本文章整理自芝士圈留学外籍导师社群答疑。

Q：

hello i wonder what kind of attitude should we express in the writing?Confident or modest?or??👀

A：

Great question!

The absolute best phrase I’ve ever heard used for the ideal attitude or tone to express in an admissions essay is this:

Humbly boastful

What on earth does that mean? And how to achieve it?

One piece of advice I hear frequently is…

Consider what type of person you are naturally

We’re all a a mixture of bold and shy, of course. It depends whether we’re chatting to our Mum or chatting to… I don’t know… Michael Jackson? (Yes – that would would be nerve-wracking on quite a number of levels, I think!)

Let me rephrase the advice: Consider how others would say you usually come across.

Then, when you come to explore ideas and write sections of text you might want to include in your PS, try writing as if you are the opposite of how you typically come across.

Some people find this helps them generate material with a suitable tone.

However let me make a more general point based on the premise for this advice:

We all come across differently in our minds than we do to other people

Therefore, my top tip is simply write. Then get other people’s opinion on what you write. Make sure you ask several. Make sure they know what they’re talking about. Make sure you can trust that they will be honest.

Make adjustments to your text accordingly. But don’t react to only one person’s opinion. Get several before you change anything.