exchange student essay example

Exchange Student Tips

Information and Advice for Foreign Exchange Students

Student Exchange Application: 9 Powerful (and Easy!) Steps to a Great Application

Here’s the thing:

Finding an exchange student program  and choosing a host country are easy.

Actually getting onto the program you want, and being selected to go to your first-choice country, is very hard.

In a word, the problem is  competition .

When you apply to be a foreign exchange student, you’ll be competing against high achievers – well-rounded, good citizen-type students, who are highly motivated, above average academically and with great credentials.

They may be current school captains or class presidents, or captains of the school debate team.

They may even be former exchange students, or already fluent in the language of the country they want to exchange to.

From the perspective of a student exchange program, those are all big pluses.

How do you beat those guys?

Don’t fear. I have nine simple yet extremely powerful tips which are going to help you write a student exchange application that will blow them all away.

1. Make your written student exchange application irresistible by focussing on personal characteristics that the exchange program is looking for

Most people trip up because they treat their written student exchange application as an opportunity to write a long essay about themselves.

They write about their interests and skills and hopes as an exchange student.

What should they really be doing?

Focussing on the exchange program and the kinds of students the program wants to send overseas.  

Think about it.

In the mind of the person reading your application, your goals or hobbies or expectations are secondary considerations.

What that person really wants to know is whether you have the personal qualities that the exchange program thinks are important for exchange students to have.

So, when you’re writing your application, you need to keep those desirable personal qualities front and centre.

Now, here’s some good news:

Exchange organisations usually tell you the very qualities they are looking for, in very explicit terms, on their websites.

For example, the AFS Australia website states as follows:

The AFS website actually tells you very directly that AFS is looking for people who are flexible, self-confident and able to mix well with others.

If you were applying for an exchange with AFS, you’d know exactly what personal qualities to focus on in your written application, wouldn’t you?

You’d give them what they wanted and talk about how you possess all of those qualities, thereby demonstrating that you are exactly the kind of person AFS likes to send overseas, and a better candidate than your competitors.

In a similar vein, the global website for Rotary youth exchange states the following:

Again, it’s virtually laid out on a platter:

Anyone interested in applying for a student exchange with Rotary needs to demonstrate through his or her written application that he or she is:

• open to different cultures, and
• able to serve as an ambassador

Before you start writing your application, be sure to find out the kind of student your exchange program is aiming to recruit, and make sure that your application demonstrates that you meet that profile.

2. Start your answers with strong, positive statements which send the message that you meet the exchange program’s requirements exactly

In high school, you’ve probably learned that the correct way to format every paragraph in an essay is to:

• Start the paragraph with a firm statement or proposition , and then
• Provide relevant evidence or other detail which supports that statement or proposition

The same rule applies with your student exchange application.

You need to start each answer with a strong, positive statement which directly addresses the question you’ve been asked and leaves no doubt that you meet each criterion set by the exchange program.

For example, your application might have the following question:

Exchange students constantly encounter new people and situations and need to be flexible and open to change. Describe a situation in which you displayed flexibility and a willingness to change.

A good way to start your answer to that question would be as follows:

I am a flexible person who has displayed a willingness to adapt to changing circumstances.

Why is that sentence so powerful?

Because it borrows key language from the question – the words “flexible”, “willingness” and “change” –  and therefore addresses the question directly.

It’s also a strong statement because it starts using the very strong statement “I am” – rather than “I consider myself” or “I aim to be” or some other weaker formulation.

In other words,  that sentence sends the message that you are exactly the person the program is looking for .

Make sure that you begin your answer to each question on your application form with a sentence that:

• includes words and phrases from the question, and
• uses strong and definitive “I am” language

3. Supercharge your opening statements using the most persuasive word in the English language

Here’s how to go one better and make the opening statements in your student exchange application virtually unstoppable:

Work the word “because” into each of your statements.

In his best-selling book Influence – The Psychology of Persuasion , Dr Robert Cialdini identifies the word “because” as the most persuasive word known to man. For some reason, people are very easily persuaded by sentences and questions containing the word “because”.

What does this mean for you?

You need to capture the strong, almost hypnotic power of the word “because” and put it to work in your application.

Specifically, try to  work the word “because” into each of your strong statements in order to make the reasons and statements that follow seem more convincing .

So, the introductory words we looked at earlier would change from:

I am a flexible person because I have displayed a willingness to adapt to changing circumstances

It’s just a small linguistic change, but one which should have a big impact on the effectiveness of your application.

4. Make your application the best of the bunch by supporting your statements with facts, and only facts

Now, let me help you avoid making a big mistake.

Once you’ve made your bold statement to begin each answer in your student exchange application, you need hard evidence to back it up.

There are several kinds of evidence you could use to support the statements you make in your application, such as:

• Facts – for example, “I have studied German for five years” or “I am the editor of my high school’s yearbook”
• Intentions – for example, “I plan to take an intensive German course this spring” or “I will be volunteering at a Camp Kesem camp this summer”
• Interests – for example, “I have always been interested in German history” or “I am passionate about European politics”
• Opinions – for example, “German would be a very useful language for me to learn” and “I believe that I would make a good host daughter”

The strongest of those options by an absolute mile is facts .

In fact, if you want to knock your competitors out of the ballpark, you should only use facts to back up the statements in your application.

Why are facts so powerful?

Because they are indisputable and verifiable.

In other words, they are evidence of what you have done . That is far more valuable and credible than evidence about things you would like to do or are planning to do.

Furthermore, if you only use facts in your application, you won’t sound like you’re bragging or big-noting yourself. All you’re doing is talking about factual events that have already happened.

I almost guarantee that your competitors will be using all the other, weaker types of evidence, and submitting far weaker applications as a result.

Don’t make the same mistake.

Stay gold, and stick to the facts.

5. Gather your ammunition

Here’s a useful exercise you can use to maximise the number of strong, convincing facts in your student exchange application.

Before you even start writing your application, sit down with a blank piece of paper.

Spend half an hour writing down every single positive fact you can think of which may be relevant to your exchange application, including:

• leadership positions you’ve held
• academic successes you’ve had (for example, a high GPA or any academic awards)
• evidence that you are a good citizen (such as previous volunteer work, participation in things like scouts, and even regular blood donations)
• prior relevant experience such as previous short-stay exchanges
• any language experience – not necessarily in the language of the country you’d like to exchange to
• anything showing your adaptability
• anything demonstrating your coolness under pressure

Don’t stop writing until you’ve filled up the whole page, then go away for 24 hours.

The next day, sit down with your list and add anything else you’ve thought about in the meantime.

You want to capture absolutely any and every positive fact about yourself.

Then, when you sit down to write your application, you’ll have a ready-made stash of hard, factual evidence you can use to support your strong statements.

Then, you can move on to step 6.

6. Make sure you finish on top by playing your trump card

So, by now you have some very strong and positive statements written, and a mountain of factual evidence to support those statements.

Here’s how to seal the deal.

You need a trump card – something you’ve done which no-one else has, which makes you stand out and tells the exchange program that you are willing to go further than your competitors.

Even if everyone else is giving 100% effort, your trump card will push you to 110%. And I virtually guarantee that an exchange program will choose 110% over 100% any day of the week.

Let me show you exactly what I mean.

Case study: how I got beaten fair and square by a trump card

When I applied to go on exchange, my first choice country was Germany .

Germany is always a popular exchange destination because so many people learn German at school.

However, I thought I was in with a good chance for the following reasons:

• I was the current vice-captain (vice president) of my high school, which was one of the best schools in the region
• I was on the school debate team, editor of the school yearbook, and had a stack of other leadership and community service credentials
• I had a strong academic record, which included five years of studying German

My written application was very strong, and I thought I had a great interview with representatives from the exchange program.

I thought I had Germany in the bag.

Then, I got trumped: I got my second choice country, Switzerland, and a girl called Jessica was chosen to go on exchange to Germany.

(Switzerland turned out great, by the way, but that’s another story).

What did Jessica do that gave her the edge over me?

Like me, she was well-credentialed, had good academics and had previously studied German.

Like me, she evidently also had a strong application and made a good impression at her interview.

Unlike me, however, Jessica had undertaken an unpaid internship at her city’s German chamber of commerce and gotten a letter of recommendation from the head of the chamber. She forwarded that letter along with her application.

That was an extremely smart and strong trump card, which sent the message that Jessica was super-serious about going to Germany. It was enough to push her in front of me and everyone else wanting to go to Germany.

Jessica thought outside the box and was rewarded with her first choice of country to exchange to.

Now let me tell you how to get your own trump card.

Four trump card ideas

Jessica’s trump card idea of working at her local German chamber of commerce was a good one, because it demonstrated how committed she was to exchanging to Germany.

If you have a few months before your application is due, you can try to arrange something similar, depending upon the organisations and groups located in your area.

For example, where we live, there is:

• a nursing home for elderly  Italian people
• a chapter of the American-Australian association
• a twin cities association managing the relationship with our twin city Versailles, in France,  and
• a German language library and resources centre which is staffed by volunteers

Some unpaid volunteer work at any of those institutions would combine charity work and a country-specific trump card that would be hard for any exchange organisation to resist.

Think about similar opportunities which exist in your city or region, and turn one into a great trump card.

Short-notice trump card

You might have a problem:

Internships and volunteer work take time to organise and undertake.

What can you do if you’re in the throes of writing your application and need a trump card within the next week or two?

Here’s a quickly actionable trump card idea that you can deploy if you’re short of time (or no other suitable trump cards seem to be available in your area):

Get a letter of recommendation from your local mayor or congressman

Politicians are nearly always big on diplomacy and promoting the region they represent.

They also love it when one of their constituents receives an award or recognition of some kind, because it reflects well on them.

Here’s how to use these traits to your advantage:

Try making an appointment with your local mayor or congressman.

Explain that you are applying for an exchange program and spend half an hour outlining some of your credentials to him or her.

Then, very politely ask him or her for a letter of recommendation, on official letterhead.

In exchange, offer to make yourself available for a photo opportunity if you are chosen to go on exchange, and be sure to keep that promise if you are successful.

His or her answer will nearly certainly be “yes”.

A letter of recommendation from a recognised political figure can open a surprising number of doors.

The exchange program may figure that if you’ve met and made a good impression on your congressman or mayor, you’ll make a good impression on people that you’ll meet overseas.

7. For maximum impact, put your strongest evidence first

Here’s a strange little fact:

The average adult now has an attention span of only 8.25 seconds .

Furthermore, according to a study cited by Forbes magazine, the average adult reads at a speed of about 300 words per minute .

T he person reading your student exchange application will probably only focus on the first 40-45 words of each answer you give before starting to lose focus .

That, in turn, means that you need to do two things:

First, use your strongest evidence first . Once you’ve made your strong statement for each answer, follow up with the strongest fact or evidence you have to support that statement. Because you’ve only got one or two sentences before your audience starts to lose attention, you need to fill those first few sentences with your best stuff.

Second, keep your sentences short . From a readability perspective, it’s already good practice to keep your sentences to a length of around 20 words each. Keeping your sentences short and to the point – and not filling them with unnecessary things like adjectives – will also help you to maximise the amount of information you get across in your application before the person reading it loses concentration.

8. Use these three tools to make your student exchange application a pleasure to read

The person reading your student exchange application may have dozens of written applications to read.

How do you make yours stand out?

You may be surprised to hear that one of the easiest ways to make a good impression through your application is to make it easy to read.

Here are three tools that will make your application an easy and pleasurable read:

Tool 1: Short sentences

By all means, use as many facts to support your application as you feel are relevant.

But, be sure to keep your sentences short when describing those facts.

The reason for doing this is simple:

Long sentences are tiring for a reader and can result in your core messages getting lost.

Make sure you don’t bury your high-quality content under lots of unnecessary verbiage.

• minimise your use of colons and semi-colons
• don’t use connecting words like “which” and “that” unless you absolutely have to
• aim for one sentence per idea or example you wish to make, and
• try to keep your sentences shorter than 20 words, and no longer than 30 words

Tool 2: A font which is easy and pleasant to read

If your student exchange application is typed rather than hand-written, and you can control the font, make it more readable by applying the following font rules.

Use at least 13-point font , and preferably 14-point . The default on many word processors is 12-point which is too low and can cause eye fatigue.

Use 1.5 point line spacing , to increase the gap between lines and make them easier and more pleasant to read.

Use a plain, no-nonsense typeface like Times New Roman or Arial , which won’t distract or annoy the person reading your application, and let them focus on your content.

Tool 3: Use the active voice, and minimise the passive voice

Write as much of your student exchange application in the active voice as possible, and avoid writing in the passive voice.

What’s the difference?

A sentence written in the passive voice has no subject – that is, no person doing the verb.

For example, the following sentence is in the passive voice:

I was voted class president last year.

Now here’s the same sentence in the active voice:

My classmates voted me class president last year.

In the first sentence, it isn’t immediately apparent who voted for the narrator to be class president. The second – active voice – sentence contains the subject “my classmates”, which makes this clear.

You need to avoid writing in the passive voice, and write your entire student exchange application in the active voice instead, because:

• Readers tire when they have to read a lot of sentences written in the passive voice
• The person reading your application may recognise your use of the passive voice – particularly if they are older than about 45, or have a lot of experience with linguistics or learning languages – and mark you down for writing incorrectly
• The active voice helps to minimise any ambiguity

If you already have great content, applying these three tools will help your application make an even more positive impression and increase your chances of success.

9. Make your student exchange application twice as strong by getting not one, but TWO experts to read it

This may be the most important tip on this page:

Once your exchange program application is written, you need to ask two very specific people to proof-read and evaluate it for you.

“But wait,” you say. “I’ve already lined up my mom/dad/best friend to read my application and make suggestions”.

Unfortunately, that won’t work. Here’s why:

• your family and friends are unlikely to give you honest feedback – that is, they will tell you what you want to hear, rather than what you need to hear, in order to spare your feelings
• they won’t necessarily have any insight into what the exchange program will be looking for , and
• they are unlikely to have the technical expertise to make your answers read well

Here’s a better idea:

Get two people with specific, relevant experience and skills to review and make comments on your application.

Expert 1 – A trusted teacher at your school

First of all, you need to ask a teacher at your school who you know well and are friendly with to take a look at your student exchange application.

Why a teacher?

Firstly, because teachers spend a good part of each day evaluating work that their students have written. They are practised at reviewing documents and providing honest but constructive feedback.

In other words, the teacher you ask will most likely give you genuine, actionable tips on how to improve your application.

The second reason is that the teacher will know you and be familiar with your personality, and may be able to suggest additional information that will enhance the content of your application.

The final reason is that teachers generally have a practised eye for spelling mistakes, grammatical errors and the like. Your teacher should be able to ensure that your application contains no errors which will detract from the effectiveness of the content.

Expert 2 – A former exchange student

The second person you need to show your student exchange application to is a former exchange student at your school who you know and are friendly with.

It doesn’t matter which exchange student program he or she travelled with, or which country he or she went to.

The reason for asking this person to look at your application is simple:

He or she will know what it takes to be a successful exchange student, and should be able to offer advice on the contents of your application which will make it more appealing to the exchange organisation.

The student should also be able to coach and advise you on the application process generally, including the application interview, which I’ll also deal with in my next post.

If you have any further tips or questions about filling out an exchange program application, you can leave them in the comments below.

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Student Exchange Program (Flex) Essay Topics [2024]

Participating in a student exchange program is a perfect opportunity to visit different countries during your college years. You can discover more about other cultures and learn a new language or two. If you have a chance to take part in such a foreign exchange, don’t miss it.

Keep in mind that hundreds of other people can apply to the same Flex program as you. And an outstanding student exchange essay will increase your chance to win this trip to a foreign country. And we have Flex program essay topics for this purpose.

So, let Custom Writing Service explain to you several things about Flex essays and offer some ideas to write about.

• 🔄 The Gist of Exchange Essays
• ✈️ Flex Essay Topics

🏛️ Cultural Exchange Essay Topics

🧳 exchange student essay ideas, 🌎 why go on exchange: essay topics, 🔗 references, 🔄 the gist of student exchange essays.

Actually, what you will have to deal with is a mere statement of purpose. The main question you need to answer is “Why do you want to go on exchange?”

The following information should be included in a good student exchange essay:

• Provide some information about yourself. Briefly tell about your interests, classes you take (especially language classes), your plans, etc.
• Explain how this trip will help you achieve future goals.
• Demonstrate your awareness of the culture and history of the country you want to visit.

✈️ Flex Essay Topics to Write About

Flex round 2 essay topics usually revolve around your personal experiences. They prompt you to reflect on important events in your life or describe epiphanies you’ve had. Here are some examples of such topics:

• Justice should prevail! A sense of justice and duty has always come first to you. As you stand up for your rights in high school, you want to continue to do the same for other people. Does this describe you? Then write an essay about it!
• Time to make a difference. Challenging times require active initiative. The more ambitious goals a person sets for themselves, the higher the chance to achieve them and contribute to history.
• Pursuing your true self. Finding a suitable place in life can sometimes lead to fascinating discoveries. This process often turns into a psychological journey, during which you can realize the fascination of life and understand your dreams.
• Eleventh meter. Eleven meters or twelve yards is the distance that separates the player and the goalkeeper during a penalty shootout. There is only a little space between you and the ball, and one single hit can change your future. Describe it in a personal essay.
• Six strings. Melodic guitar picks with a fire crackling in the background create a unique atmosphere. This magic permeates everything around, creating many new impressions and ideas. Did you have a similar experience? 
• Pencil, eraser, and paper. These three simple items are in every student’s pencil case. However, with a little imagination, they become tools for creating beautiful artwork that brings joy to others’ hearts. And what does inspiration mean to you?
• Pachelbel’s Canon in D. Pachelbel’s Canon is not a very complex piece, yet it contributed dramatically to classi c al music’s popularization. Once heard, the melody can inspire one to study music professionally. How does it make you feel?
• A skein of red yarn. A single red thread stretched across the wall can be a space for creative discovery. In this case, a small piece of yarn can take on a genuinely fateful meaning.
• Catching dreams. The dreamcatcher initially came from Native Americans, who used it for ritual purposes. With the right amount of effort, it can attract good dreams. In a Flex essay, you can write about the importance of dreams in your life.
• Favorite plush toy. Almost everyone had a favorite toy that was bringing comfort and peace. With age, the need for comfort and a sense of calmness does not disappear. What helps you feel it throughout your life?
• The benefits of roleplaying. Tabletop RPGs are not just a fun way to let the imagination run wild. Living in a different role, acting out a distinct personality helps people understand themselves better.
• Ready player one. Computer games help you relax and expand your horizons by teaching you a lot of useful skills. What did video games teach you? For example, it can be about making difficult decisions and having to face the consequences.
• Hello, World! One of the very first and simplest programs that almost any novice programmer writes is Hello World. As with programming, the journey in foreign exchange sometimes begins with a small step.
• The Wind Rises. Watching animated films is traditionally considered a child’s activity. However, this is not always true. Many animations raise serious topics about life in a harsh world in which the wind of change grows stronger day by day. Describe your experience of watching an animated movie with a profound meaning.
• A moment in time. Life is fleeting, and many people fail to seize the moment. In this case, photography can come to the rescue, perpetuating a split second in life for transferring it into the future. And what is photography to you?
• How to translate knowledge into the future
• The transition from theory to experience
• Turning habits into a lifestyle
• Writing my own life
• Your letter into the future
• The importance of education
• Benefits of doing sports
• Planning through painting
• Life colors
• Enrolling in college
• Winning a race
• Composing your symphony
• A stage performance you took part in
• Final dance at high school
• Graduation day
• Programming my future
• Finding truth in TV programs
• Do ghosts exist?
• Visiting a library
• Finding uniqueness in the mundane

A cultural exchange essay describes the experiences of students and volunteers visiting other countries. For many, an opportunity to dive into another country is a motivation to study abroad. An essay on any of these topics can help you win a Flex scholarship:

• What is cultural exchange? Despite the prevalence of this concept, there are many misunderstandings regarding foreign exchange. For the best cultural exchange student experience, it is necessary to understand its essential qualities and characteristics. Explore them in your essay!
• Enjoyable trading of ideas. The cultural exchange is not the same as cultural appropriation. Both parties can have fun sharing ideas and knowledge. Describe how to carry out this kind of exchange.

• Responsible volunteering. Cultural exchange is not just about moving to another place and communicating with people around you. The process must be responsible and benefit not only the visitor but also those living in the place of exchange.
• No to personal gain, yes to equality in exchange. For an all-encompassing cultural exchange, it’s not enough for a student just to absorb knowledge. They should also leave something of equal value in return. Give examples of what it can be.
• International and cross-cultural connections. Participation in cultural exchange programs not only lets you learn a lot of new things. Volunteers also have a unique opportunity to acquire international and intercultural ties, making friends around the world. A week-long experience can thus become life-changing.
• Diversity of the projects. One of the best things about cultural exchange is the limitless possibilities. Volunteers can find a cultural environment that interests them anywhere: from African deserts to exotic islands. And what are your personal goals in foreign exchange?
• Cultural immersion. One of the unique features of cultural exchange programs is the process itself. The volunteer is not an observer; instead, they are completely immersed in the culture. Think about the advantages of such immersion.
• Broadening your horizons. Traveling between countries and diving into another culture is more than just a vacation. It’s an expansion of horizons, a change in one’s worldview through the prism of new cultural knowledge.
• Volunteering community. In addition to gaining connections with residents of other countries, a participant in such projects becomes part of a vast international network of volunteers. Such relationships can help you reach new heights and achieve your goals.
• Plan, adapt, communicate. In addition to gaining knowledge and contacts, cultural exchange programs help develop useful skills. Planning, adaptation, and communication are three key processes in a volunteer’s life.
• Motivation to study abroad
• Advantages of non-profit volunteering
• The subject of cultural exchange in the US
• Intertwining backgrounds, stories, and lifestyles
• Diving into the cultural diversity
• From a visitor to a lifelong friend
• Closing the culture gap
• Advantages of learning languages from natives
• Assessing art and culture by living it
• Attending festivals for education
• Turning a field trip into a cultural experience
• Anthropology and archaeology abroad
• Innovative international internships
• Cross-cultural communities cooperation
• Living and working in the heart of culture
• Assessing true cultural representation
• Learning about the importance of representation
• Social networking through travel
• What social media doesn’t show about cultures
• Enriched knowledge, renewed outlook, stronger bonds

Do you want to join an exchange program? Or maybe you came back from one and want to report your experiences? Try these topics!

• An interview with exchange students. You can write an essay about international students visiting your high school or college. Ask them these questions: how can you become a volunteer? How does it work?
• Why use exchange programs? In such programs, living in a completely different place is combined with adaptation and habituation. Explore how these processes can facilitate learning.
• What to choose: a brief course or a long journey? An exchange trip can take different lengths. Each option has its advantages, so you should consider all of them before making a decision. Explain why you choose a specific program in your letter of intent.
• Costs and prices. Student exchange programs are rarely free. Even with university funding, students have to pay hundreds of dollars. For example, you need to obtain many papers, such as insurance and visas.
• New place, new school, new friends. Moving to another country can be very stressful. At the same time, this is an excellent opportunity to make new connections and friends. Is it a good motivation to study abroad?
• Immersive local experience. Even if the student stays in a new location only for a couple of weeks, the experience is very different from a simple vacation. What makes it unique?

• Welcome to the host family! During their visit, exchange students often stay with a local family. But what does living with another family mean? What difficulties does it bring, and how do you adapt to it?
• Live with locals—live like a local. Staying in the same place with the natives leads to the adoption of certain habits through their example. It’s one of the benefits of exchange studies: exploring a culture from an every-day, usually unknown side.
• Challenges and rewards of foreign exchange. Being in an unfamiliar country is a test of willpower, stress resistance, and learning ability. However, overcoming these challenges helps to develop new skills, from languages to personal traits. Enumerate them in your essay.
• Struggles and disadvantages. For all its merits, exchange courses can, at times, be too difficult for some students. The most fundamental problem is homesickness. What other difficulties can students experience?
• Obtaining foreign scholarship
• Brand new world
• Learning from the locals
• Assessing new viewpoint
• Why choosing a semester-long journey?
• Winter tour or summer voyage?
• Talking to locals as a way to access culture
• Immersion, sightseeing, or both?
• How to improve language skills through a host family
• Insights on customs and traditions
• Studying abroad to build confidence
• Adapting to stressful environments
• Studying in a foreign language
• Exchange programs and personal growth
• How to deal with homesickness
• Withstanding culture shock
• Expectations vs. reality
• Finding a suitable program
• Preparing for the trip
• Earning money while abroad

If you want to explore the advantages of studying abroad, this section is for you. Choose any of these topics for your essay about the benefits of student exchange:

• Nature and environment exploration. What distinguishes study abroad from vacation is the level of cultural involvement. It includes not only being in society but also appreciating the nature of a foreign country.
• New cultural lenses. Living in another country helps you to look in a new way at your homeland. It includes both the perspective of one’s country through the eyes of foreigners and new cultural insights.
• Professional and personal growth. Studying in another country allows acquiring new professional skills and growing as a person. It’s partly facilitated by broadening one’s horizons and partly by maturing in unfamiliar conditions.
• New learning opportunities. Some countries are distinguished by a significant focus on specific sciences. That’s why some disciplines are better studied in particular countries, making exchange studies even more useful.
• Traveling around the world. Exchange studies allow seeing and visiting a new country. However, travel doesn’t have to be limited to this. From one country you can go to neighboring communities and keep exploring the other side of the world.
• Active social networking. Connecting with new people allows you to build many social connections. Even after returning home, communication can be maintained through social media or letters.
• Maturing through gaining independence. Living in another country puts a person in a more independent situation than what they are used to. Consequently, such trips have a huge potential for helping you gain independence.
• Difference between a house and a hotel. Staying in a hotel while on vacation is a different experience than living in an ordinary home. For many people, an exchange study is a chance to try residing in a new place, gaining invaluable experience.
• Getting closer to bilingualism. The best way to learn a language is by talking to native speakers. Studying abroad provides a unique chance to improve speech and reading skills.
• Getting out of your comfort zone. Most of the exchange students are young. This means that huge horizons are open for them in terms of learning about the world around them, and exchange studies provide a chance to grasp this knowledge.
• How to familiarize yourself with a new culture
• Experiencing local day-to-day life
• Can you learn a new way of life from the locals?
• Studying abroad to work abroad: is it worth it?
• The benefits of foreign scholarships
• Differences and similarities between the countries you lived in
• Building professional skills by expanding social connections
• Lesser-known foreign exchange opportunities
• Learn more about yourself by living in a new environment
• Shared experiences and memories of exchange students
• The opportunity of a lifetime
• Gaining new insights
• Old stories, new narrator
• Walking through the streets of history
• Amplifying your adaptability to unfamiliar conditions
• Exploring career possibilities abroad
• The transition from a visitor to a citizen
• Difference between tourism and volunteering
• Calculated profits and unexpected perks
• Motivate yourself through challenges

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An Exchange Student at 17

It almost feels like as if it was just yesterday when I was on my own on a plane not really knowing what to expect but excited for what the future had for me. Now I'm back home with a ton of memories, e-mails to answer, and a lot of stories to share. I don't even know where to start now that I'm writing about my experience of being an exchange student in Appleton, Wisconsin for a whole school year.

Well, I've wanted to be an exchange student my whole high school life. I read about summer programs in a brochure from IFS, and I thought then that living somewhere else for a while and having friends from another country would be the coolest thing in the world. I would be on my own, have my own Indiana Jones adventure, and fulfill my dream of having something different. Pretty soon, at the end of my senior year, Mama and I were applying to IFS and we decided that a whole year would give me so much more immersion and would make the experience so much better. I had meetings in the weekends about rules, how to survive, homesickness, etc. Then I got an email. I had a host family! Next thing I knew, I had a flight booked.

I was so excited and happy and I was telling all my friends about it. I was researching about Wisconsin in books and in the Internet. Compared to what I saw on TV and what I experienced when I traveled to places like Los Angeles, California with my family, Wisconsin was different. It was more of farmland and countryside. I lived in Appleton and its population was around 70,000 and I thought it was a small town compared to our Manila. There was no traffic, they only had one major mall, and everything was in close proximity. I didn't even know what to think of the cold weather. I just brought cotton long-sleeved shirts with me. But when winter came, I needed to get a coat. During the winter, the sun would set at 4pm and it wouldn't go up until around 9. There were days when the temperature would go below freezing and I was wearing around 6 layers of clothing just to keep myself warm. I never even blow-dried my hair before. I had to do it every morning after I took a shower because if I didn't, my hair would FREEZE. The thing I liked best about the cold and the snow was being able to ski. People were so excited for me and telling me all their snow stories (since we don't have it in the Philippines). I have never skied in my life either, so I was excited and proud to learn.

I was placed with the greatest host family in the whole world. They treated me like their own and they are like real family in another part of the world. I had a host mom, a host dad, a brother and sister. Ben would always be sweet and give me hugs and kisses. I loved every minute of it because I never had a younger brother before. It was fun seeing Katie grow up since she started to be a teenager and we would always tell stories in the bathroom we shared. Through e-mails we established that I was going to call them Mom and Dad since I was never used to calling older people by their first names. I felt super loved. They made sure there was tuna in the pantry (since it was my favorite), hugged me when I needed to be hugged, let me stay out late at night with my friends, and even let me have parties in the basement.

I went to an American co-ed public high school and that was a big adjustment coming from an all-girl private Catholic school. The school was new, everyone was different and it was so diverse. I have never met so many kinds of people in just one place. I was scared during the first day of school. I didn't know anyone, I got lost since the school was huge, and people didn't think I knew how to speak in English every time my teachers would say, And here's Elaine she's a foreign exchange student. But pretty soon I started to get comfortable. It was funny how people always got surprised by how good I was at speaking in English. They're like, Wow, you even speak better English than me. I loved answering people's questions like, So, what do you do in the winter? or Where is the Philippines? Isn't that near South America somewhere? or What's it like to have a coconut tree outside your house do you have coconuts everyday? I had the chance to take fun classes like Spanish, photography, and art so I met people with similar interests as me and got to go to field trips. My favorite was going to Chicago to see my favorite painting Starry Night by Van Gogh. I was an honorary member of the International Club and there was even one time I was giving a talk about the Philippines for the school's Global Awareness Week and someone asked me to say something in Filipino. So I said, Magandang Umaga, ang pangalan ko ay Elaine. They thought it was so cool and people started clapping and giving me a standing ovation. Just for saying my name in Tagalog!!!

I made a lot of friends and met so many people. I joined a church youth group, volunteered for a group for teens with cognitive disabilities, an indoor soccer team during winter and the girls track team during spring. Friends took me out to movies, hockey games, restaurants, road trips, rock shows and concerts. Someone even took me to see the Incubus concert! I got to do my first American prank, which was writing on boys cars with lipstick. Everyone was warm, open, and never hesitant in giving hugs. I would say that as much as I missed my family and friends at home, I never really got homesick because I had friends who made sure I was okay. They were all always there for me and helping me with all the adjustments I had to make, like school, getting rides, hanging out, shopping, going to prom, learning slang terms, everything. I will forever remember all the fun times I had with them.

One of the things I had to get used to and eventually enjoyed was how people picked up on my difference. Girls would always tell me how lucky I was to have a year-round tan and ask if I went to tanning salons! I haven't even heard of tanning salons since I got there! Some boys would ask me how I got my hair to be so black. I was shy and surprised by how forward some guys were. Unlike here, guys do not court girls. It's more casual. Eventually, though I got used to it. I realized that guys all over the world are the same. I became excited to be actually hanging out with all these cute boys, getting calls, and going out. Hugging with someone from the opposite sex wasn't even a big deal, and it was something I enjoyed. Going out opened my eyes to more similarities and differences in the American culture. It was one of the times I was so proud of being Filipina. I was different, exotic, and new.

Every month, I met with other exchange students in our area. I made friends with people from Germany, Brazil, the Netherlands, England , Hungary, etc. It was fun when we were together because we saw how language, skin color or height didn't matter. We were all the same. We even got to bond right away because we were all going through the same thing as exchange students so we talked about the differences at home, school, and out countries. I learned so many things about other cultures, and even got to share my own. I remember cooking the adobo for a Christmas party. I was stressed about it but everyone loved it!

Being away for 10 months and living alone in a completely different world has taught me a lot of things. I have grown and my perspective has changed in ways I never would have imagined. I now can say that I am independent, appreciate my family and friends here more, open to new ideas, aggressive, and more confident about myself. Having my own adventure has proven to me that anything is possible and that I can do anything. It was the best time of my life and I will always remember how choosing to go out and discover what the world has in store for me was life-changing and will be something I will always cherish.

Article provided by Exchange Student News

By Elaine Abonal

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Essay Samples on Exchange Student

Uncertainty with study opportunities for foreign students after brexit.

The UK is known for their highly ranked universities that attract yearly thousands of foreign students to enrol into them. Hence the rising fear after the 2016 referendum in the UK, regarding study possibilities turned nerve wrecking and confusing. Politicians seem busy discussing their trade...

• Exchange Student
• United Kingdom

Personal Reflections of My Exchange Student Experience in Sweden

On 20 May 2019 to 31 May 2019, I, together with 7 classmates, was honored to join the international student exchange programme held by the School of Nursing, the University of Hong Kong. In this exchange, I went to Jönköping University (JU) and attended a...

• Studying Abroad

Struggles Exchange Students Have to Go Through in a Different Country

Introduction Ever wonder what goes on inside a foreign exchange students mind? If so, you might be thinking, how are they able to adapt? Or what challenges might they face while studying abroad in a different country? For this qualitative research assignment, we decided to...

Three Sessions That Were Applicable In Hong Kong To Learn From Australia

An exchange is a way for me to learn from other foreign and get the knowledge back to Hong Kong. In these 15 days in Queensland, Australia, it made my eyes opening. As I have not been to Western Country in the past, it is...

Best topics on Exchange Student

1. Uncertainty with Study Opportunities for Foreign Students after Brexit

2. Personal Reflections of My Exchange Student Experience in Sweden

3. Struggles Exchange Students Have to Go Through in a Different Country

4. Three Sessions That Were Applicable In Hong Kong To Learn From Australia

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Student Exchange: The First Step Toward International Collaboration

• January 2020
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Youth Exchange Student Essay Sample- Exchange is an opportunity

Exchange is an opportunity. A chance to experience lifestyle, culture, country, language, friends and new environment. The youth exchange is a golden opportunity for a young girl like me to learn from the other side of the world. An opportunity to share the beauty of our tradition, language, education, arts and music with the people around the globe have always been my dreams as I always do that with my online pen pal. A real-time experience of it might be a once in a lifetime experience for me. Exchange is a chance to learn the beautiful tradition of a country. I have always love to try and experience the culture. Especially Korean culture as I have always watch Korean dramas and shows. I have learned about their culture and cannot wait to try it myself. Traditional clothes 'Hanbok' and even their food 'kimchi' and 'spicy rice cakes' have always been my favourite whenever I went to a Korean restaurant. Music has no language as Korean pop is like a part of me. I have been a fan of this music genre since I was in primary school and have learned the language by myself as I want to understand the lyrics. Tradition and music play a very big part in everyone's life as it is like our flesh and bone because it is hard to separate them from deep of our heart. Exchange is sharing. Korean early childhood education has always made me curious as the system and curriculum are so much different from Malaysia. As a student of early childhood education in one of the government educational institutes, I have learned that our country's education has been head towards the east. As early education in South Korea mainly focused on attitude and to be independent it has attracted me to learn more about their education and get my eyes on it. Exchange is a spirit. Capture the spirit and essence of life in the country that I got to visit is a dream come true. As my love for photography is 'Beyond Borders', the idea of getting close and interacting with people may be intimidating to some, but not me. I love seeing how people react to my camera. Most of the time people will smile at me and laugh while taking their pictures. I would like to share with the world the emotion and beauty of nature and people in my photograph. I love to share with the world how the beauty had moved my heart to love the place and the people. Just when the caterpillar thought her life was over, she began to fly. Just when I start losing hope to get to another country for a student exchange program, I came across one of my friend posts on social media about this youth exchange program and I tried to apply for it. I hope that this butterfly can spread her wings to share with the world her passion, love, and dedication to shower her sweetness and positivity to others.

Related Papers

Jennifer Jihye Chun , Ju Hui Judy Han

DOI: 10.1215/10679847-3125913

Betsy Hansel

Kelsay E Myers

In January – July 2022, I completed a fieldwork study guiding other Korean adoptees through the Tamalpa Institute Life/Art Process, an expressive arts approach for transformation that includes movement/dance, artmaking, writing, and performance-based ritual. The study included six months of 1:1 coaching and monthly three-hour group workshops exploring the themes of solidarity, empowerment, connection, and whole self expression to provide each participant with tools to integrate their personal stories, identity politics, soul-based metaphors, and psychological material. I also included myself as artist/researcher/teacher in relationship with the other participants and to my own life/art process. Throughout the study, I discovered the personal metaphors and psychological process of each participant mirrored my own experiences in the healing arts in significant ways. This paper and companion video presentation engages the arts-based research method of A/R/Tography to express the findings of my Tamalpa Institute Level 3 study in a process-oriented, creative, and dialogical way that honors the interrelationships between the participants, myself, and each of the multimodal arts practices. The video will allow viewers to spend more time with the images, life/art process and findings close-up while the paper is designed to fill in the gaps of information and tell the larger story presented in the video. For the best experience, it is recommended to have both the paper and video open and begin by either watching the video up to 7:57 when the case study slides begin or reading the paper up to the case studies. After that the sections correspond with the slides in the case studies, so feel free to switch back and forth between the two for the remainder. Keywords: a/r/tography, embodiment, expressive arts, healing arts, Korean adoptee, life/art process, transformation, trauma healing, wholeness

Global Networks: A Journal of Transnational Affairs (forthcoming)

Jiyeon Kang

This article analyses three memoir/manuals of geese families, i.e. those South Korean families in which children undertake pre-college study abroad (PSA) programmes accompanied by one parent (typically a mother) while the other (typically a father) remains at home to support this venture. Although many South Koreans aspire to this study abroad, both geese family mothers and children have been widely criticized: mothers for being narrowly instrumental and familistic, worried only about social reproduction and mobility; and children for forsaking their nation, foregoing their filial duties, and perhaps failing abroad. The memoir/manuals defend the geese mother and humanize the PSA child against these charges. As memoirs they also portray remarkable people who are worthy of documentation. As manuals, they offer (at least somewhat) imitable how-to accounts for mothers/families contemplating this particular family strategy. The memoir/manuals offer a window on the challenges and anxieties of PSA in South Korea today.

Journal of International Students

Manca Sustarsic

The last decade has seen a significant increase of international student mobility and a growing popularity of secondary school exchange programs in the United States and around the world. Drawing upon culture learning theory, the purpose of this study is to understand the impacts, challenges, and rewards of intercultural exchange on secondary school exchange students and their host families. I performed a case study of in-depth interviews with six students who were placed in Hawai'i for an academic year on the Kennedy-Lugar Youth Exchange and Future Leaders Exchange merit-based scholarships, as well as interviews with their volunteer host families. Findings show that intercultural exchange occurs as a two-way process. Both students and host families reap the benefits of intercultural exchange by way of active interaction and culture sharing that is enhanced by a positive student-host relationship. This study sheds light not only on the experiences of secondary school exchange students but also on the experiences of the volunteer host families.

Priscila Cardoso

This paper was submitted to the 2018 Understanding Korea Project by AKS. The main goal was to elaborate proposals on how to improve the image of Korea abroad, aiming at promoting interest in Korea.

Juliet Crane-Cory

Today’s interconnected world demands that students develop the intercultural competencies of skills, behavior, and attitudes to meet the needs of the 21st century. The number of American students who participate in study abroad has been increasing at a steady rate. Many studies have explored the benefits of studying abroad, with some studies indicating how study abroad can be a powerful experiential learning experience. Despite the ever-increasing number of research studies on international exchange programs in higher education, very little data exists on programs for elementary school-aged students. This study attempts to help fill that knowledge gap. This qualitative single case study explores the experience of an exchange program between an independent school in Honolulu and a private school in Tokyo, and how it contributes to the development of the mindset of the elementary school-aged participants to prepare them for a globally interconnected world. Data were collected from 16 ...

International journal of nursing education scholarship

Linda Wallace

The purpose of this study was to explore American student perceptions of caring for Korean patients during a 2 week exchange program. Perceptions of Korea/Koreans focused on five areas: respect, hospitality and gift giving, ability to speak English, hierarchical relationships, and being protective. Their perceptions of personal change focused in four areas: valuing personal cultural experiences, increasing cultural awareness and compassion, seeing people from other ethnic groups as individuals and developing interest in oriental medicine. Four areas of importance identified when caring for Korean patients included showing respect, importance of family, food, and care for post-partum mothers. Differences were experienced between an individualistic, low-context society (United States) and a collectivist, high context society (Korea) where the influence of Confucianism is pervasive.

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Essays on Exchange Student

The suggestion of an international course in Thailand is the main goal of this essay. Most of the American students in this class, as well as students from other nations, will be able to learn and respect Thai culture and language thanks to it (Barm , p. 76). Most American...

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Due to the slight misconceptions held by the locals, it can be difficult to be a foreign student in the United States. I have been dying for so long to study at an American center of distinction in order to reach my full academic potential. The chance arrived sooner than...

Since the turn of the century, there have been numerous exchanges between various civilizations, made possible by migration between continents. The necessity to pursue higher education in the industrialized nations found on the continents of America, Europe, Australia, and Asia has sparked these movements. The situation has been the same...

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You might have a strong academic interest in a particular subject You might have a strong academic interest in a particular subject, but if you don't know how to pursue it, you can explore your passions outside of the classroom. Whether you've had a fishing license since you were 10, volunteered...

I am a second-year international student with a major in business. When I was growing up, I've always seen the United States as a nation out of our world. My obsession with the world prompted me to establish an early objective of understanding the history and business of the United States....

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International student exchange (Corrected essay)

Some teachers think that international student exchange would be beneficial for all teenage school students. Do you think its advantages will outweigh the disadvantages?

WRITING TASK 2

Write about the following topic.

Some teachers think that international student exchange would be beneficial for all teenage school students.

Do you think its advantages will outweigh the disadvantages?

Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.

SAMPLE WRITING TASK 2

There is a common belief that international student exchange programs would bring benefits to all participants. Despite some obvious disadvantages of this projects, I believe that there are outweighed by the advantages.

On the one hand, there are several major drawbacks when teenagers go overseas. Firstly, those exchange programs cost a considerable amount of money, which a handful of students may be inaccessible. For example, students who come from developing countries would find difficult to apply student exchange programs in industrial nations because of the financial burden. Secondly, even with preparation and knowledge about the new environment, adolescents could still experience culture shock, which can affect them in different ways. Another potential drawback is health issues that can occur during the stay in a foreign country.

On the other hand, I believe that the benefits are more significant than such disadvantages. One reason for this notion is that international visitors would have a shinier resume which is valuable for them in the years to come. By working in foreign organizations, they will gain many practical experience that make their profile more competitive. Another reason is that teenagers would have a chance to experience culture exchange. This broaden their mind, and also helps them make new friends for a lifetime. Additionally, after finishing the program, overseas students tend to obtain more opportunities to find good jobs because they have a strong network of friends.

In conclusion, I would argue that the advantages of international student exchange programs are more significant than the disadvantages.

Corrected Writing Task 2

There is a common belief that international student exchange programs would bring benefits to all participants. Despite some obvious disadvantages of this projects those programs’ disadvantages , I believe that there they are outweighed by cannot undermine the advantages.

Avoid using adjectives or adverbs that show high levels of certainty, such as “obvious” or “evidently”.

The word “outweigh” is already used in the topic question. “The disadvantage undermines the advantage” is a good collocation.

On the one hand, there are several major drawbacks when teenagers go overseas. Firstly, those exchange programs cost a considerable amount of money, which a handful of students may be inaccessible the expensiveness of various exchange programs makes them inaccessible to many students . For example, students who come from developing countries would find difficult to apply student exchange programs in industrial nations because of the financial burden difference in living standards between nations . Secondly, even with preparation and knowledge about the new environment, adolescents could still experience culture shock, which can affect them in different ways . Another potential drawback is health issues that can occur during the stay in a foreign country Health issues occur during the stay in a foreign country is another common problem among exchange students .

While joining two sentence clauses into one sentence by using “which” is a good strategy in the Speaking test, it isn’t necessarily effective in writing contexts. Try to change the original complex sentence into a short, simple sentence.

The third sentence in Paragraph 1 is kinda unclear and redundant. The idea of “financial burden” is already expressed in the previous sentence.

“Different ways?” Which ways are you referring here? Try to explain it more to make the paragraph longer and more cohesive.

Try to use the connectives (firstly, secondly, another…) more skillfully. If you keep putting a connective at the start of a sentence, then your writing can be very dull. I advise you to change the structure of the last sentence to make the connective (“another”) appear in the middle of the sentence instead of at the beginning.

On the other hand, I believe that the benefits are more significant than such aforementioned disadvantages. One reason for this notion is that international visitors students would have a shinier attractive resume which is valuable for them in the years to come. By working in foreign organizations, they will gain many practical experience that make their profile more competitive. Another reason is that teenagers would have a chance to experience culture exchange cultural diversity . This broaden broadens their mind , and also helps them make new friends for a lifetime . Additionally, after finishing the program, overseas students tend to obtain more opportunities to find good jobs because they have a strong network of friends wide social circle .

“such “ is an informal word. Use “aforementioned” instead.

“An international visitor” means “a tourist”, not “an international student”.

“Shiny resume” isn’t a collocation, “attractive resume” is.

“Experience” is an uncountable noun, so don’t use “many” here.

You don’t make a “lifetime” friend that easily.

The above conclusion is unconvincing and too short. Either you write one more sentence, or remove the part “would argue that”.

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While it’s okay to write a 252 words essay in a real test, try to write longer when you are at home. You should write approx 270 words, so even after you have trimmed some redundant words, your essay still have more than 250 words.

Overall score: 6.0

Task Achievement: 6

✓ addresses all parts of the task although some parts may be more fully covered than others.

✓ presents a relevant position although the conclusions may become unclear or repetitive (your conclusion is just a paraphrase of Paragraph 2’s first sentence)

✓ presents relevant main ideas but some may be inadequately developed/unclear (the part “which can affect them in different ways” is clearly an undeveloped sentence clause)

Coherence and Cohesion: 7

✗ logically organises information and ideas; there is clear progression throughout. (the ideas in each paragraph aren’t listed in a coherent way) ✓ uses a range of cohesive devices appropriately although there may be some under-/overuse. (on the one hand, on the other hand; firstly, secondly, another, one reason, another reason, additionally)

✓ presents a clear central topic within each paragraph.

Lexical Resource: 6

✓ uses an adequate range of vocabulary for the task (overseas, financial burden, culture shocḳ) ✓ attempts to use less common vocabulary but with some inaccuracy (broaden the mind, to experience cultural diversity) ✓ makes some errors in spelling and/or word formation, but they do not impede communication.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: 6 ✓ uses a mix of simple and complex sentence forms. ✓ makes some errors in grammar and punctuation but they rarely reduce communication

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OTHER SAMPLE WRITING TASK 2

In my opinion, that sounds cool to have a new friend in my classroom especially the foreigner. The exchange students from the other countries confront with the another people and places. There are many differences between host countries and newcomer countries including language, accent, foods, custom, law, culture, and also people ,Yet it would be a good thing for learning these difference from the friends. We could share the story what we do in daily life or a point of view in any topics such the football world cup matches, the president of U.S. speech or the brand new movies release. It is a chance to learn about living adaptation and communication skills, Besides travelling guide experience when you lead your friends to journey the local attraction is significantly exciting. On the other hand, attending the new people, For some people it is hard situation to compromise with the newcomers. However, time can relieve the distance and harmonise the relationship. The racism is still patent in some countries, It is like the burden to have a connection among the classroom. Therefore, the teacher plays a key role in mediator to prevent the problem if not the unwanted situation may occur. In conclusion, the exchange student has a lot of advantage in almost cases. The opportunities to interact with the foreigner make a lesson to adapt yourselves and gain life experience along with the new friends. The experience makes you stronger and worldliness. None the less, There are only some case having problem about racism that is the sensitive difficulty.

(Written by ณัช เกษม )

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Below is the corrected essay

In my opinion, that sounds cool to have a new friend in my classroom especially the foreigner. The exchange students from the other countries confront with the another people and places. There are many differences between the host countries local people and the newcomer countries foreigner including language, accent, foods, custom, law, culture, and also people . , Yet , it would be a good thing for learning to learn these difference from the friends. We could share the story what we do in daily life or a point of view in any topics such the football world cup matches, the president of U.S. ’ speech or the brand new movies release release of a brand new movie . It is a chance to learn about living adaptation and communication skills , . Besides , travelling guide experience when you lead your friends to journey the local attraction is significantly exciting having a local friend along when traveling as a foreigner is exciting and reassuring .

Next time, try to separate the introduction from the firsty body paragraph. By missing a clear introduction, you will lower your Task Response grading a lot.

The first sentence is not only informal ( “that sounds cool” ) but also does not directly answer the topic question. If you write “ a new friend in my classroom especially the foreigner ”, the reader may think that your essay’s main focus is just “a new classmate” in general, not a “foreign” one.

The second sentence is very unclear. Try to join the first and the second sentence into one only.

While South East Asia languages are topic-prominent (the grammar isn’t important, but the topic behind the sentence is), English is much more rigid in terms of grammatical structure. In case of your third sentence, what you are talking about is not the different between two countries , but that of the people of two countries .

The correct idiom here is not “something for doing” , but rather “ something to do/to be done ”

Your last sentence sounds ungrammatical and foreign to a English speaker.

There are many punctuation mistakes presented.

On the other hand, attending regarding of the new people appearance of foreigners , For for some people , it is a hard situation when you have to compromise with the newcomers. However, time can relieve the distance and harmonise the relationship with time, the cultural barrier will be reduce . The racism is still patent prevalent in some countries, It it is like the a burden to have a connection be overcomed among in the classroom. Therefore, the teacher plays a key role in mediator to prevent the problem if not the a unwanted situation may occur.

I guess that you often misuse “ a/the ” since there is no article words in Thai. But that is something you must overcome.

Pay attention to collocations. English native speakers don’t use word pairs like “ relieve the distance ”. “To harmonise the relationship” is fine, but I am doubt it should be use in this context.

In conclusion, the exchange student has having a foreign exchange student in the classroom brings out a lot of advantage in almost cases . The opportunities to interact with the foreigner make a lesson provide a chance to adapt yourselves and gain life experience , along with the new friends. The experience makes you stronger and worldliness more mature . None the less Nonetheless , There there are only some case s having problem about when racism that is the sensitive difficulty obstacle .

Stay faithful to the topic question. Since the question here is “can all the students, both the foreign and the native ones, reap benefit?”, you must address it in your conclusion.

Using “ worldliness ” here is very unnatural. First, “worldliness” is a noun, not an adjective, so it cannot go along with “strong”. Second, it is a vague word when being taken out from the context. I suggest you use something like “ mature ”.

To strengthen your conclusion, don’t put the oppose idea at the end. Instead, put in at the beginning, then affirm your opinion as a contrast.

Overall: 4.5

Task Response: 4

✓ responds to the task only in a minimal way or the answer is tangential; the format may be inappropriate ( failing to separate the introduction and the first body paragraph lowers your band score here from 5 to 4 ) ✓ presents a position but this is unclear ( due to the unclear conclusion ) ✓ presents some main ideas but these are difficult to identify and may be repetitive, irrelevant or not well supported

Coherence and Cohesion: 5

✓ presents information with some organisation but there may be a lack of overall progression

✗ makes inadequate, inaccurate or over use of cohesive devices ( The writer has used some common connectives. Could reach a 6 score next time. )

✓ may be repetitive because of lack of referencing and substitution

✓ may not write in paragraphs, or paragraphing may be inadequate

Lexical Resource: 5

✓ uses a limited range of vocabulary, but this is minimally adequate for the task

✓ may make noticeable errors in spelling and/or word formation that may cause some difficulty for the reader

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: 4

✓ uses only a very limited range of structures with only rare use of subordinate clauses ( there is no formal, academic sentence; the essay looks like an informal speech )

✓ some structures are accurate but errors predominate, and punctuation is often faulty ( many punctuation faults are presented)

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This essay is corrected by Anh Tran - Let's Write Something Group .

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10 Personal Statement Essay Examples That Worked

What’s covered:, what is a personal statement.

• Essay 1: Summer Program
• Essay 2: Being Bangladeshi-American
• Essay 3: Why Medicine
• Essay 4: Love of Writing
• Essay 5: Starting a Fire
• Essay 6: Dedicating a Track
• Essay 7: Body Image and Eating Disorders
• Essay 8: Becoming a Coach
• Essay 9: Eritrea
• Essay 10: Journaling
• Is Your Personal Statement Strong Enough?

Your personal statement is any essay that you must write for your main application, such as the Common App Essay , University of California Essays , or Coalition Application Essay . This type of essay focuses on your unique experiences, ideas, or beliefs that may not be discussed throughout the rest of your application. This essay should be an opportunity for the admissions officers to get to know you better and give them a glimpse into who you really are.

In this post, we will share 10 different personal statements that were all written by real students. We will also provide commentary on what each essay did well and where there is room for improvement, so you can make your personal statement as strong as possible!

Please note: Looking at examples of real essays students have submitted to colleges can be very beneficial to get inspiration for your essays. You should never copy or plagiarize from these examples when writing your own essays. Colleges can tell when an essay isn’t genuine and will not view students favorably if they plagiarized. 

Personal Statement Examples

Essay example #1: exchange program.

The twisting roads, ornate mosaics, and fragrant scent of freshly ground spices had been so foreign at first. Now in my fifth week of the SNYI-L summer exchange program in Morocco, I felt more comfortable in the city. With a bag full of pastries from the market, I navigated to a bus stop, paid the fare, and began the trip back to my host family’s house. It was hard to believe that only a few years earlier my mom was worried about letting me travel around my home city on my own, let alone a place that I had only lived in for a few weeks. While I had been on a journey towards self-sufficiency and independence for a few years now, it was Morocco that pushed me to become the confident, self-reflective person that I am today.

As a child, my parents pressured me to achieve perfect grades, master my swim strokes, and discover interesting hobbies like playing the oboe and learning to pick locks. I felt compelled to live my life according to their wishes. Of course, this pressure was not a wholly negative factor in my life –– you might even call it support. However, the constant presence of my parents’ hopes for me overcame my own sense of desire and led me to become quite dependent on them. I pushed myself to get straight A’s, complied with years of oboe lessons, and dutifully attended hours of swim practice after school. Despite all these achievements, I felt like I had no sense of self beyond my drive for success. I had always been expected to succeed on the path they had defined. However, this path was interrupted seven years after my parents’ divorce when my dad moved across the country to Oregon.

I missed my dad’s close presence, but I loved my new sense of freedom. My parents’ separation allowed me the space to explore my own strengths and interests as each of them became individually busier. As early as middle school, I was riding the light rail train by myself, reading maps to get myself home, and applying to special academic programs without urging from my parents. Even as I took more initiatives on my own, my parents both continued to see me as somewhat immature. All of that changed three years ago, when I applied and was accepted to the SNYI-L summer exchange program in Morocco. I would be studying Arabic and learning my way around the city of Marrakesh. Although I think my parents were a little surprised when I told them my news, the addition of a fully-funded scholarship convinced them to let me go.

I lived with a host family in Marrakesh and learned that they, too, had high expectations for me. I didn’t know a word of Arabic, and although my host parents and one brother spoke good English, they knew I was there to learn. If I messed up, they patiently corrected me but refused to let me fall into the easy pattern of speaking English just as I did at home. Just as I had when I was younger, I felt pressured and stressed about meeting their expectations. However, one day, as I strolled through the bustling market square after successfully bargaining with one of the street vendors, I realized my mistake. My host family wasn’t being unfair by making me fumble through Arabic. I had applied for this trip, and I had committed to the intensive language study. My host family’s rules about speaking Arabic at home had not been to fulfill their expectations for me, but to help me fulfill my expectations for myself. Similarly, the pressure my parents had put on me as a child had come out of love and their hopes for me, not out of a desire to crush my individuality.

As my bus drove through the still-bustling market square and past the medieval Ben-Youssef madrasa, I realized that becoming independent was a process, not an event. I thought that my parents’ separation when I was ten had been the one experience that would transform me into a self-motivated and autonomous person. It did, but that didn’t mean that I didn’t still have room to grow. Now, although I am even more self-sufficient than I was three years ago, I try to approach every experience with the expectation that it will change me. It’s still difficult, but I understand that just because growth can be uncomfortable doesn’t mean it’s not important.

What the Essay Did Well

This is a nice essay because it delves into particular character trait of the student and how it has been shaped and matured over time. Although it doesn’t focus the essay around a specific anecdote, the essay is still successful because it is centered around this student’s independence. This is a nice approach for a personal statement: highlight a particular trait of yours and explore how it has grown with you.

The ideas in this essay are universal to growing up—living up to parents’ expectations, yearning for freedom, and coming to terms with reality—but it feels unique to the student because of the inclusion of details specific to them. Including their oboe lessons, the experience of riding the light rail by themselves, and the negotiations with a street vendor helps show the reader what these common tropes of growing up looked like for them personally. 

Another strength of the essay is the level of self-reflection included throughout the piece. Since there is no central anecdote tying everything together, an essay about a character trait is only successful when you deeply reflect on how you felt, where you made mistakes, and how that trait impacts your life. The author includes reflection in sentences like “ I felt like I had no sense of self beyond my drive for success, ” and “ I understand that just because growth can be uncomfortable doesn’t mean it’s not important. ” These sentences help us see how the student was impacted and what their point of view is.

What Could Be Improved

The largest change this essay would benefit from is to show not tell. The platitude you have heard a million times no doubt, but for good reason. This essay heavily relies on telling the reader what occurred, making us less engaged as the entire reading experience feels more passive. If the student had shown us what happens though, it keeps the reader tied to the action and makes them feel like they are there with the student, making it much more enjoyable to read. 

For example, they tell us about the pressure to succeed their parents placed on them: “ I pushed myself to get straight A’s, complied with years of oboe lessons, and dutifully attended hours of swim practice after school.”  They could have shown us what that pressure looked like with a sentence like this: “ My stomach turned somersaults as my rattling knee thumped against the desk before every test, scared to get anything less than a 95. For five years the painful squawk of the oboe only reminded me of my parents’ claps and whistles at my concerts. I mastered the butterfly, backstroke, and freestyle, fighting against the anchor of their expectations threatening to pull me down.”

If the student had gone through their essay and applied this exercise of bringing more detail and colorful language to sentences that tell the reader what happened, the essay would be really great. 

Table of Contents

Essay Example #2: Being Bangladeshi-American

Life before was good: verdant forests, sumptuous curries, and a devoted family.

Then, my family abandoned our comfortable life in Bangladesh for a chance at the American dream in Los Angeles. Within our first year, my father was diagnosed with thyroid cancer. He lost his battle three weeks before my sixth birthday. Facing a new country without the steady presence of my father, we were vulnerable — prisoners of hardship in the land of the free. We resettled in the Bronx, in my uncle’s renovated basement. It was meant to be our refuge, but I felt more displaced than ever. Gone were the high-rise condos of West L.A.; instead, government projects towered over the neighborhood. Pedestrians no longer smiled and greeted me; the atmosphere was hostile, even toxic. Schoolkids were quick to pick on those they saw as weak or foreign, hurling harsh words I’d never heard before.

Meanwhile, my family began integrating into the local Bangladeshi community. I struggled to understand those who shared my heritage. Bangladeshi mothers stayed home while fathers drove cabs and sold fruit by the roadside — painful societal positions. Riding on crosstown buses or walking home from school, I began to internalize these disparities. During my fleeting encounters with affluent Upper East Siders, I saw kids my age with nannies, parents who wore suits to work, and luxurious apartments with spectacular views. Most took cabs to their destinations: cabs that Bangladeshis drove. I watched the mundane moments of their lives with longing, aching to plant myself in their shoes. Shame prickled down my spine. I distanced myself from my heritage, rejecting the traditional panjabis worn on Eid and refusing the torkari we ate for dinner every day. 

As I grappled with my relationship with the Bangladeshi community, I turned my attention to helping my Bronx community by pursuing an internship with Assemblyman Luis Sepulveda. I handled desk work and took calls, spending the bulk of my time actively listening to the hardships constituents faced — everything from a veteran stripped of his benefits to a grandmother unable to support her bedridden grandchild.

I’d never exposed myself to stories like these, and now I was the first to hear them. As an intern, I could only assist in what felt like the small ways — pointing out local job offerings, printing information on free ESL classes, reaching out to non-profits. But to a community facing an onslaught of intense struggles, I realized that something as small as these actions could have vast impacts. Seeing the immediate consequences of my actions inspired me. Throughout that summer, I internalized my community’s daily challenges in a new light. I began to stop seeing the prevalent underemployment and cramped living quarters less as sources of shame. Instead, I saw them as realities that had to be acknowledged, but could ultimately be remedied. I also realized the benefits of the Bangladeshi culture I had been so ashamed of. My Bangla language skills were an asset to the office, and my understanding of Bangladeshi etiquette allowed for smooth communication between office staff and its constituents. As I helped my neighbors navigate city services, I saw my heritage with pride — a perspective I never expected to have.

I can now appreciate the value of my unique culture and background, and of living with less. This perspective offers room for progress, community integration, and a future worth fighting for. My time with Assemblyman Sepulveda’s office taught me that I can be a change agent in enabling this progression. Far from being ashamed of my community, I want to someday return to local politics in the Bronx to continue helping others access the American Dream. I hope to help my community appreciate the opportunity to make progress together. By embracing reality, I learned to live it. Along the way, I discovered one thing: life is good, but we can make it better.

This student’s passion for social justice and civic duty shines through in this essay because of how honest it is. Sharing their personal experience with immigrating, moving around, being an outsider, and finding a community allows us to see the hardships this student has faced and builds empathy towards their situation. However, what really makes it strong is that they go beyond describing the difficulties they faced and explain the mental impact it had on them as a child: Shame prickled down my spine. I distanced myself from my heritage, rejecting the traditional panjabis worn on Eid and refusing the torkari we ate for dinner every day. 

The rejection of their culture presented at the beginning of the essay creates a nice juxtaposition with the student’s view in the latter half of the essay and helps demonstrate how they have matured. They use their experience interning as a way to delve into a change in their thought process about their culture and show how their passion for social justice began. Using this experience as a mechanism to explore their thoughts and feelings is an excellent example of how items that are included elsewhere on your application should be incorporated into your essay.

This essay prioritizes emotions and personal views over specific anecdotes. Although there are details and certain moments incorporated throughout to emphasize the author’s points, the main focus remains on the student and how they grapple with their culture and identity.  

One area for improvement is the conclusion. Although the forward-looking approach is a nice way to end an essay focused on social justice, it would be nice to include more details and imagery in the conclusion. How does the student want to help their community? What government position do they see themselves holding one day? 

A more impactful ending might look like the student walking into their office at the New York City Housing Authority in 15 years and looking at the plans to build a new development in the Bronx just blocks away from where the grew up that would provide quality housing to people in their Bangladeshi community. They would smile while thinking about how far they have come from that young kid who used to be ashamed of their culture. 

Essay Example #3: Why Medicine

I took my first trip to China to visit my cousin Anna in July of 2014. Distance had kept us apart, but when we were together, we fell into all of our old inside jokes and caught up on each other’s lives. Her sparkling personality and optimistic attitude always brought a smile to my face. This time, however, my heart broke when I saw the effects of her brain cancer; she had suffered from a stroke that paralyzed her left side. She was still herself in many ways, but I could see that the damage to her brain made things difficult for her. I stayed by her every day, providing the support she needed, whether assisting her with eating and drinking, reading to her, or just watching “Friends.” During my flight back home, sorrow and helplessness overwhelmed me. Would I ever see Anna again? Could I have done more to make Anna comfortable? I wished I could stay in China longer to care for her. As I deplaned, I wondered if I could transform my grief to help other children and teenagers in the US who suffered as Anna did.

The day after I got home, as jet lag dragged me awake a few minutes after midnight, I remembered hearing about the Family Reach Foundation (FRF) and its work with children going through treatments at the local hospital and their families. I began volunteering in the FRF’s Children’s Activity Room, where I play with children battling cancer. Volunteering has both made me appreciate my own health and also cherish the new relationships I build with the children and families. We play sports, make figures out of playdoh, and dress up. When they take on the roles of firefighters or fairies, we all get caught up in the game; for that time, they forget the sanitized, stark, impersonal walls of the pediatric oncology ward. Building close relationships with them and seeing them giggle and laugh is so rewarding — I love watching them grow and get better throughout their course of treatment.

Hearing from the parents about their children’s condition and seeing the children recover inspired me to consider medical research. To get started, I enrolled in a summer collegelevel course in Abnormal Psychology. There I worked with Catelyn, a rising college senior, on a data analysis project regarding Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID). Together, we examined the neurological etiology of DID by studying four fMRI and PET cases. I fell in love with gathering data and analyzing the results and was amazed by our final product: several stunning brain images showcasing the areas of hyper and hypoactivity in brains affected by DID. Desire quickly followed my amazement — I want to continue this project and study more brains. Their complexity, delicacy, and importance to every aspect of life fascinate me. Successfully completing this research project gave me a sense of hope; I know I am capable of participating in a large scale research project and potentially making a difference in someone else’s life through my research.

Anna’s diagnosis inspired me to begin volunteering at FRF; from there, I discovered my desire to help people further by contributing to medical research. As my research interest blossomed, I realized that it’s no coincidence that I want to study brains—after all, Anna suffered from brain cancer. Reflecting on these experiences this past year and a half, I see that everything I’ve done is connected. Sadly, a few months after I returned from China, Anna passed away. I am still sad, but as I run a toy truck across the floor and watch one of the little patients’ eyes light up, I imagine that she would be proud of my commitment to pursue medicine and study the brain.

This essay has a very strong emotional core that tugs at the heart strings and makes the reader feel invested. Writing about sickness can be difficult and doesn’t always belong in a personal statement, but in this case it works well because the focus is on how this student cared for her cousin and dealt with the grief and emotions surrounding her condition. Writing about the compassion she showed and the doubts and concerns that filled her mind keeps the focus on the author and her personality. 

This continues when she again discusses the activities she did with the kids at FRF and the personal reflection this experience allowed her to have. For example, she writes: Volunteering has both made me appreciate my own health and also cherish the new relationships I build with the children and families. We play sports, make figures out of playdoh, and dress up.

Concluding the essay with the sad story of her cousin’s passing brings the essay full circle and returns to the emotional heart of the piece to once again build a connection with the reader. However, it finishes on a hopeful note and demonstrates how this student has been able to turn a tragic experience into a source of lifelong inspiration. 

One thing this essay should be cognizant of is that personal statements should not read as summaries of your extracurricular resume. Although this essay doesn’t fully fall into that trap, it does describe two key extracurriculars the student participated in. However, the inclusion of such a strong emotional core running throughout the essay helps keep the focus on the student and her thoughts and feelings during these activities.

To avoid making this mistake, make sure you have a common thread running through your essay and the extracurriculars provide support to the story you are trying to tell, rather than crafting a story around your activities. And, as this essay does, make sure there is lots of personal reflection and feelings weaved throughout to focus attention to you rather than your extracurriculars. 

Essay Example #4: Love of Writing

“I want to be a writer.” This had been my answer to every youthful discussion with the adults in my life about what I would do when I grew up. As early as elementary school, I remember reading my writing pieces aloud to an audience at “Author of the Month” ceremonies. Bearing this goal in mind, and hoping to gain some valuable experience, I signed up for a journalism class during my freshman year. Despite my love for writing, I initially found myself uninterested in the subject and I struggled to enjoy the class. When I thought of writing, I imagined lyrical prose, profound poetry, and thrilling plot lines. Journalism required a laconic style and orderly structure, and I found my teacher’s assignments formulaic and dull. That class shook my confidence as a writer. I was uncertain if I should continue in it for the rest of my high school career.

Despite my misgivings, I decided that I couldn’t make a final decision on whether to quit journalism until I had some experience working for a paper outside of the classroom. The following year, I applied to be a staff reporter on our school newspaper. I hoped this would help me become more self-driven and creative, rather than merely writing articles that my teacher assigned. To my surprise, my time on staff was worlds away from what I experienced in the journalism class. Although I was unaccustomed to working in a fast-paced environment and initially found it burdensome to research and complete high-quality stories in a relatively short amount of time, I also found it exciting. I enjoyed learning more about topics and events on campus that I did not know much about; some of my stories that I covered in my first semester concerned a chess tournament, a food drive, and a Spanish immersion party. I relished in the freedom I had to explore and learn, and to write more independently than I could in a classroom.

Although I enjoyed many aspects of working for the paper immediately, reporting also pushed me outside of my comfort zone. I am a shy person, and speaking with people I did not know intimidated me. During my first interview, I met with the basketball coach to prepare for a story about the team’s winning streak. As I approached his office, I felt everything from my toes to my tongue freeze into a solid block, and I could hardly get out my opening questions. Fortunately, the coach was very kind and helped me through the conversation. Encouraged, I prepared for my next interview with more confidence. After a few weeks of practice, I even started to look forward to interviewing people on campus. That first journalism class may have bored me, but even if journalism in practice was challenging, it was anything but tedious.

Over the course of that year, I grew to love writing for our school newspaper. Reporting made me aware of my surroundings, and made me want to know more about current events on campus and in the town where I grew up. By interacting with people all over campus, I came to understand the breadth of individuals and communities that make up my high school. I felt far more connected to diverse parts of my school through my work as a journalist, and I realized that journalism gave me a window into seeing beyond my own experiences. The style of news writing may be different from what I used to think “writing” meant, but I learned that I can still derive exciting plots from events that may have gone unnoticed if not for my stories. I no longer struggle to approach others, and truly enjoy getting to know people and recognizing their accomplishments through my writing. Becoming a writer may be a difficult path, but it is as rewarding as I hoped when I was young.

This essay is clearly structured in a manner that makes it flow very nicely and contributes to its success. It starts with a quote to draw in the reader and show this student’s life-long passion for writing. Then it addresses the challenges of facing new, unfamiliar territory and how this student overcame it. Finally, it concludes by reflecting on this eye-opening experience and a nod to their younger self from the introduction. Having a well-thought out and sequential structure with clear transitions makes it extremely easy for the reader to follow along and take away the main idea.

Another positive aspect of the essay is the use of strong and expressive language. Sentences like “ When I thought of writing, I imagined lyrical prose, profound poetry, and thrilling plot lines ” stand out because of the intentional use of words like “lyrical”, “profound”, and “thrilling” to convey the student’s love of writing. The author also uses an active voice to capture the readers’ attention and keep us engaged. They rely on their language and diction to reveal details to the reader, for instance saying “ I felt everything from my toes to my tongue freeze into a solid block ” to describe feeling nervous.

This essay is already very strong, so there isn’t much that needs to be changed. One thing that could take the essay from great to outstanding would be to throw in more quotes, internal dialogue, and sensory descriptors.

It would be nice to see the nerves they felt interviewing the coach by including dialogue like “ Um…I want to interview you about…uh…”.  They could have shown their original distaste for journalism by narrating the thoughts running through their head. The fast-paced environment of their newspaper could have come to life with descriptions about the clacking of keyboards and the whirl of people running around laying out articles.

Essay Example #5: Starting a Fire

Was I no longer the beloved daughter of nature, whisperer of trees? Knee-high rubber boots, camouflage, bug spray—I wore the garb and perfume of a proud wild woman, yet there I was, hunched over the pathetic pile of stubborn sticks, utterly stumped, on the verge of tears. As a child, I had considered myself a kind of rustic princess, a cradler of spiders and centipedes, who was serenaded by mourning doves and chickadees, who could glide through tick-infested meadows and emerge Lyme-free. I knew the cracks of the earth like the scars on my own rough palms. Yet here I was, ten years later, incapable of performing the most fundamental outdoor task: I could not, for the life of me, start a fire. 

Furiously I rubbed the twigs together—rubbed and rubbed until shreds of skin flaked from my fingers. No smoke. The twigs were too young, too sticky-green; I tossed them away with a shower of curses, and began tearing through the underbrush in search of a more flammable collection. My efforts were fruitless. Livid, I bit a rejected twig, determined to prove that the forest had spurned me, offering only young, wet bones that would never burn. But the wood cracked like carrots between my teeth—old, brittle, and bitter. Roaring and nursing my aching palms, I retreated to the tent, where I sulked and awaited the jeers of my family. 

Rattling their empty worm cans and reeking of fat fish, my brother and cousins swaggered into the campsite. Immediately, they noticed the minor stick massacre by the fire pit and called to me, their deep voices already sharp with contempt. 

“Where’s the fire, Princess Clara?” they taunted. “Having some trouble?” They prodded me with the ends of the chewed branches and, with a few effortless scrapes of wood on rock, sparked a red and roaring flame. My face burned long after I left the fire pit. The camp stank of salmon and shame. 

In the tent, I pondered my failure. Was I so dainty? Was I that incapable? I thought of my hands, how calloused and capable they had been, how tender and smooth they had become. It had been years since I’d kneaded mud between my fingers; instead of scaling a white pine, I’d practiced scales on my piano, my hands softening into those of a musician—fleshy and sensitive. And I’d gotten glasses, having grown horrifically nearsighted; long nights of dim lighting and thick books had done this. I couldn’t remember the last time I had lain down on a hill, barefaced, and seen the stars without having to squint. Crawling along the edge of the tent, a spider confirmed my transformation—he disgusted me, and I felt an overwhelming urge to squash him. 

Yet, I realized I hadn’t really changed—I had only shifted perspective. I still eagerly explored new worlds, but through poems and prose rather than pastures and puddles. I’d grown to prefer the boom of a bass over that of a bullfrog, learned to coax a different kind of fire from wood, having developed a burn for writing rhymes and scrawling hypotheses. 

That night, I stayed up late with my journal and wrote about the spider I had decided not to kill. I had tolerated him just barely, only shrieking when he jumped—it helped to watch him decorate the corners of the tent with his delicate webs, knowing that he couldn’t start fires, either. When the night grew cold and the embers died, my words still smoked—my hands burned from all that scrawling—and even when I fell asleep, the ideas kept sparking—I was on fire, always on fire.

This student is an excellent writer, which allows a simple story to be outstandingly compelling. The author articulates her points beautifully and creatively through her immense use of details and figurative language. Lines like “a rustic princess, a cradler of spiders and centipedes, who was serenaded by mourning doves and chickadees,” and “rubbed and rubbed until shreds of skin flaked from my fingers,” create vivid images that draw the reader in. 

The flowery and descriptive prose also contributes to the nice juxtaposition between the old Clara and the new Clara. The latter half of the essay contrasts elements of nature with music and writing to demonstrate how natural these interests are for her now. This sentence perfectly encapsulates the contrast she is trying to build: “It had been years since I’d kneaded mud between my fingers; instead of scaling a white pine, I’d practiced scales on my piano, my hands softening into those of a musician—fleshy and sensitive.”

In addition to being well-written, this essay is thematically cohesive. It begins with the simple introduction “Fire!” and ends with the following image: “When the night grew cold and the embers died, my words still smoked—my hands burned from all that scrawling—and even when I fell asleep, the ideas kept sparking—I was on fire, always on fire.” This full-circle approach leaves readers satisfied and impressed.

There is very little this essay should change, however one thing to be cautious about is having an essay that is overly-descriptive. We know from the essay that this student likes to read and write, and depending on other elements of her application, it might make total sense to have such a flowery and ornate writing style. However, your personal statement needs to reflect your voice as well as your personality. If you would never use language like this in conversation or your writing, don’t put it in your personal statement. Make sure there is a balance between eloquence and your personal voice.

Essay Example #6: Dedicating a Track

“Getting beat is one thing – it’s part of competing – but I want no part in losing.” Coach Rob Stark’s motto never fails to remind me of his encouragement on early-morning bus rides to track meets around the state. I’ve always appreciated the phrase, but an experience last June helped me understand its more profound, universal meaning.

Stark, as we affectionately call him, has coached track at my high school for 25 years. His care, dedication, and emphasis on developing good character has left an enduring impact on me and hundreds of other students. Not only did he help me discover my talent and love for running, but he also taught me the importance of commitment and discipline and to approach every endeavor with the passion and intensity that I bring to running. When I learned a neighboring high school had dedicated their track to a longtime coach, I felt that Stark deserved similar honors.

Our school district’s board of education indicated they would only dedicate our track to Stark if I could demonstrate that he was extraordinary. I took charge and mobilized my teammates to distribute petitions, reach out to alumni, and compile statistics on the many team and individual champions Stark had coached over the years. We received astounding support, collecting almost 3,000 signatures and pages of endorsements from across the community. With help from my teammates, I presented this evidence to the board.

They didn’t bite. 

Most members argued that dedicating the track was a low priority. Knowing that we had to act quickly to convince them of its importance, I called a team meeting where we drafted a rebuttal for the next board meeting. To my surprise, they chose me to deliver it. I was far from the best public speaker in the group, and I felt nervous about going before the unsympathetic board again. However, at that second meeting, I discovered that I enjoy articulating and arguing for something that I’m passionate about.

Public speaking resembles a cross country race. Walking to the starting line, you have to trust your training and quell your last minute doubts. When the gun fires, you can’t think too hard about anything; your performance has to be instinctual, natural, even relaxed. At the next board meeting, the podium was my starting line. As I walked up to it, familiar butterflies fluttered in my stomach. Instead of the track stretching out in front of me, I faced the vast audience of teachers, board members, and my teammates. I felt my adrenaline build, and reassured myself: I’ve put in the work, my argument is powerful and sound. As the board president told me to introduce myself, I heard, “runners set” in the back of my mind. She finished speaking, and Bang! The brief silence was the gunshot for me to begin. 

The next few minutes blurred together, but when the dust settled, I knew from the board members’ expressions and the audience’s thunderous approval that I had run quite a race. Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough; the board voted down our proposal. I was disappointed, but proud of myself, my team, and our collaboration off the track. We stood up for a cause we believed in, and I overcame my worries about being a leader. Although I discovered that changing the status quo through an elected body can be a painstakingly difficult process and requires perseverance, I learned that I enjoy the challenges this effort offers. Last month, one of the school board members joked that I had become a “regular” – I now often show up to meetings to advocate for a variety of causes, including better environmental practices in cafeterias and safer equipment for athletes.

Just as Stark taught me, I worked passionately to achieve my goal. I may have been beaten when I appealed to the board, but I certainly didn’t lose, and that would have made Stark proud.

This essay effectively conveys this student’s compassion for others, initiative, and determination—all great qualities to exemplify in a personal statement!

Although they rely on telling us a lot of what happened up until the board meeting, the use of running a race (their passion) as a metaphor for public speaking provides a lot of insight into the fear that this student overcame to work towards something bigger than themself. Comparing a podium to the starting line, the audience to the track, and silence to the gunshot is a nice way of demonstrating this student’s passion for cross country running without making that the focus of the story.

The essay does a nice job of coming full circle at the end by explaining what the quote from the beginning meant to them after this experience. Without explicitly saying “ I now know that what Stark actually meant is…” they rely on the strength of their argument above to make it obvious to the reader what it means to get beat but not lose. 

One of the biggest areas of improvement in the intro, however, is how the essay tells us Stark’s impact rather than showing us: His care, dedication, and emphasis on developing good character has left an enduring impact on me and hundreds of other students. Not only did he help me discover my talent and love for running, but he also taught me the importance of commitment and discipline and to approach every endeavor with the passion and intensity that I bring to running.

The writer could’ve helped us feel a stronger emotional connection to Stark if they had included examples of Stark’s qualities, rather than explicitly stating them. For example, they could’ve written something like: Stark was the kind of person who would give you gas money if you told him your parents couldn’t afford to pick you up from practice. And he actually did that—several times. At track meets, alumni regularly would come talk to him and tell him how he’d changed their lives. Before Stark, I was ambivalent about running and was on the JV team, but his encouragement motivated me to run longer and harder and eventually make varsity. Because of him, I approach every endeavor with the passion and intensity that I bring to running.

Essay Example #7: Body Image and Eating Disorders

I press the “discover” button on my Instagram app, hoping to find enticing pictures to satisfy my boredom. Scrolling through, I see funny videos and mouth-watering pictures of food. However, one image stops me immediately. A fit teenage girl with a “perfect body” relaxes in a bikini on a beach. Beneath it, I see a slew of flattering comments. I shake with disapproval over the image’s unrealistic quality. However, part of me still wants to have a body like hers so that others will make similar comments to me.

I would like to resolve a silent issue that harms many teenagers and adults: negative self image and low self-esteem in a world where social media shapes how people view each other. When people see the façades others wear to create an “ideal” image, they can develop poor thought patterns rooted in negative self-talk. The constant comparisons to “perfect” others make people feel small. In this new digital age, it is hard to distinguish authentic from artificial representations.

When I was 11, I developed anorexia nervosa. Though I was already thin, I wanted to be skinny like the models that I saw on the magazine covers on the grocery store stands. Little did I know that those models probably also suffered from disorders, and that photoshop erased their flaws. I preferred being underweight to being healthy. No matter how little I ate or how thin I was, I always thought that I was too fat. I became obsessed with the number on the scale and would try to eat the least that I could without my parents urging me to take more. Fortunately, I stopped engaging in anorexic behaviors before middle school. However, my underlying mental habits did not change. The images that had provoked my disorder in the first place were still a constant presence in my life.

By age 15, I was in recovery from anorexia, but suffered from depression. While I used to only compare myself to models, the growth of social media meant I also compared myself to my friends and acquaintances. I felt left out when I saw my friends’ excitement about lake trips they had taken without me. As I scrolled past endless photos of my flawless, thin classmates with hundreds of likes and affirming comments, I felt my jealousy spiral. I wanted to be admired and loved by other people too. However, I felt that I could never be enough. I began to hate the way that I looked, and felt nothing in my life was good enough. I wanted to be called “perfect” and “body goals,” so I tried to only post at certain times of day to maximize my “likes.” When that didn’t work, I started to feel too anxious to post anything at all.  

Body image insecurities and social media comparisons affect thousands of people – men, women, children, and adults – every day. I am lucky – after a few months of my destructive social media habits, I came across a video that pointed out the illusory nature of social media; many Instagram posts only show off good things while people hide their flaws. I began going to therapy, and recovered from my depression. To address the problem of self-image and social media, we can all focus on what matters on the inside and not what is on the surface. As an effort to become healthy internally, I started a club at my school to promote clean eating and radiating beauty from within. It has helped me grow in my confidence, and today I’m not afraid to show others my struggles by sharing my experience with eating disorders. Someday, I hope to make this club a national organization to help teenagers and adults across the country. I support the idea of body positivity and embracing difference, not “perfection.” After all, how can we be ourselves if we all look the same?

This essay covers the difficult topics of eating disorders and mental health. If you’re thinking about covering similar topics in your essay, we recommend reading our post Should You Talk About Mental Health in College Essays?

The short answer is that, yes, you can talk about mental health, but it can be risky. If you do go that route, it’s important to focus on what you learned from the experience.

The strength of this essay is the student’s vulnerability, in excerpts such as this: I wanted to be admired and loved by other people too. However, I felt that I could never be enough. I began to hate the way that I looked, and felt nothing in my life was good enough. I wanted to be called “perfect” and “body goals,” so I tried to only post at certain times of day to maximize my “likes.”

The student goes on to share how they recovered from their depression through an eye-opening video and therapy sessions, and they’re now helping others find their self-worth as well. It’s great that this essay looks towards the future and shares the writer’s goals of making their club a national organization; we can see their ambition and compassion.

The main weakness of this essay is that it doesn’t focus enough on their recovery process, which is arguably the most important part. They could’ve told us more about the video they watched or the process of starting their club and the interactions they’ve had with other members. Especially when sharing such a vulnerable topic, there should be vulnerability in the recovery process too. That way, the reader can fully appreciate all that this student has overcome.

Essay Example #8: Becoming a Coach

”Advanced females ages 13 to 14 please proceed to staging with your coaches at this time.” Skittering around the room, eyes wide and pleading, I frantically explained my situation to nearby coaches. The seconds ticked away in my head; every polite refusal increased my desperation.

Despair weighed me down. I sank to my knees as a stream of competitors, coaches, and officials flowed around me. My dojang had no coach, and the tournament rules prohibited me from competing without one.

Although I wanted to remain strong, doubts began to cloud my mind. I could not help wondering: what was the point of perfecting my skills if I would never even compete? The other members of my team, who had found coaches minutes earlier, attempted to comfort me, but I barely heard their words. They couldn’t understand my despair at being left on the outside, and I never wanted them to understand.

Since my first lesson 12 years ago, the members of my dojang have become family. I have watched them grow up, finding my own happiness in theirs. Together, we have honed our kicks, blocks, and strikes. We have pushed one another to aim higher and become better martial artists. Although my dojang had searched for a reliable coach for years, we had not found one. When we attended competitions in the past, my teammates and I had always gotten lucky and found a sympathetic coach. Now, I knew this practice was unsustainable. It would devastate me to see the other members of my dojang in my situation, unable to compete and losing hope as a result. My dojang needed a coach, and I decided it was up to me to find one.

I first approached the adults in the dojang – both instructors and members’ parents. However, these attempts only reacquainted me with polite refusals. Everyone I asked told me they couldn’t devote multiple weekends per year to competitions. I soon realized that I would have become the coach myself.

At first, the inner workings of tournaments were a mystery to me. To prepare myself for success as a coach, I spent the next year as an official and took coaching classes on the side. I learned everything from motivational strategies to technical, behind-the-scenes components of Taekwondo competitions. Though I emerged with new knowledge and confidence in my capabilities, others did not share this faith.

Parents threw me disbelieving looks when they learned that their children’s coach was only a child herself. My self-confidence was my armor, deflecting their surly glances. Every armor is penetrable, however, and as the relentless barrage of doubts pounded my resilience, it began to wear down. I grew unsure of my own abilities.

Despite the attack, I refused to give up. When I saw the shining eyes of the youngest students preparing for their first competition, I knew I couldn’t let them down. To quit would be to set them up to be barred from competing like I was. The knowledge that I could solve my dojang’s longtime problem motivated me to overcome my apprehension.

Now that my dojang flourishes at competitions, the attacks on me have weakened, but not ended. I may never win the approval of every parent; at times, I am still tormented by doubts, but I find solace in the fact that members of my dojang now only worry about competing to the best of their abilities.

Now, as I arrive at a tournament with my students, I close my eyes and remember the past. I visualize the frantic search for a coach and the chaos amongst my teammates as we competed with one another to find coaches before the staging calls for our respective divisions. I open my eyes to the exact opposite scene. Lacking a coach hurt my ability to compete, but I am proud to know that no member of my dojang will have to face that problem again.

This essay begins with an in-the-moment narrative that really illustrates the chaos of looking for a coach last-minute. We feel the writer’s emotions, particularly her dejectedness, at not being able to compete. Starting an essay in media res  is a great way to capture the attention of your readers and build anticipation for what comes next.

Through this essay, we can see how gutsy and determined the student is in deciding to become a coach themselves. She shows us these characteristics through their actions, rather than explicitly telling us: To prepare myself for success as a coach, I spent the next year as an official and took coaching classes on the side.  Also, by discussing the opposition she faced and how it affected her, the student is open and vulnerable about the reality of the situation.

The essay comes full circle as the author recalls the frantic situations in seeking out a coach, but this is no longer a concern for them and their team. Overall, this essay is extremely effective in painting this student as mature, bold, and compassionate.

The biggest thing this essay needs to work on is showing not telling. Throughout the essay, the student tells us that she “emerged with new knowledge and confidence,” she “grew unsure of her own abilities,” and she “refused to give up”. What we really want to know is what this looks like.

Instead of saying she “emerged with new knowledge and confidence” she should have shared how she taught a new move to a fellow team-member without hesitation. Rather than telling us she “grew unsure of her own abilities” she should have shown what that looked like by including her internal dialogue and rhetorical questions that ran through her mind. She could have demonstrated what “refusing to give up” looks like by explaining how she kept learning coaching techniques on her own, turned to a mentor for advice, or devised a plan to win over the trust of parents. 

Essay Example #9: Eritrea

No one knows where Eritrea is.

On the first day of school, for the past nine years, I would pensively stand in front of a class, a teacher, a stranger  waiting for the inevitable question: Where are you from?

I smile politely, my dimples accentuating my ambiguous features. “Eritrea,” I answer promptly and proudly. But I  am always prepared. Before their expression can deepen into confusion, ready to ask “where is that,” I elaborate,  perhaps with a fleeting hint of exasperation, “East Africa, near Ethiopia.”

Sometimes, I single out the key-shaped hermit nation on a map, stunning teachers who have “never had a student  from there!” Grinning, I resist the urge to remark, “You didn’t even know it existed until two minutes ago!”

Eritrea is to the East of Ethiopia, its arid coastline clutches the lucrative Red Sea. Battle scars litter the ancient  streets – the colonial Italian architecture lathered with bullet holes, the mosques mangled with mortar shells.  Originally part of the world’s first Christian kingdom, Eritrea passed through the hands of colonial Italy, Britain, and  Ethiopia for over a century, until a bloody thirty year war of Independence liberated us.

But these are facts that anyone can know with a quick Google search. These are facts that I have memorised and compounded, first from my Grandmother and now from pristine books  borrowed from the library.

No historical narrative, however, can adequately capture what Eritrea is.  No one knows the aroma of bushels of potatoes, tomatoes, and garlic – still covered in dirt – that leads you to the open-air market. No one knows the poignant scent of spices, arranged in orange piles reminiscent of compacted  dunes.  No one knows how to haggle stubborn herders for sheep and roosters for Christmas celebrations as deliberately as my mother. No one can replicate the perfect balance of spices in dorho and tsebhi as well as my grandmother,  her gnarly hands stirring the pot with ancient precision (chastising my clumsy knife work with the potatoes).  It’s impossible to learn when the injera is ready – the exact moment you have to lift the lid of the mogogo. Do it too  early (or too late) and the flatbread becomes mangled and gross. It is a sixth sense passed through matriarchal  lineages.

There are no sources that catalogue the scent of incense that wafts through the sunlit porch on St. Michael’s; no  films that can capture the luminescence of hundreds of flaming bonfires that fluoresce the sidewalks on Kudus  Yohannes, as excited children chant Ge’ez proverbs whose origin has been lost to time.  You cannot learn the familiarity of walking beneath the towering Gothic figure of the Enda Mariam Cathedral, the  crowds undulating to the ringing of the archaic bells.  I have memorized the sound of the rains hounding the metal roof during kiremti , the heat of the sun pounding  against the Toyota’s window as we sped down towards Ghinda , the opulent brilliance of the stars twinkling in a  sky untainted by light pollution, the scent of warm rolls of bani wafting through the streets at precisely 6 o’clock each day…

I fill my flimsy sketchbook with pictures from my memory. My hand remembers the shapes of the hibiscus drifting  in the wind, the outline of my grandmother (affectionately nicknamed a’abaye ) leaning over the garden, the bizarre architecture of the Fiat Tagliero .  I dice the vegetables with movements handed down from generations. My nose remembers the scent of frying garlic, the sourness of the warm tayta , the sharpness of the mit’mt’a …

This knowledge is intrinsic.  “I am Eritrean,” I repeat. “I am proud.”  Within me is an encyclopedia of history, culture, and idealism.

Eritrea is the coffee made from scratch, the spices drying in the sun, the priests and nuns. Eritrea is wise, filled with ambition, and unseen potential.  Eritrea isn’t a place, it’s an identity.

This is an exceptional essay that provides a window into this student’s culture that really makes their love for their country and heritage leap off the page. The sheer level of details and sensory descriptors this student is able to fit in this space makes the essay stand out. From the smells, to the traditions, sounds, and sights, the author encapsulates all the glory of Eritrea for the reader. 

The vivid images this student is able to create for the reader, whether it is having the tedious conversation with every teacher or cooking in their grandmother’s kitchen, transports us into the story and makes us feel like we are there in the moment with the student. This is a prime example of an essay that shows , not tells.

Besides the amazing imagery, the use of shorter paragraphs also contributes to how engaging this essay is. Employing this tactic helps break up the text to make it more readable and it isolates ideas so they stick out more than if they were enveloped in a large paragraph.

Overall, this is a really strong essay that brings to life this student’s heritage through its use of vivid imagery. This essay exemplifies what it means to show not tell in your writing, and it is a great example of how you can write an intimate personal statement without making yourself the primary focus of your essay. 

There is very little this essay should improve upon, but one thing the student might consider would be to inject more personal reflection into their response. Although we can clearly take away their deep love and passion for their homeland and culture, the essay would be a bit more personal if they included the emotions and feelings they associate with the various aspects of Eritrea. For example, the way their heart swells with pride when their grandmother praises their ability to cook a flatbread or the feeling of serenity when they hear the bells ring out from the cathedral. Including personal details as well as sensory ones would create a wonderful balance of imagery and reflection.

Essay Example #10: Journaling

Flipping past dozens of colorful entries in my journal, I arrive at the final blank sheet. I press my pen lightly to the page, barely scratching its surface to create a series of loops stringing together into sentences. Emotions spill out, and with their release, I feel lightness in my chest. The stream of thoughts slows as I reach the bottom of the page, and I gently close the cover of the worn book: another journal finished.

I add the journal to the stack of eleven books on my nightstand. Struck by the bittersweet sensation of closing a chapter of my life, I grab the notebook at the bottom of the pile to reminisce.

“I want to make a flying mushen to fly in space and your in it” – October 2008

Pulling back the cover of my first Tinkerbell-themed diary, the prompt “My Hopes and Dreams” captures my attention. Though “machine” is misspelled in my scribbled response, I see the beginnings of my past obsession with outer space. At the age of five, I tore through novels about the solar system, experimented with rockets built from plastic straws, and rented Space Shuttle films from Blockbuster to satisfy my curiosities. While I chased down answers to questions as limitless as the universe, I fell in love with learning. Eight journals later, the same relentless curiosity brought me to an airplane descending on San Francisco Bay.

“I wish I had infinite sunsets” – July 2019

I reach for the charcoal notepad near the top of the pile and open to the first page: my flight to the Stanford Pre-Collegiate Summer Institutes. While I was excited to explore bioengineering, anxiety twisted in my stomach as I imagined my destination, unsure of whether I could overcome my shyness and connect with others.

With each new conversation, the sweat on my palms became less noticeable, and I met students from 23 different countries. Many of the moments where I challenged myself socially revolved around the third story deck of the Jerry house. A strange medley of English, Arabic, and Mandarin filled the summer air as my friends and I gathered there every evening, and dialogues at sunset soon became moments of bliss. In our conversations about cultural differences, the possibility of an afterlife, and the plausibility of far-fetched conspiracy theories, I learned to voice my opinion. As I was introduced to different viewpoints, these moments challenged my understanding of the world around me. In my final entries from California, I find excitement to learn from others and increased confidence, a tool that would later allow me to impact my community.

“The beauty in a tower of cans” – June 2020

Returning my gaze to the stack of journals, I stretch to take the floral-patterned book sitting on top. I flip through, eventually finding the beginnings of the organization I created during the outbreak of COVID-19. Since then, Door-to-Door Deliveries has woven its way through my entries and into reality, allowing me to aid high-risk populations through free grocery delivery.

With the confidence I gained the summer before, I took action when seeing others in need rather than letting my shyness hold me back. I reached out to local churches and senior centers to spread word of our services and interacted with customers through our website and social media pages. To further expand our impact, we held two food drives, and I mustered the courage to ask for donations door-to-door. In a tower of canned donations, I saw the value of reaching out to help others and realized my own potential to impact the world around me.

I delicately close the journal in my hands, smiling softly as the memories reappear, one after another. Reaching under my bed, I pull out a fresh notebook and open to its first sheet. I lightly press my pen to the page, “And so begins the next chapter…”

The structuring of this essay makes it easy and enjoyable to read. The student effectively organizes their various life experiences around their tower of journals, which centers the reader and makes the different stories easy to follow. Additionally, the student engages quotes from their journals—and unique formatting of the quotes—to signal that they are moving in time and show us which memory we should follow them to.

Thematically, the student uses the idea of shyness to connect the different memories they draw out of their journals. As the student describes their experiences overcoming shyness at the Stanford Pre-Collegiate Summer Institutes and Door-to-Door Deliveries, this essay can be read as an Overcoming Obstacles essay.

At the end of this essay, readers are fully convinced that this student is dedicated (they have committed to journaling every day), thoughtful (journaling is a thoughtful process and, in the essay, the student reflects thoughtfully on the past), and motivated (they flew across the country for a summer program and started a business). These are definitely qualities admissions officers are looking for in applicants!

Although this essay is already exceptionally strong as it’s written, the first journal entry feels out of place compared to the other two entries that discuss the author’s shyness and determination. It works well for the essay to have an entry from when the student was younger to add some humor (with misspelled words) and nostalgia, but if the student had either connected the quote they chose to the idea of overcoming a fear present in the other two anecdotes or if they had picked a different quote all together related to their shyness, it would have made the entire essay feel more cohesive.

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Best Education Essay Examples

Student exchange program.

600 words | 3 page(s)

I signed up for a student exchange program with the University of Cape Town, a decision made with mixed expectations and feelings. Receiving an acceptance letter for a six-month student exchange program was very good to me and turned out to be one of my happiest moments. We were in a group of ten students, but we were not sure of what to expect in South Africa. However, we looked forward to our arrival in Africa with ours structured project being understanding the HIV/AIDS menace in the slums of South Africa.

Our arrival at the University of Cape Town was one of our best experiences. We had to stick to our plan and we started immediately on the exploration of the HIV/AIDS menace and the disparities that are associated with the condition. With the guidance of our supervisor, we were able to visit different slums in order to get firsthand experience of the challenges facing HIV/AIDS patients. The historical injustices in South Africa were portrayed by the cultural and ethnical composition of the slums. This was exhibited by the fact that most of the occupants in the slums and the population with HIV/AIDS was dominated by the blacks.

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The student exchange program had a large influence in various aspects related to our educational, cultural and social perspectives. Education was the main objective of advancing the exchange program. This is because this experience equipped me with multifaceted and alternative approaches to learning. One of the major revelations that came out of the international educational initiative was the understanding of the communal and cultural orientations in South Africa. On the other hand, I was able to enhance my analytical skills. This is because we were able to critically analyze the data that we collected from the slums and made inferences based on the facts. This promoted my global knowledge on issues related to HIV/AIDS because this was my first international learning experience.

On a personal level, the exchange program presented a perfect opportunity for personal development. This is because I was able to meet people from different cultures. Our collaborative interaction with these people boosted my self-esteem. In the field, we encountered various challenges. The most common include facing some resistance from some victims, but my ability to handle issues outside the familiar support network has enabled to have a heightened social poise. The host family and students enabled me to expand my social contacts. The friendship and relationship that we created assisted me to appreciate various cultures. Therefore, the completion of the six-month student exchange program was the beginning of a new person in my character. This is because the experience taught me various values such as having focus on goals and promoted my ability to make informed decisions. This program also gave me the chance to learn local South African languages and traditional cultures.

The exchange program has various long-term implications. This is because my participation has enhanced my practical experience. As a result, it has strengthened my professional resume, and thus I am able to acquire part-time jobs while out of session. Most employers recognize an individual’s ability to live in new places and adapt to new cultures. My social skilled have improved significantly. This is because I am able to make friends in different environments, an experience I gained through my need to communicate with people outside my comfort zone. The completion of the six-month program has also enhanced my local interaction networks. This is because I am able to embrace flexibility in various circumstances while maintaining focus on the social changes.

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How To Humanize AI-Generated Text?

Writing with AI tools has become quite common for many writers and students. While these tools can give you a good start, they often lack that special touch that makes writing really interesting. Let's talk about some smart ways to make AI-written text sound more like a real person wrote it so your readers can connect with it better.

1. Use AI Text Humanizer Tools

Interestingly, one good way to humanize AI-written text is to use special AI tools made for this purpose. These AI essay humanizers are pretty clever - they're designed to copy the little things that make our writing sound natural.

These tools can help improve your AI-written content, making it feel more friendly and normal. They usually look at how you put your sentences together, the words you pick, and the overall feeling of your writing. Then, they suggest changes to make your writing sound more like a real person wrote it.

2. Add Personal Touches

One of the best ways to humanize essay content is to add some of your own stories or experiences. This helps you connect with your reader, making your writing feel more natural and easy to relate to.

For example, if you're writing about how social media affects people's feelings, you could share a quick story about your own experiences. This not only makes your writing more interesting, but it also gives readers real-life examples they can understand, keeping them interested in what you're saying.

3. Use Idioms

Adding some common sayings to your writing is a great way to make it sound more natural and human. Idioms help us express feelings and thoughts in ways that normal language often can't quite do.

For instance, instead of saying, "It's very rare," you might say, "It's as rare as a hen's teeth." Or instead of "to start a conversation," you could say "to break the ice." These little phrases add some flavor to your writing and show cultural aspects that readers can easily connect with.

4. Give Your Writing Character

To really humanize AI-written text, add some personality to your writing. This could be by using a bit of humor, looking at things in a unique way, or writing in a style that feels like it's really you.

Let's say you're writing an essay about saving the environment. You might write in a way that shows how much you care about the topic. This helps make your text different from the robot-like stuff AI often creates and makes it stick in readers' minds.

5. Mix Up Your Sentence Structure

Sometimes, text created by AI can feel a bit dull. To make it more lively, try changing how long your sentences are and how you put them together. This gives your writing a nice rhythm, making it more enjoyable to read.

Use short, snappy sentences to highlight key ideas. Then, follow up with longer, more detailed ones to provide more information. This mix of different sentence types sounds more natural and keeps readers engaged.

Let's look at an example:

Our planet is changing. We can see it happening now. For years, researchers have been telling us about this, and we're starting to notice the effects everywhere. The ocean levels are rising, and the weather is getting more extreme. These are clear signs that our Earth needs help. But don't worry, there's hope. Each one of us can do something to help. By making small changes in our daily lives, like choosing paper bags instead of plastic and reusing water bottles, we can start to make things better.

Why Bother to Humanize AI-Written Text?

You might be wondering why it's worth trying to make AI-written text sound more human. Well, there are some good reasons:

• Emotional Connection: Readers want to feel connected to what they're reading. Making AI-generated text sound more human helps create that connection, making it easier for people to understand and care about your ideas.
• Search Engine Optimization: Search engines like content that keeps people interested. By making your AI-written content sound more human, you might help more people find your work online.
• Academic Honesty: In school, it's important that your work shows your own thoughts and understanding. A humanizer for essays can help make sure your AI-generated content still sounds like you while following school rules.
• Creative Flair: When you humanize ai generated text, you're adding your own creative touch. This lets you bring new, original ideas that stand out from boring, robot-like writing.
• Clear Communication: Content that sounds more human often explains things more clearly and convincingly. It can help you explain complex ideas better, which is especially useful in school or work.

While AI has changed how we approach writing and research, there's still nothing quite like the human touch. These strategies on how to make ai text more human can help you create writing that's not just informative but also interesting, relatable, and uniquely yours.

Final Thoughts

Making your writing sound more human is actually pretty easy. We've talked about some good tricks to make your essays more interesting and personal, from adding your own stories to changing how you structure your sentences. These small changes can really make your essays come to life.

Now, if you're looking for a tool that already sounds human and doesn't need extra work, Aithor might be just what you need. Aithor writes essays that feel natural and personal from the start, whether you're working on a creative story or a research paper.

Give Aithor a try today. You might be surprised at how well it captures your voice and makes writing essays easier.

Happy writing, everyone!

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Home — Essay Samples — Education — Teaching Philosophy — My Teaching Philosophy: Beliefs and Personal Experience

My Teaching Philosophy: Beliefs and Personal Experience

• Categories: Personal Philosophy Philosophy of Education Teaching Philosophy

About this sample

Words: 547 |

Updated: 6 December, 2023

Words: 547 | Page: 1 | 3 min read

The essay explores the author's teaching philosophy and their beliefs about education. The author highlights the significance of teachers in shaping the future generations and emphasizes the importance of effective teaching.

They discuss their alignment with Romanticism philosophies, which prioritize focusing on students and creating a positive learning environment. The author believes that students should develop a love for learning and good morals to achieve success. Additionally, they express agreement with Essentialism philosophies, emphasizing the importance of teaching essential content knowledge and using proven teaching strategies. Progressivism and Constructivism philosophies also resonate with the author, promoting experiential learning and encouraging students to build their knowledge.

The author's teaching philosophy is influenced by personal experiences, including positive interactions with teachers and an internship with an efficient kindergarten teacher. They intend to put their beliefs into action by fostering positive relationships with students, maintaining a positive learning environment, teaching good morals, and using effective teaching strategies. Group work and experiential learning will be incorporated to help students understand the value of collaboration and independent discovery.

Works Cited

• Dewey, J. (2014). Democracy and Education: An Introduction to the Philosophy of Education. The Floating Press.
• Freire, P. (2018). Pedagogy of the Oppressed. Bloomsbury Publishing.
• Bruner, J. S. (1966). Toward a Theory of Instruction. Harvard University Press.
• Nel Noddings. (2012). Philosophy of Education. Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Retrieved from [URL]
• Palmer, P. J. (2007). The Courage to Teach: Exploring the Inner Landscape of a Teacher's Life. John Wiley & Sons.
• Kumashiro, K. (2009). Against Common Sense: Teaching and Learning toward Social Justice. Routledge.
• Apple, M. W. (2000). Official Knowledge: Democratic Education in a Conservative Age. Routledge.
• Eisner, E. W. (2002). The Educational Imagination: On the Design and Evaluation of School Programs. Merrill/Prentice Hall.
• Shor, I. (1996). When Students Have Power: Negotiating Authority in a Critical Pedagogy. University of Chicago Press.
• Freire, P., & Macedo, D. (2018). Literacy: Reading the Word and the World. Routledge.

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