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Essay Examples on Personal Goals

What makes a good personal goals essay topic.

When it comes to the art of crafting a personal goals essay, the topic you choose is the key that unlocks the door to success. It sets the tone for your entire piece and can either captivate or repel your reader. To ensure you choose a compelling essay topic, consider the following recommendations:

- Reflect on your passions and interests: Delve into the depths of what truly excites and piques your curiosity. Your essay topic should be a genuine reflection of what you care about.

- Consider your personal experiences: Take a moment to reflect on the milestones, challenges, and achievements that have shaped your life. These experiences offer unique insights that can make for an enthralling essay topic.

- Ponder your future aspirations: What are your goals and ambitions? Explore topics that align with your future plans or areas you yearn to delve into further.

- Research trending topics: Stay up-to-date with current events and trends. Select a topic that reflects a relevant issue, enabling you to showcase your knowledge and awareness.

- Seek inspiration from others: Immerse yourself in personal essays, biographies, or success stories to ignite your creativity. These stories can help you identify unique angles or perspectives for your own essay.

A good personal goals essay topic should be thought-provoking, original, and reflective of your personality. It should allow you to showcase your unique experiences and insights while engaging your readers.

Unconventional Personal Goals Essay Topics

When it comes to personal goals essay topics, it's crucial to stand out from the crowd and present a perspective that is truly your own. Here is a list of 20 creative and unconventional essay topics to inspire you:

- Embracing Failure: How setbacks have paved the path to personal growth.

- Exploring Cultural Identity: Navigating the intricate web of multiple identities.

- Overcoming Self-Doubt: How I became my own cheerleader.

- The Power of Mentorship: The transformative influence of an extraordinary guide.

- Redefining Success: Forging a unique path in a world of conformity.

- The Art of Resilience: How I triumphed over life's toughest trials.

- Embracing Vulnerability: Unleashing the strength found in showing weakness.

- Unconventional Career Paths: Pursuing my passion, defying societal expectations.

- The Journey of Self-Discovery: Unveiling my passions and purpose in life.

- Breaking Barriers: Overcoming obstacles, shattering stereotypes.

- The Importance of Emotional Intelligence: Nurturing the heart and mind.

- The Role of Education in Personal Growth: Illuminating the path to enlightenment.

- Finding Balance: Juggling work, personal life, and self-care.

- The Influence of Travel: Broadening horizons, expanding perspectives.

- Advocating for Change: Fighting for a cause that ignites my soul.

- The Power of Forgiveness: How letting go transformed my life.

- Embracing Imperfections: Learning to love myself, flaws and all.

- The Impact of Personal Development Books: The literary catalysts of change.

- The Role of Creativity in Personal Growth: Unleashing my untapped potential.

- Reinventing Myself: Breaking free from limitations, embracing a new future.

Provoking Thought: Personal Goals Essay Questions

To further explore your chosen topics, here are ten thought-provoking essay questions:

1. How has failure contributed to shaping your personal growth?

2. In what ways has your cultural identity influenced your goals and aspirations?

3. How did you overcome self-doubt and develop the confidence to pursue your goals?

4. What specific qualities or experiences made your mentorship relationship impactful?

5. How have you redefined success to align with your personal values and aspirations?

6. Share a significant challenge you faced and explain how you demonstrated resilience.

7. How has embracing vulnerability helped you in personal growth and building relationships?

8. In what ways have you deviated from traditional career paths and pursued your passion?

9. How did your journey of self-discovery lead you to uncover your true passions and purpose?

10. Explain how breaking barriers and defying stereotypes shaped your personal growth.

Personal Goals Essay Prompts

To fuel your creativity and assist you in crafting your personal goals essay, here are five intriguing essay prompts:

1. Imagine yourself ten years older, reflecting on the path you took to achieve your goals. Describe that journey and the invaluable lessons you learned along the way.

2. If you possessed unlimited resources and time, what ambitious goal would you pursue, and how would it impact your life and the world around you?

3. Write a heartfelt letter to your future self, detailing the personal goals you wish to accomplish and the strategic plans you have devised to achieve them.

4. Share a significant moment of personal growth that occurred during a challenging time in your life. How did it shape your goals and aspirations?

5. Imagine you have the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to engage in a conversation with someone who has achieved great success in your field of interest. What profound questions would you ask them, and how would their answers influence your personal goals?

Writing Personal Goals Essay FAQs

Q: How long should a personal goals essay be?

A: There is no set length for a personal goals essay. However, it's essential to strike a balance between being concise and providing enough detail to effectively convey your ideas. Aim for a length that allows you to express yourself thoroughly without becoming repetitive or overly verbose.

Q: Can I use personal anecdotes in my personal goals essay?

A: Yes, personal anecdotes can be a powerful tool to illustrate your experiences and growth. They add a personal touch to your essay and help the reader connect with your story on a deeper level.

Q: Should I focus on one specific goal or multiple goals in my essay?

A: It depends on the prompt and your personal preferences. You can choose to focus on a single goal, allowing you to delve deeper into its significance and your journey towards achieving it. Alternatively, you can explore multiple goals and demonstrate how they are interconnected or have influenced each other.

Q: Is it necessary to include a conclusion in my personal goals essay?

A: While a conclusion is not mandatory, it can be beneficial to summarize your main points and leave the reader with a lasting impression. A well-crafted conclusion can reinforce the significance of your goals and leave the reader inspired.

Q: Can I use humor in my personal goals essay?

A: Yes, incorporating humor can add a touch of personality to your essay and make it more engaging. However, ensure that the humor is appropriate and aligns with the overall tone and message of your essay.

Remember, your personal goals essay is an opportunity to showcase your unique experiences, aspirations, and personal growth. Be authentic, passionate, and creative in your writing to captivate your readers and leave a lasting impact.

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29 Personal Goals Examples for Students (Academic, Life, Money, etc.)

By: Author Amanda L. Grossman

Posted on Last updated: March 14, 2024

My personal goal examples from when I was a student, plus tons of other personal goal examples for students and high school seniors.

Setting goals and attempting to achieve them teaches teenagers and students so much about themselves, about the world, and about life.

But picking meaningful goals (the kind that will motivate them to see the goal process work) can be difficult for someone so new to the process.

That's why I'm sharing both my personal goal examples from when I was a student, and other examples of personal goals your students can adopt for their own growth in their academic, money, and other areas of their lives.

Personal Goals Examples for Students

Below are tons of personal goal examples for students.

I want to give you an example of what setting one of these goals can look like so that they can get a better idea of what the goal-setting process looks like.

Psst: you’ll definitely want to use one of these free teen goal setting worksheets pdfs and free goal setting worksheets for kids once you choose a goal to go after from below.

Personal Goal Example: Set Up and Consistently Use a Study Block System

A student might want to establish great study habits as prep for college, or to get better grades by X date, or to be able to apply to certain schools and scholarships.

Various action steps a student might take to meet this goal include:

• Research a Few Study Systems : You first will need to find a study system that you want to set up and do, consistently.
• Choose and/or Create Your Own Study System : Pick a study system, or create your own from scratch, and make tweaks as you use it. For example, you could set up a study block system that closely resembles a block schedule , or you could use the Pomodoro technique when you study.

How a student might measure their success with this goal:

• Habit Tracker Checkoff to Measure Consistency : You’ll want to figure out what “consistently use” means, such as 3 days per week, and then use a habits tracker to check off each time you use the system as part of measuring your success. You can also simply put an “X” on each calendar day that you use your new system.
• Measure Grade Improvement : The second way to measure success with this goal is to compare your grades after using it for X number of months, with your grades before using it.

Alright, next up I’ll give you a sneak peek at my own list of various goals I had as a student (what a fun trip down memory lane I had creating this list!).

My Own Personal Examples of Goals in the Life of a Student

Guess what? I had many goals when I was a student.

I’d love to share them with you now to show you some great ones to go after.

Examples of goals in the life of a student:

• Type 60 words per minute
• Study abroad in a foreign country
• Get accepted to a college with a Japanese language program
• Study abroad in Japan
• Graduate college in the top 10 of my class (actually made the top 3!)
• Save up enough money to buy my prom gown
• Get a paid internship
• Buy my first car
• Get to go to Senior Week at the beach
• Redo my bedroom as a high schooler
• Pass a Spanish fluency test to get a certification (just barely missed this one)
• Volunteer 2-3 hours per week

I could go on – setting goals has always kinda been my thing – but let’s move on to more in-depth examples of student goals.

Personal Life Goals for Students

Here are some personal life goals students might want to add to their list of what they want to achieve.

1. Start a Growth Journal

You’re reading a blog from someone who has been journaling since kindergarten. Seriously – my uncle bought me a journal in kindergarten and I have crayon-written, half-sentences all over it.

It’s such a pleasure for me to go back through the 17 or so journals I have to reflect on my past, to gain a better understanding of myself, and to remember times of good and times of bad.

Not to mention, it’s extremely therapeutic to be able to write my thoughts and feelings out on paper – it always gives me more clarity.

Here’s an excellent growth mindset journal for teenagers .

Psst: here are 39 journal topics for high school students .

2. Make a Goal to Use Social Media Less

Social media can take over a person’s life. Little by little, you spend more time on your phone or computer checking statuses and making updates…until before you know it, you’re spending more time online than in real life.

Your student could set a goal to cut down their social media use by half.

Set phone reminders or use their phone’s stopwatch to time themselves, and just allow two 15-minute slots in their day on social media (or whatever other timeframe you want to use that is considerably less than what they’re doing now).

Do this for one month, and have them journal about the changes they’ve seen in their life and in themselves.

3. Read a Book Every Month

Set a goal to read one book – outside of assigned ones – every single month for the next 3 months, 6 months, or 12 months.

Pssst: Here’s a bunch of teen books about money , and 7 investment books for teens .

4. Accomplish Their First Individual Goal

Set a goal (there are plenty of ones here to choose from!), give it a deadline, and then actually accomplish it.

That, in and of itself, is a huge goal!

Pssst: you can use these teen goal setting worksheet PDFs for help

Academic Goals for Students

Some fun and productive academic goals for students to set are included here.

1. Enter a Competition

When I was 16, I entered a pageant for the Chester County Dairy Princess. I worked really hard on my speeches, prepped for the interview, and created a presentation.

And you know what? I won!

That year spent as the Chester County Dairy Princess was transformative in my life and for my resume.

Encourage your student to try entering a competition for something – they may not win, or even get close. But they'll learn so much about themselves and from others just going through the process.

Here are 19 youth entrepreneurship programs that include competitions as well, to get you started.

2. Set Up and Consistently Use a Study System

We discussed in the personal goal examples above how to set up and consistently use a study system. Definitely a worthwhile goal to set.

Money Goals for Students

Check out this section for money goals students can go after – all act as money training wheels to help teach them how to manage their future job paycheck.

Psst: you'll also want to check out my article on short term financial goals for high school students .

1. Create Your First Budget

Budgets are like living, breathing things – the budget you set to begin with is not likely to be the same one you go into young adulthood with. And that’s perfectly fine!

BUT, what’s not fine, is failing to set a budget at all.

Get your students to take the time to create their very first budget with one of these free teen budget worksheets . Help them learn from budgeting each week, make tweaks, and get really good at this before they reach their early 20s.

2. Create a Savings Goal to Reach By 18

Ever wondered how much a teen should have saved by 18 ?

That really depends on what their life situation is going to look like right after graduating high school.

I’ve got an entire article to help you + your teen calculate an estimated savings goal. Sit down, figure out an estimated amount, and then start looking at how to meet that savings goal.

How much time does your teen have between now and when they turn 18? What would they need to save each month, or each week, in order to meet that savings goal?

All great questions to answer when setting their savings goal.

3. Get Their First Job

My first real job (I lived on a dairy farm, so I had been earning extra cash and “working” for quite some time) was mucking horse stalls at a local veterinarian’s clinic.

And wow, was it an eye-opening experience!

A teen getting their first job is exciting, as it creates a new level of independence and learning.

Some things to think about (all in my free teen first job guide):

• They’ll need to figure out if you are old enough to work
• They’ll need your parent’s permission
• They’ll need to figure out how many hours you can work per week
• They’ll need to do a teen job hunt

Don’t forget that if they can’t get a traditional job right now, there are ways to make money on the side as a teen with these online apps that pay teenagers .

Parents? Here’s my guide on money conversations to have with your child once they receive that first paycheck .

Career Goals Examples for Students

In this section, you’ll find either career goal examples for students, or goal examples for stuff that will help your teen start their career.

Also, definitely check out these resources for career exploration for students .  

1. Work on the Congressional Youth Award

Have you heard of the Congressional Award Program for Youth ? Frankly, I’m blown away – and if I had heard of it when I was a teen, I definitely would’ve gone after it.

You can start at the age of 13.5, and you have until 24 years of age to complete the various levels.

2. Get Their First Media Appearance

Media appearances can stick with you – and your resume – for years to come. They also help you to cement a viewpoint you have, or become more knowledgeable on a topic.

Have your student set a goal to do one of the following:

• Get interviewed by your local news station
• Get interviewed by your local newspaper
• Get interviewed by a blogger
• Write a story and submit it for publication
• Write a press release and submit it for circulation
• Write a magazine article and submit it for publication

3. Work with a Group on a Goal

Working in a group and being able to accomplish a goal is quite different than working on a goal by yourself. And, it’s a really, really, important trait to have. Because if you end up working for a company or organization one day? You’ll likely be thrown into groups and have to accomplish certain tasks.

Goals for High School Seniors

High school seniors are about to enter the real world – whether that’s getting their own apartment, starting college in the fall, getting that first real-paying job, or having to help pay rent at home for the first time.

Because of all the transitions and changes that come right after this year of high school, there are tons of great goals high school seniors can set for themselves.

Help ease your senior’s transition with these teen personal goal examples:

1. Apply for One Scholarship or Grant Per Week

I would say this is the minimum goal a high school senior should set if they want to attend college.

And here’s another trick you need to tell your seniors: keep applying for scholarships all throughout college!

Your scholarship and grant search goals do NOT need to end once you get accepted and pay for that first year. You could snag a new scholarship to decrease your overall student loan bill your sophomore year, over summers, and even your last year of college!

2. Book a Senior Week Trip with Friends

When I was a senior in high school, I realized that I didn’t have any plans for where to spend Senior Week (and boy did I want to go somewhere). SO, I gathered a handful of my friends who were interested, and I set about booking a house in Delaware on the beach.

I can’t tell you how many cool memories I have from that week with my senior classmates and friends – one of the last times I saw most of them.

When did I set this goal and start planning for it? In the fall of my senior year, I knew I’d need to:

• Find a location a bunch of people would want to go to
• Price houses
• Get a group of interested people together
• Come up with the deposit money
• Calculate and save up for the cost per person
• Collect funds from everyone
• Plan out meals

Lots involved with booking a trip. And so much learning, too!

3. Learn to Cook One Entire Meal (from Scratch)

Look – seniors are going to have to figure out their own food in short order. SO, the best way to help them not busting their budgets (plus get them curious and interested in cooking for themselves)? Is by teaching them an entire meal from scratch.

That includes:

• Appetizer (optional)

And to accomplish this? They’ll have to pick out a recipe, budget for ingredients, shop for those ingredients, and then get timing down in the kitchen (like, do you cook the side dish first earlier in the day to free up time to focus on the main dish? Can you cook the main dish ahead of time and reheat it while making the salad and dessert? It takes practice).

4. Set Up and Use a Planner for 30 Days

One of the biggest changes that comes when you take responsibility for yourself as an adult is learning how to organize and prioritize your time.

What better way for your students to beef up skills in this area than by setting a goal to set up and use a planner every day for 30 days?

They can try a digital planning system, or use a paper one (you might want them to start with a paper one so that they can wrap your head around things by writing them down, first).

Here’s a free student binder printable to get you started .

5. Volunteer X Hours Per Week or Month

Students can set a goal to volunteer a certain number of hours either per week or in a month.

Places I’ve personally volunteered include:

• Nursing homes
• Agricultural events
• Start-up company
• Habitat for Humanity

Check out my article on volunteer opportunities from home ! Also, here are charities for kids to donate to you can donate to where $12 or less makes a big difference.

My last tip for a student setting a goal: the magic of goal-setting really comes from the lessons learned and from moving on to the next goal. SO, in order to get your students and teenagers interested in setting goals a second, third, and umpteenth time, you want to help them set a really achievable first goal. Build their confidence , and watch them soar over the coming months and years!

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How to Write a Personal Statement

A personal statement can be a key part of your college application, and you can really make yours shine by following a few tips.

When you're applying to college—either to an undergraduate or graduate program—you may be asked to submit a personal statement. It's an essay that gives you the chance to share more about who you are and why you'd like to attend the university you're applying to.  

The information you provide in your personal statement can help build on your other application materials, like your transcripts and letters of recommendation, and build a more cohesive picture to help the admissions committee understand your goals.

In this article, we'll go over more about personal statements, including why they're important, what to include in one, and tips for strengthening yours.

What is a personal statement?

A personal statement—sometimes known as a college essay —is a brief written essay you submit with other materials when applying to college or university. Personal statements tend to be most common for undergraduate applications, and they're a great opportunity for an admissions committee to hear your voice directly.

Many colleges and universities in the US, especially those using Common App , provide prompts for you to use. For example, "Reflect on a time when you questioned or challenged a belief or idea" or "Describe a topic, idea, or concept you find so engaging that it makes you lose all track of time" [ 1 ]. If the school you're interested in attending doesn't require prompts, you will likely want to craft a response that touches on your story, your values, and your goals if possible.

In grad school, personal statements are sometimes known as letters of intent , and go into more detail about your academic and professional background, while expressing interest in attending the particular program you're applying to.

Why is a personal statement important?

Personal statements are important for a number of reasons. Whereas other materials you submit in an application can address your academic abilities (like your transcripts) or how you perform as a student (like your letters of recommendation), a personal statement is a chance to do exactly that: get more personal.

Personal statements typically:

Permit you to share things that don't fit on your resume, such as personal stories, motivations, and values

Offer schools a chance to see why you're interested in a particular field of study and what you hope to accomplish after you graduate 

Provide an opportunity for you to talk about past employment, volunteer experiences, or skills you have that complement your studies 

Allow colleges to evaluate your writing skills 

Bring life to a college application package otherwise filled with facts and figures 

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How to write a personal statement.

As we mentioned earlier, you may have to respond to a prompt when drafting your personal statement—or a college or university may invite you to respond however you'd like. In either case, use the steps below to begin building your response.

Create a solid hook .

To capture the attention of an admissions committee member, start your personal statement with a hook that relates to the topic of your essay. A hook tends to be a colorful sentence or two at the very beginning that compels the reader to continue reading.

To create a captivating hook, try one of these methods:

Pose a rhetorical question. 

Provide an interesting statistic. 

Insert a quote from a well-known person.

Challenge the reader with a common misconception. 

Use an anecdote, which is a short story that can be true or imaginary. 

Credibility is crucial when writing a personal statement as part of your college application process. If you choose a statistic, quote, or misconception for your hook, make sure it comes from a reliable source.

Follow a narrative.

The best personal statements typically read like a story: they have a common theme, as well as a beginning, middle, and end. This type of format also helps keep your thoughts organized and improves the flow of your essay.

Common themes to consider for your personal statement include:

Special role models from your past

Life-altering events you've experienced

Unusual challenges you've faced

Accomplishments you're especially proud of

Service to others and why you enjoy it

What you've learned from traveling to a particular place

Unique ways you stand out from other candidates

Be specific.

Admissions committees read thousands of personal statements every year, which is why being specific on yours is important. Back up your statements with examples or anecdotes.

For instance, avoid vague assertions like, "I'm interested in your school counseling program because I care about children." Instead, point out experiences you've had with children that emphasize how much you care. For instance, you might mention your summer job as a day camp counselor or your volunteer experience mentoring younger children.

Don't forget to include detail and vibrancy to keep your statement interesting. The use of detail shows how your unique voice and experiences can add value to the college or university you're applying to.

Stay on topic.

It's natural to want to impress the members of the admissions committee who will read your personal statement. The best way to do this is to lead your readers through a cohesive, informative, and descriptive essay.

If you feel you might be going astray, ensure each paragraph in your essay's body supports your introduction. Here are a few more strategies that can help keep you on track:

Know what you want to say and do research if needed. 

Create an outline listing the key points you want to share.

Read your outline aloud to confirm it makes logical sense before proceeding. 

Read your essay aloud while you're writing to confirm you're staying on topic.

Ask a trusted friend or family member to read your essay and make suggestions.

Be true to your own voice.

Because of the importance of your personal statement, you could be tempted to be very formal with structure and language. However, using a more relaxed tone is better than you would for a classroom writing assignment. 

Remember: admissions committees really want to hear from you . Writing in your own voice will help accomplish this. To ensure your tone isn't too relaxed, write your statement as if you were speaking to an older relative or trusted teacher. This way, you'll come across as respectful, confident, and honest.

Tips for drafting an effective personal statement.

Now that you've learned a little about personal statements and how to craft them, here are a few more tips you can follow to strengthen your essay:

1. Customize your statement.

You don't have to completely rewrite your personal statement every time you apply to a new college, but you want to make sure you tailor it as much as possible. For instance, if you talk about wanting to take a certain class or study a certain subject, make sure you adjust any specifics for each application.

2. Avoid cliches.

Admissions committees are ultimately looking for students who will fit the school, and who the school can help guide toward their larger goals. In that case, cliches can get in the way of a reviewer understanding what it is you want from a college education. Watch out for cliches like "making a difference," "broadening my horizons," or "the best thing that ever happened to me."

3. Stay focused.

Try to avoid getting off-track or including tangents in your personal statement. Stay focused by writing a first draft and then re-reading what you've written. Does every paragraph flow from one point to the next? Are the ideas you're presenting cohesive?

4. Stick to topics that aren't controversial.

It's best not to discuss political beliefs or inappropriate topics in your essay. These can be controversial; ideally, you want to share something goals- or values-driven with an admissions committee.

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Article sources

1. Common App. " 2022-2023 Common App Essay Prompts , https://www.commonapp.org/blog/2022-2023-common-app-essay-prompts." Accessed January 9, 2024.

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38 Examples of SMART Goals for Students

The SMART Goals framework, also written as S.M.A.R.T Goals or SMART Objectives, is a template for setting specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-based goals.

While originally used in leadership and corporate management, the framework is now extensively used in education to help students to set personal and academic goals for themselves.

The following examples of SMART goals for students show how students can set achievable goals by following the five elements of the framework.

SMART Goals Example

For the SMART framework, a student should set one goal that meets five clear criteria. The goal should be:

• Specific – Be clear about exactly what the goal is and what will be done to achieve it. Consider giving details about what, when, where, why, and how.
• Measurable – Make sure you have a way to assess whether you have achieved your goal.
• Attainable – State how you believe reaching the goal is within your power.
• Relevant – State how the goal will help you to meet your overall goals as a student.
• Time-Based – You need to set a time by which you will complete your goal to keep yourself accountable.

SMART Goals Template for Students

The student should write down their goal in a quote above the table then enter an explanation of how their goal is specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-based.

Get the Google Docs Template Here

Goal: Write your goal above the table. Carefully think about your goal and fill out the sentence with details that will ensure that it is S.M.A.R.T.

SMART Goals for Students

1. get an a in my next essay.

“I will get an A in my current essay in my Psychology class.”

2. Improve my Research Skills

“I will improve my research skills by using library resources and taking notes from the recommended readings for my course. I will do this every Friday afternoon for 3 weeks. I will aim for a subjective statement on my end-of-semester feedback about my research skills.”

3. Type at 60 Words per Minute

“I will learn to type at 60 words per minute within two months.”

4. Study 5 Days a Week for 5 Weeks

“I will study for my math class for one hour each afternoon Monday to Friday for 5 weeks.”

5. Improve my Productivity

“I will improve my productivity by using a Pomodoro timer when studying and closing all other tabs on my computer. I will do this every time I study for 2 months.”

6. Improve my Focus

“I will improve my focus during class this term by leaving my phone in my bag, sitting alone instead of with friends, and ensuring I turn up well-hydrated and rested.”

7. Memorize 100 flashcards within 3 weeks

“I will create a deck of 100 flashcards related to my Spanish course and memorize all 100 flashcards within 3 weeks by spending 20 minutes per day on the task.”

8. Complete my Assigned Book for Class

“I will finish reading the book that has been assigned by my teacher within 5 weeks.”

9. Obtain the Confidence to Give a Public Speech

“I will obtain the confidence to give a public speech by practicing speaking from note cards in front of a mirror and friends for the next 3 weeks.”

10. Re-Submit my Essay for a Higher Grade

“I will use the feedback provided on my essay to re-submit for a higher grade within the 2-week timeframe I have been given by my teacher.”

11. Follow a Study Calendar for the Next 5 Weeks

“I will use a study calendar that states when and what I should study. I will do this for 5 days a week for 5 weeks.”

12. Borrow One Book per Month from the Library

“I will borrow one book per month from the library for six months and read it fully in order to deepen my knowledge of sociology for my sociology class.”

13. Complete my Assignments 2 Weeks Before Due Date

“I will complete all assignments 2 weeks before the due dates so I have 2 weeks of free time to edit the work without stress.”

14. Maintain a Study Journal for 15 Weeks

“I will keep a daily study journal Monday to Friday for 15 weeks that will record what I studied, notes on key things I need to revise, and how long I studied. This will help me reflect on my improvement over time.”

15. Minimize Study Stress

“I will minimize the amount of stress I’m experiencing by exercising an hour a day, only studying for a maximum of one hour per day, and meditating for 15 minutes after each study session. I will do this for 5 weeks.”

SMART Goals Examples for High School Students

16. apply for five colleges.

“I will apply for five colleges within 3 months.”

17. Go to Four University Open Days

“I will go to four university open days within the next 2 months to learn more about the universities and see which one I would prefer.”

18. Study for an Hour Before Class Daily

“I will study for one hour between 8 am and 9 am daily before class Monday to Friday. I will study for the class that I will be sitting that day and keep a journal of progress.”

19. Maintain a Regular Sleep Routine

“I will sleep for 9 hours a day by making sure I get into bed by 10 pm every night and set an alarm for 7 am each morning. This will keep me fresh for classes.”

20. Research Five Potential Career Options

“I will spend 3 hours every Thursday night researching a potential career option for 5 weeks straight. At the end of the 5th week, I will rank all the career options based on my research.”

21. Have Three Meetings with my Careers Advisor 

“I will book in three meetings with my careers advisor over the next six months to check in and re-evaluate my thoughts about what I want to do after I finish high school.”

SMART Goals Examples for University Students

22. decide upon a major for my degree.

“I will lock in a major with my advisor by the end of the month and select the appropriate courses for next semester.”

23. Meet Each Instructor in Open Office Hours Once per Semester

“I will meet each of my instructors during their open office hours on Week 8 of the semester to go over my essay drafts.”

24. Meet with my Advisor for Feedback on my Progress 3 Times per Year

“I will meet with my advisor to check in on my progress in my degree 3 times this year. I will meet her in March, July, and September.”

25. Attend One Library Skills Seminar per Month

“I will attend one library skills seminar per month until I have attended all the training sessions they have on offer. This should take 6 months and help me incrementally develop my academic skills.”

26. Meet with my Study Group Weekly All Semester

“I will meet with my study group at 2.30 pm every Tuesday in the library for one hour to compare notes about our studies. We will also meet to check each other’s drafts during this period when necessary.”

27. Complete All Homework Tasks by Wednesday each Week

“I will complete my homework tasks by Wednesday each week this semester. To do this, I will remain at the university library on Tuesdays from 12 noon onwards.”

28. Turn up to Class on Time

“I will turn up to class five minutes before class begins for the entire semester in order to change my habit of being late. To make this happen, I will take the 8.05 am bus each morning.”

29. Apply for Five Summer Internships

“I will apply for five summer internships by the end of next week.”

See more SMART internship goals here.

30. Apply for Five Part-Time Jobs in my Career Field

“I will apply for five part-time jobs in my career field by the end of next week.”

31. Write 400 Words per Day for my Essay

“I will write 400 words per day for 5 days to get my first draft of my essay complete.”

SMART Goals Examples for Online Students

32. post five forum responses per week.

“I will log into my online course between 4 pm and 5 pm each weekday to read a forum task and post a 100-word response on the discussion board. I will continue this for the rest of the semester.”

33. Re-watch my Online Lectures and Take Notes for my Essay

“I will re-watch the eight one-hour online lectures for my course. I will watch one per day between 9 am and 10 am and take notes daily on anything relevant to the essay I’m writing.”

34. Reply to Three other People’s Forum Comments per Week

“I will reply to three forum comments on my online discussion board per week for the next three weeks in order to engage with other students in my class.”

SMART Goals Examples for International and Exchange Students

35. speak only in spanish for a whole day.

“I will speak only in Spanish for the whole day during my exchange at Barcelona University.”

See a Full List of Communication Goals Here

36. Apply for an Exchange Scholarship by May 1st

“I will apply for an exchange scholarship to get funding to go to Barcelona for a semester. This application will be a 1000 word essay and completed by May 1st.”

37. Join a Cultural Club at my new Unviersity

“I will join one cultural club at my university by the end of the social club sign-up day tomorrow.”

38. Apply for a Work Visa for after I Graduate so I can Stay Here

“My goal is to apply for a work visa by 5 pm on the 30th of December so I can stay in the country after I have completed my degree.”

The SMART framework is valuable when setting educational goals because it helps you to articulate exactly what your goal is. The five criteria within the framework will force students to set goals that can be clearly explained and are achievable. By setting SMART goals, students can see greater levels of success whether it’s short-term goals or long-term goals and have a clearer idea about what they need to do to meet their goals.

Chris Drew (PhD)

Dr. Chris Drew is the founder of the Helpful Professor. He holds a PhD in education and has published over 20 articles in scholarly journals. He is the former editor of the Journal of Learning Development in Higher Education. [Image Descriptor: Photo of Chris]

• Chris Drew (PhD) https://helpfulprofessor.com/author/chris-drew-phd/ 5 Top Tips for Succeeding at University
• Chris Drew (PhD) https://helpfulprofessor.com/author/chris-drew-phd/ 50 Durable Goods Examples
• Chris Drew (PhD) https://helpfulprofessor.com/author/chris-drew-phd/ 100 Consumer Goods Examples
• Chris Drew (PhD) https://helpfulprofessor.com/author/chris-drew-phd/ 30 Globalization Pros and Cons

5 thoughts on “38 Examples of SMART Goals for Students”

I have tried it before but soon forgot about it, which means I have made my calendar or schedule with a goal on top and worked toward it, and then I forgot to do it again for my next semester’s class. but it does not hurt trying again one more time.

This method is useful and essential. That why I have been using it since high school.

This method is very significant in my study I have been using it.

This method is essential and productive, i still use it even today to achieve my goals.

One of the best online learning articles I have come across. Rarely give comments at over 69yrs and a lot working in education. But you are clear, and straight to the point. Good job! Recommended.

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5 Goals that Set Students for Success (In-depth)

What problems are students dealing with anyway?

The biggest problem we are dealing with is our lack of experience and awareness.

We don’t know ourselves enough to have a clear statement on what we are passionate about. We don’t have enough working experience to know what we are good at. We don’t even know where to look for opportunities.

In short, are these your current problems?

• I don’t know what my strengths are
• I don’t know what I’m really passionate about
• I don’t have a mentor to show me what the long-term plan may look like
• I don’t know where to look for the opportunities
• I don’t know what career path will really be suitable for me

Solving all these problems will take years of hard work. But these are 5 examples of goals that will give you a few suggestions on how to get a head start in life.

Goal #1: Figure out EXACTLY who you are

We do what we're told, get a job, follow our career path like we’re expected without knowing what we like, what we're good at, what we’re passionate about.

Schools, universities or even our families can’t tell us what we are passionate about or what we aren’t interested in at all. Only we can really know what is meaningful and what is not in our lives.

The goal is to pinpoint exactly what we like and what we don’t like, where our strengths lie and what are meaningful to us.

Start investing time and resources in understanding ourselves. This is a fundamental shift in how a person views his life: every moment can be turned into an opportunity to get to know ourselves better.

A vacation can be more than relaxing: it is a chance to disconnect to reflect and look at the world around us in new eyes.

We can start exploring why science captures our total attention, or why we're so inclined to read all the great literature but can’t stand 10 minutes of math.

Even casual conversations with our friends can be hints to know what others like about us and what they don’t.

The more we start to understand ourselves, the more authentic we can become. What are most meaningful to us will start to reveal itself, and now we have a chance to live life with a purpose.

Your tools are journals and meditation.

Journals teach us to document and organize our thoughts. Writing things down make it easier for our mind to be clear and concise. If you have never done much personal development work, journaling is a great way to start.

A regular meditation practice connects us to our intuition and sharpens our focus. The gut feeling is one of the most powerful tools to lead us to authenticity. As the mind is quiet, we can start listening to ourselves without being distracted by external noise.

Take actions by committing to build these habits

• Journal for 10 minutes every night on these prompts:
• What do I like really like doing today?
• What bored me and drained my energy today?
• Meditate for 10 minutes a day
• Try out this Headspace 10 days for free
• Check this guide on meditation

Related : 5 Journaling Ideas for Self-Improvement

Goal #2: Develop an Exceptional Work Ethic

Who we are right now and who we are when we are “successful” are two completely different people. One is inexperienced, sloppy, ineffective. One is disciplined, effective, experienced, and focused.

No one can give us a good work ethic. We can’t buy it with a million dollars. We can’t inherit it from our parents. Work ethic must be earned. We have to dedicate your time and effort to it, accept the pain, suffering and often times force our way through discomfort.

The goal is to build habits of commitment, discipline, and excellence.

We have to choose discipline over fun and entertainment for our long-term development. We will be tempted to take days off, to hang out and spend all the weekends with our friends, but that won’t get us any closer to our goal.

We can hate school, but instead of complaining and feeling like a victim, we can use schools to practice researching, studying, organizing our thinking, socializing, being punctual. No one stays in school forever, but those habits of excellence that one builds will stay for years to come.

The more resistance we overcome, the tougher we become. And the tougher we become, the easier it gets. Then we can level up and be even more effective at what we do.

Your tool is the commitment to this mindset and a habit tracker.

It will be so much easy to just live in comfort. Once we set this goal, we agree to sacrifice short-term pleasure for long-term satisfaction. The work we're putting in today will allow us to have the skillset to earn our success in the future.

Habits are built through consistency. We can’t rely on our sheer willpower alone, the mind will always find tricks to get us off the journey. A habit tracker is helpful as it reminds us to stay disciplined every day and get back on track when we backslides.

Take action by committing building these habits

• Develop a fixed sleeping routine: manage your energy and set boundaries for your time. Go to bed at the same time and wake up at the same time.
• Get physical every day: join a gym, take up martial arts, start running, try yoga… whatever it is, physical exercise is the fastest way to get yourself out of your comfort zone.

Related : How many goals should you set at once?

Goal #3: Find yourself a Mentor

Imagine how far we will go if we have been personally mentored by Warren Buffett on investing, Arnold Schwarzenegger on training, Elon Musk on building business and Gary Vaynerchuk on marketing…

But unfortunately, most people don’t have that mentorship. And we can quit way too early. We don’t have the wisdom to see what is ahead if we put in 5 years of hard work. So most people never get a glimpse of their true potential.

The goal is to have a person who has the experience and wisdom that we can ask for advice and direction.

There’s no need to re-invent the wheels. Whatever that we are trying to do, there is someone out there who has already accomplished it. And they have already spoken about how they did it in interviews or boiled it down in a book.

We don’t have to learn by our own mistakes. We can save so much time by learning directly from a mentor who is 20 years ahead of us.

It is best if we can watch them in action through our own eyes. But mentoring can be through books, videos, and online courses. We can learn from mentors by reading their blogs, studying their business models, watching their interviews.

Tim Ferris, author of the 4 hours work week, productivity guru, has an interesting process on how he managed to get his own mentors.

A small notice, we must already have a solid work ethic to implement our mental wisdom in order to see the benefits for ourselves.

Your Tool for this goal is the decision to invest our upcoming years in experience and development.

For our mentor’s insights and guidance, working for free is still a very good deal. This means perhaps we have to work a side job to get earn our living while we invest our time and resources into learning as much as we can.

We must be self-reliant. Mentors can only give suggestions, we are the ones who execute and do all the hard work. Knowing that eventually over goal is to surpass our mentor, we must always be conscious to think for ourselves.

Take action for this goal by:

• Read Mastery by Robert Greene - the book in which he details the mastery process and all the great masters in history has had mentors.

Related : 7 Meaningful Goals in Life

Goal #4: Expand Your Network

How many opportunities have we missed in the last year?  Seminars, scholarships, workshops, exchange programs to see the world… just because we didn’t know where to look.

But maybe if we asked a friend of a friend, we would have known. Networking opens up new opportunities and brings so much valuable information on the opportunities around us. The bigger our network, the more information we have.

The goal is to increase the quantity and quality of our social circle, so we will get more valuable information and opportunities.

We don’t just want to get to know more people, those people should be adding values to our life and we to theirs. We want to have more high-performing people in our life, who are pursuing big goals and taking massive actions.

Through interacting with these people, we know what other highly successful students, young adults are learning, how they are spending their money, what kind of mindsets they adopt… Inspiration and knowledge rub off on each other. As they get more success, we get more inspiration. As we get more knowledgeable, they get more resources.

Adding values for their life should be fairly easy if we have all those 3 previous goals figured out. Who wouldn’t want to be around a passionate, hard-working individual who knows exactly what he wants and has a mentor guiding him towards that thing?

Notice that misery loves company. We also need to audit out to the toxic, negative people and have to courage to cut off relationships who are doing more harm than good to us.

Your tools are offline events, social media and the willingness to share.

The easiest way to get to networking is to get out of the house. Going to networking events or offline workshops, seminars… can be uncomfortable, especially when we are shy introvert kids just trying to get ourselves out there.

Social media can be a very powerful tool. In Show your work by Austin Kleon, he details how we can leverage the Internet and social media to authentically reveal our passion. Not just LinkedIn, the Instagram feed or Facebook profile can be our life resume that shows what matters to us. The next thing you know maybe tons of people who connect and share the same passion with ours.

In whichever way, the willingness to share is the mindset for the right kind of networking. No one likes being around a needy and desperate guy who just tries to suck off all the information from other people. But everyone appreciates a guy who is always willing to share his friend with the best opportunities that he knows.

Take action for this goal:

• Go to at least 1 networking event once a month
• Start viewing social media as a tool for networking exposure and publish ourselves
• Read Show your work by Austin Kleon.

Goal #5: Commit to The 5 Years - 5 Paths Rule

With the experience and self-awareness as a student, we can’t really trust our judgment on what fits and what doesn’t fit with our personality, values or strengths. Not without putting ourselves to the test.

The goal is to spend the next 5 years experimenting to find the most perfect career path.

We will dedicate at least 1 year to explore 1 path and see what it has to offer. After 1 year, if we feel like we can gain more from the current field, then stick around for another year. If we don’t see how it fits us, then we try out another lane.

If we are exceptionally lucky, we will have 10.000 hours of practice in 1 craft after 5 years.

Even with no luck, we will still have 5 good chances of exploring what we really like. And even if we don’t find the most suitable job yet, we will know for sure what to avoid.

Things to commit to during these 5 years:

• Meaning - do the job that means the most to you personally. This can mean taking radical decisions like starting a business, pursuing art or music, working in an NPO or getting an intern in a start-up whose vision you believe in.
• Learning - success or failures, excitement or boring, you can all learn from it. These are the years of exploration: learn in a practical environment on how the world works and where you best fit in.

Things to detach from during these 5 years:

• Comfort - to grow is to seek challenge and to accept suffering. You can’t develop yourself if you want to take the easy road.
• Money - this is not the time to get fancy. Accept that you will live a life without materialistic success. All the money during these years should be spent on furthering your learning and the quest to find meaning in your life.

Your tools are the commitment to not quit in less than a year and to not stay complacent.

The best job can still suck in the first 6 months. Motivation and passion won’t be there every day for you. Cultivate discipline and determination instead.

Being complacent will distract you from your learning. Getting success can be dangerous, it gives you an illusion of a finish line. There is no finish line in the first 5 years of your career. Stay humble to learn and always hungry for more development.

• Map out the career choices you want to explore in the next 5 years and limit to 5 items. For examples: (1) pursuing my artist career in painting, (2) pursuing my marketing career through social media marketing, (3) pursuing my creative career through writing a blog, (4) pursuing my academic career in researching, (5) pursuing my business career by starting a service/selling a product
• Get a steady stream of income. You may have to work double jobs to earn your living. Your passion project will be hustle you put in after 8 hours at work.
• Decide your living expenses. Don’t get fancy on material wealth. You need to finance your passion and learning.
• Commit to the 5 Years - 5 Jobs rule.

All of these 5 goals are long term goals that will take you months or years to meet. Expecting that you can solve all of them all in a quick fix is wishful thinking.

The best decision we can make is to commit ourselves to the long grind and start working towards our goals. You need to prepare yourself for future setbacks, failures and all the hardship that comes with fulfilling these goals. Having strong, positive, strategic habits is one major part of your support system.

Do you have any other example of how students can develop and prepare ourselves for the future?

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Do you have difficulties creating your essay on personal goals? Do you seek ways to overcome those challenges and earn better grades in the future? Then, you can improve your game by visiting our free online databank full of excellent essay examples. Visit our repository today to gain inspiration from the samples.

Easy Ways to Spice Up Your Personal Goals Essay

Composing an essay about personal goals allows you to showcase your personal goals for the best life you wish to live. This essay gives readers personal information about your life goals. You may also use it to show readers that you are able to set a personal goal, such as an academic goal. You may also focus on showing readers how you intend to achieve goals in different domains of your life.

Present realistic and factual information when composing an assignment about setting goals and achieving goals. Otherwise, your ambitions might sound like another trumpet call to a personal utopia.

Big Ways to Benefit From Our Personal Goals Essay Examples

Many students have varying challenges when drafting a personal goals college essay. Fortunately, these challenges are surmountable if you know how to harness the inspiring samples we provided in our database. Do you want to know how your fellow students across and beyond the United States of America benefit from these examples? Keep reading the next paragraphs to discover how.

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Our professional writers have been plying their trade for many years. Their vast experience across various niches enables them to draft papers embodying complete compliance with the principles of academic writing. Their samples are good grounds to boost your research skills because they contain the most reputable citations. You may also learn excellent topic selection skills from their papers to tantalize your readers.

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Crafting your papers with the correct formatting is one way of guaranteeing higher grades. Please note that no examiner favors a jumbled paper in which the writer’s thoughts don’t flow logically. Fortunately, our samples are excellently formatted to give readers an easy reading time. Correct formatting also ensures you include the right ideas in the right places. Go ahead and learn from these samples’ structuring.

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Your paper’s sources can be causes of failure or success, depending on their quality. Using high-quality citations to craft your papers ensures they have intellectual integrity and validity. Such references also prove that you follow academic writing laws. They also prove to your examiners that you took the time to research your assumptions and ideas before presenting them.

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How to Turn Your Personal Goals Essay into a Masterpiece

Definition of personal goals.

• Establishing relationships on the basis of trust and respect
• Having a marriage based on mutual love and respect
• Maintaining a perfect balance between work and life to enjoy both doing your job and entertaining
• Living honestly with integrity
• Giving inspiration to others

Why Are Goals Important for Students

What is a goal essay, how to start a personal goal essay.

• Can you define your key long-term and short-term objectives in the goals in life essay?
• What would you like to do in fifteen years?
• Is your purpose based on any life events?
• What is your preferable major? How will it facilitate achieving the goals?
• Which skills do you need to be successful in achieving the goals?
• If you want to be a valuable asset for the society, which impact do you want to produce?

How to Write a Personal Goals Essay

If you ask the question ‘How to write an essay about my goals in life?’ you can start with learning how to structure your paper.

Introduction

It is the first paragraph with a hook sentence and a thesis statement with a specific life plan.

Paragraphs of the Body

Make sure that all the paragraphs are related to the main idea of the paper. Make your narration focused on your experiences, events from your life, and developed skills. Your background ought to serve as a foundation of your plans for the future.

The body of your personal goals essay is to be devoted to the presentation of your long-term and short-term objectives and their connection to your future ambitions.

It is the final paragraph with a clear summary of all discussed ideas from the paragraphs above. Restate the thesis statement and mention the benefits for the society you would like to bring in the future.

You must have found yourself in a situation when your only thought was ‘How can I manage writing my life goals essay?’ In that case, hiring an expert writer is a very reasonable idea.

Personal Goals Essay Examples

University education is a very important achievement in my life and that I believe will be very useful in helping me achieve personal enrichment and career goals. The degree certificate that I will obtain after taking the studies at the higher education level in the university will be a major step towards my enrichment and objectives in my career. This degree will help me accomplish my career goals in a number of ways. First, I will be in a position to carry out activities with agility, secure a good job, and perfect my personal performance and offer services of high quality. After intensive learning and understanding of a specific discipline in education, I will be given a degree in that particular subject. The knowledge and skill I attain will assist in me carrying out the requisite activity through the job with agility. In this way, my goals will be attained. University education is a multifaceted resource. Through my learning at the University, I will learn how to relate with people and participate in group work. This element will be very useful for my personal enrichment. I am very convinced that being useful is more than just passing well in my exams. Knowing how to relate with others in a global scale is a very important aspect in turning out successful in my career. The enrichment and shaping of my personality will thus be greatly enhanced through university education and thus help in propelling my career goals. University will provide a very strong and useful foundation upon which by career and personality will be built. The university education will thus come in handy in enriching my personality as well as promoting my career goals. This way, I will be in a position to confidently search for a job. This is so because I will be enabled to demonstrate with a resume my personality first and the high education level I managed to acquire. The degree attained from university will give me a great opportunity to conduct these activities and create a good platform for me to get a very good job. The number of jobs that need a university degree as a very useful requirement is on the increase. Previously, there was availability of jobs at different levels and without university education; some people would still get jobs with high school diplomas. All the same, the current generation is faced with great challenges and therefore I need to tailor my efforts of getting a job by acquiring university education. This is not the guarantor but just a step towards the right direction. Getting to university first provides the right environment for my personal growth and development in opening up my way of thinking and approach to real life situations. An individual effort is also required to supplement the university education through personal initiative to know how to relate with others corporately. In most of the jobs in this generation, university education is very much necessary along with other individual attributes. I want to be well versed with the trend in the job market and even go further to stand a good chance of excelling in my career. Through university education, I will raise my abilities to the height of my goals. This will be very useful because setting goals within my capability could be detrimental after graduation. I therefore want to stay ahead of competition and be competent through quality service and delivery. Most employers anticipate employees with well rounded foundational education so that they may be set in a position to realize high profits in their organizations. A university degree creates the first impression of the kind of person the employer is going to meet. When I am well learned in my career field, the output will be easy and efficient. I believe that university education will enlighten all my career areas that I did not know at first and this will ultimately perfect my performance. I am industrious and determined to achieve goals in challenging and dynamic environments and after completing my university education, I will start a career that will provide for my needs and create an opportunity of having secure retirement. University education will enable me to educate my subordinates at my work and through this, production will be enhanced. I am confident that I will be a source of inspiration to others and that is what I want to be. Therefore, having university education cannot be over emphasized since it provides me with the technical knowledge of my job, promotes performance and boost my work mates and with that, my career goals will be accomplished.

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Essay on My Dreams and Goals

Students are often asked to write an essay on My Dreams and Goals in their schools and colleges. And if you’re also looking for the same, we have created 100-word, 250-word, and 500-word essays on the topic.

Let’s take a look…

100 Words Essay on My Dreams and Goals

Introduction.

Dreams and goals are the driving forces of life. They provide a sense of purpose and direction, guiding us towards a fulfilling future.

My dreams are my inspiration. I dream of becoming a scientist, exploring the mysteries of the universe, and contributing to humanity’s progress.

To realize my dreams, I have set goals. My immediate goal is to excel in my studies, especially in science and mathematics, the pillars of my dream profession.

Dreams and goals are intertwined. They motivate us to strive, to grow, and to achieve our highest potential.

250 Words Essay on My Dreams and Goals

Dreams and goals are the driving forces that propel individuals towards their desired futures. They form the blueprint of our future, providing us with direction and purpose, and are deeply intertwined with our personal growth and self-actualization.

The Essence of Dreams and Goals

Dreams are the grand visions we have for our lives, the ideal scenarios we aspire to. They are the manifestation of our deepest desires and ambitions, often transcending the boundaries of reality. Goals, on the other hand, are the concrete steps we take towards realizing these dreams. They are realistic, measurable, and time-bound, providing a clear path towards our dreams.

The Interplay of Dreams and Goals

The relationship between dreams and goals is a symbiotic one. Dreams provide the motivation and inspiration for setting goals, while goals give dreams a tangible form. Goals are the stepping stones that bridge the gap between our current reality and our dream future.

Personal Dreams and Goals

As a college student, my dreams are a blend of professional success and personal fulfillment. I aspire to excel in my chosen field, making significant contributions to society. Concurrently, I yearn for a balanced life, rich in experiences and relationships. My goals, therefore, revolve around academic excellence, skill development, networking, and personal growth.

In conclusion, dreams and goals are essential elements of our lives. They shape our future, motivate our present, and give meaning to our past. As college students, it’s crucial for us to understand the value of dreams and goals, and to strive relentlessly towards them.

500 Words Essay on My Dreams and Goals

Dreams and goals are the propellers that drive us towards our desired future. They are the mental projections of our ambitions, aspirations, and the life we yearn for. As a college student, my dreams and goals are not just a mere fantasy, but a roadmap, a strategic plan that guides me towards my personal and professional growth.

My Academic Goals

My primary academic goal is to excel in my chosen field of study. I aim to graduate with honors, a feat that requires dedication, hard work, and a relentless pursuit of knowledge. This goal is not just about achieving a high GPA, but about gaining a comprehensive understanding of my field, which will serve as a solid foundation for my future career.

My Career Goals

As for my career, I aspire to be a professional who contributes significantly to my field. I dream of working in a position where I can utilize my skills and knowledge to make a positive impact. I also plan to pursue further education, possibly a Master’s degree or a Doctorate, to specialize in my field and enhance my professional competence.

Personal Development Goals

On a personal level, my goal is to become a well-rounded individual. I strive to develop my interpersonal skills, leadership qualities, and emotional intelligence, which are crucial for both personal and professional success. I also aim to maintain a healthy work-life balance, as I believe that personal well-being is equally important as professional growth.

My Social Goals

As a member of society, I have a responsibility towards my community. My goal is to contribute to society by volunteering and engaging in community service. I believe that through these activities, I can make a difference and help create a better world for everyone.

Challenges and Strategies

Achieving these dreams and goals is not without challenges. Time management, maintaining motivation, and balancing academic, personal, and social responsibilities are some of the hurdles I anticipate. However, I am prepared to tackle these challenges head-on.

My strategy involves setting SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound) goals, staying organized, and maintaining a positive mindset. I plan to leverage the resources available to me, such as academic advisors, career counselors, and peer support, to help me navigate my journey.

In conclusion, my dreams and goals are the guiding stars on my journey through college and beyond. They motivate me to strive for excellence, foster personal growth, contribute to my community, and ultimately, shape my future. I am aware of the challenges that lie ahead, but I am prepared to face them with resilience and determination. I am confident that with hard work, perseverance, and the right strategies, I can turn my dreams into reality.

That’s it! I hope the essay helped you.

If you’re looking for more, here are essays on other interesting topics:

• Essay on My Dream
• Essay on My Dream in Life
• Essay on Farmer

Apart from these, you can look at all the essays by clicking here .

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• Knowledge Base
• Applying to graduate school
• How to Write Your Personal Statement | Strategies & Examples

How to Write Your Personal Statement | Strategies & Examples

Published on February 12, 2019 by Shona McCombes . Revised on July 3, 2023.

A personal statement is a short essay of around 500–1,000 words, in which you tell a compelling story about who you are, what drives you, and why you’re applying.

To write a successful personal statement for a graduate school application , don’t just summarize your experience; instead, craft a focused narrative in your own voice. Aim to demonstrate three things:

• Your personality: what are your interests, values, and motivations?
• Your talents: what can you bring to the program?
• Your goals: what do you hope the program will do for you?

This article guides you through some winning strategies to build a strong, well-structured personal statement for a master’s or PhD application. You can download the full examples below.

Urban Planning Psychology History

Table of contents

Getting started with your personal statement, the introduction: start with an attention-grabbing opening, the main body: craft your narrative, the conclusion: look ahead, revising, editing, and proofreading your personal statement, frequently asked questions, other interesting articles.

Before you start writing, the first step is to understand exactly what’s expected of you. If the application gives you a question or prompt for your personal statement, the most important thing is to respond to it directly.

For example, you might be asked to focus on the development of your personal identity; challenges you have faced in your life; or your career motivations. This will shape your focus and emphasis—but you still need to find your own unique approach to answering it.

There’s no universal template for a personal statement; it’s your chance to be creative and let your own voice shine through. But there are strategies you can use to build a compelling, well-structured story.

The first paragraph of your personal statement should set the tone and lead smoothly into the story you want to tell.

Strategy 1: Open with a concrete scene

An effective way to catch the reader’s attention is to set up a scene that illustrates something about your character and interests. If you’re stuck, try thinking about:

• A personal experience that changed your perspective
• A story from your family’s history
• A memorable teacher or learning experience
• An unusual or unexpected encounter

To write an effective scene, try to go beyond straightforward description; start with an intriguing sentence that pulls the reader in, and give concrete details to create a convincing atmosphere.

Strategy 2: Open with your motivations

To emphasize your enthusiasm and commitment, you can start by explaining your interest in the subject you want to study or the career path you want to follow.

Just stating that it interests you isn’t enough: first, you need to figure out why you’re interested in this field:

• Is it a longstanding passion or a recent discovery?
• Does it come naturally or have you had to work hard at it?
• How does it fit into the rest of your life?
• What do you think it contributes to society?

Tips for the introduction

• Don’t start on a cliche: avoid phrases like “Ever since I was a child…” or “For as long as I can remember…”
• Do save the introduction for last. If you’re struggling to come up with a strong opening, leave it aside, and note down any interesting ideas that occur to you as you write the rest of the personal statement.

Once you’ve set up the main themes of your personal statement, you’ll delve into more detail about your experiences and motivations.

To structure the body of your personal statement, there are various strategies you can use.

Strategy 1: Describe your development over time

One of the simplest strategies is to give a chronological overview of key experiences that have led you to apply for graduate school.

• What first sparked your interest in the field?
• Which classes, assignments, classmates, internships, or other activities helped you develop your knowledge and skills?
• Where do you want to go next? How does this program fit into your future plans?

Don’t try to include absolutely everything you’ve done—pick out highlights that are relevant to your application. Aim to craft a compelling narrative that shows how you’ve changed and actively developed yourself.

My interest in psychology was first sparked early in my high school career. Though somewhat scientifically inclined, I found that what interested me most was not the equations we learned about in physics and chemistry, but the motivations and perceptions of my fellow students, and the subtle social dynamics that I observed inside and outside the classroom. I wanted to learn how our identities, beliefs, and behaviours are shaped through our interactions with others, so I decided to major in Social Psychology. My undergraduate studies deepened my understanding of, and fascination with, the interplay between an individual mind and its social context.During my studies, I acquired a solid foundation of knowledge about concepts like social influence and group dynamics, but I also took classes on various topics not strictly related to my major. I was particularly interested in how other fields intersect with psychology—the classes I took on media studies, biology, and literature all enhanced my understanding of psychological concepts by providing different lenses through which to look at the issues involved.

Strategy 2: Own your challenges and obstacles

If your path to graduate school hasn’t been easy or straightforward, you can turn this into a strength, and structure your personal statement as a story of overcoming obstacles.

• Is your social, cultural or economic background underrepresented in the field? Show how your experiences will contribute a unique perspective.
• Do you have gaps in your resume or lower-than-ideal grades? Explain the challenges you faced and how you dealt with them.

Don’t focus too heavily on negatives, but use them to highlight your positive qualities. Resilience, resourcefulness and perseverance make you a promising graduate school candidate.

Growing up working class, urban decay becomes depressingly familiar. The sight of a row of abandoned houses does not surprise me, but it continues to bother me. Since high school, I have been determined to pursue a career in urban planning. While people of my background experience the consequences of urban planning decisions first-hand, we are underrepresented in the field itself. Ironically, given my motivation, my economic background has made my studies challenging. I was fortunate enough to be awarded a scholarship for my undergraduate studies, but after graduation I took jobs in unrelated fields to help support my parents. In the three years since, I have not lost my ambition. Now I am keen to resume my studies, and I believe I can bring an invaluable perspective to the table: that of the people most impacted by the decisions of urban planners.

Strategy 3: Demonstrate your knowledge of the field

Especially if you’re applying for a PhD or another research-focused program, it’s a good idea to show your familiarity with the subject and the department. Your personal statement can focus on the area you want to specialize in and reflect on why it matters to you.

• Reflect on the topics or themes that you’ve focused on in your studies. What draws you to them?
• Discuss any academic achievements, influential teachers, or other highlights of your education.
• Talk about the questions you’d like to explore in your research and why you think they’re important.

The personal statement isn’t a research proposal , so don’t go overboard on detail—but it’s a great opportunity to show your enthusiasm for the field and your capacity for original thinking.

In applying for this research program, my intention is to build on the multidisciplinary approach I have taken in my studies so far, combining knowledge from disparate fields of study to better understand psychological concepts and issues. The Media Psychology program stands out to me as the perfect environment for this kind of research, given its researchers’ openness to collaboration across diverse fields. I am impressed by the department’s innovative interdisciplinary projects that focus on the shifting landscape of media and technology, and I hope that my own work can follow a similarly trailblazing approach. More specifically, I want to develop my understanding of the intersection of psychology and media studies, and explore how media psychology theories and methods might be applied to neurodivergent minds. I am interested not only in media psychology but also in psychological disorders, and how the two interact. This is something I touched on during my undergraduate studies and that I’m excited to delve into further.

Strategy 4: Discuss your professional ambitions

Especially if you’re applying for a more professionally-oriented program (such as an MBA), it’s a good idea to focus on concrete goals and how the program will help you achieve them.

• If your career is just getting started, show how your character is suited to the field, and explain how graduate school will help you develop your talents.
• If you have already worked in the profession, show what you’ve achieved so far, and explain how the program will allow you to take the next step.
• If you are planning a career change, explain what has driven this decision and how your existing experience will help you succeed.

Don’t just state the position you want to achieve. You should demonstrate that you’ve put plenty of thought into your career plans and show why you’re well-suited to this profession.

One thing that fascinated me about the field during my undergraduate studies was the sheer number of different elements whose interactions constitute a person’s experience of an urban environment. Any number of factors could transform the scene I described at the beginning: What if there were no bus route? Better community outreach in the neighborhood? Worse law enforcement? More or fewer jobs available in the area? Some of these factors are out of the hands of an urban planner, but without taking them all into consideration, the planner has an incomplete picture of their task. Through further study I hope to develop my understanding of how these disparate elements combine and interact to create the urban environment. I am interested in the social, psychological and political effects our surroundings have on our lives. My studies will allow me to work on projects directly affecting the kinds of working-class urban communities I know well. I believe I can bring my own experiences, as well as my education, to bear upon the problem of improving infrastructure and quality of life in these communities.

Tips for the main body

• Don’t rehash your resume by trying to summarize everything you’ve done so far; the personal statement isn’t about listing your academic or professional experience, but about reflecting, evaluating, and relating it to broader themes.
• Do make your statements into stories: Instead of saying you’re hard-working and self-motivated, write about your internship where you took the initiative to start a new project. Instead of saying you’ve always loved reading, reflect on a novel or poem that changed your perspective.

Your conclusion should bring the focus back to the program and what you hope to get out of it, whether that’s developing practical skills, exploring intellectual questions, or both.

Emphasize the fit with your specific interests, showing why this program would be the best way to achieve your aims.

Strategy 1: What do you want to know?

If you’re applying for a more academic or research-focused program, end on a note of curiosity: what do you hope to learn, and why do you think this is the best place to learn it?

If there are specific classes or faculty members that you’re excited to learn from, this is the place to express your enthusiasm.

Strategy 2: What do you want to do?

If you’re applying for a program that focuses more on professional training, your conclusion can look to your career aspirations: what role do you want to play in society, and why is this program the best choice to help you get there?

Tips for the conclusion

• Don’t summarize what you’ve already said. You have limited space in a personal statement, so use it wisely!
• Do think bigger than yourself: try to express how your individual aspirations relate to your local community, your academic field, or society more broadly. It’s not just about what you’ll get out of graduate school, but about what you’ll be able to give back.

You’ll be expected to do a lot of writing in graduate school, so make a good first impression: leave yourself plenty of time to revise and polish the text.

Your style doesn’t have to be as formal as other kinds of academic writing, but it should be clear, direct and coherent. Make sure that each paragraph flows smoothly from the last, using topic sentences and transitions to create clear connections between each part.

Don’t be afraid to rewrite and restructure as much as necessary. Since you have a lot of freedom in the structure of a personal statement, you can experiment and move information around to see what works best.

Finally, it’s essential to carefully proofread your personal statement and fix any language errors. Before you submit your application, consider investing in professional personal statement editing . For $150, you have the peace of mind that your personal statement is grammatically correct, strong in term of your arguments, and free of awkward mistakes.

A statement of purpose is usually more formal, focusing on your academic or professional goals. It shouldn’t include anything that isn’t directly relevant to the application.

A personal statement can often be more creative. It might tell a story that isn’t directly related to the application, but that shows something about your personality, values, and motivations.

However, both types of document have the same overall goal: to demonstrate your potential as a graduate student and s how why you’re a great match for the program.

The typical length of a personal statement for graduate school applications is between 500 and 1,000 words.

Different programs have different requirements, so always check if there’s a minimum or maximum length and stick to the guidelines. If there is no recommended word count, aim for no more than 1-2 pages.

If you’re applying to multiple graduate school programs, you should tailor your personal statement to each application.

Some applications provide a prompt or question. In this case, you might have to write a new personal statement from scratch: the most important task is to respond to what you have been asked.

If there’s no prompt or guidelines, you can re-use the same idea for your personal statement – but change the details wherever relevant, making sure to emphasize why you’re applying to this specific program.

If the application also includes other essays, such as a statement of purpose , you might have to revise your personal statement to avoid repeating the same information.

If you want to know more about college essays , academic writing , and AI tools , make sure to check out some of our other language articles with explanations, examples, and quizzes.

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10 Personal Statement Essay Examples That Worked

What’s covered:, what is a personal statement.

• Essay 1: Summer Program
• Essay 2: Being Bangladeshi-American
• Essay 3: Why Medicine
• Essay 4: Love of Writing
• Essay 5: Starting a Fire
• Essay 6: Dedicating a Track
• Essay 7: Body Image and Eating Disorders
• Essay 8: Becoming a Coach
• Essay 9: Eritrea
• Essay 10: Journaling
• Is Your Personal Statement Strong Enough?

Your personal statement is any essay that you must write for your main application, such as the Common App Essay , University of California Essays , or Coalition Application Essay . This type of essay focuses on your unique experiences, ideas, or beliefs that may not be discussed throughout the rest of your application. This essay should be an opportunity for the admissions officers to get to know you better and give them a glimpse into who you really are.

In this post, we will share 10 different personal statements that were all written by real students. We will also provide commentary on what each essay did well and where there is room for improvement, so you can make your personal statement as strong as possible!

Please note: Looking at examples of real essays students have submitted to colleges can be very beneficial to get inspiration for your essays. You should never copy or plagiarize from these examples when writing your own essays. Colleges can tell when an essay isn’t genuine and will not view students favorably if they plagiarized. 

Personal Statement Examples

Essay example #1: exchange program.

The twisting roads, ornate mosaics, and fragrant scent of freshly ground spices had been so foreign at first. Now in my fifth week of the SNYI-L summer exchange program in Morocco, I felt more comfortable in the city. With a bag full of pastries from the market, I navigated to a bus stop, paid the fare, and began the trip back to my host family’s house. It was hard to believe that only a few years earlier my mom was worried about letting me travel around my home city on my own, let alone a place that I had only lived in for a few weeks. While I had been on a journey towards self-sufficiency and independence for a few years now, it was Morocco that pushed me to become the confident, self-reflective person that I am today.

As a child, my parents pressured me to achieve perfect grades, master my swim strokes, and discover interesting hobbies like playing the oboe and learning to pick locks. I felt compelled to live my life according to their wishes. Of course, this pressure was not a wholly negative factor in my life –– you might even call it support. However, the constant presence of my parents’ hopes for me overcame my own sense of desire and led me to become quite dependent on them. I pushed myself to get straight A’s, complied with years of oboe lessons, and dutifully attended hours of swim practice after school. Despite all these achievements, I felt like I had no sense of self beyond my drive for success. I had always been expected to succeed on the path they had defined. However, this path was interrupted seven years after my parents’ divorce when my dad moved across the country to Oregon.

I missed my dad’s close presence, but I loved my new sense of freedom. My parents’ separation allowed me the space to explore my own strengths and interests as each of them became individually busier. As early as middle school, I was riding the light rail train by myself, reading maps to get myself home, and applying to special academic programs without urging from my parents. Even as I took more initiatives on my own, my parents both continued to see me as somewhat immature. All of that changed three years ago, when I applied and was accepted to the SNYI-L summer exchange program in Morocco. I would be studying Arabic and learning my way around the city of Marrakesh. Although I think my parents were a little surprised when I told them my news, the addition of a fully-funded scholarship convinced them to let me go.

I lived with a host family in Marrakesh and learned that they, too, had high expectations for me. I didn’t know a word of Arabic, and although my host parents and one brother spoke good English, they knew I was there to learn. If I messed up, they patiently corrected me but refused to let me fall into the easy pattern of speaking English just as I did at home. Just as I had when I was younger, I felt pressured and stressed about meeting their expectations. However, one day, as I strolled through the bustling market square after successfully bargaining with one of the street vendors, I realized my mistake. My host family wasn’t being unfair by making me fumble through Arabic. I had applied for this trip, and I had committed to the intensive language study. My host family’s rules about speaking Arabic at home had not been to fulfill their expectations for me, but to help me fulfill my expectations for myself. Similarly, the pressure my parents had put on me as a child had come out of love and their hopes for me, not out of a desire to crush my individuality.

As my bus drove through the still-bustling market square and past the medieval Ben-Youssef madrasa, I realized that becoming independent was a process, not an event. I thought that my parents’ separation when I was ten had been the one experience that would transform me into a self-motivated and autonomous person. It did, but that didn’t mean that I didn’t still have room to grow. Now, although I am even more self-sufficient than I was three years ago, I try to approach every experience with the expectation that it will change me. It’s still difficult, but I understand that just because growth can be uncomfortable doesn’t mean it’s not important.

What the Essay Did Well

This is a nice essay because it delves into particular character trait of the student and how it has been shaped and matured over time. Although it doesn’t focus the essay around a specific anecdote, the essay is still successful because it is centered around this student’s independence. This is a nice approach for a personal statement: highlight a particular trait of yours and explore how it has grown with you.

The ideas in this essay are universal to growing up—living up to parents’ expectations, yearning for freedom, and coming to terms with reality—but it feels unique to the student because of the inclusion of details specific to them. Including their oboe lessons, the experience of riding the light rail by themselves, and the negotiations with a street vendor helps show the reader what these common tropes of growing up looked like for them personally. 

Another strength of the essay is the level of self-reflection included throughout the piece. Since there is no central anecdote tying everything together, an essay about a character trait is only successful when you deeply reflect on how you felt, where you made mistakes, and how that trait impacts your life. The author includes reflection in sentences like “ I felt like I had no sense of self beyond my drive for success, ” and “ I understand that just because growth can be uncomfortable doesn’t mean it’s not important. ” These sentences help us see how the student was impacted and what their point of view is.

What Could Be Improved

The largest change this essay would benefit from is to show not tell. The platitude you have heard a million times no doubt, but for good reason. This essay heavily relies on telling the reader what occurred, making us less engaged as the entire reading experience feels more passive. If the student had shown us what happens though, it keeps the reader tied to the action and makes them feel like they are there with the student, making it much more enjoyable to read. 

For example, they tell us about the pressure to succeed their parents placed on them: “ I pushed myself to get straight A’s, complied with years of oboe lessons, and dutifully attended hours of swim practice after school.”  They could have shown us what that pressure looked like with a sentence like this: “ My stomach turned somersaults as my rattling knee thumped against the desk before every test, scared to get anything less than a 95. For five years the painful squawk of the oboe only reminded me of my parents’ claps and whistles at my concerts. I mastered the butterfly, backstroke, and freestyle, fighting against the anchor of their expectations threatening to pull me down.”

If the student had gone through their essay and applied this exercise of bringing more detail and colorful language to sentences that tell the reader what happened, the essay would be really great. 

Table of Contents

Essay Example #2: Being Bangladeshi-American

Life before was good: verdant forests, sumptuous curries, and a devoted family.

Then, my family abandoned our comfortable life in Bangladesh for a chance at the American dream in Los Angeles. Within our first year, my father was diagnosed with thyroid cancer. He lost his battle three weeks before my sixth birthday. Facing a new country without the steady presence of my father, we were vulnerable — prisoners of hardship in the land of the free. We resettled in the Bronx, in my uncle’s renovated basement. It was meant to be our refuge, but I felt more displaced than ever. Gone were the high-rise condos of West L.A.; instead, government projects towered over the neighborhood. Pedestrians no longer smiled and greeted me; the atmosphere was hostile, even toxic. Schoolkids were quick to pick on those they saw as weak or foreign, hurling harsh words I’d never heard before.

Meanwhile, my family began integrating into the local Bangladeshi community. I struggled to understand those who shared my heritage. Bangladeshi mothers stayed home while fathers drove cabs and sold fruit by the roadside — painful societal positions. Riding on crosstown buses or walking home from school, I began to internalize these disparities. During my fleeting encounters with affluent Upper East Siders, I saw kids my age with nannies, parents who wore suits to work, and luxurious apartments with spectacular views. Most took cabs to their destinations: cabs that Bangladeshis drove. I watched the mundane moments of their lives with longing, aching to plant myself in their shoes. Shame prickled down my spine. I distanced myself from my heritage, rejecting the traditional panjabis worn on Eid and refusing the torkari we ate for dinner every day. 

As I grappled with my relationship with the Bangladeshi community, I turned my attention to helping my Bronx community by pursuing an internship with Assemblyman Luis Sepulveda. I handled desk work and took calls, spending the bulk of my time actively listening to the hardships constituents faced — everything from a veteran stripped of his benefits to a grandmother unable to support her bedridden grandchild.

I’d never exposed myself to stories like these, and now I was the first to hear them. As an intern, I could only assist in what felt like the small ways — pointing out local job offerings, printing information on free ESL classes, reaching out to non-profits. But to a community facing an onslaught of intense struggles, I realized that something as small as these actions could have vast impacts. Seeing the immediate consequences of my actions inspired me. Throughout that summer, I internalized my community’s daily challenges in a new light. I began to stop seeing the prevalent underemployment and cramped living quarters less as sources of shame. Instead, I saw them as realities that had to be acknowledged, but could ultimately be remedied. I also realized the benefits of the Bangladeshi culture I had been so ashamed of. My Bangla language skills were an asset to the office, and my understanding of Bangladeshi etiquette allowed for smooth communication between office staff and its constituents. As I helped my neighbors navigate city services, I saw my heritage with pride — a perspective I never expected to have.

I can now appreciate the value of my unique culture and background, and of living with less. This perspective offers room for progress, community integration, and a future worth fighting for. My time with Assemblyman Sepulveda’s office taught me that I can be a change agent in enabling this progression. Far from being ashamed of my community, I want to someday return to local politics in the Bronx to continue helping others access the American Dream. I hope to help my community appreciate the opportunity to make progress together. By embracing reality, I learned to live it. Along the way, I discovered one thing: life is good, but we can make it better.

This student’s passion for social justice and civic duty shines through in this essay because of how honest it is. Sharing their personal experience with immigrating, moving around, being an outsider, and finding a community allows us to see the hardships this student has faced and builds empathy towards their situation. However, what really makes it strong is that they go beyond describing the difficulties they faced and explain the mental impact it had on them as a child: Shame prickled down my spine. I distanced myself from my heritage, rejecting the traditional panjabis worn on Eid and refusing the torkari we ate for dinner every day. 

The rejection of their culture presented at the beginning of the essay creates a nice juxtaposition with the student’s view in the latter half of the essay and helps demonstrate how they have matured. They use their experience interning as a way to delve into a change in their thought process about their culture and show how their passion for social justice began. Using this experience as a mechanism to explore their thoughts and feelings is an excellent example of how items that are included elsewhere on your application should be incorporated into your essay.

This essay prioritizes emotions and personal views over specific anecdotes. Although there are details and certain moments incorporated throughout to emphasize the author’s points, the main focus remains on the student and how they grapple with their culture and identity.  

One area for improvement is the conclusion. Although the forward-looking approach is a nice way to end an essay focused on social justice, it would be nice to include more details and imagery in the conclusion. How does the student want to help their community? What government position do they see themselves holding one day? 

A more impactful ending might look like the student walking into their office at the New York City Housing Authority in 15 years and looking at the plans to build a new development in the Bronx just blocks away from where the grew up that would provide quality housing to people in their Bangladeshi community. They would smile while thinking about how far they have come from that young kid who used to be ashamed of their culture. 

Essay Example #3: Why Medicine

I took my first trip to China to visit my cousin Anna in July of 2014. Distance had kept us apart, but when we were together, we fell into all of our old inside jokes and caught up on each other’s lives. Her sparkling personality and optimistic attitude always brought a smile to my face. This time, however, my heart broke when I saw the effects of her brain cancer; she had suffered from a stroke that paralyzed her left side. She was still herself in many ways, but I could see that the damage to her brain made things difficult for her. I stayed by her every day, providing the support she needed, whether assisting her with eating and drinking, reading to her, or just watching “Friends.” During my flight back home, sorrow and helplessness overwhelmed me. Would I ever see Anna again? Could I have done more to make Anna comfortable? I wished I could stay in China longer to care for her. As I deplaned, I wondered if I could transform my grief to help other children and teenagers in the US who suffered as Anna did.

The day after I got home, as jet lag dragged me awake a few minutes after midnight, I remembered hearing about the Family Reach Foundation (FRF) and its work with children going through treatments at the local hospital and their families. I began volunteering in the FRF’s Children’s Activity Room, where I play with children battling cancer. Volunteering has both made me appreciate my own health and also cherish the new relationships I build with the children and families. We play sports, make figures out of playdoh, and dress up. When they take on the roles of firefighters or fairies, we all get caught up in the game; for that time, they forget the sanitized, stark, impersonal walls of the pediatric oncology ward. Building close relationships with them and seeing them giggle and laugh is so rewarding — I love watching them grow and get better throughout their course of treatment.

Hearing from the parents about their children’s condition and seeing the children recover inspired me to consider medical research. To get started, I enrolled in a summer collegelevel course in Abnormal Psychology. There I worked with Catelyn, a rising college senior, on a data analysis project regarding Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID). Together, we examined the neurological etiology of DID by studying four fMRI and PET cases. I fell in love with gathering data and analyzing the results and was amazed by our final product: several stunning brain images showcasing the areas of hyper and hypoactivity in brains affected by DID. Desire quickly followed my amazement — I want to continue this project and study more brains. Their complexity, delicacy, and importance to every aspect of life fascinate me. Successfully completing this research project gave me a sense of hope; I know I am capable of participating in a large scale research project and potentially making a difference in someone else’s life through my research.

Anna’s diagnosis inspired me to begin volunteering at FRF; from there, I discovered my desire to help people further by contributing to medical research. As my research interest blossomed, I realized that it’s no coincidence that I want to study brains—after all, Anna suffered from brain cancer. Reflecting on these experiences this past year and a half, I see that everything I’ve done is connected. Sadly, a few months after I returned from China, Anna passed away. I am still sad, but as I run a toy truck across the floor and watch one of the little patients’ eyes light up, I imagine that she would be proud of my commitment to pursue medicine and study the brain.

This essay has a very strong emotional core that tugs at the heart strings and makes the reader feel invested. Writing about sickness can be difficult and doesn’t always belong in a personal statement, but in this case it works well because the focus is on how this student cared for her cousin and dealt with the grief and emotions surrounding her condition. Writing about the compassion she showed and the doubts and concerns that filled her mind keeps the focus on the author and her personality. 

This continues when she again discusses the activities she did with the kids at FRF and the personal reflection this experience allowed her to have. For example, she writes: Volunteering has both made me appreciate my own health and also cherish the new relationships I build with the children and families. We play sports, make figures out of playdoh, and dress up.

Concluding the essay with the sad story of her cousin’s passing brings the essay full circle and returns to the emotional heart of the piece to once again build a connection with the reader. However, it finishes on a hopeful note and demonstrates how this student has been able to turn a tragic experience into a source of lifelong inspiration. 

One thing this essay should be cognizant of is that personal statements should not read as summaries of your extracurricular resume. Although this essay doesn’t fully fall into that trap, it does describe two key extracurriculars the student participated in. However, the inclusion of such a strong emotional core running throughout the essay helps keep the focus on the student and her thoughts and feelings during these activities.

To avoid making this mistake, make sure you have a common thread running through your essay and the extracurriculars provide support to the story you are trying to tell, rather than crafting a story around your activities. And, as this essay does, make sure there is lots of personal reflection and feelings weaved throughout to focus attention to you rather than your extracurriculars. 

Essay Example #4: Love of Writing

“I want to be a writer.” This had been my answer to every youthful discussion with the adults in my life about what I would do when I grew up. As early as elementary school, I remember reading my writing pieces aloud to an audience at “Author of the Month” ceremonies. Bearing this goal in mind, and hoping to gain some valuable experience, I signed up for a journalism class during my freshman year. Despite my love for writing, I initially found myself uninterested in the subject and I struggled to enjoy the class. When I thought of writing, I imagined lyrical prose, profound poetry, and thrilling plot lines. Journalism required a laconic style and orderly structure, and I found my teacher’s assignments formulaic and dull. That class shook my confidence as a writer. I was uncertain if I should continue in it for the rest of my high school career.

Despite my misgivings, I decided that I couldn’t make a final decision on whether to quit journalism until I had some experience working for a paper outside of the classroom. The following year, I applied to be a staff reporter on our school newspaper. I hoped this would help me become more self-driven and creative, rather than merely writing articles that my teacher assigned. To my surprise, my time on staff was worlds away from what I experienced in the journalism class. Although I was unaccustomed to working in a fast-paced environment and initially found it burdensome to research and complete high-quality stories in a relatively short amount of time, I also found it exciting. I enjoyed learning more about topics and events on campus that I did not know much about; some of my stories that I covered in my first semester concerned a chess tournament, a food drive, and a Spanish immersion party. I relished in the freedom I had to explore and learn, and to write more independently than I could in a classroom.

Although I enjoyed many aspects of working for the paper immediately, reporting also pushed me outside of my comfort zone. I am a shy person, and speaking with people I did not know intimidated me. During my first interview, I met with the basketball coach to prepare for a story about the team’s winning streak. As I approached his office, I felt everything from my toes to my tongue freeze into a solid block, and I could hardly get out my opening questions. Fortunately, the coach was very kind and helped me through the conversation. Encouraged, I prepared for my next interview with more confidence. After a few weeks of practice, I even started to look forward to interviewing people on campus. That first journalism class may have bored me, but even if journalism in practice was challenging, it was anything but tedious.

Over the course of that year, I grew to love writing for our school newspaper. Reporting made me aware of my surroundings, and made me want to know more about current events on campus and in the town where I grew up. By interacting with people all over campus, I came to understand the breadth of individuals and communities that make up my high school. I felt far more connected to diverse parts of my school through my work as a journalist, and I realized that journalism gave me a window into seeing beyond my own experiences. The style of news writing may be different from what I used to think “writing” meant, but I learned that I can still derive exciting plots from events that may have gone unnoticed if not for my stories. I no longer struggle to approach others, and truly enjoy getting to know people and recognizing their accomplishments through my writing. Becoming a writer may be a difficult path, but it is as rewarding as I hoped when I was young.

This essay is clearly structured in a manner that makes it flow very nicely and contributes to its success. It starts with a quote to draw in the reader and show this student’s life-long passion for writing. Then it addresses the challenges of facing new, unfamiliar territory and how this student overcame it. Finally, it concludes by reflecting on this eye-opening experience and a nod to their younger self from the introduction. Having a well-thought out and sequential structure with clear transitions makes it extremely easy for the reader to follow along and take away the main idea.

Another positive aspect of the essay is the use of strong and expressive language. Sentences like “ When I thought of writing, I imagined lyrical prose, profound poetry, and thrilling plot lines ” stand out because of the intentional use of words like “lyrical”, “profound”, and “thrilling” to convey the student’s love of writing. The author also uses an active voice to capture the readers’ attention and keep us engaged. They rely on their language and diction to reveal details to the reader, for instance saying “ I felt everything from my toes to my tongue freeze into a solid block ” to describe feeling nervous.

This essay is already very strong, so there isn’t much that needs to be changed. One thing that could take the essay from great to outstanding would be to throw in more quotes, internal dialogue, and sensory descriptors.

It would be nice to see the nerves they felt interviewing the coach by including dialogue like “ Um…I want to interview you about…uh…”.  They could have shown their original distaste for journalism by narrating the thoughts running through their head. The fast-paced environment of their newspaper could have come to life with descriptions about the clacking of keyboards and the whirl of people running around laying out articles.

Essay Example #5: Starting a Fire

Was I no longer the beloved daughter of nature, whisperer of trees? Knee-high rubber boots, camouflage, bug spray—I wore the garb and perfume of a proud wild woman, yet there I was, hunched over the pathetic pile of stubborn sticks, utterly stumped, on the verge of tears. As a child, I had considered myself a kind of rustic princess, a cradler of spiders and centipedes, who was serenaded by mourning doves and chickadees, who could glide through tick-infested meadows and emerge Lyme-free. I knew the cracks of the earth like the scars on my own rough palms. Yet here I was, ten years later, incapable of performing the most fundamental outdoor task: I could not, for the life of me, start a fire. 

Furiously I rubbed the twigs together—rubbed and rubbed until shreds of skin flaked from my fingers. No smoke. The twigs were too young, too sticky-green; I tossed them away with a shower of curses, and began tearing through the underbrush in search of a more flammable collection. My efforts were fruitless. Livid, I bit a rejected twig, determined to prove that the forest had spurned me, offering only young, wet bones that would never burn. But the wood cracked like carrots between my teeth—old, brittle, and bitter. Roaring and nursing my aching palms, I retreated to the tent, where I sulked and awaited the jeers of my family. 

Rattling their empty worm cans and reeking of fat fish, my brother and cousins swaggered into the campsite. Immediately, they noticed the minor stick massacre by the fire pit and called to me, their deep voices already sharp with contempt. 

“Where’s the fire, Princess Clara?” they taunted. “Having some trouble?” They prodded me with the ends of the chewed branches and, with a few effortless scrapes of wood on rock, sparked a red and roaring flame. My face burned long after I left the fire pit. The camp stank of salmon and shame. 

In the tent, I pondered my failure. Was I so dainty? Was I that incapable? I thought of my hands, how calloused and capable they had been, how tender and smooth they had become. It had been years since I’d kneaded mud between my fingers; instead of scaling a white pine, I’d practiced scales on my piano, my hands softening into those of a musician—fleshy and sensitive. And I’d gotten glasses, having grown horrifically nearsighted; long nights of dim lighting and thick books had done this. I couldn’t remember the last time I had lain down on a hill, barefaced, and seen the stars without having to squint. Crawling along the edge of the tent, a spider confirmed my transformation—he disgusted me, and I felt an overwhelming urge to squash him. 

Yet, I realized I hadn’t really changed—I had only shifted perspective. I still eagerly explored new worlds, but through poems and prose rather than pastures and puddles. I’d grown to prefer the boom of a bass over that of a bullfrog, learned to coax a different kind of fire from wood, having developed a burn for writing rhymes and scrawling hypotheses. 

That night, I stayed up late with my journal and wrote about the spider I had decided not to kill. I had tolerated him just barely, only shrieking when he jumped—it helped to watch him decorate the corners of the tent with his delicate webs, knowing that he couldn’t start fires, either. When the night grew cold and the embers died, my words still smoked—my hands burned from all that scrawling—and even when I fell asleep, the ideas kept sparking—I was on fire, always on fire.

This student is an excellent writer, which allows a simple story to be outstandingly compelling. The author articulates her points beautifully and creatively through her immense use of details and figurative language. Lines like “a rustic princess, a cradler of spiders and centipedes, who was serenaded by mourning doves and chickadees,” and “rubbed and rubbed until shreds of skin flaked from my fingers,” create vivid images that draw the reader in. 

The flowery and descriptive prose also contributes to the nice juxtaposition between the old Clara and the new Clara. The latter half of the essay contrasts elements of nature with music and writing to demonstrate how natural these interests are for her now. This sentence perfectly encapsulates the contrast she is trying to build: “It had been years since I’d kneaded mud between my fingers; instead of scaling a white pine, I’d practiced scales on my piano, my hands softening into those of a musician—fleshy and sensitive.”

In addition to being well-written, this essay is thematically cohesive. It begins with the simple introduction “Fire!” and ends with the following image: “When the night grew cold and the embers died, my words still smoked—my hands burned from all that scrawling—and even when I fell asleep, the ideas kept sparking—I was on fire, always on fire.” This full-circle approach leaves readers satisfied and impressed.

There is very little this essay should change, however one thing to be cautious about is having an essay that is overly-descriptive. We know from the essay that this student likes to read and write, and depending on other elements of her application, it might make total sense to have such a flowery and ornate writing style. However, your personal statement needs to reflect your voice as well as your personality. If you would never use language like this in conversation or your writing, don’t put it in your personal statement. Make sure there is a balance between eloquence and your personal voice.

Essay Example #6: Dedicating a Track

“Getting beat is one thing – it’s part of competing – but I want no part in losing.” Coach Rob Stark’s motto never fails to remind me of his encouragement on early-morning bus rides to track meets around the state. I’ve always appreciated the phrase, but an experience last June helped me understand its more profound, universal meaning.

Stark, as we affectionately call him, has coached track at my high school for 25 years. His care, dedication, and emphasis on developing good character has left an enduring impact on me and hundreds of other students. Not only did he help me discover my talent and love for running, but he also taught me the importance of commitment and discipline and to approach every endeavor with the passion and intensity that I bring to running. When I learned a neighboring high school had dedicated their track to a longtime coach, I felt that Stark deserved similar honors.

Our school district’s board of education indicated they would only dedicate our track to Stark if I could demonstrate that he was extraordinary. I took charge and mobilized my teammates to distribute petitions, reach out to alumni, and compile statistics on the many team and individual champions Stark had coached over the years. We received astounding support, collecting almost 3,000 signatures and pages of endorsements from across the community. With help from my teammates, I presented this evidence to the board.

They didn’t bite. 

Most members argued that dedicating the track was a low priority. Knowing that we had to act quickly to convince them of its importance, I called a team meeting where we drafted a rebuttal for the next board meeting. To my surprise, they chose me to deliver it. I was far from the best public speaker in the group, and I felt nervous about going before the unsympathetic board again. However, at that second meeting, I discovered that I enjoy articulating and arguing for something that I’m passionate about.

Public speaking resembles a cross country race. Walking to the starting line, you have to trust your training and quell your last minute doubts. When the gun fires, you can’t think too hard about anything; your performance has to be instinctual, natural, even relaxed. At the next board meeting, the podium was my starting line. As I walked up to it, familiar butterflies fluttered in my stomach. Instead of the track stretching out in front of me, I faced the vast audience of teachers, board members, and my teammates. I felt my adrenaline build, and reassured myself: I’ve put in the work, my argument is powerful and sound. As the board president told me to introduce myself, I heard, “runners set” in the back of my mind. She finished speaking, and Bang! The brief silence was the gunshot for me to begin. 

The next few minutes blurred together, but when the dust settled, I knew from the board members’ expressions and the audience’s thunderous approval that I had run quite a race. Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough; the board voted down our proposal. I was disappointed, but proud of myself, my team, and our collaboration off the track. We stood up for a cause we believed in, and I overcame my worries about being a leader. Although I discovered that changing the status quo through an elected body can be a painstakingly difficult process and requires perseverance, I learned that I enjoy the challenges this effort offers. Last month, one of the school board members joked that I had become a “regular” – I now often show up to meetings to advocate for a variety of causes, including better environmental practices in cafeterias and safer equipment for athletes.

Just as Stark taught me, I worked passionately to achieve my goal. I may have been beaten when I appealed to the board, but I certainly didn’t lose, and that would have made Stark proud.

This essay effectively conveys this student’s compassion for others, initiative, and determination—all great qualities to exemplify in a personal statement!

Although they rely on telling us a lot of what happened up until the board meeting, the use of running a race (their passion) as a metaphor for public speaking provides a lot of insight into the fear that this student overcame to work towards something bigger than themself. Comparing a podium to the starting line, the audience to the track, and silence to the gunshot is a nice way of demonstrating this student’s passion for cross country running without making that the focus of the story.

The essay does a nice job of coming full circle at the end by explaining what the quote from the beginning meant to them after this experience. Without explicitly saying “ I now know that what Stark actually meant is…” they rely on the strength of their argument above to make it obvious to the reader what it means to get beat but not lose. 

One of the biggest areas of improvement in the intro, however, is how the essay tells us Stark’s impact rather than showing us: His care, dedication, and emphasis on developing good character has left an enduring impact on me and hundreds of other students. Not only did he help me discover my talent and love for running, but he also taught me the importance of commitment and discipline and to approach every endeavor with the passion and intensity that I bring to running.

The writer could’ve helped us feel a stronger emotional connection to Stark if they had included examples of Stark’s qualities, rather than explicitly stating them. For example, they could’ve written something like: Stark was the kind of person who would give you gas money if you told him your parents couldn’t afford to pick you up from practice. And he actually did that—several times. At track meets, alumni regularly would come talk to him and tell him how he’d changed their lives. Before Stark, I was ambivalent about running and was on the JV team, but his encouragement motivated me to run longer and harder and eventually make varsity. Because of him, I approach every endeavor with the passion and intensity that I bring to running.

Essay Example #7: Body Image and Eating Disorders

I press the “discover” button on my Instagram app, hoping to find enticing pictures to satisfy my boredom. Scrolling through, I see funny videos and mouth-watering pictures of food. However, one image stops me immediately. A fit teenage girl with a “perfect body” relaxes in a bikini on a beach. Beneath it, I see a slew of flattering comments. I shake with disapproval over the image’s unrealistic quality. However, part of me still wants to have a body like hers so that others will make similar comments to me.

I would like to resolve a silent issue that harms many teenagers and adults: negative self image and low self-esteem in a world where social media shapes how people view each other. When people see the façades others wear to create an “ideal” image, they can develop poor thought patterns rooted in negative self-talk. The constant comparisons to “perfect” others make people feel small. In this new digital age, it is hard to distinguish authentic from artificial representations.

When I was 11, I developed anorexia nervosa. Though I was already thin, I wanted to be skinny like the models that I saw on the magazine covers on the grocery store stands. Little did I know that those models probably also suffered from disorders, and that photoshop erased their flaws. I preferred being underweight to being healthy. No matter how little I ate or how thin I was, I always thought that I was too fat. I became obsessed with the number on the scale and would try to eat the least that I could without my parents urging me to take more. Fortunately, I stopped engaging in anorexic behaviors before middle school. However, my underlying mental habits did not change. The images that had provoked my disorder in the first place were still a constant presence in my life.

By age 15, I was in recovery from anorexia, but suffered from depression. While I used to only compare myself to models, the growth of social media meant I also compared myself to my friends and acquaintances. I felt left out when I saw my friends’ excitement about lake trips they had taken without me. As I scrolled past endless photos of my flawless, thin classmates with hundreds of likes and affirming comments, I felt my jealousy spiral. I wanted to be admired and loved by other people too. However, I felt that I could never be enough. I began to hate the way that I looked, and felt nothing in my life was good enough. I wanted to be called “perfect” and “body goals,” so I tried to only post at certain times of day to maximize my “likes.” When that didn’t work, I started to feel too anxious to post anything at all.  

Body image insecurities and social media comparisons affect thousands of people – men, women, children, and adults – every day. I am lucky – after a few months of my destructive social media habits, I came across a video that pointed out the illusory nature of social media; many Instagram posts only show off good things while people hide their flaws. I began going to therapy, and recovered from my depression. To address the problem of self-image and social media, we can all focus on what matters on the inside and not what is on the surface. As an effort to become healthy internally, I started a club at my school to promote clean eating and radiating beauty from within. It has helped me grow in my confidence, and today I’m not afraid to show others my struggles by sharing my experience with eating disorders. Someday, I hope to make this club a national organization to help teenagers and adults across the country. I support the idea of body positivity and embracing difference, not “perfection.” After all, how can we be ourselves if we all look the same?

This essay covers the difficult topics of eating disorders and mental health. If you’re thinking about covering similar topics in your essay, we recommend reading our post Should You Talk About Mental Health in College Essays?

The short answer is that, yes, you can talk about mental health, but it can be risky. If you do go that route, it’s important to focus on what you learned from the experience.

The strength of this essay is the student’s vulnerability, in excerpts such as this: I wanted to be admired and loved by other people too. However, I felt that I could never be enough. I began to hate the way that I looked, and felt nothing in my life was good enough. I wanted to be called “perfect” and “body goals,” so I tried to only post at certain times of day to maximize my “likes.”

The student goes on to share how they recovered from their depression through an eye-opening video and therapy sessions, and they’re now helping others find their self-worth as well. It’s great that this essay looks towards the future and shares the writer’s goals of making their club a national organization; we can see their ambition and compassion.

The main weakness of this essay is that it doesn’t focus enough on their recovery process, which is arguably the most important part. They could’ve told us more about the video they watched or the process of starting their club and the interactions they’ve had with other members. Especially when sharing such a vulnerable topic, there should be vulnerability in the recovery process too. That way, the reader can fully appreciate all that this student has overcome.

Essay Example #8: Becoming a Coach

”Advanced females ages 13 to 14 please proceed to staging with your coaches at this time.” Skittering around the room, eyes wide and pleading, I frantically explained my situation to nearby coaches. The seconds ticked away in my head; every polite refusal increased my desperation.

Despair weighed me down. I sank to my knees as a stream of competitors, coaches, and officials flowed around me. My dojang had no coach, and the tournament rules prohibited me from competing without one.

Although I wanted to remain strong, doubts began to cloud my mind. I could not help wondering: what was the point of perfecting my skills if I would never even compete? The other members of my team, who had found coaches minutes earlier, attempted to comfort me, but I barely heard their words. They couldn’t understand my despair at being left on the outside, and I never wanted them to understand.

Since my first lesson 12 years ago, the members of my dojang have become family. I have watched them grow up, finding my own happiness in theirs. Together, we have honed our kicks, blocks, and strikes. We have pushed one another to aim higher and become better martial artists. Although my dojang had searched for a reliable coach for years, we had not found one. When we attended competitions in the past, my teammates and I had always gotten lucky and found a sympathetic coach. Now, I knew this practice was unsustainable. It would devastate me to see the other members of my dojang in my situation, unable to compete and losing hope as a result. My dojang needed a coach, and I decided it was up to me to find one.

I first approached the adults in the dojang – both instructors and members’ parents. However, these attempts only reacquainted me with polite refusals. Everyone I asked told me they couldn’t devote multiple weekends per year to competitions. I soon realized that I would have become the coach myself.

At first, the inner workings of tournaments were a mystery to me. To prepare myself for success as a coach, I spent the next year as an official and took coaching classes on the side. I learned everything from motivational strategies to technical, behind-the-scenes components of Taekwondo competitions. Though I emerged with new knowledge and confidence in my capabilities, others did not share this faith.

Parents threw me disbelieving looks when they learned that their children’s coach was only a child herself. My self-confidence was my armor, deflecting their surly glances. Every armor is penetrable, however, and as the relentless barrage of doubts pounded my resilience, it began to wear down. I grew unsure of my own abilities.

Despite the attack, I refused to give up. When I saw the shining eyes of the youngest students preparing for their first competition, I knew I couldn’t let them down. To quit would be to set them up to be barred from competing like I was. The knowledge that I could solve my dojang’s longtime problem motivated me to overcome my apprehension.

Now that my dojang flourishes at competitions, the attacks on me have weakened, but not ended. I may never win the approval of every parent; at times, I am still tormented by doubts, but I find solace in the fact that members of my dojang now only worry about competing to the best of their abilities.

Now, as I arrive at a tournament with my students, I close my eyes and remember the past. I visualize the frantic search for a coach and the chaos amongst my teammates as we competed with one another to find coaches before the staging calls for our respective divisions. I open my eyes to the exact opposite scene. Lacking a coach hurt my ability to compete, but I am proud to know that no member of my dojang will have to face that problem again.

This essay begins with an in-the-moment narrative that really illustrates the chaos of looking for a coach last-minute. We feel the writer’s emotions, particularly her dejectedness, at not being able to compete. Starting an essay in media res  is a great way to capture the attention of your readers and build anticipation for what comes next.

Through this essay, we can see how gutsy and determined the student is in deciding to become a coach themselves. She shows us these characteristics through their actions, rather than explicitly telling us: To prepare myself for success as a coach, I spent the next year as an official and took coaching classes on the side.  Also, by discussing the opposition she faced and how it affected her, the student is open and vulnerable about the reality of the situation.

The essay comes full circle as the author recalls the frantic situations in seeking out a coach, but this is no longer a concern for them and their team. Overall, this essay is extremely effective in painting this student as mature, bold, and compassionate.

The biggest thing this essay needs to work on is showing not telling. Throughout the essay, the student tells us that she “emerged with new knowledge and confidence,” she “grew unsure of her own abilities,” and she “refused to give up”. What we really want to know is what this looks like.

Instead of saying she “emerged with new knowledge and confidence” she should have shared how she taught a new move to a fellow team-member without hesitation. Rather than telling us she “grew unsure of her own abilities” she should have shown what that looked like by including her internal dialogue and rhetorical questions that ran through her mind. She could have demonstrated what “refusing to give up” looks like by explaining how she kept learning coaching techniques on her own, turned to a mentor for advice, or devised a plan to win over the trust of parents. 

Essay Example #9: Eritrea

No one knows where Eritrea is.

On the first day of school, for the past nine years, I would pensively stand in front of a class, a teacher, a stranger  waiting for the inevitable question: Where are you from?

I smile politely, my dimples accentuating my ambiguous features. “Eritrea,” I answer promptly and proudly. But I  am always prepared. Before their expression can deepen into confusion, ready to ask “where is that,” I elaborate,  perhaps with a fleeting hint of exasperation, “East Africa, near Ethiopia.”

Sometimes, I single out the key-shaped hermit nation on a map, stunning teachers who have “never had a student  from there!” Grinning, I resist the urge to remark, “You didn’t even know it existed until two minutes ago!”

Eritrea is to the East of Ethiopia, its arid coastline clutches the lucrative Red Sea. Battle scars litter the ancient  streets – the colonial Italian architecture lathered with bullet holes, the mosques mangled with mortar shells.  Originally part of the world’s first Christian kingdom, Eritrea passed through the hands of colonial Italy, Britain, and  Ethiopia for over a century, until a bloody thirty year war of Independence liberated us.

But these are facts that anyone can know with a quick Google search. These are facts that I have memorised and compounded, first from my Grandmother and now from pristine books  borrowed from the library.

No historical narrative, however, can adequately capture what Eritrea is.  No one knows the aroma of bushels of potatoes, tomatoes, and garlic – still covered in dirt – that leads you to the open-air market. No one knows the poignant scent of spices, arranged in orange piles reminiscent of compacted  dunes.  No one knows how to haggle stubborn herders for sheep and roosters for Christmas celebrations as deliberately as my mother. No one can replicate the perfect balance of spices in dorho and tsebhi as well as my grandmother,  her gnarly hands stirring the pot with ancient precision (chastising my clumsy knife work with the potatoes).  It’s impossible to learn when the injera is ready – the exact moment you have to lift the lid of the mogogo. Do it too  early (or too late) and the flatbread becomes mangled and gross. It is a sixth sense passed through matriarchal  lineages.

There are no sources that catalogue the scent of incense that wafts through the sunlit porch on St. Michael’s; no  films that can capture the luminescence of hundreds of flaming bonfires that fluoresce the sidewalks on Kudus  Yohannes, as excited children chant Ge’ez proverbs whose origin has been lost to time.  You cannot learn the familiarity of walking beneath the towering Gothic figure of the Enda Mariam Cathedral, the  crowds undulating to the ringing of the archaic bells.  I have memorized the sound of the rains hounding the metal roof during kiremti , the heat of the sun pounding  against the Toyota’s window as we sped down towards Ghinda , the opulent brilliance of the stars twinkling in a  sky untainted by light pollution, the scent of warm rolls of bani wafting through the streets at precisely 6 o’clock each day…

I fill my flimsy sketchbook with pictures from my memory. My hand remembers the shapes of the hibiscus drifting  in the wind, the outline of my grandmother (affectionately nicknamed a’abaye ) leaning over the garden, the bizarre architecture of the Fiat Tagliero .  I dice the vegetables with movements handed down from generations. My nose remembers the scent of frying garlic, the sourness of the warm tayta , the sharpness of the mit’mt’a …

This knowledge is intrinsic.  “I am Eritrean,” I repeat. “I am proud.”  Within me is an encyclopedia of history, culture, and idealism.

Eritrea is the coffee made from scratch, the spices drying in the sun, the priests and nuns. Eritrea is wise, filled with ambition, and unseen potential.  Eritrea isn’t a place, it’s an identity.

This is an exceptional essay that provides a window into this student’s culture that really makes their love for their country and heritage leap off the page. The sheer level of details and sensory descriptors this student is able to fit in this space makes the essay stand out. From the smells, to the traditions, sounds, and sights, the author encapsulates all the glory of Eritrea for the reader. 

The vivid images this student is able to create for the reader, whether it is having the tedious conversation with every teacher or cooking in their grandmother’s kitchen, transports us into the story and makes us feel like we are there in the moment with the student. This is a prime example of an essay that shows , not tells.

Besides the amazing imagery, the use of shorter paragraphs also contributes to how engaging this essay is. Employing this tactic helps break up the text to make it more readable and it isolates ideas so they stick out more than if they were enveloped in a large paragraph.

Overall, this is a really strong essay that brings to life this student’s heritage through its use of vivid imagery. This essay exemplifies what it means to show not tell in your writing, and it is a great example of how you can write an intimate personal statement without making yourself the primary focus of your essay. 

There is very little this essay should improve upon, but one thing the student might consider would be to inject more personal reflection into their response. Although we can clearly take away their deep love and passion for their homeland and culture, the essay would be a bit more personal if they included the emotions and feelings they associate with the various aspects of Eritrea. For example, the way their heart swells with pride when their grandmother praises their ability to cook a flatbread or the feeling of serenity when they hear the bells ring out from the cathedral. Including personal details as well as sensory ones would create a wonderful balance of imagery and reflection.

Essay Example #10: Journaling

Flipping past dozens of colorful entries in my journal, I arrive at the final blank sheet. I press my pen lightly to the page, barely scratching its surface to create a series of loops stringing together into sentences. Emotions spill out, and with their release, I feel lightness in my chest. The stream of thoughts slows as I reach the bottom of the page, and I gently close the cover of the worn book: another journal finished.

I add the journal to the stack of eleven books on my nightstand. Struck by the bittersweet sensation of closing a chapter of my life, I grab the notebook at the bottom of the pile to reminisce.

“I want to make a flying mushen to fly in space and your in it” – October 2008

Pulling back the cover of my first Tinkerbell-themed diary, the prompt “My Hopes and Dreams” captures my attention. Though “machine” is misspelled in my scribbled response, I see the beginnings of my past obsession with outer space. At the age of five, I tore through novels about the solar system, experimented with rockets built from plastic straws, and rented Space Shuttle films from Blockbuster to satisfy my curiosities. While I chased down answers to questions as limitless as the universe, I fell in love with learning. Eight journals later, the same relentless curiosity brought me to an airplane descending on San Francisco Bay.

“I wish I had infinite sunsets” – July 2019

I reach for the charcoal notepad near the top of the pile and open to the first page: my flight to the Stanford Pre-Collegiate Summer Institutes. While I was excited to explore bioengineering, anxiety twisted in my stomach as I imagined my destination, unsure of whether I could overcome my shyness and connect with others.

With each new conversation, the sweat on my palms became less noticeable, and I met students from 23 different countries. Many of the moments where I challenged myself socially revolved around the third story deck of the Jerry house. A strange medley of English, Arabic, and Mandarin filled the summer air as my friends and I gathered there every evening, and dialogues at sunset soon became moments of bliss. In our conversations about cultural differences, the possibility of an afterlife, and the plausibility of far-fetched conspiracy theories, I learned to voice my opinion. As I was introduced to different viewpoints, these moments challenged my understanding of the world around me. In my final entries from California, I find excitement to learn from others and increased confidence, a tool that would later allow me to impact my community.

“The beauty in a tower of cans” – June 2020

Returning my gaze to the stack of journals, I stretch to take the floral-patterned book sitting on top. I flip through, eventually finding the beginnings of the organization I created during the outbreak of COVID-19. Since then, Door-to-Door Deliveries has woven its way through my entries and into reality, allowing me to aid high-risk populations through free grocery delivery.

With the confidence I gained the summer before, I took action when seeing others in need rather than letting my shyness hold me back. I reached out to local churches and senior centers to spread word of our services and interacted with customers through our website and social media pages. To further expand our impact, we held two food drives, and I mustered the courage to ask for donations door-to-door. In a tower of canned donations, I saw the value of reaching out to help others and realized my own potential to impact the world around me.

I delicately close the journal in my hands, smiling softly as the memories reappear, one after another. Reaching under my bed, I pull out a fresh notebook and open to its first sheet. I lightly press my pen to the page, “And so begins the next chapter…”

The structuring of this essay makes it easy and enjoyable to read. The student effectively organizes their various life experiences around their tower of journals, which centers the reader and makes the different stories easy to follow. Additionally, the student engages quotes from their journals—and unique formatting of the quotes—to signal that they are moving in time and show us which memory we should follow them to.

Thematically, the student uses the idea of shyness to connect the different memories they draw out of their journals. As the student describes their experiences overcoming shyness at the Stanford Pre-Collegiate Summer Institutes and Door-to-Door Deliveries, this essay can be read as an Overcoming Obstacles essay.

At the end of this essay, readers are fully convinced that this student is dedicated (they have committed to journaling every day), thoughtful (journaling is a thoughtful process and, in the essay, the student reflects thoughtfully on the past), and motivated (they flew across the country for a summer program and started a business). These are definitely qualities admissions officers are looking for in applicants!

Although this essay is already exceptionally strong as it’s written, the first journal entry feels out of place compared to the other two entries that discuss the author’s shyness and determination. It works well for the essay to have an entry from when the student was younger to add some humor (with misspelled words) and nostalgia, but if the student had either connected the quote they chose to the idea of overcoming a fear present in the other two anecdotes or if they had picked a different quote all together related to their shyness, it would have made the entire essay feel more cohesive.

Where to Get Your Personal Statement Edited

Do you want feedback on your personal statement? After rereading your essays countless times, it can be difficult to evaluate your writing objectively. That’s why we created our free Peer Essay Review tool , where you can get a free review of your essay from another student. You can also improve your own writing skills by reviewing other students’ essays. 

If you want a college admissions expert to review your essay, advisors on CollegeVine have helped students refine their writing and submit successful applications to top schools. Find the right advisor for you to improve your chances of getting into your dream school!

Next Step: Supplemental Essays

Essay Guides for Each School

How to Write a Stellar Extracurricular Activity College Essay

4 Tips for Writing a Diversity College Essay

How to Write the “Why This College” Essay

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My Goal In Life Essay

A goal is a vision for the future or the desired outcome that an individual commits to imagining, planning, and achieving. People try to achieve their goals in a restricted time by setting deadlines. Here are some sample essays on my goal in life.

100 Words Essay On My Goal In Life

A goal is a desire you have to accomplish yourself. If one wants to succeed in life, one must have a goal. Being a teacher is my life's ambition. A wonderful and responsible profession is teaching. I have made the conscious decision to do all in my ability to promote knowledge among the people. Some people believe that money is life.

However, in my opinion, morality is what makes life truly sweet. In the future, I hope to be a beloved and reputable teacher. I have no clue how far I will get in achieving my goal but I'll give it my best.

200 Words Essay On My Goal In Life

A goal is a vision for the future or a desired outcome that an individual or group of individuals commits to envisioning, planning, and achieving. By setting deadlines, people try to accomplish their goals by setting deadlines.

My current goal is related to my education. I want to come in first place and achieve the top marks in every subject because this will increase my chances of receiving an overseas scholarship. I am putting a lot of effort into achieving this as my objective. Any student wants the chance to pursue their studies overseas, and I have that chance. I also take my coursework seriously and educate myself on all topics pertaining to my field of study, including research, literature, and academic journals.

Additionally, studying overseas will help me get a superior education and a diploma that is recognised across the world, both of which will allow me to compete for prominent jobs. So that I may accomplish my goal, I don't waste time on pointless activities and instead pay attention to my studies. My family is undoubtedly a tremendous benefit for me; they support me at all times and provide me whatever I require. Additionally, I owe a lot of credit for my success to my professors, who are a big help to me in my studies.

500 Words Essay On My Goal In Life

Everybody has a life goal. The aim or aspiration of man is his inner desire. One will not take any action if his or her goals are unclear.

What Is A Goal

The goal of an individual is to achieve a particular objective or target. Goal may also refer to the finish line of a race or the object that a player is attempting to insert as part of a game. As a noun, "goal" has other meanings. A goal is something you strive to achieve after working hard and persistently towards it.

Types Of Goals

Mastery goals | A mastery goal, such as "I will score higher in this event next time," is one that someone sets to attain or master a certain skill.

Performance-approach goals | A performance-approach goal is one where the person aims to outperform their peers. This kind of objective might be to improve one's appearance by dropping 5 pounds or to receive a better performance evaluation.

Performance-avoidance goals | When someone sets a goal, they frequently want to avoid performing worse than their peers, such as setting a goal to avoid receiving negative

Importance Of A Goal

A goal is similar to a specific objective, the anticipated outcome that directs behaviour, or an end, which is a thing, whether it be a tangible thing or an abstract thing, that has inherent worth.

Everyone should have a life goal. When you have a goal, you work hard every day to attain it and live for it. And when you succeed in those efforts, you feel more confident.

Goals provide us a path to follow. We can hold ourselves accountable by having goals. We are able to clarify what we genuinely desire in life when we set goals and strive toward obtaining them. We can better organise our priorities by setting goals.

Goals can be long-term and short-term. For instance, finishing your schoolwork might be a short-term goal. Learning a musical instrument, pursuing a profession as a doctor, or other long-term goals examples.

Due to the length of time required and the fact that we pick our professional objective, long-term goals play crucial roles in life. The most significant effects of choosing a certain career occur both during and after the effort to attain it.

Setting goals encourages us to create plans of action that will help us reach the desired level of performance.

Example Of A. P. J. Abdul Kalam

Dr A. P. J. Abdul Kalam overcame obstacles to achieve his aim while serving as India's 11th president from 2002 to 2007. Dr Abdul Kalam was raised by Muslim parents who spoke Tamil. Being from a low-income household, Dr Abdul Kalam began delivering newspapers after school at a young age to help augment his family's income. This fact allowed him to help support his father financially. He did not succeed academically, but he was a dedicated student who enjoyed mathematics.

Even during his senior project in college, the dean expressed displeasure with the lack of progress and threatened to revoke his scholarship if the assignment wasn't completed by the next three days. He later put forth a lot of effort on his assignment and finished it on time, impressing the dean. From that point on, Dr Kalam worked as a scientist with the Defense Research and Development Organization (DRDO) , eventually rising to the position of organisation chief. What follows is history.

Explore Career Options (By Industry)

• Construction
• Entertainment
• Manufacturing
• Information Technology

Data Administrator

Database professionals use software to store and organise data such as financial information, and customer shipping records. Individuals who opt for a career as data administrators ensure that data is available for users and secured from unauthorised sales. DB administrators may work in various types of industries. It may involve computer systems design, service firms, insurance companies, banks and hospitals.

Bio Medical Engineer

The field of biomedical engineering opens up a universe of expert chances. An Individual in the biomedical engineering career path work in the field of engineering as well as medicine, in order to find out solutions to common problems of the two fields. The biomedical engineering job opportunities are to collaborate with doctors and researchers to develop medical systems, equipment, or devices that can solve clinical problems. Here we will be discussing jobs after biomedical engineering, how to get a job in biomedical engineering, biomedical engineering scope, and salary. 

Ethical Hacker

A career as ethical hacker involves various challenges and provides lucrative opportunities in the digital era where every giant business and startup owns its cyberspace on the world wide web. Individuals in the ethical hacker career path try to find the vulnerabilities in the cyber system to get its authority. If he or she succeeds in it then he or she gets its illegal authority. Individuals in the ethical hacker career path then steal information or delete the file that could affect the business, functioning, or services of the organization.

GIS officer work on various GIS software to conduct a study and gather spatial and non-spatial information. GIS experts update the GIS data and maintain it. The databases include aerial or satellite imagery, latitudinal and longitudinal coordinates, and manually digitized images of maps. In a career as GIS expert, one is responsible for creating online and mobile maps.

Data Analyst

The invention of the database has given fresh breath to the people involved in the data analytics career path. Analysis refers to splitting up a whole into its individual components for individual analysis. Data analysis is a method through which raw data are processed and transformed into information that would be beneficial for user strategic thinking.

Data are collected and examined to respond to questions, evaluate hypotheses or contradict theories. It is a tool for analyzing, transforming, modeling, and arranging data with useful knowledge, to assist in decision-making and methods, encompassing various strategies, and is used in different fields of business, research, and social science.

Geothermal Engineer

Individuals who opt for a career as geothermal engineers are the professionals involved in the processing of geothermal energy. The responsibilities of geothermal engineers may vary depending on the workplace location. Those who work in fields design facilities to process and distribute geothermal energy. They oversee the functioning of machinery used in the field.

Database Architect

If you are intrigued by the programming world and are interested in developing communications networks then a career as database architect may be a good option for you. Data architect roles and responsibilities include building design models for data communication networks. Wide Area Networks (WANs), local area networks (LANs), and intranets are included in the database networks. It is expected that database architects will have in-depth knowledge of a company's business to develop a network to fulfil the requirements of the organisation. Stay tuned as we look at the larger picture and give you more information on what is db architecture, why you should pursue database architecture, what to expect from such a degree and what your job opportunities will be after graduation. Here, we will be discussing how to become a data architect. Students can visit NIT Trichy , IIT Kharagpur , JMI New Delhi . 

Remote Sensing Technician

Individuals who opt for a career as a remote sensing technician possess unique personalities. Remote sensing analysts seem to be rational human beings, they are strong, independent, persistent, sincere, realistic and resourceful. Some of them are analytical as well, which means they are intelligent, introspective and inquisitive. 

Remote sensing scientists use remote sensing technology to support scientists in fields such as community planning, flight planning or the management of natural resources. Analysing data collected from aircraft, satellites or ground-based platforms using statistical analysis software, image analysis software or Geographic Information Systems (GIS) is a significant part of their work. Do you want to learn how to become remote sensing technician? There's no need to be concerned; we've devised a simple remote sensing technician career path for you. Scroll through the pages and read.

Budget Analyst

Budget analysis, in a nutshell, entails thoroughly analyzing the details of a financial budget. The budget analysis aims to better understand and manage revenue. Budget analysts assist in the achievement of financial targets, the preservation of profitability, and the pursuit of long-term growth for a business. Budget analysts generally have a bachelor's degree in accounting, finance, economics, or a closely related field. Knowledge of Financial Management is of prime importance in this career.

Underwriter

An underwriter is a person who assesses and evaluates the risk of insurance in his or her field like mortgage, loan, health policy, investment, and so on and so forth. The underwriter career path does involve risks as analysing the risks means finding out if there is a way for the insurance underwriter jobs to recover the money from its clients. If the risk turns out to be too much for the company then in the future it is an underwriter who will be held accountable for it. Therefore, one must carry out his or her job with a lot of attention and diligence.

Finance Executive

Product manager.

A Product Manager is a professional responsible for product planning and marketing. He or she manages the product throughout the Product Life Cycle, gathering and prioritising the product. A product manager job description includes defining the product vision and working closely with team members of other departments to deliver winning products.  

Operations Manager

Individuals in the operations manager jobs are responsible for ensuring the efficiency of each department to acquire its optimal goal. They plan the use of resources and distribution of materials. The operations manager's job description includes managing budgets, negotiating contracts, and performing administrative tasks.

Stock Analyst

Individuals who opt for a career as a stock analyst examine the company's investments makes decisions and keep track of financial securities. The nature of such investments will differ from one business to the next. Individuals in the stock analyst career use data mining to forecast a company's profits and revenues, advise clients on whether to buy or sell, participate in seminars, and discussing financial matters with executives and evaluate annual reports.

A Researcher is a professional who is responsible for collecting data and information by reviewing the literature and conducting experiments and surveys. He or she uses various methodological processes to provide accurate data and information that is utilised by academicians and other industry professionals. Here, we will discuss what is a researcher, the researcher's salary, types of researchers.

Welding Engineer

Welding Engineer Job Description: A Welding Engineer work involves managing welding projects and supervising welding teams. He or she is responsible for reviewing welding procedures, processes and documentation. A career as Welding Engineer involves conducting failure analyses and causes on welding issues. 

Transportation Planner

A career as Transportation Planner requires technical application of science and technology in engineering, particularly the concepts, equipment and technologies involved in the production of products and services. In fields like land use, infrastructure review, ecological standards and street design, he or she considers issues of health, environment and performance. A Transportation Planner assigns resources for implementing and designing programmes. He or she is responsible for assessing needs, preparing plans and forecasts and compliance with regulations.

Environmental Engineer

Individuals who opt for a career as an environmental engineer are construction professionals who utilise the skills and knowledge of biology, soil science, chemistry and the concept of engineering to design and develop projects that serve as solutions to various environmental problems. 

Safety Manager

A Safety Manager is a professional responsible for employee’s safety at work. He or she plans, implements and oversees the company’s employee safety. A Safety Manager ensures compliance and adherence to Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) guidelines.

Conservation Architect

A Conservation Architect is a professional responsible for conserving and restoring buildings or monuments having a historic value. He or she applies techniques to document and stabilise the object’s state without any further damage. A Conservation Architect restores the monuments and heritage buildings to bring them back to their original state.

Structural Engineer

A Structural Engineer designs buildings, bridges, and other related structures. He or she analyzes the structures and makes sure the structures are strong enough to be used by the people. A career as a Structural Engineer requires working in the construction process. It comes under the civil engineering discipline. A Structure Engineer creates structural models with the help of computer-aided design software. 

Highway Engineer

Highway Engineer Job Description:  A Highway Engineer is a civil engineer who specialises in planning and building thousands of miles of roads that support connectivity and allow transportation across the country. He or she ensures that traffic management schemes are effectively planned concerning economic sustainability and successful implementation.

Field Surveyor

Are you searching for a Field Surveyor Job Description? A Field Surveyor is a professional responsible for conducting field surveys for various places or geographical conditions. He or she collects the required data and information as per the instructions given by senior officials. 

Orthotist and Prosthetist

Orthotists and Prosthetists are professionals who provide aid to patients with disabilities. They fix them to artificial limbs (prosthetics) and help them to regain stability. There are times when people lose their limbs in an accident. In some other occasions, they are born without a limb or orthopaedic impairment. Orthotists and prosthetists play a crucial role in their lives with fixing them to assistive devices and provide mobility.

Pathologist

A career in pathology in India is filled with several responsibilities as it is a medical branch and affects human lives. The demand for pathologists has been increasing over the past few years as people are getting more aware of different diseases. Not only that, but an increase in population and lifestyle changes have also contributed to the increase in a pathologist’s demand. The pathology careers provide an extremely huge number of opportunities and if you want to be a part of the medical field you can consider being a pathologist. If you want to know more about a career in pathology in India then continue reading this article.

Veterinary Doctor

Speech therapist, gynaecologist.

Gynaecology can be defined as the study of the female body. The job outlook for gynaecology is excellent since there is evergreen demand for one because of their responsibility of dealing with not only women’s health but also fertility and pregnancy issues. Although most women prefer to have a women obstetrician gynaecologist as their doctor, men also explore a career as a gynaecologist and there are ample amounts of male doctors in the field who are gynaecologists and aid women during delivery and childbirth. 

Audiologist

The audiologist career involves audiology professionals who are responsible to treat hearing loss and proactively preventing the relevant damage. Individuals who opt for a career as an audiologist use various testing strategies with the aim to determine if someone has a normal sensitivity to sounds or not. After the identification of hearing loss, a hearing doctor is required to determine which sections of the hearing are affected, to what extent they are affected, and where the wound causing the hearing loss is found. As soon as the hearing loss is identified, the patients are provided with recommendations for interventions and rehabilitation such as hearing aids, cochlear implants, and appropriate medical referrals. While audiology is a branch of science that studies and researches hearing, balance, and related disorders.

An oncologist is a specialised doctor responsible for providing medical care to patients diagnosed with cancer. He or she uses several therapies to control the cancer and its effect on the human body such as chemotherapy, immunotherapy, radiation therapy and biopsy. An oncologist designs a treatment plan based on a pathology report after diagnosing the type of cancer and where it is spreading inside the body.

Are you searching for an ‘Anatomist job description’? An Anatomist is a research professional who applies the laws of biological science to determine the ability of bodies of various living organisms including animals and humans to regenerate the damaged or destroyed organs. If you want to know what does an anatomist do, then read the entire article, where we will answer all your questions.

For an individual who opts for a career as an actor, the primary responsibility is to completely speak to the character he or she is playing and to persuade the crowd that the character is genuine by connecting with them and bringing them into the story. This applies to significant roles and littler parts, as all roles join to make an effective creation. Here in this article, we will discuss how to become an actor in India, actor exams, actor salary in India, and actor jobs. 

Individuals who opt for a career as acrobats create and direct original routines for themselves, in addition to developing interpretations of existing routines. The work of circus acrobats can be seen in a variety of performance settings, including circus, reality shows, sports events like the Olympics, movies and commercials. Individuals who opt for a career as acrobats must be prepared to face rejections and intermittent periods of work. The creativity of acrobats may extend to other aspects of the performance. For example, acrobats in the circus may work with gym trainers, celebrities or collaborate with other professionals to enhance such performance elements as costume and or maybe at the teaching end of the career.

Video Game Designer

Career as a video game designer is filled with excitement as well as responsibilities. A video game designer is someone who is involved in the process of creating a game from day one. He or she is responsible for fulfilling duties like designing the character of the game, the several levels involved, plot, art and similar other elements. Individuals who opt for a career as a video game designer may also write the codes for the game using different programming languages.

Depending on the video game designer job description and experience they may also have to lead a team and do the early testing of the game in order to suggest changes and find loopholes.

Radio Jockey

Radio Jockey is an exciting, promising career and a great challenge for music lovers. If you are really interested in a career as radio jockey, then it is very important for an RJ to have an automatic, fun, and friendly personality. If you want to get a job done in this field, a strong command of the language and a good voice are always good things. Apart from this, in order to be a good radio jockey, you will also listen to good radio jockeys so that you can understand their style and later make your own by practicing.

A career as radio jockey has a lot to offer to deserving candidates. If you want to know more about a career as radio jockey, and how to become a radio jockey then continue reading the article.

Choreographer

The word “choreography" actually comes from Greek words that mean “dance writing." Individuals who opt for a career as a choreographer create and direct original dances, in addition to developing interpretations of existing dances. A Choreographer dances and utilises his or her creativity in other aspects of dance performance. For example, he or she may work with the music director to select music or collaborate with other famous choreographers to enhance such performance elements as lighting, costume and set design.

Social Media Manager

A career as social media manager involves implementing the company’s or brand’s marketing plan across all social media channels. Social media managers help in building or improving a brand’s or a company’s website traffic, build brand awareness, create and implement marketing and brand strategy. Social media managers are key to important social communication as well.

Photographer

Photography is considered both a science and an art, an artistic means of expression in which the camera replaces the pen. In a career as a photographer, an individual is hired to capture the moments of public and private events, such as press conferences or weddings, or may also work inside a studio, where people go to get their picture clicked. Photography is divided into many streams each generating numerous career opportunities in photography. With the boom in advertising, media, and the fashion industry, photography has emerged as a lucrative and thrilling career option for many Indian youths.

An individual who is pursuing a career as a producer is responsible for managing the business aspects of production. They are involved in each aspect of production from its inception to deception. Famous movie producers review the script, recommend changes and visualise the story. 

They are responsible for overseeing the finance involved in the project and distributing the film for broadcasting on various platforms. A career as a producer is quite fulfilling as well as exhaustive in terms of playing different roles in order for a production to be successful. Famous movie producers are responsible for hiring creative and technical personnel on contract basis.

Copy Writer

In a career as a copywriter, one has to consult with the client and understand the brief well. A career as a copywriter has a lot to offer to deserving candidates. Several new mediums of advertising are opening therefore making it a lucrative career choice. Students can pursue various copywriter courses such as Journalism , Advertising , Marketing Management . Here, we have discussed how to become a freelance copywriter, copywriter career path, how to become a copywriter in India, and copywriting career outlook. 

In a career as a vlogger, one generally works for himself or herself. However, once an individual has gained viewership there are several brands and companies that approach them for paid collaboration. It is one of those fields where an individual can earn well while following his or her passion. 

Ever since internet costs got reduced the viewership for these types of content has increased on a large scale. Therefore, a career as a vlogger has a lot to offer. If you want to know more about the Vlogger eligibility, roles and responsibilities then continue reading the article. 

For publishing books, newspapers, magazines and digital material, editorial and commercial strategies are set by publishers. Individuals in publishing career paths make choices about the markets their businesses will reach and the type of content that their audience will be served. Individuals in book publisher careers collaborate with editorial staff, designers, authors, and freelance contributors who develop and manage the creation of content.

Careers in journalism are filled with excitement as well as responsibilities. One cannot afford to miss out on the details. As it is the small details that provide insights into a story. Depending on those insights a journalist goes about writing a news article. A journalism career can be stressful at times but if you are someone who is passionate about it then it is the right choice for you. If you want to know more about the media field and journalist career then continue reading this article.

Individuals in the editor career path is an unsung hero of the news industry who polishes the language of the news stories provided by stringers, reporters, copywriters and content writers and also news agencies. Individuals who opt for a career as an editor make it more persuasive, concise and clear for readers. In this article, we will discuss the details of the editor's career path such as how to become an editor in India, editor salary in India and editor skills and qualities.

Individuals who opt for a career as a reporter may often be at work on national holidays and festivities. He or she pitches various story ideas and covers news stories in risky situations. Students can pursue a BMC (Bachelor of Mass Communication) , B.M.M. (Bachelor of Mass Media) , or  MAJMC (MA in Journalism and Mass Communication) to become a reporter. While we sit at home reporters travel to locations to collect information that carries a news value.  

Corporate Executive

Are you searching for a Corporate Executive job description? A Corporate Executive role comes with administrative duties. He or she provides support to the leadership of the organisation. A Corporate Executive fulfils the business purpose and ensures its financial stability. In this article, we are going to discuss how to become corporate executive.

Multimedia Specialist

A multimedia specialist is a media professional who creates, audio, videos, graphic image files, computer animations for multimedia applications. He or she is responsible for planning, producing, and maintaining websites and applications. 

Quality Controller

A quality controller plays a crucial role in an organisation. He or she is responsible for performing quality checks on manufactured products. He or she identifies the defects in a product and rejects the product. 

A quality controller records detailed information about products with defects and sends it to the supervisor or plant manager to take necessary actions to improve the production process.

Production Manager

A QA Lead is in charge of the QA Team. The role of QA Lead comes with the responsibility of assessing services and products in order to determine that he or she meets the quality standards. He or she develops, implements and manages test plans. 

Process Development Engineer

The Process Development Engineers design, implement, manufacture, mine, and other production systems using technical knowledge and expertise in the industry. They use computer modeling software to test technologies and machinery. An individual who is opting career as Process Development Engineer is responsible for developing cost-effective and efficient processes. They also monitor the production process and ensure it functions smoothly and efficiently.

AWS Solution Architect

An AWS Solution Architect is someone who specializes in developing and implementing cloud computing systems. He or she has a good understanding of the various aspects of cloud computing and can confidently deploy and manage their systems. He or she troubleshoots the issues and evaluates the risk from the third party. 

Azure Administrator

An Azure Administrator is a professional responsible for implementing, monitoring, and maintaining Azure Solutions. He or she manages cloud infrastructure service instances and various cloud servers as well as sets up public and private cloud systems. 

Computer Programmer

Careers in computer programming primarily refer to the systematic act of writing code and moreover include wider computer science areas. The word 'programmer' or 'coder' has entered into practice with the growing number of newly self-taught tech enthusiasts. Computer programming careers involve the use of designs created by software developers and engineers and transforming them into commands that can be implemented by computers. These commands result in regular usage of social media sites, word-processing applications and browsers.

Information Security Manager

Individuals in the information security manager career path involves in overseeing and controlling all aspects of computer security. The IT security manager job description includes planning and carrying out security measures to protect the business data and information from corruption, theft, unauthorised access, and deliberate attack 

ITSM Manager

Automation test engineer.

An Automation Test Engineer job involves executing automated test scripts. He or she identifies the project’s problems and troubleshoots them. The role involves documenting the defect using management tools. He or she works with the application team in order to resolve any issues arising during the testing process. 

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• Educational Goals Essays

My Personal Educational Goals Essay

The advantage of acquiring a professional degree and pursuing education from a respected institute will not only help a student to build his career but also groom his overall personality and approach to life. I have always secured good marks in my studies and my parents wanted me to take admission in a University that can help me groom my capabilities and qualities that I have never discovered before. To get a quality education in a reputed University is the dream of every student and this is the basic reason that I want to get an admission in University of Massachusetts Amherst. Last year, when I saw my cousin graduating from UMass Amherst and looking at his groomed personality, I decided to get admission in this University.

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My main educational goal is not only getting the desired degree but also to attain high grades, which will help me to get a good designation in a multinational organization. I want to get a bachelors degree in Hospitality and Tourism Management because it is my passion to work in the hospitality industry and its future scope is improving with the passage of time. World travel and Tourism Council survey reveals that 8% people who are doing job are working in the travel and tourism industry and it is expected that this percentage will grow because this industry is one of the fastest growing industries of the world. Different factors affecting tourism such as social, economic, and environmental are very important to consider when making a decision about suitable career that also offers good quality of life.

I feel comfortable and relaxed while selecting this field as my career because there are various opportunities in the hospitality and tourism industry and I can surely pursue my career somewhere in hotels, commercial food services, tourist destination, recreation, sports management, and airlines etc. This is a dynamic and huge industry in which different fields are growing rapidly giving ambitious and hard working students chance to enter in this industry and make their name. I like this industry because it is working in a very high competitive environment and to me there is a lot of charm working in such competitive industry. I want to gain rich knowledge and build skills of customer service and strong business foundation that will help me to become a successful professional in the hospitality and tourism industry. I believe that the students who have graduated in the hospitality and tourism management programs enjoy the combined capabilities of business and life skills with the high demand of the employers (Williams).

UMass Amherst is known as the top Universities of US and it is known for its quality education. Since my focus is on my studies and I want to get the degree with high scores, therefore this is the best place for me to achieve my goals. The teachers of this University show keen interest in the students and constant efforts are made by them to improve the capabilities and skills in their education. This is the place from where I would be able to get an entry in the hospitality industry and make my name in this versatile industry.

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Works Cited

Williams, Larry L. “Is a Career in Hospitality and Tourism in Your Future?” 2012. http://www.internationalstudentguidetotheusa.com. 4 March 2012 . [Online].

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My Goals In Life As a student Essay In 200 Words

Read this 200 words essay on topic my goals in life as a students essay for students and children.

My Personal Goals In Life as a Student Essay (200 words)

1.Introduction Paragraph

As a student, it is important to set goals for your future. Goals help you stay focused and motivated to achieve what you desire. In this essay, I will describe my goals in life as a student.

2. Body Paragraphs

One of my primary goals is to excel academically. I want to maintain good grades and study hard to achieve my educational objectives. I believe this will help me acquire the knowledge and skills necessary to succeed in my future endeavors.

Another goal I have is to be actively involved in extracurricular activities. I believe participating in sports, clubs, or volunteer work will help me develop essential skills such as leadership, teamwork, and communication. It will also provide opportunities to meet new people and have fun outside of the classroom.

Furthermore, I hope to gain valuable experiences by pursuing internships or job shadowing opportunities related to my interests. This will allow me to explore potential career paths, acquire hands-on experience, and network with professionals in the field.

In addition, I aspire to give back to the community by volunteering and helping those in need. By doing so, I hope to make a positive impact and develop empathy and compassion for others.

3. Conclusion

In conclusion, my goals as a student are to excel academically, be actively involved in extracurricular activities, gain valuable experiences through internships, and give back to the community through volunteering. I believe achieving these goals will help me become a well-rounded individual and prepare me for a successful future.

Hello! Welcome to my Blog StudyParagraphs.co. My name is Angelina. I am a college professor. I love reading writing for kids students. This blog is full with valuable knowledge for all class students. Thank you for reading my articles.

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Breakfast impacts student success, but not in the way you might think

Photo: Getty Images.

New research suggests a healthy breakfast is important for student motivation and achievement.

We often hear that breakfast is the most important meal of the day, especially as we grow up. It helps us develop, gives us the energy we need for the day ahead, and, as a new study shows, leads to better academic success in school – though not necessarily in the way you would expect.

Findings published recently in the  Journal of School Psychology  show that eating a healthy breakfast can lead to higher levels of motivation and achievement for students that day in school. Meanwhile, eating no breakfast at all can lower levels of motivation and achievement.

However, the study, which was funded by the Australian Research Council and The Future Project at The King’s School, also found that eating an unhealthy breakfast had a similar detrimental effect on motivation and achievement as eating no breakfast at all.

“Many students make less-than-ideal breakfast choices at the start of the school day or skip breakfast altogether,” says  Scientia Professor Andrew Martin , lead author of the study and an educational psychologist from the  School of Education  at  UNSW Arts, Design & Architecture . “Our findings highlight that eating a healthy breakfast each and every morning improves student motivation and academic achievement.”

Media enquiries

For enquiries about this story and interview requests, please contact  Ben Knight , News & Content Coordinator, UNSW Arts, Design & Architecture. Phone:  (02) 9065 4915 Email:  [email protected]

The most important meal of the day

The research team studied 648 Australian high school students from five schools in New South Wales to investigate the role of breakfast consumption and quality on students’ self-reported science motivation and achievement in a science test. They surveyed the students on what they ate that morning and what they usually eat and created a score for their breakfast habits based on dietary guidelines from the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC). They then tested the students’ motivation in science classes, who then completed the science test based on the syllabus content.

“In the survey, we asked many questions about their background to help us control for various factors including socioeconomic status, gender, physical activity, previous achievement and conscientiousness to isolate the impact of breakfast on motivation and achievement,” Prof. Martin says. “We were also careful to time it right so we could better determine the process, with the breakfast in the morning preceding the levels of motivation and achievement we saw later that day.”

They found that students who ate a healthy breakfast the morning of the study were more motivated and achieved better test scores. Meanwhile, students who ate an unhealthy breakfast or no breakfast that morning measured lower for motivation and scored lower in their science test, regardless of whether they usually ate a healthy or unhealthy breakfast or previously performed well on science tests.

“As you might expect, eating a healthy breakfast every day is good for students’ motivation and achievement while skipping breakfast is not so good,” Prof. Martin says. “Somewhat unexpectedly, eating an unhealthy breakfast could be as disruptive to motivation and achievement as not eating breakfast at all.

“In fact, simply having breakfast isn’t enough to gain the full benefits of eating breakfast; quality is also important for optimal motivation.”

Eating a healthy breakfast each and every morning improves student motivation and academic achievement. Prof. Andrew Martin

The research also found while breakfast predicted student motivation, it did not predict student achievement. Instead, motivation predicted achievement.

“A healthy breakfast has traditionally been associated with improved academic performance, but the motivational factors implicated in this process have not been well understood,” Prof. Martin says.

Breakfast as an educational intervention

The extent to which a regular healthy breakfast impacts student motivation and achievement has implications for educational policy and practice.

“Having a healthy breakfast is somewhat within a student’s immediate control and could potentially be addressed either at school or home through better health education and communication,” Prof. Martin says.

Schools and the school system can better support students by offering a healthy breakfast option at school, including information about healthy breakfast in the curriculum, and communicating with parents at home about healthy breakfast ideas and strategies.

“It is possible to incorporate a healthy breakfast or morning snack into the school day,” Prof. Martin says, “School-based breakfast programs are one avenue for this, or schools might consider providing students with a mid-morning snack, especially for students from disadvantaged or food-insecure homes.”

However, there may be other barriers that schools need to keep in mind. For example, some students may decline a free breakfast if it is stigmatised and seen as for “poor kids”, while others may have body image worries or cultural and dietary needs.

“If we can manage these considerations, starting each day with a healthy breakfast could be a relatively achievable change in a student’s life that has a notable positive impact on their educational outcomes,” Prof. Martin says.

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Paying Off Student Loans vs. Investing: Which Should You Prioritize?

Weigh the benefits of paying off your student loans versus investing

You probably know that investing is an important part of building wealth for the future, but if you have student loans, you may feel like you need to get them paid off before you begin investing. Neither option is inherently better than the other, as the "right" one to prioritize will depend on your goals and how comfortable you are having debt. Before you decide between using extra cash to either pay down student loans or invest, you'll want to ensure you fully understand your financial situation.

Key Takeaways

• Evaluate the benefits and drawbacks of paying down federal student loans versus private student loans before you make a decision.
• Consider the impact of interest rates on student loans compared to potential investment returns.
• If you can afford to do so, you may want to put portions of your discretionary income toward both investing and paying down your student debt.

Paying Off Student Loans vs. Investing: An Overview

Paying off student loans early can bring peace of mind, in addition to reducing the amount of interest you pay over time. On the other hand, investing works best when you start early and be consistent. The potential returns might outweigh what you're paying in interest.

Factors to Considers

Personal financial goals.

First, think about your financial goals and priorities. Prioritize whether you want to be debt-free faster or build wealth for the future. Carefully think about which goal makes the most sense for your situation. Perhaps you need to get out of debt to qualify for a mortgage before you save for retirement. Or maybe you're comfortable carrying some debt and want to build an emergency fund to prepare for unexpected expenses first.

In some cases, student loan debt can keep you from reaching other goals. By paying it off, you might feel more freedom to make progress in other areas of your life. On the other hand, you might want to build wealth earlier by putting your extra money to work through investing.

You may be able to invest and work toward paying off student loans by budgeting portions of your discretionary income for both.

Interest Rates

Interest is the money you pay to borrow money. Student loan interest rates vary, so some of your loans might have higher rates than others. Even if you consolidate your loans to one interest rate, you're still paying interest.

Plus, if you had interest accrue during your time in school, or during a deferment or forbearance period, it's likely been added to the balance of your loan and you're now paying interest on that interest. The faster you pay off your loans, the more money you save in the long run.

Let's say you consolidate your federal loans. The formula for determining your interest rate for a loan consolidation takes your balances and statutory interest rates into account. To determine your new consolidation loan balance and interest rate, total the balances and average the interest rates of the loans you're consolidating, rounded up to the nearest one-eighth of 1%. Say you have the following undergraduate unsubsidized loans:

• $5,500 at 5.05%
• $6,500 at 4.53%
• $7,500 at 2.75%
• $7,500 at 3.73%

In this case, a consolidation loan would be for $27,000 and have an interest rate of 4%.

If you're concerned about compounding interest and you have an interest rate that's high relative to potential returns, focusing on repaying student loans might make sense.

By inputting your loan term, principal amount, and interest rate into a loan calculator , you can calculate the total interest expense on different loan types.

Potential Returns on Investments

Paying off debt is often considered a "guaranteed return" based on your interest rate. But what if your potential returns on your investments are higher than the interest rate you pay on your student loans?

In the example above, you're paying 4% on your student loans. However, the long-term average annual return of the S&P 500 is about 10%, more than twice the rate of some student loans. In that case, you might be better off putting more of your discretionary income toward investing, since your returns could be much higher than what you'd paying in interest.

Keep in mind that the stock market can be risky and isn't guaranteed to provide returns each year.

Type of Student Loan

Compared to federal loans, private student loans typically have different terms and access to fewer benefits and programs. In that case, you might decide to tackle your private loans first. Then, you may want to address your federal student loans or choose to invest first.

If you're not eligible for federal student loan repayment programs, you may also be able to refinance all of your private and federal loans together into one private loan with the same term but at a lower rate. Then you can reduce your debt faster without paying as much.

Carefully consider your financial situation and your future earning potential as you evaluate the types of student loans you have. In many cases, it might be better to not refinance federal and private loans together and pay them down separately.

Tax Deductions

You can potentially deduct up to $2,500 of your student loan interest when you prepare your taxes. This can lower your taxable income and reduce how much you owe. In some cases, depending on your rate, the tax deduction might offset a portion of the interest you pay.

A quick way to estimate your tax deduction is to multiply the dollar amount of your total interest payments by your tax bracket. For example, if you pay $1,500 in student loan interest during the year and you're in the 22% tax bracket, your deduction is worth $330. That's not enough to fully negate your interest, but you might decide it's enough to adjust how you allocate money for paying off student loans versus investing.

Forgiveness Programs

Finally, consider whether you're eligible for federal forgiveness programs. Private student loans aren't eligible for forgiveness, but federal loans might be.

• If you're on an income-driven repayment (IDR) plan for 20 or 25 years, your balance might be forgiven.
• The Saving on a Valuable Education (SAVE) Plan doesn't accrue interest if you make your full payment each month and it isn't enough to cover the interest that would've accrued.
• If you’re employed by a government or not-for-profit organization, you might be eligible for Public Service Loan Forgiveness after making 120 qualifying payments.
• Other loan programs, like the Teacher Loan Forgiveness Program and state programs aimed at healthcare providers, are also possible options.

If you can get a lower monthly payment that frees up more money to invest, and you know you'll get some level of student loan forgiveness, it'll be easier to make building wealth a priority.

Paying Off Student Loans Early

You should prioritize paying off student loans early if...

• You have high-interest student loans, especially private loans
• Having debt causes emotional stress and being debt-free would offer peace of mind
• You don't qualify for any IDR plans or student loan forgiveness programs
• A high student loan balance is keeping you from reaching other goals
• Your employer offers student loan repayment assistance

Pros and Cons of Paying Off Your Student Loans First

Pay less in total interest

Peace of mind from paying off debt

Better ability to reach other financial goals

Opportunity cost with money that's not invested

Missing out on potential debt cancelation benefits

How to Pay Down Student Loan Debt Faster

You can take several steps to pay down your student loan debt more quickly. These include:

• Making bi-weekly payments instead of monthly payments to get an "extra" monthly payment each year
• Designating extra payments to go toward the principal, instead of pre-paying fees and interest
• Cutting back on unnecessary costs and putting the savings toward paying down student debt
• Looking for ways to earn extra money to put toward your student loan payment
• Putting windfalls, such as tax refunds, bonuses, or gifts, toward your loan repayments

Investing Toward Other Goals

You can prioritize investing if...

• Your employer offers to match the amount you invest (such as with a company 401(k) plan)
• Your student loan interest rate is low and you expect long-term returns in invested assets to be higher
• You can maximize tax deductions from both retirement contributions and student loan interest
• You expect to be eligible for student loan forgiveness and qualify for an IDR plan

Pros and Cons of Investing

• Potential for higher returns over time
• Start building wealth immediately, with the potential to retire earlier
• Might be able to take advantage of an employer match
• Returns might not always be sufficient
• There's a risk of loss of principal when you invest

Should I Use All My Savings to Pay Off My Student Loans?

Before deciding to use all your savings to pay off student loans, consider what you might need that money for. For example, you may want to build an emergency fund to protect yourself from large medical bills or other unexpected expenses.

What Are Some Strategies to Pay Off Student Loans Faster?

Some strategies to pay off student loans faster include putting extra toward the principal by making bi-weekly payments, cutting back on costs, and finding ways to supplement your income.

What Are the Advantages of Federal Student Loans Compared to Private Student Loans?

Federal student loans offer benefits that private loans don't provide, such as IDR plans, deferment in some cases, and loan forgiveness when certain conditions are met. Additionally, there are no credit requirements for undergraduate student loans, and interest rates are the same for each loan in a given year.

How Long Does it Take to Pay Off Student Loans?

It depends on your plan. The Standard Repayment Plan is 10 years, while some consolidation loans can have a repayment period of up to 30 years. IDR plans offer payoffs of 20 or 25 years, and some forgiveness programs provide earlier cancelation. You can also pay off your loan early using extra payments.

The Bottom Line

Whether you're better off paying down student debt or investing will depend on your situation, financial goals, and how you feel about debt. Additionally, it's important to realize that it's not an either/or situation. You can always invest a portion of your discretionary income while still tackling your student loan debt.

Read the original article on Investopedia .

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Guest Essay

Elite College Admissions Have Turned Students Into Brands

By Sarah Bernstein

Ms. Bernstein is a playwright, a writing coach and an essayist in Brooklyn.

“I just can’t think of anything,” my student said.

After 10 years of teaching college essay writing, I was familiar with this reply. For some reason, when you’re asked to recount an important experience from your life, it is common to forget everything that has ever happened to you. It’s a long-form version of the anxiety that takes hold at a corporate retreat when you’re invited to say “one interesting thing about yourself,” and you suddenly believe that you are the most boring person in the entire world. Once during a version of this icebreaker, a man volunteered that he had only one kidney, and I remember feeling incredibly jealous of him.

I tried to jog this student’s memory. What about his love of music? Or his experience learning English? Or that time on a summer camping trip when he and his friends had nearly drowned? “I don’t know,” he said with a sigh. “That all seems kind of cliché.”

Applying to college has always been about standing out. When I teach college essay workshops and coach applicants one on one, I see my role as helping students to capture their voice and their way of processing the world, things that are, by definition, unique to each individual. Still, many of my students (and their parents) worry that as getting into college becomes increasingly competitive, this won’t be enough to set them apart.

Their anxiety is understandable. On Thursday, in a tradition known as “Ivy Day,” all eight Ivy League schools released their regular admission decisions. Top colleges often issue statements about how impressive (and competitive) their applicant pools were this cycle. The intention is to flatter accepted students and assuage rejected ones, but for those who have not yet applied to college, these statements reinforce the fear that there is an ever-expanding cohort of applicants with straight A’s and perfect SATs and harrowing camping trip stories all competing with one another for a vanishingly small number of spots.

This scarcity has led to a boom in the college consulting industry, now estimated to be a $2.9 billion business. In recent years, many of these advisers and companies have begun to promote the idea of personal branding — a way for teenagers to distinguish themselves by becoming as clear and memorable as a good tagline.

While this approach often leads to a strong application, students who brand themselves too early or too definitively risk missing out on the kind of exploration that will prepare them for adult life.

Like a corporate brand, the personal brand is meant to distill everything you stand for (honesty, integrity, high quality, low prices) into a cohesive identity that can be grasped at a glance. On its website, a college prep and advising company called Dallas Admissions explains the benefits of branding this way: “Each person is complex, yet admissions officers only have a small amount of time to spend learning about each prospective student. The smart student boils down key aspects of himself or herself into their personal ‘brand’ and sells that to the college admissions officer.”

Identifying the key aspects of yourself may seem like a lifelong project, but unfortunately, college applicants don’t have that kind of time. Online, there are dozens of lesson plans and seminars promising to walk students through the process of branding themselves in five to 10 easy steps. The majority begin with questions I would have found panic-inducing as a teenager, such as, “What is the story you want people to tell about you when you’re not in the room?”

Where I hoped others would describe me as “normal” or, in my wildest dreams, “cool,” today’s teenagers are expected to leave this exercise with labels like, Committed Athlete and Compassionate Leader or Environmentally Conscious Musician. Once students have a draft of their ideal self, they’re offered instructions for manifesting it (or at least, the appearance of it) in person and online. These range from common-sense tips (not posting illegal activity on social media) to more drastic recommendations (getting different friends).

It’s not just that these courses cut corners on self-discovery; it’s that they get the process backward. A personal brand is effective only if you can support it with action, so instead of finding their passion and values through experience, students are encouraged to select a passion as early as possible and then rack up the experience to substantiate it. Many college consultants suggest beginning to align your activities with your college ambitions by ninth grade, while the National Institute of Certified College Planners recommends students “talk with parents, guardians, and/or an academic adviser to create a clear plan for your education and career-related goals” in junior high.

The idea of a group of middle schoolers soberly mapping out their careers is both comical and depressing, but when I read student essays today, I can see that this advice is getting through. Over the past few years, I have been struck by how many high school seniors already have defined career goals as well as a C.V. of relevant extracurriculars to go with them. This widens the gap between wealthy students and those who lack the resources to secure a fancy research gig or start their own small business. (A shocking number of college applicants claim to have started a small business.) It also puts pressure on all students to define themselves at a moment when they are anxious to fit in and yet changing all the time.

In the world of branding, a word that appears again and again is “consistency.” If you are Charmin, that makes sense. People opening a roll of toilet paper do not want to be surprised. If you are a teenage human being, however, that is an unreasonable expectation. Changing one’s interests, opinions and presentation is a natural part of adolescence and an instructive one. I find that my students with scattershot résumés are often the most confident. They’re not afraid to push back against suggestions that ring false and will insist on revising their essay until it actually “feels like me.” On the other hand, many of my most accomplished students are so quick to accept feedback that I am wary of offering it, lest I become one more adult trying to shape them into an admission-worthy ideal.

I understand that for parents, prioritizing exploration can feel like a risky bet. Self-insight is hard to quantify and to communicate in a college application. When it comes to building a life, however, this kind of knowledge has more value than any accolade, and it cannot be generated through a brainstorming exercise in a six-step personal branding course online. To equip kids for the world, we need to provide them not just with opportunities for achievement, but with opportunities to fail, to learn, to wander and to change their minds.

In some ways, the college essay is a microcosm of modern adolescence. Depending on how you look at it, it’s either a forum for self-discovery or a high-stakes test you need to ace. I try to assure my students that it is the former. I tell them that it’s a chance to take stock of everything you’ve experienced and learned over the past 18 years and everything you have to offer as a result.

That can be a profound process. But to embark on it, students have to believe that colleges really want to see the person behind the brand. And they have to have the chance to know who that person is.

Sarah Bernstein is a playwright, a writing coach and an essayist.

The Times is committed to publishing a diversity of letters to the editor. We’d like to hear what you think about this or any of our articles. Here are some tips . And here’s our email: [email protected] .

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Dealing with discouragement: strategies for aspiring medical students

Do you remember times when your dreams, hopes, and aspirations were crushed by teachers and other authority figures? We’ve all encountered such times. These experiences shape our character in negative ways and can lead to devastating psychological effects. This kind of negative influence can greatly impact our self-esteem and self-worth, instilling a deep-seated fear of failure. It can cause us to question our abilities and potential, leading to imposter syndrome.

Repeated discouragement may cause us to develop a negative outlook on life, feel hopeless, and lose motivation to pursue our goals. Furthermore, defeating encounters with authority figures can result in an aversion to them, which can affect our future interactions and relationships. The psychological trauma caused by such experiences can hinder personal growth and development, stifling our potential to thrive. It is, therefore, crucial to seek out positive role models who will foster a supportive and encouraging environment to nurture our dreams and aspirations instead of crushing them.

I know first-hand that if a premedical advisor tells you, “You’ll never get into medical school,” the psychological impacts can be profoundly damaging. Such negative feedback can shatter your self-confidence, potentially giving up on your dream of becoming a doctor.

Worse yet, you might develop anxiety or depression due to the perceived rejection and the seeming impossibility of achieving your goal. This sense of hopelessness can further lead to a decline in academic performance and a lack of motivation to pursue your aspirations. The impact of discouraging words from a trusted advisor can be long-lasting and detrimental, stifling your potential and hindering your personal and professional development.

It’s important to note that a premedical advisor’s role should be to guide and support you, not discourage you. Constructive feedback can be helpful, but it should be offered in a way that encourages improvement rather than causes demotivation. If you are as determined as I was to pursue a career in medicine, you should seek second opinions, take advantage of resources and support systems, and continue to work hard towards your goal.

“You’ll never get into medical school” was a defeatist comment uttered by my premedical advisor in my junior year of college. She made the statement in the context of my grades – a B+ average – and for taking the bare minimum of science courses. She was correct. I was roundly rejected by all medical schools on my first go-around. But I was determined to prove her wrong – and I did!

I did something unorthodox. I called a doctor who had interviewed me, and I asked for his advice. Not only did he accept my phone call, but he also extended a welcoming invitation to discuss my situation over morning coffee at his home (we lived in the same city). He said he remembered me from the interview and he enjoyed reading my application essay, but my grades and MCAT scores needed to improve. He suggested that during my gap year, I do what was necessary to boost my grade point average and MCAT scores, and if I were successful, he would present me to the admissions committee. His advice worked, and I was offered admission.

I count my lucky stars that an admissions officer would reach out to me and provide clear guidance and genuine hospitality. No other medical school offered me admission on my second try. If it weren’t for the kindness of strangers, I probably wouldn’t have become a doctor. Of course, I persevered and had the chutzpah to contact him during my gap year and keep him abreast of my progress, but this physician more than met me halfway.

I understand that the journey towards becoming a medical professional can be filled with various challenges, including discouragement from others. It’s essential to know that this does not define your potential or ability to succeed in your medical career. Your journey into medicine is unique to you, and your potential is not defined by the negative comments of others. I have several strategies to help you navigate through such situations.

Maintaining a positive mindset is your first line of defense against discouragement. The power of positivity can help you stay focused on your goals and not let negativity hinder your progress. It’s also beneficial to seek mentorship from seasoned professionals, teachers, or anyone who can provide valuable guidance and encouragement. They can offer insights and advice that will help you navigate your path to medical school.

If you find that certain areas of your application need improvement, don’t hesitate to address them. Whether it’s working towards better grades, gaining clinical experience, or refining your personal statement, every improvement counts. Preparing for the MCAT is also critical, as a high score can significantly increase your chances of acceptance.

Remember to broaden your horizons when applying to medical schools. Different schools have different selection criteria, and you might find an institution that values your unique strengths, even if it’s overseas. Persistence is key in this journey. Setbacks are inevitable, but it’s your resilience and determination that will ultimately determine your success.

Lastly, the importance of self-care cannot be overstated. During this demanding period, taking care of your mental and physical health is vital. It’s cliché to say, but regular exercise, a balanced diet, and sufficient rest will help you remain focused and motivated on your journey.

Always remember that many successful medical professionals have faced similar obstacles and discouragement. It’s essential not to let the opinions of others deter you from your dreams. You are the only one who can shape your future, whether it be in the medical field or elsewhere.

Arthur Lazarus  is a former  Doximity Fellow , a member of the editorial board of the American Association for Physician Leadership, and an adjunct professor of psychiatry at the Lewis Katz School of Medicine at Temple University in Philadelphia, PA. He is the author of  Every Story Counts: Exploring Contemporary Practice Through Narrative Medicine ,  Medicine on Fire: A Narrative Travelogue , and  Narrative Medicine: The Fifth Vital Sign .

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Regions Riding Forward® Scholarship Contest

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Your voice is your own. But it's also been impacted by others. Who, we wonder, has inspired you? Let us know by entering the Regions Riding Forward Scholarship Contest. 

You could win an $8,000 college scholarship

For the opportunity to win an $8,000 scholarship, submit a video or written essay about an individual you know personally (who lives in your community) who has inspired you and helped you build the confidence you need to achieve your goals.

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The 2024 Regions Riding Forward Scholarship Contest consists of four (4) separate Quarterly Contests - one for each calendar quarter of 2024. Regions is awarding four $8,000 scholarships through each Quarterly Contest.

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Regions believes in supporting the students whose passion and actions every day will continue to make stories worth sharing. That’s why we have awarded over $1 million in total scholarships to high school and college students.

How to enter, 1. complete an online quarterly contest application.

Enter the Regions Riding Forward Scholarship Contest by completing a Quarterly Contest application.  The second Quarterly Contest runs from April 1, 2024 through June 30, 2024. Complete and save all requested information. 

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For each Quarterly Contest, the topic of your Written Essay or Video Essay (your “Essay Topic”) must be an individual you know personally, who lives in your community. Your Written Essay or Video Essay must address how the individual you have selected as your Essay Topic has inspired you and helped you build the confidence you need to achieve your goals.

Written Essay and Video Essay submissions must meet all of the requirements described in the contest Official Rules. Your Written Essay or Video Essay must be (i) in English, (ii) your own original work, created solely by you (and without the use of any means of artificial intelligence (“AI”)), and (iii) the exclusive property of you alone.

Written Essays must be 500 words or less. You can write your Written Essay directly in the application, or you can copy and paste it into the appropriate area in the application form.

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NPR defends its journalism after senior editor says it has lost the public's trust

David Folkenflik

NPR is defending its journalism and integrity after a senior editor wrote an essay accusing it of losing the public's trust. Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

NPR is defending its journalism and integrity after a senior editor wrote an essay accusing it of losing the public's trust.

NPR's top news executive defended its journalism and its commitment to reflecting a diverse array of views on Tuesday after a senior NPR editor wrote a broad critique of how the network has covered some of the most important stories of the age.

"An open-minded spirit no longer exists within NPR, and now, predictably, we don't have an audience that reflects America," writes Uri Berliner.

A strategic emphasis on diversity and inclusion on the basis of race, ethnicity and sexual orientation, promoted by NPR's former CEO, John Lansing, has fed "the absence of viewpoint diversity," Berliner writes.

NPR's chief news executive, Edith Chapin, wrote in a memo to staff Tuesday afternoon that she and the news leadership team strongly reject Berliner's assessment.

"We're proud to stand behind the exceptional work that our desks and shows do to cover a wide range of challenging stories," she wrote. "We believe that inclusion — among our staff, with our sourcing, and in our overall coverage — is critical to telling the nuanced stories of this country and our world."

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She added, "None of our work is above scrutiny or critique. We must have vigorous discussions in the newsroom about how we serve the public as a whole."

A spokesperson for NPR said Chapin, who also serves as the network's chief content officer, would have no further comment.

Praised by NPR's critics

Berliner is a senior editor on NPR's Business Desk. (Disclosure: I, too, am part of the Business Desk, and Berliner has edited many of my past stories. He did not see any version of this article or participate in its preparation before it was posted publicly.)

Berliner's essay , titled "I've Been at NPR for 25 years. Here's How We Lost America's Trust," was published by The Free Press, a website that has welcomed journalists who have concluded that mainstream news outlets have become reflexively liberal.

Berliner writes that as a Subaru-driving, Sarah Lawrence College graduate who "was raised by a lesbian peace activist mother ," he fits the mold of a loyal NPR fan.

Yet Berliner says NPR's news coverage has fallen short on some of the most controversial stories of recent years, from the question of whether former President Donald Trump colluded with Russia in the 2016 election, to the origins of the virus that causes COVID-19, to the significance and provenance of emails leaked from a laptop owned by Hunter Biden weeks before the 2020 election. In addition, he blasted NPR's coverage of the Israel-Hamas conflict.

On each of these stories, Berliner asserts, NPR has suffered from groupthink due to too little diversity of viewpoints in the newsroom.

The essay ricocheted Tuesday around conservative media , with some labeling Berliner a whistleblower . Others picked it up on social media, including Elon Musk, who has lambasted NPR for leaving his social media site, X. (Musk emailed another NPR reporter a link to Berliner's article with a gibe that the reporter was a "quisling" — a World War II reference to someone who collaborates with the enemy.)

When asked for further comment late Tuesday, Berliner declined, saying the essay spoke for itself.

The arguments he raises — and counters — have percolated across U.S. newsrooms in recent years. The #MeToo sexual harassment scandals of 2016 and 2017 forced newsrooms to listen to and heed more junior colleagues. The social justice movement prompted by the killing of George Floyd in 2020 inspired a reckoning in many places. Newsroom leaders often appeared to stand on shaky ground.

Leaders at many newsrooms, including top editors at The New York Times and the Los Angeles Times , lost their jobs. Legendary Washington Post Executive Editor Martin Baron wrote in his memoir that he feared his bonds with the staff were "frayed beyond repair," especially over the degree of self-expression his journalists expected to exert on social media, before he decided to step down in early 2021.

Since then, Baron and others — including leaders of some of these newsrooms — have suggested that the pendulum has swung too far.

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New York Times publisher A.G. Sulzberger warned last year against journalists embracing a stance of what he calls "one-side-ism": "where journalists are demonstrating that they're on the side of the righteous."

"I really think that that can create blind spots and echo chambers," he said.

Internal arguments at The Times over the strength of its reporting on accusations that Hamas engaged in sexual assaults as part of a strategy for its Oct. 7 attack on Israel erupted publicly . The paper conducted an investigation to determine the source of a leak over a planned episode of the paper's podcast The Daily on the subject, which months later has not been released. The newsroom guild accused the paper of "targeted interrogation" of journalists of Middle Eastern descent.

Heated pushback in NPR's newsroom

Given Berliner's account of private conversations, several NPR journalists question whether they can now trust him with unguarded assessments about stories in real time. Others express frustration that he had not sought out comment in advance of publication. Berliner acknowledged to me that for this story, he did not seek NPR's approval to publish the piece, nor did he give the network advance notice.

Some of Berliner's NPR colleagues are responding heatedly. Fernando Alfonso, a senior supervising editor for digital news, wrote that he wholeheartedly rejected Berliner's critique of the coverage of the Israel-Hamas conflict, for which NPR's journalists, like their peers, periodically put themselves at risk.

Alfonso also took issue with Berliner's concern over the focus on diversity at NPR.

"As a person of color who has often worked in newsrooms with little to no people who look like me, the efforts NPR has made to diversify its workforce and its sources are unique and appropriate given the news industry's long-standing lack of diversity," Alfonso says. "These efforts should be celebrated and not denigrated as Uri has done."

After this story was first published, Berliner contested Alfonso's characterization, saying his criticism of NPR is about the lack of diversity of viewpoints, not its diversity itself.

"I never criticized NPR's priority of achieving a more diverse workforce in terms of race, ethnicity and sexual orientation. I have not 'denigrated' NPR's newsroom diversity goals," Berliner said. "That's wrong."

Questions of diversity

Under former CEO John Lansing, NPR made increasing diversity, both of its staff and its audience, its "North Star" mission. Berliner says in the essay that NPR failed to consider broader diversity of viewpoint, noting, "In D.C., where NPR is headquartered and many of us live, I found 87 registered Democrats working in editorial positions and zero Republicans."

Berliner cited audience estimates that suggested a concurrent falloff in listening by Republicans. (The number of people listening to NPR broadcasts and terrestrial radio broadly has declined since the start of the pandemic.)

Former NPR vice president for news and ombudsman Jeffrey Dvorkin tweeted , "I know Uri. He's not wrong."

Others questioned Berliner's logic. "This probably gets causality somewhat backward," tweeted Semafor Washington editor Jordan Weissmann . "I'd guess that a lot of NPR listeners who voted for [Mitt] Romney have changed how they identify politically."

Similarly, Nieman Lab founder Joshua Benton suggested the rise of Trump alienated many NPR-appreciating Republicans from the GOP.

In recent years, NPR has greatly enhanced the percentage of people of color in its workforce and its executive ranks. Four out of 10 staffers are people of color; nearly half of NPR's leadership team identifies as Black, Asian or Latino.

"The philosophy is: Do you want to serve all of America and make sure it sounds like all of America, or not?" Lansing, who stepped down last month, says in response to Berliner's piece. "I'd welcome the argument against that."

"On radio, we were really lagging in our representation of an audience that makes us look like what America looks like today," Lansing says. The U.S. looks and sounds a lot different than it did in 1971, when NPR's first show was broadcast, Lansing says.

A network spokesperson says new NPR CEO Katherine Maher supports Chapin and her response to Berliner's critique.

The spokesperson says that Maher "believes that it's a healthy thing for a public service newsroom to engage in rigorous consideration of the needs of our audiences, including where we serve our mission well and where we can serve it better."

Disclosure: This story was reported and written by NPR Media Correspondent David Folkenflik and edited by Deputy Business Editor Emily Kopp and Managing Editor Gerry Holmes. Under NPR's protocol for reporting on itself, no NPR corporate official or news executive reviewed this story before it was posted publicly.