College Admission Essay
Need some ideas for your college admission essay? See examples of admission essays written by other college applicants.Last updated on December 18, 2024 by College Financial Aid Advice.
College Admission Essay Examples
Harvard University
“KaBOOM!” An uneasy rumble through the floor shakes bystanders’ hearts to the pits of their stomachs. After an eerie five seconds of silence and confusion, a woman screams ...
This essay not only helped Itia to gain admission into Birmingham-Southern College, but it also earned her over $20,000 in scholarships annually ...
What is an inspiration? Literally, inspire means ‘to fill with breathe’. To me, inspiring someone is to provide them with motivation to do something positive. My inspiration is Michael Jordan ...
The fall breeze swiped my face as I stood in front of the bleak building. Cautiously, I followed my cousin up the steps. Inside, the hustle and bustle was overwhelming. Kids, pushing and shoving, were going…
I am cold and tired as I drag myself into the YMCA on a dreary Saturday morning to teach swim lessons. I have so much stress from homework, sports and school that I dread having to teach this one-on-one swim class. As I walk in feeling unmotivated and stressed…
The Harry Potter series has been a huge part of my life since I was just six years old. I grew up learning and exploring with those characters, and they have influenced me more than anything else in the world. ...
Walking the Plank - Personal Growth Essay
I was shaking, not only from nerves but from the deep chill piercing my skin and rattling my bones. It clung to me like doom. More pressing still were the figures surrounding me....
It’s amazing the impact an education can have on an individual, and as a foreigner in this country I’ve been exposed to many ways of receiving that education. Without a doubt being exposed to many different kinds of schools in different countries has changed me, but school was not the only place where learning happened. My family, especially my uncle and grandparent have influenced me in what I wanted to do with my life...
What is the most pressing issue facing my community?
The most pressing issue in my community is the abuse of prescription pills among teens and adults. It seems to me that everywhere I go it is a problem whether I am at school, work, or just hanging out with my friends. They are very…
Rising Above Is My Only Option
First Generation College Student Essay - Lance Armstrong once said, “Anything is possible. You can be told that you have a ninety-percent chance or a fifty-percent chance or a one-percent chance, but you have to believe, and you have to fight.” These words are my creed, my motto, my strength to succeed. This is not a question to me, or a challenge. This is my future! I am honored to say I will be the first one in my family to attend college ...
Asian-Hispanic American: The Amerasian
This is my college essay and it helped me get admitted into all the schools I applied to!
Whenever I looked at myself in the mirror, questions formulated in my mind. I often wondered about my appearance. I compared my hair to the rest of my family and saw it was not the same. Everyone else had beautiful pin-straight hair, while mine was curly. I knew something was strange because most Asians do not have naturally curly hair. I was different and it made me insecure. As I grew older, I began to feel impatient and the questions about my hair led me to seek the truth about my identity. ...
How You Can Overcome Certain Obstacles
Life can be an ongoing war with many fierce battles; I have not won every battle however I am determined not to lose this war. My first major battle started when I was two years old and was diagnosed with epilepsy...
My day in the sun had arrived – my magnum opus would be revealed. I had just delivered a memorized speech that I had labored over for weeks, and I was about to learn how the panel judged my performance. The polite but sparse audience leaned forward in their folding chairs. A hush fell across the room. The drum rolled ...
How My Experiences and Passions Effect Me as a Person
There are many experiences, interest, and situations that have impacted me as a person as well as made me the person that I am today. Some of these experiences have been bad and some have been good for me. In all, these experiences that I have taught me life lessons. As we all know ...
This college personal essay helped me get accepted into UC Berkeley and UCSD - Tell us about a personal quality, talent, accomplishment, contribution or experience that is important to you. What about this quality or accomplishment makes you proud, and how does it relate to the person you are?
Guitar is the extracurricular activity that has helped me grow the most as an individual. A lot of my other activities are easy for me, but not playing guitar. I don't have the same natural talent in guitar that I have in things like martial arts. I have to put in a lot of practice time to be successful in music. I've learned that ...
You don’t have a soul. You are a soul. You have a body.” C.S. Lewis - He was a three-year-old boy who had been bitten by a dog. I looked down and could see part of his bone under the broken skin. Even I had to look away. Oddly enough, his eyes were dry and it was he who was comforting his mother. He would be just fine...
Every student experiences pressure in school, but I have faced two kinds of pressure in my life: peer pressure and family pressure. Overcoming these challenges has shaped me into the determined person I am today. My world has always been different from ...
Many people view life as a movie, a calendar of events, a book, or even as a timeline. However, seeing as I was raised amongst a family where a favorite past time is baking, I view life as a recipe. Baking has always…
There are certain nights of your life that define you. For me, that night happened to be, ironically, just another by invitation only party. This night, however, was different than the others. Tonight I felt like…
Smell the roses…or um roaches. Staying at my grandma’s house in Texas is the best part of my year. I get to do hair, go to the lake, fish, eat out, and kill roaches the size of my fist. The best part…
More College Admission Essay Examples
100 Examples of Good College Essays
College Essays about Motivation
Help with College Essays
Welcome!
Welcome to College Financial Aid Advice, a website full of information on scholarships and grants, student loans, and other ways to save money at college.
Important Things to Do
Scholarships for 2025 - 2026 - It is never too early or too late to work on your scholarship searches. If you are part of the high school class of 2025, you should work on your scholarship and college search now. See our list of Scholarships for High School Seniors
FAFSA - The official 2025 - 2026 FAFSA is available now. FAFSA.
College Financial Aid Tips
Scholarship Lists An overview of the different types of Scholarship Money for College.
Grants Learn more about grants, the other free money for college.
Need Tuition Help? Reduce the cost of tuition with these college Tuition Assistance Programs.
Tax Credit Claim the American Opportunity Tax Credit.
College Savings Plans Save money for college with these College Savings Plans.
Need a Student Loan? Yes, you qualify for these college Student Loans.
Popular Scholarship Searches
Scholarships for High School Students