<p>I hope this hasn't been asked before, but when I asked a tutor (part of my school's help program) to edit my common app personal essay (the third/fourth tutor to edit my essay), she was the only one who griped at me that I didn't follow the five paragraph format. Apparently, only Hemingway is allowed to write college essays that aren't in a five paragraph format.</p>
<p>I've looked up some personal essays and read a few, but none of them seemed to follow the five paragraph format.</p>
<p>So, I'm just a bit confused. Am I supposed to write my personal essay in a five paragraph format with an intro (and thesis stating the three points I'll talk about), body paragraphs, and a conclusion (which states all the points in my essay)?</p>
<p>oh gosh, please don’t do that! that’s only if you’re writing an essay for English class. colleges want to hear your ‘personal voice,’ and it’s hard to do that if you follow the traditional 5 paragraph format. for example, maybe you want to emphasize something really important, and you might even place one to two sentences in their own paragraph. it doesn’t need to be in 5 paragraph format, trust me.</p>
<p>If you plan before writing your essays, it shouldn’t be on things like the number of paragraphs. This type of behavior almost inevitably results in an essay suffocating in a trite format. Besides, five paragraphs (at least the type with an intro, three body paragraphs, and a conclusion) is the nadir of unoriginality.</p>