What the range of traits may be is really something the student should be digging for. Imo. There’s info ranging from outright ‘what we look for’ to hints in programs, support services, funding, and so on. And these kids do feel thay are smart enough, so they should be able to get an idea. Then, someone can work with them to refine.
“Other than ‘intellectual curiosity’ and a ‘willingness to grow’, what are some target traits sought by the most selective schools in the country?”
@Publisher that’s the $64,000 question!
I tell kids to look at a college’s motto, mission and vision statements. That’s a good place to start. Also post #40.
Make it personal but also relatable to the outside world. I met a man a couple years back whose daughter got into Yale. She wrote about how her mom was a Lact-Aid Nurse so she grew up always looking into the refrigerator and seeing milk. So she wrote about the bigger picture. Not really sure how because it was a brief conversation but he was just trying to make point into taking her own personal situation and relating to the rest of the world.
Hello,
I am applying to college this year and using my own prompt from my English class. Should I be including the prompt at the top of my essay and do I need a heading? Thank you
@aallic17 , no need to include the prompt. The common app will have a number of options for you to choose from, one of which is topic of choice. So if you aren’t sure which prompt works with your essay, you can choose that.
You can put a header if you like. Some kids do, some don’t. Remember though, if you do add a header, it’s part of your word count. Good luck!
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I’ve been reading Michael Short’s Stanford AMA with interest. A number of the posts discuss what Stanford looks for in essays. http://talk.qa.collegeconfidential.com/college-admissions/2200408-former-stanford-admissions-officer-answers-your-hardest-questions-ask-me-anything-p1.html
For students who are aiming really high, I suggest reading the thread. As both @lookingforward and @Publisher have emphasized already, conveying target traits and intellectual curiosity are very important.
Are you advising kids to write the COVID essay? I have gotten 3 very different pieces of advice–
- only write it if you can show a very clear impact-- family, health, finances, etc.
- every essay is an opportunity for the school to get to know you, write this even if COVID has not negatively impacted your life directly, but perhaps changed the way you think or view the world. For example-- I worked at a coffee shop throughout the pandemic and saw firsthand how my customers changed–more concern, more homeless, etc.
- use the space to talk about the fact that you took the SATs once with no prep and couldn’t improve your scores because the next 3 tests were all cancelled. Offering an explanation of why you are submitting scores on the low end of your schools’ admit numbers.
My D21 is doing #3, would you recommend she also do #2?
Hi @annegp .
Have a look at this post, which discusses the Covid question. http://talk.qa.collegeconfidential.com/college-essays/2161062-supplemental-essay-tips-plus-the-covid-question-on-the-ca.html#latest
I agree with #1, students shouldn’t address the Covid question, barring serious negative impact. However, I think many kids are going to write something in that space anyway. If a student chooses to do so, it had better be worth reading.
The Covid question isn’t meant to be a space to submit another essay. As per the Common App, it’s to “describe how these events have impacted you.” It is limited to 250 words. Every single person on the planet has been affected by Covid, which is why, unless there is a compelling reason to use the space, I wouldn’t.
In my honest opinion, the last thing AO’s are interested in reading is an explanation of why kids were unable to take standardized tests. Firstly, the vast majority of colleges are test optional for this application cycle. They are fully aware that millions of students have had similar situations to that of your daughter.
Secondly, I would certainly not draw attention to low scores, especially if below the 50th percentile of accepted students. Taking an SAT with no prep and submitting a low score is not any kind of a boost for an application, so why publicize it? I just don’t see a benefit to that. I also would think hard about submitting the score, unless the student is applying to non-test optional schools. If a student submits a low score at a non-test optional college, the AO probably won’t wonder why.
Giving the AO more stuff to look at, unless it’s strengthening the application, doesn’t help. If your student insists on putting something on the app, I would probably choose option #2. But it needs to be worth reading. I strongly advise against your D writing something about both ideas. There is just the one space on the app to answer the question. She can leave it blank, which is what I suggest.
Thanks you so much for the thorough response—very much appreciated. Part of the reasoning around submitting scores with an explanation was that she is happy with half of the scores, but I get it that simply explaining her situation may not really matter. She is just trying to figure out what data points will help or hurt her application.
She goes to a huge high school and hasn’t truly connected with her counselor or her teachers and for that reason doesn’t expect very compelling rec letters. She is involved in a community program in which she has had leadership opps and growth over the past 3 years. That rec will be very positive, but the school one may just say she is an A student, but not speak to her character.
I was trying to explain this to my son when he was doing the Ross “artifact” essay. He couldn’t think of anything, and I mentioned that he should write about how he learned how to change out sink fixtures and lights during COVID since he didn’t have sports or work. He thought it was the lamest thing, but I thought it showed a non-academic, non-athletic aspect about him. He did write something, but then came up with a different artifact at the last minute. Still think it would have been memorable to the admissions folks. Oh well!
Hi, my DD has been nominated by her school counselor for the Jenkins Scholarship at UM. We are very excited! Her personal essay in the common app is about her autistic brother. Even though it’s a balanced essay, it obviously touches on an important challenge that influenced who she is today.
The Jenkins scholarship requires that she write an essay about overcoming hardship. She really is suffering with this one because she thinks it’s kind of overkill to elaborate about the brother, and if she touches on any other subject, she thinks it’s going to portray her as a person with a pretty depressing life, which is not how she sees herself (not anybody else sees her that way). Any suggestions are very welcome.
Hi, as you have said that you encourage students not to write about psychological difficulties they have faced because most of students are not able to write or express something positive out of it. I wanted to ask what if a student writes how that difficult time has helped him to get to know more about himself, writes about how that time has made him ready to face the challenges ahead,the positive mindset he has developed and some other positive lessons that he learned due to which he was able to live life in a more positive way.
Basically if he manages to write about positivity , then what would you suggest?
Sorry to be late with replies. Lost internet due to a doozy of a thunderstorm.
@Mom2SandG , sounds like it could be a fun essay. Hopefully he ensured that he addressed the prompt and was able to show qualities they look for. Good luck to him!
@Mamitade2 I agree that your daughter probably is best finding a different topic for the supplemental essay. This type of essay is about getting an idea of how a person has coped with something challenging. The college is probably less interested in the actual hardship than getting insight into how a student approaches adversity.
If many aspects of her life are filled with hardship, she should focus on thinking about herself rather than the hardship: of the issues she has to cope with, which one makes her feel as though she has been handling it in a positive way? That’s what she can write about.
If she hasn’t actually had true hardship in her life, she can think of an obstacle, a challenge, a disagreement, a lost opportunity, or maybe even a long unfulfilled desire for something. She might have to think outside the box, but she should ensure she answers the prompt.
@Pakistani00 , what you’ve said above is a good way to approach writing about mental health issues. If you choose to write about it, remember to show and not just tell. The AO will be more interested in reading it if they can get a tangible sense of you.