I start my essay with a quote ( I know cliche, but I think it is fitting). It says “Education AND is the great equalizer,” I had to change the quote a bit because of the word limit. Should I worry?
Yes.
No. I think this type of mistake which is clearly a cut-and-paste error is less of a problem than using “their” instead of “there” or another mistake that might mean the applicant’s knowledge was deficient. And one mistake isn’t going to tank your otherwise excellent application. That said, if you still have applications to send, remember that you can change the Common App for future submissions.
What was omitted ?
What did you change in the quote ?
Was the problem the use of a certain word ?
Looks like OP accidentally left in the word “and” so that the opening reads “Education and is the great equalizer” instead of “Education is the great equalizer.”
This sort of situation is exactly why it’s crucial to have another set of eyes to look over the essay.
It’s also why OP needs to put the application down and walk away. It’s submitted; leave it be. Scrutinizing and re-scrutinizing will just cause more angst, as additional small typos or awkwardly-worded sentences will start popping out of the application. There are more interesting things that OP can be doing at the moment.
@JBStillFlying : Thank you. Obviously, I need to return to my former stronger brand of coffee !
“Education, then, beyond all other devices of human origin, is the great equalizer of the conditions of men, the balance wheel of the social machinery.” — Horace Mann, 1848.
I think the bigger issue is that you are editing a quote incorrectly. I believe that it should be
Education […] is the great equalizer […].
^ It can be a paraphrase, right? Good point though. You don’t change a quote and then still refer to it as a quote.
As to word limit I’m reminded of the famous quote: “I apologize for such a long letter - I didn’t have time to write a short one.” - Mark Twain (according to the interweb).
Perhaps the writer was not quoting Horace Mann but one of these bloggers?
It seems like it is often misquoted.
https://medium.com/marquette-meets-peru/is-education-the-great-equalizer-8aead945071e
https://everydayfeminism.com/2016/08/education-equalizer-a-lie/