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How to Effectively Revise Your College Admissions Essay

The revision process is one of the most critical steps in writing effective personal statements and essays. Still, you make ask WHY EXACTLY is revising my essay important? Three main reasons:

  • To develop better content

  • To correct formatting and grammatical errors

  • To become a better writer over time  

So, how should you go about revising your essay. Here are some tips:

1. Put it down for a while

It’s important to have fresh eyes when you’re ready to start making revisions. Otherwise, you won’t notice errors or mistakes that need to be fixed.

2. Read your essay out loud

Your writing should sound both conversational and professional, especially when it’s meant to provide a glimpse into your personality.

3. Check the topic of the paper

Do you still agree with it? Do you stay on track throughout the essay? Did you answer the prompt as it was asked? Yes, should be the answer to each of these questions.

4. Check for flow and logic

Your narrative should have a beginning, middle, and end and flow logically as they reader moves through your essay.  

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5. Add detail

Anyone who doesn’t know you should be able to read your essay and understand your experiences.

6. Check and fix grammatical errors

This should be one of your final steps. Feel free to use services built into programs like Microsoft Word or Grammarly to save time.

7. Verify that you’ve met all the official requirements

Ensure your paper is formatted properly (font, margins) and complies with the stated word limit.  


Good writers will use all of these methods to craft a good personal statement. To make the most of the revision process, it's important that you get an early start on your papers so that you have time to complete any large-scale revisions your paper might need.

Ultimately, revising is an ongoing process that takes time and effort. Follow these tips and you’ll be well on your way to crafting a well-written, memorable essay.

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