Your college application essay should show how wonderful you are.
Admissions committees, though, also want to know that you can think clearly. That’s really what grad school is about.
Even though vague pronouns are sometimes funny, they can hurt your essay. For example:
“As regional manager, I determined that vending machines distracted the employees, so I removed them from the workplace.”
Did you get rid of the vending machines? Or the employees? You may know the answer, but that doesn’t help the reader.
R
ule: Pronouns should clearly refer to a single noun or pronoun that it replaces (called the antecedent).
Vague: “The president of the company contacted my boss while he was in Los Angeles.”
Clear: “The president of the company contacted my boss while the president was in Los Angeles.”
Clearer: “While the president of the company was in Los Angeles, he contacted my boss.”
Read through your essay. Make sure it’s clear what each pronoun refers to. Don’t be afraid to completely rewrite problem sentences.
More on vague pronouns.
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Photo: Amusing Planet
