It’s okay if the first draft of your college essay is far from perfect. The majority of essay writing is spent in the editing phase, so here is how to edit your essay to make it the best possible!

Identify Strong and Weak Spots

Start by reading your essay and critically looking for:

Strong Spots: These are sections where you feel confident. Specifically where you reflect your personality, values, experiences or strengths and then connect them to your overall theme. These are areas where you have vivid details, clear arguments that answer the prompt, and moments of self-reflection that showcase your unique voice.

Weak Spots: These areas are unclear, off-topic from your theme, or lacking in depth or substance. Look for sections where your argument doesn’t fully develop, grammar issues (Grammarly is free and helpful!), or where the structure and flow feels disconnected. Run your draft through Esslo.org to help you easily identify these weak spots.

Also ask yourself:

• Does my essay give a clear picture of me? If a random person described the author of the essay, would their description match me?
• What is the primary story arc in this essay? What develpment does it show, and how well does it reflect my journey?
• What is my favorite part of my essay? How is it unique to me, and how can I better reflect myself in the rest of the essay?

Create an Outline for Improvement

Once you've identified the weak spots, break down how you can enhance each one. Here are ways to find weak sections and steps to improve them.

Clarity and Focus

• Weak Spot: A paragraph or idea that doesn't align with your story arc
• Improvement Plan: Reread the section and ask yourself, "What do I want my admissons officer to remember about me?” and “How does this section show that about me with concrete examples?” This can help you to reflect your unique self in more detailed and memorable ways.

Developing Ideas

• Weak Spot: A section that could have been written by any one of thousands of other students.
• Improvement Plan: Dive deeper. Ask yourself:
  • Why is this important?
  • How does it relate to my larger story?
  • Can I add an example or personal experience to illustrate the point better?
• If your section seems general, try to add a specific anecdote or a more detailed analysis to show your thought process.
• If your section is too complex, consider removing it and include writing that is more straightforward and concise.

Transitions and Structure

• Weak Spot: A transition that wastes too many words getting to your next paragraph.
• Improvement Plan: Words are precious! Each word should directly contribute to helping your admissions officer learn more about you. Compared to other school essays, your personal statement should be less "flowery" and spend as many words as possible helping your admissions officer find out who you are!

Tone and Voice

• Weak Spot: A paragraph that sounds too formal or too casual or does not match the voice that you wish to convey.
• Improvement: Your college essay should feel like it’s coming from you—not from an essay template. To check your tone, read your essay out loud. Does it sound like something you’d actually say? If a friend picked your essay off the street, would they recognize it as yours?

Drafting

Take these ideas and continue drafting new sections and essays. From these essays you can pull the strongest sentences and paragraphs to compile the “perfect” essay. This can be a tedious process but it pays off in the end.

Ask for Feedback Again (and Again)

Once you've made revisions, continue to ask the people closest to you (or Esslo) for continued feedback and improvement. This process takes many times but the payout of a compelling essay is totally worth it!.

Read It Over

Read your essay aloud or better yet, have someone else read it to you. This allows for you to check the overall flow and make sure that it clearly answers the prompt and represents your best self. Editing any essay is a process. Your first draft is only a starting point—refining your ideas and perfecting your voice is what makes your essay stand out. Take your time with revisions, and don’t be afraid to take your essay in a direction you didn’t initially anticipate. Use Esslo for detailed essay feedback. And reach out to us at hello@esslo.org if you have any questions!