Would Writing My FIT Essay in Present Tense or Third Person Be Too Much of a Risk?

Hello everyone. I hope this is the correct subforum to post this in. I am writing my essay for the Fashion Institute of Technology(FIT) for entrance into the Fashion Merchandising Management (FMM) program.

I am debating whether or not I should write my essay in third person or not. I am also debating whether or not I might try first person present tense. I am writing it in three "stages," each of which will be a span of years of my life. So stage one is elementary/intermediate. Stage two is middle/junior high development. Stage three is development during high school. It will be personal and include my thoughts, but I wanted it to sound similar to a study on a test subject... I guess what I'm saying is I wanted it to be from a sort of examiner's point of view? But it will not be completely impersonal. If I do first person present, it will be from my point of view, of course, and will not read like a study.

Is this too cheeky? FIT is a Fashion/Art college, but the program I'm applying to is a business program, though creativity is still needed. I'm thinking first person present tense might be cute, but third person might be pretentious.

The prompt is:
What makes you a perfect candidate for FIT? Why are you interested in the major you are applying to? This is also a chance to tell more about your experiences, activities, and accomplishments. Please use 750 words or less.

I'm still not sure if this is the way I'm going to write it, but I just wanted to see what others thought before spending some hours writing an essay that would be too risky.

Thanks.

May GOD'S Blessings and Favor be upon you, your family, and your situation forever.

I think that third person may be a bit too impersonal for the prompt asked.. They really want to get to know YOU, and though you can achieve that through third person, I think that first person is ideal.

If you think about it, the person reading your essay has been stuck for hours in a room, reading a million other essays. You should take risks, but if you do a "study on a test subject" it could have adverse effects. If you were to do first person, you could work in funny stories from your experiences that show the reader your personality, but you could comment on them from your perspective today, showing how you've matured.

The present tense... I think is always powerful. The third person perspective... maybe... yes, I think I would feel okay about it.


Great idea... I think I can imagine what you mean.

Even third person present could be great.

Just make sure you really attend to that question... what is your plan? That is what it is really asking. What are you trying to do in life that is meaningful and requires an education in this program? Show that you chose this program as the result of a lot of proactive reading about your chosen field.

:-)

One that seems like one more school assignment in an already crowded calendar, like the Annual Signet Classics Student Essay Contest that asks you to read The Moonstone by Wilkie Collins and answer a question such as: How do different female characters in The Moonstone embody or defy what we might think of as traditional Victorian or nineteenth-century values and expectations for women's behavior?