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15 Tips for Writing, Proofreading, and Editing Your College Essay

What’s covered:, our checklist for writing, proofreading, and editing your essay, where to get your college essays edited.

Your college essay is more than just a writing assignment—it’s your biggest opportunity to showcase the person behind your GPA, test scores, and extracurricular activities. In many ways, it’s the best chance you have to present yourself as a living, breathing, and thoughtful individual to the admissions committee.

Unlike test scores, which can feel impersonal, a well-crafted essay brings color to your application, offering a glimpse into your passions, personality, and potential. Whether you’re an aspiring engineer or an artist, your college essay can set you apart, making it essential that you give it your best.

1. Does the essay address the selected topic or prompt?

Focus on responding directly and thoughtfully to the prompt. If the question asks about your reasons for choosing a specific program or your future aspirations, ensure that your essay revolves around these themes. Tailor your narrative to the prompt, using personal experiences and reflections that reinforce your points.

• Respond directly to the prompt: It’s imperative that you thoughtfully craft your responses so that the exact themes in the prompt are directly addressed. Each essay has a specific prompt that serves a specific purpose, and your response should be tailored in a way that meets that objective.
• Focus: Regardless of what the prompt is about—be it personal experiences, academic achievements, or an opinion on an issue—you must keep the focus of the response on the topic of the prompt .

2. Is the college essay well organized?

An essay with a clear structure is easier to follow and is more impactful. Consider organizing your story chronologically, or use a thematic approach to convey your message. Each paragraph should transition smoothly to the next, maintaining a natural flow of ideas. A well-organized essay is not only easier for the reader to follow, but it can also aid your narrative flow. Logically structured essays can guide the reader through complex and hectic sequences of events in your essay. There are some key factors involved in good structuring:

• A strong hook: Start with a sentence or a paragraph that can grab the attention of the reader. For example, consider using a vivid description of an event to do this.
• Maintain a thematic structure: Maintaining a thematic structure involves organizing your response around a central theme, allowing you to connect diverse points of your essay into a cohesive centralized response.
• Transitioning: Each paragraph should clearly flow into the next, maintaining continuity and coherence in narrative.

3. Include supporting details, examples, and anecdotes.

Enhance your narrative with specific details, vivid examples, and engaging anecdotes. This approach brings your story to life, making it more compelling and relatable. It helps the reader visualize your experiences and understand your perspectives.

4. Show your voice and personality.

Does your personality come through? Does your essay sound like you? Since this is a reflection of you, your essay needs to show who you are.

For example, avoid using vocabulary you wouldn’t normally use—such as “utilize” in place of “use”—because you may come off as phony or disingenuous, and that won’t impress colleges.

5. Does your essay show that you’re a good candidate for admission?

Your essay should demonstrate not only your academic strengths. but also the ways in which your personal qualities align with the specific character and values of the school you’re applying to . While attributes like intelligence and collaboration are universally valued, tailor your essay to reflect aspects that are uniquely esteemed at each particular institution.

For instance, if you’re applying to Dartmouth, you might emphasize your appreciation for, and alignment with, the school’s strong sense of tradition and community. This approach shows a deeper understanding of and a genuine connection to the school, beyond its surface-level attributes.

6. Do you stick to the topic?

Your essay should focus on the topic at hand, weaving your insights, experiences, and perspectives into a cohesive narrative, rather than a disjointed list of thoughts or accomplishments. It’s important to avoid straying into irrelevant details that don’t support your main theme. Instead of simply listing achievements or experiences, integrate them into a narrative that highlights your development, insights, or learning journey.

Example with tangent:

“My interest in performing arts began when I was five. That was also the year I lost my first tooth, which set off a whole year of ‘firsts.’ My first play was The Sound of Music.”

Revised example:

“My interest in performing arts began when I was five, marked by my debut performance in ‘The Sound of Music.’ This experience was the first step in my journey of exploring and loving the stage.”

7. Align your response with the prompt.

Before finalizing your essay, revisit the prompt. Have you addressed all aspects of the question? Make sure your essay aligns with the prompt’s requirements, both in content and spirit. Familiarize yourself with common college essay archetypes, such as the Extracurricular Essay, Diversity Essay, Community Essay, “Why This Major” Essay (and a variant for those who are undecided), and “Why This College” Essay. We have specific guides for each, offering tailored advice and examples:

• Extracurricular Essay Guide
• Diversity Essay Guide
• Community Essay Guide
• “Why This Major” Essay Guide
• “Why This College” Essay Guide
• Overcoming Challenges Essay Guide
• Political/Global Issues Essay Guide

While these guides provide a framework for each archetype, respectively, remember to infuse your voice and unique experiences into your essay to stand out!

8. Do you vary your sentence structure?

Varying sentence structure, including the length of sentences, is crucial to keep your writing dynamic and engaging. A mix of short, punchy sentences and longer, more descriptive ones can create a rhythm that makes your essay more enjoyable to read. This variation helps maintain the reader’s interest and allows for more nuanced expression.

Original example with monotonous structure:

“I had been waiting for the right time to broach the topic of her health problem, which had been weighing on my mind heavily ever since I first heard about it. I had gone through something similar, and I thought sharing my experience might help.”

Revised example illustrating varied structure:

“I waited for the right moment to discuss her health. The issue had occupied my thoughts for weeks. Having faced similar challenges, I felt that sharing my experience might offer her some comfort.”

In this revised example, the sentences vary in length and structure, moving from shorter, more impactful statements to longer, more descriptive ones. This variation helps to keep the reader’s attention and allows for a more engaging narrative flow.

9. Revisit your essay after a break.

• Give yourself time: After completing a draft of your essay, step away from it for a day or two. This break can clear your mind and reduce your attachment to specific phrases or ideas.
• Fresh perspective: When you come back to your essay, you’ll likely find that you can view your work with fresh eyes. This distance can help you spot inconsistencies, unclear passages, or stylistic issues that you might have missed earlier.
• Enhanced objectivity: Distance not only aids in identifying grammatical errors or typos, but it also allows you to assess the effectiveness of your argument or narrative more objectively. Does the essay really convey what you intended? Are there better examples or stronger pieces of evidence you could use?
• Refine and polish: Use this opportunity to fine-tune your language, adjust the flow, and ensure that your essay truly reflects your voice and message.

Incorporating this tip into your writing process can significantly improve the quality and effectiveness of your college essay.

10. Choose an ideal writing environment.

By identifying and consistently utilizing an ideal writing environment, you can enhance both the enjoyment and effectiveness of your essay-writing process.

• Discover your productive spaces: Different environments can dramatically affect your ability to think and write effectively. Some people find inspiration in the quiet of a library or their room, while others thrive in the lively atmosphere of a coffee shop or park.
• Experiment with settings: If you’re unsure what works best for you, try writing in various places. Notice how each setting affects your concentration, creativity, and mood.
• Consider comfort and distractions: Make sure your chosen spot is comfortable enough for long writing sessions, but also free from distracting elements that could hinder your focus.
• Time of day matters: Pay attention to the time of day when you’re most productive. Some write best in the early morning’s tranquility, while others find their creative peak during nighttime hours.

11. Are all words spelled correctly?

While spell checkers are a helpful tool, they aren’t infallible. It’s crucial to read over your essay meticulously, possibly even aloud, to catch any spelling errors. Reading aloud can help you notice mistakes that your eyes might skip over when reading silently. Be particularly attentive to words that spellcheck might not catch, such as proper nouns, technical jargon, or homophones (e.g., “there” vs. “their”). Attention to detail in spelling reflects your care and precision, both of which are qualities that admissions committees value.

12. Do you use proper punctuation and capitalization?

Correct punctuation and capitalization are key to conveying your message clearly and professionally . A common mistake in writing is the misuse of commas, particularly in complex sentences.

Example of a misused comma:

Incorrect: “I had an epiphany, I was using commas incorrectly.”

In this example, the comma is used incorrectly to join two independent clauses. This is known as a comma splice. It creates a run-on sentence, which can confuse the reader and disrupt the flow of your writing.

Corrected versions:

Correct: “I had an epiphany: I was using commas incorrectly.”

Correct: “I had an epiphany; I was using commas incorrectly.”

Correct: “I had an epiphany—I was using commas incorrectly.”

Correct: “I had an epiphany. I was using commas incorrectly.”

The corrections separate the two clauses with more appropriate punctuation. Colons, semicolons, em dashes, and periods can all be used in this context, though periods may create awkwardly short sentences.

These punctuation choices are appropriate because the second clause explains or provides an example of the first, creating a clear and effective sentence structure. The correct use of punctuation helps maintain the clarity and coherence of your writing, ensuring that your ideas are communicated effectively.

13. Do you abide by the word count?

Staying within the word count is crucial in demonstrating your ability to communicate ideas concisely and effectively. Here are some strategies to help reduce your word count if you find yourself going over the prescribed limits:

• Eliminate repetitive statements: Avoid saying the same thing in different ways. Focus on presenting each idea clearly and concisely.
• Use adjectives judiciously: While descriptive words can add detail, using too many can make your writing feel cluttered and overwrought. Choose adjectives that add real value.
• Remove unnecessary details: If a detail doesn’t support or enhance your main point, consider cutting it. Focus on what’s essential to your narrative or argument.
• Shorten long sentences: Long, run-on sentences can be hard to follow and often contain unnecessary words. Reading your essay aloud can help you identify sentences that are too lengthy or cumbersome. If you’re out of breath before finishing a sentence, it’s likely too long.
• Ensure each sentence adds something new: Every sentence should provide new information or insight. Avoid filler or redundant sentences that don’t contribute to your overall message.

14. Proofread meticulously.

Implementing a thorough and methodical proofreading process can significantly elevate the quality of your essay, ensuring that it’s free of errors and flows smoothly.

• Detailed review: After addressing bigger structural and content issues, focus on proofreading for grammar, spelling, and punctuation errors. This step is crucial for polishing your essay and making sure it’s presented professionally.
• Different techniques: Employ various techniques to catch mistakes. For example, read your essay backward, starting from the last sentence and working your way to the beginning. This method can help you focus on individual sentences and words, rather than getting caught up in the content.
• Read aloud: As mentioned before, reading your essay aloud is another effective technique. Hearing the words can help identify awkward phrasing, run-on sentences, and other issues that might not be as obvious when reading silently.

15. Utilize external feedback.

While self-editing is crucial, external feedback can provide new perspectives and ideas that enhance your writing in unexpected ways. This collaborative process can help you keep your essay error-free and can also help make it resonate with a broader audience.

• Fresh perspectives: Have a trusted teacher, mentor, peer, or family member review your drafts. Each person can offer unique insights and perspectives on your essay’s content, structure, and style.
• Identify blind spots: We often become too close to our writing to see its flaws or areas that might be unclear to others. External reviewers can help identify these blind spots.
• Constructive criticism: Encourage your reviewers to provide honest, constructive feedback. While it’s important to stay true to your voice and story, be open to suggestions that could strengthen your essay.
• Diverse viewpoints: Different people will focus on different aspects of your writing. For example, a teacher might concentrate on your essay’s structure and academic tone, while a peer might provide insights into how engaging and relatable your narrative is.
• Incorporate feedback judiciously: Use the feedback to refine your essay, but remember that the final decision on any changes rests with you. It’s your story and your voice that ultimately need to come through clearly.

When it comes to refining your college essays, getting external feedback is crucial. Our free Peer Essay Review tool allows you to receive constructive criticism from other students, providing fresh perspectives that can help you see your work in a new light. This peer review process is invaluable and can help you both identify areas for improvement and gain different viewpoints on your writing.

For more tailored expert advice, consider the guidance of a CollegeVine advisor . Our advisors, experienced in the college admissions process, offer specialized reviews to enhance your essays. Their insights into what top schools are looking for can elevate your narrative, ensuring that your application stands out. Whether it’s through fine-tuning your grammar or enriching your story’s appeal, our experts’ experience and expertise can significantly increase your likelihood of admission to your dream school!

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The College Essay Editing Checklist

There are really 4 steps to writing the college essay. The first is thinking about how to answer the application essay prompt, the second is writing the first draft, the third is the editing stage, and the fourth is polishing your last draft.

Editing is one of the most important steps, and it’s probably the hardest. For this reason we are offering a checklist to help you with the editing stage.

After you have decided what you want to write about to answer the prompt (Stage 1), the first draft (Stage 2) should be an open flow, almost a free-writing stage. You want to try to get everything down, even if it doesn’t always make sense. It’s important to get your thoughts down. We call this stage the vomiting stage. You are “throwing every thing up” on your paper: ideas, word, memories and more. That’s why Stage 3, the edit, is so hard. You have to clean up the vomit.

Once you have written your first draft, it is best to let it ferment for a few days. So give yourself time to write your application essay; it takes more than one night! Letting your first draft sit for a few days is important to get away from what you have written before you edit so you can look at what you have written with a more objective and fresher eye.

Editing is not polishing. So many students make this mistake. Polishing is fixing up punctuation, changing usage errors, dotting the i’s and crossing the t’s. The editing stage is not that neat.

When editing you need to

• Re-organize your paragraphs,
• Rewrite your paragraphs to develop them more,
• Rewrite sentences and whole sections for details,
• Rewrite sentences to make them stronger and more varied,
• Experiment with word changes, and
• CUT, cut whole pieces of things that do not lead you directly to answering the essay prompt.

Here is a checklist to help you through the editing process:

• Check out your beginning paragraph – it does not have to have a thesis statement; rather it should capture the reader’s attention.
• Now look at the conclusion – does it pull your ideas together and speak to the essay prompt?
• Does your overall essay show, not tell?
• Are there specific details throughout? There should be no generalities or vagueness.
• Is the voice of the essay personal and human? You as a person with your sense of humor and your way of relating to friends should show through.
• Are you using active voice, strong verbs, and interesting phrases?
• Is your wording simple and clear rather than studious, plodding and abstract?
• Does each paragraph move forward to your final point?
• Are the paragraphs ordered well for effect and to avoid confusion?
• Are there transitions between paragraphs and a smooth flow from one thought to another?
• Are your sentences clear and varied?

When you check these things out and then correct them by re-writing, you are doing a true edit.  The polishing can be the final step.

Save yourself some editing time by brushing up on the most common mistakes essay writers make . If you want to ensure that your essay really shines, consider using a professional editing service.

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About the author.

Content created by retired College Admissions consultants.

Purdue Online Writing Lab Purdue OWL® College of Liberal Arts

Editing & Proofreading

Welcome to the Purdue OWL

This page is brought to you by the OWL at Purdue University. When printing this page, you must include the entire legal notice.

Copyright ©1995-2018 by The Writing Lab & The OWL at Purdue and Purdue University. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, reproduced, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without permission. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our terms and conditions of fair use.

This resource covers process and strategy, not correctness rules. For help there, see our many resources on grammar,    mechanics ,  and punctuation .

There are multiple levels of editing, and terminology surrounding editing is often used interchangeably and fluidly. These levels have some overlap between each other, rather than being totally discrete stages; similarly, developmental and substantive editing are more closely related to the "revision" step of the writing process. The four editing levels are:

• Developmental editing: looking at the overall development of the piece, for instance looking for organizational patterns, missing information, inaccurate information, or anything that might confuse a reader
• Substantive editing: making changes to ensure sections (all the way down to paragraphs and sentences) flow logically from one to the next, ensure each paragraph's topic sentence is present and accurate, adding new necessary material to make connections between ideas, removing unnecessary material
• Copyediting: addressing sentence level issues such as style inconsistencies, subject-verb agreement, confusing or wordy phrasing, missing words, missing or inaccurate citations, and any other mechanical or grammatical issues that may be present
• Proofreading: usually the "last pass" before submission or publication; ensuring everything is correct and no lingering errors such as typos, missing words, missing punctuation, etc. remain.

In general, writers should follow this list down in order when revising and editing, from higher order to lower order concerns (in other words, from bigger or more impactful issues to smaller and less impactful issues).

While many writers edit alone at some point during the process, many writers also edit with a partner or writing group. Working with others is strongly recommended when editing; typically, this stage of the writing process comes last or close to last, meaning that writers are more likely to overlook mistakes or potential opportunities (because they have been working on the text for so long). It can be hard for writers to imagine other possibilities beyond what they have already written. A partner or group brings fresh perspective and a real audience who can offer feedback and tell the writer more about what it's like to read their writing. 

If you're intrigued by the idea of a writing group but not sure where to start, you might check out these resources: 

• OWL Vidcast: Writing Groups & How to Form Them
• Writing Groups Toolkit from University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill

Editing Before Submission

When you're ready to edit, it's important to start with higher order concerns and move down to lower order concerns (as stated above). For higher order concerns, see the editing and revision tips on our Organization and Structure page. For lower order concerns (and sometimes higher order concerns — you might realize something about organization while reading carefully for sentence level issues!), here's a list of strategies that our tutors recommend in sessions with graduate writers. They're usually adaptable to different preferences you might have about working digitally vs. on paper, or working alone vs. with a partner or group. Be creative to find what works for you!

• Read aloud. You can do this yourself, get your computer to read your text out, or ask a friend. Hearing your writing read aloud can help identify places where sentences are confusing or difficult to read, highlight missing words, and create some distance between you and your writing so you can more easily evaluate it.
• Color code. You might do this by highlighting or changing font colors on your screen, using markers on paper, or even without color using font styles and sizes. This technique is useful for various applications, including identifying parts of sentences, identifying particular words or phrases you repeat often, or categorizing sentences by idea to check organization.
• Pick individual issues. When you read through with your focus on only one thing, like correcting comma errors or looking for all the places you write "the ways in which," you're less likely to miss instances of that error by getting distracted with other issues.
• Use checklists. Venues such as journals and conferences often have checklists for authors to use when preparing manuscripts; if you don't have a checklist from a professor, you can sometimes use these checklists to help guide your editing for writing for courses as well. You can also keep a checklist of known issues that your writing partners, professors, tutors, or mentors have mentioned on previous writing assignments to help you look for things you know you do (for instance, one former tutor always put her topic sentences at the ends of paragraphs — she keeps this item in a revision and editing checklist and it's one of the first things she addresses when she edits).

Editing with Feedback

Often, graduate students will be writing or editing with some type of feedback. This could be from peers in a class, from an instructor or mentor, or from a peer reviewer at a conference or journal. If you're in this situation, please see our resources on writing with feedback for more strategies and tips.

Editing and Proofreading

What this handout is about.

This handout provides some tips and strategies for revising your writing. To give you a chance to practice proofreading, we have left seven errors (three spelling errors, two punctuation errors, and two grammatical errors) in the text of this handout. See if you can spot them!

Is editing the same thing as proofreading?

Not exactly. Although many people use the terms interchangeably, editing and proofreading are two different stages of the revision process. Both demand close and careful reading, but they focus on different aspects of the writing and employ different techniques.

Some tips that apply to both editing and proofreading

• Get some distance from the text! It’s hard to edit or proofread a paper that you’ve just finished writing—it’s still to familiar, and you tend to skip over a lot of errors. Put the paper aside for a few hours, days, or weeks. Go for a run. Take a trip to the beach. Clear your head of what you’ve written so you can take a fresh look at the paper and see what is really on the page. Better yet, give the paper to a friend—you can’t get much more distance than that. Someone who is reading the paper for the first time, comes to it with completely fresh eyes.
• Decide which medium lets you proofread most carefully. Some people like to work right at the computer, while others like to sit back with a printed copy that they can mark up as they read.
• Try changing the look of your document. Altering the size, spacing, color, or style of the text may trick your brain into thinking it’s seeing an unfamiliar document, and that can help you get a different perspective on what you’ve written.
• Find a quiet place to work. Don’t try to do your proofreading in front of the TV or while you’re chugging away on the treadmill. Find a place where you can concentrate and avoid distractions.
• If possible, do your editing and proofreading in several short blocks of time. Your concentration may start to wane if you try to proofread the entire text at one time.
• If you’re short on time, you may wish to prioritize. Make sure that you complete the most important editing and proofreading tasks.

Editing is what you begin doing as soon as you finish your first draft. You reread your draft to see, for example, whether the paper is well-organized, the transitions between paragraphs are smooth, and your evidence really backs up your argument. You can edit on several levels:

Have you done everything the assignment requires? Are the claims you make accurate? If it is required to do so, does your paper make an argument? Is the argument complete? Are all of your claims consistent? Have you supported each point with adequate evidence? Is all of the information in your paper relevant to the assignment and/or your overall writing goal? (For additional tips, see our handouts on understanding assignments and developing an argument .)

Overall structure

Does your paper have an appropriate introduction and conclusion? Is your thesis clearly stated in your introduction? Is it clear how each paragraph in the body of your paper is related to your thesis? Are the paragraphs arranged in a logical sequence? Have you made clear transitions between paragraphs? One way to check the structure of your paper is to make a reverse outline of the paper after you have written the first draft. (See our handouts on introductions , conclusions , thesis statements , and transitions .)

Structure within paragraphs

Does each paragraph have a clear topic sentence? Does each paragraph stick to one main idea? Are there any extraneous or missing sentences in any of your paragraphs? (See our handout on paragraph development .)

Have you defined any important terms that might be unclear to your reader? Is the meaning of each sentence clear? (One way to answer this question is to read your paper one sentence at a time, starting at the end and working backwards so that you will not unconsciously fill in content from previous sentences.) Is it clear what each pronoun (he, she, it, they, which, who, this, etc.) refers to? Have you chosen the proper words to express your ideas? Avoid using words you find in the thesaurus that aren’t part of your normal vocabulary; you may misuse them.

Have you used an appropriate tone (formal, informal, persuasive, etc.)? Is your use of gendered language (masculine and feminine pronouns like “he” or “she,” words like “fireman” that contain “man,” and words that some people incorrectly assume apply to only one gender—for example, some people assume “nurse” must refer to a woman) appropriate? Have you varied the length and structure of your sentences? Do you tends to use the passive voice too often? Does your writing contain a lot of unnecessary phrases like “there is,” “there are,” “due to the fact that,” etc.? Do you repeat a strong word (for example, a vivid main verb) unnecessarily? (For tips, see our handouts on style and gender-inclusive language .)

Have you appropriately cited quotes, paraphrases, and ideas you got from sources? Are your citations in the correct format? (See the UNC Libraries citation tutorial for more information.)

As you edit at all of these levels, you will usually make significant revisions to the content and wording of your paper. Keep an eye out for patterns of error; knowing what kinds of problems you tend to have will be helpful, especially if you are editing a large document like a thesis or dissertation. Once you have identified a pattern, you can develop techniques for spotting and correcting future instances of that pattern. For example, if you notice that you often discuss several distinct topics in each paragraph, you can go through your paper and underline the key words in each paragraph, then break the paragraphs up so that each one focuses on just one main idea.

Proofreading

Proofreading is the final stage of the editing process, focusing on surface errors such as misspellings and mistakes in grammar and punctuation. You should proofread only after you have finished all of your other editing revisions.

Why proofread? It’s the content that really matters, right?

Content is important. But like it or not, the way a paper looks affects the way others judge it. When you’ve worked hard to develop and present your ideas, you don’t want careless errors distracting your reader from what you have to say. It’s worth paying attention to the details that help you to make a good impression.

Most people devote only a few minutes to proofreading, hoping to catch any glaring errors that jump out from the page. But a quick and cursory reading, especially after you’ve been working long and hard on a paper, usually misses a lot. It’s better to work with a definite plan that helps you to search systematically for specific kinds of errors.

Sure, this takes a little extra time, but it pays off in the end. If you know that you have an effective way to catch errors when the paper is almost finished, you can worry less about editing while you are writing your first drafts. This makes the entire writing proccess more efficient.

Try to keep the editing and proofreading processes separate. When you are editing an early draft, you don’t want to be bothered with thinking about punctuation, grammar, and spelling. If your worrying about the spelling of a word or the placement of a comma, you’re not focusing on the more important task of developing and connecting ideas.

The proofreading process

You probably already use some of the strategies discussed below. Experiment with different tactics until you find a system that works well for you. The important thing is to make the process systematic and focused so that you catch as many errors as possible in the least amount of time.

• Don’t rely entirely on spelling checkers. These can be useful tools but they are far from foolproof. Spell checkers have a limited dictionary, so some words that show up as misspelled may really just not be in their memory. In addition, spell checkers will not catch misspellings that form another valid word. For example, if you type “your” instead of “you’re,” “to” instead of “too,” or “there” instead of “their,” the spell checker won’t catch the error.
• Grammar checkers can be even more problematic. These programs work with a limited number of rules, so they can’t identify every error and often make mistakes. They also fail to give thorough explanations to help you understand why a sentence should be revised. You may want to use a grammar checker to help you identify potential run-on sentences or too-frequent use of the passive voice, but you need to be able to evaluate the feedback it provides.
• Proofread for only one kind of error at a time. If you try to identify and revise too many things at once, you risk losing focus, and your proofreading will be less effective. It’s easier to catch grammar errors if you aren’t checking punctuation and spelling at the same time. In addition, some of the techniques that work well for spotting one kind of mistake won’t catch others.
• Read slow, and read every word. Try reading out loud , which forces you to say each word and also lets you hear how the words sound together. When you read silently or too quickly, you may skip over errors or make unconscious corrections.
• Separate the text into individual sentences. This is another technique to help you to read every sentence carefully. Simply press the return key after every period so that every line begins a new sentence. Then read each sentence separately, looking for grammar, punctuation, or spelling errors. If you’re working with a printed copy, try using an opaque object like a ruler or a piece of paper to isolate the line you’re working on.
• Circle every punctuation mark. This forces you to look at each one. As you circle, ask yourself if the punctuation is correct.
• Read the paper backwards. This technique is helpful for checking spelling. Start with the last word on the last page and work your way back to the beginning, reading each word separately. Because content, punctuation, and grammar won’t make any sense, your focus will be entirely on the spelling of each word. You can also read backwards sentence by sentence to check grammar; this will help you avoid becoming distracted by content issues.
• Proofreading is a learning process. You’re not just looking for errors that you recognize; you’re also learning to recognize and correct new errors. This is where handbooks and dictionaries come in. Keep the ones you find helpful close at hand as you proofread.
• Ignorance may be bliss, but it won’t make you a better proofreader. You’ll often find things that don’t seem quite right to you, but you may not be quite sure what’s wrong either. A word looks like it might be misspelled, but the spell checker didn’t catch it. You think you need a comma between two words, but you’re not sure why. Should you use “that” instead of “which”? If you’re not sure about something, look it up.
• The proofreading process becomes more efficient as you develop and practice a systematic strategy. You’ll learn to identify the specific areas of your own writing that need careful attention, and knowing that you have a sound method for finding errors will help you to focus more on developing your ideas while you are drafting the paper.

Think you’ve got it?

Then give it a try, if you haven’t already! This handout contains seven errors our proofreader should have caught: three spelling errors, two punctuation errors, and two grammatical errors. Try to find them, and then check a version of this page with the errors marked in red to see if you’re a proofreading star.

Works consulted

We consulted these works while writing this handout. This is not a comprehensive list of resources on the handout’s topic, and we encourage you to do your own research to find additional publications. Please do not use this list as a model for the format of your own reference list, as it may not match the citation style you are using. For guidance on formatting citations, please see the UNC Libraries citation tutorial . We revise these tips periodically and welcome feedback.

Especially for non-native speakers of English:

Ascher, Allen. 2006. Think About Editing: An ESL Guide for the Harbrace Handbooks . Boston: Wadsworth Cengage Learning.

Lane, Janet, and Ellen Lange. 2012. Writing Clearly: Grammar for Editing , 3rd ed. Boston: Heinle.

For everyone:

Einsohn, Amy. 2011. The Copyeditor’s Handbook: A Guide for Book Publishing and Corporate Communications , 3rd ed. Berkeley: University of California Press.

Lanham, Richard A. 2006. Revising Prose , 5th ed. New York: Pearson Longman.

Tarshis, Barry. 1998. How to Be Your Own Best Editor: The Toolkit for Everyone Who Writes . New York: Three Rivers Press.

You may reproduce it for non-commercial use if you use the entire handout and attribute the source: The Writing Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

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Essay Editing Checklist For College Students

• Euphresia Kwamboka
• October 4, 2022
• Essay Guides and Topics

Here's What We'll Cover

What comes next after writing your essay? College essay editing is a crucial step after writing your essay draft. It involves reviewing and correcting errors before submission. The difference between a good paper and an ‘A’ paper is editing. By working on your editing techniques, you can refine your writing abilities, enhance your argumentation skills, and ultimately earn better grades. While editing is essential, it’s probably the hardest step. Therefore, our experienced editors have come up with a perfect essay editing checklist to walk you through it.  Plus, it’s a great way to start the editing process, so you don’t miss anything important. Let’s get started! 

Editing vs. revising vs. proofreading- Know the difference 

“Proofreading,” “revising,” and “editing” are often used interchangeably. Still, they serve different purposes and require different approaches to improve your writing. Revision is about making structural and logical changes to your text, for example, reformulating arguments. In contrast, proofreading is about spotting and correcting minor errors that could change your work’s meaning. Finally, editing is a little bit of both but mainly involves changing sentence structure and phrases to ensure your point is conveyed.

Editing and Revising Checklist

Not many students like editing after spending a lot of time writing an essay ; therefore, we’ve simplified the process and created an essay editing checklist that can guide you, as shown below. 

Checklist for the Introduction

Here are important things to check when editing the introductory paragraph.

• Did you clearly state your thesis statement?    
• Does your thesis statement answer the essay question?
• Does the thesis outline the main points of your essay? 
• Do you clearly show the focus of your essay? 
• Does your introduction grab the reader’s attention?

Body Paragraphs Editing Checklist

Listed below are some of the questions you should ask yourself when revising and editing your body paragraphs.

• Does every paragraph have a topic sentence where you clearly state the main idea?
• Does your paragraph support your topic sentence?
• Is the main idea of every paragraph relevant to the Essay question?
• Did you support your points with evidence or provide examples?
• Did you analyze your points rather than stating them? 
• -Does the final sentence in each paragraph either summarize the paragraph or transition to the next point?

Conclusion Editing Checklist

The conclusion is the last section of your essay, here are the important things to lookout for when editing it.

• Did you restate the thesis statement mentioned in the Introduction?
• Did you briefly summarize your paper’s main argument and provide results?
• Did you make connections with the broader context?
• Is your tone confident so it does not weaken the result of your argument?

Paragraph and Sentence Structure checklist 

To make sure each paragraphs and sentences are well organized and effective, look at each paragraph individually, examining the following elements:

• Do your paragraphs flow logically?
• Did you use transition words to make connections between sentences and paragraphs?
• Are your sentences clear, grammatically correct, and to the point?
• Are your sentences and ideas progressing logically? 

Word Count / Length Checklist

For any student out there, the word count for your essay is important . It can be the difference between a good grade and a great grade, or even getting the essay published in the first place. Base on the instructions here are things to look out for.

• Did you stick to your word limit?
• Are any of your paragraphs too short or too long?
• Does your Introduction have a suitable length?
• Have I included only relevant information?
• Is there any unnecessary repetition in my assignment?

Citation/ Referencing Checklist

The following questions will help you check if you have done your referencing right depending on the style you are required to use for your essay.

• Did you check which referencing style your school uses? 
• Did you use reliable sources?
• Are all sources acknowledged?
• Are citations formatted correctly?
• Are ideas from other sources paraphrased or summarized adequately?
• Is the reference list complete and accurate?
• Is referencing consistent throughout the essay?

Proofreading Checklist 

Proofreading is a skill you need to acquire to get better grades on your essay. Therefore, Use the following essay editing checklist when proofreading your work.

Grammar and Spelling Checklist

Below we’ve put together this essential grammar essay editing checklist for writing, to help improve your chances of getting things right first time around.

• Have I checked for grammatical errors? These may involve verb tenses, plurals, or prepositions. 
• Do you have spelling errors and inconsistencies? 
• Did you check for typos related to punctuation, such as comma splices, missing full stops, or incorrect use of quotation marks ?
• Do you have errors or clarity issues related to grammar, such as sentence fragments?
• Do you have Incorrect or inconsistent capitalization? 

Punctuation Checklist

• Is punctuation correct?
• Do you have misplaced hyphens?
• Are there commas with restrictive elements?

Choice of words Checklist

• Is your wording straightforward?
• Are you sure of the definitions of the words used?
• Can you replace any word with one that is more precise?
• Have you left out any important words?
• Have you included words you meant to delete?
• Did you avoid jargon that might be unfamiliar to your reader?
• Do you avoid clichés and overused expressions?
• Have you eliminated unnecessary adjectives and adverbs?

Tone and style 

• Did you use slang and other informal languages?
• Do you have Inappropriate use of the first person or other subjective languages?
• Is there repetition?
• Did you use gendered or biased language?
• Are there incorrectly used abbreviations?
• Do you have overly complex or flowery language?
• Did you use passive or active voice?
• Is there Inappropriate use of quotations and paraphrases?

Verb Tense usage 

• Do your verb tenses match the academic discipline of the assignment? For example, Past tense is used for History. 
• Are your verb tenses consistent?
• Have you replaced unnecessary verbs like ‘to be’ with stronger verbs?
• Are you using active verbs? Passive verbs are acceptable only when the object requires emphasis in a sentence. 

8 Tips to Consider When Editing Your College Essay 

Editing your college essay can feel like a bore for many students, but it’s essential to ensure that your essay is the best it can be before you submit it. Therefore, consider the following points when using your essay editing checklist. 

List the Essay Requirements 

The list of requirements includes word count, style appropriateness, formatting requirements, correct citations , and any specific instructions from your professor. This List will help you focus on your editing and ensure you don’t overlook essential aspects. It can also keep you on track if you feel overwhelmed by the editing process. Therefore, before you turn in your essay, look at the prompt again. 

Take a Break After Writing 

After writing your college essay, taking a break before you start editing is essential. This will help you return to your paper with fresh eyes, making it easier to spot and correct errors. When you’ve been looking at your essay for a long time, it’s easy to miss things because you’re familiar with the material. Therefore, you tend to skim through it, overlooking common errors. So, ensure you give yourself a break to edit more effectively. 

• Read Your Essay Out Loud 

Anytime you sit down to edit your college essay, it’s a good idea to read it out loud because it helps you catch errors you might not have noticed. When you read silently, your brain skims over incorrect words and sentences because it can automatically fill in the correct information, which is not the case when reading aloud. In addition, it can help you understand how your essay flows and whether or not it sounds natural. You can read out loud to yourself in a quiet room or to a group of people, and you’ll notice wordy or awkward sentences and issues with language and tone, which you can easily correct. 

Print Your Essay 

Many students prefer to edit their college papers on the computer. After all, it’s easy to make changes and track your progress when you can see your essay on the screen. However, printing your paper is beneficial because it’s easier to catch typos and grammar mistakes when looking at a hard copy. Additionally, it can help you better understand its overall organization and flow. It also allows you to see the words differently, especially if the font is different.

Proofread With With Different Eyes 

It’s easy to burn yourself out reading the same pages repeatedly. Therefore, having a fresh pair of eyes look at your paper is crucial because it’s easy to miss your own mistakes since you’re familiar with the material.  In addition, another person can help you see your paper from a different perspective and offer suggestions which can be very helpful in making sure that your argument is clear and concise. Therefore, you need an outside source of help who knows the subject matter and has good editing skills. 

• Edit More than once 

If you want to ensure your essay is the best, you should edit it several times: here are some editing guidelines:

• Do a global edit. This is where you look at the whole paper and ensure it makes sense and flows well.
• Do a line edit where you look at each sentence individually and ensure it’s clear and error-free.
• Proofread to fix any typos or grammatical errors.
• Read the essay backward

This is a helpful technique, especially when you’re editing grammar errors. By reading backward, you can focus on each word and sentence rather than getting caught up in the essay context. This strategy helps you see sentences; hence you catch minor grammatical errors that you might otherwise overlook. In addition, it helps you identify awkward phrasing and sentence fragments. Usually, this strategy is not fun because it is time-consuming and requires a lot of attention; however, the final results make it worth it.

• Get advice from a writing expert

All students want their essays to be perfect before submission, but you may not know where to start. Therefore, you should seek out the advice of a writing expert. A writing expert can help you identify any areas that need improvement and suggest how to fix them, allowing you to strengthen your argument and improve your overall writing style . With the help of a writing expert, you can be confident that your essay will be the best.

Conclusion 

Editing your college essay can seem daunting, but it’s a process worth taking the time to do correctly. We hope our essay editing checklist has given you an idea of the best editing process. At Bright Writers, our essay writing and editing team consists of experienced professionals who can help write and polish your essay.

How do you properly edit an essay?

• Proofread With Different Eyes 

How do you use checklist editing?

You use it to edit errors or mistakes in an established order so that no step is forgotten.

What is an editing checklist?

An essay editing checklist is a list of guidelines that lists all issues to check for while reviewing your paper. 

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The Admissions Strategist

Revising, editing & proofreading your college application essay: a guide.

Although it’s only 650 words , writing the Common App essay is a long and in-depth process.

That’s because these 650 words can have a major impact on whether or not you are accepted to the college of your choice.

The essay gives admissions officers insight into your personality, goals, and interests, plus an idea of how you will fit into and contribute to their college campus.

• For these reasons, revising and editing is an essential step in the college essay writing process. You want your essay to be clear, concise, engaging, and polished.

To accomplish this goal, use this checklist for revising and editing the college application essay.

11-Item Checklist

Revising means improving the overall piece of writing.

This includes enhancing clarity, word choice, and structure.

It may also mean adding new ideas, improving current ideas, or removing ideas that are unnecessary or off-topic.

When it comes to revising the college application essay, here are some items you should consider.

1. Does the essay clearly address the selected topic or prompt?

It’s very important that your college application essay fully addresses the topic you selected or were assigned.

This is the foundation of college essay revisions; nothing else matters if you don’t address the topic correctly.

For example, imagine you selected this prompt from the Common Application:

The lessons we take from obstacles we encounter can be fundamental to later success. Recount a time when you faced a challenge, setback, or failure. How did it affect you, and what did you learn from the experience?

First, make sure that your essay is directly related to the selected topic. It should be focused on a challenge or failure you have experienced and the lessons you learned as a result.

Additionally, ensure that you answered all parts of the question.

• An essay addressing this prompt, for example, would not be fully on topic if it only described a challenge you experienced.
• You must also explain how this challenge affected you and what you learned from the experience.
• Key words from the prompt (in this case “challenge,” or “setback,” and “lessons”) should be mentioned in the essay.

If your essay is off-topic or doesn’t address all parts of the question, you will need to do some revising.

You want to check the soundness of your essay and how it expands on the topic and conflict during the  first draft revision .

The first draft is where you’ll make major changes, such as changing the structure, shifting the focus on the story, rewriting entire paragraphs, or even scrapping the entire essay.

2. Is the college essay well-organized?

The first paragraph of your essay should include some sort of thesis or main idea for the essay.

The rest of the essay should be organized around this thesis, with all additional paragraphs developing and supporting the main idea.

Each paragraph should also have its own subtopic, and all information within each paragraph should further develop and support the subtopic.

• For example, your introduction could mention a challenge (like being bullied growing up as a result of a speech impediment), how this challenge affected you (it was hurtful and made you self-conscious for a while), and the lessons you ultimately learned (to be confident in yourself regardless of what others say, to handle hardships with humor and positivity, etc.).

You could then have one paragraph focused on describing the challenge, one on discussing how the challenge affected you, and a third, longer paragraph explaining the lessons you learned as a result.

• You should also use transitions to smoothly connect ideas and help readers follow your thought process.

It’s important to note that an essay with a complex structure or storytelling arc still needs to have an effective and clear payoff. Complexity is no substitute for solid writing.

• If you think the story and its message are becoming too convoluted, chances are that it is. And if you already think it is, then your readers would definitely agree.

While there’s no need to write a five-paragraph essay (I really mean that), the following structure will help you write a clear essay with an easy-to-follow structure:

• Introduction (Keep this short and sweet; don’t get bogged down with the details.)
• Conflict (What happened? What’s the problem?)
• Solution (What did you do to proactively solve the problem?)
• Lessons learned (What did you learn from pursuing a solution or experiencing this conflict? How have your values changed? How have these changes shifted your perspective? How will you change moving forward?

3. Supporting details, examples & anecdotes

Each paragraph should be well-developed with specific details, examples, or anecdotes supporting your point.

The college essay is not the same as a typical academic essay, which may be dry and lacking in personality.

Instead, the college essay is intended to demonstrate your voice, personality, and uniqueness. It should be engaging and colorful.

• You should include vivid, specific details to bring your points to life.
• In this way, a college essay is similar to a more creative piece of writing.
• As you and your parents or high school counselor look over the first draft of it, find places to add colorful examples and concrete details to breathe some more life into your writing.

Make sure all details and examples help support and develop the main points you are trying to convey.

Having trouble coming up with details? Think of the following:

• Who was involved?
• What happened? What did you do?
• When did this occur? Is there an important chronological context?
• Where did this occur? Is the setting relevant to the story?
• Why did this happen? Why did you react or act the way you did?
• How did you go about solving this problem?

Important : There’s an important principle in writing called “Chekhov’s gun” – use this principle when evaluating whether details are relevant to your essay. So, what is Chekhov’s gun?

• If you’re going to mention something in your college essay, make sure it plays a role somewhere else in the story.
• Don’t describe the color of the sky and the sound of an instrument if they aren’t mentioned again in the essay or don’t influence the plot.
• If you describe a bully as “strong” or a problem as “habitual,” the conflict each is a part of should be influenced by the strength of the bully or repetition of the problem.

Chekhov’s gun is critical because it will help you trim word count and stay on message.

4. Voice & Personality

Another way to make the essay interesting and engaging is to ensure that it is written in your own unique voice .

• Of course, the essay shouldn’t include slang, and it shouldn’t read like a text message to your best friend. But it also shouldn’t sound stiff, forced, or unnatural.

It should read almost as if you are talking to a teacher you feel comfortable with, or to a favorite older relative.

• When revising the essay, make sure you didn’t include too many high-level vocabulary words in an effort to sound intellectual, as this can sound forced.
• You can even read the essay aloud to see if it flows naturally and “sounds” like you.

The essay should also give the admissions officer a glimpse of your personality.

• Does the essay accurately portray who you are beyond your GPA, SAT scores, and extracurricular activities?
• If not, spend some time making sure it captures your unique identity.

This is the climax of the entire process of the revisions process — your own voice, perspective, and lessons learned are the most important elements of the essay.

5. A Good Candidate for Admission

Remember that another key purpose of the college essay is to show your school of choice that you are a strong candidate for admission.

When reading your essay, the admissions officer should form an understanding of what you can contribute to a college campus.

Be sure that your essay paints you in a positive light.

The rest of your application has already provided information about your GPA, SAT scores, and other accomplishments, but what else should admissions officers know about you to see that you are a good candidate for admission?

• This could include your love of learning, curiosity, persistence, motivation, resilience, teamwork, kindness, work ethic, enthusiasm for the school, leadership abilities, etc.

Before you submit the essay, check that it highlights some of the qualities that will make you an excellent college student and an asset to any campus.

Also, consider sharing it with one or two friends or trusted adults to get a second opinion.

This is the Barebones Exercise, a helpful exercise to determine whether you told an effective story and demonstrated your personality, values, and themes:

• Grab a highlighter and print your college essay.
• Highlight the most important sentences of your essay. These sentences should include topic sentences, sentences that propel the story, and sentences that imply or state your values.
• Write or copy and paste those highlighted sentences into a new document.
• Organize the sentences by the order in which they appear in your college essay.
• Read the sentences in order. How does it sound?
• This is the barebones version of your essay. What message are you getting? Is your simplified story still a cohesive narrative?
• Does this barebones version of your essay still imply or state the newfound values found in the conclusion of your original essay? What will the college admissions officer learn about you?

All told, you want this barebones version to emit the same messages and important elements found in your real college essay.

The barebones version helps you momentarily remove complementary details and determine the central premise of your essay.

6. Do you stick to the topic?

We already talked about addressing the topic, but it’s important that you stick to it as well. Check the essay for any information that is off-topic or unnecessary.

• During the entire revision process, it’s important to keep this in mind: Do you stay on topic, and do you extrapolate values as the essay progresses?

An easy way to do this is to identify your thesis statement. Anything in the essay that does not support, develop, or relate to the thesis statement should be cut.

• It can be tempting to include unrelated information that you would like to share with admissions officers, but doing so will make the essay disorganized and difficult to follow.

Additionally, each paragraph should have its own subtopic.

• Anything that doesn’t support, develop, or relate to each paragraph’s topic sentence should also be cut or moved to another, more relevant paragraph.

Use the Barebones Exercise from the previous section. Here’s how it works when checking whether you stuck to your topic:

• Highlight your topic sentences.
• Underline the set-up sentences that immediately follow your topic sentences.
• Highlight your resolution.
• Now, read your highlighted topic sentences.  Ask yourself whether they are properly telling the story.
• Read your set-up sentences that follow your topic sentences.  Do they support the topic sentence or main idea of the story? Are you getting off track? Do you exaggerate or sound overconfident or doubtful? Are you providing unnecessary details? Your words are $100 bills. Spend your money wisely to abide by the word count.
• Read your resolution.  Does it properly end the story in your own image?  Is it a cliché? Are you using pop culture or literary phrases? Too many of these supplant your voice for an artificial one. Are you closing the loop? Open-ended endings are perfectly fine but difficult to execute. Make sure you’re ending the story on your own terms.
• Of course: Did you answer the essay prompt?
• Overall: Are you covering too much ground? If so, rewrite and decrease the scope of the essay. Your job is to write effectively, not compose the next Harry Potter entry.

7. A good mix of short and long sentences

Sentence variety gives writing rhythm and life. It can make essays easier to follow and more engaging.

For these reasons, it’s important that the essay doesn’t include too many short sentences or too many long sentences. Instead, it should include a mix of both.

• Read through your essay to be sure it’s not full of only short, choppy sentences or long sentences with many clauses. Try to add more variety to your sentence lengths before submitting the essay.

Still having trouble? Read your essay aloud by yourself or to a friend and ask how it sounds. Short and choppy? Or smooth and fluid?

Think of your essay as if it were a song. Songs with multiple notes sound far superior to songs with dull, awkward notes.

Editing means fixing basic errors like spelling, punctuation, capitalization, and word usage.

To edit effectively, try reading the essay backward. This helps you focus more on spelling and grammar without being distracted by the ideas in the essay.

Focus on one type of error at a time, and read slowly and carefully, sentence by sentence.

The last four items on our checklist will help you ensure that your college essay is error-free. This is the concluding chapter of the revisions process.

8. Are all words spelled correctly?

Spell check doesn’t catch everything. Homonyms, for example, go unnoticed by spell check.

Homonyms are words that sound the same but have different meanings, like “pair” and “pare,” or “they’re,” “their,” and “there.”

As long as you have spelled the word correctly, spell check won’t notice that the word itself is incorrect.

• The same goes for wrong words, like using “martial” instead of “marital.”
• “My favorite hobby it fishing.”

So relying on spell check could result in you turning in an essay that’s actually full of misspellings and wrong words.

Read carefully through the essay, ensuring that all words are spelled correctly and that you haven’t accidentally used an incorrect word.

9. Proper punctuation & capitalization

Check for proper use of commas, periods, parentheses, question marks, quotation marks and, if applicable, semicolons.

If you’re unsure about punctuation use, see if your English teacher is available to read over the essay and offer some suggestions.

Alternatively, research proper use of punctuation on the Internet or at the library.

• Additionally, the first word in each sentence should be capitalized, along with proper nouns (names of people and places) and the word “I.”
• For the most part, all other words should be lowercase.

Similar to the issue with spelling, programs don’t always notice grammar errors. If grammar and usage aren’t your strengths, you might not realize you’ve written something incorrectly. For example:

“My hard work has positively effected my grades.”

This might be the kind of error many people miss. Do you know the difference between affect and effect?

If not, it’s a good idea to ask someone.

Because grammatical rules can be complicated, it’s better to get help than to risk not using them correctly.

10. Do you abide by the word count?

You need to follow the word count the prompt provides.

• This is non-negotiable.
• Not following the word count implies to college admissions officers that you won’t follow the most basic rules on campus.

At first, your Common App essay should be 800 or 900 words long. Extra details and paragraphs in the preliminary stages are OK.

Now that you like the essence of your college essay, here’s a step-by-step process on trimming word count:

• You can find the most “fat” here because you likely started writing your essay thinking about big ideas.
• That means you tried to explain things and give full but ineffective context to your situation.
• Clichés are usually abundant in this part. Don’t use clichés. You’d be drowning out your writing.
• Be sure to lop off parts that needlessly explain your ending, but be careful not to eliminate useful aspects of your resolution.
• Do you repeat things in different words?
• Do you use clichés?
• Are your quotes of appropriate length?
• Do you overuse aphorisms?
• Are your similes of appropriate length? Do you use too many?
• Are your metaphors of appropriate length? Do you use too many?
• Do you use too many analogies? Are any of them excessively clumsy?
• Are any of them excessively clumsy?
• Are you trying too hard to sound smart?
• Do you use these words in everyday writing? If not, they might not be a good fit for your essay.

11. Sentence Structure

Check that word usage and sentence structure is grammatically correct as well. This includes:

• Subject-verb agreement
• Consistent verb tenses (not switching back and forth between past and present, for example)
• Are there any run-on sentences or sentence fragments?
• Are the antecedents (Ex: my mom, Mr. Hughes) for all pronouns (Ex: she, he) clear, and do pronouns and antecedents agree in number?
• Does the essay include any unnecessary adjectives or adverbs?
• Have you unintentionally left out any words, or included words that should be deleted?

Critical Tips to Help You With Proofreading

After you consult the checklist above, utilize the tips below help you write a stellar and mistake-free essay.

Read Your Essay Aloud

• This is probably the best tip for any piece of writing you plan to show someone, but it’s especially important for the college essay. Most professionals practice reading their work aloud to a small audience or to themselves.
• When you do this, you are far more likely to hear the errors your eyes tend to miss.
• Reading to an audience of one or more people can also be beneficial, because they can catch the errors you didn’t hear.

While reading aloud won’t always help you with typos, it will give you a sense of whether or not your phrasing is awkward, or your sentences are too wordy.

• Simply put, if it doesn’t sound right, it usually isn’t.

Treat reading your college essay aloud like a process. The more you do it, the more chances you have to evaluate particular phrases and sentences.

Proofreading Requires Taking a Step Back

For most writers, time can be incredibly valuable when drafting their work.

Tired eyes often miss simple mistakes, and the more we look at something we have written, the more immune we are to its flaws. That seems counterintuitive, but it’s true.

• There is simply no substitute for taking a break from your writing and coming back to it later.

When you approach your essay with a fresh look, it will seem like a totally new piece of writing. It’s not always the best writing, but that gives you the opportunity to make the necessary changes.  

Print Your Essay

Like taking a break from your work, printing your writing allows you to see it in a completely different way . Most of us are used to only working on a computer, and we rarely print work out to edit.

• However, there is no substitute for marking up your writing with a pencil or pen.

Many people say that when they print out their writing, it seems like someone else wrote it. This is exactly the perspective you need to be a good judge of what’s on the page.

Proofreading With Different Eyes

Having another person proofread your work might not always be your favorite option.

Many of us aren’t very comfortable showing what we’ve written to other people, but having another person edit your work is incredibly helpful.

• This person could be a teacher, friend, or anyone else whose knowledge and writing expertise you trust.
• Y our current or former teachers have the advantage of knowing your writing well, so they are often the best people to consult.

Teachers have likely read many college essays in the past, so they are experts in correcting errors.

While your English teacher might be the obvious choice, consider showing your essay to a college counselor.

They, too, have read many personal essays, and they can help you with any stage of your editing process.

While your teachers know your writing, friends know you personally. They can be the best judges of whether you’re saying something in exactly the right way.

Of course, you are the writer, and it is entirely your choice which suggestions to take or leave, so consider the legitimacy of the advice you get before making any changes.

Save Multiple Drafts

Occasionally, you might proofread your college essay, making some changes to the original document without saving an original. Sometimes, those changes might not be what you want out of a final draft. In writing, it’s always helpful to see where you started.

• If you scrap something, keep the original version so you can remember how you expressed your thinking originally.

Make sure, when saving your drafts, that they are clearly marked to prevent confusion. You don’t want to make the mistake of sending the wrong draft in; there might not be any going back from that step.

Proofread Multiple Times

There is simply no substitute for putting the time and effort in to review your college essay. To maximize your editing skills, you need multiple opportunities to use them. By taking a break, printing your work, or reading aloud, you are automatically providing opportunities for multiple readings. You will probably find that when you do this, you will have opportunities to correct different types of errors. Keep going until your editing is complete.

Create the Ideal Setting

While this may sound obvious, minimizing distractions while proofreading allows for a sharper eye and better-focused attention on your work.

• If you are easily bothered by noise from other people or from music and television, find a quiet place where you can devote all of your attention to the task of editing. If music helps you focus, try that, too.

Editors thrive in the settings that make them feel comfortable and focused, so make sure to find yours.

Advice From a Writing Expert

Amy Ostroth, senior director of communications at Sweet Briar College, has this advice for students:

Proofreading and revising your college application essay — or even essays you might write for class — are important parts of the writing process. I use three strategies when I’m reviewing my own writing. First, read the piece backwards so you won’t be tempted to see what you meant to write instead of what you actually wrote. Second, read the piece out loud to yourself. Third, find a friend or family member and read the piece out loud to them. You’ll catch new things and they’ll be a second set of ears to hear things you might have missed!

Recap: College Essay Revisions, Edits & Proofreading

Plan, write, revise, and edit your college essay using this checklist, and you’ll be able to submit an engaging, precise, and polished final product. These items ensure the entire process of revisions is implemented in an even-keeled manner.

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The Ultimate Essay Checklist

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Getting Started

Essay writing: it might not be your favorite thing in the world, but the essay editing experts at Scribendi are here to change that by making it a little less scary and a lot more fun! (Okay—perhaps "fun" is a bit strong. How about "bearable"?)

While there are four main types of essays—expository, persuasive, analytical, and argumentative—the basic structure of any essay is the same:

• An introductory paragraph
• At least three body paragraphs
• A concluding paragraph
• A bibliography

Generally, the higher your level of education, the more complex your essay structure will be. While high school students typically stick with the five-paragraph essay, university and graduate students are expected to discuss topics that require more than five paragraphs to flesh out. Whatever type of essay you're writing, following this basic format will help you accomplish your intended goal.

This ultimate essay checklist will provide you with everything you need to unleash your knowledge and express your creativity while following standard essay-writing conventions. This essay checklist will show you how to write a stellar essay of any style, and it will give you the confidence to explore and write about any topic.

General Tips

• Get an early start. It's much easier to come up with and organize your ideas when you're not pressed for time and are able to conduct proper research. The earlier you start, the easier it will be . . . so don't procrastinate!
• Choose a topic. Your instructor will likely give you a handful of topics to choose from or a general topic area. Depending on the instructions you're given, you will have to select and refine the topic. You can choose something you're already interested in or something you know nothing about—either way, you'll be doing your research and learning along the way.
• Use various sources of information. With the vast amount of information available today, you're far from limited when it comes to choosing your sources. Use books, websites, journal articles, research studies, interviews—the world is your oyster! Just remember to keep track of your sources so that you can cite them properly and add them to your bibliography. Also check what kinds of sources your professor wants: primary, secondary, or both?

• Do not plagiarize. Cite your work and give credit where it's due. Do not take credit for others' thoughts or ideas, and make yourself aware of the basic rules for avoiding plagiarism .
• Create an outline. Make a rough outline of the sections and points of your essay. Writing your ideas down will help you organize your thoughts and see what you need to add, change, or rearrange.
• Provide evidence. Use evidence from your research to support your ideas. Each body paragraph will contain an original idea, but you will need to back it up with evidence to make it credible.
• Don't use "I" statements or make sweeping generalizations. Stay objective, and be specific.
• Grab your audience's attention. Come up with an attention-grabbing title and introduction that will make your reader want more.
• Use logic. Within each paragraph and throughout your essay, keep your ideas coherent and linear.
• Use an essay style that complements your content (and is in accordance with your professor's guidelines). There are four main types of essays:
• Expository : The writer explains an idea or issue to the reader.
• Persuasive : The writer tries to convince the reader to take his or her position on an idea, issue, or topic.
• Analytical : The writer examines and analyzes an idea, issue, or topic.
• Argumentative : The writer tries to prove that his or her position is correct.
• Answer what , why , and how . Regardless of the type of essay you write, it should answer each of these questions.
• Don't feel obliged to write your first draft in order, from introduction to bibliography. It can be difficult to write a completely linear essay when you have lots of different ideas, so start by writing whatever you're ready to write—you can put all the pieces together later. This will make the process easier and less stressful.

Introduction

The introductory paragraph broadly introduces your topic by giving your reader an overview of what your essay will be about and the points that will be discussed. It often starts with a general statement that acts as the topic sentence for the paragraph, and it provides a general discussion that leads to a specific thesis statement at the end of the paragraph.

• Do not explicitly explain your intentions. For example, do not say, "The purpose of this essay is to . . ." Instead, allow the topic sentence to help your reader identify and determine your purpose. By the time readers get to the end, they will have a comprehensive understanding of your essay and its intent.
• Choose a thesis statement that the body of your essay will be able to support. This thesis will be the "hook" of your essay, and it is often one of the last sentences in the introductory paragraph. A hook is a line that grabs the reader's attention—it "hooks" them, just like a fishing hook grabs a fish. The goal of the hook is to keep your reader interested and to clearly indicate the purpose of the essay.

The body of the essay develops the argument that was outlined in the introduction.

• Use topic sentences. The topic sentence of each paragraph provides a brief summary of what the paragraph is about.

• Set up the transition to your next point. The concluding sentence of each paragraph should function as a hook and transition into the next paragraph.
• Discuss and support a different idea in each paragraph. Limit each paragraph to one main idea. The topic sentence of each paragraph will help you organize your own thoughts and let the reader know what that paragraph is about. If you're writing a five-paragraph essay, follow this general outline:
• The first paragraph contains the strongest argument and ties into the hook at the end of the introductory paragraph. Discuss your first point, elaborate on it, and provide evidence in support of it. Close with a transitional hook.
• The second paragraph contains a more neutral argument, and it ties into the hook at the end of the first paragraph. Discuss your second point, elaborate on it, and provide evidence to support it. Close with a transitional hook.
• The third paragraph contains another strong argument and ties into the hook at the end of the second paragraph. Discuss your third point, elaborate on it, and provide evidence to support it. Close with a transitional sentence that leads smoothly into the concluding paragraph.

In contrast to the introductory paragraph, the concluding paragraph starts out specific (by reintroducing the thesis) and becomes more general. It ties your ideas together and brings your paper to a culmination.

The concluding paragraph provides a general discussion of your findings and shows the reader that you have accomplished what you intended to at the outset.

• Restate your thesis (though not necessarily using the exact same words). In contrast to the introductory paragraph, the concluding paragraph starts out specific (by reintroducing the thesis) and becomes more general. It ties your ideas together and brings your paper to a close.
• Discuss your findings based on your research and evidence. Has your thesis been proven?
• Don't introduce any new ideas. The point here is to sum up and wrap up your essay, not to confuse readers by providing new information.
• End on a high note. You can finish the essay in a variety of ways. For example, you might provide suggestions for future research, state a call to action, share a quote, or ask a question. Depending on the topic and purpose of your essay, choose a closing line that will fit well with the rest of your essay's structure and leave readers thinking " Wow! "

Bibliography/Works Cited

The Bibliography or Works Cited page is a list of all the references you used throughout the paper. It can be alphabetized or numbered depending on the style guide you are using. While a Bibliography includes every resource you consulted when preparing your essay, a Works Cited page includes only the resources cited in your essay. Find out which is required by consulting the style guide assigned by your professor.

• To make creating your reference list easier, use citation software . There are many different options out there, and several of the software programs are free (especially if you're enrolled in a university that has a subscription to one of the services). These citation software programs essentially create your bibliography for you, making the process fast, easy, and accurate.

Review, Revise, Rework

• Give yourself a day or two before rereading and revising your essay. This way, you will have a fresh set of eyes, making it easier to catch any mistakes.
• Don't be afraid to rearrange paragraphs, delete sentences, or add information. Reading through your essay a few days after writing it makes it much easier to see where and how the structure needs to be changed.
• Correct any errors in spelling, grammar, and punctuation. Check the essay yourself, have a friend review it, or better yet, have your essay edited by a professional editing service .
• Avoid colloquialisms and contractions. ('Cause it just ain't professional in an academic setting. Lol.)
• Analyze the flow of your essay , and make sure that your ideas and paragraphs flow smoothly from one to the next.
• Cut out any extraneous information or fluff. We've all done it, but adding extra words to make a word count requirement doesn't fly with most professors, and it will definitely detract from the strength of your essay.

Now, it's Time to Write!

It may seem overwhelming, but writing an essay doesn't have to be stressful. After coming up with a topic, doing some research, and creating a basic outline, you're ready to start filling in the gaps. Using primary and/or secondary research, back up your ideas and support them with credible sources. Just don't forget to cite those sources! Once you've written your first draft, take a day or two away from your paper so you will have a clear head when you come back to revise it. As suggested, you may even want to have your paper edited by the professionals at Scribendi , who will not only correct any surface-level errors but will also check for consistency, clarity, and cohesiveness, providing comments and suggestions along the way.

Essay writing is so much easier if you're equipped with the right tools, and that's what we hope we've given you with this ultimate essay checklist. Now that you know how to write an essay (regardless of the style), we're confident in your ability to write an essay about any topic that your instructor might have in store for you. Happy writing!

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Editing Checklist for Self- and Peer Editing

About this printout

This helpful tool will give your students the opportunity to edit their own writing and then observe as their peers edit the same work.

Teaching with this printout

More ideas to try, related resources.

Before you begin, be sure to model and discuss each step of the writing process (prewriting, drafting, revising, editing, and publishing), preferably using a whole-class story or class newsletter article. Please note that the revising stage precedes editing. Student should have already worked through content revisions before reaching the editing step. When they are ready for the editing stage of the writing process, students should edit their writing and then meet with a partner to engage in peer editing. Prior to having students use this tool independently, it is important to model its use. To do this, display sample text on an overhead projector, document camera, or SMART Board so that all students can view it. Model the use of the self-edit column with the displayed text, with you assuming the role of author. Then have a volunteer fill out the peer-edit column so that all students can hear and view the process. Finally, discuss what went well and what could be improved in the editing steps that were modeled. This tool serves multiple purposes, including:

• The self-edit step

encourages students to evaluate specific features of their writing, increasing self-awareness of writing conventions keeps the pen in the writer’s hand for the initial editing phase

• The peer-edit step

helps build a learning community in which peers work collaboratively heightens the awareness of various print and grammatical conventions for the peer editor and the author

• Use a fish-bowl technique to allow the class to view a self- and peer-edit session of two of their classmates. To do this, first choose one student to model the self-editing phase. It is helpful to select a student who has a good understanding of the criteria on the rubric, such as proper grammar and punctuation. That student works through the items in the self-edit column as the other students observe. It is helpful to put the editing checklist on an overhead projector or document camera so all students can see the process. After the self-edit is complete, discuss the process with the students. Next, choose another student to serve as the peer editor for the piece that was just self-edited.  Have the two students sit in the middle of the class so that all students can see and hear them as they work through the peer-editing phase. Afterward, include the entire class in a discussion about the process itself and ways in which the editing session will help the author and peer editor improve on their writing.
• Have students work in groups of two or three to edit one piece of writing. The interaction between peers will help make the editing process more explicit. While the students are working in groups, move from group to group to check their understanding of the editing process and use of the checklist. Try to notice groups that lack comments in the “Comments and Suggestions” columns and encourage them to use this section to provide feedback to the writer, particularly for criteria that lack a check mark. To guide them, you could ask, “What do you think you could write in the ‘Comments’ section to help the writer fix this error?” Be sure to tell students that if they are unable to mark a check in the “After completing each step, place a check here” column, they must indicate the reason why they cannot check it in the “Comments and Suggestions” column.

• If your school uses a team approach for grouping students (a group of students who all share the same content area teachers), consider encouraging other team teachers to use this checklist in their respective content areas. Consistency in the editing process will help students understand that the editing process can apply to all written pieces, regardless of the content area.
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Peer editing

Peer editing can be done during class time or electronically outside of class, as the documents below--from Northwestern instructors--illustrate.  The questions that students respond to can vary according to the nature of the assignment and the purpose of the peer review.

peer editing sheets for drafts Peer editing sheets for two essay assignments in a freshman seminar.  Providing very specific questions helps the editors give useful feedback and suggestions. 

peer feedback form literature seminar Students exchange drafts in class, complete the peer feedback form, and then discuss their written comments with one another.  Students submit the forms with their drafts so that I can read them.  I frequently refer to their peers' comments when I am writing my own comments on their drafts.   

peer review Asian diaspora freshman seminar Students do a close reading of one another's drafts to provide insight into what has and has not been conveyed by the draft.

research draft peer review Prompts peer reviewers to comment on key pieces of information, logical organization, and conclusion

research paper introduction peer response Prompts peer editor to comment on introduction, and prompts author to respond to those comments

research paper peer evaluation of claims Prompts peer editor to evaluate the paper's effectiveness in supporting claims and addressing counter-arguments

peer editing science papers Prompts peer editor to complete a checklist on the paper's content, structure, and grammar

getting the most out of peer reviews A link to NU's Writing Place that explains how to make sure you benefit from sharing your writing with peers

peer review guidelines for a personal essay These guidelines from a freshman seminar are aimed at pairs of students who are exchanging drafts before meeting individually with the instructor. 

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Revision and Editing Checklist for a Narrative Essay

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After you have completed one or more drafts of your narrative essay , use the following checklist as a revision and editing guide to prepare the final version of your composition.

• In your introduction, have you clearly identified the experience you are about to relate?
• In the opening sentences of your essay, have you provided the kinds of details that will evoke your readers' interest in the topic?
• Have you clearly explained who was involved and when and where the incident occurred?
• Have you organized the sequence of events in chronological order?
• Have you focused your essay by eliminating unnecessary or repetitious information?
• Have you used precise descriptive details to make your narrative interesting and convincing?
• Have you used dialogue to report important conversations?
• Have you used clear transitions (in particular, time signals) to tie your points together and guide your readers from one point to the next?
• In your conclusion, have you clearly explained the particular significance of the experience you have related to the essay?
• Are the sentences throughout your essay clear and direct as well as varied in length and structure? Could any sentences be improved by combining or restructuring them?
• Are the words in your essay consistently clear and precise? Does the essay maintain a consistent tone ?
• Have you read the essay aloud, proofreading carefully?
• Examples of Great Introductory Paragraphs
• An Essay Revision Checklist
• 50 Great Topics for a Process Analysis Essay
• 100 Persuasive Essay Topics
• Compose a Narrative Essay or Personal Statement
• How to Write a Letter of Complaint
• How to Write a Narrative Essay or Speech
• The Difference Between Revising and Editing
• How to Teach the Compare and Contrast Essay
• 6 Steps to Writing the Perfect Personal Essay
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• A Critical Analysis of George Orwell's 'A Hanging'
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Editing Checklist

Listed below are some of the questions you should ask yourself when revising and editing your assignment.

Have I answered the question or task as fully as possible?

• What is my thesis/ central proposition/ main assertion?
• Do I make a clear argument or take a position about the topic? Do I state that position in my introduction?
• Does my introduction or opening paragraph prepare the reader for what follows?

Is my essay clearly structured?

• Does my assignment have a clear introduction, a body and a definite conclusion ?
• Does the assignment advance in logical stages?
• Are the major points connected? Are the relationships between them expressed clearly?
• Do the major points all relate to the topic and contribute to answering the task or question?

Are my paragraphs clearly connected and coherent? 

• Does each paragraph begin with a topic sentence?
• Do the sentences flow smoothly and logically from point to point?
• Does each sentence clearly follow on from the one before?
• Does each paragraph state its case clearly and completely, or should there be more evidence/ detail?
• Are there adequate transitions between sentences and paragraphs? Are transitions varied or are they all the same kind?
• Are all examples and quotes relevant to and supportive of my answer?
• Are facts and opinions supported with examples or explanations where necessary?

Is my written expression appropriate?

• Have I used direct and clear language?
• Have I explained my ideas clearly and explicitly?
• Have I kept my audience in mind? Have I said all I need to say so that my reader can understand, or am I assuming they will 'know what I mean'?
• Have I written complete, grammatically correct sentences?
• In long sentences, have I separated related ideas with commas or semicolons for easier understanding?
• Is my use of tenses correct?
• Have I used non-discriminatory language?

Have I fully referenced my sources of information? 

• Have I referenced all the words, ideas and information sources I have used in my assignment?
• Have I used a consistent referencing style?
• Is there a clear distinction between my thoughts and words and those of the author(s) I've read and cited?
• Are quotations properly introduced?
• Are they accurate?
• Are they formatted correctly?
• Do the quotations add evidence or provide an authoritative voice, or am I letting the author(s) speak for me? Would writing it in my own words be more effective?

Have I remained within or exceeded the set word limit?

I don't have enough words: 

• Have I fully answered the question or task?
• Do I need to read more? Should I include more information or discussion?
• Have I provided enough evidence to support my argument/s?

I have too many words:

• Have I included only relevant information?
• Is there any unnecessary repetition in my assignment?
• Is my written expression as clear and concise as possible, or is it too 'wordy'?

Have I proofread and revised my assignment for errors?

• Have I checked my spelling? Have I read through my assignment and not just relied on a computer spell checker?
• Is all my bibliographical information correct?
• Have I used correct punctuation ? Have I ended every sentence with a full stop?

Is my assignment well presented?

• Does the presentation follow any guidelines set by my lecturer or school?
• Have I included a cover sheet? (assignment cover sheets are available from your school office)
• Have I made sure my assignment is legible? Is it typed or written neatly?
• Have I used double-line spacing?
• Have I numbered pages and used wide margins?
• Have I kept an extra copy?

Further reading

Barnett, S. and Cain, A. 1997, A Short Guide to Writing About Literature, Harper Collins.

Cuba, l. 1988, A Short Guide to Writing About Social Science, Harper Collins.

Essay and assignment writing guide

• Essay writing basics
• Essay and assignment planning
• Answering assignment questions
• Editing checklist
• Writing a critical review
• Annotated bibliography
• Reflective writing
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How to Peer Edit an Essay: Free Peer Editing Checklist

If you want to peer edit an essay and are looking for some top tips, check out our free peer editing checklist.

The idea of editing and proofreading your own essays, let alone asking someone else to help, may be beyond comprehension. In fact, you may think your essay is pretty fantastic already.

If so, you’re deceiving yourself.

Don’t just settle for good . You should be looking for great.

But how do you achieve this?

The majority of students settle for good. That’s enough. It will get them through school.

But good isn’t enough for the top students. They aspire to be great. They aspire to be awesome.

How do YOU become awesome?

Get a friend to help.

To take an essay beyond the draft stage through a polished version, you need a peer editor. It doesn’t necessarily have to be a professional essay editor (although that will deliver the best results); it needs to be someone who will call you out and tell you how it really is.

When you’re looking for someone to peer edit your essay, try and choose someone who you know well and who you can trust to be honest and methodical. You’re not looking for someone who’ll tell you how great your essay is; you’re looking for someone who will provide you with an objective criticism of your paper.

The purpose of the exercise isn’t to tear you down; it’s to make you better.

So, once you’ve found the ideal peer editor, how can you get the most out of the exercise?

Hand them our handy tips and the great peer editing checklist.

If you wish to edit your essay before engaging the help of a peer editor, take a look at our guide to essay editing .

How to Peer Edit an Essay: Top Tips for Success

Peer editors should review an essay with the primary intention of offering advice on how it can be improved. Here are some great tips to make sure you do the task justice.

Ideally, read through the paper at least twice

During the first pass, you’ll familiarize yourself with the content of the essay and the primary arguments that are put forth. During the second pass, you’ll have a chance to readily understand what is being said. If you don’t understand the content after two readings; there’s a problem the writer needs to know about.

Position yourself as the target reader

While you’re in the process of peer editing the essay, take the role of the envisioned reader; i.e., the person who is reading the essay to learn from someone as opposed to being on the hunt for pesky grammatical errors. During the peer editing process, you should be concerned with content, organization, and style. If you focus purely on punctuation and spelling errors, you may not add a significant amount of value. Your role is to help the writer ensure the essay is clear and compelling.

Resist the temptation to fix the issues

Your job as a peer editor is not to take over and correct any issues that you identify; it’s to provide the writer with constructive feedback on how the paper can be improved.

Tell the truth… constructively

If you’re peer editing a friend’s essay, you may not want to hurt his or her feelings by pointing out areas where there is a lack of clarity. However, if you fail to do so, there’s no point in engaging in the process. Resist the urge to say everything is fine and instead focus on how you can help the writer learn someone from the process. Provide constructive feedback that highlights the positive areas of the essay while also pointing out some areas for improvement.

Provide specific details

Don’t provide sweeping statements such as, “I don’t understand your point.” Instead, provide very precise feedback on what exactly you don’t understand and what information may help you understand it better: “Perhaps you could make your point clearer by explaining why…” Take every opportunity to explain why you found something effective or ineffective.

Check the style guide

Universities and colleges typically follow one of six major style guides in academic writing: APA, Harvard, MHRA, MLA , OSCOLA and Oxford. When you write in a consistent manner following a recognised style guide, it is simpler for readers to understand what to anticipate and where to find further information. Effective application of a style in formal writing will distinguish your work visually and ensure you meet the university’s requirements. If you’re using APA, take a look at our guide to APA formatting .

The Three Pillars of Excellent Peer Essay Editing

Free peer editing checklist.

Download a free PDF version of our peer editing checklist by clicking on the image above. Here’s the full lowdown on what’s included.

Essay Introduction

• Does the essay begin with a clear, attention-grabbing statement or hook?
• Are there at least three sentences in the introduction?
• Does the writer make his or her intentions clear?
• Are you clear about what issue is being addressed in this essay?
• Is there a clear thesis statement?

See our guide to how to write an essay introduction for more help.

• Are there at least three body paragraphs?
• Does each body paragraph contain a clear topic sentence and idea?
• Does each body paragraph contain a conclusion statement that leads well to the next body paragraph?
• Does the conclusion contain at least three sentences?
• Does the conclusion refer back to the thesis statement?

Essay Flow and Coherence

• Do the ideas flow logically through the paper and contribute to a building argument?
• Have you used transitions correctly?
• Is the essay interesting?
• Does the analysis presented in the paper support the thesis statement?
• Is the sentence structure varied?

Essay Style and Mechanics

• Have you appropriately attributed and cited evidence?
• Have you cited each reference source according to the relevant style guide? If you’re using APA, take a look at our APA checklist .
• Is the paper formatted according to the relevant style guide?
• Are the references, tables, and figures formatted according to the relevant style guide?
• Have you proofread the paper? For a full proofreading checklist, take a look at our essay proofreading checklist.
• Misspelled words
• Grammatical mistakes
• Punctuation errors
• Run-on Sentences

So that’s our guide to how to peer edit an essay. Got anything to add? Please leave a comment.

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How To Apply For College: Forbes Advisor’s Application Checklist

Updated: Jan 2, 2024, 1:26pm

Applying for college can be a lengthy, stressful and complicated process, with lots of moving parts and deadlines. Filling out an undergraduate application typically involves gathering documentation, taking standardized tests, writing essays and asking for letters of recommendation, among other steps. It’s easy to get overwhelmed.

To help you stay organized, we’ve put together this college application checklist. Here, we round up all the materials you need and the dates by which you need them. We even provide a printable version of this checklist to guide you as you work through this process.

Why You Can Trust Forbes Advisor Education

Forbes Advisor’s education editors are committed to producing unbiased rankings and informative articles covering online colleges, tech bootcamps and career paths. Our ranking methodologies use data from the National Center for Education Statistics , education providers, and reputable educational and professional organizations. An advisory board of educators and other subject matter experts reviews and verifies our content to bring you trustworthy, up-to-date information. Advertisers do not influence our rankings or editorial content.

• 6,290 accredited, nonprofit colleges and universities analyzed nationwide
• 52 reputable tech bootcamp providers evaluated for our rankings
• All content is fact-checked and updated on an annual basis
• Rankings undergo five rounds of fact-checking
• Only 7.12% of all colleges, universities and bootcamp providers we consider are awarded

Save This Checklist

Keep track of your most important application tasks and deadlines with the simplified PDF version of this checklist. Save it to your phone or print it out for easy reference. (If you print it, make sure to choose the “fit to paper” scale option!)

Forbes Advisor’s College Application Checklist 

Before you start.

You can’t begin the application process until you’ve made a plan. Start by narrowing down your prospective schools. Know where you’re applying, what each application entails and the due dates you need to meet.

Decide About Early Decision

It’s important to determine whether you plan to apply for early decision or early action at any school. As the name implies, early decision often involves an earlier due date for your application.

Early decision comes with perks—admission rates for early-decision applicants tend to be higher, for example, and you learn about your admission decision more quickly—but this method comes with strings attached, too. For example, if you are admitted on early decision, you may have to give your response before learning whether other colleges have also accepted your applications, and you may have to withdraw your applications to other schools.

Get a Jump Start on Standardized Tests

You should prepare for and take the SAT early on since many students take the SAT multiple times. If you plan to take the ACT more than once, consider taking the ACT early on as well. And make sure to sign up for the Common App , which allows you to use a single form to apply to multiple colleges.

Your Checklist

• Know which schools you’re interested in
• Take the SAT
• Know if you plan to apply for early decision
• Mark down all college application due dates
• Sign up for the Common App

Two Months Before College Applications Are Due

A couple of months before your deadlines, things are getting down to the wire. If you’re submitting standardized test scores, it’s time to make sure your results are up to snuff. If you plan to take the ACT , now is the time to do it. And if you weren’t satisfied with your earlier SAT scores , it’s time to retake that test as well.

• Take the ACT
• Retake the SAT (if applicable)

Four Weeks Before College Applications Are Due

Most undergraduate applications require letters of recommendation , at least one of which must come from an academic source. You could ask a teacher, a school counselor or another faculty member to write your recommendation letter.

Keep in mind that these individuals are busy professionals who may be writing multiple letters of recommendation for other students, so it’s important to give them at least a few weeks to complete this task.

• Ask for letters of recommendation

Several Weeks Before Applications Are Due

Not all universities ask applicants to submit essays, but this is a common requirement for many. If you’re applying to schools that require college essays , you’ve probably been working on yours for a while—potentially even as assignments in your English class.

In the weeks leading up to your application deadlines, it’s time to polish up those essays and get them ready for submission. Gather feedback from trusted peers, teachers and mentors, and make edits as necessary. Make sure your essays answer the prompts, comply with word count requirements and are free of grammatical errors.

• Complete college essays

The Week Before Applications Are Due

At this point in the application process, it’s time to gather all the materials required for your college application. These may include the application forms themselves, preliminary transcripts, test scores and essays. Make sure your letter-writers have finished your recommendation letters as well.

Once all your documents are in order, there’s no need to keep waiting—submit those applications.

• Gather letters of recommendation and required materials
• Submit all applications

Before, During and After Applying to College

Applying for college and applying for financial aid are separate processes. Before, during and after your college application process, you should be researching scholarships and grants to help you pay for your education.

Unlike student loans, scholarships and grants do not require repayment. These forms of aid may be need-based, merit-based or use other identifying characteristics, like ethnicity or religion. If you qualify for a scholarship or grant, make sure to apply—these awards can add up to make a big difference.

• Apply for scholarships and grants

During October

We recommend submitting the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®) regardless of whether you think you will qualify for financial aid. The factors determining aid eligibility are complex, so you may qualify for a federal student loan even if it seems unlikely to you. Many states use the FAFSA to determine eligibility for state-level student aid as well. Some aid is distributed on a first-come, first-served basis, so submitting the application in a timely manner is wise.

Also by October, you should know whether you will be registering to take any AP exams. The College Board usually requires all AP test-takers to register for their exams by November 15, but your high school may impose an earlier deadline for registration. Make sure you know and are on track to meet those deadlines.

• Gather materials and submit the FAFSA
• Know when to register for AP exams

By May, you should have received responses for all your college applications. Of the schools that granted you admission, you should have narrowed down your options and decided where you’d like to attend. Now, it’s time to make it official.

Note that if you were accepted to a school on early decision, you will have to complete this step of the process much earlier in the year—usually by February.

• Accept an offer of admission
• Decline offers of admission from schools you will not attend

During June and July

By this point, you’ve accepted admission to a college and you’ve graduated from high school—but we’re still going. Now that you’ve officially wrapped up your high school career, it’s time to tackle these last remaining tasks: submitting AP scores and official transcripts.

Send these materials in June if possible, and check with your prospective college for its specific deadlines—they are usually in early or mid-July.

• Submit AP scores (if applicable)
• Submit final transcripts
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College Essay Coaching

You’ll receive your edited essay, along with in-depth content feedback designed to help you strengthen your case and maximize your chances of getting accepted.

• College Essay Editing & Coaching
• College Essay Example

Your edited essay

Your coach will review your essay, improving the grammar and flow directly using track changes and offering additional advice in the comments. You’ll walk away with a polished essay, along with insight into how to improve your writing skills.

I have never been good at breathing.

When I was eight 8 , I was diagnosed with asthma , a condition where your airways narrow and breathing is difficult . I had  had pneumonia a few months before, and despite having recovered, I still often had trouble breathing. I missed a good portion of third grade – ( it took years afterward s to fully master the times tables the class had covered in my absence – ) and felt generally bad for almost a year. By the time my parents and I met with Dr. Bisberg, who diagnosed the problem, it was a relief I felt relieved to simply have an answer.

Unfortunately, the my troubles didn’t end there. My asthma wasn’t well-controlled, so I felt physically ill and made trips to the ER on several occasions in the following year. Sometimes I even needed to spend the night which was definitely scary as a young kid. When I finally returned to school after a two – month long absence, the other kids weren’t psyched eager  to have me return. I was bullied for being “ a “ ghost” (absent all the time), for having to leave class multiple times a day for medication, and for the inhaler that I carried around everywhere. I felt weird, dumb, and, most of all, lonely. What’s more, my little sister would get jealous because of all the attention I was receiving. I couldn’t win on any side and my life was spirally into a disaster: I couldn’t breathe and no one liked me- not even my own sister!

But all that changed the next summer. My mom signed me up for Camp Breathe, a sleepaway summer camp for children with severe asthma. There, I wasn’t an oddball for using an inhaler –- — all the cool kids had them. Even my nebulizer –- — a loud, bulky machine that I had to use d twice a day to take my asthma medication –- — was no biggie big deal at Camp Breathe.

The other girls in my cabin were just like me. They knew all about my health struggles because they had the same health struggles. Unlike the kids at school, the kids at camp my fellow campers were kind and understanding. I wasn’t bullied, and neither, to my knowledge, was anyone else : we had all had enough experience as outsiders to know how damaging it can be.

After my experience at camp, I switched schools and made new friends . I returned to Camp Breathe for the next three 3 years and made many wonderful memories. Now, I rarely worry about my health. I even play varsity volleyball and dance on the dance team at school. I don’t think about having asthma on a daily basis, but the lessons I learned at Camp Breathe –- — how to forge strong friendships, work as part of a team, accept people with differences, and make the best out of every situation –- — will stay with me for life.

You can expect your readers to be familiar with what asthma is, so this definition here isn’t necessary.

Stay focused

You’ve already done a great job of describing your situation, so I’d suggest streamlining the text here to keep the focus on the most important details. This will not only help you meet your word count limit but also ensure that the essay stays focused on your current strengths and qualities, rather than a past hardship.

Self-reflect

You might want to expand on what changed after camp that made it easier to make new friends. Was it really just that your situation changed, or did you also develop new skills and qualities that made your situation easier?

Show, don't tell

Great sentence here! I really like this because it demonstrates your values and character traits. To make this section even stronger, consider using real-life examples to demonstrate how you put these traits into practice.

A personal note

Along with the edited essay, you’ll receive a note from your coach that answers your questions and explains specific steps you can take to strengthen your essay.

Hi Kaitlyn,

Thanks for sending your essay to Scribbr. You’re a great storyteller, and your story definitely draws readers right in!

As you’ll see, I’ve focused on reducing the word count and making space for extra details, which you mentioned was your main challenge. I’ve also checked that your grammar and tone are appropriate throughout.

My main recommendation is to add a few more real-life examples in the second half of the essay so you’re “showing, not telling” what you learned from your childhood experiences. This will also give you space to say more about who you are. All in all, you have a strong draft on your hands.

You’ll find in-depth feedback on your essay’s narrative, structure, and content in the checklist. Best of luck with your application!

Do you have a clear and well-structured narrative?

You have a generally well-structured narrative – and a great opening line! Since you are over your word count, I’ve helped to streamline the story by cutting some unnecessary details.

Your story is compelling, but since you’re discussing events that must have happened eight or nine years ago, I’d recommend being very selective in which details from that period you decide to share. That way, you’ll have space to also paint a picture of who you are today – which is ultimately what the admissions officers are most interested in.

Is the writing style appropriate for a college essay?

The writing style was appropriate, although I’ve cut a few redundant expressions. For example, it’s not necessary to refer to both “discussions” and “conversations” in the same sentence, since both terms mean the same thing. In an essay this short, every word counts, so it’s important to be concise.

Does your story demonstrate positive traits and authenticity?

You do a great job of being vulnerable and real with readers – I especially liked how you opened up and were honest about how you felt excluded as a kid. Everyone, regardless of whether they have asthma, can probably relate to those feelings, and you made yourself come across as more real in this way.

However, you could go further in illustrating the strengths, qualities, and values of the present-day you. You can do this most effectively through including examples of events or moments that showcase those traits, and I’ve left comments in the text indicating where this technique could be especially effective. 

Does your story demonstrate self-reflection and insight?

You have a well-crafted narrative here, but it could go further in terms of demonstrating self-reflection and insight. You could do this by more explicitly showing readers how you put the lessons you learned at camp into practice.

For example, when you switched schools after your first summer at camp, what made it easier to make friends: Was it really just the new school, or did you have a new attitude or confidence that also helped? Or perhaps you could share a real-life story about how you put the lessons from camp into practice by, say, befriending a lonely student or persevering in another difficult situation. 

College Essay Checklist

Your coach will provide an in-depth content review designed to help you showcase strong writing skills and personal qualities that admissions officers expect to see from college-ready applicants.

Don't wait too long...

The deadline to submit your college application will be here before you know it. Get peace of mind knowing that your essay is on the right track, and rely on expert advice to make your essay even stronger.

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Frequently asked questions

We know that waiting for feedback can be nerve-racking. If you select our faster deadline option, you’ll hear from your personal statement editor in 12 hours or less – including on weekends and holidays. 

We never engage in rewriting or adding text at Scribbr. Our personal statement editors will make grammatical corrections and leave suggestions using Word’s track changes and commenting feature. However, we always make sure that your perspective and voice remain front and center in your essay.

We know that waiting for feedback can be nerve-racking. If you select our faster deadline option, you’ll hear from your college essay coach in 12 hours or less – including on weekends and holidays.

Yes. All our college essay coaches are subject-matter experts and can help you make decisions regarding the content of your essay. Your coach will help you make a strong case for your admission.

Our essay coaches will provide feedback on…

• Whether your topic is appropriate and how to strengthen it
• Whether your essay demonstrates positive traits and authenticity
• Whether the narrative flows smoothly and grabs the reader’s attention
• How to dig deeper and show self-reflection and insight
• What content is missing and should be added
• What content is weak and should be removed
• How to shorten your essay to meet a word count limit

However, we will never…

• Write or rewrite content for you
• Research or fact-check your essay’s content

If you have any questions, feel free to email [email protected].

Yes! Our essay coaches can help you reduce your word count by up to 25%. You can choose to receive this feedback through direct edits or suggestions in comments – just select your choice when you upload your essay.

When you submit your essay to our College Essay Editing & Coaching service, you’ll be asked to indicate what type of content feedback you would like to receive. You can choose from three options:

Dig deep and challenge me

Give me the standard treatment

Tread lightly

Whichever option you choose, you’ll receive in-depth content feedback from your essay coach. However, the type of feedback your essay coach provides may differ, and the option you should choose depends on what outcome you want from the review. You can always elaborate on what type of feedback you want in your note to your essay coach.

Learn more about the three options below.

Choose from three options

If you choose this option, we’ll challenge you to write the best possible essay – no content suggestions are off-limits, including reorienting your topic or reframing your story. Students who choose this option aren’t afraid to go back to the drawing board if it’ll increase their chances of getting accepted. You may have to roll up your sleeves and do some more work on your essay, but your essay will be much stronger because of it.

Select this option if your priority is to have the best possible essay, even if it requires some extra work on your side.

We’ll strike a balance between “dig deep and challenge me” and “tread lightly.” We may suggest changes to your structure and narrative, including removing weak content, elaborating on certain sections, and adding content to strengthen your arguments. You may have to rework sentences and paragraphs, but we won’t suggest major content changes.

With this option, we’ll focus on improving your essay in a way that requires little additional work from you. We’ll provide you with targeted suggestions for how to refine your essay’s structure and narrative, but we will work within your current structure and topic. While you may have to make a few tweaks here and there, we’ll aim to return you a polished draft that’s ready to be submitted to your chosen colleges.

Select this option if you are fairly satisfied with your essay and don’t want to make major changes or if you have limited time to revise.

At Scribbr, we promise to make every customer 100% happy with the service we offer. Our philosophy: Your complaint is always justified – no denial, no doubts.

Our customer support team is here to find the solution that helps you the most, whether that’s a free new edit or a refund for the service.