Let's get personal (statements).

Hasn't time in high school gone by super fast?! Seniors, it seems like yesterday we were freshmen! Better yet, in middle school! Now is that crazy moment of the year where we're applying to college and getting super anxious, nervous, and excited, but let's not forget stressed out! Writing the personal statement may seem impossible, but it certainly is possible with a few tips and advice. 

Now that I'm almost done with mine and about to send it, I realize that it wasn't as hard as I made it seem at the beginning. My KIPP Through College advisor, Ms. Ureña, gave me some very helpful tips that I know will be useful to you as well. 

Firstly, you should pick three things you know for a fact you want colleges to know about you after they finish reading it, such as being first generation to go to college and what that means to you, troubles you've had during high school and how you were able to persevere through them, etc... When you choose three, elaborate on them and always remember to show more than you tell. Give examples of what you talk about and always remember to make your essay flow! Flowing is good! 

Also, if you have a college in mind that you would really like to go to, research the values of that college, see what they look for in a prospective student and find ways to incorporate that in your essay, but of course discretely, never say a name of a college in your statement when you're going to be sending it to multiple schools; you might just leave the name of the other school in your essay! 

One more thing, when writing the essay, make sure to make it concise and stay on topic.  Disorganization in your writing is never good! If it's helpful for you, make an outline before you start to organize your thoughts.

Don't overanalyze this and think of it as a burden. You're actually just talking about yourself and being real on paper, and what's better than talking about yourself, right? I hope these were some helpful tips and remember that if you have further questions, contact your college advisor, they always have helpful information. Use your resources to write this, the internet, the library, go old school and out of your box! And finally, remember to just be you!