300 words is not enough! Northwestern application woes

Applying to College
1

<p>Okay, so i started working on Northwestern essay question "What are your reasons for wanting to attend Northwestern (no more than 300 words)?"</p>

<p>300 words. I figured a 3-paragraph essay would work out--a juicy, enticing intro, a meaty body paragraph that answers the question thoroughly, and a conclusion that drives the point in--"I LOVE NORTHWESTERN!" </p>

<p>so i just got done writing that juicy, enticing intro, and it's 143 words. the intro basically flaunts my writing skills and says ends with: "...I have concluded that Northwestern University is the number one choice for me." in reference to the fact that I'm applying Early Decision.</p>

<p>halfway done with the essay, and that's all ive covered.</p>

<p>Clearly, I'm going to have to rewrite it, but this situation definitely has me scratching my head. </p>

<p>A) Can I go over 300 words?</p>

<p>B) Should I even bother doing a typical intro-body-conclusion type essay, or should i just like write 2 paragraphs strictly on why i want to go to northwestern?</p>

<p>honestly, this is really annoying because 300 words is not enough to impress northwestern with my writing skills AND effectively convey why i want to apply to northwestern. you're probably thinking im a very wordy writer if 300 words isnt enough to do both, but what i'm really saying is that i feel like i cant properly organize my essay in three paragraphs. I cant have a thorough intro, body, and conclusion. Maybe i can do a wimpy intro and a strong body and conclusion in 300 words, but my acceptance depends on this dammit, im determined to put forth my greatest effort--why should any part of this essay be wimpy at all?</p>

<p>see what im getting at? so, what do you guys think?</p>

2

<p>uhh..are you sure a fabulous meaty intro should end with "...I have concluded that Northwestern University is the number one choice for me." </p>

<p>I suggest making it a bit more creative</p>

3

<p>
[quote]
Why Northwestern?
The following is an excerpt from Mari Fagel’s application in response to the question: What are your reasons for wanting to attend Northwestern? </p>

<p>An aspiring broadcast journalist, she framed her response as a news story.</p>

<p>Senior Exonerates Death Row Convict and Raises Money for the Environment</p>

<p>Northwestern senior Mari Fagel arrived in Joliet one wintry Friday morning to pick up Gerard Jones for a tour of Evanston. Jones had never seen Lake Michigan before. In fact, he hadn’t seen anything but the walls of his prison cell for the past 18 years. </p>

<p>Until recently Jones was wrongly convicted of murder. Working with her classmates in Professor David Protess’ course, Investigative Journalism, Fagel helped exonerate Jones. … </p>

<p>A broadcast journalism major, Fagel reported on the story for the Northwestern News Network; she also writes for the Daily Northwestern and the Northwestern Chronicle. …</p>

<p>To give back to Northwestern, Fagel has been an active member of her community. As president of Students for Ecological and Environmental Development, she raised $10,000 for the environment at the annual Dance Marathon. …</p>

<p>Fagel also participates in Students for Israel and campus Hillel. She represented Israel in last year’s Model UN competition and organized a Northwestern Quiz Bowl to benefit Jewish refugees. </p>

<p>With that, Fagel excused herself to get to work on plans for Dillo Day, one of her favorite Northwestern traditions.

[/quote]
</p>

<p>For more inside look on Northwestern's admission, go to <a href="http://www.northwestern.edu/magazine/northwestern/fall2005/index.htm%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.northwestern.edu/magazine/northwestern/fall2005/index.htm&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>