Write about how an event or adventure impacted you personally. Avoid talking about death, drinking, drugs or any similar subjects. Instead, think of an event that made you change your perceptions, confirm your career goals or brought you closer to someone. Be specific. For instance, write about a move you and your family had to make that, at first, was miserable but which brought you and your family closer together during a challenging time. If the event has had any impact on career goals, such as organizing campaigns, include that in the essay. However, focus the essay on you as a human being more than you as a student or scholar.
Think of a period, or an exact moment, in your life when it felt as if all the walls were crashing in on you or when you came to a personal crossroad. Describe to readers how you formulated a plan of action, connected with old friends for guidance or sought religion or spiritual guidance. While you do not have to concentrate on your personal religious beliefs, describe your process from moving from a confusing part of your life to a moment of more clarity, allowing you to make something positive out of your life.
Describe an exciting experience you had tracking down information for a research paper, art project or personal question. Maybe you had to research the poet Emily Dickinson for a class project. Discuss how you contacted a distant relative of Emily's, met with her for coffee and scones and discussed never before heard facts about Emily's lifestyle and work, passed down through the family tree. Be as detailed as possible in relaying the story, such as how you felt going into the meeting, how fervently you jotted down notes, and the feeling after the meeting of having touched history. For personal inquiries, such as the search to locate a long lost family member, describe how you first attempted contacting the family member and the trials and errors you went through in finding your brother, aunt or cousin. Ensure that college application readers learn about your personality and behavior in the essay by focusing on your perceptions and attitudes toward the quest.
If you are studying to become a marine biologist, tell the story of your getting to your career choice. Use details about your childhood and adolescent interests that led to choose this career path. For example, talk about how when you and your family went to the beach each summer for vacation, you could not concentrate on the view like the others did but ran straight to the ocean, ankle-deep, searching the sand for bubbling clams. Discuss how throughout the years, you became more intrigued by the mysteries of the sea. Mention that the stories your 10th-grade science teacher told you about her experience studying Mariana Trench inspired you to go to a summer camp studying deep-sea creatures.