<p>I was recently told that using the word will (such as I will do this... I will accomplish that)
was bad in an essay for college admissions.
Is this true or is it just another fallacy?</p>
<p>Generally there is no reason to talk about the future in a college essay; you are writing about something that happened in the past - maybe using the present tense to convey the experience in real time. But I’m sure it would be fine in some cases. It depends.</p>
<p>Okay, so do you think it would be acceptable to say “Because I did this, or because I accomplished this, I know I will be successful blah blah blah”?
Thank you for your insight by the way =]</p>
<p>There are few hard and fast rules about writing college essays. People always share “conventional wisdom” pearls such as “don’t use the word ‘will’”, “stay away from stories about your travels” etc. Most of them are blown out of proportion. There isn’t anyone who goes over essays with a red pen and automatically deducts 100 SAT points every time they see a Forbidden Verb Tense. The only hard and fast rules that I would hold to are do a good job, write what you know, and edit carefully. If you find a point where you really need to use the word “will”, go for it!</p>
<p>Thank you. =]</p>
<p>And also remember that when you use the word “will”, you are focusing on the future. Depending on the essay you’re writing, this focus can be very important. Adcom considers what you’ve done in the past, but more importantly, Adcom forms an idea of what you’ll do in the future at their university. If your essay is catered towards this second focus, then you will definitely use “will” in your essay. If not, then maybe it won’t. But I wouldn’t say that there is a bad stigma associated with using the word “will” or other future-tense words.</p>
<p>~Jimmy</p>
<p>Agree with this:
You don’t need to write about what you WILL be accomplishing, since that’s a big unknown (and likely to change). I just remember my son, age 4, when he said he WILL be a fireman. Not likely now, at age 20.</p>
<p>“I fully expect to” or “I plan to” can be better choices than “I will”. Would wording like that work in the context of your essay?</p>
<p>I would never say ‘I will be successful’ because this this and this.</p>
<p>While there are ways to avoid the word will, there is nothing wrong with using it. Especially if your responding to a short answer about what you will do if you get accepted to that college. </p>
<p>Its important to remember that schools are not looking for reasons to reject you; they are looking for reasons to admit you.</p>
<p>You are more than welcome to discuss the future in college admissions essays, so long as it is made relevant by a connection to past interests or experiences. </p>
<p>However, “will” can have an unpleasantly upfront tone. Consider that when writing.</p>
<p>the problem with using the word “will” is not syntactic, but semantic.</p>
<p>“Will” implies 100% certainty. One of the goals of education is to impart the notion of greyness, or uncertainty regarding the future. Bottom line: using the word “will”, in most cases, indicates a failure to appreciate the uncertainty of future events. There are ways to make it clear that your use of “will” refers to determination or resolve, but it’s really tricky.</p>
<p>I think it’s ok, but better if you put it into its proper context:</p>
<p>Something like:
I would love to join the paper at school X… I also plan to play sport Y. And I will blah blah blah
seems ok, depending on the type of essay.</p>