guys how long should my conclusion/reflection be in my personal statement?Answered
so for my common app essay i picked the prompt about a realization that sparked a period of personal growth and stuff. my essay is kind of a gradient from the event, that led to a realization, that led to me reworking myself. i would say that it is 30-40% me describing the event and context, 30-35% me describing the realization and how i noticed it throughout the context, and the rest is me reworking myself. is that a good split? yall got any suggestions?
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3 answers
I have heard a lot of admissions officers say that many students get so into describing something that happened that they don't get to learn much about the student's character. Here's a link to a admissions officer explaining what I'm saying: bigfuture.collegeboard.org/plan-for-college/apply-to-college/application-process/sample-college-essay-1
This essay is how they "meet" you, more than any other place in the application. Make sure your essay really exposes who you are.
Hope that is helpful. Lmk if you have any questions. I also recommending using the peer essay review system on this website...just take all suggestions with a grain of salt :) and if possible, submit it several times so you can get different reviewers and therefore more opinions.
i like this format! tbh tho i don’t think it matters a lot; as long as you get all your points across in an intriguing and concise manner, you’re good to go! good luckkk :)
Your current structure sounds quite balanced, and it’s good that you’ve split the essay into clear sections that track your growth. The split of 30-40% for the event and context, 30-35% for the realization, and the rest for personal growth makes sense since it mirrors the natural progression of storytelling and self-reflection.
For the conclusion/reflection, it’s generally a good idea to keep it around 10-15% of the total word count. This ensures you leave the reader with a clear sense of how your growth has impacted you and what this means for your future. A strong conclusion ties everything together without feeling rushed or repetitive. Make sure it doesn’t introduce new ideas, but instead reinforces the journey you've described, showing why the realization and growth matter.
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