A paragraph to a page is very vague…
No. It means you don’t have to write too much [a paragraph/three sentences] is fine, but don’t go overboard [a page is enough].
what is considered a page? 500 words?
@girl1425 Usually a page single-spaced is 500. My supplement was about 300 words and it was a bit over a page double-spaced.
Mine was 950 words.
That’s pretty long! I think mine is probably on the shorter side but I feel that I was able to get my message across so I’m happy with it.
Mine was 690, but it all fit in one page and was single-spaced.
Mine was 445 words
535 here 
752!
@gearsstudio what size font are you using to fit 950 words on one page? Follow directions
@sunimah Mine was definitely more than one page. I know it should have been shorter but I simply couldn’t shorten it without reducing it’s effectiveness, so I went with it.
@gearsstudio Dartmouth and other top tier schools are looking for students who are able to convey their ideas in a concise manner. The fact that it takes you 950 words to answer a simple prompt will say more to them than your essay itself.
The Gettysburg Address was only 272 words. More isn’t always better.
Let him be.
@KathleenA LMAO I was about to write the same statement!
I had 442 words. I hope applicants understand that Admissions Officers simply don’t have the time to read over long essay- which is why even the Common App is 650 words.
I had the opportunity to speak with an Admissions Officer, and he told me that they will simply NOT READ essays that are overly lengthy (over 650 words).
You often improve your writing by simply crossing out extraneous EXTRA words. Look at each sentence and ask yourself, “Do I need every word to make my meaning clear and unambiguous”?
English professors call it the “Lard Factor” (LF) [Lanham 79]
If you’ve not paid attention to your own writing before, think of a LF of 1/3 to ½ as normal and don’t stop revising until you’ve removed it”. [Lanham79]
mine was around 600
My essay was 582 words. Single spaced it was less than a page.
Mine had 521 words, if I remember correctly…!