College 101
What matters to you, and why?
The Prompt
What matters to you, and why?
The Essay
Intro
I am a wrestler. It feels strange writing it without capitalizing the word. To me, "wrestler" is part of my identity, who I am. I capitalize my name, and so I should capitalize my sport. I am extremely good at what I do. My record this season is 21-2, I am the 5th ranked wrestler in my weight class, I've won three tournaments, and I am an All-American.
I also know I have no future as a wrestler. As good as I am, I will never make it to the Olympics. If I want to turn pro, I either need to learn striking and submissions and compete in the UFC, or think up a colorful name, buy some tights, and try for the WWE. Neither one is very appealing to me. Yet I spend my time polishing my skills, pushing myself to improve.
I do this because wrestling is not my future, but it is the key to my future. Without my success on the mat, it is unlikely I would have as expansive a choice of schools as I am blessed with now. Wrestling will allow me a brighter future than I have now, and thus wrestling matters as a means to an end; it is the future that truly matters as that end.
Body
Calling myself an All-American is a source of intense pride for both me and my family. My mother and father sacrificed a great deal immigrating here. They both worked their fingers to the bone, putting food on the table for myself, my brother, and my sister. I never lost sight of what it cost them to give me the opportunity they would never have.
I am the first member of my family who is able to attend college, and it is because of my athletic skill. My family's modest means put any private school out of reach financially, and the state schools aren't much better. It was on me to do well enough to be accepted at a good school. Every time I won, I could feel my future growing closer; in my losses, I could feel it falling out of reach.
There is nothing shameful about what my parents do. They are good at their jobs and do them to the best of their abilities. I don't want to escape what I see as a fate worse than death or anything along those lines. It is because they believe I can do better that makes me want to prove them right. They were the first to dream a better future for me, leaving it up to me to grab.
This is what drives me in the squared circle. While it would be easy to dismiss my athletic prowess and mere competitive drive, it is so much more than that. It is because of what it can get me, that makes it important. I will be able to do whatever I want, and know this because I have already done what I set my mind to.
Conclusion
Do not mistake my drive for a cynical exploitation of the rules. It is anything but. The ladder that was provided to me included athletics. To climb that ladder, I needed to become the best wrestler I could be, and I have done this to the utmost of my ability. Just like the sport, I will play by the rules that are given.
What is truly important, what really matters to me, is what I will become. College is a step on that path, and perhaps the most vital of all of them. I don't know what waits for me at the end, or what I will become. I only know that it will be something better than my parents could have hoped for.
I owe it to them. More importantly, I owe it to myself.
Why This Essay Works
Most essays from athletes concentrate on athletics, and for good reason. This is usually what they perceive as their selling point to a college. In many cases, it can be. Don't be afraid to look deeper. You might be great at sports, but chances are, there's something driving you greater than the act of winning.
This writer is very candid about the things that drive them. The child of working class immigrants, this student dreams of a better life. They're quick to point out in the body that while there's nothing wrong with their parents working low-paying jobs, there's also nothing wrong with wanting more. In fact, this is the American Dream writ large.
The student wants to be seen as more than a simple athlete, and they do so with direct language and honest introspection. The student allows themselves to be vulnerable, placing themselves in the hands of the college admittance office. In the conclusion, they say that their future is wide open, and the college is the most important part. This is a way to reach out, through the essay, a humanizing touch that helps a reader identify with one essay in a stack of hundreds.