The purpose of this section is not to delineate one structural approach that will work for everyone’s individual essays, but rather to discuss principles of organization that should guide you in constructing your argument. In previous sections, we have cautioned that the criteria we set forth could not be used as steps to be followed, because there was so much overlap and interdependence. Here your task grows even more challenging, because some of the principles can be mutually exclusive, and you may have to decide between them to determine which approach best suits your material.

Hierarchy of Evidence

Because your reader will be reading quickly and looking for the main points, it is often a good idea to start with your strongest evidence. You may even highlight your most interesting experience in the introduction.

One successful applicant applicant related his international experience in Florence , Italy , when he first came face-to-face with Michelangelo’s statue of “David.” The applicant immediately lets the reader know that his international experiences have had a great influence upon his life: “My childhood in Munich , Germany , and my travels throughout the continent have shaped me in countless ways.” Employing precise and vivid language to describe the statue, as well as his experience, the writer creates a moving piece from the start.  The rest of the essay then works to support the primary claim made in the opening paragraph.

This approach might invite a chronological order, though chronology should not be reason in itself to organize material in a particular manner (see the below section on Narratives). The guiding principle here is to structure your evidence in a way that demonstrates your growth, from a general initial curiosity to a current definite passion, or from an early aptitude to a refined set of skills. It differs from the Hierarchy of Evidence approach because your strongest point might come at the end, but its strength lies precisely in the sense of culmination that it creates.

One successful applicant was asked to attach a photograph of something important to her and explain its significance. She chose a picture of a coffee mug from Delany’s and used this as a device to evince her maturation and personal growth. Instead of stating up front who she is today and then backtracking to an exposition of how past events have shaped her, she uses a chronological approach tempered by an introduction that foreshadows the theme to be explored: “‘There's got to be more to life than weekend coffee at Delany's,’ I remember saying out loud.” The growth she describes is not merely a matter of accumulating one experience after another, but rather a process of enrichment. She relates her childhood propensities (“As far back as I can recall, I have tasted life with gusto and an insatiable curiosity.”) before focusing on her current personality traits (“Nowadays, I channel my childhood exuberance into doing what I love most: venturing out into the world.”). The maturation is most poignant because she employs specific examples to support her claims.

The writer moves effectively from experience to experience; the result does not feel like a list or a haphazard construction, but rather a logically flowing piece. Moreover, the applicant’s final points have more force because we have witnessed a process of growth: “It's probably too late for me to become a concert pianist or ballerina, and I may never become the family's first lawyer or doctor. Whatever I choose to pursue, I know that I will attack it with the same passion I had sharing those adventures with my brother.”

Dramatic Appeal

Not all essays will have potential in this area, but if you have undergone dramatic experiences, then you should set up your essay to reflect that. The most effective way to accomplish this is to use the introduction to sketch some kind of problem or question, and then use each subsequent paragraph to engage with that problem until a resolution is gradually reached.

One successful applicant set up a harrowing—yet undefined—problem in the first paragraph. The reader later learns that the problem is that the applicant’s father is battling cancer. The issue of cancer and its effects on families and children is a topic that should be executed with care and is one that weighs heavily on the reader’s mind throughout the course of the essay.

The middle of the exposition is composed of the relation of how the writer was affected by his father’s illness (“My bad grades, in turn, lowered my confidence even further, for my dad had always stressed academics quite heavily--but after seeing my grades, I felt like I had failed my father.”). The success of the essay lies in this very fact that instead of simply relating his father’s painful battle with the disease, the writer personalizes the events for himself—how they affected him and how he has grown from them: “When I realized that by following his example I could surmount any obstacles, I made up my mind. I would face the world "brave and hard," and I would cast off the anxiety, which constrained my personality from growing.” Although this statement seems as if it would serve as a successful conclusion, the writer goes on to develop his theme further, providing precise examples on how he used this adversity to motivate himself to improve. The conclusion contains the most succinct thematic statement that serves to unify the entire piece: “His struggle with colon cancer became a model for my own struggle to improve myself.”

At face value, the chronological approach seems great for all parties involved. The writer has the easy job of reconstructing his personal history precisely as it happened; the reader can follow the resulting piece with little effort. It's very possible that a chronological essay will turn out to be ideal for your material if your life unfolded in an order that complements your themes, but you should not feel bound to tell your story in the order in which it happened. Here are some specific pitfalls of which you should be aware:

1. You may be including too much: If you start with "I was born on…" and proceed to recite your life's history, you've probably included a great deal of unnecessary information.

2. Your essay might be boring and monotonous: The most enjoyable essays have a sense of drama, which usually requires a more creative structure. Perhaps the introductory paragraph sets up some problem, and the subsequent paragraphs detail attempts to solve that problem. On the other hand, a chronological structure seems inherently list-like.

3. You show less thought and effort: It's obvious to the reader when an essay has been crafted with care and insight. Chronological essays might seem too effortless if there's no authorial imprint.

4. You separate naturally related points: A thematically structured essay puts related points together and allows them to build upon each other. Unless your life developed along thematic lines, a chronological essay would sacrifice the synergy that juxtaposing these points would create.

That said, a narrative can be the heart of your essay, if you handle it effectively. Below are some tips on how to structure a narrative essay.

1.  The Origin: The most common approach is to start from the beginning. Everyone has a story to tell about his or her early interests in medicine, law, etc. This tactic can be an effective way to grab the reader’s attention and offer insight into your fundamental attraction to the field. You should be aware, however, of two concerns: a) it has been done many times before, and if your basic idea is about “realizing the power of medicine” or "learning to face challenges," then you will not stand out; b) most childhood stories revolve around passive observation and therefore offer limited insight into your character and abilities. Despite these concerns, there is still much potential in this approach if you have a compelling, original story to tell—and subsequent experiences that present you in a more active role.

2.  The Flash Forward: Sometimes your essay’s main focus will be showing the progression or growth of your interests and abilities. That does not mean, however, that your essay must start from the beginning. Often it can be effective to open with a more recent episode to accomplish three purposes: a) establish a clear context for the rest of the material; b) demonstrate a strong interest in a certain field from the beginning of the essay; c) bring to the forefront a significant experience with depth you could not have achieved in an earlier stage. It is the last point that distinguishes this approach from the previous one. Using a Flash Forward opening enables you to highlight your strongest points, but then move backward to recount your growth process.

3.  The Bookend: Like the first two, this approach involves using a story in the introduction, but it leaves that story unfinished until the conclusion. For example, you might stop within the story to reflect on how you found yourself in that position. The body of the essay would then be a flashback to the experiences that led you to the place of the introduction, and the conclusion would return to complete the story. Another possibility would be a story that involved two distinct phases; the body of such an essay might discuss what you learned between the phases, and the conclusion would show how you applied what you learned to the second phase. Again, the precise approach depends on your content, but the Bookend method can be a very effective way to create a flowing, coherent piece.

4.  Within the Body: Regardless of whether you choose to open with a narrative, you may find opportunities and reasons to insert a story within the body of the essay. This is the approach for which you have to worry most about integration. Unlike introductory anecdotes, you should not jump right into these stories without preface. You will need at least one sentence to make the transition from the previous paragraph and briefly hint at what themes your story will illustrate. Actually beginning your story will usually require some introductory phrase, such as a more creative version of the following:

“One memorable incident involved…”

After the story, you should conclude with some significant insight to justify the story’s inclusion. This line should not be a mere repetition of the transition from the beginning of the paragraph, because you now should have more concrete details from which to draw more in-depth thematic conclusions.