A New Perspective

High School and College. Two different worlds. When one chapter ended, another one started. High school was filled with fun, care-free days. It was the days filled with worries of puppy love, Geometry problems and peer pressure. Then came graduation and shocked the teenagers out of their wits. College was different from high school, far too different. It was tedious, serious and stressful. It was true when they said “Real life starts at college.”  Many things changed, like the mediocre assignments that were converted into the hardcore thesis projects. Along with the changes made was the improved version of essays. The high school was upgraded into the college essay.     

There are several differences between the two essays. One is their structure. It is expected that an essay written by a college student is more grammatically correct than the one made by the high school student. Aside from the literal structure of the essay, it must also have good substance. The content is more important than anything else in the essay. To be able to have good content in the essay, the writer must present intellectual argument in the piece. If the high school essay usually focuses on only one point of view of the topic, the college essay gives different angles of the matter. It has one point but two conflicting ideas. With this kind of writing, the essay reaches synthesis.

The college essay is also conscious of its audience. It is written according to the kind of readers it will have. The jargons used are appropriate for the people who will leaf through the piece. Another vital part of the college essay is its length. While most high school essays are lengthy and wordy, college essays are preferred to be comprehensive but thorough. It is but wise to be economical with the words used because one does not need plenty of words to expound on a thought. Oftentimes, more words bring confusion to the readers. Rewriting is also essential in the writing process of a college essay. Reevaluation, revising and copy reading are necessary components in the rewriting process. The writer must check his work before letting other people read it to correct mistakes and improve the piece. Finally, ideas must be expressed more clearly in the college essay.

College is different from high school in many ways.  College offers a new perspective of things. The same must be with the college essay. It must offer a new and improved perspective of the topic.