How important are princeton essays?

Colleges and Universities A-Z Princeton University
1

<p>People say that essays are VERY important and can make up for poor test scores.. </p>

<p>but this is what i always thought : unless the essays are exceptionally well written or notoriously poorly written, they will not help nor hurt, but just complete the picture of you as an applicant as a whole, for everyone who applies to ivy should write fairly well.... and most essays are about the same quality in the applicant pool no matter how much better they are than those of the ppl from ur local school... </p>

<p>what do u guys think?</p>

2

<p>I hope that u r right
My essays suck</p>

3

<p>I think the essays are pretty important as a means of getting to know you and your character, not as a measure of your writing abilities. If you write a fantastic essay but about something else, it won't help! I think, especially for Princeton, essays are a big factor.</p>

4

<p>so zant what all essay topics did u right about
Include the lenghts also</p>

5

<p>essays are extremely important</p>

6

<p>I wrote
--Tell us about yourself (680 words)
--Topic of choice (370 words)
--Significant activity? Forgot how they worded it. (370ish words)</p>

<p>and the "What Else..." form, I wrote an essay about another hobby, around 700 words probably. </p>

<p>And I wrote the summer thing in sort of an essay format.</p>

7

<p>omg
here I have been trying to shorten a 300 word essay</p>

8

<p>I certainly hope the essays are important! I spent two months writing, polishing, and repolishing mine. :(</p>

9

<p>I seriously think that my essays and ECs were the best part of my application. I definitely don't believe that essays are arbitrary: I mean, first people say that interviews are, supplements are, etc., but honestly, it's about how everything comes together and creates a profile of you. Essays aren't expected to be incredible across the board; in fact, incredible is so relative that they can't really said to be that. It's about how it fits with the rest of the image that you've created yourself. Every single part of your application works toward that, which is why I don't think any one part is simply "unimportant."</p>

10

<p>Yes I agree phil. It's about letting your voice and personality come through and that's really done by piecing everything together. </p>

<p>I didn't spend that much time on mine actually, but they all flowed naturally and I liked them after the first draft. Nontheless, I think they matter a lot and I took them seriously.</p>

11

<p>zante-you don't think being +120, +120, and +180 words over the limit might ...uhhh...bug people? :)</p>

12

<p>Nope =)
I think they'll love what I have to say about how much I love myself.</p>

13

<p>Hmm, I used common app since it was down to the wire where I was going to apply (basically I knew I luuuved P-ton, but thought it might be worth the better chances I'd have at Dartmouth getting it.... but naahhh, made the right choice!) but the essays I did were</p>

<p>-common app - open topic: about 600 words on cross-country, a really personal essay that i was working on since the summer going into junior year (not a cliche sport essay, i swear...)
-what would you do for a year - talked about going to france, probably 275 words
-open topic - i wrote about my love for history and english, probably 320 (gulp) words</p>

<p>all my essay topics sound really boring, but my strength as a writer is being really creative and descriptive, so i'm pretty proud of them (as well all are of our essays, I'm sure.) I think they're some of the best things I've written, and there's not more that I can ask - if I don't get in I know I'll have given it my best shot.</p>

14

<p>I don't think I accurately portrayed myself to Princeton the way I wanted to. I am not an extraordinary writer; my talents are best seen through action, I think, instead of trying to relate them creatively through words.</p>

15

<p>I did (Princeton App): </p>

<p>1) 645 words (gulp) --> “Tell us about yourself in such a way that we will have a good sense of who you are.”
-I did sort of an unusual one where I told several different stories and connected them with different aspects of my interests/personality</p>

<p>2) 337 words (gulp again) -->“Tell us about a person who has affected your life in a significant way.”
-I wrote about my grandfather, who took me on several roadtrips across the continental US.</p>

<p>3) 320 words (gulp again) --> “What talent, accomplishment, or pursuit has given you the greatest joy or satisfaction?”
-I did mine on painting...told more stories, too =)</p>

<p>4) 291 words --> Summer one (I did an attached sheet since I put scans of paintings/pictures of me painting into the text)
-Told about a commission last year in GB; other art/swimming-related things</p>

<p>5) 422 words --> Optional essay (haha, zant)
-Not telling =)</p>

<p>Wow. That's 2,015 words. They'll murder me. I'm glad my optional one wasn't 800, at least...</p>

16

<p>Those are suggested limits! lol</p>

17

<p>1) 364 - Mail Essay - tell us about yourself in such a way....
2) 441 - Dad Essay - tell us about a person....
3) 738 - Protest - topic of your choice
4) 612 - Intern - optional
5) 321 - Summer</p>

<p>2,476 words! woohoo, way to follow directions! hahahahha oh jesus. i think my favorite violation was the 441 word essay when it was a 250 word suggestion. or maybe the 738 word main essay when its supposed to be 500...hmph!</p>

18

<p>That makes me feel better.</p>

19

<p>1) 550 words for tell us about yourself (500)
2) 300 words for year off
3) 310 words for any topic
4) 300 words for summer
5) 750 words for optional</p>

<p>2160</p>

20

<p>lets try to stay on topic in this thread and not go all over the place.</p>

<p>the thing with princeton essay is i dont know how they can get to know more about the applicant by their questions.. talk about a person who has influenced you, it didnt really ask us to talk about how that influence impacted us...</p>