Writing the AEO application is no easy task. From picking your best extracurriculars to determining how to write about your impact, there’s a lot to consider. We asked our writers in AEO1 to share their best application tips, since they wrote the application not too long ago! Here’s what they had to say:
Picking the perfect award
Faced with the seemingly daunting task of writing the essay, many applicants often overlook optional sections of the application, such as the awards section. If you haven’t won a Nobel Prize, you may find yourself wracking your brain to remember the awards you’ve received. It’s important to remember: awards take many forms. Many applicants might immediately turn to more traditional awards, such as academic achievements or those won at a competition. However, awards like ‘Employee of the Month’ and recognition for community service are just as valuable and demonstrate commitment and leadership. Like the essays, the awards section can be used to tell a story; it’s up to you to decide how you’d like to tell it.
Key points to include in your essay
What’s your favourite movie? While your answer may differ from someone else’s, there’s a common denominator in all great movies: a great story. Your AEO essays are no different, you should convey a story through your leadership experiences. To do this, one option is to use the STAR method (a very fitting name — you’re the STAR in your own movie, after all!)
The STAR method is:
Situation: Describe your club, any obstacles, etc. and explain the reason for your involvement.
Task: List your specific responsibilities.
Action: What did you do to complete your tasks? This should be the longest portion of your essay — be as specific as possible!
Result: Share the results of your actions and provide quantifiable evidence with numbers, if applicable.
Take your Time
Completing the AEO application can seem like a grueling task — the application asks you to summarize loaded extracurricular experiences using only 500 words. Fortunately, proactively writing the application can alleviate some of the difficulty that comes with the application. Giving yourself time aids in the writing process as it allows you to explore ideas without worrying about the deadline. Additionally, giving yourself time provides you with the opportunity to proactively edit, empowering you to make your next draft your best draft. Time can fly by in Grade 12, so giving yourself time to write ensures that you don’t lose a sense of it!
Stay True to Yourself
For your extracurricular essays, write about what you know, what you enjoy, and what is actually important to you. Don’t select the extracurriculars you write about for your essays based on what you think Ivey “wants” to see. As it stands, it is likely that many applicants may write about an extracurricular venture that is similar in nature to yours no matter what you may choose. What distinguishes an application is your own personal take on your experiences, and their relevance to you as a leader and the action you took. Write about the experiences that you personally have found to be the most meaningful, as your essays will automatically become more authentic, and you will have a greater wealth of material to work with.
Spike vs. Circle
Decide to be a spike or a circle. In the similar case of business, we can either be a generalist or a specialist; there is not an inherently better of the two, but rather a personal story of which one depicts your life more accurately. In most cases, you have spent your time in high school, either becoming good at one thing or trying out many things; tell that story. Did you spend hundreds of hours dedicated to perfecting your craft, or did you take the chance of exploration as a student? You can’t fake being one or the other, but you can unapologetically express your passion and paint a picture of why that makes you uniquely you.