Using Conjunctions In College Essays

Since most people read out loud in their own voice, it reads more smoothly as a spoken, conversational sentence. You won’t be able to use contractions for everything, especially if it sounds weird to do so. When you need to put focus on the object, not the actor, passive voice makes sense.

Since most people read out loud in their own voice, it reads more smoothly as a spoken, conversational sentence. You won’t be able to use contractions for everything, especially if it sounds weird to do so. When you need to put focus on the object, not the actor, passive voice makes sense.

Your voice needs to sound the same across essays, free-response, and short answers, otherwise it’ll sound like someone else is writing it for you. So the boy is the actor and therefore should be the subject.

This one can generate some passionate dialogue (i.e., it’s a bit controversial) but we say go for it. Occasionally, it won’t be very clear who the actor is. It might not be anything) “The racer was uninterested in running.” (by what? Sometimes passive construction doesn’t have an easy fix.

Just make sure that every sentence isn’t passive voice.

Short, punchy, to-the-point language is a hallmark of effective casual writing.

They like know that you’re confident and clear, and that you’re bringing them into the story instead of isolating them. So beware of passive construction even when there’s no actor.

The shortened words of #2 help the language seem less stiff and ease the flow of the sentence. When it sounds weird or it sounds better to place emphasis on each word by separating them (That Notice how the active sentence is shorter and clearer. We also understand that sometimes passive voice is necessary.

Some think that a college essay should resemble an academic essay (don’t use the word “I” and only use formal language, for example) but in our opinion, that’s impractical. Luckily, since college admissions officers get applications from around the world (and since students have vastly different ways of writing and speaking) they’re used to a variety of styles.

In essence, be somewhat casual while still using correct spoken grammar conventions.

Here’s a quick breakdown of some of the most common mix-ups: This is a tricky one!

When should a word be capitalized and when should it just be treated like any other word in a sentence?