Why Certain College Essays Work

As the due dates for my college essays rapidly approach, I am terrified. How will I know what makes a good college essay? The answer is that my English teacher will tell me. She has showed me what characteristics make a college essay good, bad, or risky. She has also named the four D's that we must avoid: death, divorce, drugs, and drama. My teacher has given me three college essays that worked, and it is my job to determine why they worked. The first essay was written by Lakshmi Kannan '10 for Mahindra United World College, Trechur Kerela, India. She successfully avoided the four D's, she followed the directions of "discuss an achievement", she was specific and focused, she was definately very creative, she had an angle, she held the reader's attention, she had a strong hook, her essay was descriptive, it appealed to the senses, and Lakshmi developed a very distinct voice. Her essay was not cheesy or bragging, she did not generalize or bad mouth, for all I know, she did not lie, her essay was certainly not boring, she did not use too many obnoxiously big words, and religion and politics were left out of her essay. Taking risks can be harmful or helpful and in Lakshmi's case, she took risks and they worked. Lakshmi had a funny tone that sets her apart from the other applicants, and she talked about sex throughout her essay, which makes her writing unique. Lakshmi had a shocking opening of "Wagina...wagina...wagina" which, again, sets her apart from the other heaps of applications sitting on the dean of admission's desk.