By Chan Mon/reporter

It is important to proofread essays when applying for scholarships before transferring, SE Campus students were told Sept. 13.

A panel of transfer admission coordinators from Texas Christian University, Southern Methodist University, Texas Tech and Texas A&M presented College Essays 101 as part of Fall Learning Skills Week.

“Demonstrate in your essay what is your real knowledge, your needs, your bad grades and what you want to learn,” said David De Sousa, senior academic adviser at A&M.

All four universities have policies that application essays are read before approving scholarships and grants.

Abbi Pfister-Soria, SMU’s transfer admission coordinator, cautioned students not to submit essays that have not been proofread.

“If it’s poorly written,” she said, “it will affect how we process the application for scholarships.”

Many students submit essays with errors, which puts them at a disadvantage for scholarships, she said.

Students were told to be concise and avoid seeming immature, negative, superficial, phony or disrespectful.

“At least one person from the campus needs to read [the essay] before you submit it,” said Casey Ramos, SE academic advisor.

Brandi Nichols, SE advisor who coordinated the event, praised the panel.

“I really liked them,” she said. “It is awesome for transfer students because we have competitive schools coming here. They [the panelists] bring us a lot of opportunities that will benefit our students.”