What Is Academic Writing? | Dos and Don'ts for Students

Transition words are crucial for a well-written college essay. They help to establish the logical flow of ideas and connect all parts of your story.

One good transition word is usually enough to join two sentences into one paragraph. Too many transitions in the same sentence or paragraph make college essay writing service sound choppy and can confuse your reader, especially if you switch from present tense to past tense or active voice to passive voice within a single passage without using other transitional devices such as conjunctions (and, but, or).

There are many kinds of transition words that you can use:

- Use words like in order to, since, for example, as a result, however or nevertheless when you want to connect two ideas that are almost alike.

- Use words and phrases such as firstly, secondly, next and finally when you want to list the main points of your essay.

- Use forms of the verb "to be" plus other verbs like appear, seem or become if you want to emphasize an idea.

If your college essay is too long because it doesn't have enough transitions between paragraphs or sentences then all you need is make just one edit – add more transition words! But do not overdo it by using more than two per sentence. That will only hurt your college application and will make your essay partly incomprehensible to the reader.

You can find many lists of transition words on the internet but we recommend you to choose those that fit your writing style for your college essay. In case you do not know how to use them, just make a short list with all possible transition words and then start reading your draft sentence by sentence and try to figure out which word could be more appropriate in each situation.

Do’s of Using Transition Words:

- Always try to use transitions within the same sentence.

- Never mix different tenses within a single paragraph. That will make your essay writing service sound very odd and will be quite confusing for your reader and admissions officer who will think that you are not fluent in English.

Don’ts of Using Transition Words:

- Do not overuse transition words – 2 max per sentence!

- Do not overuse short words like ‘and’, ‘but’. Use longer phrases instead: Furthermore, Instead, Besides or Moreover.

Title Keywords: transition word college essay do's don'ts logical flow connecting parts paragraphs paragraphs paragraphs list main points sentences sentences sentences tense passive voice active voice past present future verbs active voice passive voice short words long phrases

Article Resource: Do transition words make a difference in college essay?

College Essay Transition Words - Sample Essays

Sample 1: I am not a four-year college type, but that does not mean the institution doesn't have value for me. In fact, as an alternative to more traditional higher education institutions, two-year schools can be extremely beneficial. Although I do not feel it is fair to base my judgement on such limited experience, based on talking with friends and family, it seems like lower expectations are placed upon students who attend community colleges. Students attending junior colleges tend to get less ridicule for making mistakes and being human (which leads to better writing). Additionally, you will be surrounded by a student body that is just like yourself. Meaning, you will never be the only person in your class with an accent or who has not grown up in the town they are attending college at. The atmosphere surrounding community colleges breeds togetherness and acceptance which can serve to help new students adjust to campus life. In addition, junior colleges tend to hold more clubs and events than their four-year counterparts. This means there is a greater opportunity for students to get involved on campus beyond working part time jobs at fast food restaurants (I know first hand).

Don’ts of Using Transition Words :

- Don't use more than two transition words per sentence.

- Don't overuse short transition words like: and, but, so, yet or also.

Title Keywords: Transition from community college to a four-year institution - Sample Essays College life Community college Junior colleges Adjustment Writing mistakes Acceptance Mistakes

Sample 2: At the start of this school year, I made an important decision which would change my career path entirely. Instead of pursuing one of my passions—music—I decided to get the education necessary to pursue a career in medicine. It was not an easy decision for me; music has played an integral role in my life since I was young, and there are numerous moments during which I wish it was the career path I had chosen. But after careful consideration and many long discussions with friends, family, and counselors, I came to the conclusion that a career in medicine is what makes sense for me. In order to understand why this decision has made so much sense for me, best essay writing service have to be familiar with who I am as a person. For example, there are already certain traits about my personality which make me ideal candidate for medical school: my intense curiosity about the world around me; my desire to help others (which shows itself through charity work); and above all else my ability to empathize with those around me.