THE COLLEGE ADMISSIONS ESSAY: Dealing with the Word Count
Dealing with the word count for your college essay can be tricky. You’ve worked hard, love what you’ve done and don’t want to lose a single word. But College Admission Officers have a very good sense of when an essay is too long, so you really don’t have a choice. Some ways to handle your […]
WRITING THE COLLEGE ADMISSIONS ESSAY – Diary of a College Admissions Essay – Entry #5
October 10, 2012- Morning Got up early in a panic today, cannot believe I’m so behind on my essay. First the SAT’s (I know I did better!), then Homecoming (the SoLa football team won, I lost Dylan at the dance but that’s okay, the guy was out of control creepy and you know what I […]
The College Admissions Essay – WHAT TO DO IF YOU HATE TO WRITE (Part 2)
For those seniors who don’t love writing (yes, there may be a few), here are five more methods to make facing that empty screen less daunting. 1. Be comfortable with your subject. Make sure that you are enthused about writing this essay. 2. Prepare. Do as much pre-writing work as possible. Make sure you create […]
YOUR COLLEGE ADMISSIONS ESSAY: SIX WAYS TO CREATE A MEMORABLE CLOSING
The old show business expression goes, “Always leave them wanting more.” In writing your college application essay, the rule should be, “Always leave them wanting you.” One way you can accomplish this is by ending your essay strongly and memorably. Here are six methods that can help you do that. 1. “The Buzz Lightyear” […]
YOUR COLLEGE ADMISSIONS ESSAY: SIX WAYS TO CREATE A MEMORABLE CLOSING
The old show business expression goes, “Always leave them wanting more.” In writing your college application essay, the rule should be, “Always leave them wanting you.” One way you can accomplish this is by ending your essay strongly and memorably. Here are six methods that can help you do that.
DIARY OF A COLLEGE ADMISSIONS ESSAY
At this point, many of you have started to write, or started to start to write, or are thinking about starting to start to write, your college application essay. I thought, therefore, that it might be beneficial to create a fictional diary of a student who is currently working on her college application essay, so […]
DIARY OF A COLLEGE ADMISSIONS ESSAY
At this point, many of you have started to write, or started to start to write, or are thinking about starting to start to write, your college application essay. I thought, therefore, that it might be beneficial to create a fictional diary of a student who is currently working on her college application essay, so […]
Writing the College Application Essay – The Common Application Prompts
Many colleges and universities (nearly 500) use the Common Application. I thought it might be helpful, therefore, to offer some input about the Application’s essay prompts. Short Answer: Please elaborate on one of your extracurricular activities or work experiences. (150 words) One hundred fifty words doesn’t seem like much but if you give this essay […]
Writing the College Application Essay: Your “Audience” Awaits
I often encourage my students to think of their college application essay as a short movie starring them. Taking that analogy to the next level, a school’s Admission Directors – those hard working folks who read hundreds of essays each week – become the essay’s first, and only, audience. It is vital, therefore, to write […]
Writing The College Application Essay – Four Mind Sets to Avoid
For most high school seniors, writing your college application essay is a difficult, if ultimately rewarding, process. To make sure that you don’t make that process even harder, here are four mind-sets that should be avoided at all costs. 1. Fear Writing the application essay can be intimidating. But what we all know about handling […]