Graduate Admissions Essays, Fourth Edition: Write Your Way into the Graduate School of Your Choice by Donald Asher

Author:Donald Asher [Asher, Donald]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
ISBN: 9781607743224
Publisher: Ten Speed Press
Published: 2012-07-30T16:00:00+00:00

ESSAY #11: “Sports, Presidents, and Public Relations”

The Question: “What are the reasons you wish to pursue the graduate program and how does it relate to your career goals?”

Roger Belton, Applicant Tracking No. 163129 Master of Arts in Strategic Public Relations University of Southern California

The Catalyst A burst blood vessel in the brain of my former university president provided the tragic high and low point in my young public relations career.

(Here’s another arresting opening line, grabbing the reader right from the opening clause.)

It began with a jarring call at six A.M. on a Sunday morning. The president of George Fox University—where I serve as assistant director of public information—had suffered a life-threatening stroke caused by a brain tumor. I was called in to deal with the news media. I served as the university spokesperson, doing all media interviews, writing press releases, and recording a daily voicemail line with health updates. The situation was made even more hectic by the fact that two of my university relations colleagues were out of the office.

I found myself hurting for our president and his family but caught up in the action. Even when the director of public information returned, I remained as the media spokesperson. A year later, cancer claimed the life of our president, and I was asked to summarize the personality of this remarkable man in our alumni newspaper. (See writing sample.)

That was one experience which has led me to apply to University of Southern California for further training in public relations.

(This essay is a little chatty, but it does an outstanding job of conveying the enthusiasm and decency of this remarkable man. One gets the impression that if life served him a pile of lemons, he wouldn’t start a lemonade stand, he’d start a franchise operation. Also, he has done a good job of adopting the writing tips espoused by this book, such as referring to supporting documentation (as in “See writing sample”). His essay traces the history of his decision to pursue graduate education and details his preparations to succeed. This is a natural theme on which to organize any essay.)

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