<p>Mine is around 450 but this was only my first draft. I have to add some more information, but I also need to slim some paragraphs down. I estimate around 500 words.</p>
<p>My essay once had 1848 words but I managed to shorten it to 923 words.</p>
<p>No matter how long your essay is, you should try to shorten it. Not simply for the sake of being shorter (which several of your essays should be, I think), but because shortening an essay will force it to be more concise, which often will improve the quality of the essay and make it more readable and enjoyable.</p>
<p>474, the common app says 250 min but nothing about a max. I was told around 500 is a good length.</p>
<p>Rahoul: Have you polished your essay yet? It’s true that you won’t get penalized for writing too many words, but admissions officers have to read A LOT of essays, which can get pretty tedious, so it might be best to shorten it to around 700.</p>
<p>Is 400 words enough? I feel like there is nothing else I could add to my essay without it being fluff.</p>
<p>So my essay is about 1400 words and I’m freaking out. I can’t really find any way to trim it down. When I read it, it doesn’t seem THAT long, but the word count is about double the average so I don’t know what to do…</p>
<p>Mine’s around 850, probably cutting it down to around 780</p>
<p>Mine’s 775, still a rough draft though.</p>
<p>Mine’s 948.
Here’s my theory: If it’s fluff, get rid of it. However, if EVERY word contributes to the purpose of your essay, DON’T TRIM IT. The LAST thing you want to do is listen to a bunch of high schoolers on a forum, cut down your essay, and send in something that doesn’t fully convey your purpose.</p>
<p>After all, admissions officers would rather read a longer but more interesting essay over a shorter but boring essay. </p>
<p>Of course, quality > quantity, but if your essay combines both aspects, don’t trim it. If your essay is engaging and reads quickly, then what’s all the fuss about?</p>
<p>I had my essay read by an ex-Princeton adcom, who said she loved it. This should be proof that essay length is ONLY a number.</p>
<p>Mine is about 630 words. I don’t think it matters if you go over 500, just as long as there isn’t anything unnecessary in it.</p>
<p>@golfer: Relieved to hear that. My final version is 978!</p>
<p>I don’t know if this has been already said, but Yale specifically wants BOTH essays to be approximately 500 words, not only the supplement essay.</p>
<p>I still won’t be able to reduce mine to 500 though… Maybe I’ll leave them at around 600~650</p>
<p>My rough draft is currently around 660. I’m aiming for 600-650 for the final.</p>
<p>My Common App essay (already submitted) has 672 words. I believe you won’t be penalized for going over 500 words, as long as your essay is meaningful and you really make each word count.</p>
<p>Mine’s about 750-800 words. Solid stuff.</p>
<p>499 words, for yale =)</p>
<p>Less than 400 words.</p>
<p>Got mine down from 1100 to 899. Its a quick read, though, so it should seem like a 500-worder. My supps are all about 450-475, except Richmonds, which is 600.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Yeah but she was not reading hundreds of essays at that moment. So of course she wouldn’t be bothered by a long essay.
It’s still best to get straight to the point. Write what’s only needed. This is also why teachers tell you to get straight to the point when writing AP essays. Because AP readers WILL get tired from reading so many essays. Consider your readers everyone!</p>