This article is a part of a series – Step to a great application essay. The first step can be found in here.
After writing down numerous facts about yourself, patterns and strengths will start to emerge. These will help you develop a theme for your essay. Sometimes, however, it’s not that straight forward.
For example, student A could be interested in various things. He plays a musical instrument, plays baseball and basketball, is vice president of student council and writes for his student paper. He can’t decide which of these interests to focus on. Sometimes having too much to say is more dumbfounding than having too little.
Here is where passion comes in. Student A might be good at many things, but where is his passion? Perhaps even though he does well academically and in extra curricular activities, his real passion could be in his ability to learn new musical instruments and playing in a band with his friends.
Even though playing in a garage band may not be seen as a common or appreciated skill for university applicants, he could write a compelling essay about his musical passion, casting light on his determination to learn any instrument he puts his mind to. He could also focus on his ability to be part of a team, as well as his ability to take the initiative in band projects.
Therefore, his curiosity and dedication to learning new skills and his ability to function as part of a group would be the themes of his essay, in this case. While he may not even want to study music, these themes will override other aspects in the essay. Showing dedication and motivation, and of course passion in words is priceless.
It is important to remember in the case of the application essay, that it is not meant to be a regurgitation of the rest of your materials. It is to give the evaluator something new, creative and interesting to pepper the rest of your application materials with. It is the spice, so to speak, of the application package.
What if I am not spicy enough?
If you don’t find yourself moved or passionate about any particular thing, more so than others, go out and find something that excites you. This is your chance to explore what the world has to offer. It doesn’t matter what the interest is, as long as you are able to demonstrate in deed and writing your dedication, creativity, hard work, motivation, strength, forbearance, resilience, or any other positive quality. This doesn’t have to be academic or school-related. It could be something like student A’s garage band. Passion is the most important ingredient in your essay.