If you are thinking about transferring, you know that you are going to have to write some essays. Great transfer essays are kind of like ven diagrams: they show the overlap between you and the school. Pretty much every essay you write in the transfer process should lead the reader to think, ‘Wow, they are perfect for this place!’ It helps that a lot of the essay questions feel like excuses to write love notes to the school: why do you want to go here? What do you want to study? What do you want from an education? Etc. We see these types of questions pop up every year. While questions can vary from college to college, there are some tricks that can be applied broadly to writing a great transfer essay.
It’s all in the details!
When writing about why you would be a great fit at the school, you need to have specifics. Doing a lot, and we mean a lot, of research is the best way of really nailing down the specifics. It's really obvious to readers when a student has only researched a school for 5 minutes. Doing your research is the easiest way to come off as serious and knowledgeable. You need to find good specifics in your research process. Putting in a lot of specifics shows that you are serious about the school and are taking time to think about if you would be happy there if accepted. Specifics show that you don’t only want to go to Harvard “because it’s Harvard.” Rather, it’s because of an amazing program and specific research opportunities.
Adding specifics will also make your essay more focused. Without details, these essays can feel all over the place. You want your essays to feel focused, specific, and thorough. If you can’t confidently explain in detail why you are right for the school, the admissions office won’t be able to either.
Make it interesting
Admissions staff have to read a ton of applications. If you want your essays to stand out you have to also think about the craft of writing. Your essays should be interesting and fun to read. This can be a really tall order. If you aren’t someone who writes a lot, it can be especially tricky. The easiest way to make your writing more dynamic is showing a little bit of your personality off in your essays. You shouldn’t sound like a robot. Let yourself be a little bit looser. The reader should be able to hear your voice when reading your essay.
Remember where you are at now.
Think back to when you were writing essays last year. You were probably 17 or 18. You were in high school. You’ve probably changed a lot. The first year of college tends to do that. You grow and change and tend to gain some new perspectives. One of the most valuable ones is now you know what it is like to be in college. Essays by 12th graders usually are a little abstract. Since they don’t know what college life is really like yet, they have to rely on “ifs” and “in the future-es.” You now don’t need to do that. You are coming from a place of knowledge and experience. You can bring that into your essays. If you do so, your essays will seem more focused and mature. You are in a better place now than you were last year and you can lean into showcasing that.
Writing transfer essays can be difficult. So get organized, start early, and don’t freak out. With a little confidence and research, you should be able to convince your intended school that you are right for it and it’s right for you.
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