Essay words???

Colleges and Universities A-Z Harvey Mudd College
1

<p>Hi
I have been working on the second HMC supplemental essay, and was wondering how many words did you guys get on that essay? The prompts says 250-1000 words but I got 587, is that too little?</p>

<p>Thanks!</p>

<p>PS the essay topic is:</p>

<p>In addition to the Common Application essay, choose any one of the essay topics below. The essay should be 250 words minimum, 1000 words maximum.
1. What is one thing we won't know about you after reading your application that you haven't already reported in the Common Application "Additional Information" section? </p>

<ol>
<li><p>Describe an experience that sparked your interest in mathematics, science or engineering. </p></li>
<li><p>In a world where technology continually adapts and progresses, Harvey Mudd College expects that our students will be aware of the impact of their work on society. How would you use new advances to improve your life and/or the lives of those around you? Describe your idea and its potential impact. Feel free to be as creative or as practical as you like.</p></li>
</ol>

2

<p>You should be fine! I’m fairly sure that my son’s essay was not terribly long. If you have said all that you need to say, then you are done. And, best of luck to you.</p>

3

<p>298.</p>

<p>Just kidding, I don’t remember at all. In general, all sorts of questions along this line demand two considerations:</p>

<ol>
<li>Convey passion, i.e. why do you care about what you wrote the essay about.</li>
<li>Tell a story. A story about yourself, or says something about you.</li>
</ol>

<p>If you answer the prompt well and with those two things in mind, your word count doesn’t matter as long as it’s anywhere in that range.</p>

4

<p>I just came to ask the same question. :)</p>

<p>I originally misread the prompt and thought the limit was 250… Reread and rewrote, and came up with around 450-500 words (still tweaking). I don’t really have more to say though, so I think I’m just going to go with it. Fluffing it full of crap probably won’t help anything.</p>