College Essay Brainstorming – College Counselor Guidance and Resources
This is a bit of a deep-dive on a previous post I wrote about college application materials. However, here I will focus specifically on college essay brainstorming for the “main essay,” “CommonApp” essay, or “personal statement” – although much of this could apply to other essays.
Before I say anything else, let me say this:
If you’re looking for the deepest dive into college essays, start with Ethan Sawyer — The College Essay Guy.
He has so many smart, thorough, and generous resources (many free for counselors), and he’s the go-to expert in this space. I’ve used him so much that everything I’m writing here is probably a sythesized version of his stuff that I’ve internalized over the years.
I’m not here to reinvent the wheel nor to claim that I’m an expert — just to offer a few things I’ve learned from working closely with students in a one-counselor office where writing support has to be simple, grounded, and human. I am fortunate enough to have a background in literature and the humanities, so I try to help the students tap into creative expression without writing their essay for them.
Reverse Engineering the Essay
The most effective way I’ve found to help students get started is this two-step frame:
-
- Decide what you want the college to know about you
– something that’s not obvious from your resume or recommendation letters (avoid redundancy and take advantage of the opportunity to give them another reason to want to admit you)
- Decide what you want the college to know about you
-
- Then find a story, person, object, or moment that shows that
– not a TED Talk, not your whole life story — just one real window into who you are. Sometimes, the simplest topics are the most effective essays!
- Then find a story, person, object, or moment that shows that
That’s it. We’re not starting with a dramatic moment. We’re starting with an idea.
What This Looks Like in Practice
For example, if a student wants to show they’re:
-
- Emotionally mature → Maybe it’s about how they handled a friendship that changed.
-
- Inquisitive and reflective → Maybe it’s about a single question they couldn’t let go of.
-
- Creative or original-thinking → Maybe they took a generic class project to the next level
-
- Grounded in integrity →Maybe they told a teacher something even though it risked a grade
-
- Comfortable with change, or still learning to be → Maybe they changed their mind about something after actually talking to someone who thought differently.
***Instead of attaching a file, I have copied and pasted the bullet points that you can put into a document an edit: College Essay Reverse Engineering Worksheet***
—————————————– Copy and Paste the Following ———————————
Step 1: The Ideal Takeaway
What do you want the admissions officer to understand about you that isn’t obvious from your resume or recs?
(Think: a personal trait, value, mindset, or strength you want to reveal.)
Step 2: The Topic
What specific moment, story, object, or memory helps reveal this part of you?
Step 3: The Meaning
Why does this moment, person, thing, or memory matter to you now? What did it show you or change about you?
Step 4: The Tone
What feelings, thoughts, or realizations are tied to it? How did you respond or grow?
(Are you going for deep, inspiration, funny (be careful here), etc.?)
Step 5: The Hook
What’s one way you might start telling this story that feels real and attention-grabbing (without sounding forced or dramatic)?
(Ex: “I had to Google what a servo motor was five minutes before my first robotics meeting.”)
Step 6: The Impression
After reading your essay, what do you want the admissions reader to say or feel about you?
(This should resemble what you wrote for Step 1)
Remember: You don’t need a big, dramatic story. You just need a real topic that shows something intead of telling or explaining.
Start with insight, not accomplishment — and let the moment reveal what matters.
