Is it OK to mention another student by name in an essay? The context is positive, and the name itself is kind of important. It would be hard to get his permission, although probably not impossible.
I would stay away from it. If it’s an ethnic sounding name or otherwise non-standard, just give a brief description.
The less focus you have on others’ in your essay the better.
It’s not really focused on him. I cannot say more without giving away the topic, but my question was purely about legal/ethical guidelines.
If you have to ask, it probably isn’t a good idea.
I’m really not sure if I had to ask. I know there are some complicated privacy rules in journalism and other writing, but never had to deal with them, let alone this specific situation.
I absolutely would not use the name of another student.
If for some reason you need to refer to another person, rename him/her as “John Doe” or “Jane Doe.” It will be understood that it’s an alias.
If the name itself is important, then I think I would look for other ideas.
Agreeing with the others. It is hard to imagine a scenario in which using somebody else’s name in your personal essay is not trying to get some extra impact off somebody else.
If the fellow student’s name is famous enough for the AdComms to recognize, it is basically name-dropping. “Famous Name and I were stuck in this really difficult situation, but s/he problem solved this part and I problem solved that part” is different from “Jane & I…” only in that you are trading on FN’s name/fame.
Ditto “I was doing X ordinary thing and came upon Famous Name and I was able to fix the problem and from that moment I realized that this thing I have always had a knack for is something I want to pursue, so since then I have done y & z in that direction”. The Famous Name is really not the point. - the passion and the y, & z are the point The X is just the anecdote that gets it all started.
I had journalism, ethics, and communications law courses as part of my major. That was many years ago and I’m sure I don’t recall everything, but one thing I do remember is that it doesn’t matter whether or not the story is positive. How difficult it is to get permission doesn’t matter either. If it’s not a news story, get permission. This is a good lesson for all students. Don’t cut corners for expediency.
Is this for your son? If the actual name of the other student is so important, I’d encourage him to find a different topic. College essays need to show information about the applicant, not people the applicant knows. Does the other student already attend the college your son is applying to? If so, that’s all the more reason to avoid mentioning them, especially without permission. I can’t imagine a context that would help your son’s application.
If the situation were reversed, would you want other students writing whatever they want about your son in their college essays? Would it matter if they were applying to the same colleges as your son? If he wants to use the student’s name, he should ask permission. If the other student is a minor, he should ask the parent’s permission. But I’d think really carefully before including information about another student in a college essay even if they allowed it. You can’t know how adcoms will react to revealing information about another student. Even with permission, I think it’s a risk.
Thank you everyone. I think I’ll have my son ask a permission and if granted (I don’t see why not) describe the name instead of mentioning it. Due to the context it will still not be really obscured, but at least adcoms will see he’s made an effort. No, the other student is not in the same college, is not a celebrity and the essay is not focused on him at all. If anybody is curious and wants to know the context, I can PM with more details.