famous quotes for college essays

What’s Your Perfect Career?  Take the Free Quiz

Which School is Perfect For You? Find Out!

75 Best Motivational and Inspirational Quotes For College Students

Darius Goldman

To save you from endless research, we’ve put together a list of the 75 best graduation, and college student inspiration quotes of all time..

Going to college and prepping for the “real world” is not easy. Dealing with grades, studying, bills, pressure from your parents, and having to answer the big question: “What should I do with my life?“, means there are a lot of expectations on your plate.

Whether you are a new college student, a graduate, prepping for your finals, or in the middle of a semester still trying to get through your classes, being a student can be stressful.

However, sometimes all it takes is a little inspiration and wisdom to find the motivation to kill it in your college classes. To save you from endless research and homework, we’ve put together a list of the 75 best graduation, and college student inspirational quotes of all time. 

Quotes From Freshmen in College

• “It’s not about perfect. It’s about effort.” – Jillian Michaels
• “Excellence is not a skill. It is an attitude.”– Ralph Marston
• “Focus on your goal. Don’t look in any direction but ahead.” -unknown
• “You don’t get what you wish for. You get what you work for.” – Daniel Milstein
• “Do something now; your future self will thank you for later.” – unknown
• “Don’t try to be perfect. Just try to be better than you were yesterday.” – unknown
• “Keep going. Everything you need will come to you at the perfect time.” – unknown
• “Even the greatest were beginners. Don’t be afraid to take that first step.” – unknown
• “Everything you’ve ever wanted is on the other side of fear.” – George Addair
• “Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life.”– Steve Jobs
• “You can’t use up creativity. The more you use, the more you have.”– Maya Angelou
• ‘The best way to gain self-confidence is to do what you are afraid to do.” – Swati Sharma
• “If you hear a voice within you say ‘you cannot paint,’ then by all means paint, and that voice will be silenced.” – Vincent Van Gogh
• “Courage doesn’t always roar. Sometimes courage is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying ‘I will try again tomorrow’.”– Mary Anne Radmacher

Quotes to Help You Study Harder

15. “A little progress each day adds up to big results.” – Satya Nani

16. “It’s not about having time. It’s about making time.” – unknown

17. “Losers quit when they’re tired. Winners quit when they’ve won.”

18. “Skill is only developed by hours and hours of work.” – Usain Bolt

19. “You will never always be motivated. You have to learn to be disciplined.” – unknown

20. “Self-discipline is the magic power that makes you virtually unstoppable.” – Dan Kennedy

21. “The way to get started is to quit talking and begin doing.” – Walt Disney

22. “Focus on doing the right things instead of a bunch of things.” – Mike Krieger

23. “The successful warrior is the average man, with laser-like focus.” – Bruce Lee

24. “Discipline is just choosing between what you want now and what you want most.” – Abraham Lincoln

Quotes That Help Build Determination

25. “Wake up with determination. Go to bed with satisfaction.” – unknown

26. “It never gets easier. You just get better.” – Jordan Hoechlin

27. “Fall seven times, stand up eight.” – Japanese Proverb

28. “The pain you feel today will be the strength you feel tomorrow.” – Nicole

29. “You don’t want to look back and know you could have done better.” – unknown

30. “Successful people are not gifted; they just work hard, then succeed on purpose.” – G.K. Nielson

31. “Determination is doing what needs to be done even when you don’t feel like doing it.” –  unknown

32. “If you are not willing to risk the usual, you will have to settle for the ordinary.” – Jim Rohn

33. “Perseverance is the hard work you do after you get tired of doing the hard work you already did.” – Newt Gingrich

Quotes for Graduation

   34. “Everything’s always ending. But everything’s always beginning, too.” — Patrick Ness    35. “There is no passion to be found in playing small, in settling for a life that is less than the one you are capable of living. —Nelson Mandela    36. “The fireworks begin today. Each diploma is a lighted match, each one of you is a fuse.” — Ed Koch    37. “Don’t cry because it’s over. Smile because it happened.” —Dr. Seuss

38. “Always be a first-rate version of yourself, instead of a second-rate version of somebody else.” — Judy Garland

39. “You may never know what results come of your action, but if you do nothing there will be no result.” — Mahatma Ghandi

40. “Education is something we have to keep pursuing day after day.” — Premier Brian Gallant 41. “If you don’t go after what you want, you’ll never have it. If you don’t ask, the answer is always no. If you don’t step forward, you’re always in the same place.” – Nora Roberts 42. “The best way to predict your future is to create it.” – Abraham Lincoln 43. “No, sky is not the limit. It is only the beginning.” — Donovan Livingston

44, “Every person you meet knows something you don’t; learn from them.” —H Jackson Brown Jr.

45. “Great things are done by a series of small things brought together.” — Vincent Van Gogh

46. “Never bend your head. Always hold it high. Look the world right in the eye.” – Helen Keller 47. “To accomplish great things, we must not only act, but also dream, not only plan, but also believe.” — Anatole Franc 48. “It takes courage to grow up and become who you really are.” – E.E. Cummings

Motivational Quotes For After Graduation

49. “Whatever you are, be a good one.”– Abraham Lincoln

50. “Opportunities don’t happen. You create them.”– Chris Grosser

51. “The true success is the person who invented himself.”– Al Goldstein

52. “Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life.”– Steve Jobs

53. “All progress takes place outside of your comfort zone.”– Michael John Bobak

54. “Set a goal so big that you can’t achieve it until you grow into the person who can.”

55. “Make the most of yourself….for that is all there is of you.”– Ralph Waldo Emerson

56. “Definiteness of purpose is the starting point of all achievement.”– W. Clement Stone

57. “There is only one thing that makes a dream impossible to achieve: the fear of failure.” – Paulo Coelho

58. “With the realization of one’s own potential and self-confidence in one’s ability, one can build a better world.”– Dalai Lama

59. “The noblest question in the world is: What good may I do in it?” — Benjamin Franklin

60. “You get in life what you have the courage to ask for.” —Oprah Winfrey Funny Graduation Quotes

61. “Do not worry too much about your lawn. You will soon find, if you haven’t already, that almost every adult American devotes tremendous time and money to the maintenance of an invasive plant species called turf grass that we can’t eat. I encourage you to choose better obsessions.”- John Green to Butler University in 2013

62. “Remember, when it comes to applying for jobs, books ARE judged by their cover!” Patricia Akins

63. “Struggling to decide what to do after graduation is, and always will be, a sort of rite of passage to the next phase of your life.” Gloria Davidson

64. “Life is an improvisation. You have no idea what’s going to happen next and you are mostly just making things up as you go along. – Stephen Colbert

65. “I learned many great lessons from my father, not the least of which was that you can fail at what you don’t want, so you might as well take a chance on doing what you love.” – Jim Carrey

66. “You will never have more energy or enthusiasm, hair, or brain cells than you have today.” – Tom & Ray Magliozzi

67. “You’re going to fall down, but the world doesn’t care how many times you fall down, as long as it’s one fewer than the numbers of times you get back up.” – Aaron Sorkin

68. “Just remember, you can’t climb the ladder of success with your hands in your pockets.” – Arnold Schwarzenegger

69. “So long as your desire to explore is greater than your desire to not screw up, you’re on the right track.” – Ed Helms

70. “The only place where success comes before work is in the dictionary.” – Vidal Sassoon

71. “You will find the key to success under the alarm clock.” – Benjamin Franklin

72. “Your families are extremely proud of you. You can’t imagine the sense of relief they are experiencing. This would be a most opportune time to ask for money.” – Gary Bolding

73. “To those of you who received honors, awards and distinctions, I say well done. And to the C students, I say you too may one day be president of the United States.” – George W. Bush

74. “The road to success is dotted with many tempting parking spaces.” – Will Rogers

75. “Now that you’ve graduated, just remember: Bosses don’t usually accept notes from your mother.” – Melanie White

College can be stressful. It’s easy to get into a cycle where you can lack motivation, confidence, and drive. Hopefully these quotes from noteworthy people have given you some confidence to push through college or encouragement to take on the post-college world. If you’re looking for some more college advice check out our blog!

About the author

Related posts.

Career Schools: How To Simplify Student Financing With A Single Application To Multiple Lenders

Manuevering the Complex Landscape of Student Loan Debt in the United States

6 Best Options to Pay For School After You’ve Exhausted your Federal Aid

Ready to discover the power of learn now, pay later.

Let Meratas empower you.

Meratas provides embedded payment plan infrastructure and a multi-lender marketplace. Meratas does not provide financing and is not a lending institution.

Privacy Policy

Terms of Use

Lender Marketplace Login

School Payment Plan Login

NMLS Consumer Access: ID 2120180

Meratas is not responsible for third party products, services, sites, recommendations, endorsements, reviews, etc. All products, logos, and company names are trademarks™ or registered® trademarks of their respective holders. Their use does not signify or suggest the endorsement, affiliation, or sponsorship, of or by Meratas.

School matching is provided by Meratas as an independent, advertising-supported service. We may be compensated by the schools we promote in exchange for featured placement of certain sponsored products and services, or your clicking on links posted on this website. 

This compensation may impact how and where products appear on this site (including, for example, the order in which they appear). Meratas strives to provide a wide array of offers for our users, but our offers do not represent all learning institutions or course programs.

We endeavor to ensure that the information on this site is current and accurate but you should confirm any information directly with your selected learning institution and read the information they provide.  Although every effort has been made to provide complete and accurate information, Meratas makes no warranties, express or implied, or representations as to the accuracy of content contained herein, which has been provided to us by our school partners.. We assume no liability or responsibility for any error or omissions in the information contained herein or the operation or use of these materials

At Meratas, we believe in transparency and partner with reputable companies to enhance your potential for success. Earnings figures are indicative, not guarantees. Earnings figures are taken from ZipRecruiter for the New York, NY region, and can be reviewed here .  Using this link , you may review earnings figures specific to your state of residence.  Success stories are not typical; results may vary. Placement rates are not a promise of employment.

We endeavor to ensure that the information on this site is current and accurate but you should confirm any information directly with your selected learning institution and read the information they provide.  Although every effort has been made to provide complete and accurate information, Meratas makes no warranties, express or implied, or representations as to the accuracy of content contained herein, which has been provided to us by our school partners.. We assume no liability or responsibility for any error or omissions in the information contained herein or the operation or use of these materials.

• Testimonials
• Plans & Pricing
• Free GRE Practice Test

Study Like a Superhero!

• Track your strengths and weaknesses
• Study only what you really need. Anytime. Anywhere
• Learn from expert tutors who are just a phone call away

Join over 172,586 students who are studying the smart way!

21 Killer GRE Essay Quotes You Should Be Using Right Now

By Jitta Raghavender Rao • GRE Writing

“[A] quotation is a handy thing to have about, saving one the trouble of thinking for oneself, always a laborious business.” – A.A. Milne

Chances are you too know a few famous quotes, but you probably don’t use them. I know so, because I’m guilty of neglecting quotes on the GRE.

So, why should you use essay quotes on the GRE?  To start with, the right use of quotes in essays augments the power of your arguments and makes your essays appear more convincing. Plus, essays with quotes tend to score better than essays without them, because of the initial impact the use of quotes create on the reader, and help strengthen your point.

But we need to exercise prudence. Only use quotes as is, if you are convinced that paraphrasing would lower the impact or change the meaning of the original author’s words or when the argument could not be better expressed or said more succinctly.

Here is how you make sure you are doing it right.

How do I incorporate quotes into my essay?

At times, an essay can appear painfully discorded if the quotations are out of place or if the essay is too stuffed with quotes.

So, what should you do to avoid this?

A great quote plays one or more roles from the following:

• creates the initial impact on the essay grader
• makes your essay look more promising and interesting
• establishes credibility
• concludes the essay with a point to contemplate

If the quote doesn’t serve any of the above then you are forcing it into the essay and this could do more harm than good.

You should start writing your essay with a quote that lays foundation to the main idea behind the essay. This can have a major impact on the evaluator. You can also comment on the quotation in this introductory paragraph if you wish. Either way, to get a perfect score on the GRE essay, use a relevant quote strategically but don’t force it into the essay.

Can I alter the structure of the quotation?

Using the exact words from the original source is called quoting. You should quote when you believe that the way the original author expresses an idea is the most effective way to communicate the point you wish to make. If you want to borrow an idea from the author but don’t put the idea in their exact words, then it’s called paraphrasing. (but remember that you still have to cite the original author even when you are paraphrasing)

For example, Ronald Reagan said, “Trust, but verify.” You can alter the quotation on your own according to the passage, by saying: ‘To paraphrase Ronald Reagan’s famous quote, “It is easier to trust when you can verify.”‘ By doing this, you are not only citing the original author, but also gaining extra points for using your own version of the quote.

How many quotes should I use?

If you deploy a lot of quotations in your essay, it appears as though several people are talking about the topic apart from yourself. This would downplay your own voice and leaves little room for your own ideas. It is your essay and it should be your voice that needs to be heard, not some notable/famous person’s. Quote as infrequently as possible. So, don’t cram every quote you know into the essay. As a rule of thumb, refrain from using more than 2 quotes in any essay. (One in the introductory paragraph and the other if necessary in the conclusion)

How do I introduce the quote in my own words?

The last thing you would want is get your score cancelled on account of plagiarism. It’s highly recommended that you cite the author of the quotation. If you don’t cite, you may give the impression that you claim to be the original author and that could result in plagiarism. You should place the quote in double quotation marks. Here is an example usage citing the author:

Thomas Jefferson once said “The will of the people is the only legitimate foundation of any government, and to protect its free expression should be our first object.”

Categorization of GRE Essay Topics

The fascinating thing about the GRE essay topics is that they’re already published on the official ETS website. This may sound crazy because giving out the questions in advance is not normal. Now, use this to your advantage. You can find all the GRE essay topics on the official ETS website .

But there’s a catch! You were expecting a few, right?

Well, there are close to 200 topics in all – far too many to practice responses in advance. Also, practicing each of these topics is not advisable as it is going to take a lot of time and effort and there is no point in mugging them up. You could as well spend this time on learning some math. However, there’s a good news. Just scanning through these two lists will give you an excellent idea of the types of issues and arguments that show up on test day.

I just made things a bit easy for you, though. Most of the topics that show up on the GRE essay section can be broadly grouped into five categories.

• Government/Politics
• Sciences and Technology

So, next time when you practice writing an essay response, make sure you write at least one essay from each of these categories. And memorize a few quotes related to each one of these topics, as they will be handy.

Follow us on Instagram

List of most useful essay quotes

I’ve compiled a list of easy-to-digest quotes that should help you write the perfect essay. Bookmark this page NOW for future reference.

The following quotes from great thinkers have been selected based on their relevance to common GRE essay topics and for their ease of usage.

• The only good is knowledge and the only evil is ignorance – Socrates
• A people that value its privileges above its principles soon loses both – Dwight D. Eisenhower
• In theory, there is no difference between theory and practice. But in practice, there is – Yogi Berra
• A little inaccuracy can sometimes save a ton of explanation – H.H Munro
• Any intelligent fool can make things bigger, more complex and more violent. It takes a touch of genius – and a lot of courage – to move in the opposite direction – E. F. Schumacher
• A consensus means that everyone agrees to say collectively what no one believes individually – Abba Eban
• Non-cooperation with evil is as much a duty as is cooperation with good – Mohandas Gandhi
• Whatever government is not a government of laws, is a despotism, let it be called what it may – Daniel Webster
• Good people do not need laws to tell them to act responsibly, while bad people will find a way around the laws – Plato
• Far and away the best prize that life offers is the chance to work hard at work worth doing – Theodore Roosevelt
• It is dangerous to be right, when the government is wrong – Voltaire
• The will of the people is the only legitimate foundation of any government, and to protect its free expression should be our first object – Thomas Jefferson
• No nation is fit to sit in judgment upon any other nation – Woodrow Wilson (28th U.S President)
• The artist is nothing without the gift, but the gift is nothing without work – Emile Zola
• The world is full of educated derelicts – Calvin Coolidge
• A lie gets halfway around the world before the truth has a change to get its pants on – Winston Churchill
• It’s not the size of the dog in the fight, it’s the size of the fight in the dog – Mark Twain
• Life contains but two tragedies. One is not to get your heart’s desire, the other is to get it – Socrates
• If women didn’t exist, all the money in the world would have no meaning – Aristotle Onasis
• Men are not disturbed by things, but the view they take of things – Epictetus
• As a rule, men worry more about what they can’t see than about what they can – Julius Caesar

Now, these are a handful of quotes. The goal is to memorize 5 or 6 of your favorite quotes so you’ll be able to contextually fit one into the essay on the test day. While practicing, you may look at the list of quotes found above however, if you can remember a specific quote apposite to your essay topic, try to use it – one quote for every essay.

For those avid writers, who believe the number of quotes above are too low, we have the right tool for you. Ellipsoid created a random quote generator tool that draws 5 famous quotes from Goodreads every time you reload the page. The good news is these 5 quotes are always theme based so you know where to use them.

Writing essays isn’t all about the substance. It’s the basics that many of us forget. If you are going to put in the time to practice writing essays, might as well maximize the score you could get by deploying a quote in your essays.

So, what’s your favorite quote?

Other posts you'll love:

DID YOU ENJOY READING THIS POST?

If so, subscribe to updates and receive exclusive weekly GRE resources and tips. Also get a FREE COPY of our eBook, GRE Prep the Smart Way! (Valued at $30)

No spam, unsubscribe any time!

20 Comments to “21 Killer GRE Essay Quotes You Should Be Using Right Now”

i think it is difficult to remember even these 21 quotes in the exam. any tips to remember them will be helpful. thanks

Yes, it is rather difficult to remember all the 21 quotes, which is why we asked you to pick a few of your favorite ones from the list. Plus, the only way you can remember these quotes is by using them while you practice AWA essays.

Happy Studying! 🙂

I personally memorize the ones that can be useful in more than one topic, and as said learn the ones you like most.

Quote number 5… oh, Albert. You make my bricks fall off. As to you, Mr. Kaundinya, I might win a brand spankin’ new tablet thanks to your quotes. I’m sure my D.A.R.E essay will be awesome.

I found that they are advantageous,but i don’t think that i can get used of them in a short time.

thnx for these awesome quotes guys.i’m damn sure that the’ll help a looooooooot in improving my skills.

Super glad to know they helped you, Bhavya! Hope you’ll kill some essays with these quotes now. 🙂

It is really helpful

It Is Realy Inspiring $ Motivating I Am So Interested To It!

Thenks A Heap It Is Realy Inspiring And Motivating!

Yeah…awesome list

I must say you have high quality content here. Your content can go viral.

Thanks for your updates. I love your all status updates. Can you please update more for facebook . I am a big fan of you. I am waiting for your reply.

Wow! This is the fantastic technique to use quotes in essay, because this think bring something new in essay writing. I’m big fan of your after reading this article.

Very helpful

I liked those quotes

Those quotes are amazing….. I’m sure that it it will help in writting essays

Glad it helped, Merin! Feel free to message us if you have any questions! 🙂

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed .

Download The Free GRE Guide (Valued at $30)

Also get Free GRE tips directly in your inbox!

College Wisdom: 50 Inspiring Quotes to Fuel Your Academic Journey

Embarking on a college journey is an exciting and transformative time in one’s life. It is a period of growth, self-discovery, and academic pursuit. Along this path, we often seek guidance and inspiration to navigate the challenges and make the most of our educational experience. Here, we present a collection of 50 inspiring quotes that can fuel your academic journey, providing wisdom and motivation to help you thrive in college.

“Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” Nelson Mandela

Education empowers individuals to make a difference in the world. It equips us with knowledge, critical thinking skills, and a broader perspective, enabling us to be agents of positive change.

“The beautiful thing about learning is that no one can take it away from you.” B.B. King

Learning is a lifelong pursuit that enriches our lives and opens doors of opportunity. Once we acquire knowledge and skills, they become a part of us, shaping our thoughts and actions.

“Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful.” Albert Schweitzer

True success lies in finding joy and fulfillment in our pursuits. When we are passionate about our studies and embrace them wholeheartedly, success naturally follows.

“The only way to do great work is to love what you do.” Steve Jobs

When we are passionate about our chosen field of study, our work becomes a labor of love. It drives us to give our best, think creatively, and make a meaningful impact.

“The roots of education are bitter, but the fruit is sweet.” Aristotle

Although the process of learning can be challenging and demanding, the rewards it brings are immeasurable. The growth, knowledge, and skills gained through education bear sweet fruits that last a lifetime.

“Believe you can, and you’re halfway there.” Theodore Roosevelt

Having self-belief is crucial for success. When we have faith in our abilities and stay optimistic, we are already halfway towards achieving our goals.

“The expert in anything was once a beginner.” Helen Hayes

Every expert was once a beginner, starting with little knowledge or skill. Embrace your beginner status and approach each learning opportunity with curiosity and a willingness to grow.

“Education is not preparation for life; education is life itself.” John Dewey

Education is not solely about preparing for the future; it is an integral part of living a fulfilling life. Embrace the journey of learning and make the most of every moment.

“The mind is not a vessel to be filled, but a fire to be kindled.” Plutarch

Our minds are not empty vessels waiting to be filled with information. Instead, they are a source of curiosity, passion, and creativity. Education ignites the fire within us, encouraging us to seek knowledge and explore new ideas.

“You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream.” C.S. Lewis

Age is not a barrier to pursuing new goals and dreams. College offers a fresh start and an opportunity to reinvent yourself, regardless of where you are in life.

“The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.” Eleanor Roosevelt

Believe in the power of your dreams and aspirations. With determination and perseverance, you can shape your own future and make your dreams a reality.

“The difference between a successful person and others is not a lack of strength, not a lack of knowledge, but rather a lack in will.” Vince Lombardi

Success is not solely determined by strength or knowledge but by the will to overcome challenges and persevere. Cultivate your willpower and use it to propel yourself forward.

“The only limit to our realization of tomorrow will be our doubts of today.” Franklin D. Roosevelt

Our doubts and fears can hold us back from realizing our full potential. By letting go of self-doubt and embracing possibilities, we can create a brighter future.

“Don’t watch the clock; do what it does. Keep going.” Sam Levenson

Instead of focusing on time passing, keep moving forward. Stay motivated, work consistently, and make the most of every opportunity that comes your way.

“The best way to predict the future is to create it.” (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); Peter Drucker

Take charge of your future by actively shaping it. Set goals, make plans, and take actions that align with your aspirations. You have the power to create the future you desire.

“It does not matter how slowly you go as long as you do not stop.” Confucius

Progress may sometimes feel slow, but what matters is that you keep moving forward. Perseverance and consistency are key to achieving your goals, no matter the pace.

“The secret to getting ahead is getting started.” Mark Twain

Often, the hardest part is taking that first step. Begin your academic journey with enthusiasm and determination, and you will be on your way to success.

“You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.” Wayne Gretzky

Avoid regrets by taking opportunities when they present themselves. Seize every chance to learn, grow, and explore new horizons.

“The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you’ll go.” Dr. Seuss

Reading and learning open doors to new experiences and knowledge. The more we engage with books and ideas, the more we expand our horizons and possibilities.

“Your education is a dress rehearsal for a life that is yours to lead.” Nora Ephron

College is a preparatory phase for the life ahead. Use this time to explore, experiment, and shape your identity, as it will lay the foundation for the path you choose to take.

“In the middle of difficulty lies opportunity.” Albert Einstein

Challenges and setbacks often present opportunities for growth and learning. Embrace difficulties as chances to develop resilience and discover new solutions.

“The only person you are destined to become is the person you decide to be.” Ralph Waldo Emerson

Your destiny lies in your own hands. Define who you want to be, set your goals, and make choices that align with the person you aspire to become.

“Believe in yourself and all that you are. Know that there is something inside you that is greater than any obstacle.” Christian D. Larson

Have faith in your abilities and inner strength. Trust that you have the power to overcome any obstacle that comes your way and achieve your goals.

“The harder I work, the luckier I get.” Samuel Goldwyn

Success is often a product of hard work, dedication, and perseverance. The more effort you put into your studies and pursuits, the more opportunities and “luck” you will encounter.

“You have to be odd to be number one.” Dr. Seuss

Embrace your unique qualities and quirks. It is often those who stand out from the crowd and think differently who achieve greatness.

“The beautiful thing about learning is nobody can take it away from you.” B.B. King

Learning is an invaluable asset that stays with us forever. It is a gift that no one can ever take away, and it continually enriches our lives.

“Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire.” William Butler Yeats

Education is not about passively absorbing information but about igniting a passion for learning. It sparks curiosity, creativity, and a lifelong thirst for knowledge.

Our doubts and fears can limit our potential if we allow them to hold us back. Step out of your comfort zone, embrace uncertainty, and believe in your abilities to shape a brighter tomorrow.

“Education is the key to unlock the golden door of freedom.” George Washington Carver

Education is a powerful tool that liberates us from ignorance and empowers us to make informed decisions. It opens doors to opportunities, broadens our perspectives, and allows us to live a life of freedom.

“The beautiful thing about learning is that no one can take it away from you.” (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); B.B. King

Learning is a lifelong pursuit that no one can ever take away from us. It is a constant source of growth, enrichment, and personal development.

“Don’t let what you cannot do interfere with what you can do.” John Wooden

Focus on your strengths and what you can accomplish instead of being hindered by your limitations. Embrace your abilities and make the most of them.

“Education is not the filling of a vessel, but the kindling of a flame.” Socrates

Education is not about passively absorbing information but about sparking a fire within us. It fuels our curiosity, inspires critical thinking, and sets our minds ablaze with new ideas.

Passion is the driving force behind great work. When you love what you do, it becomes more than just a task; it becomes a fulfilling journey towards excellence.

“Don’t be pushed around by the fears in your mind. Be led by the dreams in your heart.” Roy T. Bennett

Don’t let fear hold you back from pursuing your dreams. Trust your heart’s desires and let them guide you towards a future filled with purpose and fulfillment.

“Education is the passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to those who prepare for it today.” Malcolm X

Invest in your education today to secure a promising future. Each day of learning is a step closer to unlocking new opportunities and realizing your potential.

“The world is a university, and everyone in it is a teacher.” Mike Norton

We can learn from every person we encounter and every experience we have. The world is our classroom, offering valuable lessons and insights at every turn.

“Education is the most powerful weapon you can use to change the world.” Nelson Mandela

Education equips us with the tools to make a positive impact on the world. It empowers us to challenge the status quo, advocate for change, and create a better future.

Believe in the power of your dreams and aspirations. With determination, perseverance, and unwavering belief, you can shape your own future and make a lasting impact.

“In learning, you will teach, and in teaching, you will learn.” Phil Collins

Learning is a continuous cycle where the roles of student and teacher are interchangeable. By sharing knowledge and experiences, we deepen our own understanding and grow as individuals.

Related Quotes

Melodies to Inspire: 50 Quotes on the Power of Music

Love & Commitment: Top 20 Quotes on Marriage

Perseverance Quotes: Keep Going and Never Give Up

Trusting Love: 50 Quotes on Building Strong Relationships

• Skip to main content

India’s Largest Career Transformation Portal

30 Best Quotes for Essay Writing

December 10, 2023 by Sandeep

The essay is an independent, educational, and scientific student research. In writing this paper, students master the methods and gain the ability to conduct research. In addition, essay writing helps form the student’s creative thinking, test the skills of collecting, analyzing, and interpreting literature, and formulate conclusions and suggestions.

Successful essay writing depends on strict adherence to the basic requirements. These requirements relate primarily to the scientific level of the work, its content, structure, form of presentation of the material, and design. The teacher may not accept works in violation of state standards and established requirements. Inconsistencies in the design can significantly affect the final evaluation of the work. The student’s compliance with all the requirements for writing and design of the essay instills certain skills in conducting research, which will be useful in creating other types of papers.

All of the above points are important to gain the ability to complete an essay. However, this is not an as simple type of student paper as it may seem at first glance. Students often have difficulty in both essay writing and designing. Fortunately, today everyone can find someone to write a paper online. It is only necessary to pay the set price. The best writers work for an online company DoMyEssay. To get their help, you should visit the site and request, “Please, do an essay for me.” The high quality and reliability of writing services are guaranteed for everyone.

Requirements for Quotes & References in Essay Writing

A compulsory component of any scientific work is a scientific citation. It is essential to cite the source from which the materials or individual results are borrowed or the ideas and conclusions based on which the problems, tasks, issues to which the work is devoted are developed. Such links make it possible to find relevant sources, check the accuracy of citations, obtain the necessary information about these sources.

The use of references in essays is mandatory and is used in the following cases:

• When quoting fragments of text, formulas, tables, illustrations;
• When paraphrasing, non-verbal reproduction of a fragment of another’s text;
• When analyzing the content of other publications in the text;
• When referring to other publications where the material to be discussed is more complete.

The absence of a link is a copyright infringement, and an incorrect link is considered a serious error. All sources cited in the list of references must be indicated in the text of the paper.

Importance of Correct Citation in Student Papers

The importance of citation is in the need to demonstrate the breadth of research and interest in the publications of other authors, to confirm own arguments with statements from other sources. Text borrowed from other sources is used for this purpose.

Here are three main functions that quotes perform in essay writing :

• Places your work in context, creates dialogue;
• Pay tribute to the previous work that formed the basis of your research;
• Maintains the authenticity and accuracy of scientific literature.

List of Helpful Quotes You Can Use in Your Essay Writing

Below is a list of 30 quotes you can use in your essay writing:

• The simplest example is more convincing than the most eloquent sermon (Lucius Annec Seneca);
• It is not people who need rules, but rules need people (S. Dube);
• The one who is no longer able to serve as anything serves as a good example (Andre Siegfried);
• Take an example from your elders, while they behave approximately (Jerzy Leszczynski);
• The need to set a good example for your children robs middle-aged people of all pleasure (William Feder);
• Remember: sooner or later, your son will follow your example and not your advice (Pierre Corneille);
• An example is stronger than a threat (Pierre Corneille);
• Bad examples are stronger than good rules (Joey Locke);
• You only have one life. You have to live it as fully as possible (Jojo Moyes);
• When life is good, there is no need to argue about it (Ray Bradbury);
• There are moments in life that change us once and for all (Jeffrey Deaver);
• The reader lives a thousand lives before he dies. The person who never reads experiences only one (George Martin);
• On our path in life, we will meet everyone who is destined to meet us (Charles Dickens);
• What is the sense of life? Serve others and do good (Aristotle);
• Those who illuminate the lives of others will not be left without light themselves (James Matthew Barry);
• In general, I live without hesitation, so I always have fun (Francis Scott Fitzgerald);
• An example is always more powerful than a sermon (Samuel Johnson);
• When it comes to budget, everyone wants to go to heaven, but no one wants to die (Jean Chrétien);
• Violating our duty, thereby we violate our rights (Jean-Jacques Rousseau);
• You cannot talk about the budget without knowing approximately the figures of its income and expenses (Theodor Herzl);
• Civilization road paved with tax receipts (Andrew McKenzie);
• If you know how to spend less than you get, then you have the Philosopher’s Stone (Benjamin Franklin);
• Only two incentives make people work: the thirst for wages and the fear of losing them (Henry Ford);
• There is no perfection in the world (Antoine de Saint-Exupery);
• You are forever responsible for the one you tamed (Antoine de Saint-Exupery);
• It’s good where we are not (Antoine de Saint-Exupery);
• All adults were children at first, only a few of them remember this (Antoine de Saint-Exupery);
• Live and learn (Lucius Annec Seneca);
• The end justifies the means (Ignatius de Loyola);
• Truth is in wine (Pliny the Elder).

• Dissertation
• PowerPoint Presentation
• Book Report/Review
• Research Proposal
• Math Problems
• Proofreading
• Movie Review
• Cover Letter Writing
• Personal Statement
• Nursing Paper
• Argumentative Essay
• Research Paper
• Discussion Board Post

How to Use a Quote in an Essay

Table of Contents

MLA in-text citation how-to

You can take a quote from different sources of information, such as books, magazines, websites or printed journals. Using quotes in an essay serves three goals:

• Present additional evidence to support your point of view or oppose a claim or idea;
• Help a reader better understand a topic under analysis;
• Strengthen your argumentation on a topic using another writer’s eloquence.

Since quotes are mostly used in Humanities, you’ll have to follow MLA citation referencing guidelines. The Modern Language Association citation manual implies two types of quotes – short and long.

• Short quote – Is less than 4 lines of typed text and can be embedded directly into a sentence;
• Long quote – Is more than 4 lines of typed text and requires a separate content block in an essay without quotation marks.

Writing college essays, the recommendation is to use short quotes.

Parenthetical citation

Referring to the works of other authors in-text is done using a parenthetical citation . Such a method implies the author-page style of quoting. For example:

When it comes to writing, King suggests: “Write. Rewrite. When not writing or rewriting, read. I know of no shortcuts.” (5)

Given the MLA in-text citation already contains King’s last name, you shouldn’t mention it in the parenthesis. If the author’s name isn’t mentioned in-text, it has to be specified in a parenthetical citation.

When it comes to writing, there’s a quote I like the most: “Write. Rewrite. When not writing or rewriting, read. I know of no shortcuts.” (King 5)

According to MLA guidelines, at the end of the essay, there has to be the Works Cited page . It contains the full reference featuring author’s full name, the full title of the source, the volume, the issue number, the date of publishing, and the URL (if the source was found online). Here’s an example of the full referencing in the Works Cited:

King, Larry L. “The Collection of Best Works.” Oxford University Press, vol. 2, no. 3, Jan.-Feb. 2017, http://www.prowritersdigest.com/editor-blogs/inspirational-quotes/72-of-the-best-quotes-about-writing.

How to start an essay with a quote?

Starting an essay with a quote is a matter of controversy. Experts in the pro camp suggest that a quote at the beginning of an essay helps make a powerful statement right from the start. Moreover, an interesting, captivating quote grabs the reader’s attention right from the start.

Experts from the against camp suggest that when you begin an essay with a quote, you miss on the opportunity to present your own take on the subject matter. In their opinion, when writing the introduction, you have to rely only on your words. Whereas quotes are most useful in the main body, serving as an additional argumentation. In conclusion, a quote can be placed, too.

How to use quotes in the middle of an essay?

Main Body is the place you’re meant to state a quote or two, depending on the length of a paper. A standard 5-paragraph essay will imply you to use 2-3 quotes in the main body. More quotes aren’t necessary for such a short assignment. Two quotes in the main body will do just fine.

In the main body paragraph, a quote is placed in the middle of the passage . First, you introduce a focal sentence of a paragraph highlighting your point of view regarding a topic. After that, you provide the evidence data and argumentation, among which is a relevant quote. And finally, you smoothly transit to the next body paragraph or the conclusion. Here’re three examples of how to present a quote in one of the main body paragraphs.

Accurate integration of a citation in a text is key. Or the whole passage will sound off.

People who want to become a writer don’t really need any piece of advice. “Those (…) who know that they really want to do this and are cut out for it, they know it.”

College essay quotes have to be naturally embedded in a text .

People who want to become a writer don’t really need any piece of advice: “Those (…) who know that they really want to do this and are cut out for it, they know it.”

There’s also the way to write an essay with quotes in the smoothest way possible.

People who want to become a writer don’t really need any piece of advice. They simply “know that they really want to do this and are cut out for it, they know it.”

See how organically a quote is inserted in a sentence? That’s the best-case scenario of using a quote in a sentence.

How to end an essay with a quote?

Sometimes, ending an essay with a quote is better than merely restating your thesis statement. Citations can be taken from both primary and secondary sources. Good quotes to end an essay might be of your course professor’s. According to essay writing websites , quotations taken from the words of subject authorities and thought leaders will do great, too.

A quote ending an essay helps meet 5 objectives:

• Provide a solid closure to your essay;
• Fortify your point of view;
• Give one final argument in favor of your thesis statement;
• Establish your authority on a topic;
• Helps your essay stand out.

Having a quotation at the end of an essay gives a good chance to score an “A”.

15 tips for using quotations in an essay

• Look up quotes in academic sources in the first place;
• Rely on the printed matter rather than internet sources;
• Avoid citing information from Wikipedia;
• Give context to every quotation you use;
• Always use quotation marks to avoid plagiarism-related troubles;
• Explain why the quote you’re about to use in a text is important;
• Seek to integrate quotes smoothly in a sentence for the best effect;
• Each quotation has to be attributed to the original source using parenthesis;
• Gather 10-15 quotes relevant to your topic and then sift through 5 quotes that will serve you best;
• Use the exact wording, punctuation, capitalization and sentence structure as in the original;
• Watch your punctuation when using quotes in a sentence;
• Avoid misquotations, as it’s a sign of a careless attitude towards the assignment;
• Use an ellipsis (…) to withdraw a part of a quote you don’t actually need;
• Try to use short quotes rather than long;
• Avoid quoting quotes, as it’s where students make mistakes most often.

5 motivational quotes for essay writing

Inspiration is a staple in every great writer’s routine. As a student, you might find drawing inspiration a bit too difficult. Here’re a couple of inspiring essay motivation quotes to help you break through the writer’s block. Or you can buy argumentative essay if doing the task yourself isn’t an option.

“I don’t need an alarm clock. My ideas wake me.”

“It’s none of their business that you have to learn to write. Let them think you were born that way.”

“The difference between the almost right word and the right word is … the difference between the lightning bug and the lightning.”

“Making people believe the unbelievable is no trick; it’s work . … Belief and reader absorption come in the details: An overturned tricycle in the gutter of an abandoned neighborhood can stand for everything.”

“To defend what you’ve written is a sign that you are alive.”

Many times life catches us off balance. Lots of written homework. Tight schedule. Sudden illness. Personal matters. Writer’s block. An instructor returned the essay for revisions. At the moments like these, it’s always a good idea to have someone to cover your back. GradeMiners can always write you a new essay, rewrite an existing draft, perform an ending an essay with a quote, or proofread your text for mistakes, typos, as well as correct the use of quotations. Let us know if you need anything, and we’ll help you out!

What does medical assistant essays entail?

The Right Format of a Raisin in the Sun Essay

90 Topic Ideas For Research Paper On Feminism

Calculate for all schools

Your chance of acceptance, your chancing factors, extracurriculars, starting strong: quotes in college essays.

I've seen a few sample essays that open with a quote and I'm wondering, how should I start my college essay with a quote? Is it a good hook, or is it too cliché? I've found some really inspiring quotes that I feel relate to my life and could set the tone for my essay.

Hey there! Starting your college essay with a quote can definitely be a strong hook if chosen wisely. The key is to make sure that the quote ties directly into the narrative or point of your essay in a meaningful way—it should illuminate something about your personality, values, or experiences that you'll expand upon in the rest of the essay. Always pick a quote that you can unpack and that adds depth, rather than one that might be overused or too general.

For instance, if you've found a quote that encapsulates a pivotal moment when you learned something significant, and you reflect that insight in your essay, it can be a great opener. Just ensure that each word in that quote and the attribution (who said it) is pertinent to your story and doesn't overshadow your own voice. Remember, the essay is about you, your perspective, and what you bring to the table, so don't let the quote do all the talking! Good luck with your writing process!

About CollegeVine’s Expert FAQ

CollegeVine’s Q&A seeks to offer informed perspectives on commonly asked admissions questions. Every answer is refined and validated by our team of admissions experts to ensure it resonates with trusted knowledge in the field.

If you're seeing this message, it means we're having trouble loading external resources on our website.

If you're behind a web filter, please make sure that the domains *.kastatic.org and *.kasandbox.org are unblocked.

To log in and use all the features of Khan Academy, please enable JavaScript in your browser.

College admissions

Course: college admissions   >   unit 4, writing a strong college admissions essay.

• Avoiding common admissions essay mistakes
• Brainstorming tips for your college essay
• How formal should the tone of your college essay be?
• Taking your college essay to the next level
• Sample essay 1 with admissions feedback
• Sample essay 2 with admissions feedback
• Student story: Admissions essay about a formative experience
• Student story: Admissions essay about personal identity
• Student story: Admissions essay about community impact
• Student story: Admissions essay about a past mistake
• Student story: Admissions essay about a meaningful poem
• Writing tips and techniques for your college essay

Want to join the conversation?

• Upvote Button navigates to signup page
• Downvote Button navigates to signup page
• Flag Button navigates to signup page

Video transcript

Choose Your Test

Sat / act prep online guides and tips, 177 college essay examples for 11 schools + expert analysis.

College Admissions , College Essays

The personal statement might just be the hardest part of your college application. Mostly this is because it has the least guidance and is the most open-ended. One way to understand what colleges are looking for when they ask you to write an essay is to check out the essays of students who already got in—college essays that actually worked. After all, they must be among the most successful of this weird literary genre.

In this article, I'll go through general guidelines for what makes great college essays great. I've also compiled an enormous list of 100+ actual sample college essays from 11 different schools. Finally, I'll break down two of these published college essay examples and explain why and how they work. With links to 177 full essays and essay excerpts , this article is a great resource for learning how to craft your own personal college admissions essay!

What Excellent College Essays Have in Common

Even though in many ways these sample college essays are very different from one other, they do share some traits you should try to emulate as you write your own essay.

Visible Signs of Planning

Building out from a narrow, concrete focus. You'll see a similar structure in many of the essays. The author starts with a very detailed story of an event or description of a person or place. After this sense-heavy imagery, the essay expands out to make a broader point about the author, and connects this very memorable experience to the author's present situation, state of mind, newfound understanding, or maturity level.

Knowing how to tell a story. Some of the experiences in these essays are one-of-a-kind. But most deal with the stuff of everyday life. What sets them apart is the way the author approaches the topic: analyzing it for drama and humor, for its moving qualities, for what it says about the author's world, and for how it connects to the author's emotional life.

Stellar Execution

A killer first sentence. You've heard it before, and you'll hear it again: you have to suck the reader in, and the best place to do that is the first sentence. Great first sentences are punchy. They are like cliffhangers, setting up an exciting scene or an unusual situation with an unclear conclusion, in order to make the reader want to know more. Don't take my word for it—check out these 22 first sentences from Stanford applicants and tell me you don't want to read the rest of those essays to find out what happens!

A lively, individual voice. Writing is for readers. In this case, your reader is an admissions officer who has read thousands of essays before yours and will read thousands after. Your goal? Don't bore your reader. Use interesting descriptions, stay away from clichés, include your own offbeat observations—anything that makes this essay sounds like you and not like anyone else.

Technical correctness. No spelling mistakes, no grammar weirdness, no syntax issues, no punctuation snafus—each of these sample college essays has been formatted and proofread perfectly. If this kind of exactness is not your strong suit, you're in luck! All colleges advise applicants to have their essays looked over several times by parents, teachers, mentors, and anyone else who can spot a comma splice. Your essay must be your own work, but there is absolutely nothing wrong with getting help polishing it.

And if you need more guidance, connect with PrepScholar's expert admissions consultants . These expert writers know exactly what college admissions committees look for in an admissions essay and chan help you craft an essay that boosts your chances of getting into your dream school.

Check out PrepScholar's Essay Editing and Coaching progra m for more details!

Links to Full College Essay Examples

Some colleges publish a selection of their favorite accepted college essays that worked, and I've put together a selection of over 100 of these.

Common App Essay Samples

Please note that some of these college essay examples may be responding to prompts that are no longer in use. The current Common App prompts are as follows:

1. Some students have a background, identity, interest, or talent that is so meaningful they believe their application would be incomplete without it. If this sounds like you, then please share your story. 2. 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? 3. Reflect on a time when you questioned or challenged a belief or idea. What prompted your thinking? What was the outcome? 4. Reflect on something that someone has done for you that has made you happy or thankful in a surprising way. How has this gratitude affected or motivated you? 5. Discuss an accomplishment, event, or realization that sparked a period of personal growth and a new understanding of yourself or others. 6. Describe a topic, idea, or concept you find so engaging that it makes you lose all track of time. Why does it captivate you? What or who do you turn to when you want to learn more?

7. Share an essay on any topic of your choice. It can be one you've already written, one that responds to a different prompt, or one of your own design.

Now, let's get to the good stuff: the list of 177 college essay examples responding to current and past Common App essay prompts. 

Connecticut college.

• 12 Common Application essays from the classes of 2022-2025

Hamilton College

• 7 Common Application essays from the class of 2026
• 7 Common Application essays from the class of 2022
• 7 Common Application essays from the class of 2018
• 8 Common Application essays from the class of 2012
• 8 Common Application essays from the class of 2007

Johns Hopkins

These essays are answers to past prompts from either the Common Application or the Coalition Application (which Johns Hopkins used to accept).

• 1 Common Application or Coalition Application essay from the class of 2026
• 6 Common Application or Coalition Application essays from the class of 2025
• 6 Common Application or Universal Application essays from the class of 2024
• 6 Common Application or Universal Application essays from the class of 2023
• 7 Common Application of Universal Application essays from the class of 2022
• 5 Common Application or Universal Application essays from the class of 2021
• 7 Common Application or Universal Application essays from the class of 2020

Essay Examples Published by Other Websites

• 2 Common Application essays ( 1st essay , 2nd essay ) from applicants admitted to Columbia

Other Sample College Essays

Here is a collection of essays that are college-specific.

Babson College

• 4 essays (and 1 video response) on "Why Babson" from the class of 2020

Emory University

• 5 essay examples ( 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 ) from the class of 2020 along with analysis from Emory admissions staff on why the essays were exceptional
• 5 more recent essay examples ( 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 ) along with analysis from Emory admissions staff on what made these essays stand out

University of Georgia

• 1 “strong essay” sample from 2019
• 1 “strong essay” sample from 2018
• 10 Harvard essays from 2023
• 10 Harvard essays from 2022
• 10 Harvard essays from 2021
• 10 Harvard essays from 2020
• 10 Harvard essays from 2019
• 10 Harvard essays from 2018
• 6 essays from admitted MIT students

Smith College

• 6 "best gift" essays from the class of 2018

Books of College Essays

If you're looking for even more sample college essays, consider purchasing a college essay book. The best of these include dozens of essays that worked and feedback from real admissions officers.

College Essays That Made a Difference —This detailed guide from Princeton Review includes not only successful essays, but also interviews with admissions officers and full student profiles.

50 Successful Harvard Application Essays by the Staff of the Harvard Crimson—A must for anyone aspiring to Harvard .

50 Successful Ivy League Application Essays and 50 Successful Stanford Application Essays by Gen and Kelly Tanabe—For essays from other top schools, check out this venerated series, which is regularly updated with new essays.

Heavenly Essays by Janine W. Robinson—This collection from the popular blogger behind Essay Hell includes a wider range of schools, as well as helpful tips on honing your own essay.

Analyzing Great Common App Essays That Worked

I've picked two essays from the examples collected above to examine in more depth so that you can see exactly what makes a successful college essay work. Full credit for these essays goes to the original authors and the schools that published them.

Example 1: "Breaking Into Cars," by Stephen, Johns Hopkins Class of '19 (Common App Essay, 636 words long)

I had never broken into a car before.

We were in Laredo, having just finished our first day at a Habitat for Humanity work site. The Hotchkiss volunteers had already left, off to enjoy some Texas BBQ, leaving me behind with the college kids to clean up. Not until we were stranded did we realize we were locked out of the van.

Someone picked a coat hanger out of the dumpster, handed it to me, and took a few steps back.

"Can you do that thing with a coat hanger to unlock it?"

"Why me?" I thought.

More out of amusement than optimism, I gave it a try. I slid the hanger into the window's seal like I'd seen on crime shows, and spent a few minutes jiggling the apparatus around the inside of the frame. Suddenly, two things simultaneously clicked. One was the lock on the door. (I actually succeeded in springing it.) The other was the realization that I'd been in this type of situation before. In fact, I'd been born into this type of situation.

My upbringing has numbed me to unpredictability and chaos. With a family of seven, my home was loud, messy, and spottily supervised. My siblings arguing, the dog barking, the phone ringing—all meant my house was functioning normally. My Dad, a retired Navy pilot, was away half the time. When he was home, he had a parenting style something like a drill sergeant. At the age of nine, I learned how to clear burning oil from the surface of water. My Dad considered this a critical life skill—you know, in case my aircraft carrier should ever get torpedoed. "The water's on fire! Clear a hole!" he shouted, tossing me in the lake without warning. While I'm still unconvinced about that particular lesson's practicality, my Dad's overarching message is unequivocally true: much of life is unexpected, and you have to deal with the twists and turns.

Living in my family, days rarely unfolded as planned. A bit overlooked, a little pushed around, I learned to roll with reality, negotiate a quick deal, and give the improbable a try. I don't sweat the small stuff, and I definitely don't expect perfect fairness. So what if our dining room table only has six chairs for seven people? Someone learns the importance of punctuality every night.

But more than punctuality and a special affinity for musical chairs, my family life has taught me to thrive in situations over which I have no power. Growing up, I never controlled my older siblings, but I learned how to thwart their attempts to control me. I forged alliances, and realigned them as necessary. Sometimes, I was the poor, defenseless little brother; sometimes I was the omniscient elder. Different things to different people, as the situation demanded. I learned to adapt.

Back then, these techniques were merely reactions undertaken to ensure my survival. But one day this fall, Dr. Hicks, our Head of School, asked me a question that he hoped all seniors would reflect on throughout the year: "How can I participate in a thing I do not govern, in the company of people I did not choose?"

The question caught me off guard, much like the question posed to me in Laredo. Then, I realized I knew the answer. I knew why the coat hanger had been handed to me.

Growing up as the middle child in my family, I was a vital participant in a thing I did not govern, in the company of people I did not choose. It's family. It's society. And often, it's chaos. You participate by letting go of the small stuff, not expecting order and perfection, and facing the unexpected with confidence, optimism, and preparedness. My family experience taught me to face a serendipitous world with confidence.

What Makes This Essay Tick?

It's very helpful to take writing apart in order to see just how it accomplishes its objectives. Stephen's essay is very effective. Let's find out why!

An Opening Line That Draws You In

In just eight words, we get: scene-setting (he is standing next to a car about to break in), the idea of crossing a boundary (he is maybe about to do an illegal thing for the first time), and a cliffhanger (we are thinking: is he going to get caught? Is he headed for a life of crime? Is he about to be scared straight?).

Great, Detailed Opening Story

More out of amusement than optimism, I gave it a try. I slid the hanger into the window's seal like I'd seen on crime shows, and spent a few minutes jiggling the apparatus around the inside of the frame.

It's the details that really make this small experience come alive. Notice how whenever he can, Stephen uses a more specific, descriptive word in place of a more generic one. The volunteers aren't going to get food or dinner; they're going for "Texas BBQ." The coat hanger comes from "a dumpster." Stephen doesn't just move the coat hanger—he "jiggles" it.

Details also help us visualize the emotions of the people in the scene. The person who hands Stephen the coat hanger isn't just uncomfortable or nervous; he "takes a few steps back"—a description of movement that conveys feelings. Finally, the detail of actual speech makes the scene pop. Instead of writing that the other guy asked him to unlock the van, Stephen has the guy actually say his own words in a way that sounds like a teenager talking.

Turning a Specific Incident Into a Deeper Insight

Suddenly, two things simultaneously clicked. One was the lock on the door. (I actually succeeded in springing it.) The other was the realization that I'd been in this type of situation before. In fact, I'd been born into this type of situation.

Stephen makes the locked car experience a meaningful illustration of how he has learned to be resourceful and ready for anything, and he also makes this turn from the specific to the broad through an elegant play on the two meanings of the word "click."

Using Concrete Examples When Making Abstract Claims

My upbringing has numbed me to unpredictability and chaos. With a family of seven, my home was loud, messy, and spottily supervised. My siblings arguing, the dog barking, the phone ringing—all meant my house was functioning normally.

"Unpredictability and chaos" are very abstract, not easily visualized concepts. They could also mean any number of things—violence, abandonment, poverty, mental instability. By instantly following up with highly finite and unambiguous illustrations like "family of seven" and "siblings arguing, the dog barking, the phone ringing," Stephen grounds the abstraction in something that is easy to picture: a large, noisy family.

Using Small Bits of Humor and Casual Word Choice

My Dad, a retired Navy pilot, was away half the time. When he was home, he had a parenting style something like a drill sergeant. At the age of nine, I learned how to clear burning oil from the surface of water. My Dad considered this a critical life skill—you know, in case my aircraft carrier should ever get torpedoed.

Obviously, knowing how to clean burning oil is not high on the list of things every 9-year-old needs to know. To emphasize this, Stephen uses sarcasm by bringing up a situation that is clearly over-the-top: "in case my aircraft carrier should ever get torpedoed."

The humor also feels relaxed. Part of this is because he introduces it with the colloquial phrase "you know," so it sounds like he is talking to us in person. This approach also diffuses the potential discomfort of the reader with his father's strictness—since he is making jokes about it, clearly he is OK. Notice, though, that this doesn't occur very much in the essay. This helps keep the tone meaningful and serious rather than flippant.

An Ending That Stretches the Insight Into the Future

But one day this fall, Dr. Hicks, our Head of School, asked me a question that he hoped all seniors would reflect on throughout the year: "How can I participate in a thing I do not govern, in the company of people I did not choose?"

The ending of the essay reveals that Stephen's life has been one long preparation for the future. He has emerged from chaos and his dad's approach to parenting as a person who can thrive in a world that he can't control.

This connection of past experience to current maturity and self-knowledge is a key element in all successful personal essays. Colleges are very much looking for mature, self-aware applicants. These are the qualities of successful college students, who will be able to navigate the independence college classes require and the responsibility and quasi-adulthood of college life.

What Could This Essay Do Even Better?

Even the best essays aren't perfect, and even the world's greatest writers will tell you that writing is never "finished"—just "due." So what would we tweak in this essay if we could?

Replace some of the clichéd language. Stephen uses handy phrases like "twists and turns" and "don't sweat the small stuff" as a kind of shorthand for explaining his relationship to chaos and unpredictability. But using too many of these ready-made expressions runs the risk of clouding out your own voice and replacing it with something expected and boring.

Use another example from recent life. Stephen's first example (breaking into the van in Laredo) is a great illustration of being resourceful in an unexpected situation. But his essay also emphasizes that he "learned to adapt" by being "different things to different people." It would be great to see how this plays out outside his family, either in the situation in Laredo or another context.

Example 2: By Renner Kwittken, Tufts Class of '23 (Common App Essay, 645 words long)

My first dream job was to be a pickle truck driver. I saw it in my favorite book, Richard Scarry's "Cars and Trucks and Things That Go," and for some reason, I was absolutely obsessed with the idea of driving a giant pickle. Much to the discontent of my younger sister, I insisted that my parents read us that book as many nights as possible so we could find goldbug, a small little golden bug, on every page. I would imagine the wonderful life I would have: being a pig driving a giant pickle truck across the country, chasing and finding goldbug. I then moved on to wanting to be a Lego Master. Then an architect. Then a surgeon.

Then I discovered a real goldbug: gold nanoparticles that can reprogram macrophages to assist in killing tumors, produce clear images of them without sacrificing the subject, and heat them to obliteration.

Suddenly the destination of my pickle was clear.

I quickly became enveloped by the world of nanomedicine; I scoured articles about liposomes, polymeric micelles, dendrimers, targeting ligands, and self-assembling nanoparticles, all conquering cancer in some exotic way. Completely absorbed, I set out to find a mentor to dive even deeper into these topics. After several rejections, I was immensely grateful to receive an invitation to work alongside Dr. Sangeeta Ray at Johns Hopkins.

In the lab, Dr. Ray encouraged a great amount of autonomy to design and implement my own procedures. I chose to attack a problem that affects the entire field of nanomedicine: nanoparticles consistently fail to translate from animal studies into clinical trials. Jumping off recent literature, I set out to see if a pre-dose of a common chemotherapeutic could enhance nanoparticle delivery in aggressive prostate cancer, creating three novel constructs based on three different linear polymers, each using fluorescent dye (although no gold, sorry goldbug!). Though using radioactive isotopes like Gallium and Yttrium would have been incredible, as a 17-year-old, I unfortunately wasn't allowed in the same room as these radioactive materials (even though I took a Geiger counter to a pair of shoes and found them to be slightly dangerous).

I hadn't expected my hypothesis to work, as the research project would have ideally been led across two full years. Yet while there are still many optimizations and revisions to be done, I was thrilled to find -- with completely new nanoparticles that may one day mean future trials will use particles with the initials "RK-1" -- thatcyclophosphamide did indeed increase nanoparticle delivery to the tumor in a statistically significant way.

A secondary, unexpected research project was living alone in Baltimore, a new city to me, surrounded by people much older than I. Even with moving frequently between hotels, AirBnB's, and students' apartments, I strangely reveled in the freedom I had to enjoy my surroundings and form new friendships with graduate school students from the lab. We explored The Inner Harbor at night, attended a concert together one weekend, and even got to watch the Orioles lose (to nobody's surprise). Ironically, it's through these new friendships I discovered something unexpected: what I truly love is sharing research. Whether in a presentation or in a casual conversation, making others interested in science is perhaps more exciting to me than the research itself. This solidified a new pursuit to angle my love for writing towards illuminating science in ways people can understand, adding value to a society that can certainly benefit from more scientific literacy.

It seems fitting that my goals are still transforming: in Scarry's book, there is not just one goldbug, there is one on every page. With each new experience, I'm learning that it isn't the goldbug itself, but rather the act of searching for the goldbugs that will encourage, shape, and refine my ever-evolving passions. Regardless of the goldbug I seek -- I know my pickle truck has just begun its journey.

Renner takes a somewhat different approach than Stephen, but their essay is just as detailed and engaging. Let's go through some of the strengths of this essay.

One Clear Governing Metaphor

This essay is ultimately about two things: Renner’s dreams and future career goals, and Renner’s philosophy on goal-setting and achieving one’s dreams.

But instead of listing off all the amazing things they’ve done to pursue their dream of working in nanomedicine, Renner tells a powerful, unique story instead. To set up the narrative, Renner opens the essay by connecting their experiences with goal-setting and dream-chasing all the way back to a memorable childhood experience:

This lighthearted–but relevant!--story about the moment when Renner first developed a passion for a specific career (“finding the goldbug”) provides an anchor point for the rest of the essay. As Renner pivots to describing their current dreams and goals–working in nanomedicine–the metaphor of “finding the goldbug” is reflected in Renner’s experiments, rejections, and new discoveries.

Though Renner tells multiple stories about their quest to “find the goldbug,” or, in other words, pursue their passion, each story is connected by a unifying theme; namely, that as we search and grow over time, our goals will transform…and that’s okay! By the end of the essay, Renner uses the metaphor of “finding the goldbug” to reiterate the relevance of the opening story:

While the earlier parts of the essay convey Renner’s core message by showing, the final, concluding paragraph sums up Renner’s insights by telling. By briefly and clearly stating the relevance of the goldbug metaphor to their own philosophy on goals and dreams, Renner demonstrates their creativity, insight, and eagerness to grow and evolve as the journey continues into college.

An Engaging, Individual Voice

This essay uses many techniques that make Renner sound genuine and make the reader feel like we already know them.

Technique #1: humor. Notice Renner's gentle and relaxed humor that lightly mocks their younger self's grand ambitions (this is different from the more sarcastic kind of humor used by Stephen in the first essay—you could never mistake one writer for the other).

My first dream job was to be a pickle truck driver.

I would imagine the wonderful life I would have: being a pig driving a giant pickle truck across the country, chasing and finding goldbug. I then moved on to wanting to be a Lego Master. Then an architect. Then a surgeon.

Renner gives a great example of how to use humor to your advantage in college essays. You don’t want to come off as too self-deprecating or sarcastic, but telling a lightheartedly humorous story about your younger self that also showcases how you’ve grown and changed over time can set the right tone for your entire essay.

Technique #2: intentional, eye-catching structure. The second technique is the way Renner uses a unique structure to bolster the tone and themes of their essay . The structure of your essay can have a major impact on how your ideas come across…so it’s important to give it just as much thought as the content of your essay!

For instance, Renner does a great job of using one-line paragraphs to create dramatic emphasis and to make clear transitions from one phase of the story to the next:

Suddenly the destination of my pickle car was clear.

Not only does the one-liner above signal that Renner is moving into a new phase of the narrative (their nanoparticle research experiences), it also tells the reader that this is a big moment in Renner’s story. It’s clear that Renner made a major discovery that changed the course of their goal pursuit and dream-chasing. Through structure, Renner conveys excitement and entices the reader to keep pushing forward to the next part of the story.

Technique #3: playing with syntax. The third technique is to use sentences of varying length, syntax, and structure. Most of the essay's written in standard English and uses grammatically correct sentences. However, at key moments, Renner emphasizes that the reader needs to sit up and pay attention by switching to short, colloquial, differently punctuated, and sometimes fragmented sentences.

Even with moving frequently between hotels, AirBnB's, and students' apartments, I strangely reveled in the freedom I had to enjoy my surroundings and form new friendships with graduate school students from the lab. We explored The Inner Harbor at night, attended a concert together one weekend, and even got to watch the Orioles lose (to nobody's surprise). Ironically, it's through these new friendships I discovered something unexpected: what I truly love is sharing research.

In the examples above, Renner switches adeptly between long, flowing sentences and quippy, telegraphic ones. At the same time, Renner uses these different sentence lengths intentionally. As they describe their experiences in new places, they use longer sentences to immerse the reader in the sights, smells, and sounds of those experiences. And when it’s time to get a big, key idea across, Renner switches to a short, punchy sentence to stop the reader in their tracks.

The varying syntax and sentence lengths pull the reader into the narrative and set up crucial “aha” moments when it’s most important…which is a surefire way to make any college essay stand out.

Renner's essay is very strong, but there are still a few little things that could be improved.

Connecting the research experiences to the theme of “finding the goldbug.”  The essay begins and ends with Renner’s connection to the idea of “finding the goldbug.” And while this metaphor is deftly tied into the essay’s intro and conclusion, it isn’t entirely clear what Renner’s big findings were during the research experiences that are described in the middle of the essay. It would be great to add a sentence or two stating what Renner’s big takeaways (or “goldbugs”) were from these experiences, which add more cohesion to the essay as a whole.

Give more details about discovering the world of nanomedicine. It makes sense that Renner wants to get into the details of their big research experiences as quickly as possible. After all, these are the details that show Renner’s dedication to nanomedicine! But a smoother transition from the opening pickle car/goldbug story to Renner’s “real goldbug” of nanoparticles would help the reader understand why nanoparticles became Renner’s goldbug. Finding out why Renner is so motivated to study nanomedicine–and perhaps what put them on to this field of study–would help readers fully understand why Renner chose this path in the first place.

4 Essential Tips for Writing Your Own Essay

How can you use this discussion to better your own college essay? Here are some suggestions for ways to use this resource effectively.

#1: Get Help From the Experts

Getting your college applications together takes a lot of work and can be pretty intimidatin g. Essays are even more important than ever now that admissions processes are changing and schools are going test-optional and removing diversity standards thanks to new Supreme Court rulings .  If you want certified expert help that really makes a difference, get started with  PrepScholar’s Essay Editing and Coaching program. Our program can help you put together an incredible essay from idea to completion so that your application stands out from the crowd. We've helped students get into the best colleges in the United States, including Harvard, Stanford, and Yale.  If you're ready to take the next step and boost your odds of getting into your dream school, connect with our experts today .

#2: Read Other Essays to Get Ideas for Your Own

As you go through the essays we've compiled for you above, ask yourself the following questions:

• Can you explain to yourself (or someone else!) why the opening sentence works well?
• Look for the essay's detailed personal anecdote. What senses is the author describing? Can you easily picture the scene in your mind's eye?
• Find the place where this anecdote bridges into a larger insight about the author. How does the essay connect the two? How does the anecdote work as an example of the author's characteristic, trait, or skill?
• Check out the essay's tone. If it's funny, can you find the places where the humor comes from? If it's sad and moving, can you find the imagery and description of feelings that make you moved? If it's serious, can you see how word choice adds to this tone?

Make a note whenever you find an essay or part of an essay that you think was particularly well-written, and think about what you like about it . Is it funny? Does it help you really get to know the writer? Does it show what makes the writer unique? Once you have your list, keep it next to you while writing your essay to remind yourself to try and use those same techniques in your own essay.

#3: Find Your "A-Ha!" Moment

All of these essays rely on connecting with the reader through a heartfelt, highly descriptive scene from the author's life. It can either be very dramatic (did you survive a plane crash?) or it can be completely mundane (did you finally beat your dad at Scrabble?). Either way, it should be personal and revealing about you, your personality, and the way you are now that you are entering the adult world.

Check out essays by authors like John Jeremiah Sullivan , Leslie Jamison , Hanif Abdurraqib , and Esmé Weijun Wang to get more examples of how to craft a compelling personal narrative.

#4: Start Early, Revise Often

Let me level with you: the best writing isn't writing at all. It's rewriting. And in order to have time to rewrite, you have to start way before the application deadline. My advice is to write your first draft at least two months before your applications are due.

Let it sit for a few days untouched. Then come back to it with fresh eyes and think critically about what you've written. What's extra? What's missing? What is in the wrong place? What doesn't make sense? Don't be afraid to take it apart and rearrange sections. Do this several times over, and your essay will be much better for it!

For more editing tips, check out a style guide like Dreyer's English or Eats, Shoots & Leaves .

What's Next?

Still not sure which colleges you want to apply to? Our experts will show you how to make a college list that will help you choose a college that's right for you.

Interested in learning more about college essays? Check out our detailed breakdown of exactly how personal statements work in an application , some suggestions on what to avoid when writing your essay , and our guide to writing about your extracurricular activities .

Working on the rest of your application? Read what admissions officers wish applicants knew before applying .

The recommendations in this post are based solely on our knowledge and experience. If you purchase an item through one of our links PrepScholar may receive a commission.

Anna scored in the 99th percentile on her SATs in high school, and went on to major in English at Princeton and to get her doctorate in English Literature at Columbia. She is passionate about improving student access to higher education.

Ask a Question Below

Have any questions about this article or other topics? Ask below and we'll reply!

Improve With Our Famous Guides

• For All Students

The 5 Strategies You Must Be Using to Improve 160+ SAT Points

How to Get a Perfect 1600, by a Perfect Scorer

Series: How to Get 800 on Each SAT Section:

Score 800 on SAT Math

Score 800 on SAT Reading

Score 800 on SAT Writing

Series: How to Get to 600 on Each SAT Section:

Score 600 on SAT Math

Score 600 on SAT Reading

Score 600 on SAT Writing

Free Complete Official SAT Practice Tests

What SAT Target Score Should You Be Aiming For?

15 Strategies to Improve Your SAT Essay

The 5 Strategies You Must Be Using to Improve 4+ ACT Points

How to Get a Perfect 36 ACT, by a Perfect Scorer

Series: How to Get 36 on Each ACT Section:

36 on ACT English

36 on ACT Math

36 on ACT Reading

36 on ACT Science

Series: How to Get to 24 on Each ACT Section:

24 on ACT English

24 on ACT Math

24 on ACT Reading

24 on ACT Science

What ACT target score should you be aiming for?

ACT Vocabulary You Must Know

ACT Writing: 15 Tips to Raise Your Essay Score

How to Get Into Harvard and the Ivy League

How to Get a Perfect 4.0 GPA

How to Write an Amazing College Essay

What Exactly Are Colleges Looking For?

Is the ACT easier than the SAT? A Comprehensive Guide

Should you retake your SAT or ACT?

When should you take the SAT or ACT?

Stay Informed

Get the latest articles and test prep tips!

Looking for Graduate School Test Prep?

Check out our top-rated graduate blogs here:

GRE Online Prep Blog

GMAT Online Prep Blog

TOEFL Online Prep Blog

Holly R. "I am absolutely overjoyed and cannot thank you enough for helping me!”

107 Motivational Quotes for College Students to Inspire You

• Pinterest 3

Table of Contents

The best inspirational quotes for college students

Today, I want to share with you some of my favorite inspirational quotes for college students.

 Are you feeling a bit overwhelmed with your studies lately? Don’t worry, you’re not alone. We’ve all been there, buried under a mountain of exams, essays, and deadlines.

But guess what? I’ve got something that might just lift your spirits and give you that extra push you need to keep going.

Today, I want to share with you some of my favorite inspirational quotes for college students. These quotes have helped me stay motivated and focused during those tough times, and I’m sure they’ll do the same for you.

This post may contain affiliate links. That is, if you click on a link and buy something I recommend, I will receive a small compensation at no additional cost to you.

My favorite motivational quotes for college students

• “Ninety-nine percent of the failures come from people who have the habit of making excuses.” – George Washington Carver
• “Self-belief and hard work will always earn you success.” – Virat Kohli
• “You don’t drown by falling in the water; you drown by staying there.” – Ed Cole
• “The more you give away, the happier you become.”
• “The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched; they must be felt with the heart.” – Helen Keller
• “Today, a reader. Tomorrow, a leader.” —Anonymous
• “The beautiful thing about learning is that nobody can take it away from you.” – B.B. King
• “Doubt kills more dreams than failure ever will.” – Karim Seddiki
• “Anyone who stops learning is old, whether at twenty or eighty. Anyone who keeps learning stays young.” – Henry Ford
• “Nothing great ever achieved without enthusiasm.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

• “There is no substitute for hard work.” – Thomas Alva Edison
• “Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever.” – Mahatma Gandhi
• “Your positive action combined with positive thinking results in success.” – Shiv Khera
• “It takes courage to grow up and become who you really are.” – E.E. Cummings
• “The way to get started is to quit talking and begin doing.” – Walt Disney
• “I think it’s possible for ordinary people to choose to be extraordinary.” — Elon Musk
• “Teachers can open the door, but you must enter it yourself.” — Chinese proverb
• “Motivation is what gets you started. Habit is what keeps you going.” —Jim Ryun
• “Procrastination is the thief of time.” – Edward Young
• “Every accomplishment starts with the decision to try.” – Gail Devers

• “There are no shortcuts to any place worth going.” —Beverly Stills
• “Tell me and I forget. Teach me, and I remember. Involve me, and I learn.” – Benjamin Franklin
• “How wonderful it is that nobody needs to wait a single moment before starting to improve the world.” – Anne Frank
• “Wake up with determination and go to bed with satisfaction.”
• “Look at the sky. We are not alone. The whole universe is friendly to us and conspires only to those who dream and work.”
• “To be an overachiever, you have to be an over-believer.” – Dabo Swinney
• “Self-discipline is self-caring.” – M. Scott Peck
• “I think it’s possible for ordinary people to choose to be extraordinary.” —Elon Musk
• “That’s the thing about books. They let you travel without moving your feet.” – Jhumpa Lahiri
• “Self-compassion is simply giving the same kindness to ourselves that we would give to others.” – Christopher Germer

• “Success is the sum of all efforts, repeated day-in & day out.” – R. Collier
• “Only I can change my life. No one can do it for me.” – Carol Burnett
• “There are plenty of difficult obstacles in your path. Don’t allow yourself to become one of them.” – Ralph Marston
• “I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been given a no. Only to find that a better, brighter, bigger yes was right around the corner.” – Arlan Hamilton
• “Procrastination is opportunity’s assassin.” – Victor Kiam
• “The biggest risk is not taking any risk… In a world that’s changing really quickly, the only strategy that is guaranteed to fail is not taking risks.” – Mark Zuckerberg
• “If opportunity doesn’t knock, build a door.” – Milton Berle
• “We need to accept that we won’t always make the right decisions, that we’ll screw up royally sometimes – understanding that failure is not the opposite of success, it’s part of success.” – Ariana Huffington
• “Wisdom…. comes not from age, but from education and learning.” – Anton Chekhov
• “You are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think.” — A.A Milne

• “The man who does not read books has no advantage over the one who cannot read them.” —Mark Twain
• “You don’t have to be great to start, but you have to start to be great.” – Zig Ziglar
• “Failure is another stepping stone to greatness.” – Oprah Winfrey
• “Just one small positive thought in the morning can change your whole day.” – Dalai Lama
• “You want to have a future where you’re expecting things to be better, not one where you’re expecting things to be worse” – Elon Musk
• “Go into the world and do well. But more importantly, go into the world and do good.” – Minor Myers Jur
• “In the end, it’s not the years in your life that count. It’s the life in your years.” – Abraham Lincoln
• “Every day is a second chance.”
• “Opportunity does not happen; you need to create them.”
• “You have to be odd to be No.1.” —Dr. Seuss
• “The mind is not a vessel to be filled but a fire to be ignited.” – Plutarch
• “The reading of all good books is like conversation with the finest (people) of the past centuries.” – Descartes
• “Education is something we have to keep pursuing day after day.” – Premier Brian Gallant
• “Make each day your masterpiece.” – John Wooden
• “Always remember that you are absolutely unique. Just like everyone else.” – Margaret Mead

• “Education is the passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to those who prepare for it today.” – Malcolm X
• “Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma, which is living with the results of other people’s thinking. ” – Steve Jobs
• “End is not the end if fact E.N.D. Means “Efforts Never Dies. – Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam
• “He who asks a question is a fool for five minutes; he who does not ask a question remains a fool forever.” — Chinese Proverb
• “Reading is essential for those who seek to rise above the ordinary.” – Jim Rohn
• “None of us is as smart as all of us.” —Ken Blanchard
• “If you think education is expensive, try ignorance.” — Andy McIntyre
• “Optimism is a happiness magnet. If you stay positive, good things and good people will be drawn to you.” – Mary Lou Retton
• “The best revenge is massive success.” – Frank Sinatra
• “You must be the change you wish to see in the world.” – Mahatma Gandhi

• “I am indeed a king because I know how to rule myself.” – Pietro Aretino
• “Genius is 10% inspiration, 90% perspiration.” —Thomas Edison
• “Fall seven times, stand up eight.”– Japanese Proverb
• “Just believe in yourself. Even if you don’t pretend that you do and, at some point, you will.” – Venus Williams
• “Perseverance is not a long race; it is many short races one after the other.” – Walter Elliot
• “Many of life’s failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up.” – Thomas Edison
• “I think I can. I know I can.” – Jennifer Wittwer
• “I never dreamed about success. I worked for it.” – Estée Lauder
• “Education is the most powerful weapon you can use to change the world.” – Nelson Mandela
• “You can’t have a better tomorrow if you’re still thinking about yesterday.” – Charles F. Kettering

• “Procrastination makes easy things hard and hard things harder.” — Mason Cooley
• “A person who never made a mistake never tried anything new.” – Albert Einstein
• “Be patient with yourself. Self-growth is tender; it’s holy ground. There’s no greater investment.” – Stephen Covey
• “Don’t let what you cannot do interfere with what you can do.” — John Wooden
• “Failure will never overtake me if my determination to succeed is strong enough.” – Og Mandino
• “A little progress each day adds up to big results.” – Satya Nani
• “Learning is never done without errors and defeat.” – Vladimir Lenin
• “Don’t wait for the opportunity. Create it.” – George Bernard Shaw
• “I have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.” – Thomas Edison
• “A man’s mind, stretched by new ideas, may never return to its original dimensions.” — Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr.

• “You cannot change your future, but you can change your habits, and surely your habits will change your future.”– A.P.J. Abdul Kalam
• “The best way to predict your future is to create it.” – Abraham Lincoln
• “Skill is only developed by hours and hours of work.” – Usain Bolt
• “An ounce of patience is worth more than tons of preaching.” – Mahatma Gandhi
• “The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.” —Eleanor Roosevelt
• “In a world where you can be anything, be kind.” — Jennifer Dukes Lee
• “If you get tired, learn to rest not to quit.” – Banksy
• “I find that the harder I work, the more luck I seem to have.” —Thomas Jefferson
• “He who opens a school door, closes a prison.” — Victor Hugo
• “When you reach the end of your rope, tie a knot in it and hang on.” – Franklin D. Roosevelt

• “Optimism is the faith that leads to achievement. Nothing can be done without hope and confidence.” – Helen Keller
• “The more that you read, the more things you will know, the more that you learn, the more places you’ll go.” — Dr. Seuss
• “I believe every human has a finite number of heartbeats. I don’t intend to waste any of mine.” – Neil Armstrong
• “Learn from yesterday, live for today, hope for tomorrow. The important thing is not to stop questioning.” – Albert Einstien
• “The expert in anything was once a beginner.” — Helen Hayes
• “Never let the fear of striking out stop you from playing the game.” —Babe Ruth
• “Learn from yesterday. Live for today. Hope for tomorrow.” – Albert Einstein
• “Instruction ends in the schoolroom, but education ends only with life.” – Frederick W. Robertson
• “Today a reader, tomorrow a leader.” – Margaret Fuller
• “Start where you are. Use what you have. Do what you can.” — Arthur Ashe
• “I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed.” – Michael Jordan
• “Everything’s always ending. But everything’s always beginning, too.” – Patrick Ness

Why should I read these motivational quotes for college students?

With the internet overflowing with all sorts of feel-good messages, it’s easy to feel a bit skeptical. But hear me out—these quotes aren’t just your average pep talk.

They’re like little sparks of inspiration that have the power to ignite something magical inside you.

Think about it this way: We all have those moments when we’re knee-deep in deadlines, drowning in textbooks, and feeling like we’re running on empty. It happens to the best of us.

But that’s where these quotes come in handy. They’re like tiny reminders that you’re not alone and that you’ve got what it takes to conquer whatever challenges come your way.

And here’s the thing: they’re not just empty words on a screen. Each of these quotes has a story behind it—a nugget of wisdom that’s been passed down through the ages.

They’ve stood the test of time because they speak to something deep within us: our resilience, our determination, and our unwavering belief in ourselves.

So, if you’re feeling a bit stuck, a bit lost, or just in need of a little pick-me-up, give these quotes a chance. Who knows, they might just be the push you need to keep going when the going gets tough. Trust me, you won’t regret it.

What are your favorite inspirational quotes for college students?

I consider myself an expert when it comes to positive affirmations, journaling, and inspirational quotes. My blog is all about spreading good vibes and helping you feel awesome! I’ve got loads of cool stuff for you to explore, like uplifting affirmations that can boost your confidence, fun journal prompts to spark your creativity, and inspiring quotes to motivate you every day. Let’s embark on this amazing journey together as we discover more about ourselves, uncover our hidden strengths, and create a life that’s full of happiness and success.

Leave a Comment Cancel reply

Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.

What are your chances of acceptance?

Calculate for all schools, your chance of acceptance.

Your chancing factors

Extracurriculars.

16 Strong College Essay Examples from Top Schools

What’s Covered:

• Common App Essays
• Why This College Essays
• Why This Major Essays
• Extracurricular Essays
• Overcoming Challenges Essays
• Community Service Essays
• Diversity Essays
• Political/Global Issues Essays
• Where to Get Feedback on Your Essays

Most high school students don’t get a lot of experience with creative writing, so the college essay can be especially daunting. Reading examples of successful essays, however, can help you understand what admissions officers are looking for.

In this post, we’ll share 16 college essay examples of many different topics. Most of the essay prompts fall into 8 different archetypes, and you can approach each prompt under that archetype in a similar way. We’ve grouped these examples by archetype so you can better structure your approach to college essays.

If you’re looking for school-specific guides, check out our 2022-2023 essay breakdowns .

Looking at examples of real essays students have submitted to colleges can be very beneficial to get inspiration for your essays. You should never copy or plagiarize from these examples when writing your own essays. Colleges can tell when an essay isn’t genuine and will not view students favorably if they plagiarized. 

Note: the essays are titled in this post for navigation purposes, but they were not originally titled. We also include the original prompt where possible.

The Common App essay goes to all of the schools on your list, unless those schools use a separate application platform. Because of this, it’s the most important essay in your portfolio, and likely the longest essay you’ll need to write (you get up to 650 words). 

The goal of this essay is to share a glimpse into who you are, what matters to you, and what you hope to achieve. It’s a chance to share your story. 

Learn more about how to write the Common App essay in our complete guide.

The Multiple Meanings of Point

Prompt: Some students have a background, identity, interest, or talent that is so meaningful they believe their application would be incomplete without it. If this sounds like you, then please share your story. (250-650 words)

Night had robbed the academy of its daytime colors, yet there was comfort in the dim lights that cast shadows of our advances against the bare studio walls. Silhouettes of roundhouse kicks, spin crescent kicks, uppercuts and the occasional butterfly kick danced while we sparred. She approached me, eyes narrowed with the trace of a smirk challenging me. “Ready spar!” Her arm began an upward trajectory targeting my shoulder, a common first move. I sidestepped — only to almost collide with another flying fist. Pivoting my right foot, I snapped my left leg, aiming my heel at her midsection. The center judge raised one finger. 

There was no time to celebrate, not in the traditional sense at least. Master Pollard gave a brief command greeted with a unanimous “Yes, sir” and the thud of 20 hands dropping-down-and-giving-him-30, while the “winners” celebrated their victory with laps as usual. 

Three years ago, seven-thirty in the evening meant I was a warrior. It meant standing up straighter, pushing a little harder, “Yes, sir” and “Yes, ma’am”, celebrating birthdays by breaking boards, never pointing your toes, and familiarity. Three years later, seven-thirty in the morning meant I was nervous. 

The room is uncomfortably large. The sprung floor soaks up the checkerboard of sunlight piercing through the colonial windows. The mirrored walls further illuminate the studio and I feel the light scrutinizing my sorry attempts at a pas de bourrée, while capturing the organic fluidity of the dancers around me. “Chassé en croix, grand battement, pique, pirouette.” I follow the graceful limbs of the woman in front of me, her legs floating ribbons, as she executes what seems to be a perfect ronds de jambes. Each movement remains a negotiation. With admirable patience, Ms. Tan casts me a sympathetic glance.   

There is no time to wallow in the misery that is my right foot. Taekwondo calls for dorsiflexion; pointed toes are synonymous with broken toes. My thoughts drag me into a flashback of the usual response to this painful mistake: “You might as well grab a tutu and head to the ballet studio next door.” Well, here I am Master Pollard, unfortunately still following your orders to never point my toes, but no longer feeling the satisfaction that comes with being a third degree black belt with 5 years of experience quite literally under her belt. It’s like being a white belt again — just in a leotard and ballet slippers. 

But the appetite for new beginnings that brought me here doesn’t falter. It is only reinforced by the classical rendition of “Dancing Queen” that floods the room and the ghost of familiarity that reassures me that this new beginning does not and will not erase the past. After years spent at the top, it’s hard to start over. But surrendering what you are only leads you to what you may become. In Taekwondo, we started each class reciting the tenets: honor, courtesy, integrity, perseverance, self-control, courage, humility, and knowledge, and I have never felt that I embodied those traits more so than when I started ballet. 

The thing about change is that it eventually stops making things so different. After nine different schools, four different countries, three different continents, fluency in Tamil, Norwegian, and English, there are more blurred lines than there are clear fragments. My life has not been a tactfully executed, gold medal-worthy Taekwondo form with each movement defined, nor has it been a series of frappés performed by a prima ballerina with each extension identical and precise, but thankfully it has been like the dynamics of a spinning back kick, fluid, and like my chances of landing a pirouette, unpredictable. 

The first obvious strength of this essay is the introduction—it is interesting and snappy and uses enough technical language that we want to figure out what the student is discussing. When writing introductions, students tend to walk the line between intriguing and confusing. It is important that your essay ends up on the intentionally intriguing side of that line—like this student does! We are a little confused at first, but by then introducing the idea of “sparring,” the student grounds their essay.

People often advise young writers to “show, not tell.” This student takes that advice a step further and makes the reader do a bit of work to figure out what they are telling us. Nowhere in this essay does it say “After years of Taekwondo, I made the difficult decision to switch over to ballet.” Rather, the student says “It’s like being a white belt again — just in a leotard and ballet slippers.” How powerful! 

After a lot of emotional language and imagery, this student finishes off their essay with very valuable (and necessary!) reflection. They show admissions officers that they are more than just a good writer—they are a mature and self-aware individual who would be beneficial to a college campus. Self-awareness comes through with statements like “surrendering what you are only leads you to what you may become” and maturity can be seen through the student’s discussion of values: “honor, courtesy, integrity, perseverance, self-control, courage, humility, and knowledge, and I have never felt that I embodied those traits more so than when I started ballet.”

Sparking Self-Awareness

Prompt: 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? (250-650 words)

Was I no longer the beloved daughter of nature, whisperer of trees? Knee-high rubber boots, camouflage, bug spray—I wore the garb and perfume of a proud wild woman, yet there I was, hunched over the pathetic pile of stubborn sticks, utterly stumped, on the verge of tears. As a child, I had considered myself a kind of rustic princess, a cradler of spiders and centipedes, who was serenaded by mourning doves and chickadees, who could glide through tick-infested meadows and emerge Lyme-free. I knew the cracks of the earth like the scars on my own rough palms. Yet here I was, ten years later, incapable of performing the most fundamental outdoor task: I could not, for the life of me, start a fire. 

Furiously I rubbed the twigs together—rubbed and rubbed until shreds of skin flaked from my fingers. No smoke. The twigs were too young, too sticky-green; I tossed them away with a shower of curses, and began tearing through the underbrush in search of a more flammable collection. My efforts were fruitless. Livid, I bit a rejected twig, determined to prove that the forest had spurned me, offering only young, wet bones that would never burn. But the wood cracked like carrots between my teeth—old, brittle, and bitter. Roaring and nursing my aching palms, I retreated to the tent, where I sulked and awaited the jeers of my family. 

Rattling their empty worm cans and reeking of fat fish, my brother and cousins swaggered into the campsite. Immediately, they noticed the minor stick massacre by the fire pit and called to me, their deep voices already sharp with contempt. 

“Where’s the fire, Princess Clara?” they taunted. “Having some trouble?” They prodded me with the ends of the chewed branches and, with a few effortless scrapes of wood on rock, sparked a red and roaring flame. My face burned long after I left the fire pit. The camp stank of salmon and shame. 

In the tent, I pondered my failure. Was I so dainty? Was I that incapable? I thought of my hands, how calloused and capable they had been, how tender and smooth they had become. It had been years since I’d kneaded mud between my fingers; instead of scaling a white pine, I’d practiced scales on my piano, my hands softening into those of a musician—fleshy and sensitive. And I’d gotten glasses, having grown horrifically nearsighted; long nights of dim lighting and thick books had done this. I couldn’t remember the last time I had lain down on a hill, barefaced, and seen the stars without having to squint. Crawling along the edge of the tent, a spider confirmed my transformation—he disgusted me, and I felt an overwhelming urge to squash him. 

Yet, I realized I hadn’t really changed—I had only shifted perspective. I still eagerly explored new worlds, but through poems and prose rather than pastures and puddles. I’d grown to prefer the boom of a bass over that of a bullfrog, learned to coax a different kind of fire from wood, having developed a burn for writing rhymes and scrawling hypotheses. 

That night, I stayed up late with my journal and wrote about the spider I had decided not to kill. I had tolerated him just barely, only shrieking when he jumped—it helped to watch him decorate the corners of the tent with his delicate webs, knowing that he couldn’t start fires, either. When the night grew cold and the embers died, my words still smoked—my hands burned from all that scrawling—and even when I fell asleep, the ideas kept sparking—I was on fire, always on fire.

First things first, this Common App essay is well-written. This student is definitely showing the admissions officers her ability to articulate her points beautifully and creatively. It starts with vivid images like that of the “rustic princess, a cradler of spiders and centipedes, who was serenaded by mourning doves and chickadees, who could glide through tick-infested meadows and emerge Lyme-free.” And because the prose is flowery (and beautiful!), the writer can get away with metaphors like “I knew the cracks of the earth like the scars on my own rough palms” that might sound cheesy without the clear command of the English language that the writer quickly establishes.

In addition to being well-written, this essay is thematically cohesive. It begins with the simple introduction “Fire!” and ends with the following image: “When the night grew cold and the embers died, my words still smoked—my hands burned from all that scrawling—and even when I fell asleep, the ideas kept sparking—I was on fire, always on fire.” This full-circle approach leaves readers satisfied and impressed.

While dialogue often comes off as cliche or trite, this student effectively incorporates her family members saying “Where’s the fire, Princess Clara?” This is achieved through the apt use of the verb “taunted” to characterize the questioning and through the question’s thematic connection to the earlier image of the student as a rustic princess. Similarly, rhetorical questions can feel randomly placed in essays, but this student’s inclusion of the questions “Was I so dainty?” and “Was I that incapable?” feel perfectly justified after she establishes that she was pondering her failure.

Quite simply, this essay shows how quality writing can make a simple story outstandingly compelling. 

Why This College?

“Why This College?” is one of the most common essay prompts, likely because schools want to understand whether you’d be a good fit and how you’d use their resources.

This essay is one of the more straightforward ones you’ll write for college applications, but you still can and should allow your voice to shine through.

Learn more about how to write the “Why This College?” essay in our guide.

Prompt: How will you explore your intellectual and academic interests at the University of Pennsylvania? Please answer this question given the specific undergraduate school to which you are applying (650 words).

Sister Simone Roach, a theorist of nursing ethics, said, “caring is the human mode of being.” I have long been inspired by Sister Roach’s Five C’s of Caring: commitment, conscience, competence, compassion, and confidence. Penn both embraces and fosters these values through a rigorous, interdisciplinary curriculum and unmatched access to service and volunteer opportunities.

COMMITMENT. Reading through the activities that Penn Quakers devote their time to (in addition to academics!) felt like drinking from a firehose in the best possible way. As a prospective nursing student with interests outside of my major, I value this level of flexibility. I plan to leverage Penn’s liberal arts curriculum to gain an in-depth understanding of the challenges LGBT people face, especially regarding healthcare access. Through courses like “Interactional Processes with LGBT Individuals” and volunteering at the Mazzoni Center for outreach, I hope to learn how to better support the Penn LGBT community as well as my family and friends, including my cousin, who came out as trans last year.

CONSCIENCE. As one of the first people in my family to attend a four-year university, I wanted a school that promoted a sense of moral responsibility among its students. At Penn, professors challenge their students to question and recreate their own set of morals by sparking thought- provoking, open-minded discussions. I can imagine myself advocating for universal healthcare in courses such as “Health Care Reform & Future of American Health System” and debating its merits with my peers. Studying in an environment where students confidently voice their opinions – conservative or liberal – will push me to question and strengthen my value system.

COMPETENCE. Two aspects that drew my attention to Penn’s BSN program were its high-quality research opportunities and hands-on nursing projects. Through its Office of Nursing Research, Penn connects students to faculty members who share similar research interests. As I volunteered at a nursing home in high school, I hope to work with Dr. Carthon to improve the quality of care for senior citizens. Seniors, especially minorities, face serious barriers to healthcare that I want to resolve. Additionally, Penn’s unique use of simulations to bridge the gap between classroom learning and real-world application impressed me. Using computerized manikins that mimic human responses, classes in Penn’s nursing program allow students to apply their emergency medical skills in a mass casualty simulation and monitor their actions afterward through a video system. Participating in this activity will help me identify my strengths and areas for improvement regarding crisis management and medical care in a controlled yet realistic setting. Research opportunities and simulations will develop my skills even before I interact with patients.

COMPASSION. I value giving back through community service, and I have a particular interest in Penn’s Community Champions and Nursing Students For Sexual & Reproductive Health (NSRH). As a four-year volunteer health educator, I hope to continue this work as a Community Champions member. I am excited to collaborate with medical students to teach fourth and fifth graders in the city about cardiology or lead a chair dance class for the elders at the LIFE Center. Furthermore, as a feminist who firmly believes in women’s abortion rights, I’d like to join NSRH in order to advocate for women’s health on campus. At Penn, I can work with like-minded people to make a meaningful difference.

CONFIDENCE. All of the Quakers that I have met possess one defining trait: confidence. Each student summarized their experiences at Penn as challenging but fulfilling. Although I expect my coursework to push me, from my conversations with current Quakers I know it will help me to be far more effective in my career.

The Five C’s of Caring are important heuristics for nursing, but they also provide insight into how I want to approach my time in college. I am eager to engage with these principles both as a nurse and as a Penn Quaker, and I can’t wait to start.

This prompt from Penn asks students to tailor their answer to their specific field of study. One great thing that this student does is identify their undergraduate school early, by mentioning “Sister Simone Roach, a theorist of nursing ethics.” You don’t want readers confused or searching through other parts of your application to figure out your major.

With a longer essay like this, it is important to establish structure. Some students organize their essay in a narrative form, using an anecdote from their past or predicting their future at a school. This student uses Roach’s 5 C’s of Caring as a framing device that organizes their essay around values. This works well!

While this essay occasionally loses voice, there are distinct moments where the student’s personality shines through. We see this with phrases like “felt like drinking from a fire hose in the best possible way” and “All of the Quakers that I have met possess one defining trait: confidence.” It is important to show off your personality to make your essay stand out. 

Finally, this student does a great job of referencing specific resources about Penn. It’s clear that they have done their research (they’ve even talked to current Quakers). They have dreams and ambitions that can only exist at Penn.

Prompt: What is it about Yale that has led you to apply? (125 words or fewer)

Coin collector and swimmer. Hungarian and Romanian. Critical and creative thinker. I was drawn to Yale because they don’t limit one’s mind with “or” but rather embrace unison with “and.” 

Wandering through the Beinecke Library, I prepare for my multidisciplinary Energy Studies capstone about the correlation between hedonism and climate change, making it my goal to find implications in environmental sociology. Under the tutelage of Assistant Professor Arielle Baskin-Sommers, I explore the emotional deficits of depression, utilizing neuroimaging to scrutinize my favorite branch of psychology: human perception. At Walden Peer Counseling, I integrate my peer support and active listening skills to foster an empathetic environment for the Yale community. Combining my interests in psychological and environmental studies is why I’m proud to be a Bulldog. 

This answer to the “Why This College” question is great because 1) the student shows their excitement about attending Yale 2) we learn the ways in which attending Yale will help them achieve their goals and 3) we learn their interests and identities.

In this response, you can find a prime example of the “Image of the Future” approach, as the student flashes forward and envisions their life at Yale, using present tense (“I explore,” “I integrate,” “I’m proud”). This approach is valuable if you are trying to emphasize your dedication to a specific school. Readers get the feeling that this student is constantly imagining themselves on campus—it feels like Yale really matters to them.

Starting this image with the Beinecke Library is great because the Beinecke Library only exists at Yale. It is important to tailor “Why This College” responses to each specific school. This student references a program of study, a professor, and an extracurricular that only exist at Yale. Additionally, they connect these unique resources to their interests—psychological and environmental studies.

Finally, we learn about the student (independent of academics) through this response. By the end of their 125 words, we know their hobbies, ethnicities, and social desires, in addition to their academic interests. It can be hard to tackle a 125-word response, but this student shows that it’s possible.

Why This Major?

The goal of this prompt is to understand how you came to be interested in your major and what you plan to do with it. For competitive programs like engineering, this essay helps admissions officers distinguish students who have a genuine passion and are most likely to succeed in the program. This is another more straightforward essay, but you do have a bit more freedom to include relevant anecdotes.

Learn more about how to write the “Why This Major?” essay in our guide.

Why Duke Engineering

Prompt: If you are applying to the Pratt School of Engineering as a first year applicant, please discuss why you want to study engineering and why you would like to study at Duke (250 words).

One Christmas morning, when I was nine, I opened a snap circuit set from my grandmother. Although I had always loved math and science, I didn’t realize my passion for engineering until I spent the rest of winter break creating different circuits to power various lights, alarms, and sensors. Even after I outgrew the toy, I kept the set in my bedroom at home and knew I wanted to study engineering. Later, in a high school biology class, I learned that engineering didn’t only apply to circuits, but also to medical devices that could improve people’s quality of life. Biomedical engineering allows me to pursue my academic passions and help people at the same time.

Just as biology and engineering interact in biomedical engineering, I am fascinated by interdisciplinary research in my chosen career path. Duke offers unmatched resources, such as DUhatch and The Foundry, that will enrich my engineering education and help me practice creative problem-solving skills. The emphasis on entrepreneurship within these resources will also help me to make a helpful product. Duke’s Bass Connections program also interests me; I firmly believe that the most creative and necessary problem-solving comes by bringing people together from different backgrounds. Through this program, I can use my engineering education to solve complicated societal problems such as creating sustainable surgical tools for low-income countries. Along the way, I can learn alongside experts in the field. Duke’s openness and collaborative culture span across its academic disciplines, making Duke the best place for me to grow both as an engineer and as a social advocate.

This prompt calls for a complex answer. Students must explain both why they want to study engineering and why Duke is the best place for them to study engineering.

This student begins with a nice hook—a simple anecdote about a simple present with profound consequences. They do not fluff up their anecdote with flowery images or emotionally-loaded language; it is what it is, and it is compelling and sweet. As their response continues, they express a particular interest in problem-solving. They position problem-solving as a fundamental part of their interest in engineering (and a fundamental part of their fascination with their childhood toy). This helps readers to learn about the student!

Problem-solving is also the avenue by which they introduce Duke’s resources—DUhatch, The Foundry, and Duke’s Bass Connections program. It is important to notice that the student explains how these resources can help them achieve their future goals—it is not enough to simply identify the resources!

This response is interesting and focused. It clearly answers the prompt, and it feels honest and authentic.

Why Georgia Tech CompSci

Prompt: Why do you want to study your chosen major specifically at Georgia Tech? (300 words max)

I held my breath and hit RUN. Yes! A plump white cat jumped out and began to catch the falling pizzas. Although my Fat Cat project seems simple now, it was the beginning of an enthusiastic passion for computer science. Four years and thousands of hours of programming later, that passion has grown into an intense desire to explore how computer science can serve society. Every day, surrounded by technology that can recognize my face and recommend scarily-specific ads, I’m reminded of Uncle Ben’s advice to a young Spiderman: “with great power comes great responsibility”. Likewise, the need to ensure digital equality has skyrocketed with AI’s far-reaching presence in society; and I believe that digital fairness starts with equality in education.

The unique use of threads at the College of Computing perfectly matches my interests in AI and its potential use in education; the path of combined threads on Intelligence and People gives me the rare opportunity to delve deep into both areas. I’m particularly intrigued by the rich sets of both knowledge-based and data-driven intelligence courses, as I believe AI should not only show correlation of events, but also provide insight for why they occur.

In my four years as an enthusiastic online English tutor, I’ve worked hard to help students overcome both financial and technological obstacles in hopes of bringing quality education to people from diverse backgrounds. For this reason, I’m extremely excited by the many courses in the People thread that focus on education and human-centered technology. I’d love to explore how to integrate AI technology into the teaching process to make education more available, affordable, and effective for people everywhere. And with the innumerable opportunities that Georgia Tech has to offer, I know that I will be able to go further here than anywhere else.

With a “Why This Major” essay, you want to avoid using all of your words to tell a story. That being said, stories are a great way to show your personality and make your essay stand out. This student’s story takes up only their first 21 words, but it positions the student as fun and funny and provides an endearing image of cats and pizzas—who doesn’t love cats and pizzas? There are other moments when the student’s personality shines through also, like the Spiderman reference.

While this pop culture reference adds color, it also is important for what the student is getting at: their passion. They want to go into computer science to address the issues of security and equity that are on the industry’s mind, and they acknowledge these concerns with their comments about “scarily-specific ads” and their statement that “the need to ensure digital equality has skyrocketed.” This student is self-aware and aware of the state of the industry. This aptitude will be appealing for admissions officers.

The conversation around “threads” is essential for this student’s response because the prompt asks specifically about the major at Georgia Tech and it is the only thing they reference that is specific to Georgia Tech. Threads are great, but this student would have benefitted from expanding on other opportunities specific to Georgia Tech later in the essay, instead of simply inserting “innumerable opportunities.”

Overall, this student shows personality, passion, and aptitude—precisely what admissions officers want to see!

Extracurricular Essay

You’re asked to describe your activities on the Common App, but chances are, you have at least one extracurricular that’s impacted you in a way you can’t explain in 150 characters.

This essay archetype allows you to share how your most important activity shaped you and how you might use those lessons learned in the future. You are definitely welcome to share anecdotes and use a narrative approach, but remember to include some reflection. A common mistake students make is to only describe the activity without sharing how it impacted them.

Learn more about how to write the Extracurricular Essay in our guide.

A Dedicated Musician

My fingers raced across the keys, rapidly striking one after another. My body swayed with the music as my hands raced across the piano. Crashing onto the final chord, it was over as quickly as it had begun. My shoulders relaxed and I couldn’t help but break into a satisfied grin. I had just played the Moonlight Sonata’s third movement, a longtime dream of mine. 

Four short months ago, though, I had considered it impossible. The piece’s tempo was impossibly fast, its notes stretching between each end of the piano, forcing me to reach farther than I had ever dared. It was 17 pages of the most fragile and intricate melodies I had ever encountered. 

But that summer, I found myself ready to take on the challenge. With the end of the school year, I was released from my commitment to practicing for band and solo performances. I was now free to determine my own musical path: either succeed in learning the piece, or let it defeat me for the third summer in a row. 

Over those few months, I spent countless hours practicing the same notes until they burned a permanent place in my memory, creating a soundtrack for even my dreams. Some would say I’ve mastered the piece, but as a musician I know better. Now that I can play it, I am eager to take the next step and add in layers of musicality and expression to make the once-impossible piece even more beautiful.

In this response, the student uses their extracurricular, piano, as a way to emphasize their positive qualities. At the beginning, readers are invited on a journey with the student where we feel their struggle, their intensity, and ultimately their satisfaction. With this descriptive image, we form a valuable connection with the student.

Then, we get to learn about what makes this student special: their dedication and work ethic. The fact that this student describes their desire to be productive during the summer shows an intensity that is appealing to admissions officers. Additionally, the growth mindset that this student emphasizes in their conclusion is appealing to admissions officers.

The Extracurricular Essay can be seen as an opportunity to characterize yourself. This student clearly identified their positive qualities, then used the Extracurricular Essay as a way to articulate them.

A Complicated Relationship with the School Newspaper

My school’s newspaper and I have a typical love-hate relationship; some days I want nothing more than to pass two hours writing and formatting articles, while on others the mere thought of student journalism makes me shiver. Still, as we’re entering our fourth year together, you could consider us relatively stable. We’ve learned to accept each other’s differences; at this point I’ve become comfortable spending an entire Friday night preparing for an upcoming issue, and I hardly even notice the snail-like speed of our computers. I’ve even benefitted from the polygamous nature of our relationship—with twelve other editors, there’s a lot of cooperation involved. Perverse as it may be, from that teamwork I’ve both gained some of my closest friends and improved my organizational and time-management skills. And though leaving it in the hands of new editors next year will be difficult, I know our time together has only better prepared me for future relationships.

This response is great. It’s cute and endearing and, importantly, tells readers a lot about the student who wrote it. Framing this essay in the context of a “love-hate relationship,” then supplementing with comments like “We’ve learned to accept each other’s differences” allows this student to advertise their maturity in a unique and engaging way. 

While Extracurricular Essays can be a place to show how you’ve grown within an activity, they can also be a place to show how you’ve grown through an activity. At the end of this essay, readers think that this student is mature and enjoyable, and we think that their experience with the school newspaper helped make them that way.

Participating in Democracy

Prompt: Research shows that an ability to learn from experiences outside the classroom correlates with success in college. What was your greatest learning experience over the past 4 years that took place outside of the traditional classroom? (250 words) 

The cool, white halls of the Rayburn House office building contrasted with the bustling energy of interns entertaining tourists, staffers rushing to cover committee meetings, and my fellow conference attendees separating to meet with our respective congresspeople. Through civics and US history classes, I had learned about our government, but simply hearing the legislative process outlined didn’t prepare me to navigate it. It was my first political conference, and, after learning about congressional mechanics during breakout sessions, I was lobbying my representative about an upcoming vote crucial to the US-Middle East relationship. As the daughter of Iranian immigrants, my whole life had led me to the moment when I could speak on behalf of the family members who had not emigrated with my parents.

As I sat down with my congresswoman’s chief of staff, I truly felt like a participant in democracy; I was exercising my right to be heard as a young American. Through this educational conference, I developed a plan of action to raise my voice. When I returned home, I signed up to volunteer with the state chapter of the Democratic Party. I sponsored letter-writing campaigns, canvassed for local elections, and even pursued an internship with a state senate campaign. I know that I don’t need to be old enough to vote to effect change. Most importantly, I also know that I want to study government—I want to make a difference for my communities in the United States and the Middle East throughout my career. 

While this prompt is about extracurricular activities, it specifically references the idea that the extracurricular should support the curricular. It is focused on experiential learning for future career success. This student wants to study government, so they chose to describe an experience of hands-on learning within their field—an apt choice!

As this student discusses their extracurricular experience, they also clue readers into their future goals—they want to help Middle Eastern communities. Admissions officers love when students mention concrete plans with a solid foundation. Here, the foundation comes from this student’s ethnicity. With lines like “my whole life had led me to the moment when I could speak on behalf of the family members who had not emigrated with my parents,” the student assures admissions officers of their emotional connection to their future field.

The strength of this essay comes from its connections. It connects the student’s extracurricular activity to their studies and connects theirs studies to their personal history.

Overcoming Challenges

You’re going to face a lot of setbacks in college, so admissions officers want to make you’re you have the resilience and resolve to overcome them. This essay is your chance to be vulnerable and connect to admissions officers on an emotional level.

Learn more about how to write the Overcoming Challenges Essay in our guide.

The Student Becomes the Master

”Advanced females ages 13 to 14 please proceed to staging with your coaches at this time.” Skittering around the room, eyes wide and pleading, I frantically explained my situation to nearby coaches. The seconds ticked away in my head; every polite refusal increased my desperation.

Despair weighed me down. I sank to my knees as a stream of competitors, coaches, and officials flowed around me. My dojang had no coach, and the tournament rules prohibited me from competing without one.

Although I wanted to remain strong, doubts began to cloud my mind. I could not help wondering: what was the point of perfecting my skills if I would never even compete? The other members of my team, who had found coaches minutes earlier, attempted to comfort me, but I barely heard their words. They couldn’t understand my despair at being left on the outside, and I never wanted them to understand.

Since my first lesson 12 years ago, the members of my dojang have become family. I have watched them grow up, finding my own happiness in theirs. Together, we have honed our kicks, blocks, and strikes. We have pushed one another to aim higher and become better martial artists. Although my dojang had searched for a reliable coach for years, we had not found one. When we attended competitions in the past, my teammates and I had always gotten lucky and found a sympathetic coach. Now, I knew this practice was unsustainable. It would devastate me to see the other members of my dojang in my situation, unable to compete and losing hope as a result. My dojang needed a coach, and I decided it was up to me to find one. 

I first approached the adults in the dojang – both instructors and members’ parents. However, these attempts only reacquainted me with polite refusals. Everyone I asked told me they couldn’t devote multiple weekends per year to competitions. I soon realized that I would have become the coach myself.

At first, the inner workings of tournaments were a mystery to me. To prepare myself for success as a coach, I spent the next year as an official and took coaching classes on the side. I learned everything from motivational strategies to technical, behind-the-scenes components of Taekwondo competitions. Though I emerged with new knowledge and confidence in my capabilities, others did not share this faith.

Parents threw me disbelieving looks when they learned that their children’s coach was only a child herself. My self-confidence was my armor, deflecting their surly glances. Every armor is penetrable, however, and as the relentless barrage of doubts pounded my resilience, it began to wear down. I grew unsure of my own abilities.

Despite the attack, I refused to give up. When I saw the shining eyes of the youngest students preparing for their first competition, I knew I couldn’t let them down. To quit would be to set them up to be barred from competing like I was. The knowledge that I could solve my dojang’s longtime problem motivated me to overcome my apprehension.

Now that my dojang flourishes at competitions, the attacks on me have weakened, but not ended. I may never win the approval of every parent; at times, I am still tormented by doubts, but I find solace in the fact that members of my dojang now only worry about competing to the best of their abilities.

Now, as I arrive at a tournament with my students, I close my eyes and remember the past. I visualize the frantic search for a coach and the chaos amongst my teammates as we competed with one another to find coaches before the staging calls for our respective divisions. I open my eyes to the exact opposite scene. Lacking a coach hurt my ability to compete, but I am proud to know that no member of my dojang will have to face that problem again.

This essay is great because it has a strong introduction and conclusion. The introduction is notably suspenseful and draws readers into the story. Because we know it is a college essay, we can assume that the student is one of the competitors, but at the same time, this introduction feels intentionally ambiguous as if the writer could be a competitor, a coach, a sibling of a competitor, or anyone else in the situation.

As we continue reading the essay, we learn that the writer is, in fact, the competitor. Readers also learn a lot about the student’s values as we hear their thoughts: “I knew I couldn’t let them down. To quit would be to set them up to be barred from competing like I was.” Ultimately, the conflict and inner and outer turmoil is resolved through the “Same, but Different” ending technique as the student places themself in the same environment that we saw in the intro, but experiencing it differently due to their actions throughout the narrative. This is a very compelling strategy!

Growing Sensitivity to Struggles

Prompt: The lessons we take from failure can be fundamental to later success. Recount an incident or time when you experienced failure. How did it affect you, and what did you learn from the experience? (650 words)

“You ruined my life!” After months of quiet anger, my brother finally confronted me. To my shame, I had been appallingly ignorant of his pain.

Despite being twins, Max and I are profoundly different. Having intellectual interests from a young age that, well, interested very few of my peers, I often felt out of step in comparison with my highly-social brother. Everything appeared to come effortlessly for Max and, while we share an extremely tight bond, his frequent time away with friends left me feeling more and more alone as we grew older.

When my parents learned about The Green Academy, we hoped it would be an opportunity for me to find not only an academically challenging environment, but also – perhaps more importantly – a community. This meant transferring the family from Drumfield to Kingston. And while there was concern about Max, we all believed that given his sociable nature, moving would be far less impactful on him than staying put might be on me.

As it turned out, Green Academy was everything I’d hoped for. I was ecstatic to discover a group of students with whom I shared interests and could truly engage. Preoccupied with new friends and a rigorous course load, I failed to notice that the tables had turned. Max, lost in the fray and grappling with how to make connections in his enormous new high school, had become withdrawn and lonely. It took me until Christmas time – and a massive argument – to recognize how difficult the transition had been for my brother, let alone that he blamed me for it.

Through my own journey of searching for academic peers, in addition to coming out as gay when I was 12, I had developed deep empathy for those who had trouble fitting in. It was a pain I knew well and could easily relate to. Yet after Max’s outburst, my first response was to protest that our parents – not I – had chosen to move us here. In my heart, though, I knew that regardless of who had made the decision, we ended up in Kingston for my benefit. I was ashamed that, while I saw myself as genuinely compassionate, I had been oblivious to the heartache of the person closest to me. I could no longer ignore it – and I didn’t want to.

We stayed up half the night talking, and the conversation took an unexpected turn. Max opened up and shared that it wasn’t just about the move. He told me how challenging school had always been for him, due to his dyslexia, and that the ever-present comparison to me had only deepened his pain.

We had been in parallel battles the whole time and, yet, I only saw that Max was in distress once he experienced problems with which I directly identified. I’d long thought Max had it so easy – all because he had friends. The truth was, he didn’t need to experience my personal brand of sorrow in order for me to relate – he had felt plenty of his own.

My failure to recognize Max’s suffering brought home for me the profound universality and diversity of personal struggle; everyone has insecurities, everyone has woes, and everyone – most certainly – has pain. I am acutely grateful for the conversations he and I shared around all of this, because I believe our relationship has been fundamentally strengthened by a deeper understanding of one another. Further, this experience has reinforced the value of constantly striving for deeper sensitivity to the hidden struggles of those around me. I won’t make the mistake again of assuming that the surface of someone’s life reflects their underlying story.

Here you can find a prime example that you don’t have to have fabulous imagery or flowery prose to write a successful essay. You just have to be clear and say something that matters. This essay is simple and beautiful. It almost feels like having a conversation with a friend and learning that they are an even better person than you already thought they were.

Through this narrative, readers learn a lot about the writer—where they’re from, what their family life is like, what their challenges were as a kid, and even their sexuality. We also learn a lot about their values—notably, the value they place on awareness, improvement, and consideration of others. Though they never explicitly state it (which is great because it is still crystal clear!), this student’s ending of “I won’t make the mistake again of assuming that the surface of someone’s life reflects their underlying story” shows that they are constantly striving for improvement and finding lessons anywhere they can get them in life.

Community Service/Impact on the Community

Colleges want students who will positively impact the campus community and go on to make change in the world after they graduate. This essay is similar to the Extracurricular Essay, but you need to focus on a situation where you impacted others. 

Learn more about how to write the Community Service Essay in our guide.

Academic Signing Day

Prompt: What have you done to make your school or your community a better place?

The scent of eucalyptus caressed my nose in a gentle breeze. Spring had arrived. Senior class activities were here. As a sophomore, I noticed a difference between athletic and academic seniors at my high school; one received recognition while the other received silence. I wanted to create an event celebrating students academically-committed to four-years, community colleges, trades schools, and military programs. This event was Academic Signing Day.

The leadership label, “Events Coordinator,” felt heavy on my introverted mind. I usually was setting up for rallies and spirit weeks, being overlooked around the exuberant nature of my peers. 

I knew a change of mind was needed; I designed flyers, painted posters, presented powerpoints, created student-led committees, and practiced countless hours for my introductory speech. Each committee would play a vital role on event day: one dedicated to refreshments, another to technology, and one for decorations. The fourth-month planning was a laborious joy, but I was still fearful of being in the spotlight. Being acknowledged by hundreds of people was new to me.     

The day was here. Parents filled the stands of the multi-purpose room. The atmosphere was tense; I could feel the angst building in my throat, worried about the impression I would leave. Applause followed each of the 400 students as they walked to their college table, indicating my time to speak. 

I walked up to the stand, hands clammy, expression tranquil, my words echoing to the audience. I thought my speech would be met by the sounds of crickets; instead, smiles lit up the stands, realizing my voice shone through my actions. I was finally coming out of my shell. The floor was met by confetti as I was met by the sincerity of staff, students, and parents, solidifying the event for years to come. 

Academic students were no longer overshadowed. Their accomplishments were equally recognized to their athletic counterparts. The school culture of athletics over academics was no longer imbalanced. Now, every time I smell eucalyptus, it is a friendly reminder that on Academic Signing Day, not only were academic students in the spotlight but so was my voice.

This essay answers the prompt nicely because the student describes a contribution with a lasting legacy. Academic Signing Day will affect this high school in the future and it affected this student’s self-development—an idea summed up nicely with their last phrase “not only were academic students in the spotlight but so was my voice.”

With Community Service essays, students sometimes take small contributions and stretch them. And, oftentimes, the stretch is very obvious. Here, the student shows us that Academic Signing Day actually mattered by mentioning four months of planning and hundreds of students and parents. They also make their involvement in Academic Signing Day clear—it was their idea and they were in charge, and that’s why they gave the introductory speech.

Use this response as an example of the type of focused contribution that makes for a convincing Community Service Essay.

Climate Change Rally

Prompt: What would you say is your greatest talent or skill? How have you developed and demonstrated that talent over time? (technically not community service, but the response works)

Let’s fast-forward time. Strides were made toward racial equality. Healthcare is accessible to all; however, one issue remains. Our aquatic ecosystems are parched with dead coral from ocean acidification. Climate change has prevailed.

Rewind to the present day.

My activism skills are how I express my concerns for the environment. Whether I play on sandy beaches or rest under forest treetops, nature offers me an escape from the haste of the world. When my body is met by trash in the ocean or my nose is met by harmful pollutants, Earth’s pain becomes my own. 

Substituting coffee grinds as fertilizer, using bamboo straws, starting my sustainable garden, my individual actions needed to reach a larger scale. I often found performative activism to be ineffective when communicating climate concerns. My days of reposting awareness graphics on social media never filled the ambition I had left to put my activism skills to greater use. I decided to share my ecocentric worldview with a coalition of environmentalists and host a climate change rally outside my high school.

Meetings were scheduled where I informed students about the unseen impact they have on the oceans and local habitual communities. My fingers were cramped from all the constant typing and investigating of micro causes of the Pacific Waste Patch, creating reusable flyers, displaying steps people could take from home in reducing their carbon footprint. I aided my fellow environmentalists in translating these flyers into other languages, repeating this process hourly, for five days, up until rally day.  

It was 7:00 AM. The faces of 100 students were shouting, “The climate is changing, why can’t we?” I proudly walked on the dewy grass, grabbing the microphone, repeating those same words. The rally not only taught me efficient methods of communication but it echoed my environmental activism to the masses. The City of Corona would be the first of many cities to see my activism, as more rallies were planned for various parts of SoCal. My once unfulfilled ambition was fueled by my tangible activism, understanding that it takes more than one person to make an environmental impact.

Like with the last example, this student describes a focused event with a lasting legacy. That’s a perfect place to start! By the end of this essay, we have an image of the cause of this student’s passion and the effect of this student’s passion. There are no unanswered questions.

This student supplements their focused topic with engaging and exciting writing to make for an easy-to-read and enjoyable essay. One of the largest strengths of this response is its pace. From the very beginning, we are invited to “fast-forward” and “rewind” with the writer. Then, after we center ourselves in real-time, this writer keeps their quick pace with sentences like “Substituting coffee grounds as fertilizer, using bamboo straws, starting my sustainable garden, my individual actions needed to reach a larger scale.” Community Service essays run the risk of turning boring, but this unique pacing keeps things interesting.

Having a diverse class provides a richness of different perspectives and encourages open-mindedness among the student body. The Diversity Essay is also somewhat similar to the Extracurricular and Community Service Essays, but it focuses more on what you might bring to the campus community because of your unique experiences or identities.

Learn more about how to write the Diversity Essay in our guide.

A Story of a Young Skater

​​“Everyone follow me!” I smiled at five wide-eyed skaters before pushing off into a spiral. I glanced behind me hopefully, only to see my students standing frozen like statues, the fear in their eyes as clear as the ice they swayed on. “Come on!” I said encouragingly, but the only response I elicited was the slow shake of their heads. My first day as a Learn-to-Skate coach was not going as planned. 

But amid my frustration, I was struck by how much my students reminded me of myself as a young skater. At seven, I had been fascinated by Olympic performers who executed thrilling high jumps and dizzying spins with apparent ease, and I dreamed to one day do the same. My first few months on skates, however, sent these hopes crashing down: my attempts at slaloms and toe-loops were shadowed by a stubborn fear of falling, which even the helmet, elbow pads, and two pairs of mittens I had armed myself with couldn’t mitigate. Nonetheless, my coach remained unfailingly optimistic, motivating me through my worst spills and teaching me to find opportunities in failures. With his encouragement, I learned to push aside my fears and attack each jump with calm and confidence; it’s the hope that I can help others do the same that now inspires me to coach.

I remember the day a frustrated staff member directed Oliver, a particularly hesitant young skater, toward me, hoping that my patience and steady encouragement might help him improve. Having stood in Oliver’s skates not much earlier myself, I completely empathized with his worries but also saw within him the potential to overcome his fears and succeed. 

To alleviate his anxiety, I held Oliver’s hand as we inched around the rink, cheering him on at every turn. I soon found though, that this only increased his fear of gliding on his own, so I changed my approach, making lessons as exciting as possible in hopes that he would catch the skating bug and take off. In the weeks that followed, we held relay races, played “freeze-skate” and “ice-potato”, and raced through obstacle courses; gradually, with each slip and subsequent success, his fear began to abate. I watched Oliver’s eyes widen in excitement with every skill he learned, and not long after, he earned his first skating badge. Together we celebrated this milestone, his ecstasy fueling my excitement and his pride mirroring my own. At that moment, I was both teacher and student, his progress instilling in me the importance of patience and a positive attitude. 

It’s been more than ten years since I bundled up and stepped onto the ice for the first time. Since then, my tolerance for the cold has remained stubbornly low, but the rest of me has certainly changed. In sharing my passion for skating, I have found a wonderful community of eager athletes, loving parents, and dedicated coaches from whom I have learned invaluable lessons and wisdom. My fellow staffers have been with me, both as friends and colleagues, and the relationships I’ve formed have given me far more poise, confidence, and appreciation for others. Likewise, my relationships with parents have given me an even greater gratitude for the role they play: no one goes to the rink without a parent behind the wheel! 

Since that first lesson, I have mentored dozens of children, and over the years, witnessed tentative steps transform into powerful glides and tears give way to delighted grins. What I have shared with my students has been among the greatest joys of my life, something I will cherish forever. It’s funny: when I began skating, what pushed me through the early morning practices was the prospect of winning an Olympic medal. Now, what excites me is the chance to work with my students, to help them grow, and to give back to the sport that has brought me so much happiness. 

This response is a great example of how Diversity doesn’t have to mean race, gender, sexuality, ethnicity, age, or ability. Diversity can mean whatever you want it to mean—whatever unique experience(s) you have to bring to the table!

A major strength of this essay comes in its narrative organization. When reading this first paragraph, we feel for the young skaters and understand their fear—skating sounds scary! Then, because the writer sets us up to feel this empathy, the transition to the second paragraph where the student describes their empathy for the young skaters is particularly powerful. It’s like we are all in it together! The student’s empathy for the young skaters also serves as an outstanding, seamless transition to the applicant discussing their personal journey with skating: “I was struck by how much my students reminded me of myself as a young skater.”

This essay positions the applicant as a grounded and caring individual. They are caring towards the young skaters—changing their teaching style to try to help the young skaters and feeling the young skaters’ emotions with them—but they are also appreciative to those who helped them as they reference their fellow staffers and parents. This shows great maturity—a favorable quality in the eyes of an admissions officer.

At the end of the essay, we know a lot about this student and are convinced that they would be a good addition to a college campus!

Finding Community in the Rainforest

Prompt: Duke University seeks a talented, engaged student body that embodies the wide range of human experience; we believe that the diversity of our students makes our community stronger. If you’d like to share a perspective you bring or experiences you’ve had to help us understand you better—perhaps related to a community you belong to, your sexual orientation or gender identity, or your family or cultural background—we encourage you to do so. Real people are reading your application, and we want to do our best to understand and appreciate the real people applying to Duke (250 words).

I never understood the power of community until I left home to join seven strangers in the Ecuadorian rainforest. Although we flew in from distant corners of the U.S., we shared a common purpose: immersing ourselves in our passion for protecting the natural world.

Back home in my predominantly conservative suburb, my neighbors had brushed off environmental concerns. My classmates debated the feasibility of Trump’s wall, not the deteriorating state of our planet. Contrastingly, these seven strangers delighted in bird-watching, brightened at the mention of medicinal tree sap, and understood why I once ran across a four-lane highway to retrieve discarded beer cans. Their histories barely resembled mine, yet our values aligned intimately. We did not hesitate to joke about bullet ants, gush about the versatility of tree bark, or discuss the destructive consequences of materialism. Together, we let our inner tree huggers run free.

In the short life of our little community, we did what we thought was impossible. By feeding on each other’s infectious tenacity, we cultivated an atmosphere that deepened our commitment to our values and empowered us to speak out on behalf of the environment. After a week of stimulating conversations and introspective revelations about engaging people from our hometowns in environmental advocacy, we developed a shared determination to devote our lives to this cause.

As we shared a goodbye hug, my new friend whispered, “The world needs saving. Someone’s gotta do it.” For the first time, I believed that someone could be me.

This response is so wholesome and relatable. We all have things that we just need to geek out over and this student expresses the joy that came when they found a community where they could geek out about the environment. Passion is fundamental to university life and should find its way into successful applications.

Like the last response, this essay finds strength in the fact that readers feel for the student. We get a little bit of backstory about where they come from and how they felt silenced—“Back home in my predominantly conservative suburb, my neighbors had brushed off environmental concerns”—, so it’s easy to feel joy for them when they get set free.

This student displays clear values: community, ecoconsciousness, dedication, and compassion. An admissions officer who reads Diversity essays is looking for students with strong values and a desire to contribute to a university community—sounds like this student!  

Political/Global Issues

Colleges want to build engaged citizens, and the Political/Global Issues Essay allows them to better understand what you care about and whether your values align with theirs. In this essay, you’re most commonly asked to describe an issue, why you care about it, and what you’ve done or hope to do to address it. 

Learn more about how to write the Political/Global Issues Essay in our guide.

Note: this prompt is not a typical political/global issues essay, but the essay itself would be a strong response to a political/global issues prompt.

Fighting Violence Against Women

Prompt: Using a favorite quotation from an essay or book you have read in the last three years as a starting point, tell us about an event or experience that helped you define one of your values or changed how you approach the world. Please write the quotation, title and author at the beginning of your essay. (250-650 words)

“One of the great challenges of our time is that the disparities we face today have more complex causes and point less straightforwardly to solutions.” 

– Omar Wasow, assistant professor of politics, Princeton University. This quote is taken from Professor Wasow’s January 2014 speech at the Martin Luther King Day celebration at Princeton University. 

The air is crisp and cool, nipping at my ears as I walk under a curtain of darkness that drapes over the sky, starless. It is a Friday night in downtown Corpus Christi, a rare moment of peace in my home city filled with the laughter of strangers and colorful lights of street vendors. But I cannot focus. 

My feet stride quickly down the sidewalk, my hand grasps on to the pepper spray my parents gifted me for my sixteenth birthday. My eyes ignore the surrounding city life, focusing instead on a pair of tall figures walking in my direction. I mentally ask myself if they turned with me on the last street corner. I do not remember, so I pick up the pace again. All the while, my mind runs over stories of young women being assaulted, kidnapped, and raped on the street. I remember my mother’s voice reminding me to keep my chin up, back straight, eyes and ears alert. 

At a young age, I learned that harassment is a part of daily life for women. I fell victim to period-shaming when I was thirteen, received my first catcall when I was fourteen, and was nonconsensually grabbed by a man soliciting on the street when I was fifteen. For women, assault does not just happen to us— its gory details leave an imprint in our lives, infecting the way we perceive the world. And while movements such as the Women’s March and #MeToo have given victims of sexual violence a voice, harassment still manifests itself in the lives of millions of women across the nation. Symbolic gestures are important in spreading awareness but, upon learning that a surprising number of men are oblivious to the frequent harassment that women experience, I now realize that addressing this complex issue requires a deeper level of activism within our local communities. 

Frustrated with incessant cases of harassment against women, I understood at sixteen years old that change necessitates action. During my junior year, I became an intern with a judge whose campaign for office focused on a need for domestic violence reform. This experience enabled me to engage in constructive dialogue with middle and high school students on how to prevent domestic violence. As I listened to young men uneasily admit their ignorance and young women bravely share their experiences in an effort to spread awareness, I learned that breaking down systems of inequity requires changing an entire culture. I once believed that the problem of harassment would dissipate after politicians and celebrities denounce inappropriate behavior to their global audience. But today, I see that effecting large-scale change comes from the “small” lessons we teach at home and in schools. Concerning women’s empowerment, the effects of Hollywood activism do not trickle down enough. Activism must also trickle up and it depends on our willingness to fight complacency. 

Finding the solution to the long-lasting problem of violence against women is a work-in-progress, but it is a process that is persistently moving. In my life, for every uncomfortable conversation that I bridge, I make the world a bit more sensitive to the unspoken struggle that it is to be a woman. I am no longer passively waiting for others to let me live in a world where I can stand alone under the expanse of darkness on a city street, utterly alone and at peace. I, too, deserve the night sky.

As this student addresses an important social issue, she makes the reasons for her passion clear—personal experiences. Because she begins with an extended anecdote, readers are able to feel connected to the student and become invested in what she has to say.

Additionally, through her powerful ending—“I, too, deserve the night sky”—which connects back to her beginning— “as I walk under a curtain of darkness that drapes over the sky”—this student illustrates a mastery of language. Her engagement with other writing techniques that further her argument, like the emphasis on time—“gifted to me for my sixteenth birthday,” “when I was thirteen,” “when I was fourteen,” etc.—also illustrates her mastery of language.

While this student proves herself a good writer, she also positions herself as motivated and ambitious. She turns her passions into action and fights for them. That is just what admissions officers want to see in a Political/Global issues essay!

Where to Get Feedback on Your College Essays

Once you’ve written your college essays, you’ll want to get feedback on them. Since these essays are important to your chances of acceptance, you should prepare to go through several rounds of edits. 

Not sure who to ask for feedback? That’s why we created our free Peer Essay Review resource. You can get comments from another student going through the process and also edit other students’ essays to improve your own writing. 

If you want a college admissions expert to review your essay, advisors on CollegeVine have helped students refine their writing and submit successful applications to top schools.  Find the right advisor for you  to improve your chances of getting into your dream school!

Related CollegeVine Blog Posts

How to Write Great Essay Hooks (Tips + Examples)

Table of contents

Yona Schnitzer

Blank screen. Cursor blinks. Clock ticks. Brain freezes.

You stressfully wonder, “How will I ever finish this essay?”

I’ve been there. 

Every time you write an essay, you want to catch your readers’ undivided attention from the very first word. The opening hook has to be *perfect* — no compromises. 

But, instead of reeling under pressure to come up with this elusively perfect essay hook at the eleventh hour, I’ve found a better way to write great essay hooks. 

In this guide, I’ll tell you what it takes to write the most compelling and attention-grabbing hooks. I’ll also break down six awesome types of essay hooks you can experiment with and share examples to inspire your next opening statement.

What is an Essay Hook?

An essay hook is the opening statement of an essay, written to capture readers' attention and nudge them to learn more about the topic. Also known as a lede or lead, this hook introduces readers to the topic/theme of the essay and piques their curiosity to continue reading. 

The hook creates the entire narrative for your essay. It tells readers what to expect from the rest of the essay and creates context around your main argument or thesis statement. 

6 Types of Essay Hooks You Can Experiment With

I’ve created this handy list of six different types of essay hooks. You can choose the one that best fits your essay’s context and create a stellar opening statement within minutes. 

1. Compelling fact or statistic

Lead with evidence and use a powerful fact or statistic as your essay hook. It’s one of the best ways to capture readers’ attention from the start and keep them intrigued throughout your essay. 

For example, if you’re writing about the importance of time management for freelancers, you have two options to create your opening sentence:

Generic : “Managing time as a freelancer is no easy feat.”

Impactful : “Nearly 70% of freelancers struggle to effectively divide and manage their time between multiple clients.” 

This data point, linked to the original research, sets a strong tone for your essay and draws people in to read more. It communicates  

Find a shocking statistic with AI

Finding relevant statistics for any topic is one of the hardest parts of the job. 

But you don't have to spend hours looking for these data points anymore. Wordtune can do this heavy lifting for you in three easy steps.

• Open the Wordtune editor and add your essay title. 
• Type in any content you've written, click on 'Add spice,' and select the 'Expand on' option.
• Write 'statistics,' and Wordtune will add relevant data points to your content.

Get Wordtune for free > Get Wordtune for free >

2. Bold claim hook

When working on an argumentative essay , I always write with the mindset that nobody has the time to read my thoughts from start to finish. So, I have to get to the point quickly and make a solid argument worth people’s time. 

That's when opening with a bold claim works best. Condense all your views on the topic into a few thought-provoking lines that would make readers go, hmmm…

But remember, you can't open with a claim that people already know and accept as fact. It has to be something original and unique to make your readers tick, nudging them to dive deeper into your essay. 

For example, if you’re writing about water crisis, you have two options to open your essay: 

‍ "In some regions, there is not enough clean water for people to use."

‍ "Imagine a world where every drop of water is a battle, a precious commodity fought over by scores of people and animals alike. This can become a reality as early as 2050."

This bold claim presents a convincing argument about the global water crisis. It also emphasizes the urgency of this argument with a research-backed statistic.

Create a bold claim suggestion using AI

Can’t think of a strong opening sentence for your essay? Wordtune can translate your thoughts into a bold claim and create a compelling essay hook. 

Open your Wordtune editor and write a few lines related to your topic. These sentences should have a consensus among your audience. Then, choose the 'Counterargument' option from the list of suggestions. 

And you’ll have a bold claim for your essay with no effort at all!

3. Story/Anecdote hook

In all my years of writing, I’ve noticed how stories have a unique effect on people. A good story can resonate with a bigger audience, pique their curiosity, and deliver a more personal message. 

That's why you can cite a personal anecdote or talk about a publicly known story as a good hook for your essay. This hook allows you to play with words and work in more storytelling . 

One of my favorite writing tips applies here: enter the scene as late as possible and leave as early as possible. You have to keep it crisp instead of rambling on and on. 

Consider these two examples:

Either of these hooks could work fine if we were just writing a personal essay about a move to a new place. But if we’re specifically writing about the sky, the second example is better. It sticks to the point — the sky and the color of the sky — and doesn’t stray into irrelevant details. 

Create a compelling story with AI

I get it—not all of us are natural storytellers. But you can use AI to your advantage to create a concise and exciting story for your essay.  

Wordtune can help you write a short story from scratch or trim down your writing into a quick anecdote. Click on the expand or shorten button to edit your story any way you like. 

4. Question Hook

Humans have a tendency to immediately look for answers every time they come across fascinating questions. Using questions as essay hooks can reel people into your essay and feed their curiosity.

But questions are also fairly overused in essays. You don't want to use a generic question that makes people say, " Not another question ." 

Instead, think of questions that approach your topic from a fresh angle. This means honing in on what was especially interesting or surprising from your research—and maybe even brainstorming different questions to find the most fascinating one.

For example, if you’re writing about the psychology behind why we buy, you have two options to open your essay:

‍ “Do you know what factors compel us to buy certain things?”

Plugged in :

“Before buying anything, have you ever taken a moment to pause and think about possible reasons driving you to this purchase?”

The latter is more descriptive and creates a realistic scenario for readers to truly think about the topic of the essay.

5. Description hook

A descriptive hook works best when writing an explanatory or opinion-led essay. Descriptive hooks, as the name suggests, illustrate a topic in detail to create context for the essay. It's a good way to build awareness for and educate readers on lesser-known themes.

But a descriptive hook can easily become too plain or unexciting to read. To make it work, you have to write an engaging description using imagery, analogies, and other figures of speech. 

Remember to make your hook reader-friendly by avoiding passive voice, mainstream cliches, and lengthy sentences.

Consider this example:

Describing a sunset is too cliche, so cross that one off the list. Describing the sky as it is on a normal day wouldn't be shocking or unexpected, so scratch that one, too.

This example creates something unique by using analogies to describe the color of the sky and painting a beautiful picture. 

Write a gripping description with AI

Writing an exciting hook for a boring topic is more challenging than it looks. But Wordtune makes it a breeze with just two steps:

• Open the Wordtune editor and write your essay topic.
• Click on Explain or Emphasize and let it work its magic.

You can also change the tone of voice to make the text more in tune with your theme. 

6. Metaphor hook

One of my favorite essay hooks is to open with a persuasive metaphor to contextualize the topic. Metaphors can help you approach the topic from a completely different lens and wow your readers with interesting insight. 

Metaphors are also super versatile to make your writing more impactful. You can write a one-line metaphor or create a scenario comparing one thing to another and linking it to your topic. 

For example, if you’re writing about the experience of working at a startup, you can open your essay with these two options:

Short & sweet: "Joining a startup is like strapping into a rollercoaster: be ready to witness thrilling highs and sinking drops."

Long & descriptive : “Picture a small sailboat navigating the unpredictable winds and tides in a vast ocean. That’s a startup operating in a massive market. And with the right vision, this journey is filled with risks and rewards.” 

Create a convincing metaphor with AI

Writing good metaphors takes up a lot of creative brain power. You can always use Wordtune to find some extra inspiration if you're out of creative ideas. 

Type your opening line in the Wordtune editor and click on the 'Give an analogy' option. You can ask for as many suggestions as you want till you find the best one! 

What to Know About Your Essay (and Topic) Before You Write the Hook

Whether you’re writing a research paper on economics, an argumentative essay for your college composition class, or a personal essay sharing your thoughts on a topic, you need to nail down a few things before you settle on the first line for your essay.

‍ Let me break them down for you. 

1. Gain in-depth knowledge of your topic

Before you start writing your essay, you need to know your topic — not just in name, but in-depth. You don't have to become a subject matter expert overnight. But you do need to research the topic inside out 

Your research will help you:

• Narrow your focus
• Build an argument
• Shape the narrative

Your research insights determine your essay’s structure and guide your choice of hook. 

After organizing your research in a neat outline, think to yourself: ‍Did you uncover a shocking fact? A compelling anecdote? An interesting quote? Any of those things could be your hook.

⚡ ‍ Take action: After finishing your research, review your notes and think through your essay. Mark or make a list of anything compelling enough to be a good lead.

2. Type of essay

In academic settings, there are generally three kinds of essays:

• Argumentative: Making the case for a certain stance or route of action.
• Expository: Explaining the who, what, when, where, why, and how of some phenomenon.
• Narrative: Telling a true story as a way to explore different ideas.

‍ The type of essay you’re writing is key to choosing the best hook for your piece. 

A serious argumentative essay can start with a shocking statistic or a bold claim. And an expository essay can open with a descriptive hook while a metaphor hook would work best for a narrative essay.

⚡ ‍ Take action: Go through your list of potential hooks and cross out anything that doesn't fit the type of essay you're writing, whether it's persuasive , argumentative, or any other type.

3. Audience and tone

A best practice I often share with writers is to think of one reader and keep yourself in their shoes . This exercise can tell you so much about your audience — what kind of tone they like, what matters the most to them, what topics interest them, and so on. 

You can use these insights to create a compelling essay hook. Here’s how:

• For an argumentative essay, you’re trying to convince someone who doesn’t agree with you that what you’re claiming is right or, at least, reasonable. You don’t want to turn them off with snarky or offensive language — but you do want to be authoritative. Your hook should match that tone and support your effort.
• A narrative essay is likely to welcome more lyrical language, so starting with a colorful description or an anecdote might make more sense than, say, a bold claim or surprising fact. Whatever tone you choose for your narrative essay — comical or gentle or bold — should be used for your hook.
• ‍ Expository essays can use all sorts of tones and be written to a variety of audiences, so think carefully about the tone that best fits your subject matter. An essay explaining how the human body shuts down when overdosed will likely require a different tone than one on the lives of circus masters in the late 1800s. 

⚡ ‍ Take action: Look at your list. Can you write these potential hooks in a tone that suits your subject and audience?

4. Length of essay

Are you writing a 10-page paper or a three-page reflection? Or is this your senior thesis, pushing over 100 pages?

‍ If you’re writing a shorter paper, you’ll want to keep your hook quick and snappy.  

Readers are expecting a quick read, and they don’t want to spend five minutes only going through the introduction. 

In contrast, you can approach a longer essay — like a senior thesis or a term paper — with a longer hook. Just make sure your hook relates to and supports the core point of your essay. You don’t want to waste space describing a scene that ultimately has nothing to do with the rest of your piece.

⚡ ‍ Take action: If you write out the items on your list, how long will they be? A sentence or paragraph? Perfect. Two to five paragraphs? Unless your essay is on the longer side, you may want to save that information for later in the piece.

‍ Now that you know the basic facts about what you’re writing, let’s look at some approaches you could use to catch those readers — and reel them in.

3 Approaches to Avoid When Writing Hooks 

I’ve read hundreds of essays — enough to recognize lazy writing from the first few words. It’s equally easy for readers to discard your essays as ‘poorly written’ just by reading the first line. 

So, I made a list of three types of essay hooks you want to avoid at all costs because these hooks can only disappoint your readers. 

1. Quotations

Quotes are probably the most overused type of hook in any form of writing. What's even worse is rinsing and repeating the same old quotes from Abraham Lincoln or Nelson Mandela in your essays. 

No matter how powerful a quote sounds, you shouldn’t slap it at the opening of your essay. It doesn’t give readers the excitement of reading something original and looks lazy.

For example, if you’re writing an essay on productivity, here’s what a good and bad lede looks like:

“Amateurs sit and wait for inspiration, the rest of us just get up and go to work” – Stephen King

Did you know that consuming 100 gms of sugar can slash your productivity levels by over 50% in a day?  

2. Definitions

The New Oxford American Dictionary defines a hook as "a thing designed to catch people's attention." 

If I opened my article with this dictionary definition of a hook, you’d have either dozed off or left this page long back to find something more interesting. 

Here's the thing: definitions put people to sleep. Readers don't want to see a formal, jargon-heavy definition of a topic as the very first line of an essay. Your opening statement should have some personality in it to show readers they're in for an exciting read. 

For example, if you’re writing about happy hormones, here’s what a good and bad lede looks like:

Happy hormones are known to boost the happiness levels in your body by creating positive feelings.

Ever wondered why cat videos make you instantly happy, and ice creams give you an extra dose of energy? It's all about how happy hormones control our brain chemistry.

3. “Imagine this”

Opening your essay with "Imagine this" used to be an interesting way to put your readers in a scenario and set the context for your essay. But now, it's far too cliched and just another lazy attempt to write an essay hook. 

You can create a relatable scenario for users without asking them to imagine or picture it. Use the descriptive hook format with an interesting choice of words to convey the same ideas more creatively.

For example, if you’re writing an essay on preparing for higher studies abroad, here’s what a good and bad lede looks like:

Imagine this: You’ve been applying to multiple universities, writing SOPs, and preparing for exams without guidance. Everything can go south any minute. 

College application season is officially here. But with each passing day, you’re under more and more stress to apply to your chosen colleges and tick all the items off your list.

‍Our Go-To Trick for Writing Catchy Hooks

This opening statement can make or break your entire essay. While I’ve broken down my best tips to create the best essay hooks, here’s a surefire way to write compelling openings :

Go through your notes and either outline your essay or write the whole thing. This way, you’ll know the central thread (or throughline) that runs throughout your piece. 

Once your essay or outline is complete, go back through and identify a particularly compelling fact, claim, or example that relates to that central thread.

‍Write up that fact, claim, or example as the hook for your essay using any of the methods we’ve covered. Then revise or write your essay so the hook leads smoothly into the rest of the piece and you don’t repeat that information elsewhere.

Does your hook spark curiosity in you? 

Did that fact surprise you in the research stage? 

Chances are, your readers will have the same reaction.

And that’s exactly what you want.

Share This Article:

Eight Steps to Craft an Irresistible LinkedIn Profile

7 Common Errors in Writing + How to Fix Them (With Examples)

How To Prepare For Studying Abroad (From Someone Who’s Done It)

Looking for fresh content, thank you your submission has been received.

• Writing Courses Online
• Course Testimonials

latest posts

How to Improve Your Writing in Three Easy Steps

Verbeter Jou Kans Om ʼn Kortverhaal Kompetisie Te Wen Só

Topics to Write About: How to Choose

Free Writing Competition – My Writing Journey

Logical Flow: The Key to Compelling Writing

Can You Make a Living From Travel Writing? We Ask Travel Writer Gabi Logan

Four Habits of Successful Writers

Famous Quotes on Writing

Need some writing inspiration and courage to keep going? Here are wise words from famous writers.

“A professional writer is an amateur who didn’t quit.” ~ Richard Bach

“i only write when i’m inspired, so i see to it that i’m inspired every morning at nine o’clock.” ~ peter de vries, “talent is cheaper than table salt. what separates the talented individual from the successful one is a lot of hard work.” ~ steven king.

“It’s none of their business that you have to learn how to write. Let them think you were born that way.” ~ Ernest Hemingway

“If you want to be a writer, you must do two things above all others: read a lot and write a lot.” ~ Stephen King

“there is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you.” ~ maya angelou, “i love deadlines. i love the whooshing noise they make as they go by.” ~ douglas adams, the salmon of doubt.

“A writer is working when he’s staring out of the window.” ~ Burton Rascoe

“just write every day of your life. read intensely. then see what happens. most of my friends who are put on that diet have very pleasant careers.” ~ ray bradbury, “close the door. write with no one looking over your shoulder. don’t try to figure out what other people want to hear from you; figure out what you have to say. it’s the one and only thing you have to offer.” ~ barbara kingsolver, “the english language is an arsenal of weapons. if you are going to brandish them without checking to see whether or not they are loaded, you must expect to have them explode in your face from time to time.” ~ stephen fry, “if my doctor told me i had only six minutes to live, i wouldn’t brood. i’d type a little faster.” ~ isaac asimov.

“Every writer I know has trouble writing.” ~ Joseph Heller

“Good writing is remembering detail. Most people want to forget. Don’t forget things that were painful or embarrassing or silly. Turn them into a story that tells the truth.” ~ Paula Danziger

“there is no rule on how to write. sometimes it comes easily and perfectly: sometimes it’s like drilling rock and then blasting it out with charges.” ~ ernest hemingway.

“The scariest moment is always just before you start. After that, things can only get better.” ~ Stephen King

“And by the way, everything in life is writable about if you have the outgoing guts to do it, and the imagination to improvise. The worst enemy to creativity is self-doubt.” ~ Sylvia Plath

“the best time to plan a book is while you’re doing the dishes.” ~ agatha christie, “there are three rules for writing the novel. unfortunately, no one knows what they are.” ~ w. somerset maugham, “[as a writer] you have to have the three d’s: drive, discipline and desire. if you’re missing any one of those three, you can have all the talent in the world, but it’s going to be really hard to get anything done.” ~ nora roberts, “i try to write a certain amount each day, five days a week. a rule sometimes broken is better than no rule.” ~ herman wouk.

“Never, never, never, never give up.” ~Winston Churchill

“We will open the book. Its pages are blank. We are going to put words on them ourselves. The book is called Opportunity and its first chapter is New Year’s Day.” ~ Edith Lovejoy Pierce

“there’s no better teacher for writing than reading… get a library card. that’s the best investment.” ~ alisa valdes.

“Beginning a novel is always hard. It feels like going nowhere. I always have to write at least 100 pages that go into the trashcan before it finally begins to work. It’s discouraging, but necessary to write those pages. I try to consider them pages -100 to zero of the novel.” ~ Barbara Kingsolver

“you have to follow your own voice. you have to be yourself when you write. in effect, you have to announce, ‘this is me, this is what i stand for, this is what you get when you read me. i’m doing the best i can—buy me or not—but this is who i am as a writer.” ~ david morrell.

“A writer is a person for whom writing is more difficult than it is for other people.” ~Thomas Mann

“The miraculous connection between writing and the immune system results from cracking through inhibition. It seems that when we don’t speak the truth of our experience, we inhibit our emotions, and that inhibits our immune function. Keeping secrets and maintaining denial require physical energy, energy our bodies could use in healthier ways were it available.” ~ Peggy Tabor Millin

‘if you write one story, it may be bad; if you write a hundred, you have the odds in your favor.’ ~ edgar rice burroughs, “being a good writer is 3% talent, 97% not being distracted by the internet.” ~ anon.

“If you wait for inspiration to write you’re not a writer, you’re a waiter.” ~ Dan Poynter.

 “If a story is not about the hearer, he will not listen. And here I make a rule – a great and interesting story is about everyone or it will not last.” ~ John Steinbeck

“words can be like x-rays if you use them properly – they’ll go through anything. you read and you’re pierced.” ~ aldous huxley, brave new world, “my first feeling was that there was no way to continue. writing isn’t like math; in math, two plus two always equals four no matter what your mood is like. with writing, the way you feel changes everything.” ~ stephenie meyer, “there is probably no hell for authors in the next world – they suffer so much from critics and publishers in this one.” ~ c.n. bovee, “sometimes the ideas just come to me. other times i have to sweat and almost bleed to make ideas come. it’s a mysterious process, but i hope i never find out exactly how it works. i like a mystery, as you may have noticed.” ~ j.k. rowling, “there is no greater threat to the critics and cynics and fearmongers than those of us who are willing to fall because we have learned how to rise.” ~ brené brown.

you might also like

Home — Blog — Literature — Inspiring Quotes from Books for College Students

Inspiring Quotes from Books for College Students

Quotes from books, why do people love quotes .

The importance of quotes from the books cannot be underestimated as we are dealing with college essays about culture , blog posts, or even postcards that provide something meaningful. The quotes can be inspiring, helpful, fun, controversial, or educational as they help to shape an opinion. The quotes from the books inspire people to read and form special role models . We also learn more about literary devices as we look through quotations that fit our objectives. Even if we do something for fun or quote Shakespeare as we talk about love, we go beyond the basic phrases and add something special to our speech or writing. 

Dealing with essay writing, the use of quotes helps to support our opinions with the classic sayings. The most important is to provide due credit as it helps to avoid plagiarism. You may use short quotes from books if you are worried about similarity levels as these won’t be lengthy in terms of what you paraphrase or use in your essay writing. Ensure that your citation is used wisely and fits within the context because it must be there for a reason! Think about the main message, introduce it before you use some quotes, and your writing will become even more meaningful and concise. 

Inspiring Book Quotes For College Students 

Always think about your writing objectives before you choose a suitable quote . Provide some background information about the author of the citation if it can help make things clearer to your readers. It’s always important to give such credit, especially if you are turning to a quotation that is not belonging to the classics. 

💖 Quotes About Love

The quotes about love hold an immortal power as these are always applicable even when your argumentative essay is dealing with serious subjects. Here are some book quotes about love that you may explore: 

“He stepped down, trying not to look long at her, as if she were the sun, yet he saw her, like the sun, even without looking.” - Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy. “He sweeps her hair back from her ears; he swings her above his head. He says she is his émerveillement. He says he will never leave her, not in a million years.” - All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr.  “We’ve loved each other so long I’ve never been a man and not loved her.” - The Essex Serpent by Sarah Perry.  “Did my heart love till now? Forswear it, sight! For I ne’er saw true beauty till this night.” - Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare.  “One hour of right-down love is worth an age of dully living on.” - The Rover by Aphra Benn.  “Her love was entire as a child’s, and though warm as summer it was fresh as spring.” - Far From The Madding Crowd by Thomas Hardy.  “Every atom of your flesh is as dear to me as my own: in pain and sickness it would still be dear.” - Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë

🌟 Inspirational Book Quotes

When you are dealing with the quotes from the books, seek something that inspires you and pushes you forward to overcome the challenges. Here are some great books worth reading because of these quotes alone: 

“Sometimes weak and wan, sometimes strong and full of light. The moon understands what it means to be human.” - Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi.

“It is better to be hated for what you are than to be loved for what you are not.” - Autumn Leaves by André Gide.

“She decided long ago that life was a long journey. She would be strong, and she would be weak, and both would be okay.” - Furthermore by Tahereh Mafi

“It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye.” - The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry.

“Hoping for the best, prepared for the worst, and unsurprised by anything in between.” - I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou. 

“It is a curious thought, but it is only when you see people looking ridiculous that you realize just how much you love them.” - An Autobiography by Agatha Christie. 

“We all require devotion to something more than ourselves for our lives to be endurable.” - Being Mortal by Atul Gawande.

💪 Motivational Quotes

If you are looking for meaningful inspirational quotes from books , this section will fit the bill. Make sure that you do not change the original meaning if you cite and mention the author!

“Even the darkest night will end and the sun will rise.” - Les Misérables by Victor Hugo. “It’s the possibility of having a dream come true that makes life interesting.” - The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho. “‘What day is it?’, asked Winnie the Pooh. ‘It’s today,’ squeaked Piglet. ‘My favorite day,’ said Pooh.” - The Adventures of Winnie the Pooh by A. A. Milne. “I am not afraid of storms, for I am learning how to sail my ship.” - Little Women by Louisa May Alcott.  “I wanted you to see what real courage is, instead of getting the idea that courage is a man with a gun in his hand. It’s when you know you’re licked before you begin but you begin anyway and you see it through no matter what. You rarely win, but sometimes you do.” - Harper Lee, To Kill a Mockingbird. “And so we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past.” - F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby. “Who controls the past controls the future. Who controls the present controls the past.”  - George Orwell, Nineteen Eighty-Four.

🔥 Best Book Quotes

While the “best” is always subjective, you will remain safe if you choose classic books that represent a part of your curriculum. Here are some examples worth checking as you are looking for the best book quotes: 

Life is to be lived, not controlled; and humanity is won by continuing to play in face of certain defeat.”  - Ralph Ellison, Invisible Man. “It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife.”  - Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice.  “Tomorrow I’ll think of some way to get him back. After all, tomorrow is another day.”  - Margaret Mitchell, Gone with the Wind. “Don’t ever tell anybody anything. If you do, you start missing everybody.”  - J. D. Salinger, The Catcher in the Rye.  “The world breaks everyone, and afterward, many are strong at the broken places.” - Ernest Hemingway, A Farewell to Arms.  “Nowadays people know the price of everything and the value of nothing.”  - Oscar Wilde, The Picture of Dorian Grey.  My advice is, never do tomorrow what you can do today. Procrastination is the thief of time.”  - Charles Dickens, David Copperfield. 

🤓 Knowledge Quotes

Some quotes that you may encounter are dealing with the knowledge or a piece of advice. As you are looking through the books, take notes and write down the words that inspire you.

“So many things are possible just as long as you don’t know they’re impossible.”  - Norton Juster, The Phantom Tollbooth.  “The same substance composes us — the tree overhead, the stone beneath us, the bird, the beast, the star — we are all one, all moving to the same end.” - P.L. Travers, Mary Poppins.  “All human wisdom is summed up in these two words – ‘Wait and hope.’”  - Alexandre Dumas, The Count of Monte Cristo. “But man is not made for defeat,’ he said. ‘A man can be destroyed but not defeated.” - Ernest Hemingway, The Old Man and the Sea. “All we can know is that we know nothing. And that’s the height of human wisdom.”  - Leo Tolstoy, War and Peace.  “There are some things you learn best in calm, and some in storm.”  - Willa Cather, The Song of the Lark.  “You forget what you want to remember, and you remember what you want to forget.”  - Cormac McCarthy, The Road.

The Book Quotes Make Your Writing More Meaningful 

As you are looking for the best quotes from books , think about the introduction for your quote as it must play the role of culmination in your writing. Although it can be used at the start of some paragraphs, it’s much better if you can lead your readers to the point where the quote becomes absolutely necessary. Unlike those quotes that contain some statistical data or references to newspapers in academic writing, quotes from the books that are used for creative purposes help to add an emotional impact to what you explore and portray in your essay. Even if you are working on a literary review and use detailed quotations to support your thoughts, these are paramount for the clarity and flashbacks (creative references) to the original text. 

The quotes also help to implement various literary devices like metaphors and useful allegories since you can explain something complex with relevant sayings . Some college students tend to use Latin as a way to deliver an important message, while others will happily quote motivational sayings from autobiography essays and books of their favorite celebrities. As long as you provide references and keep things accurate, these will help to make your writing more meaningful and to the point. 

We use cookies to personalyze your web-site experience. By continuing we’ll assume you board with our cookie policy .

60+ College Life Quotes to Get You Through the School Year

• "College is the reward for surviving high school." — Judd Apatow

There's an old adage that says college is supposed to be the best time of your life. And in many ways it is — from living with your besties to college parties and cool classes, your four years on campus are full of amazing times. But college can also be one of the hardest times — living away from home for the first time, juggling friends, exams and papers, internships and jobs, and trying to stretch your food budget as far as you can. No matter if you need a good laugh, reassurance that all your hard work will pay off, or maybe something to make you crack a smile, the right quotes can motivate you to slay your way through college.

Historical quotes from political leaders can reaffirm the importance of education, while quotes from anonymous authors make jokes about the things we all experience on campus. Get ready for a new outlook on the semester once you check out this inspiring list of quotes to help get you through college life.

Motivational Quotes

• "To those of you who received honors, awards and distinctions, I say well done. And to the C students, I say you too may one day be president of the United States." – George W. Bush
• "Determination is doing what needs to be done even when you don’t feel like doing it." – unknown
• "The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you'll go." — Dr. Seuss
• "The best way to predict your future is to create it." – Abraham Lincoln
• "Skill is only developed by hours and hours of work." — Usain Bolt
• "It's not about perfect. It's about effort." — Jillian Michaels
• "Perseverance is the hard work you do after you get tired of doing the hard work you already did." – Newt Gingrich
• "Successful people are not gifted; they just work hard, then succeed on purpose." — G.K. Nielson
• "Great things are done by a series of small things brought together." — Vincent Van Gogh
• "Do something now; your future self will thank you for later." – Unknown
• "Every year, many, many stupid people graduate from college. And if they can do it, so can you." — John Green
• "Striving for success without hard work is like trying to harvest when you haven't planted." — David Bly
• "There is no elevator to success. You have to take the stairs." — Zig Ziglar
• "Education is the passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to those who prepare for it today." — Malcolm X
• "Accept failure as part of the process." — Unknown
• "If you hear a voice within you say 'you cannot paint,' then by all means paint, and that voice will be silenced." — Vincent Van Gogh
• "Every expert was once a beginner." — Helen Hayes
• "You can’t use up creativity. The more you use, the more you have." — Maya Angelou
• "Be so good they can't ignore you." — Steve Martin
• "Failure is simply the opportunity to begin again. This time more intelligently." — Henry Ford
• "Opportunities don’t happen. You create them." — Chris Grosser
• "You get in life what you have the courage to ask for." — Oprah Winfrey
• "Every person you meet knows something you don’t; learn from them." —H Jackson Brown Jr.
• "To accomplish great things, we must not only act but also dream, not only plan but also believe." — Anatole Franc
• "A little progress each day adds up to big results." – Satya Nani

Funny Quotes

• "You will find the key to success under the alarm clock." – Benjamin Franklin
• "You will never have more energy or enthusiasm, hair, or brain cells than you have today." – Tom & Ray Magliozzi
• "Whatever you do, always give 100%. Unless you’re donating blood." – Bill Murray
• "Life is an improvisation. You have no idea what’s going to happen next and you are mostly just making things up as you go along." – Stephen Colbert
• "I love deadlines. I love the whooshing noise they make as they go by." – Douglas Adams
• "I pulled an all-dayer today. It was rough." — Unknown
• "Cumulative final exams are like fights in relationships. Why must we continue to bring up the past? What's done is done." — Unknown
• "Don't judge a book by its cover. My math book has a picture of someone enjoying themselves on it, but I am not enjoying myself at all." — Unknown
• "Choose a major you love and you'll never work a day in your life because that field probably isn't hiring." — Unknown
• "When I die I want the people I did group projects with to lower me into my grave so they can let me down one last time." — Unknown
• "I've got 99 problems and 97 of them are due by the end of the week. The other two were due last week." — Unknown
• "The way to get started is to quit talking and begin doing." — Walt Disney
• "Definition of a College professor: someone who talks in other people’s sleep." — W.H. Auden
• "Focus on doing the right things instead of a bunch of things." — Mike Krieger
• "So long as your desire to explore is greater than your desire to not screw up, you're on the right track." — Ed Helms

Heartwarming Quotes

• "Be yourself and people will like you." — Jeff Kinney, Diary of a Wimpy Kid
• "Make yourself proud." – John Green
• "No, sky is not the limit. It is only the beginning." — Donovan Livingston
• "If you don't go after what you want, you'll never have it. If you don't ask, the answer is always no. If you don't step forward, you're always in the same place." — Nora Roberts
• "Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it." – Ferris Bueller, Ferris Bueller's Day Off
• "Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world." — Nelson Mandela
• "College has given me the confidence I need to fail." — Jarod Klintz, This Book Has No Title
• "Education is the best provision for life's journey." — Aristotle
• "A college degree is not a sign of a finished product but an indication a person is prepared for life." — Reverend Edward A. Malloy, Monk's Reflections
• "Training is everything. The peach was once a bitter almond, cauliflower is nothing but cabbage without a college education." — Mark Twain , Pudd'nhead Wilson
• "Take it all one day at a time and enjoy the journey." — Kristi Barlett
• "Educating yourself does not mean you were stupid in the first place, it means that you are intelligent enough to know that there is plenty left to learn." — Melanie Joy
• "The things taught in schools and colleges are not an education, but the means to an education." — Ralph Waldo Emerson
• "Never bend your head. Always hold it high. Look the world right in the eye." — Helen Keller
• "College is like a fountain of knowledge and the students are there to drink." — Chuck Palahniuk
• "It takes courage to grow up and become who you really are." — E.E. Cummings
• "An investment in knowledge always pays the best interest." — Benjamin Franklin
• "A mind is a fire to be kindled, not a vessel to be filled." — Plutarch
• "College inspired me to think differently. It's like no other time in your life." — Lara Oleynik
• "Whatever you are, be a good one." — Abraham Lincoln.
• "And will you succeed? Yes you will indeed! (98 and 3/4 percent guaranteed)." — Dr. Seuss

Sam is an assistant news editor at Cosmo, covering all things pop culture, entertainment, and celebrity news. She previously covered those same topics along with health, lifestyle, and beauty at Seventeen. When she isn't draping her cheeks in blush, you can probably find her live-tweeting awards shows or making SwiftToks.  

Carolyn Twersky is an associate editor for Seventeen covering celebrities, entertainment, politics, trends, and health. On her off time, she's probably watching Ru Paul's Drag Race, traversing NYC for the best donuts, or, most likely, enjoying time in her favorite place in the world: her bed. 

Jasmine Washington is an Assistant Editor at Seventeen, where she covers celebrity news, beauty, lifestyle, and more. For the past decade, she has worked for media outlets, including BET, MadameNoire, VH1, and many others, where she used her voice to tell stories across various verticals. Follow her on Instagram.

Back to College!

These Items Make Your Freshman Year SO Much Better

The Best Dorm Bedding for Your Cozy College Life

15 Cool Dorm Room Decor Ideas

Hype Back To School Outfits That'll Win Day One

25 Unique and Fun College Party Themes

What Type of College Is Best for You?

How to Choose a High-Paying Major

Creative Ways to Make Money in College

Here's How to Save Money in College

What to Consider Before You Transfer Colleges

Every Good Kisser Knows These 20 Secrets

25 Motivational Quotes to Inspire Your Scholarship Journey

by Gabrielle McCormick | Nov 1, 2018 | Inspiration and Motivation , Paying for College , Scholarship Applications | 0 comments

The scholarship search and application process can be draining due to the emotional highs and lows. Here’s a little motivation and inspiration to encourage you to start or continue your journey.

• When you are completely over the scholarship search process:

“People often say that motivation doesn’t last. Well, neither does bathing – that’s why we recommend it daily.” — Zig Ziglar

• When you’ve just gotten a scholarship rejection letter or email:

“Winning is great, sure, but if you are really going to do something in life, the secret is learning how to lose. Nobody goes undefeated all the time. If you can pick up after a crushing defeat, and go on to win again, you are going to be a champion someday.” — Wilma Rudolph

• When you have a breakdown because you’re stressed:  [clickToTweet tweet=”“Even if you’re on the right track, you’ll get run over if you just sit there.” — Will Rogers  #OwnYourDegree” quote=”“Even if you’re on the right track, you’ll get run over if you just sit there.” — Will Rogers “]
• When you don’t know what to write in your scholarship essay:

“Convince yourself that you are working in clay, not marble, on paper not eternal bronze: Let that first sentence be as stupid as it wishes.” — Jacques Barzun

• When you’ve earned your first scholarship:

“Quantity and persistence will get you the outcomes you need.” — James Altucher

• When you’ve earned another scholarship:

“Take your victories, whatever they may be, cherish them, use them, but don’t settle for them.” — Mia Hamm

• When you’re questioning your scholarship application:

“If you’ve really done the work. I mean really, really, really done the work…submit it. If not, do what you need to do. Point. Blank. Period.” — Gabrielle McCormick

• When you’re feeling a little jealous of a friend that has more scholarships than you:

“Stress is caused by being ‘here’ but wanting to be ‘there’.” — Eckhart Tolle

• When you’re wondering if you’re good enough to earn scholarships:

“Start out perfect and don’t change a thing. Always accentuate your best features by pointing at them. And conceal your flaws by sucker punching anyone who has the audacity to mention them.” — Miss Piggy

• When you feel overwhelmed by everything that has to be done:

“Don’t wait until everything is just right. It will never be perfect. There will always be challenges, obstacles, and less than perfect conditions. So what? Get started now. With each step you take, you will grow stronger and stronger, more and more skilled, more and more self-confident, and more and more successful.” — Mark Victor Hansen

• When you’ve procrastinated and are down to the last minute to get your application finished:  [clickToTweet tweet=”“Regretting wasted time is more wasted time.” — Author Unknown #OwnYourDegree” quote=”“Regretting wasted time is more wasted time.” — Author Unknown”]
• When you don’t know how to end your scholarship essay:

“You know the minute you stop thinking about it, it’ll happen.” — Sarah Dessen

• When you wonder if scholarships are really worth it:

“I’ve learned that fear limits you and your vision. It serves as blinders to what may be just a few steps down the road for you. The journey is valuable, but believing in your talents, your abilities, and your self-worth can empower you to walk down an even brighter path. Transforming fear into freedom – how great is that?” — Soledad O’Brien

• When you’ve had enough and want to give up:

“Effort only fully releases its reward after a person refuses to quit.” — Napoleon Hill

• When you’ve forgotten to submit a scholarship application:

“It’s how you deal with failure that determines how you achieve success.” — David Feherty

• When you’ve finished a scholarship application:

“Suggestions? Put it aside for a few days, or longer, do other things, try not to think about it. Then sit down and read it (printouts are best I find, but that’s just me) as if you’ve never seen it before. Start at the beginning. Scribble on the manuscript as you go if you see anything you want to change. And often, when you get to the end you’ll be both enthusiastic about it and know what the next few words are. And you do it all one word at a time.” — Neil Gaiman

• When you find a scholarship you’ve missed the deadline for:

“Happiness can be found, even in the darkest of times, if one only remembers to turn on the light.” Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban — Quote by Albus Dumbledore

• When you’ve decided to submit a scholarship application that doesn’t consist of an essay:

“As you move outside of your comfort zone, what was once the unknown and frightening becomes your new normal.” — Robin S. Sharma

• When you realize that you can actually win scholarships:  [clickToTweet tweet=”“Control your own destiny or someone else will.” — Jack Welch #OwnYourDegree” quote=”“Control your own destiny or someone else will.” — Jack Welch”]
• When you think about the reasons why you need scholarships:

“Going after scholarships is living a few years of your life like most students won’t, so that you can live the rest of your life like most students can’t…with no or very few student loans.” — Gabrielle McCormick

• When you’re up late and still have scholarship stuff to do:

“If you fall behind, run faster. Never give up, never surrender, and rise up against the odds.” — Jesse Jackson

• When you’re up early trying to get scholarship things finished:

“It is well to be up before daybreak, for such habits contribute to health, wealth, and wisdom.” — Aristotle

• When you don’t feel like you have enough time to fit scholarships into your schedule:

“You can do anything, but not everything.” — David Allen

• When you question your writing ability:

“Our doubts are traitors, and make us lose the good we oft might win, by fearing to attempt.” ― William Shakespeare

• When you’re waiting to hear back from a scholarship committee:

“It’s really okay to charge up your battery because if you don’t you will run out of energy and power.” – Dyea Smith

And a bonus quote that pretty much sums up scholarships…

When you feel like you’re doing the best you can when it comes to scholarship:

“Never ever give up on what you really want to do. The person with big dreams is more powerful than one with all the facts.” — Albert Einstein

There you have it folks. I hope these quotes either kick-start your scholarship process or help to keep you going!

[info-box type=”success”] Real Talk: I know that it can be hard, frustrating, and stressful. But now is not the time to quit. You have to keep going. [/info-box]

P.S. If you’re struggling, need support, or just want to make sure you’re doing things right – make sure you join me over in our FREE Facebook Group or send me an email  ?

How can we help?

Stay connected .

Free Webinar

COVID-19 and Scholarships

The scholarship process is being influened by COVID-19.

Make sure your family is prepared and protected. Register today.

Scholarship Topics

Access additional information resources and tools, speak with a scholarship coach schedule a session, join our private community facebook group, need tech take advantage of your si dell discount.

Click Here to Speak with a Dedicated Dell Account Manager!

Popular Blog Posts

Financial Aid

20 Important Questions for Financial Aid

Scholarship Planning

How Many Scholarships Should You Be Applying For?

Scholarship Scams

How to Spot and Avoid the Most Common Scholarship Scams

Winning Essay Tips

Why the Scholarship Committee Hated Your Essay

Increase Your Chances

JOIN SCHOLARSHIP EDGE

Step-by-Step Help from a Scholarship Winner

Winning tools, templates, and examples, get help when you're stuck from a scholarship coach.

Enjoying this blog post?

Then you'll love our newsletter! Subscribe to Scholarship Informer Weekly for exclusive content and updates.

You're Subscribed!