<p>OP; Another approach. Pick just one application & submit it today whether or not it is complete.</p>
<p>This appears to be a motivated and accomplished kid who has some on here for help w/writer’s block and application anxiety. He has stated that he has a few weeks left before the essays are due. Chances are, the activities he describes will do more for his application than any essay. I don’t understand why some posters are being so hard on him.</p>
<p>To the poster: If you need help, just talk to your mom about getting someone outside your family. But it sounds like you are starting to break through your blocks. Keep it simple.</p>
<p>An alternate view is that she is procrastinating by focusing on every other activity within grasp in order to avoid filing the forms and risking rejection.</p>
<p>The best thing for you to do is knuckle down and get your apps done. Once they are completed, edited and submitted, the entire family gets back to a normal life. Do your entire family a favor, GET THEM DONE BEFORE CHRISTMAS, so you don’t ruin the holidays for everybody. Just git 'r done.</p>
<p>Marbling,</p>
<p>There was NO WAY my daughter could have navigated all of the application process by herself successfully AND carried her senior workload at school of dual and AP classes, AND taken care of her president responsibilities AND work 20 hours a week. She had to have reminders, task lists and help - I don’t like to call it nagging, but I’m sure she felt that way many times.</p>
<p>Two things worked in our favor:
1 - Dear Dad was completely uninvolved in the process, although completely supportive. We established early on that his job was to say “You know, it really will turn out ok. I know that you will end up in college and will be happy.” I kid you not. Kept us both sane. </p>
<p>2 - We established an unbreakable TIME where all we did was college stuff. We substituted Saturday chores (e.g. helping around the house) with Sunday planning (e.g. shut the door of hte office and don’t come out for two hours.) I really tried hard to contain my suggesting, nagging, questioning, and even discussing to that time. Sometimes it was hard - after all, you are giving your 18 responsibility for the biggest life decision they have ever made. In between Sundays, she had one specific goal (e.g. write the essay for XYZ.) When a draft was done, she emailed it to me, and I gave gross suggestions. </p>
<p>I think as long as my lion was fed on Sundays, the rest of the week went much much smoother.</p>
<p>Regardless of where you’re applying to, I would recommend googling “MIT blogs” and searching through the archives for posts related to writing essays. They can be really helpful.</p>
<p>Shoot4Moon has a point…only the OP can decide what is important. If wrapping up your apps and really working your essay is important then you need to set aside the time to do that. Perhaps some of your extracurricular activities need to be put on hiatus for awhile. If you are procrastinating something it is very easy to find other activities to fill you time. Just about every kid can run out the door claiming he HAS to do this or he HAS to do that to which I reply…you HAVE to get your college applications done. Sure everything you have done this fall is impressive, but are they more important to you than doing an excellent job on your college apps…which you can’t do well at the last minute.</p>
<p>I agree with two pieces of advice common on this thread
- You should have a plan
- You should keep your mother informed of your progress against the plan</p>
<p>I also think you should develop a plan that matches your work style and not one that fits your Mom desires if that is a mismatch for your style. </p>
<p>To me the input in this thread reads like it was written by members of “The Early Planners of America”. Well as a member of “The Procrastinors of America” the timing advice given on this thread would not work for me at all. If I wrote essays tons of time before they were due (before there was any true time pressure) then they would be flat, lack any creativity, and would not bring out my personality. My work close to true deadlines is infinitely better than work done very early … it was true at 18 and still true at 53.</p>
<p>So my advice is to develop a schedule that fits your style and allows for sufficient review time. For me starting a week or so before the applications were due would be fine … however if you are asking some people to review your essays starting two weeks before they are due is probably cutting it close.</p>
<p>I believe that a lot of the tension between parents and kids is often drive by difference in procrastination and planning styles … and a planner parent and procrastinator child is the worst combo.</p>
<p>Good luck!</p>
<p>I’m surprised at how much time is devoted to filling out college applications. It shouldn’t take more than a couple of hours if you’ve spent time thinking about your essays.</p>
<p>^ You have clearly never had to fill out a SOPHAS application then… </p>
<p>Honestly, a lot goes in to the apps that no one thinks about. And if you’re stressed and have writers block, then adding stress is not going to help. And comments like “Why is it taking so long? You should have already been done!” are far from helpful.</p>
<p>3togo: nice post :)</p>
<p>I’m familiar with college applications. My oldest never spent more than an hour and outperformed his numbers. Was admitted to top three choices (all most selective) including a full tuition & fees scholarship with a fellowship designation among them.</p>
<p>The reason the apps are delayed, usually, are solely due to the essays. Of course, the rest of the app takes maybe a weekend to complete. </p>
<p>Op, good books to look at regarding essay writing include:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>On Writing the College Application Essay, 25th Anniversary Edition: The Key to Acceptance at the College of Your Choice [Paperback]
Harry Bauld </p></li>
<li><p>The College Application Essay: All-New Fifth Edition by Sarah Myers McGinty (Jul 17, 2012)</p></li>
</ol>
<p>D, normally an excellent writer, was having problems writing her essay as well last year. I do normally read essays for academic related applications, so she had my hypercritical eye on top of her own critical eye. (I don’t read for revisions, but let her know if the essays are an interesting and entertaining enough read). What ultimately helped her was pulling out all of her writing for her creative nonfiction class and adjusting an essay from there. As another poster said, old photos and old writings or journals can help spark memories and provide fertile fodder.</p>
<p>I’m sure that your essays will be great given your current ECs as they all sound intriguing and convey your level of interestingness. Basically, your essays should sound like you, be a fairly quick read and entertaining at some level (after reading 30 essays per day, who wants to read through dense, philosophical writing), does not need to include any life lessons or epiphanies, and at the end of the essay the adcom should say “wow, I’d like to meet this person.” Based on your recent ECs, I’m already thinking “Wow, I’d like to meet this person” so your essay probably does not have to carry all that weight by itself (as opposed to a more standard 2 season sport, yearbook editor, NHS, president of french club type of applicant).</p>
<p>Short answer questions: just state the truth. Does not have to sound intelligent or follow any “theme”. Thus, these questions can be answered almost as quickly as filling out the CA.</p>
<p>“Why I want to attend” college X: rack your brains from your tours or from the websites about what makes this college a good fit and/or interesting for you.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>You’re familiar with YOUR child’s experience with college applications. Telling the OP (who has said he/she is struggling) how easy it should be, because it was for some other kid out in cyberspace, isn’t very helpful. It’s actually pretty insensitive. It’s also flat-out irresponsible to advise him/her to submit an application whether or not it is complete.</p>
<p>YoHoYouHo, I forgot to mention the journals and old writings. Along with photo albums, all 3 of my kids pulled out a creative, autobiographical booklet (illustrated) that they had done in middle school. It was interesting the way these things helped with the essay. Hope this helps the OP.</p>
<p>Axelrod, if it only takes an hour to do the essays, then it is fine to delay a few weeks, right? I don’t think these things can be forced. Honestly, if a person is starting to come out of a block, then time is helpful.</p>
<p>Again, this poster sounds like a person with an interesting bunch of interests and the essay is probably not going to be a big factor. The application just has to be submitted with something in the box.</p>
<p>Hoping some of this is helpful.</p>
<p>Axelrod, maybe your kid is a wizard writer and only applied to schools with one essay (“Why X”). I would say my kid probably spent at least 10 hours on University of Chicago essays alone. They had six prompts to choose from for one essay (and they are darned “chewy” prompts, she considered them for weeks, discarded topics and changed her mind a few times before actually sitting down to write – and I don’t include that consideration time in her 10 hours). With 3 essays total to write for that school alone, and then buff/polish, no way could anyone (even a great writer) pull off something really good in a couple of hours.</p>
<p>I just counted, and including the common app essays, my D will have written 20 different essays by January 15 this year (10 college applications and 2 scholarships). Maybe a few more, as there are a couple more scholarships she will apply to if she has time. She really only has time to work on these on weekends and breaks, which she does dilgently. But it is still a huge pile of work. It helps her a lot to have a checklist to manage that effort, and does not help to have someone telling her how easy it should be (I would never tell her that, I know I wouldn’t want to be doing it!). Also, with 20 essays, when is she supposed to find time to think about the essays so writing only takes an hour? Is she supposed to keep all 20 topics in her head and mull them over prior to having time to write?</p>
<p>And Axelrod, your suggestion to “just submit one” whether it is done or not is just plain silly. Why submit what isn’t your best effort? She isn’t late yet. Why waste the application fee on that? There are times in life where it is okay to just turn in a “B” or “C” performance. College apps really aren’t one of those times. Not only are acceptances on the line, but sometimes merit aid is, too. It is important for the OP to give this her best effort. Some support from posters might go further than off the wall comments like that.</p>
<p>OP, just keep plugging along at them, one at a time in the order they are due. 
Block off as much weekend time as you can for it (get up early, drink something to wake you up, and get rolling on them). Skip any social or non-required activities for the next couple of weekends if you need to.</p>
<p>OP,
I think that you should prioritize the schools you are interested in the most. Take a look at the essay requirements for the common application and your top three schools. Some of the essays are similar in nature. You should write one or two based upon your passion. Think about the meaningful and memorable events associated with the topics on the school bus. After writing this one, you may be able to fit it into the essays for multiple schools. You should ask someone you trust to review for you. Some schools require a few short ones. You should be able to draft your responses relatively quickly. You can sleep on them for 3-4 days before finalizing the application. Some asked about your academic plan and why you have chosen your field. Those should not be too bad. You may find that the essays for your top three schools may be used for others with minor modification. </p>
<p>DS3 wrote quite a few. He is good at writing persuasive essays but not so good at personal essays. He has to finalize his applications for 4-6 more colleges before 12/31. He became frustrated at the essay situation a little over a month ago. He told my wife that he had no gas left in his essay tank when she asked him to work on four more scholarship essays. I think that he got over that by now. </p>
<p>By the way, Kevin Costner’s speech at Whitney Houston’s funeral offered some inspiration about writing personal essays for him. You can search for it on YouTube if you can spare 17 minutes.</p>
<p>OP, my kids both used to sit for hours in front of blank screens. Part of it was perfectionist tendencies, part of it was they were right-brain learners who could see an unlimited way of connecting facts rather a single “logical” sequence that most left-brainer learns conclude is “obvious.”</p>
<p>Thank goodness for word processors! It is no longer necessary to write in sequence or even to use the correct final words. Get the closing down, maybe the opening line to draw the reader in, write something easy from the middle, then write the connecting sections and replace basic words and phrases with better alternatives. It’s much, much easier to edit something you can see, no matter how bad, than to imagine a completed work in your head and place it on paper, fully-formed.</p>
<p>OP - LoermIpsum has nailed it. You need to get something down in writing, no matter how awful you think it is. You need to do what my D calls a “brain dump,” sometimes referred to as free thinking. So what if it doesn’t follow a straight path, or dumps all over the place. You can format it later - get the thoughts down while they’re available!</p>
<p>Back in August, D wrote a quick essay for an advising program she is in - she wrote it in about half an hour the nigh before it was due. She didn’t like what she wrote, and didn’t want to work with it. When she had to write a common app draft for school 2 weeks later she started again from scratch, and wrote something twice as long as needed, and insisted on hacking it to bits to make it work.</p>
<p>She resisted working on the first essay so much that we allowed her to use the second one on her first couple of applications. It was an OK essay, but didn’t really say anything about her, while the first essay was very personal, and gave insight into who she is - exactly what would make her stand out. We finally told her we wouldn’t spend the money on certain higher-stake applications unless she worked on the first essay. She was scared by the amount of red ink we used to mark it up - it was in the form of a single train-of-thought paragraph, and needed to be broken down to make it more coherent. It really didn’t take long to do, and now everyone is happy with her essay (including her).</p>
<p>I’m not going to suggest you get everything done, but throw a bone to your mother. Try to consider her perspective. She probably knows you better than you want to admit, and knows that even a procrastinator who does her best when under pressure may find the pressure too much if she waits too long. She may also be concerned about what you will miss during the Holiday season, if you have to spend that time on your applications - this will be your last holiday at home before you leave for college; your mother may have her own expectations about how much time will be available to her and the family. Ask her what those expectations are, so you can plan around them.</p>
<p>And one last thought regarding deadlines. When Superstorm Sandy hit, at the end of October, many kids in New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut had impending ED and EA deadlines. If they had planned on finishing their applications at the last minute, they risked being unable to submit them. Yes, many colleges extended their deadlines, but it was a situation that could have been avoided. You don’t know what might happen that final week before your own applications are due - give yourself some wiggle room.</p>