WritingYourEssay/PersonalStatementforCollegebyDr.MarilynWinkleby,Founder,SMYSP原文地址：http://med.stanford.edu/school/smysp/nojava/prepare/writing.html本文为斯坦福大学SMYSP项目对如何写作Essay的建议，具体详细阐述了应该注意的方方面面的问题Whatisthepurposeofyourcollegeessay?目的：突出特色Manycollegeswillrequestthatyouwriteanessayorpersonalstatementtoaccompanyyourapplication.Youressayisveryimportantbecauseitallowsyouanopportunitytobeyourselfandtoletthecollegesknowwhoyouareasanindividual.Thinkaboutyourlifeexperiencesandwhathasshapedyouintothepersonyouaretoday.Tellaboutaspectsofyourbackgroundandpersonalattributesthatmaynotbeapparentfromyouracademicrecord.Sinceacademicrecordsandtestscoresofapplicantsareoftenverysimilar,youressayallowsthecollegetogaininsightintoyouruniqueachievements,character,andbackground.Thisallowsthecollegetoevaluatewhattheycanofferyoualongwithwhatyoucancontributetotheiracademicenvironment.Collegesmayaskforageneralessayorgiveyouspecificquestionstoanswer.Thesuggestionsbelowapplytoeither.Whoreadsyouressay?阅读者：专业人员或者教职员工Eachcollegehasateamoftrainedreaders,severalofwhomwillusuallyreadandscoreyouressayindependently.Readersareoftenprofessionalstafffromthecollege,butmayalsoincludefacultymembers,highschoolteachers,andcounselors.ThesereadersarenottestingyouonwritingabilityorEnglishskills.Theysimplywanttolearnmoreaboutyouonapersonallevel.However,awell-writtenessaywillimpressthereadersoinvesttimeinediting,andcheckingyourgrammarandspelling.Whatmakesagoodessay?好文章什么样？体现你的生活经历，兴趣，个性等。Agoodessaywillmakeyoudistinctfromthemanyotherapplicants.Readerslookforacohesiveessaythatreflectsyourlifeexperiences,intellectualcuriosityandachievements,personalcharacteristics(perseverance,motivation,leadership),servicetoothers,andcommitmenttohighereducation.Youmaydescribehardshipsyouovercame,eventsthathadasignificantimpactonyourlife,peoplewhoinspiredyou,oryourknowledgeofcertainculturalorethnicgroups.Sometimesaverycommonexperienceisinfluentialandmemorable.Forexample,onestudentwroteabouthisintelligentparentswhoweretrappedinunfulfillingjobsduetotheirlackofformaleducation.Thestudentwasinspiredbyhisparents?experience,excelledinschool,andthusbecamethefirstinhisfamilytoapplytocollege.Youressayshouldshowthedepthofyourinterestsandaccomplishments,andqualityofyourcharacter.Nomatterwhatexperiencesyouchoosetowriteabout,youshouldelaborateontheinsightsthatyougainedfromtheexperiencesandonthewaystheexperiencesinfluencedyourlife.Readerswanttolearnhowexperienceschangedyourattitudesorbeliefs,influencedyouracademicsorextracurricularactivities,orclarifiedyoureducationalgoals.Belowaresomegeneralsuggestionsaswellasspecificsuggestionsthatmayhelpyouwriteanessaythatmakesyoustandoutasagreatapplicant.Generalsuggestions:1.Checktherules.阅读写作要求，最常见的错误是忽略了要求和格式。Readtheinstructionsfortheessayinthecollegeapplicationpacket.Oneofthemostcommonmistakesistomissrequirementsaboutthelengthorformattingoftheessay.Remember,almostallcollegeswantyoutosendyouressaywithyourcompletedapplicationform.2.Startearlyandreviseoften.早动手，多修改。Startyouressayearly,atleastoneortwomonthsbeforeitisdue.Ifpossible,useacomputerorwordprocessorsorevisionsareeasy.Yourfirstdraftwillberevisedmanytimessodon'tfeelconstrained.Instead,itshouldbeastartingpointforyoutobegintellingyourstory.Youmaywant...
