<p>MitChris--I have been working tirelessly on getting my essay answers down to under 250 words. My English teacher has drilled it into us that we are to show not tell,but I am no good at that in under 250 words. I get that you all must get kind of bored reading the same ol, same ol, but come on,"show" in 250 words?</p>
<p>Am I destined to be thrown in the reject pile if I tell? I am just so overwhelmed with everything I need to do and then worrying that my answers won't be in the right form--arghhhh! How much should I sweat this kind of stuff,I'm already contemplating taking tomorrow off of school to get this just right. Some of my friends have private counselors (>$5,000) that are helping them polish this kind of stuff. I am just scr*&^d?</p>
<p>Me agian–I forgot to ask–should I somewhere let MIT admin know that MIT is my hands down number one choice, or will this make them think I am some loser?</p>
<p>I don’t think MIT cares if it’s ur #1 choice or not, nor does any other competitive schools, but this may help once u get into the waitlist</p>
<p>Sadly, yes, you must show. All you have to do is basically instead of telling them in the essays about your stuff, just show an example. I mean if it is really part of you and your life, there has to be one example of it. That’s what they’re looking for.</p>
<p>limabean - </p>
<p>Don’t stress. Write whatever you feel best communicates your aspirations, achievements, etc. If you are having trouble ‘showing’ it, then feel free to tell. “Show not tell” is a general guide to writing well - like “good writing is brevity”, or using the active rather than passive voice - not an axiom.</p>
<p>Prove your English teacher wrong. You tell him/her. Don’t show him/her</p>