<p>Yesterday I pm'd my essay to two people to critique it, and now i am regretting it. In this day and age, you just can't trust anyone. So how many people have gotten hurt? If someone has your essay, what can they do with it to hurt you?</p>
<p>i agree, hence why i wont be sending my essays to anyone online.</p>
<p>hurt someone? you didn’t like it when someone told you that your essay was nothing special? Did it hurt your feelings?</p>
<p>Most essays should be so personal that it is almost impossible to duplicate. if your essay is not that personal, then chances are that you need to define your application more if you will ever stand out.</p>
<p>No, i meant hurt someone like use it themself in the admissions process, or use it to make admissions think you plagiarized it. I wrote it about my experiences living in a big family (8 kids).</p>
<p>As soon as I joined this board I thought that it was an awfully stupid idea to give your essay to strangers over the internet on a forum filled with people who would kill their family in order to get into school. The benefit doesn’t even come close to the cost. </p>
<p>Even the most honest person could be tempted to use a good essay for himself, this is a huge thing for people. I’m an honest guy, and I’ll admit even I would be tempted if it meant I had a better shot at school that would make me an extra $50,000 a year than a second tier school.</p>
<p>I won’t give my essay to anyone and I won’t read anyone’s essay.</p>
<p>That’s why you should check the poster’s post history to check that poster’s background. If the poster is like a hs senior then you obviously shouldn’t pm it to them. But if they are already in college or are parents, then having them look at your essay can be very helpful.</p>
<p>I have dual accounts, one being a Harvard student and one a high school sophomore. I don’t really, but I bet you get my point…</p>
<p>As far as trusting people online, it’s tough. I’d personally be very careful sending my essay through CC, not because the overwhelming majority of people have malicious intent, but because there is such great temptation and if someone does plagiarize, it could ruin your admission attempt.</p>
<p>Personally, I’ll openly admit I’m a HS senior who is currently stressing over college applications and dreading the essay. I have critiqued essays on this board. However, on the opposite side of the fence, it’s not worth the risk either, as well as my ethics. I wouldn’t copy essays because it’s morally wrong, and if they took a junior writing sample/looked at my SAT essay, it would become evident based on my writing tone alone.</p>
<p>I’ve critiqued a few SAT essays; I’ve only critiqued one admissions essay (it was the one on height by threesixmafia, it was an excellent read with a lot of tense issues).</p>
<p>I wouldn’t send my essay to a new poster. Sorry, not worth the huge risk. I wouldn’t send one to someone who has only posted “Sure, I’ll critique it. PM me!” in every post. I wouldn’t trust someone who took on five essays in a row either. Also, I’d pick a member that was there at least a year with quality posts, and even then I’d be hesitant.</p>
<p>I think the best way would be a college student/grad who could act as an in-between, and you could put essays in escrow (so the grad, who would have no conflict of interest, could verify that there were 2 nonplagarizing and valid essays to critique).</p>
<p>I agree, it is probably fine. I just don’t see why you would take the chance… I’d drive 40 minutes into Boston and hand my essay around at the Harvard campus before I posted an essay here.</p>
<p>Then what should I do? Do I have to rewrite the essay? I mean, I like it alot.</p>
<p>Well, what two people did you give the essay to? It’s tough to say. It is possible that newbies have good intent.</p>
<p>i gave it to atomom, who I trust, she is a parent that has like 400 posts.
but I also gave it to 2gals, who has only posted to critique others, and four times. But he/she seemed generally interested in reading my essay because it sounded different. Then she replied with some suggestions that it was a good start but needed some better organization.</p>
<p>Given those circumstances, I wouldn’t rewrite it. I just wouldn’t distribute it further…</p>
<p>I’m inclined to agree with Jack2010 here; one poster seems to have a good rep, the other is new but seems to have good intentions. I wouldn’t rewrite it, but I’d stop seeking essay reviews here.</p>
<p>Thanks for the help, I think just to be safe, I’ll change it up a little bit, but keep the majority</p>
<p>The only person that I would trust to read my essay on here in NorthStarmom or however it goes. She is the only user I actually trust on here. I haven’t been around lately but I hope she’s still around.</p>