Length of optional submission

<p>I'm checking over everything for my early decision submission and I looked at this again:</p>

<p>"We know that nobody fits neatly into 500 words or less, but you can provide us with some suggestion of the type of person you are. Anything goes! Inspire us, impress us or just make us laugh. Think of this optional opportunity as show and tell by proxy and with an attitude."</p>

<p>I loved doing the essay. My question is whether this means that it needs to be under 500 words, because at the moment mine is something like 1,200. My original thought was that showing and telling by proxy and with an attitude meant we could do a lot of writing... but now I'm not so sure. Should I shrink it to 500, or am I okay?</p>

<p>Thanks!</p>

<p>-Libby</p>

<p>We don’t adhere strictly to the 500-word limit but we generally provide a guidelines of no more than 2 pages. Again, we’re not sticklers but we do urge students to be concise when possible.</p>

<p>Glad you enjoyed responding to the prompt.</p>

<p>My S had so much fun writing this essay. I literally laughed out loud reading it. It definitely revealed the lighter side of his personality. His is 250 words.
He was all ready to hit submit to W and M (RD) but he submitted it to his English teacher for review (assigned to the class) and she said “Do not turn this in!” Now that’s a bit of a quandary, right?
I still think he should submit the essay, but I don’t want this to be the element that gets him rejected. Help!</p>

<p>Thanks so much, W&M admission! It’s now a bit more concise than it used to be, so all is well. :)</p>

<p>college4three, I don’t think it’s fair to judge on the basis of what a single teacher says. Maybe the best idea would be to talk to his guidance counselor and see what they think, since they’re the people most familiar with the college process. You could try posting this as a topic on a forum if you want more responses. Anyway, best of luck to your son!</p>

<p>The goal of the optional submission is to allow students to think outside the box and experiment with submissions that aren’t the the typical college essay. We tell students that it’s designed to allow them to show us a different side of themselves and to do so in a manner that utilizes their voice and their style.</p>

<p>We often advise applicants to share the essay with their friends and ask if the essay sounds like them. Can their friends recognize their voice in the essay? That might be a good indicator of whether the style and voice is appropriate and on target.</p>

<p>Also showing it to a college counselor is a good idea as well.</p>

<p>Finally, take a peak at our blogs on essay writing (they’re grouped together on our freshman application process page). That might give you some tips as to what W&M admission deans specifically enjoy or don’t enjoy about reading essays.</p>

<p>Hope this helps.</p>

<p>Thanks W&M.
I mentioned to my husband that the teacher adamantly rejected the essay, and he agreed with me that it answered the prompt well. The essay is definitely “outside the box” and I think balances the rather serious, but reflective essay on the Common app.</p>

<p>The first English teacher he showed it to thought it was funny, but didn’t comment otherwise.
I will suggest that my son ask his current teacher what changes she suggests and then he will probably submit. It is additional, after all. If anything, W&M admissions will get a sense of his irreverent sense of humor (no worries, it is all appropriate!)</p>

<p>thanks again for guiding us through this process.</p>

<p>Absolutely. We’re here to help.</p>