<p>how long should the max common app essay be to not be discounted as "too long". It says minimum of 250 words, but thats not going to be enough to explain my main strength for admission. My essay consists of a very creative metaphorical opening section (experience) and then an explanation of that event and its affect on me. Would it be better to cut it down to about 300-350 words and just put the first part or go ahead and do a full explanation etc. for about 1600 words total?</p>
<p>1600 words is a tad...meaty.</p>
<p>I would aim for mid-high hundreds. Stanford puts a one page limit on it (I'm assuming that's single-spaced...) on its long essay.</p>
<p>I'm not sure if that's a separate long essay from the common app essay though.</p>
<p>the common app site says "upload document" so how is there only space for one page as stanford says? also are other top-level schools putting one page caps on essays too?</p>
<p>Stanford requires three short essays in addition to the longer essay (on a topic of your choice) required in the Common Application. Remember: In reading all of your writing, we want to hear your individual voice. Write essays that reflect who you are; use specific concrete details and write in a natural style. Begin work on these essays early, and feel free to ask your parents, teachers, and friends to provide constructive feedback. When you ask for feedback on an essay draft, ask if the essay's tone sounds like your voice. It should. Your parents, teachers, and friends know you better than anyone else. If they do not believe that your essay captures who you are, how you write, or what you believe, surely we will be unable to recognize what is most distinctive about you. While securing feedback is suggested, you should not enlist hired assistance in the writing of your essays.</p>
<p>Our on-line application contains specific instructions on format and submission of your essays. We urge you to refer to these instructions before beginning your application and writing your essays.</p>
<p>3 Short Essays (found in the Stanford Supplement to the Common Application): Candidates must respond to all 3 questions/topics (not exceeding the space provided, which is approximately 10 lines)</p>
<p>Sharing intellectual interests is an important aspect of university life. Describe an idea or experience that you find intellectually exciting, and explain why.
Write a note to your future roommate relating a personal experience that reveals something about you.
What makes Stanford a special place for you?
Long Essay (found in the Common Application): Candidates must choose 1 topic and respond (not exceeding the space provided, which is approximately the length of 1 page)</p>
<p>Evaluate a significant experience, achievement, risk you have taken, or ethical dilemma you have faced and its impact on you.
Discuss some issue of personal, local, national, or international concern and its importance to you.
Indicate a person who has had a significant influence on you, and describe that influence.
Describe a character in fiction, a historical figure, or a creative work (as in art, music, science, etc.) that has had an influence on you, and explain that influence.
A range of academic interests, personal perspectives, and life experiences adds much to the educational mix. Given your personal background, describe an experience that illustrates what you would bring to the diversity in a college community, or an encounter that demonstrated the importance of diversity to you.
Topic of your choice.</p>
<p>I dunno.</p>
<p>who writes ONE PAGE? I'm assuming it's single spaced?</p>
<p>i uploaded the two page single spaced essay successfully on the common application website. what does stanford mean by space provided because technically i havent used more than the space provided although it is a full two pages long (about 1600 words). I have a really good essay, and cutting it in half would definately reduce its quality. At one info session for stanford the admissions officer said something about not getting to read more than the requirements (but i think she was talking about more than three recs), will it just cut off the bottom half of my essay? that would be worse than cutting the essay down on my own. what should i do?</p>
<p>call the school and ask them EXACTLY what they mean by 'one page'..matter of fact i'll call them right now....</p>
<p>ok..she said if you're uploading the document, you should keep it to one page..but if its a line or two above that's fine. Then i asked, 'what if someone made the margins smaller, used a smaller font, etc.?' and she said 'keep in mind admissions officers have a lot of applications to read so it probably won't be good to make the the margins small,etc.' but she said as long as its a 'reasonable' number of words on the the page(dont know exactly what that means) then it should be fine..</p>
<p>she said if you're typing your essay online(i guess this is another option), then when you're done- click PREVIEW to see if part of your essay has been cut off ...since there's a character limit.</p>
<p>1600 words is absolutely ridiculous. There is no way that an admissions counselor will read that all the way to the end. Times New Roman, 12 pt., one inch margins. That's the page size. It comes out to roughly 500-600 words. Any more than that and questions will come like: can they summarize something? and why isn't this shorter? Everyone, and I mean everyone, can write their essay down to that limit. Do not let yourself go over by more than 10%.</p>
<p>One page is one page is one page. I think they are being generous enough with that. Other ivies (I believe Brown and UPenn) also go by the one page rule.</p>
<p>Do any of you know whether the essay should be double spaced? I was almost certain that it was single spaced before a some people told me that it's not.</p>
<p>Try an absolute max of 800, or one page, single-spaced.</p>
<p>Last year it was 4900 characters limit, if I remember correctly.</p>