10 Top Tips for Writing Your College Essay from Harvard, Stanford, Yale & Dartmouth Students

The college-essay writing process can be stressful and daunting. It's no easy task to sum up your personality, a major life event, an academic or extracurricular passion of yours, or an impactful story in 500 words or so! So how do you start to tackle the blank document screen before you, and get your ideas down in a way that is compelling and authentic to you?

Fear not! We asked Five Curious Cardinals mentors, now successful students at top colleges, to share their advice on where to begin, and how to make your way through the essay-writing process. Here are their top tips for approaching the dreaded college essay:

David Hill - Harvard ‘24 Applied Math & Physics

1. Always remember the essay is about you.
2. Be as vulnerable as possible when writing the essay.

Clara Pakman - Dartmouth ‘23 Cognitive Science & Digital Arts 

1. Do some soul-searching and introspection before you start writing! Determine your own personal values and allow your essay to express them. 
2. Don't put on an overly-professional persona; use your authentic tone of voice.

Anabelle Stoker - Stanford ‘25 Symbolic Systems 

1. Be honest (your personal statement just has to be YOU).
2. Don't be afraid to put drafts that you're not sure about on paper — the hardest part of the essay writing process can be starting, so getting something down sooner rather than later will be really helpful for the rest of your drafting process.

Matthew Jennings - Yale ‘25 History & Political Science

1. Make a list of musings (can be as simple as a phone note!)
2. Read as many sample essays provided by different universities as possible!

Malachi Robinson - Harvard ‘23 History & Literature and African American Studies

1. Emphasize originality.
2. Revise endlessly.