what is essay app

7 Best Essay Writing Apps For Students And Academics

In a rush? One of the best essay writing apps is Grammarly . Learn how these apps can help you with research paper writing!

To write a strong essay, you must follow a logical order when you organize your writing . If you omit this feature, your reader will become confused. Fortunately, there are numerous essay writing applications that can help you stay focused and organized. The best essay writing app for students should help you with grammar, proofreading, and writing style.

As you try to ease your writing load, you need to find applications that can help you with analytics, argumentative, narrative, expository, and critical writing. Whether you are looking for an essay writing app for PC, Mac, iPhone, or iPad, there are plenty of options out there. Take a look at the best essay writing apps, and find the right one to meet your needs.

1. ProWritingAid

2. grammarly, 3. hemingway, 4. ulysses, 5. evernote, 6. focus writer , 7. freemind, how we evaluated the applications, why trust our opinions, final word on the best essay writing apps, how does a writer app or writing software compare to a professional essay writing service, is there an automated tool that writes essays for you, can a brainstorming tool really help your writing process, essay writing resources.

Pricing: $79.00 per year or $20.00 per month. 

ProWritingAid  is a cloud-based editing tool for essay writing, copywriting, and blogging. This software can help you identify proofreading issues, eliminate mistakes, and correct punctuation in essays.

You have access to both a free version and a paid version. You can try the premium version for 14 days to decide whether you want access to the premium features. Premium features include optimizing word choice, avoiding cliches, and fixing sentence length issues.

ProWritingAid helps you improve your readability and writing style while also picking up grammar issues You can use ProWritingAid in Microsoft Word, Scrivener, Google Docs, and Chrome. Free users can only run 500 words at a time through the program.

• The interface is easy to use.
• There are numerous integrations available.
• You can access more than two dozen writing analysis reports.
• The free version is limited to only a few hundred words at a time.
• It can also take a long time to get used to the myriad features available.

ProWritingAid is a powerful, accurate grammar checker and style editor. It's suitable for non-fiction and fiction writers and doesn't require a monthly subscription. Save 20% per month or year.

Pricing: $139.95 billed annually or $25 per member per month. You may be able to negotiate a lower rate if you need multiple users for your business.

Grammarly is one of the strongest essay-writing apps available today. Grammarly helps you correct spelling mistakes, fix stylistic issues, and catches punctuation.

Grammarly has a free version and a premium version available. The free version can help you correct basic grammar , spelling, and punctuation issues. It can also help you optimize long sentences. 

The premium version gives you access to word choice issues, stylistic corrections, and even a plagiarism checker. The premium version can also automatically fix many of these mistakes, helping you save time during the editing process. There is no premium trial available. Grammarly is available as a browser extension and as a separate window into which you can upload documents. 

• Free version relatively powerful
• Contains built-in plagiarism checker
• Works everywhere
• Less suitable for longer essays
• Plagiarism checker is premium only

We tested dozens of grammar checkers, and Grammarly is the best tool on the market today. It'll help you write and edit your work much faster. Grammarly provides a powerful AI writing assistant and plagiarism checker.

Pricing: The web application is free, but the desktop version is $20.

Hemingway is known as a tool that can help you improve your readability score, but it is also a comprehensive proofreading tool.

Hemingway can point out sentences that are too complex for readers, helping you streamline your thoughts. As a virtual proofreader, it can make your sentences clear, concise, and bold.

As you write your essay , the editor will mark sentences that are deemed too complex. Then, you can let Hemingway go to work, picking up passive voice , comma splices, and even run-on sentences. By keeping your sentences short, you hold the attention of the reader. 

• Easy to use
• Ideal for copyediting
• No plagiarism checker
• No specific tools or checks for essays

Pricing: $4.99 per month of $39.99 for the year, following a 14-day free trial.

Ulysses  has been dubbed as the top writing app for Apple products such as Mac, iPad, and iPhone; however, the program is not compatible outside of Apple products. What sets Ulysses apart is that it can sync your files directly to the iCloud. Even if the original file is destroyed, you will not lose your work.

Ulysses uses something called markdown language. This helps you apply styles to your writing without having to worry about a formatting menu.

You can also take advantage of “focus mode,” which helps you streamline your writing to a single line and reduces on-screen distractions. Then, when you finish, you can export your files in a variety of formats to make it easier to finalize your work.

• You will store all of your writing in one place, eliminating the annoying back and forth between multiple folders and files.
• You can store older images of your files, reverting to them if you do not like your work.
• You can use the distraction-free interface to improve your productivity.
• The customer support team is exceptional.
• Ulysses is not available for Windows or Android.
• You do not have access to any pre-designed templates.

Pricing:  Evernote has a free tier, a plus tier at $34.99 per year, and a premium tier at $69.99 per year.

Evernote  is another application that can help with essay writing. The program is a cross-platform, note-taking application that is ideal for processing hand-written notes, such as the outline of a potential essay, or articles from the web, which can be helpful for a research paper. 

Evernote can store just about everything you would ever need, ranging from a simple typed note to an article you came across. That way, you never have to worry about losing your essay ideas. 

While Evernote is most popular among Mac users, it works on multiple devices. Evernote is available for Windows and Mac users, giving people offline access. Evernote also has a convenient Android and iPhone app. 

• Great for research
• Powerful note-taking features
• Fast, reliable sync
• Less enjoyable to write with
• Large libraries get clunky
• Not purpose-built for essays

Pricing: Free, but donations to the maker are encouraged.

Focus Writer  is a free word processor that is available across all major operating systems. This word processor is largely seen as an alternative to Microsoft Word.

Because Microsoft products can be expensive, a lot of students cannot afford them. Therefore, Focus Writer is growing in popularity. 

This tool will give you access to a wide variety of statistics including word count and character count. Furthermore, the program stores its files in an RTF format. This is read by most other word processors, so you can open your essays on other platforms when required.

• The tool is compatible with Mac, Windows, and Android products.
• It gives you access to important text statistics as you write.
• It is a strong word processor for students and writers on a tight budget.
• The program does not give you access to advanced proofreading or editing features.

Pricing: Free

FreeMind is a mind-mapping program that helps users create structured diagrams. If you have recently finished conducting your research and need to organize it before you start biting, this is the perfect program to help you.

You can also use this program to keep track of projects, tasks, and time. It is possible for you to brainstorm an essay, using different colors to show which parts of the essay you are referring to. Then, you can use these color-coding features to keep track of your essay as you write. 

Furthermore, the program comes with advanced DES encryption to help you protect your work. You can protect your work from accidental loss as you finish your project.

• The program is completely free to use.
• The diagram process is versatile for those writing essays in a variety of fields.
• There is DES encryption that protects your work from being lost.
• The diagram process can be challenging for people to use for the first time.
• It does not have a very flashy visual appearance, lacking numerous advanced features.

Because there are so many essay writing applications available, we used a variety of criteria to evaluate each program. Our testing criteria include: 

• The availability of each application across multiple platforms
• The ease of use of each individual application
• The variety of features available
• The price of the program in comparison to the features offered
• The security of each program

After testing the individual features of each program, we developed a ranking system designed for students, essayists, and research paper writers. 

There are several reasons why you should trust our opinions regarding essay writing applications. These include:

• We have written essays for a variety of reasons across multiple platforms.
• We have thoroughly tested all of these applications.
• We have paid close attention to the reviews, ratings, criticisms, and features of each individual application.

Even though everyone has slightly different needs when it comes to essay writing applications for academic papers, we are confident that one or more of these applications will meet your needs. 

Whether you are in high school, college, or working on your Ph.D., there are essay writing apps that can help you along the way. If you compare the benefits and drawbacks of each tool, you can find the right application to help you with your essays and research papers.

FAQs About The Best Essay Writing Apps

A professional service could be a stronger option than an automatic writing tool, but professional services will be more expensive.

Yes, there are tools that can write custom essays and short stories for you, but these programs often produce incoherent babble that will not improve your writing skills or make a good impression on your reader.

Yes. If you want to write a quality paper, you need to use a high-quality brainstorming process to get all of your ideas on the page. A strong writing software program can help you with that.

What is a Personal Essay?

Essay Writing Tips

Great Essay Writing Topics

The Difference Between Grammar and Punctuation

Using an AI Grammar Checker

PaperRater Vs Grammarly

Transition Words For Essays

Bryan Collins is the owner of Become a Writer Today. He's an author from Ireland who helps writers build authority and earn a living from their creative work. He's also a former Forbes columnist and his work has appeared in publications like Lifehacker and Fast Company.

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Best free writing app of 2024

Bring your words to life with the best free writing apps

Best overall

Best for markup, best word alternative, best word processor, best for mac, best online.

• How we test

The best free writing apps serve up more than just text tools - they also offer betters ways to manage and organize all your ideas, outlines, and projects. 

1. Best overall 2. Best for markup 3. Best Word alternative 4. Best word processor 5. Best for Mac 6. Best online 7. FAQs 8. How we test

Like the best free word processors , writing apps help you get your thoughts on the page without breaking the bank (or your train of thought). But we’ve also made sure they’ll make it easier to save, share, and sync all your documents and keep them safe, whether you need a desktop writing app for work, school, or play. 

If you struggle to stay focused, we’ve tested some of the best free writing apps come with distraction-free layouts or gamification challenges to keep you in the zone. We’ve also reviewed those built for professional document creation, with advanced business features such as speech-to-text transcription and online collaboration tools. 

Our picks cover the best apps for writing on the web, Windows, Mac, Android, and iOS - so you’re always ready whenever and wherever creativity strikes. 

<a href="https://www.literatureandlatte.com/scrivener/" data-link-merchant="literatureandlatte.com"" target="_blank" rel="nofollow"> Scrivener: best writing software for authors Scrivener is packed with all the features a novelist needs, helping you track plot threads, store notes on characters and locations, structure your work and (most importantly) get some serious work done. It's not a free writing app like the tools below, but it's well worth the investment if your budget will allow it.

The best free writing app of 2024 in full:

Why you can trust TechRadar We spend hours testing every product or service we review, so you can be sure you’re buying the best. Find out more about how we test.

1. FocusWriter

Our expert review:

Specifications

Reasons to buy, reasons to avoid.

FocusWriter helps writers combat one of their biggest challenges: distractions. One of the best free writing software tools out there, it's specifically designed to let you just concentrate on your writing. 

The stripped-back interface is deliciously sparse - ideal for when you just need to get your head down and write - and not dissimilar to a moderately powerful version of Notepad, featuring support for TXT, basic, RTF, and ODT files. 

Even the toolbar is hidden until you actually need it. Just swoop your cursor to the top on the screen to reveal a barren menu, from basic formatting to themes and timers.

Features are light within the software, but FocusWriter isn’t made for heavy editing sessions. It’s designed to make the act of writing flow seamlessly onto the page. 

Elsewhere, the writing app boasts the ability to add themes and your own background images, which can help you stay motivated. 

The Daily Progress tool is a sweet extra, adding Duolingo-style gamification that lets you track your daily writing streak. For when it’s oh-so-easy to slip onto social media when you can’t find the perfect word, it’s a nice way to keep you within the app. 

Available for Windows, Linux, and macOS, the writing software also comes as a portable download, no installation required. So, you can pop it on a USB stick and plug it into any computer you’re working on. 

Read our full FocusWriter review .

• ^ Back to the top

2. WriteMonkey

WriteMonkey is another piece of free writing software that cuts down on the clutter to deliver uninterrupted writing sessions. 

The free word processor, cleverly described as zenware, is unbelievably pared back compared to more traditional writing apps. 

There’s very little in the way of distracting ‘screen furniture’, which means you’re better positioned to concentrate on the writing process. And absolutely nothing else. 

But don’t let that stripped-back approach fool you. As one of the best free writing apps, WriteMonkey is still rich with the sort of core features that matter to writers. 

However, most options are hidden in a context menu (so you’ll need to right-click to view it). It also only supports TXT files, which may limit those looking to read, write, or edit across multiple formats. It is, at least, a portable download, letting you take it wherever you need.

If you’ve enjoyed Markdown, the simplified text-editing language that lets you format, annotate, classify, and link as you type, then great. WriteMonkey’s inner workings will instantly chime. 

First-timers should spend a little time with this free writing software, to uncover that intuitive simplicity. 

Read our full WriteMonkey review .

3. LibreOffice Writer

Writer, the open-source, free writing software, serves almost all general writing needs.

LibreOffice is a near-perfect example of free office software - a familiar, feature-rich take on the office suite. What the veteran software package lacks in Microsoft polish (its interface is undeniably old-fashioned, for starters), it makes up for in its price-point: free. For that, you get access to six tools: Calc, Impress, Draw, Base, Math, and Writer. 

Earning it a slot on our list of best free writing apps is the fact that LibreOffice Writer packs the full editing toolbox. 

This isn’t just a note-taking app for staving off distractions when you’re deep in the zone; it’s for when you’re in pure writer-mode. 

If you’re at all proficient with Microsoft Word, you won’t have any problems using the Writer software. Layouts and functions are almost identical, and there’s support for DOC and DOCX file types, making it efficient to switch out of the Microsoft garden.

This free writing app is ideal if you’re hunting for a tool that almost perfectly replicates the Word experience without the cost. 

Read our full LibreOffice review .

4. Microsoft Word

When it comes to word processors, Microsoft Word is probably the baseline against which all others are compared. It’s the one most of us use at school, home, and work. It’s familiar, comfortable - and it’s available free on the web and mobile devices. 

That may not be the best way to write your masterpiece (unless you’ve hooked up a Bluetooth keyboard). But it’s a great way to jot down ideas on-the-go. When we tested the browser-based version we found it could be a bit slow at first, and we were typing faster than the words appeared on screen. This settles down (mostly) after a minute or so. 

Microsoft’s free writing apps on Android and iPhone had no such issues. Using these was velvety smooth. We especially appreciated the option to switch between mobile view and desktop view, so we could gauge how the document would appear in full-screen. 

As with Google Docs, you’ll need to sign up with a Microsoft account. And, like Google, that also lets you use free versions of PowerPoint, Excel, and the like. While Word offers one of the best free writing app experiences, there’s no denying that the paid-for upgrade is superior, offering more tools, and a true desktop app. 

Read our full Microsoft Word review .

Author promises to make it easier to ‘think, write, and cite’. It’s a promise capably delivered, with a clean interface and bags of writing features designed to make it easy to go from first draft to final copy. 

If you're an Apple user in search of the best free writing apps on macOS, this one demands your attention. 

Concept Maps is one of the best features. It’s a great mind-mapping tool to visualize and lay down all your thoughts while they’re fresh in your head without constraint. You can worry about whipping them into shape later. 

Students and report writers will appreciate Author’s ‘fast citing’ tools - speeding up assignment-writing by correctly adding and formatting citations, references, and contents. 

A paid-for upgrade of the writing software that offers exporting options is available. However, unless you need automatic formatting on export, you can stick with the free version. 

6. Google Docs

Google Docs is a great free writing platform for any writer. It’s an extremely clean, quick word processor available in the browser, on desktop, and phone and tablet apps. So, you can take notes wherever inspiration strikes. 

Docs is more or less Google’s spin on Microsoft Word. The interface is a bit more simple than the professional office software - although it’s no less powerful. 

You’ll find heaps of writing tools, including a pretty accurate speech-to-text transcription tool (just enunciate and don’t talk too fast). Keyboard shortcuts are very well-supported. 

For best results, you’ll need an internet connection, though documents can be used offline. They’ll be synced, and in our experience, that happens swiftly behind the scenes. 

To take advantage of the free writing app, you’ll need a Google account, which may be a deal-breaker for some - but that also opens up the rest of the Google-stuff in the Google-sphere, such as Sheets, Slides, and . With a free account, you get 15GB of storage, which should be more than enough for word documents. A Google One subscription upgrades your storage space, amongst other things. 

Additionally, Google Docs is great if you want to collaborate with one or more other writers. Just be warned to stay in Google Docs for that, because exporting the data into Word or other writing applications can result formatting errors.

Read our full Google Docs review .

Best free writing app: FAQs

What's the difference between a writing app and an ai writer.

AI writers vs writing apps - what's the real difference?

Artificial intelligence is growing in a big way - and when it comes to writing, it's ChatGPT that's been snatching all the headlines of late, with its ability to generate short- and long-form content based on user prompts.

Generally, an AI writer will write your content for you, based on its current learning (although often without 'understanding' the context). A writing app simply lets you write your way, in your own voice. 

Some platforms, such as Canva , have even integrated AI into its Canva Docs and Canva PDF Editor services. However. its Magic Write tool acts as a writing assistant, serving up suggestions and ideas, leaving real writers to work their magic on the content. Though usually hiding in the back-end, you can also find AI integrated in other ways across other the best PDF editor apps (and even the best free PDF editor apps, too).

As always with AI-generated content, whether it's the written word or an artwork masterpiece, human involvement is usually necessary and always desirable. Even if you're using the best AI writers out there, editing and proofreading is essential to give the content accuracy and emotional resonance.

How to choose the best free writing app for you

When deciding which free writing app is best, start by figuring out what sort of writing you want to do. 

Do you need a handy tool for quick scribbles and jotting down ideas here and there, or are you using the writing software to write and edit an epic novel? Tools like FocusWriter and Write Monkey are great for getting thoughts on the page without friction.

It’s also worth considering if you need a writing app with a distraction-free design, so you can concentrate on what really matters to you. Again, FocusWriter performs admirably here, but as a result, you lose core typography and editing functions. Unlike LibreOffice, this isn’t the best Microsoft Office alternative if you need those tools. In that scenario, it may be worth considering looking at some of the best free office software , which includes MS Word-style apps, alongside other tools similar to Excel, PowerPoint, and so on. 

Access is an important factor when using your writing software. A tool like Scribus needs to be downloaded to your machine. Lightweight apps like FocusWriter, however, offer a portable download that can be downloaded to a USB and carried with you. 

Check what file formats your chosen writing app supports, too. While some let you create and edit the common DOC and DOCX files, others only allow TXT or RTF documents.

But most of all, it’s important to choose the best free writing app for your unique creative flow. 

How we test the best free writing apps

Testing the best free writing apps and software, we assess how easy it is to get your words down on the page with the least amount of friction. Portable writing apps rank high, because they let you use the program on whatever computer or laptop you’re using. 

We also look at performance for its intended audience. For distraction-free writing apps, do they really foster focus? For word processor-style software, does it offer good formatting and editing options? 

Most importantly, we expect to see free writing apps that are genuinely cost-free - no-one wants to stumble across hidden fees and charges in the contracts. 

We've listed the best laptops for writers .

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Steve is TechRadar Pro’s B2B Editor for Creative & Hardware. He explores the apps and devices for individuals and organizations that thrive on design and innovation. A former journalist at Web User magazine, he's covered software and hardware news, reviews, features, and guides. He's previously worked on content for Microsoft, Sony, and countless SaaS & product design firms. Once upon a time, he wrote commercials and movie trailers. Relentless champion of the Oxford comma.

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Alex Birkett

11 Apps That Write Essays for You (and Improve Quality)

Last Updated on February 28, 2023 by Alex Birkett

Writing essays is a time-consuming task.

It requires research, structuring, formatting, and plenty of editing. As such, it’s no wonder that students often seek out help from external sources.

One of the most popular solutions in recent years are essay writing apps.

But what exactly are they? And do they work as advertised? Let’s dive into the details.

What Are Essay Writing Apps?

Essay writing apps are digital tools that help you to write better essays.

They typically come with features like spellcheckers, grammar checkers, and idea generators to help spur your writing process forward.

Some also offer pre-written content that you can use as a starting point for your own essay.

The idea is that these tools save you time and energy so you can focus on crafting great ideas instead of getting bogged down with tedious tasks like proofreading or finding research materials.

Do Essay Writing Apps Really Work?

The short answer is yes – but with some caveats.

While these apps can certainly be helpful in terms of providing assistance with proofreading and idea generation, they won’t be able to write entire essays for you from scratch like some people may believe.

Moreover, while some apps offer pre-written content that could be useful as a starting point for your essay, it’s important to remember that this isn’t an excuse to plagiarize or copy other people’s work without crediting them properly; if caught doing so, it could have serious consequences for your academic career.

What Are the Best Essay Writing Apps Available?

The best essay writing apps will have some of the following abilities:

• They generate net new content
• They help you format and ideate the structure of your essay
• They improve your writing style
• They have grammar, spelling, plagiarism, and style detection
• They can help you research factual information about the topic
• They’re “multi-purpose tools” that allow for custom functionalities
• They’re affordable.

I’ll judge the following of the best essay apps below on the above characteristics.

Editor’s note: I’m going to use some affiliate links when possible to try to earn some revenue from my content. These don’t change the opinions espoused in the content nor the style in which they are written. If I think a product sucks, I’m not going to say otherwise. This is just a bonus and a way to fund the whole operation. Anyway, enjoy the article!

11 Apps That Write Essays for You

• ProWritingAid
• Hypotenuse AI

Jasper  is an AI-powered essay writing app that helps you organize, write, and format your essays faster.

It’s functionally an all-purpose AI text generator , with a Google Docs / MS Word style editor you can use in conjunction with custom commands.

You can also hook it up with Grammarly to find spelling mistakes, punctuation mistakes, run on sentences, and other grammatical mistakes in real time.

They’ve got a few different modes (as part of their broader Boss Mode plan):

Focus mode is for pure writing, a simple word processor (but with an AI assistant attached). The focus writer is where I spend a lot of my time in this tool.

Chat mode is just like ChatGPT (more on that later)

SEO mode hooks up with Surfer SEO  to give you keyword suggestions in addition to your regular spell checking and generative essay writer functionality.

And power mode unlocks all of their use case templates, recipes, and commands.

Overall, Jasper is hands down the most powerful AI writing software. Premium features like SEO mode, Chat mode, and Power mode are only available on their Boss Mode plan, so I’d opt for that one.

It does seem to struggle with research papers and reference materials, so make sure you’ve got your citations on lock before you start writing. They also lack a web clipper tool, but their browser extension tool does give you the ability to write content everywhere.

They also have drawing tools and art generation capabilities , by the way.

Price : Starts at $24/mo. Boss Mode plan begins at $49/month

G2 Score:  4.8/5

Frase is a web-based writing tool that uses AI to help writers create high-quality essays quickly.

They’ve got a whole suite of SEO tools , including a content brief and content research tool, content optimization software, and generative AI  tools to help you write content.

Their content brief and research tool is of particular interest here.

Most of the best essay writing app options on this list focus only on text generation or rewriting; few focus on actually helping you format your piece in the first place, which is often where the hard work is.

Then, for their AI writing tool, they feature a ton of helpful templates, including “explain why,” “bullets to paragraphs,” and a metaphor / analogy tool:

Price:  Only $14.99/mo ($12 per month when paid annually).

ChatGPT  was launched in 2022 by OpenAI (the creators of GPT-3, which powers most of the writing software on this list).

It has brought generative AI to the mainstream, and it’s already one of the best writing apps for all purposes.

It acts as a chat interface, so it’s much more intuitive than many of the dedicated AI writing software out there.

Basically, you can ask it or prompt it to write…anything. I’ve used it to generate creative stories, write love poems, make me ideas for essays, improve my writing skills, and build outlines for SEO-focused content.

Let’s walk through a use case. I took a history class in college called “US history from 1945 to the present.” I’ll ask ChatGPT to create me some topic ideas:

Pretty good! I like the cold war idea, so I’ll ask it to create an outline for me:

Okay, maybe I’d want to change up a few pieces of this, but let’s go with it. Here’s the full essay:

Crazy! And that’s just a first pass. I could further tweak the outputs with better instructions.

This stuff is getting scary good.

Price:  Free

G2 Score:  NA

4. Writesonic

Writesonic  is a YC-backed startup that makes generative AI tools capable of writing essays.

I’m a big fan of this product.

They’ve got a ton of ready-made templates to get you started out (including a few that are great for writing essays). They’ve also got a few templates that can help you improve your writing style or even rewrite content so its better formatted.

Finally, they’ve got a Google Docs style editor for long form writers so you can use commands and write alongside the AI.

G2 Score: 4.8/5

Copy AI  is another AI copywriting tool  built on top of GPT-3.

It primarily writes essays through use case templates. A few that are popular for the writing process include:

• Essay intro
• Essay outline
• Explain like I’m 5
• Sentence rewriter
• Analogy generator

For example, look at this need little essay writer app that lets you build an outline for your essay:

The sentence rewriter and analogy generator are two examples that can help you improve your writing style.

Copy AI doesn’t have the same flexibility and power that Jasper and ChatGPT have, but it’s much easier to use. The templates are well set up and foolproof. And they have many that actually help you format text and design the scope of your piece, not just write it.

Overall, I’m a big fan of this tool.

Price:  Free for up to 2000 words and then $49/mo for unlimited word counts.

6. ProWritingAid

ProWritingAid  is a cool professional writing software that uses AI to generate content.

It’s great for academic papers and academic writing. Unlike many other essay writing services, this one incorporates grammar checking, spell check, style checking, plagiarism checking, and word count into the content they produce.

They’ve built custom solutions for higher education, teachers, non-native English speakers, and creatives.

I like this one because it lets users create content from scratch, but it’s also got features to improve your writing (this is powerful for college students especially).

Got some handwritten notes that you want to whip up into a good essay? This one is great at processing hand written notes and producing great content.

Pro Writing Aid works via browser, but they’ve got integrations that allow for offline access and desktop software as well – such as a Scrivener integration and an MS Word integration.

Overall, a great product with a free app that allows for up to 500 words.

Price: Completely free for up to 500 words, and then $10 per month for unlimited use.

G2 Score: 4.5/5

7. Speedwrite

Speedwrite  is one of the most popular writing applications out there. It helps you write essays from scratch as well as rephrasing your existing content.

How’s it work? Basically, through “predictions.” You just enter text and hit the “predict” button (they call their text generations “predictions”). This then takes your content and paraphrases it using their artificial intelligence.

This makes it useful for everything from writing notes to polishing up existing texts.

They’ve got tons of users (roughly 500k+). They claim to have written millions of lines of text, and all of this is fresh, original content with good style and grammar.

While Speedwrite has some downsides (it’s not great with structured diagrams or starting with a blank page), it’s still popular. Anyway, there are a ton of great Speedwrite alternatives  you can check out.

One cool thing is you can use this tool completely free.

Here’s an example of a “prediction” based on the above text.

Price:  Free and the only $19.99 per month

Lex is a new AI writer that I’ve just started trying out. I love it so far.

It’s different from the others. It’s aimed at writers. Many of the other tools help non-writers produce content. This one is no-frills, just a Google Docs / Microsoft Word style editor and an auto complete functionality.

And to be honest: the outputs are pretty darn good. I only write the first two sentences here and then let Lex finish it:

Lex can also be used on both ios devices as well as android devices (instructions in the app).

As far as I know, the tool is free, but I’m sure they’ll introduce a standard pricing model soon. You have to get on a waitlist to get access.

Price : Free

G2 Score: NA

Rytr  is a similar tool to Jasper, Copy AI, and Writesonic. It was also built on GPT-3 technology, so it’s got many of the same outputs and templates as these tools.

The biggest difference with Rytr is its price. They’re one of the most affordable apps that write essays for you, starting at just $9/mo (plus a free plan).

This is a great starter app.

Price: free, and then $9/mo

G2 Score: 4.7/5

10. Hypotenuse AI

Hypotenuse AI  started out as an ecommerce-focused AI tool, but it has since expanded.

Like other tools on this list, they’ve got one of the best essay writing capabilities out there.

The reason I’m adding them to this list, though, is their content detective feature. This allows you to research content with citations. Most tools suffer from factual inaccuracies, which is obviously a huge problem when it comes to academic writing.

Hypotenuse is working to solve that, and for that, I applaud them.

Price: Starts at $24/mo

G2 Score: 4.4/5

11. Word AI

Word AI  is a sweet tool built for two things: content rewriting, and scale.

You can essentially do like 1000 rewrites based on your initial content. This is helpful for SEO folks hoping to do link building and guest posting at scale.

For the essay writers among us? It’s great for coming up with clear copy and rewriting your piece to enrich your text, split sentences, and improve the clarity of your writing.

I will say, transparently, this is not one of my favorite tools out there. I think it’s a little clunky for most use cases and it’s best for spinning up a ton of content for SEO.

However, I wanted to include it on the list because it’s one of the best at content production at scale.

Price:  $57/month

G2 Score: 3.9/5

At the end of the day, essay writing apps can be incredibly useful resources if used correctly by students or writers who need assistance crafting their stories or arguments more effectively and efficiently than ever before.

However, it’s important to remember that these tools don’t replace actual human effort – they’re meant to supplement it – so make sure not to rely too heavily on them or allow them to take away from the creativity in your own work!

In that way, “apps that write essays for you” is sort of a myth. You’ll still need to provide the human intelligence 🙂

With all this in mind, don’t forget to do your own research into which app is right for you before committing – good luck!

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Best Essay Writing Apps

Explore some of the best essay-writing apps you should consider trying out to help you write more efficiently.

An essay requires time: to read, take notes, process, evaluate, organise ideas, draft, and actually write. In addition, you will need extra time to edit and cut if your draft is too long.

Fortunately, there are various essay-writing apps available that can help streamline the writing process and improve the quality of your work.

Whether you're a student, a professional writer, or someone who simply wants to improve their writing skills, these apps can help you write better essays more efficiently.

Here is the list of best essay writing apps for iOS and Android in 2024. The rating criteria include the app’s performance, design, the process of ordering and the quality of completed work.

Best Essay Writing Apps For Students

• 1. ProWritingAid
• 2. Grammarly
• 3. Evernote

4. Hemingway Editor

5. simplenote, 7. libreoffice writer, 8. freemind, 1.  prowritingaid.

ProWritingAid is a comprehensive essay writing app that helps you improve your writing style, grammar, and readability. It offers a wide range of features, including grammar and spelling checks, style suggestions, and plagiarism detection. It also gives you reports and explanations to help you learn. You can use this tool in MS Word, Google Docs, Scrivener, Chrome. ProWritingAid free users can check 500 words at a time.

• Smart grammar checker
• Able to change writing styles is helpful
• No iOS or Android support
• Only available in English

Ideal for: Grammar Check

Free Trial: 7-days

Pricing: Costs $30 per month or $120 per year (offers a 14-day money-back guarantee)

Devices: Web, Mac, Windows

2.  Grammarly

Grammarly is one of the best essay writing app that helps you write better. It fixes grammar and spelling errors and gives suggestions for sentences, words, and style. It also checks plagiarism by comparing your writing to the web. Grammarly is good for writers, bloggers, authors, academics, and students. The free version of Grammarly is ideal for writers and bloggers with a low budget.

• Real-time grammar correcting
• Very simple to use
• Free version offers only basic correction suggestions.
• They send perhaps too many newsletters

Ideal for: Grammar Check, Proofreading, Vocabulary enhancement and Plagiarism checks

Pricing: Grammarly Premium costs $30 per month ($12 per month if you pay yearly) and $144 for a year.

Devices: Web, Mac, Windows, iOS, Android

3.  Evernote

Evernote is a useful essay writing app that helps you organize and save your ideas. Evernote also syncs across devices, allowing you to access your notes from anywhere. You can access your notes from any device and sync them across platforms. You can also use Evernote to take notes, clip articles, make lists, record voice memos, and more. Evernote Basic is free but has a 60MB upload limit per month. You can use it to clip web pages, search for text in images, and share notes with others.

• Syncs across devices
• Scan handwritten notes, whiteboards, receipts, and more
• Search for text in images, handwriting, documents, and PDFs

Ideal for: Taking and editing notes, search notes

Pricing: $8 per month or $69.99 per year

Devices: Web, iOS, Android, Mac, Windows

Hemingway Editor is a powerful essay writing app that helps you write better. It shows you long, complex sentences and how to make them simpler. It also helps you find passive voice and adverbs. Hemingway Editor gives you a readability score, which tells you how easy your essay is to read.

• Great for assessing the readability and complexity of your work
• Export options are helpful
• Grammar capabilities are limited

Ideal for: Writing and Style analysis

Free Trial: Online version of Hemingway Editor is completely free.

Pricing: Premium - $19.99 (lifetime access)

Simplenote is a light, clean and free note-taking app. The best essays can start from the smallest of ideas, and Simplenote is one of the simplest ways to make sure you’ve got them all jotted down. Plus, all your notes are backed up and the search function means that you can find old notes whenever you want to pull them up again. Simplenote is one of the most popular note taking apps . Simplenote looks modern and minimalistic on all platforms. Simplenote is a great app for writers who never have to add images or to-do lists in their notes.

• Completely free
• Unlimited storage
• Markdown support
• Limited features
• No images or videos can be added

Pricing: Free

Jasper AI is a must-have writing assistant for students who have issues with technical or academic writing. With Creator plan, students can access unlimited content generation, 50+ templates, and a brand voice to enhance their writing potential.

• Can handle various academic writing tasks, such as creating outlines, drafts, poll questions
• Gathers information from all around the Internet and doesn’t really fact-check any of it
• Summarizing and paraphrasing functions can only handle a limited word count

Ideal for: students who requires valuable addition to their writing process, streamlining their work and enhancing their output.

Pricing: Offering both monthly and yearly plans across its pricing tiers (money-back guarantee)

Devices: All web browsers

LibreOffice writer is an essay writing program that helps you create, review, and revise your work easily. It makes your document look neat and organized for any purpose. It is a free and open source software that anyone can use, share, and modify. It is developed by hundreds of developers and preferred by many online assignment experts. It is the best successor of “OpenOffice.org”.

• Completely free and easy to use
• Compatible with various formats
• Limited customer support
• Integration with other softwares is limited

Ideal for: Reviewing and revising your essays at a later stage

Devices: Windows, macOS, Linux

FreeMind is a free mind-mapping software that helps you create diagrams and track projects. You can use it to plan and write essays, using colors and sizes to show the status and length of each essay. It also has DES encryption to protect your map from data loss.

• Useful for brainstorming ideas
• Powerful for mindmapping tool
• Interface is clunky and unintuitive
• Documentation is sparse and unhelpful

Ideal for: Users to quickly track projects, write essays and brainstorm with mind mapping solution

9.  Canva

Canva is a popular graphic design tool that can be used to create a wide variety of visuals, including charts, graphs, infographics, and even dissertation covers. As a student, using Canva can help you create eye-catching graphics to your essays.

You can use one of Canva’s pre-designed templates and customize it to fit your needs. This means that you can focus your time and energy on other important tasks, such as writing essays.

• User friendly interface and very simple to use
• Offers a variety of templates and elements
• Repetitive designs might be found across the web
• UI needs to be a little more responsive

Ideal for: creating infographics, charts, graphs

Pricing: Canva Pro is $119.99 when paid annually or $14.99 paid monthly.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is an essay writing app.

An essay writing app is an iOS or Android or online platform that helps students or writers in generating, organizing, and improving their essays.

How can an essay writing app benefit me?

An essay writing app can benefit you by providing various features such as essay topic suggestions, grammar and spelling checks, plagiarism detection, and essay structure guidance. These essay writing apps can save time, enhance writing skills, and improve the overall quality of your essays.

Is there an app that writes essays for you?

Yes, Jasper is an AI writing tool with the power to write essays for you. The Long-Form Assistant template allows you to start typing and let Jasper fill in the rest. In the word processor, you can tell Jasper what tone you want to write in and any keywords you want to include.

When it comes to writing essays, many students find themselves overwhelmed with the task. These essay writing apps offer a range of benefits that can make your academic life easier and more successful.

You may also like:

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When You Write

Best Essay Writing Software: 16 Apps That Can Help You Write Perfect Essays

Nowadays, we have apps for almost anything. Writing apps though, are really unique and serve several practical purposes, such as essay writing for example.

Writing an essay isn’t as simple as typing a bunch of words and arranging them as paragraphs. Writing a perfect essay entails planning, maintaining structure, writing clear and impactful sentences, and using good grammar.

That’s why we have writing apps. So in this post, I’m going to cover all the best essay writing software tools that are available now.

Okay, let’s get into it!

Our Top 3 Essay Writing Software at a Glance

Prowritingaid, the 16 best essay writing apps.

Best Book Writing Software.

Scrivener is a book-writing software program developed—13 years ago—by an aspiring writer Keith Blount.

Scrivener is what you get when you combine a typewriter, ring binder, and a scrapbook and make a book writing software tool.

It has so many useful features that take your book or any other writing project from the outline to a finished draft. We’re talking of features like corkboards, pre-set formatting, templates, file importing, metatags, automated document listing, and a bunch of other important capabilities.

Scrivener can be used by novelists, scriptwriters, academics, lawyers, translators, journalists, and students.

Pricing: Scrivener for macOS costs $49, iOS is $19.99 , and Scrivener for Windows costs $45.

Best Grammar Checker.

As far as grammar checkers go, there’s no app better than this.

It’s perfect for checking your text for typos, punctuation, and spelling mistakes. 

But it goes further than that; it has several editing features that tackle issues such as passive voice, lengthy or complex sentences, offers broader vocabulary options, et cetera. It also has a plagiarism checker and furnishes you with writing stats and readability scores.

Grammarly has a free version but reserves the best features for its premium plans.

Pricing: Free and Paid. Grammarly Premium starts at $11.66, and Grammarly Business starts at $12.50.

Excellent Tool for Self-editing

ProWritingAid is one of Grammarly’s fiercest competitors and pretty much gives you what Grammarly gives you.

Just itty-bitty shallower, BUT way more affordable.

If you want a proofreading and grammar checker writing app that has the potential of helping you improve the overall quality of your writing, this is it!

ProWritingAid refines your writing by checking important elements of your writing such as ambiguous sentences, grammar, transitions, abstract words, overused words, etc.

Over time, you start to notice improvements in your writing, especially the way it flows.

Pricing: Free and Paid.

• Monthly – $20
• Yearly – $79
• Lifetime – $399 

Best note-taking tool for Students

Evernote is a simple but excellent writing app that uses the idea of virtual notes. The virtual notes can be used in several ways: making book shopping lists, writing down essay ideas, and making notes on researched information.

The notes are backed up on Evernote’s servers, and you get about 60MB of storage space per account.

Pricing :  Free and Paid. The Premium plan costs $7.99 / month, and the Business costs $14.99/person/month.

Focus Writer

Free Alternative to MS Word.

I haven’t used this free word-processing app yet, but I’d seriously consider replacing my beloved MS Word with it.

It’s a very good alternative to MS Word; in fact, not only is it free and sufficient, it is available on almost all major platforms— Windows, Mac, and Android.

If you’re a student, I’d recommend this software, and you won’t have problems using the documents from this app because they’re saved in Rich Text Format so that most word processors can read them.

Pricing: Free.

Excellent for the Creative Stage of Writing

Before you write a good essay, you need to build the idea behind the essay first.

You need to add fresh to the bones before bringing the beast (of an essay) to life.

This tool helps you expand your original ideas into sub-ideas and construct full-fledged essays by using expressive, powerful flowcharts, process maps, and other diagrams.

Pricing: Free and Paid. The Awesome Plan costs $5/month, and the Organisation Plan is at $8/member/month.

Top-Notch Open-Source Tool

Manuskript is a tool perfect for organizing and planning stages of writing. It’s an open-source tool—for writers including novelists, journos, and academicians—that uses the snowflake method of writing to help you build your idea into a finished book; by helping you create the story step by step.

It has features for helping you keep track of notes on characters, plot, event,  and place in your story. Manuskript’s features include:

• The Outliner, which lets you organize your ideas and little pieces of your story hierarchically; 
• The Distraction-free mode gets rid of all distractions; 
• Personal goal-setting features;
• The Novel assistant utilizes the snowflake method to help you develop your basic ideas into a coherent plotline or a full-fledged story.

Pricing: Free

LivingWriter

Fast Developing Tool

This is a different writing app altogether. It has a lot of features that are excellent for both fiction nonfiction writers. It has features that help with story elements, general notes, goals and targets, doc sharing, and stats.

Plus, you can also switch LivingWriter in and out of Dark Mode and focus mode.

One thing I like about LivingWriter is that it started with a single platform (web) but is now expanding rapidly.

It has iOS and Android applications, Full integration with Grammarly, Canva integration, and its desktop apps are 90% complete (according to the Living Writer Roadmap )

Yearly Plan – $96 billed once a year

Monthly Plan – $9.99 per month

Best Writing Tool for Apple Products

I don’t know about now, but Ulysses was big back then (like a dozen years ago or so).

The app is rich with features similar to the other word processing software. It comes with a Markup-Based Text Editor, a library for organizing notes and documents, features for setting writing goals, publishing capabilities, and many others.

Ulysses is perfect for both small essays and large academic ones.

Pricing : Ulysses has different pricing options for different regions but using the US plan, it costs $5.99 per month and $49.99 per year.

Hemingway Editor

An App Most Impactful Writing

The Hemingway Editor AKA Hemingway App is a simple tool for writers who want to write content that is easier to read but bold.

Hemingway does this by looking at elements of your writing such as adverbs, passive voice, phrases and words with simpler alternatives, hard-to-read sentences, very-hard-to-read sentences, and other “lexical atrocities.”

The web-based version is free, but the downloadable version (for Mac and Windows) is a paid tool.

Pricing: $19.99

Excellent Mind Mapping Tool

They used to call this app IMindMap. Ayoa is an essential tool in the planning stages of your essay writing.

You can create mind maps for your essays which help give direction when you start fleshing out your essay.

This mapping tool helps increase productivity because everything you need to write is already outlined. The fact every step is already planned and you know exactly what to write can also increase your daily word count.

Pricing : The Ayoa PRO plan costs $10/month and is billed annually. The Ultimate Plan costs $13/month and is also billed annually.

Best App for Multi-Lingual Essays

This is another incredible alternative to Grammarly.

For non-native English speakers, this is a pot of gold right here. It can check your text for grammar errors and translate Spanish, French, German. And many other languages.

As a grammar checker, the tool mainly looks at aspects such as verbs, adverbs, confused words, commonly misspelled words, etc.

Here’s a funny story about Ginger (Just happened today.) As I was using the web-based editor, I copied some texts on Ginger’s website and pasted them into the editor and the tool found one misspelled word. Their content writers must not have used Ginger.

I felt like Ginger’s content writers were like Drug dealers, you know, they followed rule number one of drug dealing. “ never get high on your own product.”   

• Monthly Plan – $9.99
• Yearly Plan – $74.88
• Two-Year Plan: $119.76

Write Or Die

Best for Productivity Purposes.

This app has a name that sums up life for some of us.

Write or Die!

Write Or Die gives rewards, stimuli, and punishments if users set goals. This is what you need if you are a sloth like myself.

It gives you that needed push because the punishments—which include erasing current texts—can really scare the hell out of you and make you put an extra gear.

Pricing : Free and paid. $10 for macOS and Windows, and $1 for iOS.

Simplest Writing App

IA Writer is a distraction-free writing app that is more than perfect for writing short essays.

It has a very basic interface and uses plain text. As I said, there are no distractions because the IA writer also has a full-screen mode that fades out everything else but the line you are currently typing.

This minimalist writing app is available on Windows, Android, iOS, iPadOS, and macOS.

Pricing : Paid (offers free trials).

macOS- $29.99. has a 14-day trial

iOS &iPadOS – $29.99. No Free Trial.

Android – $4.99 /year or $29.99 once. Has a 30-day trial.

Windows – $29.99. Has a 14-day trial.

Hubspot Topic Generator

Best for Generating Topic Ideas.

This is a whole different menu right here.

It’s very different from the tools that I’ve listed in this post. This is why… you’re not going to use it to write. Instead, you use it to automatically generate writing ideas.

It’s a very simple tool; you input three words, and it provides you with nouns to generate a topic idea that you can use on your next writing project.

If you’re going to use this tool, it’s going to be during the very first stages of your writing project.

Manuscripts

Best App for Academic Assignments

Manuscript (not to be confused with Manuskript from above) is an app for students and academics. This is a convenient tool that works with popular word processing apps, including Microsoft Word.

The reason why it’s perfect for academic writing is it excels at the referencing aspect of writing—citations, abbreviations, etc.

So, for class writing assignments and larger tasks like dissertations, this is the tool I’d recommend.

Pricing : Free

Simplenote is a note-taking tool that helps you keep all your notes in one place but accessible everywhere.

You can back up your notes, add tags, share the notes with collaborators, and publish your notes in Markdown format.

Supported Systems: Android, iOS, Windows, macOS, Linux.

Guide to the Best Essay Writing Apps in 2021

Things to consider when choosing essay writing software.

A good essay writing software has to do things that make your essay look delectable and sound convincing.

Here are some of the things that an essay writing software need to be able to help you with:

Organization

I already talked about organization at the beginning, so you already know how important it is. The essay writing app has to help you arrange your essay and ensure that it flows nicely. It needs to clear the chaos that would have existed had you not used that specific tool.

Grammatical correctness

This is crucial in any writing project. The essay writing software has to help you correct your grammatical and spelling errors.

Proofreading

The proofreading capabilities of a good essay writing app go beyond checking for grammar and spelling mistakes. It also has to excel at checking other aspects like overuse of adverbs, passive voice, run-on sentences, weak writing , and readability.

Writing software doesn’t have to cost an arm. Most of these apps have similar features and pretty much do the same things. A higher price doesn’t necessarily mean the app is good but in some circumstances, apps are pricey for a good reason.

What Features Should an Essay Writing App Have

So, to achieve the above requirements, what features does a writing software need to have?

Below are the most important features that a good essay writing software program MUST have.

Grammar and Spelling checker

To achieve the overall grammatical correctness of your essay, a writing app needs to have a grammar checking feature. If it doesn’t, being integrable with an efficient grammar checking tool is also convenient.

Sentence structure and flow reports

Again, I cannot overemphasize the importance of structure in essay writing. The structure should start from your sentences to your paragraphs and the whole essay. A good essay writing app needs to have features that check aspects of structure and flow.

Punctuation checker

We can’t have an essay littered with semicolons, commas, and hyphens looking like they’re lost. Punctuation might be one of the most underrated features but make no mistake, it’s essential for professional writing.

Plagiarism checker

A good essay has to be unique and original. Therefore, essay writing software has to make sure that the body of the essay does not contain any plagiarized content.

Writing Metrics

Stats like word count, words per minute, or the number of pages are important for tracking progress. School essays usually have a word or page count requirements, and writing software must be equipped with writing metrics so that the user is kept abreast of the distance covered.

Sentence quality checker

In the writing profession, Quality matters.  It doesn’t matter if you have reached the minimum word count but the essay is of poor quality.

Writing apps must be able to pick out sentences that need improving or deleting due to poor quality writing.

Why Should You Use Writing Software to Write Essays?

Writing software won’t write your essay for you, but the writing process is hard to manage and that’s what these tools do.

Here are the benefits of using writing software:

1. Planning and Outlining

Planning is an important element of a good essay writing process. Writing software tools come with features that help you plan before you start writing.

For example, Scrivener has a feature called corkboard, which is a good planning tool. It’s like a set of digital index cards, and each represents a section of writing.

With writing software, you can plan and outline before the actual writing starts, and you can go back to the outlines and notes while writing.

2. Productivity

Productivity is a big problem for most writers. Writers like myself just write without setting a lot of writing goals, so when we feel like writing, we need to be at our most productive levels.

For those that set daily goals, maintaining a daily word count is not easy.

For both kinds of writers, writing software can help increase productivity.

The software tools come with writing stats to help you keep track of your progress. They also have features for distraction-free writing.

Templates also help increase productivity. The templates make things easier and save you a lot of time (which would have been used setting things up).

3. Editing and Formatting

Writing software tools come with features that can flag spelling & grammar mistakes and other errors. They also offer solutions to these errors.

This is very important for your editing process—it makes the editing stage easier and faster.

This also helps in increasing productivity since editing is less laborious and speedy.

Usually when we write essays (especially academic ones), some formatting requirements come with them. Writing apps are furnished with most of the formatting rules and styles that essays (academic or otherwise) may require.

4. Organizing

Writing can be a messy process.

Most often than not, essays also require a lot of research. And again, we’re not saying that writing software will help you research.

But when you get all the bits of info needed for your essay, the apps will help you keep the researched content organized.

With these writing apps, you can have all of your research organized and easily accessible.

The thing about a disorganized writing process is that it is reflected in the flow and structure of the essay.

How to Effectively Use Essay Writing Software

Let me reiterate, essay writing apps won’t write your essays for you, neither will they be correct all the time.

To get the best out of them, you need to treat them as writing tutors or co-writers. If they suggest something useful, take it on board, and if you feel like the suggestion is a bit off point, disregard it.

What Is a Perfect Essay?

A perfect essay convincingly speaks to the reader. An essay is like an argument or a speech, and it has to have a readable flow or show direction.

Perfect essays must contain arguments, supporting ideas, and most importantly, evidence.  

To write a perfect essay, you need to:

• Thoroughly plan the whole essay before you start writing.
• Start writing your arguments using a clear structure.
• Back up your points and refer to relevant sources if necessary.
• Make sure that you infuse the information with creativity. There’s nothing exciting about a bunch of truths thrown into an essay using bland sentences.
• Before you finish your draft, ensure that you’ve answered the question in your introduction and conclusion.

How can I write an essay on my phone?

Well, most of the apps listed here are available as mobile apps. If you feel it’d be okay to write on your phone, try out a couple of the apps on this list and see which one works better on mobile platforms.

I’d recommend using tablet computers as they have bigger screens than regular smartphones.

Final Words

There are just so many essay writing software tools nowadays that even though Scrivener and Grammarly top the list, stumbling on the best one for you is almost 1/1000 probable.

You have to try out these tools before purchasing them.

Just to say it for the one-thousandth time, essay writing apps won’t write your essays for you; YOU WILL.

Recommended Reading...

Best dictation software in 2024, scrivener vs word: which is the better book writing software, vellum vs scrivener: which is better for writing and formatting your book, write app review 2024: the best distraction-free writing app.

Keep in mind that we may receive commissions when you click our links and make purchases. However, this does not impact our reviews and comparisons. We try our best to keep things fair and balanced, in order to help you make the best choice for you.

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Best Essay Writing Apps in 2024

Showing 62 writing apps that match your search.

Microsoft Word

Elevate your writing, create beautiful documents, and collaborate with others—anywhere, anytime.

Platforms: Online, Mac, Windows, iPhone, iPad, Chrome, PC

Best for: Drafting, Essay, Journal, Book, Story, Poetry, and Blog

Website: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/word

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★★★★ Performance

★★★★★ Features

★★★★★ Accessibility

Also rated 4.5 ★ on TechRadar

Textilus Pro

Textilus Pro is a great word processor app for students and business people, also being excellent for writing reports, papers, blog posts, journals or ebooks! Textilus Pro can help you organize your research, generate ideas, and remove distractions so you can focus on the most important thing: writing.

Platforms: Mac, iPhone, iPad

Best for: Note-taking, Drafting, Blog, Essay, and Free

Website: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/textilus-pro-word-processor...

★★★★ Features

★★★ Accessibility

Also rated 4.5 ★ on the App Store

Super-clean writing space with a lot of configurability that stays out of sight when you don’t need it.

Best for: Note-taking, Drafting, Book, Story, Essay, Blog, and Free

Website: https://papereditor.app/

★★★★★ Performance

★★ Features

Also rated 4.2 ★ on the App Store

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Zoho Writer

Zoho Writer is a fully-featured word processor on the cloud, designed for collaborative work that gives you everything you need to create powerful documents. With a clean UI, intuitive interface and document modes, it introduces you to a new way of writing.

Platforms: Android, Windows, PC, iPad, iPhone

Best for: Drafting, Book, Essay, Journal, Poetry, Story, Blog, and Free

Website: https://www.zoho.com/writer/

Also rated 3.4 ★ on Google Play

Dropbox Paper

Dropbox Paper is more than a doc — it’s a co-editing tool that brings creation and coordination together in one place.

Platforms: Online, Android, iPhone, iPad, Windows, Chrome, PC

Best for: Note-taking, Essay, Blog, and Free

Website: https://www.dropbox.com/paper/start?no_redirect=1

★★★ Features

★★★★★ Value

WhiteSmoke renders you with the highest quality proofreading abilities available, correcting not only simple spelling mistakes like old fashioned word processors, but everything from grammar, word choices and even style mistakes, all without breaking a sweat.

Platforms: Online, Windows, PC

Best for: Editing, Proofreading, and Essay

Website: https://www.whitesmoke.com/

★★★ Performance

Correct English

CorrectEnglish® teaches you to write like an A+ student. Train your instincts with instant feedback, and great writing will come naturally the more you use the tool.

Platforms: Online

Best for: Editing, Proofreading, Essay, and Free

Website: https://www.correctenglish.com/

Hemingway App

Hemingway makes your writing bold and clear. It's like a spellchecker, but for style. It makes sure that your reader will focus on your message, not your prose.

Platforms: Windows, PC, Mac

Best for: Editing, Proofreading, Book, Essay, Story, Blog, and Free

Website: https://hemingwayapp.com/

Also rated 4.0 ★ on Reedsy

Unload your thoughts by creating a personal layout with notes, links and media in a second to visualize your creative process and move forward faster.

Platforms: Mac, Windows, iPhone, iPad, Android, Online, PC

Best for: Note-taking, Journal, Blog, Essay, Story, Book, and Free

Website: https://xtiles.app/en

Also rated 4.9 ★ on Capterra

ProWritingAid

Whatever kind of writer you are, ProWritingAid will help you improve your writing and get your ideas across more clearly. Our grammar and style checker contains over 3,000 explanations and videos written by our experts, so you don't need to remember all those crazy rules.

Platforms: Mac, Windows, Online, PC, Chrome

Best for: Drafting, Editing, Proofreading, Book, Essay, Story, Blog, and Free

Website: https://prowritingaid.com/

★★★★ Accessibility

Also rated 4.5 ★ on Reedsy

A reliable proofreading tool and essay editor for any writer or student.

Best for: Editing, Proofreading, Essay, Blog, and Free

Website: https://typely.com/

★★ Accessibility

Also rated 4.3 ★ on Capterra

A focused environment where you can write freely. With iA Writer, you can gain unparalleled insight into your writing structure, detect superfluous words and clichés, and navigate through your documents and notes with ease.

Platforms: Mac, iPhone, iPad, Windows, Android, Chrome, PC

Best for: Drafting, Book, Story, Poetry, Journal, Essay, and Blog

Website: https://ia.net/writer

Also rated 4.0 ★ on PC Magazine

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Ultimate Guide to Writing Your College Essay

Tips for writing an effective college essay.

College admissions essays are an important part of your college application and gives you the chance to show colleges and universities your character and experiences. This guide will give you tips to write an effective college essay.

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Learn some of the most common mistakes made on college essays

Brainstorming tips for your college essay

Stuck on what to write your college essay about? Here are some exercises to help you get started.

How formal should the tone of your college essay be?

Learn how formal your college essay should be and get tips on how to bring out your natural voice.

Taking your college essay to the next level

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Student Stories

Student Story: Admissions essay about a formative experience

Get the perspective of a current college student on how he approached the admissions essay.

Student Story: Admissions essay about personal identity

Get the perspective of a current college student on how she approached the admissions essay.

Student Story: Admissions essay about community impact

Student story: admissions essay about a past mistake, how to write a college application essay, tips for writing an effective application essay, sample college essay 1 with feedback, sample college essay 2 with feedback.

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Choose Your Test

Sat / act prep online guides and tips, which common app essay prompt should you choose.

College Essays

On one hand, the Common Application has seven essay prompts to choose from, which is great news: No matter what your story, you're sure to find a good fit! On the other hand, having seven prompts means you can write seven different kinds of essays, each with its own potential pitfalls and clichés to steer around.

In this article, I'll outline two totally different approaches to figuring out which Common App essay prompt is right for you and help you brainstorm possible ideas for each. I'll also talk about what makes great college essays great and give examples of what you want to avoid when crafting your essay.

What Are Application Essays for, Anyway?

Before you can choose an essay prompt, before you figure out what you're going to write about, it helps to know what the goal of your writing is. Think about it: if your goal were to give someone instructions, you'd write really differently than if your goal were to describe a landscape.

So What Is the College Essay Supposed to Do?

Admissions officers want to know the things they can't find in the numbers that make up the rest of your application. They want to know about your background, where you come from, and what has shaped you into the person you are today. They want to see your personality, your character, and your traits as a person. They want to learn your thinking style and perspective on the world. They want to make sure you have the ability to creatively problem-solve. And finally, they want to double-check your maturity level, assess your judgment, and get a general sense of whether you would be a good college student—whether you would thrive in an environment where you have to be independent and self-reliant.

So think about the college essay as a way of letting the admissions office get to know you the way a close acquaintance would. You have to let them in and share real thoughts, feelings, and some vulnerabilities. You definitely don't need to reveal your deepest, darkest secrets, but you should avoid showing only superficial details or, even worse, a façade.

Disclosing your closest-held secrets is not the goal of a college essay; however, you  do want to share enough information to give the admissions staff a sense of your personality, motivations, and values.

How to Brainstorm Ideas for Each Common App Prompt

There are two big-picture ways of coming up with essay ideas.

First, maybe you already know the story you want to tell. Perhaps you experienced something so momentous, so exciting, or so dramatic that you have no doubt it needs to be in your college application.

Or maybe you need to approach finding a topic with some more directed brainstorming. There's nothing wrong with not having a go-to adventure! Instead, you can use the prompts themselves to jog your memory about your interesting accomplishments.

Approach #1: Narrating Your Exciting Life

Does something from your life immediately jump into your head as the thing you would have to tell anyone who wanted to know the real you? If you already know exactly which of your life experiences you are going to write about, you can develop this idea before even looking at the prompts themselves.

You can ask yourself a few questions to see whether this is your best brainstorming option:

Is there something that makes you very different from the people around you?

This could be something like being LGBT in a conservative community, having a disability, being biracial, or belonging to a minority group that is underrepresented in your community.

Has your life had a watershed moment? Do you think of yourself as before X and after X ?

For example, did you meet a childhood hero who has had an outsized impact on your life? Did you suddenly find your academic passion? Did you win an award or get recognized in a way you were not expecting to? Did you find yourself in a position of leadership in an unusual time or place?

Did you live through something dramatic, such as a crisis, a danger you overcame, or the complete upheaval of your circumstances?

Maybe you lived through a natural disaster, made your way home after being lost in the woods, or moved from one country to another?

Was your childhood or young adulthood out of the ordinary? Were you particularly underprivileged or overprivileged in some unusual way?

For instance, did you grow up very poor or as the child of a celebrity? Did you live on a boat rather than in a house or as part of a family that never stayed long in one place because of your parents' work or other circumstances?

If you've experienced a dramatic event that changed your life or face unusual obstacles on a daily basis, approach #1 may work well for you.

Approach #2: Brainstorming for Each Prompt

If you don't have an unusual life experience or a story that you absolutely know needs to be told, don't worry! Some of the very best personal essays are about much more mundane situations that people face. In fact, it's better to err on the side of small and insightful if you don't have a really dramatic and unusual experience to write about.

Let's go through the prompts one by one and think of some ways to use more ordinary life events to answer them.

Some students have a background, identity, interest, or talent that is so meaningful they believe their application would be incomplete without it. If this sounds like you, then please share your story.

This is the broadest of the seven prompts. Almost any life experience that you write about could fit in this category, but you need to be careful to avoid writing the same essay as every other applicant.

Brainstorming Ideas

Background. Did a family member or friend have a significant influence on your life? Did you grow up in a particularly supportive and tolerant—or narrow-minded and intolerant—community? Were your parents not able to provide for you in the expected way? Did you have an unusual home life?

For example, my family came to the U.S. as refugees from Russia. By the time I went to college, I had lived in five different countries and had gone to nine different schools. This wasn't a traumatic experience, but it certainly did shape me as a person, and I wrote about it for my graduate school application essay.

Identity. Are you a member of an interesting subculture (keep in mind that violent or illegal subcultures are probably best left off your college application)? Do you strongly identify with your ethnic or national heritage? Are you a committed fan of something that someone like you would be expected to dislike?

Interest. In this category, esoteric interests are probably better than more generic ones because you don't want your essay to be the hundredth essay an admissions officer sees about how much you like English class. Do you like working with your hands to fix up old cars? Do you cook elaborate food? Are you a history buff and know everything there is to know about the War of 1812?

Talent. This doesn't have to be some epic ability or skill. Are you really good at negotiating peace between your many siblings? Do you have the uncanny ability to explain math to the math challenged? Are you a dog or horse whisperer? Are you an unparalleled mushroom forager?

Pitfalls to Avoid

Insignificance. The thing you describe has to be "so meaningful" the application "would be incomplete without it."

Redundancy. If the interest you write about is a pretty common one, like playing a musical instrument or reading books, make sure you have an original angle on how this interest has affected you. Otherwise, your essay runs the risk of being a cliché, and you might want to think about skipping this idea.

Bragging. If you decide to write about your talent, be aware that by focusing on how very good you are at playing the cello, you run the risk of bragging and coming off as unlikable. It's much better if you describe a talent a little more off the beaten path. Or if you do end up writing about your excellent pitching arm, you may want to focus on a time when your athleticism failed you in some way or was unsuccessful.

The lessons we take from obstacles we encounter can be fundamental to later success. Recount an incident or time when you experienced a challenge, setback, or failure. How did it affect you, and what did you learn from the experience?

In essence, you're being asked to demonstrate resilience. Can you get back on the horse after falling off? Can you pick yourself up and dust yourself off? This quality is really important to colleges, so it's great if you have a story that shows off your ability to do this.

The key to this essay is the "later success" part. If all you went through was failure and you learned no lesson and changed no approach in the future, then don't use that experience here.

Did you lose a game because of a new and poorly rehearsed strategy, but later tweak that strategy to create success? Did you not get the lead in the play, but then have a great experience playing a smaller part? Did you try a new medium only to completely ruin your artwork, but later find a great use for that medium or a way to reconceptualize your art? Did you try your best to convince an authority figure of something only to have your idea rejected but then use a different approach to get your idea implemented?

Too much failure. Don't focus so much time on the "failure" half of the equation that you end up not giving enough space to the "later success" and "learn from the experience" parts.

Too little failure. Don't diminish the negative emotions of failure because of a fear of seeming vulnerable.

Playing the victim. Avoid whining, blaming others for your failure, or relying on others to create your success. You should be the story's hero here.

Reflect on a time when you questioned or challenged a belief or idea. What prompted your thinking? What was the outcome?

The key to this prompt is the reflection or insight that comes from the question, "What was the outcome?" Challenging deeply held views is not always a good idea. Writing about a negative outcome and how you reacted could demonstrate your maturity level and ability to tolerate views different from your own.

Remember, the belief or idea could be anyone's: yours, a peer group's, or an authority figure's. Did you stand up to your parents' conservative or traditional values, for instance, about gender norms? Did you get your friends to stop bullying someone?

Also, the belief or idea doesn't have to be extremely serious or big in scope. Did you make dressing up for Halloween cool for teenagers in your town? Did you transform your own prejudice or bias (e.g., about athletes having interesting thoughts about philosophy)?

Causing offense. If you have a story that deals with super hot-button issues, such as abortion or gun control, you need to be careful to keep your essay's tone respectful and unaggressive. This is a good thing to check by letting other people read your drafts and respond.

Avoiding negative feelings. Challenging beliefs means pointing out that what a person thinks now is wrong. It can also be quite lonely and isolating to be on an unpopular side of an issue. It's important to include these negatives into the story if they fit.

Reflect on something that someone has done for you that has made you happy or thankful in a surprising way. How has this gratitude affected or motivated you?

“Reflect” and “surprising” are the keywords in this prompt. You need to write about a specific thing that another person (or persons!) has done for you that made you feel grateful—but your response shouldn’t stop there. To make your response really shine, you also need to reflect on the experience or, in other words, explain what it meant to you, why your feelings about it surprised you, and why. From there, you’ll need to round out your essay by connecting what that person did for you to the person you are today. Did that surprising act change you in some way? Did it make you a better person? This is your chance to show colleges what your values are when it comes to connecting with other people.

Remember how the prompt specifies that you should write about something someone did for you that made you happy or thankful in a surprising way? That wording is nudging you to think outside the box. For instance, most people are thankful for birthday presents or a friend who picks up the check at lunch. You need to think of something more out-of-the-box—something you didn’t necessarily expect to make you feel gratitude.

It’s entirely possible, for instance, that someone helped you out of an ethical dilemma or really difficult situation. Has someone ever helped you when you didn’t necessarily want help? Have you ever been in a situation where, if someone else hadn’t stepped in, something bad could have happened? Did that event motivate you to change your behavior in the future? Were you persuaded to own up to your mistake and do better next time?

An event in which the act of kindness or the person who performed it was unexpected is a great option here as well. Did someone you dislike do something kind for you? Did a stranger help your family out financially? Did your best friend come in from out of town when you had a bad injury to throw you a surprise party? Did a student who’s more popular than you invite you into their group at school?

Being disingenuous. Don’t exaggerate the effects of the surprising act of kindness you choose to write about. Similarly, you don’t want to write about an event that didn’t truly mean something to you and affect your life in a tangible way. Stick to writing about the truth of what happened in the situation and how you felt about it, and your response will be gold.

Discuss an accomplishment, event, or realization that sparked a period of personal growth and a new understanding of yourself or others.

Going from childhood to adulthood doesn't usually happen after one accomplishment or event but is more of a process. This question is asking you to find one step along the process and explain how it fits into the long thread of your growing up.

You don't necessarily need to tell the story of some big, official ceremony. Instead, you can focus on a small moment that showed you that you were older, more mature, and more responsible than you had been before.

Did your family make up its own adulthood initiation ceremony? Were you finally able to beat your mom in chess or shooting hoops, and did that change how she treated you? Did your dad cry in front of you for the first time, making you realize that you were old enough to handle it? Were you suddenly left in charge of younger siblings, and did you rise to the task instead of panicking? Were you allowed to make a big financial decision for the first time and found yourself taking it very seriously?

For example, during my junior and senior year, my mom traveled extensively for work, and my dad lived several states away, so I lived by myself for weeks at a time. It was exhilarating and made me feel independent and mature. But it was also lonely and burdensome because I had to take care of everything in the house by myself. Living alone was a huge part of my life, shaped me into the person I was, and made me see myself in a new light as a grown-up.

Sameness. Avoid the milestones that happen to everyone: driver's license, bar/bat mitzvah, etc., unless they happened to you in some extraordinary way.

Describe a topic, idea, or concept you find so engaging that it makes you lose all track of time. Why does it captivate you? What or who do you turn to when you want to learn more?

The idea of this prompt is to discuss something you're passionate about. It's a great opportunity to showcase a skill and show off your writing skills because your passion should come across on the page. Pay special attention to the "What or who do you turn to when you want to learn more?" aspect of this prompt; how you learn and from who can say a lot about you.

Hopefully, you should know the things that captivate you right off the bat. Try to think of the things that you turn to not just for fun but that de-stress you or give you the ability to learn.

More importantly, understand why this topic, idea, or concept is important to you. It should have a deeper meaning in your life and say something about who you are as a person.

Some other questions you can ask yourself to find a topic include the following: What unique hobbies or interests do you have? What challenges have you overcome in pursuing this topic, idea, or concept? What have you discovered about yourself in relation to this topic, idea, or concept?

Don't miss the overall meaning. Even if something is captivating to you, it's not necessarily captivating to others. Make sure you focus on what the topic, idea, or concept means to you and why that matters rather than getting lost in explaining it and how you feel about it.

Share an essay on any topic of your choice. It can be one you've already written, one that responds to a different prompt, or one of your own design.

This is one of the most popular prompts from the Common App. Remember that even though this prompt is open-ended, you should discuss something meaningful that shows growth, reflection, or something unique about you.

A lot of students have unique experiences that have influenced them throughout their lives. Try to think of people or events that have changed your perspective in a big way.

However, the topic itself doesn't have to be about a big moment. Lots of things can be life-changing, and it's perfectly OK to write about something that happened in your daily life as long as it moved you and has affected you in a way that you can put on paper.

In this prompt, insight is key to a great essay. Reflect on the moments that defined your perspective or events from which you learned something. This prompt should be about something personal to you and can be about family, friends, or an experience.

Ask yourself if there's a time, event, or person that has stuck with you and what it or they meant to you. Once you have some ideas, ask yourself why. What does it say about you to have changed as a result of that experience, and how might others relate?

Being too general. Insight can be found in moments both big and small. But for this prompt, try to avoid going too big and going too small. You don't want to write about something mundane and have to stretch it to make it mean something. That said, it can be tough to boil down an experience that's really significant, like being an Olympic athlete, into a short essay. Personal and insightful are the key.

How to Turn Your Idea into an Essay

Now that you've come up with some possible ideas, how do you go about actually writing the essay? Before you write, you need to have a plan. I like to think about planning out personal essays that I've written by first imagining them as enjoyable movies. You want your reader to walk away entertained, to remember the characters and story, and to want to see more from the same creator. So how do good movies do those things?

Character arc. Good movies have main characters that undergo some kind of change or transformation. Who is the main character of your essay? It's you! The you of your essay has to start one way and end up another: more mature, with a different mindset, or having learned a lesson.

Conflict or transformation. Good movies also have challenges. The main character doesn't simply succeed and then keep on succeeding; that's boring. Instead, the main character either overcomes an external obstacle or changes in some way from beginning to end. Your essay also needs this kind of story drive. This can come from an obstacle you overcame, an outside force that stood in your way, a disability or weakness you experience, or a seemingly unsolvable problem you face. Or it could come from a before–after scenario: you used to be, think, or act in one way, but now you've changed into a different or better person.

Dramatic set piece. In good movies, the conflict or transformation isn't just told to the audience. They are acted out in scenes set in specific locations, with dialogue, character close-ups, and different camera angles. In your essay, your story also needs to show you dealing with the conflict or transformation you face in a small, zoomed-in, and descriptive scene. Think spoken dialogue, sensory description (i.e., what did you see, smell, hear, taste, or touch?), action verbs, and feelings. This scene should function as one illuminating example of what you overcame or how you changed.

Happy ending. Movies that are fun to watch tend to have happy endings. The hero resolves the conflict, emerges a better person, and looks forward to future accomplishments. Your essay also needs to have this kind of closure. This is really not the time to trot out your nihilism or cynicism. Instead, your essay should end on a moment of self-understanding and awareness. You lived through something or you did something, and it affected you in a way that you can verbalize and be insightful about.

Coming up: the story of you, starring you, written and directed by you.

Which Prompt Should You Choose?

So now that you've brainstormed some topic ideas and a game plan for turning those ideas into an essay, how do you narrow it down to the one ?

Reverse-Engineer the Perfect Prompt

If you used the first brainstorming approach, try to formulate a big-picture idea about the story you're telling.  

Is the character arc primarily you learning something about yourself or making peace with your background? Sounds like a good fit for prompt #1.

Is the conflict about you struggling to do something but eventually succeeding? That goes well with prompt #2.

Does the story focus on a mind being changed about an idea? You want to go with prompt #3.

Does your happy ending involve you changing something for the better, fixing something, or solving a problem? Then your essay is ready for prompt #4.

Is your character arc about growing up, gaining wisdom, or becoming more mature? Then you're probably answering prompt #5.

Look in Your Heart

If you used the second brainstorming approach, get ready to get a little cheesy. Really listen to what your gut feelings are telling you about which of your ideas is most compelling and which will get your emotions flowing on the page. Readers can tell when you're writing about something you care deeply about, so it's worth it to find the topic that has the most meaning to you.

Not sure how to tell? Then this is the time to ask your parents, teachers you are close to, or some good friends for their input. Which of your ideas grabs their attention the most? Which do they want to hear more about? Chances are that's the one that an admissions officer will also find the most memorable.

What's Next?

Want a detailed explanation of why colleges ask you to write essays? Check out our explanation of what application essays are for .

If you're in the middle of your essay writing process, you'll want to see our suggestions on what essay pitfalls to avoid .

When you start working on the rest of your application, don't miss what admissions officers wish applicants knew before applying .

Want to improve your SAT score by 160 points or your ACT score by 4 points? We've written a guide for each test about the top 5 strategies you must be using to have a shot at improving your score. Download it for free now:

Anna scored in the 99th percentile on her SATs in high school, and went on to major in English at Princeton and to get her doctorate in English Literature at Columbia. She is passionate about improving student access to higher education.

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Application Essays

What this handout is about.

This handout will help you write and revise the personal statement required by many graduate programs, internships, and special academic programs.

Before you start writing

Because the application essay can have a critical effect upon your progress toward a career, you should spend significantly more time, thought, and effort on it than its typically brief length would suggest. It should reflect how you arrived at your professional goals, why the program is ideal for you, and what you bring to the program. Don’t make this a deadline task—now’s the time to write, read, rewrite, give to a reader, revise again, and on until the essay is clear, concise, and compelling. At the same time, don’t be afraid. You know most of the things you need to say already.

Read the instructions carefully. One of the basic tasks of the application essay is to follow the directions. If you don’t do what they ask, the reader may wonder if you will be able to follow directions in their program. Make sure you follow page and word limits exactly—err on the side of shortness, not length. The essay may take two forms:

• A one-page essay answering a general question
• Several short answers to more specific questions

Do some research before you start writing. Think about…

• The field. Why do you want to be a _____? No, really. Think about why you and you particularly want to enter that field. What are the benefits and what are the shortcomings? When did you become interested in the field and why? What path in that career interests you right now? Brainstorm and write these ideas out.
• The program. Why is this the program you want to be admitted to? What is special about the faculty, the courses offered, the placement record, the facilities you might be using? If you can’t think of anything particular, read the brochures they offer, go to events, or meet with a faculty member or student in the program. A word about honesty here—you may have a reason for choosing a program that wouldn’t necessarily sway your reader; for example, you want to live near the beach, or the program is the most prestigious and would look better on your resume. You don’t want to be completely straightforward in these cases and appear superficial, but skirting around them or lying can look even worse. Turn these aspects into positives. For example, you may want to go to a program in a particular location because it is a place that you know very well and have ties to, or because there is a need in your field there. Again, doing research on the program may reveal ways to legitimate even your most superficial and selfish reasons for applying.
• Yourself. What details or anecdotes would help your reader understand you? What makes you special? Is there something about your family, your education, your work/life experience, or your values that has shaped you and brought you to this career field? What motivates or interests you? Do you have special skills, like leadership, management, research, or communication? Why would the members of the program want to choose you over other applicants? Be honest with yourself and write down your ideas. If you are having trouble, ask a friend or relative to make a list of your strengths or unique qualities that you plan to read on your own (and not argue about immediately). Ask them to give you examples to back up their impressions (For example, if they say you are “caring,” ask them to describe an incident they remember in which they perceived you as caring).

Now, write a draft

This is a hard essay to write. It’s probably much more personal than any of the papers you have written for class because it’s about you, not World War II or planaria. You may want to start by just getting something—anything—on paper. Try freewriting. Think about the questions we asked above and the prompt for the essay, and then write for 15 or 30 minutes without stopping. What do you want your audience to know after reading your essay? What do you want them to feel? Don’t worry about grammar, punctuation, organization, or anything else. Just get out the ideas you have. For help getting started, see our handout on brainstorming .

Now, look at what you’ve written. Find the most relevant, memorable, concrete statements and focus in on them. Eliminate any generalizations or platitudes (“I’m a people person”, “Doctors save lives”, or “Mr. Calleson’s classes changed my life”), or anything that could be cut and pasted into anyone else’s application. Find what is specific to you about the ideas that generated those platitudes and express them more directly. Eliminate irrelevant issues (“I was a track star in high school, so I think I’ll make a good veterinarian.”) or issues that might be controversial for your reader (“My faith is the one true faith, and only nurses with that faith are worthwhile,” or “Lawyers who only care about money are evil.”).

Often, writers start out with generalizations as a way to get to the really meaningful statements, and that’s OK. Just make sure that you replace the generalizations with examples as you revise. A hint: you may find yourself writing a good, specific sentence right after a general, meaningless one. If you spot that, try to use the second sentence and delete the first.

Applications that have several short-answer essays require even more detail. Get straight to the point in every case, and address what they’ve asked you to address.

Now that you’ve generated some ideas, get a little bit pickier. It’s time to remember one of the most significant aspects of the application essay: your audience. Your readers may have thousands of essays to read, many or most of which will come from qualified applicants. This essay may be your best opportunity to communicate with the decision makers in the application process, and you don’t want to bore them, offend them, or make them feel you are wasting their time.

With this in mind:

• Do assure your audience that you understand and look forward to the challenges of the program and the field, not just the benefits.
• Do assure your audience that you understand exactly the nature of the work in the field and that you are prepared for it, psychologically and morally as well as educationally.
• Do assure your audience that you care about them and their time by writing a clear, organized, and concise essay.
• Do address any information about yourself and your application that needs to be explained (for example, weak grades or unusual coursework for your program). Include that information in your essay, and be straightforward about it. Your audience will be more impressed with your having learned from setbacks or having a unique approach than your failure to address those issues.
• Don’t waste space with information you have provided in the rest of the application. Every sentence should be effective and directly related to the rest of the essay. Don’t ramble or use fifteen words to express something you could say in eight.
• Don’t overstate your case for what you want to do, being so specific about your future goals that you come off as presumptuous or naïve (“I want to become a dentist so that I can train in wisdom tooth extraction, because I intend to focus my life’s work on taking 13 rather than 15 minutes per tooth.”). Your goals may change–show that such a change won’t devastate you.
• And, one more time, don’t write in cliches and platitudes. Every doctor wants to help save lives, every lawyer wants to work for justice—your reader has read these general cliches a million times.

Imagine the worst-case scenario (which may never come true—we’re talking hypothetically): the person who reads your essay has been in the field for decades. She is on the application committee because she has to be, and she’s read 48 essays so far that morning. You are number 49, and your reader is tired, bored, and thinking about lunch. How are you going to catch and keep her attention?

Assure your audience that you are capable academically, willing to stick to the program’s demands, and interesting to have around. For more tips, see our handout on audience .

Voice and style

The voice you use and the style in which you write can intrigue your audience. The voice you use in your essay should be yours. Remember when your high school English teacher said “never say ‘I’”? Here’s your chance to use all those “I”s you’ve been saving up. The narrative should reflect your perspective, experiences, thoughts, and emotions. Focusing on events or ideas may give your audience an indirect idea of how these things became important in forming your outlook, but many others have had equally compelling experiences. By simply talking about those events in your own voice, you put the emphasis on you rather than the event or idea. Look at this anecdote:

During the night shift at Wirth Memorial Hospital, a man walked into the Emergency Room wearing a monkey costume and holding his head. He seemed confused and was moaning in pain. One of the nurses ascertained that he had been swinging from tree branches in a local park and had hit his head when he fell out of a tree. This tragic tale signified the moment at which I realized psychiatry was the only career path I could take.

An interesting tale, yes, but what does it tell you about the narrator? The following example takes the same anecdote and recasts it to make the narrator more of a presence in the story:

I was working in the Emergency Room at Wirth Memorial Hospital one night when a man walked in wearing a monkey costume and holding his head. I could tell he was confused and in pain. After a nurse asked him a few questions, I listened in surprise as he explained that he had been a monkey all of his life and knew that it was time to live with his brothers in the trees. Like many other patients I would see that year, this man suffered from an illness that only a combination of psychological and medical care would effectively treat. I realized then that I wanted to be able to help people by using that particular combination of skills only a psychiatrist develops.

The voice you use should be approachable as well as intelligent. This essay is not the place to stun your reader with ten prepositional phrases (“the goal of my study of the field of law in the winter of my discontent can best be understood by the gathering of more information about my youth”) and thirty nouns (“the research and study of the motivation behind my insights into the field of dentistry contains many pitfalls and disappointments but even more joy and enlightenment”) per sentence. (Note: If you are having trouble forming clear sentences without all the prepositions and nouns, take a look at our handout on style .)

You may want to create an impression of expertise in the field by using specialized or technical language. But beware of this unless you really know what you are doing—a mistake will look twice as ignorant as not knowing the terms in the first place. Your audience may be smart, but you don’t want to make them turn to a dictionary or fall asleep between the first word and the period of your first sentence. Keep in mind that this is a personal statement. Would you think you were learning a lot about a person whose personal statement sounded like a journal article? Would you want to spend hours in a lab or on a committee with someone who shuns plain language?

Of course, you don’t want to be chatty to the point of making them think you only speak slang, either. Your audience may not know what “I kicked that lame-o to the curb for dissing my research project” means. Keep it casual enough to be easy to follow, but formal enough to be respectful of the audience’s intelligence.

Just use an honest voice and represent yourself as naturally as possible. It may help to think of the essay as a sort of face-to-face interview, only the interviewer isn’t actually present.

Too much style

A well-written, dramatic essay is much more memorable than one that fails to make an emotional impact on the reader. Good anecdotes and personal insights can really attract an audience’s attention. BUT be careful not to let your drama turn into melodrama. You want your reader to see your choices motivated by passion and drive, not hyperbole and a lack of reality. Don’t invent drama where there isn’t any, and don’t let the drama take over. Getting someone else to read your drafts can help you figure out when you’ve gone too far.

Taking risks

Many guides to writing application essays encourage you to take a risk, either by saying something off-beat or daring or by using a unique writing style. When done well, this strategy can work—your goal is to stand out from the rest of the applicants and taking a risk with your essay will help you do that. An essay that impresses your reader with your ability to think and express yourself in original ways and shows you really care about what you are saying is better than one that shows hesitancy, lack of imagination, or lack of interest.

But be warned: this strategy is a risk. If you don’t carefully consider what you are saying and how you are saying it, you may offend your readers or leave them with a bad impression of you as flaky, immature, or careless. Do not alienate your readers.

Some writers take risks by using irony (your suffering at the hands of a barbaric dentist led you to want to become a gentle one), beginning with a personal failure (that eventually leads to the writer’s overcoming it), or showing great imagination (one famous successful example involved a student who answered a prompt about past formative experiences by beginning with a basic answer—”I have volunteered at homeless shelters”—that evolved into a ridiculous one—”I have sealed the hole in the ozone layer with plastic wrap”). One student applying to an art program described the person he did not want to be, contrasting it with the person he thought he was and would develop into if accepted. Another person wrote an essay about her grandmother without directly linking her narrative to the fact that she was applying for medical school. Her essay was risky because it called on the reader to infer things about the student’s character and abilities from the story.

Assess your credentials and your likelihood of getting into the program before you choose to take a risk. If you have little chance of getting in, try something daring. If you are almost certainly guaranteed a spot, you have more flexibility. In any case, make sure that you answer the essay question in some identifiable way.

After you’ve written a draft

Get several people to read it and write their comments down. It is worthwhile to seek out someone in the field, perhaps a professor who has read such essays before. Give it to a friend, your mom, or a neighbor. The key is to get more than one point of view, and then compare these with your own. Remember, you are the one best equipped to judge how accurately you are representing yourself. For tips on putting this advice to good use, see our handout on getting feedback .

After you’ve received feedback, revise the essay. Put it away. Get it out and revise it again (you can see why we said to start right away—this process may take time). Get someone to read it again. Revise it again.

When you think it is totally finished, you are ready to proofread and format the essay. Check every sentence and punctuation mark. You cannot afford a careless error in this essay. (If you are not comfortable with your proofreading skills, check out our handout on editing and proofreading ).

If you find that your essay is too long, do not reformat it extensively to make it fit. Making readers deal with a nine-point font and quarter-inch margins will only irritate them. Figure out what material you can cut and cut it. For strategies for meeting word limits, see our handout on writing concisely .

Finally, proofread it again. We’re not kidding.

Other resources

Don’t be afraid to talk to professors or professionals in the field. Many of them would be flattered that you asked their advice, and they will have useful suggestions that others might not have. Also keep in mind that many colleges and professional programs offer websites addressing the personal statement. You can find them either through the website of the school to which you are applying or by searching under “personal statement” or “application essays” using a search engine.

If your schedule and ours permit, we invite you to come to the Writing Center. Be aware that during busy times in the semester, we limit students to a total of two visits to discuss application essays and personal statements (two visits per student, not per essay); we do this so that students working on papers for courses will have a better chance of being seen. Make an appointment or submit your essay to our online writing center (note that we cannot guarantee that an online tutor will help you in time).

For information on other aspects of the application process, you can consult the resources at University Career Services .

Works consulted

We consulted these works while writing this handout. This is not a comprehensive list of resources on the handout’s topic, and we encourage you to do your own research to find additional publications. Please do not use this list as a model for the format of your own reference list, as it may not match the citation style you are using. For guidance on formatting citations, please see the UNC Libraries citation tutorial . We revise these tips periodically and welcome feedback.

Asher, Donald. 2012. Graduate Admissions Essays: Write Your Way Into the Graduate School of Your Choice , 4th ed. Berkeley: Ten Speed Press.

Curry, Boykin, Emily Angel Baer, and Brian Kasbar. 2003. Essays That Worked for College Applications: 50 Essays That Helped Students Get Into the Nation’s Top Colleges . New York: Ballantine Books.

Stelzer, Richard. 2002. How to Write a Winning Personal Statement for Graduate and Professional School , 3rd ed. Lawrenceville, NJ: Thomson Peterson.

You may reproduce it for non-commercial use if you use the entire handout and attribute the source: The Writing Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

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Top 10 Apps That Write Essays for You in 2024 (Free & Paid)

Senior Content Marketing Manager

February 13, 2024

You have a big research paper or essay due soon, and you’re looking for a way to save time and energy or enhance the way you write. You’re tired of staring at a blank page, hoping it’ll magically become your best assignment yet.

What you need is an app that writes essays for you.

There are lots of essay writing tools available for every possible use. Whether you need an artificial intelligence (AI) tool that helps you draft the outline, generate text for different sections, or improve your essay to make it sound better overall, you’re in luck.

In this guide, we’re sharing with you the 10 best essay-writing apps available today. Each one offers writers, students, and other essay writers of all kinds a better way to get started or finish your assignment.

Let’s explore the options for apps that write essays for you, and let’s start writing better essays together. ✔️

What Should You Look for in Apps That Write Essays for You?

3. writesonic, 4. essayailab, 6. sudowrite, 8. hyperwrite.ai, 9. ai-writer , 10. storylab.ai.

Like any type of essay writing service or product, not all of these apps are built the same. Some AI content tools are designed for research and outlining, while others excel at transforming your words into compelling thought pieces, arguments, or statements. 

As you consider which essay writing app is best for you, think about the following. 

• Use case: Is this app designed for essay writing? Or is it a more generic AI writing tool? 
• Features: Does the app have the research, writing, or proofreading features you need? Does it offer you even more options?
• Ease of use: Is the app easy to use? What’s the user experience like?
• Ratings and reviews: What do real-world users think of the app? 
• Language: Does the app only work in English? Can I write in another language or translate my essay?
• Pricing: Is there a free version of the app? Does it have an affordable or expensive monthly subscription cost?

These questions should lead you closer to the best app that writes essays or academic papers for you. Consider what matters most to you, which features you can live without, and what’s your number one priority for this app—then use our top 10 list to find your ideal match. 🔗

The 10 Best Apps That Write Essays for You to Use in 2024

With an ever-increasing number of AI writing tools coming into existence, it can be overwhelming to figure out which ones are worth trying. That’s why we’ve brought you our shortlist of the 10 best essay-writing apps for 2024. 

There’s something here for everyone—whether you want a dedicated essay writing tool, an AI tool that can assist with all types of writing or an all-in-one app that lets you do so much more than just improve your writing skills or optimize your assignment.

ClickUp may be known as a productivity and project management tool for businesses, but it’s also a great place for writers and students of any level. ClickUp provides you with a destination to store and work on your ideas, research, and writing—and features to prioritize your work throughout the process.

One of the best features for essay writing is ClickUp AI . Our new user-friendly AI writing assistant is tailored to your role, with a huge variety of use cases, tasks, and features, depending on how you want to use the app. Use ClickUp to assist with brainstorming essay or research paper topic ideas, summarizing your essay to write an impactful conclusion, or rewriting paragraphs so you sound more professional.

All the ideas and words you generate with our AI assistant live inside ClickUp Docs . Not only is this Microsoft Word and Google Docs alternative a great place to store notes and ideas, but it can become your personal wiki or repository for all your essay writing needs—one of our favorite productivity hacks . 

Store ideas, notes, citations, essay drafts, and interview notes in one place. Format your Docs, add images and colors, and personalize the experience so writing your essay is more fun.

If you’re not sure where to start, the Writing Guidelines Template by ClickUp is your go-to place to get clarity on how to write the best content. The template includes advice on being consistent across language, tone, and formatting so you can produce error-free, cohesive, and accurate content every time. 

With ClickUp AI, ClickUp Docs, and our comprehensive Template Library , ClickUp has everything you need to start writing your best essays yet. 🤩

ClickUp best features

• Store all your essay or assignment notes, drafts, and files in one place
• Invite mentors to collaborate with you or share real-time feedback within your Docs
• Use ClickUp AI to generate high-quality ideas, rephrase sentences, and create text for your essay
• Streamline your process and get inspiration with relevant templates
• Save time and work faster by using ClickUp to assist with research, writing, and as a focus app while you work

ClickUp limitations 

• With so many features and use cases, some users may need a while to explore all the possibilities of using ClickUp
• ClickUp AI is a new feature, so the functionality will grow and develop over time

ClickUp pricing

• Free Forever
• Unlimited: $5/month per user
• Business: $12/month per user
• Business Plus: $19/month per user
• Enterprise: Contact for pricing
• ClickUp AI is available on all paid plans for $5 per Workspace member per month

ClickUp ratings and reviews

• G2: 4.7/5 (8,700+ reviews)
• Capterra: 4.7/5 (3,800+ reviews) 

Frase is an AI content creation tool that combines writing and SEO research to create copy that’s easy to read and designed to rank in search engines. This AI writing software can pull background research and stats from search results, and the outlining tool makes organizing your thoughts into a coherent essay easier. 📝

Frase best features

• Source stats, research, and background information directly from search engines
• Create an outline with structured headings and sections
• Use AI to generate introductions, FAQs, headings, and more
• Write, edit, and share documents easily within Frase

Frase limitations 

• Frase is designed for individuals and agencies working on SEO copy, so some of the features may not be relevant for essay writing or academic writing
• Some users report that sometimes the text output can be repetitive on the essay-writing app

Frase pricing

• Solo: $14.99/month per user
• Basic: $44.99/month per user
• Team: $114.99/month for three users

Frase ratings and reviews

• G2: 4.9/5 (200+ reviews)
• Capterra: 4.8/5 (300+ reviews) 

Bonus: Check out 7 Free Content Writing Templates for Faster Content Creation

Writesonic is a comprehensive copywriting and paraphrasing tool that gives you the features to write, edit, optimize, and improve your content writing—including essays. Writesonic’s feature list includes an AI writer, paraphrasing tool, text expander, article summarizer, and idea generator. 💡

Writesonic best features

• Get factual content with data pulled from top search results to help find the best essay and academic papers
• Upload documents to guide the tool on your unique style for a more personalized writing style
• Paraphrase your text or get a summary of your essay in one click
• Check your essay before you submit with a built-in spell checker, grammar checker, and plagiarism checker

Writesonic limitations

• Some users may run into issues with word count limits, especially for writing essays and longer assignments
• You may need to prompt multiple times to get longer responses, some users suggest

Writesonic pricing

• Unlimited: $20/month per user
• Business: From $19/month per user

Writesonic ratings and reviews

• G2: 4.8/5 (1,800+ reviews)
• Capterra: 4.8/5 (1,800+ reviews) 

EssayAiLab is a free AI essay writer app that helps users find ideas, write essays, and edit for grammar before they submit. This dedicated app that writes essays for you has a range of niche features including Modern Language Association (MLA) and American Psychological Association (APA) citations and a hypersensitive plagiarism checker. 🔍

EssayAiLab best features

• Search through millions of credible results to surface the most relevant information when writing essays
• Find new ways to compose sentences with automated suggestions to speed up the writing process
• Check for issues with the built-in grammar checker and plagiarism checker
• Automatically generate MLA and APA citations in one click across the entire essay

EssayAiLab limitations 

• There aren’t many user reviews of EssayAiLab, so it’s hard to get an idea of what other users think about this free app
• This essay writer app is designed specifically for essay writing, so you may wish to explore other essay apps for other types of academic writing

EssayAiLab pricing

Essayailab ratings and reviews.

• Capterra: N/A

Jasper is one of the most well-known AI content writing tools available today. This popular tool specializes in generating short-form and long-form copy that’s aligned with your brand—which is a plus point for users who want to compose multiple essays that sound like them.

Jasper’s features include an AI writer, a chatbot, and a template library. Easily make suggestions for word count or for optimizing academic writing in a specific style or tone.

Jasper best features

• Share documents to train the AI on your personal paper writing skills and style
• Access recent search data to check facts and add credibility
• Edit and optimize your essays so that they read professionally
• Check for any issues with a built-in plagiarism checker

Jasper limitations 

• Some users, especially students, may find the pricing model unaffordable
• Sometimes the outputs don’t always feel relevant, some users suggest
• No real free version compared to some other AI essay writer apps

Jasper pricing

• Creator: $39/month per user
• Teams: $99/month for three users
• Business: Contact for pricing

Jasper ratings and reviews

• G2: 4.7/5 (1,200+ reviews)

Sudowrite is an AI writing tool that bills itself as a writing companion. This tool is designed for creative writers and authors working on stories and scripts, but many of its features—like autocomplete and rewrite—translate well to academic writing.

This essay-writing software also helps you hone in on your specific writing style for more clarity and readability—so you produce the best essay possible.

Sudowrite best features

• Automatically complete sentences and paragraphs i the writing app
• Use rewrite to add variety to your essay language and improve readability
• Get suggestions on replacement words to enhance the impact of your sentences
• Get feedback on how to improve your essay within the app

Sudowrite limitations 

• Sudowrite is built with creative writing in mind, so it may not be the best option for professional essay writers or business users
• As it’s a relatively new tool, there aren’t many reviews from real-world users yet
• Writing app has no real free version

Sudowrite pricing

• Hobby & Student: $10/month for 30,000 words
• Professional: $25/month for 90,000 words
• Max: $100/month for 300,000 words

Sudowrite ratings and reviews

Rytr is an AI-powered content writer and writing assistant that’s ideal for a variety of uses including business ideas, emails, cover letters, and essays. The platform asks you to choose a use case and add context, and it’ll create content based on your goals and prompts. ✏️

Rytr best features

• Choose from 40+ built-in use cases and templates
• Use scientific copywriting formulas to make your essays more persuasive
• Expand, reword, and polish sentences to make them read better
• Submit your essays without worry thanks to the built-in plagiarism checker

Rytr limitations 

• Some users report that the facts given can feel basic or repetitive compared to other apps that write essays
• The AI writer can cut off mid-sentence if you run out of credits, which can happen unexpectedly

Rytr pricing

• Saver: $9/month per user
• Unlimited: $29/month per user

Rytr ratings and reviews

• G2: 4.7/5 (700+ reviews)
• Capterra: 4.6/5 (10+ reviews) 

HyperWrite.ai is an AI copywriting tool that blends research, writing, and personal AI assistance to create a useful tool for writers. Its features include a summarizing tool, an intro generator, a speech writer, and a universal translator. 💬

HyperWrite.ai best features

• Use AI to help you write an essay on any topic
• Generate a list of essay topic ideas before you start writing
• Rewrite content so that it sounds more powerful in enhances your writing ability
• Summarize text to automatically create summaries and conclusions

HyperWrite.ai limitations 

• There’s no built-in plagiarism checker, so you’ll need to use another app for this
• As a relatively new tool, there’s little social proof and few reviews about HyperWrite

HyperWrite.ai pricing

• Premium: $19.99/month per user
• Ultra: $44.99/month per user

HyperWrite.ai ratings and reviews

• G2: 5/5 (2 reviews)
• Capterra: N/A 

AI-Writer is a new AI writing tool that bills itself as “the only AI text generator built to be trusted.” This app focuses heavily on citation and transparency, which is a bonus for those writing essays or assignments. AI-Writer’s features include research, AI writing, verifiable citations, and text rewording. 📚

AI-Writer best features

• Automatically generate a full article draft or an entire essay draft in minutes
• Get citations for every source that AI-Writer pulls data or facts from
• Reword your text so that it sounds more professional or persuasive
• Automatically generate a list of references that you can include when you submit your essay

AI-Writer limitations 

• Like many AI essay writing apps, this one is designed with SEO copy in mind so the workflow may not feel relevant for essay writers
• Those with longer assignments may find the per-article word cap too small (especially for those who write essays regularly)

AI-Writer pricing

• Basic: $29/month per user
• Standard: $49/month for three users
• Power: $375/month for 10 users

AI-Writer ratings and reviews

• Capterra: 5/5 (1 review) 

StoryLab.ai is a comprehensive AI content marketing toolkit designed for marketing teams and agencies that want to boost engagement and revenue by creating content at volume for their content calendar . As part of this, the platform has a range of copy generators that can help you create a strong essay title, essay copy, and more. 📣

StoryLab.ai best features

• Generate introductions, titles, content ideas, and more
• Get unique outputs every time you run the generator
• Experiment with 13 different writing styles
• Available in 17+ languages

StoryLab.ai limitations 

• StoryLab.ai is designed for marketing teams, so essay and assignment writers may find the range of features distracting or unnecessary
• The product isn’t explained in as much detail as other AI writers, but there is a free plan you can experiment with

StoryLab.ai pricing

• Pro: $15/month per user
• Unlimited: $19/month per user

StoryLab.ai ratings and reviews

Ace your next assignment with the best essay writing apps.

There are lots of essay writing apps out there that claim to be the best, but we believe those in our shortlist live up to the title. Explore these apps that write essays for you, test some out, and find a new way to make your essay-writing process easier.

As you explore the apps above, we recommend prioritizing ClickUp. Our all-in-one app doesn’t just come with an AI writing tool—it’s a destination for all your notes, drafts, tasks, interviews, and files throughout the essay writing process.

Gather your thoughts, write your essay, make improvements, and more—all within one app.

Try ClickUp for free today to understand why it’s appreciated by so many writers and students. ✨

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Frequently asked questions

What is the common application essay.

The Common App essay is your primary writing sample within the Common Application, a college application portal accepted by more than 900 schools. All your prospective schools that accept the Common App will read this essay to understand your character, background, and value as a potential student.

Since this essay is read by many colleges, avoid mentioning any college names or programs; instead, save tailored answers for the supplementary school-specific essays within the Common App.

Frequently asked questions: College admissions essays

When writing your Common App essay , choose a prompt that sparks your interest and that you can connect to a unique personal story.

No matter which prompt you choose, admissions officers are more interested in your ability to demonstrate personal development , insight, or motivation for a certain area of study.

Most importantly, your essay should be about you , not another person or thing. An insightful college admissions essay requires deep self-reflection, authenticity, and a balance between confidence and vulnerability.

Your essay shouldn’t be a résumé of your experiences but instead should tell a story that demonstrates your most important values and qualities.

When revising your college essay , first check for big-picture issues regarding your message and content. Then, check for flow, tone, style , and clarity. Finally, focus on eliminating grammar and punctuation errors .

If your college essay goes over the word count limit , cut any sentences with tangents or irrelevant details. Delete unnecessary words that clutter your essay.

If you’re struggling to reach the word count for your college essay, add vivid personal stories or share your feelings and insight to give your essay more depth and authenticity.

If you’ve got to write your college essay fast , don’t panic. First, set yourself deadlines: you should spend about 10% of your remaining time on brainstorming, 10% on outlining, 40% writing, 30% revising, and 10% taking breaks in between stages.

Second, brainstorm stories and values based on your essay prompt.

Third, outline your essay based on the montage or narrative essay structure .

Fourth, write specific, personal, and unique stories that would be hard for other students to replicate.

Fifth, revise your essay and make sure it’s clearly written.

Last, if possible, get feedback from an essay coach . Scribbr essay editors can help you revise your essay in 12 hours or less.

Avoid swearing in a college essay , since admissions officers’ opinions of profanity will vary. In some cases, it might be okay to use a vulgar word, such as in dialogue or quotes that make an important point in your essay. However, it’s safest to try to make the same point without swearing.

If you have bad grades on your transcript, you may want to use your college admissions essay to explain the challenging circumstances that led to them. Make sure to avoid dwelling on the negative aspects and highlight how you overcame the situation or learned an important lesson.

However, some college applications offer an additional information section where you can explain your bad grades, allowing you to choose another meaningful topic for your college essay.

Here’s a brief list of college essay topics that may be considered cliché:

• Extracurriculars, especially sports
• Role models
• Dealing with a personal tragedy or death in the family
• Struggling with new life situations (immigrant stories, moving homes, parents’ divorce)
• Becoming a better person after community service, traveling, or summer camp
• Overcoming a difficult class
• Using a common object as an extended metaphor

It’s easier to write a standout essay with a unique topic. However, it’s possible to make a common topic compelling with interesting story arcs, uncommon connections, and an advanced writing style.

Yes. The college application essay is less formal than other academic writing —though of course it’s not mandatory to use contractions in your essay.

In a college essay , you can be creative with your language . When writing about the past, you can use the present tense to make the reader feel as if they were there in the moment with you. But make sure to maintain consistency and when in doubt, default to the correct verb tense according to the time you’re writing about.

The college admissions essay gives admissions officers a different perspective on you beyond your academic achievements, test scores, and extracurriculars. It’s your chance to stand out from other applicants with similar academic profiles by telling a unique, personal, and specific story.

Use a standard font such as Times New Roman or Arial to avoid distracting the reader from your college essay’s content.

A college application essay is less formal than most academic writing . Instead of citing sources formally with in-text citations and a reference list, you can cite them informally in your text.

For example, “In her research paper on genetics, Quinn Roberts explores …”

There is no set number of paragraphs in a college admissions essay . College admissions essays can diverge from the traditional five-paragraph essay structure that you learned in English class. Just make sure to stay under the specified word count .

Most topics are acceptable for college essays if you can use them to demonstrate personal growth or a lesson learned. However, there are a few difficult topics for college essays that should be avoided. Avoid topics that are:

• Overly personal (e.g. graphic details of illness or injury, romantic or sexual relationships)
• Not personal enough (e.g. broad solutions to world problems, inspiring people or things)
• Too negative (e.g. an in-depth look at your flaws, put-downs of others, criticizing the need for a college essay)
• Too boring (e.g. a resume of your academic achievements and extracurriculars)
• Inappropriate for a college essay (e.g. illegal activities, offensive humor, false accounts of yourself, bragging about privilege)

To write an effective diversity essay , include vulnerable, authentic stories about your unique identity, background, or perspective. Provide insight into how your lived experience has influenced your outlook, activities, and goals. If relevant, you should also mention how your background has led you to apply for this university and why you’re a good fit.

Many universities believe a student body composed of different perspectives, beliefs, identities, and backgrounds will enhance the campus learning and community experience.

Admissions officers are interested in hearing about how your unique background, identity, beliefs, culture, or characteristics will enrich the campus community, which is why they assign a diversity essay .

In addition to your main college essay , some schools and scholarships may ask for a supplementary essay focused on an aspect of your identity or background. This is sometimes called a diversity essay .

You can use humor in a college essay , but carefully consider its purpose and use it wisely. An effective use of humor involves unexpected, keen observations of the everyday, or speaks to a deeper theme. Humor shouldn’t be the main focus of the essay, but rather a tool to improve your storytelling.

Get a second opinion from a teacher, counselor, or essay coach on whether your essay’s humor is appropriate.

Though admissions officers are interested in hearing your story, they’re also interested in how you tell it. An exceptionally written essay will differentiate you from other applicants, meaning that admissions officers will spend more time reading it.

You can use literary devices to catch your reader’s attention and enrich your storytelling; however, focus on using just a few devices well, rather than trying to use as many as possible.

To decide on a good college essay topic , spend time thoughtfully answering brainstorming questions. If you still have trouble identifying topics, try the following two strategies:

• Identify your qualities → Brainstorm stories that demonstrate these qualities
• Identify memorable stories → Connect your qualities to these stories

You can also ask family, friends, or mentors to help you brainstorm topics, give feedback on your potential essay topics, or recall key stories that showcase your qualities.

Yes—admissions officers don’t expect everyone to have a totally unique college essay topic . But you must differentiate your essay from others by having a surprising story arc, an interesting insight, and/or an advanced writing style .

There are no foolproof college essay topics —whatever your topic, the key is to write about it effectively. However, a good topic

• Is meaningful, specific, and personal to you
• Focuses on you and your experiences
• Reveals something beyond your test scores, grades, and extracurriculars
• Is creative and original

Unlike a five-paragraph essay, your admissions essay should not end by summarizing the points you’ve already made. It’s better to be creative and aim for a strong final impression.

You should also avoid stating the obvious (for example, saying that you hope to be accepted).

There are a few strategies you can use for a memorable ending to your college essay :

• Return to the beginning with a “full circle” structure
• Reveal the main point or insight in your story
• Look to the future
• End on an action

The best technique will depend on your topic choice, essay outline, and writing style. You can write several endings using different techniques to see which works best.

College deadlines vary depending on the schools you’re applying to and your application plan:

• For early action applications and the first round of early decision applications, the deadline is on November 1 or 15. Decisions are released by mid-December.
• For the second round of early decision applications, the deadline is January 1 or 15. Decisions are released in January or February.
• Regular decision deadlines usually fall between late November and mid-March, and decisions are released in March or April.
• Rolling admission deadlines run from July to April, and decisions are released around four to eight weeks after submission.

Depending on your prospective schools’ requirements, you may need to submit scores for the SAT or ACT as part of your college application .

Some schools now no longer require students to submit test scores; however, you should still take the SAT or ACT and aim to get a high score to strengthen your application package.

Aim to take the SAT or ACT in the spring of your junior year to give yourself enough time to retake it in the fall of your senior year if necessary.

Apply early for federal student aid and application fee waivers. You can also look for scholarships from schools, corporations, and charitable foundations.

To maximize your options, you should aim to apply to about eight schools:

• Two reach schools that might be difficult to get into
• Four match schools that you have a good chance of getting into
• Two safety schools that you feel confident you’ll get into

The college admissions essay accounts for roughly 25% of the weight of your application .

At highly selective schools, there are four qualified candidates for every spot. While your academic achievements are important, your college admissions essay can help you stand out from other applicants with similar profiles.

In general, for your college application you will need to submit all of the following:

• Your personal information
• List of extracurriculars and awards
• College application essays
• Transcripts
• Standardized test scores
• Recommendation letters.

Different colleges may have specific requirements, so make sure you check exactly what’s expected in the application guidance.

You should start thinking about your college applications the summer before your junior year to give you sufficient time for college visits, taking standardized tests, applying for financial aid , writing essays, and collecting application material.

Yes, but make sure your essay directly addresses the prompt, respects the word count , and demonstrates the organization’s values.

If you plan ahead, you can save time by writing one scholarship essay for multiple prompts with similar questions. In a scholarship tracker spreadsheet, you can group or color-code overlapping essay prompts; then, write a single essay for multiple scholarships. Sometimes, you can even reuse or adapt your main college essay .

You can start applying for scholarships as early as your junior year. Continue applying throughout your senior year.

Invest time in applying for various scholarships , especially local ones with small dollar amounts, which are likely easier to win and more reflective of your background and interests. It will be easier for you to write an authentic and compelling essay if the scholarship topic is meaningful to you.

You can find scholarships through your school counselor, community network, or an internet search.

A scholarship essay requires you to demonstrate your values and qualities while answering the prompt’s specific question.

After researching the scholarship organization, identify a personal experience that embodies its values and exemplifies how you will be a successful student.

A standout college essay has several key ingredients:

• A unique, personally meaningful topic
• A memorable introduction with vivid imagery or an intriguing hook
• Specific stories and language that show instead of telling
• Vulnerability that’s authentic but not aimed at soliciting sympathy
• Clear writing in an appropriate style and tone
• A conclusion that offers deep insight or a creative ending

While timelines will differ depending on the student, plan on spending at least 1–3 weeks brainstorming and writing the first draft of your college admissions essay , and at least 2–4 weeks revising across multiple drafts. Don’t forget to save enough time for breaks between each writing and editing stage.

You should already begin thinking about your essay the summer before your senior year so that you have plenty of time to try out different topics and get feedback on what works.

Your college essay accounts for about 25% of your application’s weight. It may be the deciding factor in whether you’re accepted, especially for competitive schools where most applicants have exceptional grades, test scores, and extracurricular track records.

In most cases, quoting other people isn’t a good way to start your college essay . Admissions officers want to hear your thoughts about yourself, and quotes often don’t achieve that. Unless a quote truly adds something important to your essay that it otherwise wouldn’t have, you probably shouldn’t include it.

Cliché openers in a college essay introduction are usually general and applicable to many students and situations. Most successful introductions are specific: they only work for the unique essay that follows.

The key to a strong college essay introduction is not to give too much away. Try to start with a surprising statement or image that raises questions and compels the reader to find out more.

The introduction of your college essay is the first thing admissions officers will read and therefore your most important opportunity to stand out. An excellent introduction will keep admissions officers reading, allowing you to tell them what you want them to know.

You can speed up this process by shortening and smoothing your writing with a paraphrasing tool . After that, you can use the summarizer to shorten it even more.

If you’re struggling to reach the word count for your college essay, add vivid personal stories or share your feelings and insight to give your essay more depth and authenticity.

Most college application portals specify a word count range for your essay, and you should stay within 10% of the upper limit to write a developed and thoughtful essay.

You should aim to stay under the specified word count limit to show you can follow directions and write concisely. However, don’t write too little, as it may seem like you are unwilling or unable to write a detailed and insightful narrative about yourself.

If no word count is specified, we advise keeping your essay between 400 and 600 words.

In your application essay , admissions officers are looking for particular features : they want to see context on your background, positive traits that you could bring to campus, and examples of you demonstrating those qualities.

Colleges want to be able to differentiate students who seem similar on paper. In the college application essay , they’re looking for a way to understand each applicant’s unique personality and experiences.

You don’t need a title for your college admissions essay , but you can include one if you think it adds something important.

Your college essay’s format should be as simple as possible:

• Use a standard, readable font
• Use 1.5 or double spacing
• If attaching a file, save it as a PDF
• Stick to the word count
• Avoid unusual formatting and unnecessary decorative touches

There are no set rules for how to structure a college application essay , but these are two common structures that work:

• A montage structure, a series of vignettes with a common theme.
• A narrative structure, a single story that shows your personal growth or how you overcame a challenge.

Avoid the five-paragraph essay structure that you learned in high school.

Campus visits are always helpful, but if you can’t make it in person, the college website will have plenty of information for you to explore. You should look through the course catalog and even reach out to current faculty with any questions about the school.

Colleges set a “Why this college?” essay because they want to see that you’ve done your research. You must prove that you know what makes the school unique and can connect that to your own personal goals and academic interests.

Depending on your writing, you may go through several rounds of revision . Make sure to put aside your essay for a little while after each editing stage to return with a fresh perspective.

Teachers and guidance counselors can help you check your language, tone, and content . Ask for their help at least one to two months before the submission deadline, as many other students will also want their help.

Friends and family are a good resource to check for authenticity. It’s best to seek help from family members with a strong writing or English educational background, or from older siblings and cousins who have been through the college admissions process.

If possible, get help from an essay coach or editor ; they’ll have specialized knowledge of college admissions essays and be able to give objective expert feedback.

When revising your college essay , first check for big-picture issues regarding message, flow, tone, style , and clarity. Then, focus on eliminating grammar and punctuation errors.

Include specific, personal details and use your authentic voice to shed a new perspective on a common human experience.

Through specific stories, you can weave your achievements and qualities into your essay so that it doesn’t seem like you’re bragging from a resume.

When writing about yourself , including difficult experiences or failures can be a great way to show vulnerability and authenticity, but be careful not to overshare, and focus on showing how you matured from the experience.

First, spend time reflecting on your core values and character . You can start with these questions:

• What are three words your friends or family would use to describe you, and why would they choose them?
• Whom do you admire most and why?
• What are you most proud of? Ashamed of?

However, you should do a comprehensive brainstorming session to fully understand your values. Also consider how your values and goals match your prospective university’s program and culture. Then, brainstorm stories that illustrate the fit between the two.

In a college application essay , you can occasionally bend grammatical rules if doing so adds value to the storytelling process and the essay maintains clarity.

However, use standard language rules if your stylistic choices would otherwise distract the reader from your overall narrative or could be easily interpreted as unintentional errors.

Write concisely and use the active voice to maintain a quick pace throughout your essay and make sure it’s the right length . Avoid adding definitions unless they provide necessary explanation.

Use first-person “I” statements to speak from your perspective . Use appropriate word choices that show off your vocabulary but don’t sound like you used a thesaurus. Avoid using idioms or cliché expressions by rewriting them in a creative, original way.

If you’re an international student applying to a US college and you’re comfortable using American idioms or cultural references , you can. But instead of potentially using them incorrectly, don’t be afraid to write in detail about yourself within your own culture.

Provide context for any words, customs, or places that an American admissions officer might be unfamiliar with.

College application essays are less formal than other kinds of academic writing . Use a conversational yet respectful tone , as if speaking with a teacher or mentor. Be vulnerable about your feelings, thoughts, and experiences to connect with the reader.

Aim to write in your authentic voice , with a style that sounds natural and genuine. You can be creative with your word choice, but don’t use elaborate vocabulary to impress admissions officers.

Admissions officers use college admissions essays to evaluate your character, writing skills , and ability to self-reflect . The essay is your chance to show what you will add to the academic community.

The college essay may be the deciding factor in your application , especially for competitive schools where most applicants have exceptional grades, test scores, and extracurriculars.

Some colleges also require supplemental essays about specific topics, such as why you chose that specific college . Scholarship essays are often required to obtain financial aid .

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What does NC State's 'survive and advance' mean? 2024 team drawing comparisons to 1983 mantra

NC State basketball's 2024 season has been nothing short of magnificent – down the stretch, at least.

The Wolfpack has won seven consecutive games, five of which came in the ACC Tournament, which NC State won to even earn a spot in the NCAA Tournament. Now, it's gearing up to face 2 seed Marquette in the Sweet 16 of March Madness.

REQUIRED READING: NC State basketball vs Marquette prediction: March Madness, NCAA Sweet 16 pick is in

NC State entered the ACC Tournament firmly outside of the projections of the 68-team field with a 17-14 record. However, the Wolfpack forced the NCAA's hand by going on a run and winning the ACC's automatic bid by winning the conference.

The 11 seed Wolfpack have drawn comparisons to another NC State team of destiny: The 1983 team. The 1983 program, led by legendary coach Jim "Jimmy V" Valvano, won the national championship that season.

FOLLOW THE MADNESS: NCAA tournament brackets, scores, schedules, teams and more.

The mantra "survive and advance" is familiar to NC State fans thanks to Valvano's run in 1983. The Wolfpack is aiming to do the same this season.

Here's a look back at how NC State coined "survive and advance" during its 1983 national championship run and the parallels it has with the 2024 team:

REQUIRED READING: How to buy tickets for NC State basketball vs Marquette in Sweet 16, including prices

NC State basketball: What is "Survive and advance"?

The 1983 NC State basketball squad embraced the mantra of "survive and advance" after winning the national championship that season. ESPN's "30 for 30" even made a documentary with the mantra as the title to recap the Cinderella run 30 years later in 2013.

That season, the Wolfpack won nine consecutive win-or-go-home games — seven of which they were losing in the final minutes — en route to winning one of the most improbable championships in the sport's history. NC State, a 6 seed, eventually defeated No. 1 overall seed Houston — which was led by Pro Basketball Hall of Famers Hakeem Olajuwon and Clyde Drexler — 54-52 in the championship.

NC State was also led by legendary coach Jim Valvano, who was known for having an eccentric personality and was one of the most likable coaches to ever lead. Valvano, better known as "Jimmy V," is most well-known for his "Don't Give Up" delivered at the ESPYs in 1993 after he won the Arthur Ashe Courage Award. Valvano died just a few weeks later from cancer, which he had been fighting since the year before.

The 2024 Wolfpack, which still has some games to go, has drawn comparisons to the 1983 squad that was labeled "the team of destiny." The comparisons would only be raised further should NC State be able to advance to the Elite Eight with a win over 2 seed Marquette.

Who coined "Survive and Advance?"

The expression "survive and advance" is attributed to the late Jim "Jimmy V" Valvano, who coached NC State to one of its two national championships in 1983.

That iteration of the Wolfpack went 17-10 in the regular season and 8-6 in ACC play before rattling off nine straight wins in the ACC and NCAA Tournaments en route to a national championship. It was during that run Valvano famously coined "survive and advance," which has become a mantra of March for every team. But its roots remain in Raleigh.

Who is Jim Valvano?

Jim Valvano is the former head coach of NC State basketball, where he coached from 1980-1990.

Valvano, nicknamed "Jimmy V," won the ACC Tournament in 1983 and 1987 and the national championship in 1983. He's also the namesake of the "V Foundation," which raises money for cancer research, and the "Jimmy V Award," which is given to an individual each year at the ESPYs that showed "perseverance and determination."

Valvano died from cancer in 1993, just weeks after delivering his "Don't Give Up" speech, a seminal moment of the ESPYs.

Valvano also coached at Iona, Bucknell and Johns Hopkins, and was an assistant at UConn and Rutgers during his career.

REQUIRED READING: 'Worth it': Raleigh native DJ Horne relishes NC State basketball's berth into Sweet 16

NC State bracket 1983

Here's the full 1983 NCAA Tournament bracket , including the teams NC State beat to win the national championship:

• First round: NC State 69, Pepperdine 67 (2OT)
• Second round: NC State 71, UNLV 70
• Sweet 16: NC State 75, Utah 56
• Elite Eight: NC State 63, Virginia 62
• Final Four: NC State 67, Georgia 60
• National championship: NC State 54, Georgia 52

AI Text + Chat 12+

Gemini, bard, claude powered, curious creators co., designed for ipad.

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Introducing AI+, the ultimate AI chatbot assistant built on OpenAI technology. With AI+, you can quickly access the power of ChatGPT on your phone and get instant help with your work, school, or even personal needs. At work, AI+ has got you covered - whether you need help with email, copywriting, brainstorming, summarizing text, or writing project proposals. For school, AI is your convenient and instant learning assistant. It will act as your tutor or draft essay writer. The app can provide you with expert advice and guidance to help you achieve your academic goals. AI+ is also incredibly fun and useful for your personal life. You can get dating advice, meal plans with shopping lists, or write poems and songs. It will even listen to you and give support without judgment. AI+ is designed to be your go-to assistant for all your needs, no matter how big or small. So why wait? Download AI+ today and experience the power of AI in the palm of your hand. Features: - Conveniently access the power of ChatGPT from your phone - Work help (email, copywriting, brainstorming, summarizing notes, writing project proposals) - School help (essay writer, tutor) - Personal help & fun (dating advice, meal plans, shopping lists, write poems and songs, listen to you and give support without judgment) - Text to voice speech - Easy-to-use chatbot interface Do not enter personal information. May generate offensive or dangerous content. AI+ is not liable for content generated. Terms of Use: https://www.aipluschat.com/terms-of-use Privacy Policy: https://www.aipluschat.com/privacy-policy SUBSCRIPTION PRICING & TERMS AI+ is free to download. - Subscribing to AI+ Unlimited gives you unlimited access to the app - There may be various subscription options and prices available. Check the up to date details in the app before purchasing. - Payment will be charged to your iTunes Account at confirmation of your subscription - Subscription automatically renews unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24-hours before the end of the current period - Account will be charged for renewal within 24-hours prior to the end of the current period, and at the cost of the chosen package - Subscriptions may be managed by the user and auto-renewal may be turned off by going to the user's Account Settings after purchase - No cancellation of the current subscription is allowed during active subscription period - Any unused portion of a free trial period, if offered, will be forfeited when the user purchases a subscription to that publication - At the end of your subscription, you will be able to keep any content that your received while your subscription was active

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ChatGPT helping students with language deficits

Young students and adult learners who struggle with language deficits find the help they need by using ChatGPT. They are free to write what they want to express using their own language without the handicap of struggling with debilitating issues of their disability. They are able to express their thoughts and ideas and feelings with freedom, dignity, independence and confidence. Their work can be edited by ChatGPT and presented back to them with corrections and suggestions allowing them to make choices and allowing them to be heard as they intended it to be. This is a magnificent tool for anyone with a language deficit disorder, it offers them independence dignity and freedom from the constraints of their disability. Dr. P.

A Disappointing Mac Experience for AI Chat

As an avid user of AI Chat on my iPhone, I was excited to try out the Mac version, hoping for a seamless transition between devices. Unfortunately, my experience with the Mac version has been far from satisfactory. Over the past week, I have encountered numerous frustrating issues while attempting to get the Mac version to function properly. It is disheartening to see that the same results I am used to on my iPhone are not replicated on my Mac. I had hoped that using AI Chat on my Mac would alleviate the constant need for copying and pasting between devices, but it has only added to the inconvenience. I sincerely urge the developers to address the issues with the Mac version promptly. It is crucial to provide a consistent and reliable experience across all devices and platforms. The current state of the Mac version hinders its potential and leaves users like myself feeling disappointed. On a positive note, I must acknowledge the effectiveness and efficiency of AI Chat on the iPhone. Its functionality and convenience have greatly enhanced my productivity. The ability to copy and paste my review from the iPhone app for this very review is a testament to its usefulness. In conclusion, while AI Chat remains a valuable app on the iPhone, the Mac version requires significant improvements. I hope that the developers take immediate action to fix the issues and provide Mac users with the seamless experience they deserve.

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Regions Riding Forward® Scholarship Contest

Their Story. Your Voice.

Your voice is your own. But it's also been impacted by others. Who, we wonder, has inspired you? Let us know by entering the Regions Riding Forward Scholarship Contest. 

You could win an $8,000 college scholarship

For the opportunity to win an $8,000 scholarship, submit a video or written essay about an individual you know personally (who lives in your community) who has inspired you and helped you build the confidence you need to achieve your goals.

The details

The 2024 Regions Riding Forward Scholarship Contest consists of four (4) separate Quarterly Contests - one for each calendar quarter of 2024. Regions is awarding four $8,000 scholarships through each Quarterly Contest.

Each Quarterly Contest has its own separate entry period, as provided in the chart below.

The entry deadline for each Quarterly Contest is 11:59:59 PM Central Time on the applicable Quarterly Contest period end date (set forth in the chart above).

No purchase or banking relationship required.

Regions believes in supporting the students whose passion and actions every day will continue to make stories worth sharing. That’s why we have awarded over $1 million in total scholarships to high school and college students.

How to enter, 1. complete an online quarterly contest application.

Enter the Regions Riding Forward Scholarship Contest by completing a Quarterly Contest application.  The second Quarterly Contest runs from April 1, 2024 through June 30, 2024. Complete and save all requested information. 

2. Prepare your Written Essay or Video Essay

For each Quarterly Contest, the topic of your Written Essay or Video Essay (your “Essay Topic”) must be an individual you know personally, who lives in your community. Your Written Essay or Video Essay must address how the individual you have selected as your Essay Topic has inspired you and helped you build the confidence you need to achieve your goals.

Written Essay and Video Essay submissions must meet all of the requirements described in the contest Official Rules. Your Written Essay or Video Essay must be (i) in English, (ii) your own original work, created solely by you (and without the use of any means of artificial intelligence (“AI”)), and (iii) the exclusive property of you alone.

Written Essays must be 500 words or less. You can write your Written Essay directly in the application, or you can copy and paste it into the appropriate area in the application form.

Video Essay submissions must be directly uploaded to the contest application site. Video Essays must be no more than 3 minutes in length and no larger than 1 GB. Only the following file formats are accepted: MP4, MPG, MOV, AVI, and WMV. Video Essays must not contain music of any kind nor display any illegal, explicit, or inappropriate material, and Video Essays must not be password protected or require a log-in/sign-in to view. You must upload your Video Essay to the application, and you may not submit your Video Essay in DVD or other physical form. (Video Essays submitted via mail will not be reviewed or returned.)

Tips to Record Quality Videos on a Smartphone:

• Don’t shoot vertical video. Computer monitors have landscape-oriented displays, so shoot your video horizontally.
• Use a tripod. Even small movements can make a big difference when editing.
• Don’t use zoom. If you need to get a close shot of the subject, move closer as zooming can cause pixilation.
• Use natural lighting. Smartphone lighting can wash out your video.

3. Review and submit your Quarterly Contest application

Review your information on your Quarterly Application (and check the spelling of a Written Essay) and submit your entry by 11:59:59 p.m. Central Time on the applicable Quarterly Contest period end date. The second Quarterly Contest period end date is June 30, 2024.

4. Await notification

Winning entries are selected by an independent panel of judges who are not affiliated with Regions. If your entry is selected as a Quarterly Contest winner, you will need to respond to ISTS with the required information.

Eligibility

For purposes of this contest:

• The “Eligible States” are defined as the following states: Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee and Texas.
• An “accredited college” is defined as a nonprofit, two- or four-year college or university located within one of the fifty (50) United States or the District of Columbia.

To be eligible to enter this contest and to win an award in a Quarterly Contest, at the time of entry, you must:

• Be a legal U.S. resident of one of the Eligible States.
• Be age 16 or older.
• Have at least one (1) year (or at least 18 semester hours) remaining before college graduation.
• If you are not yet in college, begin your freshman year of college no later than the start of the 2025 – 2026 college academic school year.
• As of your most recent school enrollment period, have a cumulative grade point average of at least 2.0 in school (and if no GPA is provided at school, be in “good standing” or the equivalent thereof in school).

View Official Rules

NO PURCHASE OR BANKING RELATIONSHIP REQUIRED. PURCHASE OR BANKING RELATIONSHIP WILL NOT INCREASE YOUR CHANCES OF WINNING. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED. The 2024 Regions Riding Forward Scholarship Contest (the “Contest”) consists of four (4) separate quarterly contests (each a “Quarterly Contest”): (1) the “Q-1 Contest;” (2) the “Q-2 Contest;” (3) the “Q-3 Contest;” and (4) the “Q-4 Contest.” The Q-1 Contest begins on 02/01/24 and ends on 03/31/24; the Q-2 Contest begins on 04/01/24 and ends on 06/30/24; the Q-3 Contest begins on 07/01/24 and ends on 09/30/24; and the Q-4 Contest begins on 10/01/24 and ends on 12/31/24. (For each Quarterly Contest, entries must be submitted and received by 11:59:59 PM CT on the applicable Quarterly Contest period end date.) To enter and participate in a particular Quarterly Contest, at the time of entry, you must: (a) be a legal U.S. resident of one of the Eligible States; (b) be 16 years of age or older; (c) have at least one (1) year (or at least 18 semester hours) remaining before college graduation; (d) (if you are not yet in college) begin your freshman year of college no later than the start of the 2025 – 2026 college academic school year; and (e) as of your most recent school enrollment period, have a cumulative grade point average of at least 2.0 in school (and if no grade point average is provided at school, be in “good standing” or the equivalent thereof in school). (For purposes of Contest, the “Eligible States” are defined as the states of AL, AR, FL, GA, IA, IL, IN, KY, LA, MS, MO, NC, SC, TN and TX.) Visit regions.com/ridingforward for complete Contest details, including eligibility and Written Essay and Video Essay requirements and Official Rules. (Limit one (1) entry per person, per Quarterly Contest.) For each Quarterly Contest, eligible entries will be grouped according to form of entry (Written Essay or Video Essay) and judged by a panel of independent, qualified judges. A total of four (4) Quarterly Contest Prizes will be awarded in each Quarterly Contest, consisting of two (2) Quarterly Contest Prizes for the Written Essay Entry Group and two (2) Quarterly Contest Prizes for the Video Essay Entry Group. Each Quarterly Contest Prize consists of a check in the amount of $8,000 made out to winner’s designated accredited college. (Limit one (1) Quarterly Contest Prize per person; a contestant is permitted to win only one (1) Quarterly Contest Prize through the Contest.) Sponsor: Regions Bank, 1900 Fifth Ave. N., Birmingham, AL 35203.

© 2024 Regions Bank. All rights reserved. Member FDIC. Equal Housing Lender. Regions and the Regions logo are registered trademarks of Regions Bank. The LifeGreen color is a trademark of Regions Bank.

2023 Winners

High school:.

• Amyrrean Acoff
• Leon Aldridge
• Kharis Andrews
• Colton Collier
• Indya Griffin
• Christopher Hak
• Aquil Hayes
• Jayden Haynes
• McKenna Jodoin
• Paris Kelly
• Liza Latimer
• Dylan Lodle
• Anna Mammarelli
• Karrington Manley
• Marcellus Odum
• Gautami Palthepu
• Melody Small
• Lauryn Tanner
• Joshua Wilson
• Mohamed Ali
• Kayla Bellamy
• Lauren Boxx
• Alexandria Brown
• Samuel Brown
• Thurston Brown
• Conner Daehler
• Tsehai de Souza
• Anjel Echols
• Samarion Flowers
• Trinity Griffin
• Kristina Hilton
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• Lamiya Ousley
• Kiera Phillips
• Gabrielle Pippins
• Ethan Snead
• Sydney Springs
• Kirsten Tilford
• Tamira Weeks
• Justin Williams

2022 Winners

• Paul Aucremann
• William Booker
• Robyn Cunningham
• Kani'ya Davis
• Oluwatomi Dugbo
• Lillian Goins
• Parker Hall
• Collin Hatfield
• Gabrielle Izu
• Kylie Lauderdale
• Jacob Milan
• Jackson Mitchell
• Carmen Moore
• Madison Morgan
• Kaden Oquelí-White
• Kaylin Parks
• Brian Perryman
• De'Marco Riggins
• Brianna Roundtree
• Sydney Russell
• Carlie Spore
• Morgan Standifer
• Ionia Thomas
• Ramaya Thomas
• Jaylen Toran
• Amani Veals
• Taylor Williams
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• Aryaunna Armstrong
• Hannah Blackwell
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• Naomi Bradley
• Arianna Cannon
• Taylor Cline
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• Margaret Fitzgerald
• Chloe Franklin
• Camryn Gaines
• Thomas Greer
• Kayla Helleson
• Veronica Holmes
• Logan Kurtz
• Samuel Lambert
• Jaylon Muchison
• Teresa Odom
• Andrew Payne
• Carey Price
• Emily SantiAnna
• Curtis Smith
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• Mariah Standifer
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• Anna Wilkes

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Mr. President: If you force me to choose, you will lose

OPINION: The Biden administration's proposal to cut funding to the Charter Schools Program will leave parents little choice come November.

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Editor’s note: The following article is an op-ed, and the views expressed are the author’s own. Read more opinions on theGrio.

I vote in every election. When it comes to casting a ballot, whether it’s for president, Congress, state legislators, governor, mayor or city council, I am always going to vote based on what’s best for my child. There is nothing a candidate can say about any issue that will change this calculus. If I don’t believe my child will be better off with that person in office, they will not get my vote.

And I am not alone. There are millions of Americans — white, Black, Hispanic, Democrat, Republican, rural, suburban, urban — who will make the very same decision come November. Choosing to put our kids first is not a political issue; it’s just how we are wired.

This is why President Biden faces significant headwinds as we approach November. And so do other Democratic candidates up and down the ballot who seem to be unclear about the priorities of some of their most important constituents, parents.

Parents of K-12 students make up 40% of the U.S. electorate and according to a  survey  commissioned by the Harris Poll, 82% of them are willing to vote outside their political party based on the candidate’s position on education, which is a particularly acute issue for Black mothers like me.

For decades, we have been promised that brighter days are ahead and that elected leaders are working toward creating equity in areas like education and the workforce. But now we are tired of waiting. We want something better right now.

That is why it was initially encouraging to hear during the State of the Union address when President Biden announced a laudable goal of all children reading by the third grade. The optimism was short-lived.

Just a couple of days later, President Biden’s proposed budget called for cutting investments in charter schools , which predominantly serve Black and brown students.

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I was understandably puzzled. How, exactly, are we supposed to get to this laudable goal by slashing the only source of federal funding for the startup, growth, replication, and expansion of these public schools that serve our students so well? There is never a cost to attend a charter school and, according to research from Stanford, the average charter student gains an equivalent of 16 additional learning days in reading in a year, and six additional days of learning in math.

It’s hard to interpret a proposed cut to the Charter Schools Program as anything other than harmful to our children.

We want our kids to at least have a fighting chance at achieving their dreams. We want them to be prepared for great careers that will help diminish income inequality. We are not talking about theories and hypotheticals. These are our children, and it is time to move with more urgency.

I am reminded of Martin Luther King Jr.’s April 1963 letter from Birmingham Jail , in which he responded to those encouraging Blacks to just “wait.”

Dr. King remarked, “There comes a time when the cup of endurance runs over, and men are no longer willing to be plunged into the abyss of despair. I hope, sirs, you can understand our legitimate and unavoidable impatience.”

Sixty years later, we remain impatient and rightfully so. Black children are still behind their white peers in reading and math. Their median weekly earnings , among those ages 16 to 24, is $133 less than white workers. And they are far more likely to end up in poverty or prison.

It is no wonder that according to a recent  poll  of Black single mothers, 69% believe the country is heading in the wrong direction and only 7% believe it’s on the right track. Fatigue is making us quite restless. Black women voters are an important voting bloc. Why? Because we tip elections.

To begin to rebuild trust, President Biden must demonstrate that he’s listening to us.  

He must show that he understands the value Black voters place on education and having better public school options by demonstrating his support for the schools we choose. President Biden must understand that if we’re going to reach the literacy goal he set out, it’s only achievable if Black and Brown families can actually access high-quality schools.

My home state of Florida can serve as a cautionary tale for President Biden. In 2018, Andrew Gillum ignored the wishes of Black voters and came out against school choice options that met the needs of underserved communities throughout the state. Gillum received around 40,000 fewer votes among Blacks than fellow Florida Democrat Bill Nelson received in his Senate race that same election day. Gillum lost to Ron DeSantis by 32,463 votes .

President Biden, do the math and please don’t take our vote for granted. 

Debbie Veney is a senior vice president at the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools.

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Should college essays touch on race? Some feel the affirmative action ruling leaves them no choice

CHICAGO — When she started writing her college essay, Hillary Amofa told the story she thought admissions offices wanted to hear. About being the daughter of immigrants from Ghana and growing up in a small apartment in Chicago. About hardship and struggle.

Then she deleted it all.

“I would just find myself kind of trauma-dumping,” said the 18-year-old senior at Lincoln Park High School in Chicago. “And I’m just like, this doesn’t really say anything about me as a person.”

When the Supreme Court ended affirmative action in higher education, it left the college essay as one of few places where race can play a role in admissions decisions. For many students of color, instantly more was riding on the already high-stakes writing assignment. Some say they felt pressure to exploit their hardships as they competed for a spot on campus.

Amofa was just starting to think about her essay when the court issued its decision, and it left her with a wave of questions. Could she still write about her race? Could she be penalized for it? She wanted to tell colleges about her heritage but she didn’t want to be defined by it.

In English class, Amofa and her classmates read sample essays that all seemed to focus on some trauma or hardship. It left her with the impression she had to write about her life’s hardest moments to show how far she’d come. But she and some of her classmates wondered if their lives had been hard enough to catch the attention of admissions offices.

“For a lot of students, there’s a feeling of, like, having to go through something so horrible to feel worthy of going to school, which is kind of sad,” said Amofa, the daughter of a hospital technician and an Uber driver.

This year’s senior class is the first in decades to navigate college admissions without affirmative action . The Supreme Court upheld the practice in decisions going back to the 1970s, but this court’s conservative supermajority found it is unconstitutional for colleges to give students extra weight because of their race alone.

Still, the decision left room for race to play an indirect role: Chief Justice John Roberts wrote universities can still consider how an applicant’s life was shaped by their race, “so long as that discussion is concretely tied to a quality of character or unique ability.”

“A benefit to a student who overcame racial discrimination, for example, must be tied to that student’s courage and determination,” he wrote.

Scores of colleges responded with new essay prompts asking about students’ backgrounds. Brown University asked applicants how “an aspect of your growing up has inspired or challenged you.” Rice University asked students how their perspectives were shaped by their “background, experiences, upbringing, and/or racial identity.”

WONDERING IF SCHOOLS 'EXPECT A SOB STORY'

When Darrian Merritt started writing his essay, he knew the stakes were higher than ever because of the court’s decision. His first instinct was to write about events that led to him going to live with his grandmother as a child.

Those were painful memories, but he thought they might play well at schools like Yale, Stanford and Vanderbilt.

“I feel like the admissions committee might expect a sob story or a tragic story,” said Merritt, a senior in Cleveland. “And if you don’t provide that, then maybe they’re not going to feel like you went through enough to deserve having a spot at the university. I wrestled with that a lot.”

He wrote drafts focusing on his childhood, but it never amounted to more than a collection of memories. Eventually he abandoned the idea and aimed for an essay that would stand out for its positivity.

Merritt wrote about a summer camp where he started to feel more comfortable in his own skin. He described embracing his personality and defying his tendency to please others. The essay had humor — it centered on a water gun fight where he had victory in sight but, in a comedic twist, slipped and fell. But the essay also reflects on his feelings of not being “Black enough” and getting made fun of for listening to “white people music.”

“I was like, ‘OK, I’m going to write this for me, and we’re just going to see how it goes,’” he said. “It just felt real, and it felt like an honest story.”

The essay describes a breakthrough as he learned “to take ownership of myself and my future by sharing my true personality with the people I encounter. ... I realized that the first chapter of my own story had just been written.”

A RULING PROMPTS PIVOTS ON ESSAY TOPICS

Like many students, Max Decker of Portland, Oregon, had drafted a college essay on one topic, only to change direction after the Supreme Court ruling in June.

Decker initially wrote about his love for video games. In a childhood surrounded by constant change, navigating his parents’ divorce, the games he took from place to place on his Nintendo DS were a source of comfort.

But the essay he submitted to colleges focused on the community he found through Word is Bond, a leadership group for young Black men in Portland.

As the only biracial, Jewish kid with divorced parents in a predominantly white, Christian community, Decker wrote he constantly felt like the odd one out. On a trip with Word is Bond to Capitol Hill, he and friends who looked just like him shook hands with lawmakers. The experience, he wrote, changed how he saw himself.

“It’s because I’m different that I provide something precious to the world, not the other way around,” he wrote.

As a first-generation college student, Decker thought about the subtle ways his peers seemed to know more about navigating the admissions process . They made sure to get into advanced classes at the start of high school, and they knew how to secure glowing letters of recommendation.

If writing about race would give him a slight edge and show admissions officers a fuller picture of his achievements, he wanted to take that small advantage.

His first memory about race, Decker said, was when he went to get a haircut in elementary school and the barber made rude comments about his curly hair. Until recently, the insecurity that moment created led him to keep his hair buzzed short.

Through Word is Bond, Decker said he found a space to explore his identity as a Black man. It was one of the first times he was surrounded by Black peers and saw Black role models. It filled him with a sense of pride in his identity. No more buzzcut.

The pressure to write about race involved a tradeoff with other important things in his life, Decker said. That included his passion for journalism, like the piece he wrote on efforts to revive a once-thriving Black neighborhood in Portland. In the end, he squeezed in 100 characters about his journalism under the application’s activities section.

“My final essay, it felt true to myself. But the difference between that and my other essay was the fact that it wasn’t the truth that I necessarily wanted to share,” said Decker, whose top college choice is Tulane, in New Orleans, because of the region’s diversity. “It felt like I just had to limit the truth I was sharing to what I feel like the world is expecting of me.”

SPELLING OUT THE IMPACT OF RACE

Before the Supreme Court ruling, it seemed a given to Imani Laird that colleges would consider the ways that race had touched her life. But now, she felt like she had to spell it out.

As she started her essay, she reflected on how she had faced bias or felt overlooked as a Black student in predominantly white spaces.

There was the year in math class when the teacher kept calling her by the name of another Black student. There were the comments that she’d have an easier time getting into college because she was Black .

“I didn’t have it easier because of my race,” said Laird, a senior at Newton South High School in the Boston suburbs who was accepted at Wellesley and Howard University, and is waiting to hear from several Ivy League colleges. “I had stuff I had to overcome.”

In her final essays, she wrote about her grandfather, who served in the military but was denied access to GI Bill benefits because of his race.

She described how discrimination fueled her ambition to excel and pursue a career in public policy.

“So, I never settled for mediocrity,” she wrote. “Regardless of the subject, my goal in class was not just to participate but to excel. Beyond academics, I wanted to excel while remembering what started this motivation in the first place.”

WILL SCHOOLS LOSE RACIAL DIVERSITY?

Amofa used to think affirmative action was only a factor at schools like Harvard and Yale. After the court’s ruling, she was surprised to find that race was taken into account even at some public universities she was applying to.

Now, without affirmative action, she wondered if mostly white schools will become even whiter.

It’s been on her mind as she chooses between Indiana University and the University of Dayton, both of which have relatively few Black students. When she was one of the only Black students in her grade school, she could fall back on her family and Ghanaian friends at church. At college, she worries about loneliness.

“That’s what I’m nervous about,” she said. “Going and just feeling so isolated, even though I’m constantly around people.”

The first drafts of her essay focused on growing up in a low-income family, sharing a bedroom with her brother and grandmother. But it didn’t tell colleges about who she is now, she said.

Her final essay tells how she came to embrace her natural hair . She wrote about going to a mostly white grade school where classmates made jokes about her afro. When her grandmother sent her back with braids or cornrows, they made fun of those too.

Over time, she ignored their insults and found beauty in the styles worn by women in her life. She now runs a business doing braids and other hairstyles in her neighborhood.

“I stopped seeing myself through the lens of the European traditional beauty standards and started seeing myself through the lens that I created,” Amofa wrote.

“Criticism will persist, but it loses its power when you know there’s a crown on your head!”

Ma reported from Portland, Oregon.

The Associated Press’ education coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org .