<p>that is a really small amount of space to try and get in all your thoughts...:( how long are your essays for "why stanford", the intellectual vitality, and roommate ones?? this is frustrating...</p>
<p>I believe mine were all around 320-350 words. I definitely used the character limit of 1800 to the max on all of them.</p>
<p>Part of the process is seeing if you (the applicant) can define part of yourself in that little space. It's sparse, but they know you don't have that much room, so be concise and to the point. Pick a major idea, and focus on it (within reason while making sense, of course), and like the rest of your application, have some other people read them as well and see if they can understand what you're trying to get across.</p>
<p>It's a short response, not a complete essay. So definitely no intros and all that junk. Write something interesting, funny, and engaging. A lot of these essays will sound the same so make yours special and stand out. Good luck!</p>
<p>'08Holla is right on the money. What separates the best from the rest is their ability to express themselves effectively in so much space. Make every word count.</p>
<p>I really think they are looking for your personality to shine through, in this part of the app. So don't over-analyze it too much, either! [although, as the former admissions dean at Princeton was fond of saying, the worst advice you can give some people is to be themselves ... :)]</p>