<p>Hi, I'm going to be a senior and I'm starting on my application essay.</p>
<p>I'm just wondering how ridiculous I'm allowed to be when writing my essay.</p>
<p>For example, here's (a probably exaggerated version) of the tone of my essay (it'll be about having fun). (and another question is whether I'm allowed an excessive use of parentheses)</p>
<p>I realized as I wrote this essay that Italics would be awesome. Can I use Italics?</p>
<p>Ex: </p>
<p>Dear Warden to the vaulted realms of higher education, I come here (in metaphysical form) to appeal for entry to your holy grounds. While other pilgrims to this Mecca of knowledge may attempt to impress you with feats of loquacity, I come merely to extol the virtues of (ah! smite me not oh eminent one! I swear upon your 7 year medical program that I am not tainted with the vile stench of Thesaurus.com)</p>
<p>Just in case, this kind of opening satirizes the admissions process (ala narrator from 40,000 arabian nights) </p>
<p>Yeah, my essay is not going to be this ridiculous, but it's the style and tone that I want to use.</p>
<p>Do you think admissions officers are going to be entertained by this sort of stuff? Or should I stay away from it, or should I try something more formal?</p>
<p>You have complete freedom over the style of your essay, but it should sound natural–it should sound as if you were speaking to a stranger, the admissions dean, except you speak in the form of an essay. I do not think admissions officers will be entertained something over-the-top and unnatural. It sounds more stupid and fake than entertaining.</p>
I’ve seen an essay about how the writer, in the future, can divide by zero (clearly a joke- quite funny I add). I’ve also seen essays where the writer comes out. Your seriouseness (or lack thereof) should depend on your personality and what you end up writing about (and maybe think of the school as well- are they known for being quirky?). </p>
<p>
My writing is condusive to lots of parenthesis (see above). However, when I’m writing an essay, I try to use as few parenthetical elements as possible. One per paragraph is plenty high. Too many parenthesi are distracting.</p>
<p>
Yeah, definitely. Be warned that if you copy and paste your essay into the physical application (rather than uploading it) the italics and some other formatting might be lost. A terrible problem to have, because some things need to be italicized. I never tried coding (like I do here) using “**” where what you want to italicize goes between two i brackets. That may work. </p>
<p>
If it’s funny, not offensive, and written well, you should be fine. I’m sure an adcom would rather read a quick, funny essay than some serious, dense essay (ceterus paribus).</p>
<p>If your personality is quirky, than a quirky essay is perfect. Funny, quirky, entertaining essays are the kind of things that will stand out in the reader’s mind amongst a sea of boring ones. Don’t try writing something that feels unnatural to you, but definitely don’t try to tone down your own quirkiness (especially if its something your school is known for).</p>