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A large part of the Gymnasium entrance exam is the essay. This ultimately accounts for ¼ of the overall grade. That's why it's important to understand how to write a good essay in order to score high marks in this section. We'll introduce you to the topic and give you tips for writing a successful essay at the Gymnasium entrance exam for long-term Gymnasium.
Duration You have 60 minutes.
Length You should write about 1.5-2 pages.
What types of essays are there in the Gymnasium exam?
- Narrative You act as the narrator and develop a story with a clear structure. This means you write a beginning, a middle, and an end. The aim is to create suspense and interesting characters. The story should follow a common thread.
- Description You describe people, places or events in as much detail as possible. The aim is to give the reader a vivid and accurate picture by appealing to different senses. You use language that is rich in adjectives. There are different types of descriptions: Description of a people, animals, objects, processes/events, the environment, snd routes.
- Report This essay is similar to a newspaper article or a non-fiction book. You provide factual and objective information about an event or topic without expressing your personal opinion or judgment.
- Letter The letter follows a clear structure with a salutation, main body, and conclusion, with the tone varying depending on the recipient. This means that if you have a personal relationship with the recipient, the letter will be written differently than if you are writing a formal letter. For example, the salutation will vary (from “Dear Sister” to “Dear Ms. Elster”).
Typical essay topics for the Gymnasium entrance exam
To give you an idea of what the tasks will be like, we have listed some typical essay topics here. These tasks are taken from the 2023 Zurich long-term Gymnasium exam:
Topic 1
1. Confusingly similar
Two identical objects were mixed up. Tell us how this mix-up happened and what the consequences were. The story should be something that could happen in our world.
Take over the title. Tell the story in the past tense.
Topic 2
2. “That was a complete waste of money!”
Tell a story in which a person says or thinks the following sentence: “That was a complete waste of money!” The story must make it clear why money was spent on something and why it was regretted afterwards.
Take over the title. Tell the story in the past tense.
Topic 3
3. …
When a woman came home from work, she found a wild boar on the sofa in her living room. Reports for a newspaper about how this situation came about and what happened next.
Decide on the place and time of the event yourself. Report in the past tense and not in the first person.
Tips for preparing for the essay
- Read the topic carefully. Pay close attention to the task.
- Try to make a rough outline on the topic. What will you write in the introduction? In the main part? In the conclusion?
- Write practice essays as often as possible and have them read and corrected by others.
- Make a learning plan on the subject of essays. Get to know each individual type of text and practise with quizzes and tasks.
You can learn this with our German course for the entrance to the long-term Gymnasium. In this course, you will learn from scratch how essays are structured, which types of texts need to be written and how, what a paragraph is, and where the pitfalls of essays lie. You will also learn all the important grammar and theory that you will need to apply in the language exam.
Tips for a good essay
- Divide your essay into an introduction, main body, and conclusion: An essay always consists of an introduction that introduces the topic, a main body that elaborates on the topic in detail, and a conclusion that summarizes and rounds off the topic.
- Make meaningful paragraphs and transitions: Each paragraph should contain a clear thought. Use transitions and connecting words to ensure a flowing text.
- Create a “common thread”: The text should have a logical connection throughout, with each section building on the previous one in a meaningful way without straying from the topic.
- Pay attention to chronological or logical sequences: In a narrative, the text often follows a chronological sequence, while reports and descriptions follow logical structures (e.g., from general to specific).
- Stick to the text type: Make sure you adhere to the characteristics of the respective text type—narratives are story-like and exciting, reports are factual and objective.
Sample essay for the Gymnasium entrance exam
We have written a sample essay on topic 1:
Sometimes it's the smallest lapses in concentration that can have major consequences. A brief distraction, reaching for the wrong bag – and suddenly your day takes an unexpected turn. That's what happened to Jonas, a 28-year-old IT consultant from Zurich, who experienced a momentous mix-up on what seemed like a perfectly normal morning. Two identical-looking bags were swapped, a minor detail, you might think, but the consequences were anything but harmless.
It began like any other workday. Jonas left his third-floor apartment while reading an email on his smartphone. In the hallway outside the door, two black laptop bags were sitting on the dresser—one of them was his. He didn't notice that his neighbor, Ms. Meier, a lawyer, had just put her bag there. Without looking too closely, Jonas grabbed what he thought was his bag and hurried to the tram. When he arrived at the office, he wanted to start his presentation right away. However, when he opened the bag, he paused. Instead of his laptop, he found legal literature, an appointment calendar, and documents labeled “Confidential – Meier v. City of Zurich.” At first, he thought he had packed the wrong bag, but a quick glance at the embroidered name tag left no doubt: this bag belonged to Ms. Meier.
Jonas began to panic. The documents were obviously important and highly confidential. At the same time, his own bag, containing his laptop and work files, had disappeared. He immediately called Ms. Meier, whose number he fortunately had from the property management company. The lawyer was initially surprised, then shocked. She hadn't noticed the mistake herself and was on her way to a court appointment. After a quick meeting at the train station, they exchanged bags. Ms. Meier arrived at the court ten minutes late but was still able to make her appointment. Jonas, on the other hand, got off lightly: his work was saved and his laptop was undamaged. Nevertheless, he felt how much the situation had upset him.
This little mix-up had a big impact on Jonas: it opened his eyes to the importance of mindfulness in everyday life. From then on, he paid closer attention to details, not just with bags, but also with decisions, encounters, and processes. The incident remained a reminder to him that even if two things look confusingly similar, their contents can be worlds apart.
Why is this text good?
- The text has a clear structure (introduction, main part, conclusion).
- The essay has a clear thread running through it, because each action builds on the previous one:
Jonas confuses the bag → realizes this in the office → contacts Ms. Meier → exchange → consequence. - The story is believable and realistic: an apartment building, identical bags, a mix-up due to carelessness—these things can happen in everyday life. The characters' reactions also seem realistic: first confusion, then concern, then a quick solution.
- The text is written in the past tense, as required in the task.
- There are vivid descriptions that stimulate the imagination without being exaggerated or cheesy.
- This makes the story not only entertaining, but also educational, which is often rated positively in narrative essays.
Conclusion
A good essay is more than just a creative idea; it thrives on a clear structure, linguistic precision, and the ability to convey a story or topic in an understandable and exciting way. This blog article clearly shows what is important in the Gymnasium entrance exam: confident mastery of the different types of essays, adherence to formal requirements and targeted practice with typical tasks.
Concrete tips for preparation and a clear example illustrate how to approach writing systematically in order to achieve the highest possible score in the exam. If you follow these tips and practice regularly, you will be well equipped to impress in the essay section of the Gymnasium entrance exam.
