I know oftentimes essays can boost a less-qualified applicant over, but what if it was like this…
A kid with super great test scores and grades but writes average if not slightly above average essays. How will it affect him then? Hurt/help/neither?
I think it really depends on the school. Some schools really focus on grades and test scores, others focus on essays, and some in between. Obviously the better the essay the better your chances, but I think that for some schools it won’t hurt you but won’t really help you either. Others may weigh it “against” you in a certain way. So I’d say at best its neutral but at worst it may hurt your chances a little.
From what I’ve heard from my friends: Essays hold less weight at public schools especially state flagships except for maybe the super competitive ones such as Michigan. So if you’re in state and have above average stats for the school, an average essay should do you good but a poor one could hurt.
What about for schools at like UC Berkeley and UCLA?
@HopefulBadgerPlz @gtm1260
I have heard that those UC’s do weight the essays a bit more heavily than the rest (being the most competitive), but grades are still primary for them, followed by test scores. I think that if your grades and test scores are VERY strong you do have a good shot even with mediocre essays.
@gtm1260 What do you consider very strong? I have 2 800’s on SAT subjects and a 35 ACT, but my UC unweighted GPA is a 3.81 (overall it’s a 3.9. UC doesn’t take into account 9th grade grades) but my UC weighted GPA is 4.64. I’m dual-enrolled in college classes and I’ve taken 6 AP’s, which is why it’s that high with a meh GPA.
Yes your quite strong you do have a good shot! At this point it really depends on a lot of stuff like what the rest of the applicant pool in your area is and how good your extra curriculars are. I mean you really can’t change anything now so don’t worry about it I think.
I do think you’re a pretty strong candidate especially if you’re in state. That being said, UCLA and UCB are among the toughest public colleges in the US so I’d imagine the essays being quite important.
folks,
UC’s weigh the essay heavily, and for more than one reason:
(1) to some degree, they substitute for teacher recs, in that essays provide some insight into what the student values
(2) they can reveal aspects or degrees of either leadership or adversity/challenge
(3) they can give insight into passions which might otherwise be revealed in interviews (or recs), which UC admissions also doesn’t have.
For private schools, for the most part it is a myth (an exaggeration) that essays can truly compensate for a deficient application. Rather, they can break “ties” in competitive admissions; they can resolve some questions not answered by the rest of the application; they can tie the whole package together thematically, so to speak; they can confirm or deny what might be communicated in a teacher rec. (I’m speaking here of the common app essay.) However, overall, they supplement the application, not replace some aspect or qualification. I’m speaking of students NOT in the 4 Hooked categories.
Among excellent candidates making it to the final round of review, essays can be ONE factor helping to eliminate one candidate vs. another equally regarded candidate (on academic merits). So in that sense, yes, they can be “persuasive” or “convincing,” decision-wise.
The supplemental questions for private colleges are more important than students tend to realize. In this category, colleges (depending on the college) can have very high expectations with regard to answering the prompt(s). The Why Our College and Why Your Major/Program questions can be rather determinative, particularly in the negative, for the most competitive kinds of colleges and programs. If you’re weak on those, it’s a tipoff that (a) you haven’t done research or (b) you have, but your profile doesn’t fit the demands and direction of the program/college applied to, © you’re forcing a “fit” that isn’t truly there, and/or there are other motives that seem more apparent, such as the program is merely a stepping stone to a career, but you have no real interest in the contents, etc.
(By “programs” I obviously mean things like dual-degree programs, interdisciplinary or combo programs, or specialty programs such as a major truly unique to that university.)
To all reading this, listen to @epiphany, who is spot on.