
judges who are reading the essay.
8) Follow the scholarship essay's
instructions.
It is important that your scholarship essay address the points
asked for in the instructions. No matter how brilliant a
particular piece is, if it goes off on a tangent discussing
irrelevant topics, then you have not achieved the desired
objective.
9) Get someone else to proofread your
work.
It is very easy for writers to miss many mistakes, whether they
are grammatical errors, typos or inconsistencies in the flow of
their piece. It is important to have other sources proofread
your material, such as friends, family, and other professors
who have reviewed winning scholarship essays. Otherwise, use a
popular grammar software, such as
www.WhiteSmokeSoftware.com.
10) Don't discourage yourself if your scholarship essay
is rejected.
Just because your scholarship essay didn't win doesn't mean it
was bad. Scholarship judges are responsible for reading
hundreds -- sometimes even thousands -- of scholarship essays.
Deciding who will win from a pile of many good essays, can be
very difficult. Sometimes judges base their final choice purely
on emotion - the judges may see factors in an essay that remind
them of their personal life. Either way, it is impossible to
please everyone. You should apply to as many scholarships as
possible.
As long as you follow these guidelines and produce a
well-written scholarship essay, the power of numbers is on your
side. Your excellent scholarship essay is bound to be noticed
eventually.
by Brian Scott - 16th September 2008
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Brian Scott is a contributing writer for http://www.LousyWriter.com
, a free website on how to write better. He recommends college
students visit http://www.MasterFreelancer.com
for english grammar software to help with writing college
essays.
Article Source:
http://www.creativewriter.me.uk
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