The thesis statement serves as the foundation of your essay. Start brainstorming about essay prompt provided by your professor and then identify the strongest idea. The thesis statement must be debatable but narrow enough to discuss within the constraints of your essay. According to the Purdue Online Writing Lab, your claim will be one of three types: definition, cause and effect, or solution. If you challenge the accepted truth of a fact, you will make a claim of definition. A cause and effect claim proposes that one action or event causes another. Alternately you may propose a solution to a problem. Whichever you choose, focus the thesis statement on your claim.
Before beginning your draft, research support for your claim. Start with readings assigned in class. Select information that relates to your claim even if it argues against it; you will need to acknowledge points of view that may oppose your own for the essay to be balanced. Collect as much information as relates to your topic and read this data with a critical eye. Next, consider ways to organize the information you've researched to support your thesis statement. Plan your essay before starting the draft so that you can keep track of all the information and make sure you deal with each source fairly. Your plan can be anything from a series of notes to a formal outline.
A great college essay is concise and written in an academic style. Make sure your writing flows by using transition words and phrases and by varying sentence lengths. Choose your words carefully and be precise about the meaning you want to convey. Conciseness comes from finding the best word to express an idea rather than using a word that has to be modified with adjectives and adverbs. Avoid slang and regional expressions, and try to avoid using the passive voice as much as possible.
Never finish an essay and turn it in without revision. The revision process ensures the paper expresses what you intend it to say. To ensure your essay is cohesive read through your introduction and conclusion without reading the body of the essay. Identify the strongest sentences and determine if they support one another. Then, read only the topic sentences of each paragraph to determine if they support your claim. Next, read each paragraph and evaluate if the main idea follows from the supporting sentences. Finally, read the essay aloud to ensure that your word choice and sentence syntax make sense. If you find any of the problems above, note the issue, make the necessary corrections, and then revise the essay again. Give drafts of your essay to professors or other students so that you can get more feedback. Continue making revisions until you feel confident you have produced a great essay.