In this episode of TUN TV, Dr. Crystal Rose interviews April Paris-Joseph, CEO of Paris Educational Solutions, about the three steps high school seniors should know about writing a winning “Why Us?” essay for college applications. This is Part 2.
Dr. Crystal Rose: Welcome to The University Network TV, where we scan the globe to give students, their families and educators the very best tips for student success. I’m your host today, Dr. Crystal Rose. And in this college-bound series, we have advice for high school seniors entitled, “Three Steps to Writing a Winning ‘Why Us?’ Essay for Your College Applications.”
If you’re a high school senior applying to college, this is for you. We all know that essays are tough. Even in this test-optional period, they’re very much a part of the college admissions process.
So we’ll use a mnemonic device, WIN, to keep top of mind what it is you’ll want to accomplish in the essay.
We’ll be reviewing this with April, Paris, Joseph, CEO of Paris Educational Solutions.
Welcome April.
April Paris-Joseph: Hi, Crystal.
Dr. Crystal Rose: Thank you for joining today.
We’ll use WIN as our mnemonic device. In this step, these are the points to keep in mind, particularly because you’re writing an essay with the goal of wanting to win acceptance to a specific school.
Now, I have “W” for win. Could you please share more about this as a purpose for the “Why us?” essay?
April Paris-Joseph: Yeah, so you’re trying to win over your reader.
You’re trying to have them basically finish this essay and think, “Oh, I want that student on campus. Oh, that student really wants to be here. They meant it.” And let’s be honest. Everyone wants to be wanted, right? You want to be invited to the party. You want to be asked to the dance. And equally, college admissions officers want to feel like you want to be where they are.
You want to be part of their campus community, so win them over. Make them feel a little courted by you and this matters to you and this is what you want.
Dr. Crystal Rose: Nice. Now I have “I” for identify. What should students know about this?
April Paris-Joseph: So, you’ve gotta identify why you are a good fit for their school. Why you, and not one of the 20,000 other applicants that they’re gonna read in the next three months?
And be again, be specific. So, I really want to go to X school because I happen to be fluent in Japanese, because I went to an immersion program, and I’ve traveled abroad and I noticed you’re one of the few schools I found whose Japanese advanced classes are in Japanese, and a lot of other schools switch over into English.
Studying Japanese culture and English. That’s not really the language. So maybe something like that, but something really specific about what you can do on that campus that you can’t do somewhere else.
Dr. Crystal Rose: Finally, for the word WIN, I have the letter “N” for nicely intriguing. But what should we know about this?
April Paris-Joseph: Yeah, introduce who you are. Make it warm. Be cordial. Be kind. All those things your parents told you when you were a small child, right?
Be likable, I tell my students, and this is the same thing, right? I tell them when you go into the school counseling office, be the student they’re happy to see. And I tell them that all through high school with all their teachers, right? Because one day this person’s gonna write a recommendation about you. Be the student they’re happy to see coming.
And this is the same thing when they’re reading this essay. Be the student that they’re thinking, Ah, I want to see this student coming. They seem like a nice person.
Dr. Crystal Rose: Good. We’re coming to the final step for the “Why us?” essay. And for this, we’ll use the mnemonic device, the word “tip,” T I P.
Let’s start with the letter T. I have “T” for true examples. Could you tell us more about this when executing the “Why us?” essay?
April Paris-Joseph: Yeah. So, if you aren’t noticing the trend, there’s a lot of overlap in each of these steps, right?
But you go a little deeper every time. So, you need a truthful example. And I’ll go back to my Japanese student example. If you haven’t taken a single Japanese class in high school and you say this, it’s not gonna ring true. So there should be some authentic threads throughout your essay.
If you say, “I am really interested in biotechnology and science,” but you didn’t take a science course as a senior, that’s not gonna ring true. So be honest with yourself about who you are, so that you can be honest in your application about who you want to become and who you are and why you’re a fit.
Dr. Crystal Rose: Next I have “I.” What should students be identifying in their “Why us?” essay?
April Paris-Joseph: Yeah, so you want to align with who you are.
Here’s a really great way to do this. You take a piece of paper and, on one side, you write about everything that’s cool and awesome about you, and then everything you think is cool and awesome about the school, and then start drawing lines almost like an old elementary school activity.
Match the vocabulary in the definition and match them up. And use that. That’s good content for your essay. This is who I am that fits at this school. This is who I am that really would shine at this school. And pull that out.
Dr. Crystal Rose: Super. Now, to round out the third tip, I have a letter “P” for parting. What is this final tip for the letter “P”?
April Paris-Joseph: Make sure you end with some enthusiasm. Show that you’re really excited about the school. And that’s really simple to say, but here’s where it could get tricky.
Everybody wants to end that essay with something like, I can’t wait to be a Columbia Lion! Okay, good. But when you go to do your next “Why us?” essay – for Drexel, let’s say – let’s make sure that it doesn’t end with “Columbia Lion” when you hit send on the Common App.
Dr. Crystal Rose: What a fantastic overview of the “Why us?” essay. Thank you, April, for this excellent discussion.
April Paris-Joseph: You’re welcome. Thanks for having me.
Dr. Crystal Rose: And to our audience, thank you very much for joining us.
Hopefully, writing your “Why us?” essay will be that much easier with these three steps, The ABCs to Win and the tip for crafting the essay that tells colleges why you want to be there and why you belong.
Here’s to your success. I’m your host, Dr. Crystal Rose. Until next time, on TUN TV.
This interview has been edited for clarity and brevity.
For more exclusive interviews with experts who share their insight to help students succeed, check TUN TV!
Related:
