Is my BA thesis a good material for my Writing Sample?

[DanielPgz]

I've been wondering if excerpts from my BA thesis would be sufficient and/or desirable to cover the Writing Samples requirement for an MA application. What do you think?

[ChuckCL]

That's what most people (including myself) use for the writing sample, yes. 

[DanielPgz]

You don't add anything else?

[ChuckCL]

In my particular situation, no -- most of the programs I applied to had a 20-page limit, so I had to cut my thesis down. I chose the chapter that best represented my research (in terms of theoretical approach, bibliography, writing, etc.), and then cut in a section of my last chapter, because I wanted to show that I also work with film (instead of just written texts). So the hard part was actually choosing what part of my thesis to submit.

 

But I know a lot of people who submitted their BA theses exactly as-is, and they had successful applications. 

[sofiefatale]

I definitely just used my BA thesis! It was the exact page requirement for most of my schools though, so it was a no-brainer for me, but excerpts should be totally fine and expected as well.

[PeakPerformance]

It depends on whether the part you're sending works well as a separate piece and demonstrates your ability to produce original research. Too often students send as a writing sample a chapter that merely recounts others' arguments/theories but that doesn't "add" anything to the conversation.