How do you get a good essay with only 2500 characters

My daughter is struggling with this right now, and I can’t say I blame her. Is she the only one having a difficult time with the character count? She wrote a decent 550 word essay but then had to hack it down to about 450 to stay within the character count. It’s so short! How can one convey anything meaningful… I feel like it lost so much… Just ranting a bit as it is frustrating that it counts for a lot, and when you see all of these wonderful “example” essays where kids got into ivy league schools they are sooo long. Of course you can tell a great story with 650 words. Is it just us or are others having this issue?

She should write the essay first without regard to length, just saying what she wants to say. (It is easier to write a longer essay and then cut it down than to write a shorter essay and build it up.)

Wait a day or two, then revisit it and think about what is the essence or underlying meaning she is communicating in the essay. She then can focus on that, chopping out the extra. She may even rewrite whole portions of the essay, as she refines her vision and message.

Then, in the end, sometimes it becomes a matter of using concise wordings and trimming phrases.

We had some with even a smaller character count! They really challenged my son, but in the end, I have to say the shorter ones were much better. It is frustrating at first, and she may need to step back and think for a day or so as mentioned above. Good luck!

When I read the thread title I instantly thought of a Russian novel. I now realize that it is referring to a different type of character.

The Yale 500 is a required writing for applicants to Yale’s law school limited to 500 words; these are some of the most beautiful & impactful writings that I have ever read.

The University of Florida application essay is just asking applicants to write a clear & concise essay.

It’s a challenge for sure. Overall, you want to be as clear and concise as possible, focusing on one main point. Something else to think about it: if she is struggling with having “too many” things in the essay, then she might look at the other sections of the UF/Coalition app to see if she might put some of the stuff from her essay in the extra curricular section, for example. (I can’t remember the specific sections…) I made my daughter use every character in that application.

I always think of the scene in A River Runs Through It where the older brother is home schooled by the minister father. He reads, marks up, and hands back every essay with, “Again. Shorter.”

Buy a newspaper & read the editorial page. Or read the letters to the editor section of any major newspaper such as the New York Times or The Wall Street Journal in order to appreciate how much can be communicated effectively in 500 words or less.

All this exercise requires is clear headed thinking.

Thank you all! I think she finally got it down to where it needs to be.

Is it 2500 characters with spaces, or without?

With spaces! Crazy!

@GatorDad305 I just reread your post and it made me think. She didn’t write an essay that talks about her extracurriculars or achievements at all. It’s more focused on a particular interest she developed over the years and how that shaped her as a person. Now I’m second guessing… does UF like more of the first type? eesh… I can’t wait til her app is in. For four years she has focused on this school, she will be crushed if she doesn’t get in. Family and friends here in NJ don’t get how hard (and holistic!) it actually is to get in to UF and they are all like “pshh! Of course she will get in!” Which totally annoys both of us because we know the deal, and there are no shoo-ins!

Limit adjectives and adverbs while using better verbs:

“It was an awesome experience.”

vs.

“It rocked.”

@gold523 Wasn’t trying to freak you out. My point is that there might be something in her essay which could be stated in another part of the application. For example, I thought it was important that my daughter explain “somewhere in her application” that she was interested in the intersection of design and technology. She found a place for it that wasn’t within the essay. (She wrote her essay about her experience volunteering at a daycare, btw.) I think that what you are describing is strong – one main point, well stated. That makes sense to me. I was just trying to give you another angle of approach which may or may not be helpful.

The process is stressful, for sure. I’m sorry to report that waiting until the second Friday in February isn’t easy. Feb. 9, 2018 was one of the least productive days of my professional life.

My only other advice is that she visit and take the tour, as it shows interest. She should also spend as much time as she needs on the application. I was told that admissions does look at how much time is spent on the application (they can track it) as a gauge of interest – no idea what the weight is.

UF has definitely become incredibly competitive, so no one is really a lock to get in.

We’ve just trimmed one of DS’s essays to 650 words from about 850, and another to 120 from 240. This was a painful experience because while keeping all the ideas they lost quite a bit of color and charm.Hopefully some of this is still shining through…

DS is writing application essays that are limited to 1500 characters. It has been quite a challenge for him but overall a good exercise I think.

@GatorDad305 yeah I think she is done writing so we are going with what she’s got! My work has a college coach service as a benefit and they review her essay. They didn’t like the first one she sent; this last one they loved so fingers crossed! And yes we have toured every summer since freshman year, three times total so hopefully they take that into account!
@yucca10 and @yearstogo it’s hard right? The essays do lose something… glad to see it’s not just my daughter feeling this!