[b]Lesson Three: Essay Structures [b][b]There are a number of different types of structures your essay can take. [b]The most common structures are discussed in this section. Please select a [b]link below or to the lt for examples and strategies of various essay [b]structures. [b][b]1. Standard Structure [b]The standard structure is the most common and is recommended for use in [b]almost any circumstance. The general application of the standard structure [b]is to introduce your themes and main points in the introduction, use the [b]body of the text to supply a single supporting point per paragraph, and [b]then reiterate your main points or draw a new conclusion in the last. The [b]following is an example of a standard structure used by this applicant* who [b]writes of her experience as a political activist: [b]Paragraph 1 (Introduction) [b]Leading Sentence: "I am an activist with a commitment to fighting for [b]progressive causes through legislation, policy, and grassroots organizing." [b]Introduces Theme: She has been active in many political projects, but her [b]main focus has been as an advocate for sexuality education and health care. [b]States Intent: "In this statement I will explain how I gained expertise in [b]this field through both academic and professional work from 1988 to the [b]present." [b]Paragraph 2 [b]Transition/Topic Sentence: "At [Ivy League University] I began my [b]commitment to reproductive health." [b]Point and Evidence: She was committed to reproductive health issues [b]academically, as evidenced by her major in women's studies and legal [b]issues, her study on the impact of the abortion pill on the National Health [b]Service, and her thesis on the legal treatment of pregnant substance [b]abusers. [b]Paragraph 3 [b]Transition/Topic Sentence: "While I was a student, I gained professional [b]experience as a birth control counselor at the University health clinic." [b]Point and Evidence: She was committed to reproductive health issues in her [b]extracurricular activities as well, both as a counselor and as a Planned [b]Parenthood educator. [b]Paragraph 4 [b]Transition/Topic Sentence: "When I moved to a small desert town in the [b]Western United States, I volunteered for a democratic congressional [b]campaign, where I bried the candidate on abortion rights and sexuality [b]issues in health care rorm." [b]Point and Evidence: Her first job experience involved health care activism, [b]as the Director of Public Affairs at Planned Parenthood. [b]Paragraph 5 [b]Transition/Topic Sentence: "I quickly learned that this small town was far [b]more conservative than my university's eastern college community." [b]Point and Evidence: She dealt with opposition to her forts by publishing [b]articles and op-ed pieces based on her research of local right wing [b]activists. [b]Paragraph 6 [b]Transition/Topic Sentence: "When my State Senator asked me to manage his [b]reelection campaign, I eagerly accepted since I knew he had worked hard in [b]support of health care and civil rights." [b]Point and Evidence: She learned valuable lessons by creating fective [b]political messages, managing volunteers, and so on. [b]Paragraph 7 [b]Transition/Topic Sentence: "I had hoped to work in the state capitol after [b]the campaign, and I am now working for a state level health care advocacy [b]organization which employs a lobbyist and coordinates grassroots strategy." [b]Point and Evidence: She continues her dedication to health care and [b]politics in her current position by researching legislation, helping the [b]director, etc. [b]Paragraph 8 (Conclusion) [b]Transition/Topic Sentence: "While I believe that I have developed both [b]academic and professional expertise in reproductive health policy, health [b]care rorm, and political organizing, I would like to acquire the skills [b]and power to make a bigger difference." [b]Concluding Summary: The writer reiterates the main points and gives a tie- [b]in with her motivation to attend law school and her goals after graduation. [b]* Sample Essay: Activist [b]Note: This essay appears unedited for instructional purposes. Essays edited [b]by 51Edit.com are substantially improved. [b]I am an activist with a commitment to fighting for progressive causes [b]through legislation, policy, and grassroots organizing. While I have [b]participated in many varied projects from editing a sexuality education [b]curriculum to campaigning for gay rights as a local boardmember of [the [b]statewide gay rights organization], I am most concerned with reproductive [b]health issues. In this statement I will explain how I gained expertise in [b]this field through both academic and professional work from 1988 to the [b]present. Through this work I have acquired the intellectual foundation and [b]the concrete experience to be an fective advocate for citizens' right to [b]sexuality education and health care. [b]At [school] I began my commitment to reproductive health. I earned the [b]right to design my own major in women's studies and legal issues, for which [b]I took courses in feminism and wrote on the developing legal precedent [b]recognizing fetal rights. During my year at [school] I studied the impact [b]the abortion pill RU 486 might have on the National Health Service, [b]researched the evolving debate about the drug in the European press, and [b]presented my findings at a Women's Studies Department seminar upon my [b]return to the U.S. In my senior thesis on the legal treatment of pregnant [b]substance abusers, I addressed the difficulties associated with prosecuting [b]these women and proposed alternative approaches. [b]While I was a student, I gained professional experience as a birth control [b]counselor at the University health clinic. I also worked as a Planned [b]Parenthood educator, for which I edited a sexuality education curriculum [b]and designed and taught community programs on contraception, AIDS, puberty, [b]and sexual abuse prevention. [b]When I moved to a small desert town in the Western United States, I [b]volunteered for a democratic congressional campaign, where I bried the [b]candidate on abortion rights and sexuality issues in health care rorm. I [b]met the executive director of the regional Planned Parenthood, and [b]convinced her to hire me as the agency's first Director of Public Affairs. [b]I coordinated grassroots lobbying forts on pending legislation including [b]the state's health care rorm bill, clinic access bill, and anti-gay [b]rights legislation. [b]I quickly learned that this small town was far more conservative than my [b]university's eastern college community. Many of Planned Parenthood's [b]forts to promote sexuality education were thwarted. I decided to discover [b]who opposed the agency and what their tactics were. My research uncovered a [b]network of local activists, some of whom had connections to state and [b]nation-wide Conservative organizations. I attended many meetings and [b]followed public right-wing activity such as the campaign to teach [b]creationism in our local schools. I published my findings in an op-ed piece [b]for our local paper, and as a front page article for a west-coast human [b]rights newsletter. I have enclosed copies of these publications for you. [b]When my State Senator asked me to manage his reelection campaign, I eagerly [b]accepted since I knew he had worked hard in support of health care and [b]civil rights. The position also offered me greater professional [b]responsibility. Even though we lost the election, the campaign was an [b]invaluable lesson in creating an fective political message, managing [b]hundreds of volunteers, working in coalition with other campaigns, [b]designing advertising, and fundraising. [b]I had hoped to work in the state capitol after the campaign, and I am now [b]working for a state level health care advocacy organization which employs a [b]lobbyist and coordinates grassroots strategy. In my new position I am [b]researching legislation, helping the director design lobbying strategies, [b]and keeping affiliated organizations throughout the state informed about [b]evolving policy and bills. [b]While I believe that I have developed both academic and professional [b]expertise in reproductive health policy, health care rorm, and political [b]organizing, I would like to acquire the skills and power to make a bigger [b]difference. Law school would provide me with the technical skills and [b]professional influence to be more fective in confronting right-wing [b]litigation and initiatives and in designing and advocating for progressive [b]social policy. After law school, I envision working for a non-profit [b]organization such as the ACLU Reproductive Freedom Project, or working in [b]government drafting and analyzing reproductive health policy and [b]legislation. [b]2. Issue Analysis [b]Not everyone chooses the traditional standard structure for a personal [b]statement. Some writers choose to focus their essays on the analysis of an [b]issue or argument as the writer of this essay** did. She writes about the [b]fects of development in Latin America, or more specifically, on women [b]factory workers. Notice how her structure highlights the most crucial [b]aspects of what she must accomplish: 1) she makes the issue personal, 2) [b]she states her argument clearly using specific evidence to back it up, 3) [b]she discusses both sides of the issue, 4) she shows how she has been active [b]in promoting the issue in the real world, and, most importantly, 5) she [b]relates her analysis of the issue to her motivation to attend law school. [b]Paragraph 1 (Introduction) [b]Leading sentence: "After college I served for two and a half years in [b]Honduras with the U.S. Peace Corps." [b]Introduces theme: She introduces the theme of development in Latin America [b]and makes it personal by relating it to her experience in Honduras. [b]States focus: "I found potential for changing some of the larger problems [b]of development in a surprising arena, maquilardoras, or textile factories." [b]Paragraph 2 [b]Transition/Topic Sentence: "While in Honduras I talked to many women who [b]worked in maquilardoras." [b]Point and Evidence: She introduces her point of view that the factories are [b]not as negative as is portrayed in academic teaching. She supports this [b]with evidence taken from her first-hand experience in Honduras. [b]Paragraph 3 [b]Transition/Topic Sentence: "The factory jobs had other positive side [b]fects." [b]Point and Evidence: She provides more solid evidence for her argument by [b]citing the workers' higher salaries and better education. [b]Paragraph 4 [b]Transition/Topic Sentence: "How to balance these positive factors with the [b]often exploitative and abusive methods of the factory managers, or how to [b]control the problems of rural-urban migration are questions I am still [b]investigating." [b]Point and Evidence: She steps back to examine other sides of the argument, [b]but ends by restating her position. [b]Paragraph 5 [b]Transition/Topic Sentence: "With the new U.S. policy focus on trade with [b]Latin America and with more and more businesses using labor abroad, labor [b]conditions in maquiladoras will be a growing human rights issue." [b]Point and Evidence: She addresses the relevance of the issue to the future, [b]and gives evidence of actions she has taken to promote national discussion [b]and exposure of the issue. [b]Paragraph 6 (Conclusion) [b]Transition/Topic Sentence: "A law degree would give me a tool to continue [b]to work fectively and realistically on this and other issues that [b]contribute to the well-being of people affected by U.S. policies and [b]investments in Latin America." [b]Point: She relates her involvement and discussion of this issue to her [b]motivation to attend law school. [b]* Sample Essay: Activist [b]Note: This essay appears unedited for instructional purposes. Essays edited [b]by 51Edit.com are substantially improved. [b]After college I served for two and a half years in Honduras with the U.S. [b]Peace Corps. During my time there I worked on several development projects. [b]My experiences lt me with mixed feelings about development and what is [b]realistically achievable. Projects often proved only thin band-aids against [b]larger endemic problems. I found potential for changing some of the larger [b]problems of development in a surprising arena, maquiladoras, or textile [b]factories. [b]While in Honduras, I talked to many women who worked in maquiladoras. [b]Unlike what I had read in classes, these women were happy to have their [b]jobs and suffered no health problems or abuse. They earned more money [b]working in the factories in the cities than picking coffee in the [b]mountains. Women could leave their homes and find work without having to [b]depend on husbands or families to survive. [b]The factory jobs had other positive side fects. I saw wealthy families [b]driving to the countryside to find maids because all the city maids quit to [b]work in the factories where they earned more. Wages for domestic workers [b]had already risen and these families were trying to avoid paying an even [b]higher salary. Also, factories required a sixth grade degree. This, if [b]nothing else, could motivate an illiterate farmer to keep his daughters in [b]school. [b]How to balance these positive factors with the often exploitative and [b]abusive methods of the factory managers, or how to control the problems of [b]rural-urban migration are questions I am still investigating. However, [b]economic opportunities outside of the home, such as those in maquiladoras, [b]could play a key role in changing traditional attitudes that prevent women [b]from developing and using their full potential. [b]With the new U.S. policy focus on trade with Latin America and with more [b]and more businesses using labor abroad, labor conditions in maquiladoras [b]will be a growing human rights issue. At the Washington Office on Latin [b]America (WOLA), I have been able to write letters to the USTR pushing for [b]the continued review of the Generalized System of Prerences in Guatemala, [b]to the President of El Salvador to encourage the enforcement of their labor [b]codes, and lobbied for a labor petitioning amendment to the Caribbean Basin [b]Trade Security Act. [b]A law degree would give me a tool to continue to work fectively and [b]realistically on this and other issues that contribute to the well-being of [b]people affected by U.S. policies and investments in Latin America. [b]
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