When highly competitive schools read admission essays, they are not just checking for polished grammar or clever vocabulary. They are trying to understand who you are as a person. Grades, test scores, and activities show part of your profile, but your essay is the only place where your personality, character, and potential truly come alive.

What admissions officers look for, more than anything, is your point of excellence. That one quality or defining strength that makes you different from thousands of other applicants. 

For some students, it’s creativity. For others, it’s leadership, resilience, or initiative. Whatever yours is, the challenge lies in communicating it in a genuine, memorable, and impactful way.

If you feel overwhelmed by that idea, don’t worry, college prep consulting has got you. Identifying and expressing your point of excellence is one of the toughest parts of essay writing. But it’s also where you have the most power to stand out.

Step 1: Discover What Makes You Shine

You need to know what makes you different before you put a single word on paper. This doesn’t mean you must have climbed Mount Everest or invented an app at age 15. In fact, some of the most powerful essays come from small, personal moments that reveal character.

Start by asking yourself a few questions:

• When did I step up in a way I didn’t expect to?
• What activities make me feel alive and focused?
• Have I solved a problem or taken initiative in my school or community?
• What challenges have I faced, and how did I respond to them?

Sometimes your “point of excellence” is obvious. 

You have led a team, launched a project, or created something unique. Other times, it’s quieter but just as meaningful: you have shown consistency, empathy, or resilience in ways that matter. The key is understanding and pinpointing it.

Step 2: Tell a Story That Shows, Not Tells

Students’ biggest mistake is treating their essay like a résumé in paragraph form. Statements like “I’m hardworking” or “I’m a natural leader” won’t stick with a reader. What sticks is a story.

For example:

• Instead of saying “I’m a leader,” tell the story of when you stepped up during a school project that was falling apart.
• Instead of saying “I’m creative,” describe how you found a new way to solve a problem, paint an idea, or approach a challenge.

Stories let the admissions officer see your point of excellence in action. They create a mental picture, an emotional connection, and a reason to remember you long after they have put your essay down.

Step 3: Reflect on Why It Matters

A story alone isn’t enough. What makes your essay powerful is showing how that story shaped you. Admissions officers want to see growth and self-awareness. After you describe what happened, ask yourself:

• What did I learn from this?
• How did it shape my character or goals?
• How will this experience carry into college life?

For example, tutoring younger students taught you patience and sparked an interest in teaching. Or starting a small project at school gave you the confidence to pursue bigger initiatives later. That reflection is where your maturity and depth really shine through.

Step 4: Be Authentic, Not “Perfect”

It’s tempting to write what you think schools want to hear. 

But let’s hear the truth: 

Admissions officers read hundreds of essays every year, and they can spot a forced or overly polished essay instantly. What they value most is honesty.

If your strength is creativity, let your voice and perspective come through in how you describe it. If your strength is perseverance, don’t shy away from sharing the struggle before the success. The goal isn’t to sound flawless, it’s to sound real.

Your essay isn’t about impressing them with a perfect image. It’s about helping them understand who you are and how you will contribute to their community.

Step 5: Don’t Go It Alone, Get Feedback

Even the most thoughtful essays can fall flat if the story isn’t told clearly. This is where feedback becomes essential. The tricky part is that you live inside your own story, so it’s not always obvious what the strongest parts are.

Teachers, counselors, and mentors can help, but professional guidance can take things to another level. 

This is precisely where our team steps in. 

We specialize in helping students uncover their unique point of excellence, shape it into a compelling story, and refine their essays so they feel powerful, authentic, and polished. The result is an essay that sounds like you, only at your best.

Common Essay Traps to Watch Out For

Even strong students can stumble when it comes to their admission essay. Here are a few traps that quietly weaken an otherwise great story and how to avoid them:

1. The “cookie-cutter” essay

If your essay could be copied and pasted into someone else’s application and still make sense, it’s too generic. 

Phrases like “I learned the value of teamwork” or “This experience made me stronger” don’t show your journey. Instead, zoom in on the details you could write about, the exact moment you realized something new, or the feeling you had when you overcame a challenge.

2. Turning the essay into a trophy shelf

Listing every award, role, or activity doesn’t build a story; it reads like a résumé with extra sentences. 

Pick one or two moments that meant the most to you, then dig deep into how they shaped you. The admissions officer will remember the insight far more than the list of titles.

3. Forgetting the “so what?”

Many students describe what happened, but stop there. The reflection: what you learned, how it changed you, why it matters for your future is the part that actually makes your essay memorable. 

Without that layer, your story feels incomplete, no matter how impressive the event itself was.

4. Writing like you’re racing the clock

Good essays rarely come out perfectly on the first draft. If you dash something off the night before the deadline, it will read that way. Strong writing takes rounds of editing, feedback, and time to let your ideas settle. 

Final Word!

Your essay is the one part of your application that speaks in your voice. Test scores and transcripts can show your achievements, but your essay shows your identity. When written with care, it doesn’t just check a box; it can turn you from one of many applicants into the student an admissions officer remembers.

Every student has a point of excellence: creativity, initiative, resilience, or something less obvious but equally powerful. The challenge isn’t whether you have it (you do). The challenge is uncovering it, shaping it into a story, and presenting it in a way that feels honest and compelling.

That’s precisely what we help students do at CollegePrep. Our team works with you to draw out your strongest experiences, frame them meaningfully, and polish your essay until it truly reflects your best self. With the proper guidance, the essay-writing process stops feeling overwhelming and becomes an opportunity to stand out.

So as you begin writing, remember, you don’t have to be perfect. You just need to be authentic. Show the admissions team the qualities that make you you. And if you’d like expert support in bringing that story to life, we’re here to help every step of the way.