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Why You Should Always Read College Essay Prompts
The topic of this week’s blog may seem absurd at first glance. But students often come to us with drafts of their college essays already completed, and when we ask them which prompt they’re responding to, they shrug and say they didn’t know they had to respond to a prompt.
This happens so frequently that we started to suspect something was going on - and then we discovered that some most popular college essay websites explicitly suggest: “don’t read Common App prompts.” This is terrible advice for any kind of writing, and in almost all cases, it will guarantee that you’ll write a mediocre college essay. Here’s why.
How to Get into Engineering at UVA: A Student’s Experience Writing College Essays
We recently interviewed a former student, Will C., on his experience working on the Common App and supplemental essays. David was accepted to study engineering at UVA in Fall 2024, so we thought you might be interested in his responses.
Three Ways to Stop Procrastinating on Your College Essay
If you’re applying to college this year, you may be worried that you’ll avoid working on your college essays until the last moment, when it’s too late to write something impactful. This is an affliction known as “college essay procrastination,” and it’s extremely common among high school seniors. We understand why! Writing is challenging in the best of circumstances, but now you have to come up with a compelling essay that will play a large part in determining where you go to college. It’s no wonder students get freaked out and have trouble getting started.
That’s why we’ve assembled three of the most effective tips we recommend for our students. Each one covers a different part of the college essay process.
Great College Essay Writing Is Not about the Humble Brag
Maybe you’re sitting down to start brainstorming and wondering, How can I brag about my achievements in my college essay? We’re sorry to burst your bubble, but you heard it here first: the point of college essays is not to brag about your accomplishments. If we could boil down the internet advice about college essay writing, it would sound like this: the personal statement should showcase your accomplishments, it should guarantee that admissions committees get as complete a view of your range of activities as possible, and it should ensure that you come across as perfectly clear about who you are and what you want. We think this couldn’t be further from the truth.
How to Get into Duke: A Student’s Advice on College Essays
We recently interviewed a former student, David B., on his experience working on the Common App and supplemental essays. David was accepted to study at Duke University in Fall 2024, so we thought you might be interested in his responses.
How to Avoid Clichés In Your College Essay
When you apply to college, you submit your test scores, your GPA, and your extracurriculars list - and the whole aim is to excel. Did you nail the SAT? Did you get good grades at school? Did you participate in enough extracurriculars?
But the college essay is different. The aim here isn’t to excel or boast about your achievements; it’s to tell a unique story. That’s why the single most important piece of advice anyone can give you when it comes to college essay writing is to avoid clichés. You may have a great GPA and SAT, but if your college essay sounds just like everyone else’s, the college admissions officer reading your file will immediately lose interest. If you’re wondering, “how can I make my college essay stand out?” check out our three top tips.
How to Get into Berkeley Computer Science: A Student’s Advice on the UC PIQs
We recently interviewed a former student, Daniel L., on his experience responding to the UC personal insight questions. Daniel was accepted to study computer science at many UCs, including UC Berkeley, so we thought you might be interested in his responses.
Why You Shouldn’t Use a Montage Structure for Your College Essay
Here’s one of the most popular pieces of internet advice about college essay writing: If you’ve experienced a major challenge in life, you should use a narrative structure - that is, you should tell your story from start to finish. If your life has been basically normal and drama-free, you should use a montage structure and come up with a clever concept that brings several experiences together.
The montage essay is very popular, but we’ve basically never seen one we liked, and we’ve decided to explain why. Here are the three main reasons we strongly discourage you from using the montage structure for a college essay.
Why We’re Offering an Early Bird Webinar This Year
Every year, high schoolers come to us just before their college application deadlines, desperate for help with their college essays. They often have excellent GPAs, and they’ve spent many months preparing for the SAT or ACT – but they’ve left the college essay to the last minute.This year, we’re offering a solution. Our early bird webinar helps students start thinking about their essay topics long before the deadlines.
Here are three reasons you should consider taking our webinar, “Writing the Real You: Discover Meaningful and Authentic Essay Topics that Colleges Will LOVE.”
Why Does College Essay Writing Feel So Hard?
Writing a great college admissions essay can feel really hard. And that’s because it is hard! Just about everyone sometimes finds it challenging to describe meaningful experiences and aspects of their identity in a succinct and compelling way. Add to this the pressure and stress surrounding how to get into a good college, and you have a recipe for anxiety and overwhelm. So if you’re sitting down to start drafting a college application essay and staring at a blank screen, here are our best tips on getting past this super common nervous writers' block.
Why Top Students Write the Worst College Essays
It’s always easy for us to identify top students because they approach their college applications in the same way: They take as many AP or Honors courses as possible, and they get perfect or near-perfect grades throughout high school; they do significant test prep and “crush” the SAT/ACT; they build an impressive list of extracurricular achievements that they showcase in their resumes.
Top students excel at everything they undertake, which is great. But there’s a problem here. The same skills that mean excellence in every other area can actually lead high achieving students to make a critical error when they write their college essays. Top students don’t necessarily write top college essays.
How can parents help with college essay writing?
One of the hardest parts of parenting is knowing when to step in, and when to take a step back. When it comes to the college admissions process, this classic arc of parenting is no different. You may find yourself asking, “Should I help with college essay writing?” Whether your child has had a relatively smooth journey through high school, or has faced big challenges, you want them to land in the best college they can. It’s natural to want them to be as well set up as possible for this exciting new phase of their lives. And parents can play a really important role in helping their children to navigate the complex world of college admissions.
What It’s Like to Work with a College Essay Tutor
If you’ve landed here, you may be looking for help with the college essay writing process. Maybe you’ve heard of college essay tutors, or know of a friend who has a college essay coach, yet aren’t quite sure what that means. If you’re a little lost, you’re not alone. The college application process is complex enough without a whole marketplace of support services. We’re here to explain what a college essay tutor can do, how a great tutor works, and to help you consider whether this sort of support is right for you.
How Much Does the College Essay Count?
As you start thinking about applying to college, you’re probably wondering how much you should focus on your admissions essay. This is understandable because the essay is unlike every other part of the college application. The GPA and SAT/ACT are objective scores; the essay, on the other hand, seems vague and subjective. Do college admissions officers pay attention to college essays at all?
The answer is yes, but not in the way you think. Here are a few things to note when you find yourself asking: how much does the college essay count?
How to Read Your College Essay Draft Like a College Essay Tutor
As college essay tutors, we read hundreds, if not thousands, of student essays every application season. In the process, we’ve learned a thing or two about how to quickly evaluate an essay for its strengths and weaknesses so that we can help students write the best essay possible. Whether or not you decide to work one-on-one with a college essay coach yourself, we wanted to share these tips on how to bring a rigorous eye to your own work. Reading your essay draft like a college essay tutor can help kick start your process of revision. Before you know it, you'll have friends coming to you for your clear-eyed editorial skills and advice!
What Makes a Great College Essay Tutor
You've muddled through the college essay writing process for long enough to know that you'd like some extra support. Whether you're stuck on brainstorming, confused by a particular prompt, struggling with writing and style, or all of the above, you figure it's time to look for help. But the market for college application services can be almost as complicated and stressful as the college application process itself! If choosing a college essay coach feels confusing, we can help. Check out these guidelines on what to look for in an exceptional tutor, and you’ll be well on your way to finding the help you need.
How to Choose Your College Essay Topic
If you’re a junior in high school, you probably have a lot on your plate right now. You’re trying to get the best grades you can while building your resume and studying for the SAT or ACT… and if you’re like most people, you’re leaving the final part of the college application – the dreaded college essay – to the end.
We believe this is a big mistake. Treating the essay as an afterthought is the most common way students self-sabotage when applying to college.
Five Ways to Work on Your College Essays Off-Season
While the college admissions process kicks off for rising seniors in the summer, it's never too early to get started. Over the last few years, you've thought a lot about SAT and ACT scores, GPA, and extracurriculars. But if you're like most students and parents, you haven't paid much attention to college essay writing. Until now! College essays can seem like an afterthought, but they are actually a really important, and we think underrated, factor in getting into a great college. So if you want to get a leg up, here are some things you can do right now to have a head start when application season begins.
Why AI Won’t Impact the College Essay Anytime Soon
It seems like a cheap and easy solution to the dreaded college essay. Just punch a few questions into ChatGPT and watch it generate a response that will get you into college. There might be a few glitches in the system now, but in a few years (so the argument goes), you won’t have to worry about writing your college application essay anymore. So is AI the future of essay writing?
We’re sorry to be the bearers of bad news, but we don’t see it happening. Why? Well, let’s start with something our tutors have noticed.
How to Get Started Writing a Great College Essay
If the very idea of sitting down to start writing a college essay has you stressed, we have some bad news: application essays matter a lot. But, don’t worry, there’s also good news. Writing a great college application essay doesn’t have to be complicated. You don’t need to panic text everyone you know for ideas. You don’t need to take eight online courses. And you definitely don’t need to read sample college essays. You just need some guidelines on how to get going. You may even find that the essay writing experience becomes an exciting way to connect with interesting and unique parts of your life experience.
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