What Is the Most Written About Brand In College Essays?

College essays are outstanding mediums for students to express their arguments, thoughts, dreams, and ideas. They exceptionally compel them to share their personal stories and academic goals. However, they are sometimes asked to discuss how certain brands have influenced their lives. Various global brands are written about in essays, which raises an interesting question: “What is the most written about brand in college essays?”. 

This blog aims to answer this question by discussing the reasons for writing brands in college essays, the most written-about brand, and the essential tips for writing a brand in a college essay. 

Why Are Brands Written in College Essays?

A brand refers to a combination of words, symbols, designs, and associations that identify a product or service and make it distinct from competitors. Brands are most likely known by students and teachers. However, among 500,000 brands in the world, one is written about most in academic writing. 

Before we get into what is the most written about brand in college essays, let’s understand why these brands are widely mentioned. Brands seemingly showcase manufactured products and services. However, they can represent more than those products. For instance, they can reflect: 

• Identity and values
• Aspirations and goals
• Personal stories 
• Social and cultural connections

These reasons significantly compel students to write college essays with brands. For example, a student can write an essay about how building an app for Apple devices inspired their love for technology. Moreover, an essay about volunteering with a Google-sponsored program leading to the realisation of their passion for education. 

Essays about brands aren’t just reviews; in fact, they’re stories of impact. 

The Most Written About Brand in College Essays

Curious to know what the most written-about brand is in college essays? Well, after reviewing hundreds of reports from college consultants, admission forums, and educational surveys, one name comes up again and again, which is none other than mighty Apple. 

Apple inspires people to “Think Different”. 

Yes! Apple is the most written-about brand in college essays. Due to its dense over 1 billion users, Apple is not only widely discussed but also the most frequently mentioned brand. 

The reason for such a mark is not overnight. In fact, Apple has also experienced its share of highs and lows. From facing various challenges in the 1970s-1980s to returning to profitability in the 1990s, Apple has become the first trillion-dollar company in the tech landscape. 

Due to such a remarkable journey, Apple is equipped with not only millions but billions of words of mouth, making it prominent in the academic world. 

Why is Apple mentioned most in college essays?

If you further want to explore why Apple is mostly mentioned in college essays, here are some key reasons: 

• Ubiquity: Apple has spread everywhere, and its products have become part of our daily lives. Almost every student owns an iPhone, iPad, or MacBook. 

• Innovation: Colleges mostly value qualities associated with Apple, such as creativity, innovation, and leadership. 

• Design and Simplicity: Apple inspires creative thinking in students because of its minimalist design and user-friendly approach. 

• Entrepreneurial Dreams: Apple also inspires students to start their businesses because its co-founder, Steve Jobs, is a symbol of visionary entrepreneurship. Meanwhile, get business assignment help. 
• Accessibility: Apple supports student creativity through its tools and offers education programs like “Every Can Code”. 

Common Themes in Apple-Based College Essays

Here are the common themes that are included in Apple-based college essays: 

• Inspiration from Steve Jobs

One of the most common themes in essays about Apple is the inspiration from Steve Jobs. Essays can begin with a quote from Jobs or a personal story inspired by his 2005 Stanford Commencement speech. 

Moreover, students also learn a great deal from Jobs’ story of dropping out of college and pursuing his vision, to their own unconventional paths. 

For example, “When Steve Jobs said, ‘You can’t collect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards’, then I realised my love for technology started earlier than I thought”. 

• Apple as a tool for creation

Another prevalent theme in college essays is using Apple to create particular things. Students can mention how Apple helped them carry out certain activities that resulted in a boost in their side hustles or careers. 

For instance, they can mention how they used iMovie to edit their first film, a MacBook to design a website, Xcode to develop an app, and GarageBand to create music. These stores exponentially showcase initiative and passion. 

For example, “When I was 14 years old, I managed to build my first app using Swift Playgrounds on my iPad. It was buggy, but it worked. That episode led me to realise that I must study computer science”. 

• Apple for social impact

Apple also plays a significant role in social impact. For instance, students can write in their college essays about using Apple technology to help others, such as teaching senior citizens to use FaceTime or creating a podcast to spread awareness. 

This significantly demonstrates how Apple can be used to make society a better place. Now, senior citizens can call their family, friends, and partners without any interruption, and awareness can help people be ready to deal with ongoing and upcoming issues. Here is an example:

“During COVID-19, I taught elderly members in my community how to use iPads so they could connect with their family. This is how technology became a bridge for loneliness, and I became its builder”. 

An Example of Brand Written in a College Essay

Most tech colleges and universities require students to submit well-written essays along with their admission applications. These essays must consist of brands that inspire them to pursue the disciplines they’re applying to. Admission committees and counsellors are curious to understand students’ goals and objectives, enabling them to evaluate which students to admit and which not. 

Here is a summary of an essay written by a real student who was praised by administrators and secured admission: 

Here are the reasons why this essay performed well:

• It represents the personal story. 
• It showcases initiative. 
• It connects to future goals. 

Meanwhile, you can explore different essay samples and get inspired. 

How to Write About a Brand in Your College Essay?

Above, we have discussed an essay with brand mention. Now, we’re going to highlight the essential tips for writing a college essay while writing about a specific brand. These tips will significantly help you make your essay unique, compelling, and stand out. So, explore and understand these tips thoroughly: 

Tip 1: Make it personal

If you’re planning to mention a brand in your college essay, the first thing you must consider is that you don’t just admire the brand. Discuss how the brand led you to do something. For instance, don’t just positively review Apple or Tesla, share what you did because of it. 

Here are the different statements that can help you understand better:

“I admire Apple” = Weak

“I learnt Swift all by myself after watching WWDC videos on Apple’s developer page” = Strong

Tip 2: Focus on the outcome 

The next important tip is to focus on the outcome. Instead of meaninglessly explaining the brand’s strength and impact, share what the brand helped you do. Moreover, elaborate whether the brand helped you learn something, build something, or change someone’s life. 

This will significantly demonstrate the role of the brand in your life, instead of a necessity or luxury. 

Tip 3: Connect to your values

Aligning a specific brand with your values is also crucial when writing about it in a college essay. For instance, if you love Nike, you must clarify whether you love it because it is about sports or because of its tagline, “Just Do It”, emphasising resilience, discipline, and mental strength. However, get sports science assignment help to get exceptional academic documents. 

Tip 4: Avoid worshipping the brand

Another important thing to keep in mind is that you’re not admiring the brand itself. You’re admiring the impact that it had on your life and inspired you to do something unique and meaningful. So, treat it in that way. 

Avoid worshipping the brand by explaining its specs and qualities over and over, as you’re writing an academic paper, not a commercial copy. 

Tip 5: End with your vision

The last tip is to tie your story together and end it with your future vision and goals. As you have explained how you got inspired to do something because of the brand, now you must elaborate on where this journey is taking you, i.e., what your future is going to be? Or what does your future hold? 

Are There Other Frequently Mentioned Brands?

Above, we have thoroughly discussed the answer to “What is the most discussed about brand in college essays?. Apple is at the top of the list; however, other brands also appear frequently in college essays. Here are those brands and why they are written about: 

What Admission Officers Think About Brand Mentions?

Many students worry about writing their college essays with brand mentions. They get confused about whether they would write them as too much of an advertisement. Well, understanding the stances of admission officers, students can boost their writing and make a huge difference. Here’s what most admission officers and counsellors say:

• When writing a college essay, add your personal connection to the brand. 
• Show your growth, learning, or change influenced by the brand. 
• Instead of using the brand as the centre of the story, use it as a tool or symbol. 

Here is what is strictly prohibited by admission officers:

• Don’t sound like a fanboy or fangirl when mentioning a brand. 
• Avoid making the college essay a detailed product review. 
• Don’t make the story about the brand instead of about yourself. 

However, you can use editing and improvement services if you want to improve your college essay. 

Struggling to Write a Brand in Your College Essay?

Writing about a particular brand in college essays can be challenging. Not every student is knowledgeable or skilled enough to work on their college essay without any prior experience. However, with the assistance of professional essay writing services, they can overcome every challenge. This will not only help them get a high-quality essay but also impress every admission committee, counsellor, and officer. 

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