Essay Topic Help

College Essays
1

I read on CC a lot about how important the essays are and to be yourself in them so that you can communicate who you are to an admissions rep. I’ve been brainstorming a couple ideas and I keep coming back to one:

I want to talk about my involvement in/love for theater (especially musical theater) and singing

I thought this would be good for a couple of reasons:
It’s the biggest thing I’m involved in outside of school and I’ve really developed a passion for it over the past couple years. Also, since I’ll be applying as a STEM major, I figured it would be a great opportunity to communicate my interest in other things besides science, making me more well rounded.

Is this a good topic or is it too generic? It’s also not an “overcoming some life challenge” essay and I’ve seen a lot of those. Any advice? Thank you so much for reading and responding!

2

Right now, as you present it, it’s still generic.

But write the essay. Make sure it shows the side of you that your friends and family all love. Don’t worry about overcoming a life challenge or finding a cure for the common cold, just show them who you are.

3

I agree with the comment above in that the essay could help showcase who you are outside of the classroom. Basically your essay should make admissions see you less as number and more as a person.

4

I agree.

5

Theater is my main extracurricular and I have a lot of leadership, so I felt I could touch on that there (while also being careful not to just restate my resume). It also leaves a lot of room for humor as well which I felt would be good for my essay so it’s not boring.

Thanks so much for the advice!