From the course: College Prep: Writing a Strong Essay
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Finding an organizational structure
From the course: College Prep: Writing a Strong Essay
Finding an organizational structure
- One of the most critical decisions to make when you start writing is to find an organizational structure that suits your essay. In my experience, I find that most high school students mistakenly believe that there is only one choice, the five-paragraph essay. You know, the one where you have a broad to specific introduction stating your thesis, three body paragraphs that develop it, then a specific to broad conclusion that restates the thesis? Yes, I thought that would sound familiar. While this structure can work just fine for an analysis or argument paper, it definitely isn't your best choice for a college application essay. The five-paragraph essay is an example of what is known as the deductive structure. You start with providing the reader your thesis and then you prove it. In a personal narrative, such as a college application essay, however, you actually may be better off putting your thesis statement at the end of your essay. This organizational structure, known as the…
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Contents
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Selecting your prompt and prewriting5m 20s
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Getting started with drafting2m 52s
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Finding an organizational structure4m 30s
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Using direct, precise, and active verbs4m 21s
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Choosing appropriate words4m 16s
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Varying sentence structure5m 24s
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Revising4m
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Editing and trimming2m 38s
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Polishing and publishing4m 13s
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