<p>Parent's Top 5 Tips for Writing Application Essays?</p>
<p>From a student: be honest. </p>
<p>I think honestly, sincerety, and truthfulness are very important in a personal essay. It has always served me well in these pursuits. (It's actually strange that this is my advice since one of my essays was delibrately false, but that's a different story.)</p>
<p>It's about you. It's your one chance to reveal things that all that other stuff, stats, teacher recommendations etc don't tell. And at the same time - you're making a picture - all that other stuff should support your essay. ;)</p>
<p>Don't do it at the last minute.</p>
<p>After you've written it, you need to let it sit for a few days at least. Then, when you come back to it, typographical errors are likely to jump out at you. </p>
<p>It's difficult to proofread something you've written just after you write it. You tend to "see" what you intended to write, not what you actually wrote. If you wait a few days, you will do a better job of proofreading.</p>
<p>Asking a second person to proofread your essay is also sensible.</p>
<p>Don't be pompous.
Don't use "plethora" or "myriad" (why does everyone insist on this?).
Write what you want colleges to know, not what you think they want to hear.</p>
<p>The entire first paragraph of my Common App essay was a mildly risqu</p>
<p>Agree with above, especially camelia,</p>
<p>Use simple language unless you can truly impress by doing otherwise. I think they would rather get a clear and interesting picture of a real human being than anything else.</p>
<p>I think that this essay from UVa is helpful:</p>
<p>Don't think you'll impress people by depressing them. Life is hard, so if you want to write about hardship, focus on what you've learned from it and where it leaves you today.</p>
<p>Indicate that you have gifts, talents, hands and skills, to add positive contributions to offer the college community that you will be joining. Don't just be a "taker" of the services of the college. </p>
<p>Know their website inside-out before you write the essay.</p>
<p>Your accomplishments mean a lot to you, but the readers must go bleary-eyed reading about everybody's accomplishments, doncha think? So what is unique is what personal meaning you derive from those accomplishments. My favorite essay I ever read was a short-answer my nephew wrote. He was a marching band leader. In 5 sentences he was able to describe how he felt when everybody was in synch, how much in-the-moment he learned to be through this activity. He did not limit his description of that favorite EC to how many people were in the band or all the places they performed. After reading it, you'd realize that it didn't mattter what he did next on their campus, whether it'd be marching band or anything else, he'd still bring that in-the-moment capacity, to listen and lead, whether on a field or as a dorm-mate. That's what I mean by "what personal meaning you derive" from your many EC's.</p>
<p>Personally, I advocate writing a personal statement and attempting to use it for most if not all of your essays instead of trying to start with an assigned topic and figure out what you want to write about from there. I picked my topic by brainstorming a list of things I enjoy--there is nothing too stupid to put down on the list, incidentally (I probably really wasn't going to write a college essay on my enjoyment of fashion magazines, for example, but putting it on the list didn't hurt anything)--and choose the topic that I got the biggest and best emotional response from. </p>
<p>Don't worry if you start to write and realize that it's not going to work out--just choose another topic.</p>
<p>Don't worry that your topic is too lame or that the adcoms won't like it. You should certainly try to evaluate the topic objectively (I'm going to say it's never a good idea to write about how wasted you like to get on the weekend), but don't try to second guess too much--even if lots of people write about community service or their grandparents, if it is the right topic for you, it will still come across as genuine and meaningful. </p>
<p>Once you have the right topic and have done all the necessary writing, proofreading, rewriting, and re-proofreading and are happy with your essay, try to work that essay for as many apps as you can. I only had to rewrite my essay (about my love of books--again, topic may seem like pandering, but as long as it is genuine (and well-written!)) once, and I really didn't have to stretch the scope of the prompts too much. I may have simply gotten lucky and applied to schools that had broad prompts, but I think that most people can safely get away with writing only a couple of essays, as I did (two of my colleges required two essays, and I used my second, less satisfying essay as the supplemental/shorter essay). </p>
<p>Most importantly, know yourself well. Not only do you need to be honest and insightful with yourself to pick a good topic, but you also need to know how you deal with essays. If you know that you are a good writer--and I mean by that that the folks who should know--like your English teachers--have told you so DIRECTLY--it's fine to have confidence in your writing and not seek as much outside imput (at least it didn't hurt me!). If you are not so confident and sure of your writing abilities, OR if you are trying something you never have before (humor, especially), SEEK OUTSIDE HELP AND COUNSEL. Even the best writer can have a blind spot with regards to certain aspects of a work, and what is funny/insightful/meaningful/touching/etc. to you as the writer may fall flat to the reader, especially when the reader does not know you and cannot approach the essay with anything more than the barest sketch of you and your personality, if they have even that. Remember also that even if a sentence sounds good when you say it to yourself, it may not be so to another person. Example: I can have a very dry, sarcastic sense of humor that doesn't always even go over in person. What I can shade with tone/expression in person (and can do retroactive damage control on, if need be) often falls terribly flat or even sounds cold or harsh in writing. </p>
<p>Obviously, you can't do any of these things on an essay that you start at 10 p.m. and is due at midnight. I'm not going to lie and say that I started my essays in the summer and put the most effort that anyone could ever put into an essay into them, but I certainly did not do them in an hour or two, starting from scratch. At least brainstorm some topics and starting outlining/writing a rough draft beforehand, even if you leave the essay to latER, not the last minute.</p>
<p>My son is a three sport athlete. This was indicated throughout his app. He was playing a three on three pick up game near our home - inner city. There was racial tension - not caused by him. He was beaten to the ground, kicked, etc. by fifteen guys. It took alot for him to write about this but it related to his app. in terms of his gifts but also spoke of diversity issues and how he grew from that awful experience. Basically, that he was not going to walk away form these community wide issues but embrace them, as he always has. It was very moving and made him a real person, not just a scholar/athlete - lots of them. Hope this helps. I think that essay moved the adcoms. Good luck!</p>
<p>"There is no such thing as great writing, only great RE-WRITING"
Some great writer, but I don't remember who</p>
<p>Proof-read and rewrite everything over and over again.</p>
<p>Parent's Top 5 Tips for Writing Application Essays</p>
<ol>
<li> Try to make it sound like your kid wrote it.</li>
</ol>
<p>Provide your son or daughter with Harry Bauld's book. Have them read it and underline it and read it again.
Email your son or daughter excellent personal essays so they have a clue about what makes an essay personal in the first place. (Our HS English instruction is awful.) If your son (more often than daughters) is hampered by the Boy Code of Honor, is very reticent or suffers from the "it is best to be seen and not heard" habit, help them see that this is their five minutes to show the adcoms what makes them tick. In other words, as parents, you can help remove inhibitions and also show what good taste is in terms of degree of self-exposure in an essay.<br>
Allow some flare or drama to come through but keep in mind that colleges today are anxious to have a reasonably mentally healthy student body for obvious reasons. Therefore, if you describe hardship, loss or challenges, balance this with showing your constructive response, adaption and resilience.<br>
Help your child reveal something that is going to make their numbers and stats also seem to come from a real person. My son's essay showed a sense of Place that he would be bringing to college. Don't let your essay be "about" your activity list. Your personal essay cannot convey everything. Don't try to cover too much about you. Instead, consider your set of personal responses per application to be a five card hand..and make sure your essays in total represent aspects of you that together make an coherent sketch of who you are. What is not alluded to in a personal essay should be addressed in an optional or other college essay in short answer form.</p>
<p>Know that your essay will not make or break your application. It is about showing adcoms that you are capable of writing something that makes sense! They want to learn a bit about you- it doesn't need to be fascinating/completely unique. Write about something that is really appropriate to you. It's okay if there are small mistakes/sentences that are Pullitzer-worthy etc. </p>
<p>Do the commonapp essay early. It will allow you to focus on supplements later.</p>
<p>~current HS senior</p>
<p>Do NOT let your parents, or any adult, write your essay. This is beyond the honesty question. When an adult writes it, the adult viewpoint is transparent. I recently reviewed an essay that I begged the parent to allow her child to write (rewrite) singly. Unfortunately, the student had already been overly influenced by a very dominant parent. With her soft personality she was never able to extricate herself from the overly mature personality (and yes, long words) that were inserted into the essay, so even the rewrite never worked. As soon as I read it I said to myself, "Oh my gosh, the Mom wrote it!" Even a quite mature teenager would not talk that way, & particularly not with regard to the topic chosen.</p>
<p>At my daughter's high school they are allowed several in-class & home drafts of their college essay (as in many h.schools). Part of the assignment is to, in the <em>end</em> stages, run it by a parent for comments, constructive critique. In the cases of both of my girls, I have stayed very far away from suggesting my own wording in place of theirs. I have only suggested minor improvements in sequence (for effect) or occasional usage/word choice for technical reasons. </p>
<p>The essay is not the parent's message or the hired counselor's message.</p>
<p>Postscript is that above student got in to none of her matches or reaches, but fellow students with same scores & grades did get into those same schools. Can't prove it was the essay, of course, but since the artificial tone of the essay was a major turnoff to me, I really think that it did not help her application one bit.</p>
<p>NJRes--- LOL---that was my thought EXACTLY when I read the title of the post. What the ---- ??? But, I do agree with all the rest of the posts here!!!</p>
<p>Try to write about something only you can write about. Show your personality and uniqueness.</p>
<p>Advice for a student: I know it has been mentioned before but be honest and sincere in your writing. Also, be copious and thorough in your editing. Every little detail must be dissected and analyzed. Try and write something that will stand out, knowing full well your essay will just be another paper in a stack of hundreds or thousands. Get the attention of the reader and make it something that will stand out in their minds and somehow compliments the rest of your application. Refrain from talking about academics and acomplishments. That is what your application will show. Also, do not be cliche. If you have a great story or experience that comes off as sounding cliche or like something anyone else would use, try and think of a backup idea. But my best advice is to let the writing free-flow. Don't stop and think over every word in your first draft. Let your best ideas all flow out nonstop. Corrections and edits come after. You would be surprised how sincere the essay will feel if you do not halt your train of thoughts.</p>
<p>Advice for parents: Do not, I repeat DO NOT get involved with the writing of your child's essay until he or she comes to you and asks for help or proofreading. This goes for the application itself as well. College is a journey of independence and newfound responsibility for a teenager. That journey begins front the moment they set foot on the campus for a visit or pick up that application to fill out. Obviously parents play a huge role in many things but this is one of those things that the student needs to do on their own. Let their ideas flow and do not put restrictions or give suggestions unless asked. My parents told me, your application is not complete without an essay, and you are sending those in 3 months, start writing the essay, show it to us when you are done. And that was that. I sat down day after day and crafted the best essay I could possibly write. Sure, I spent hours thinking of an original idea then thinking of new ones and backup ones. But the finished work was something to be proud of because I did it all on my own. Let your child do the same. It is their time for independence</p>
<p>Sorry about the title. Rushing to a meeting.... :eek:</p>
<p>Don't let adults over-edit your essay. Don't let them edit out your 17 year old voice. </p>
<p>17 is a wonderful age. It is fun for adults to read the perspective of a 17 year old. Let that 17 year old voice loose.</p>
<p>Think about what it is that makes your outlook unique. Offer up your unique perspective, your unique story.</p>
<p>No one expects you to be all things to all people. 'Lopsided' passion is a wonderful trait. Write about your passions. List your accomplishments.</p>
<p>mememe245: Don't state that the essay can't make or break the app -- you don't have the info to state that. It certainly can be a boost or an anchor to one's chances. There's only so much the adcom can derive from the recs, transcripts and test scores. The essays are a vital component to adcoms that are trying to cobble together the best class possible.</p>
<p>My parents were immigrants so they couldn't help me at all w/my essays. I wrote two that I submitted to the various schools that needed them. I was very fortunate and only got acceptances. I went to one of the HYPS schools for undergrad.</p>
<p>I wrote about 1) something rather benign (perhaps even trite) and 2) something quite profound. My first essay was just a simple one about how much I enjoyed preparing for the state musical ensemble competitions. I wasn't a serious musician but I really enjoyed pushing myself and working along with two others. I had fun and reflecting back on my HS days, it WAS very fun. Rather simple but sincere and true. My second essay was about how I betrayed a friend's revelation that he was gay. I wrote about how my actions damaged my relationship with him but yet our friendship moved beyond that and we remained very close friends.</p>
<p>I came across hardcopies of these while sorting old files. I can definitely tell a 17 year old wrote them. But I the impact of both is still very positive and for the 2nd essay, quite moving -- even reading it myself these many years past.</p>
<p>Guide your kids, let them use their own voice and write about what's important to them. HTH</p>