<p>In my essay for wharton, I discussed how I got great enjoyment out of handling the intricacies of the small business that I was running at the time. I alluded to how it was something programmed into me... and I attached a photo that my parents took of me at age 3 reading the business section on the toilet. I got in.</p>
<p>I'm writing a Wharton Transfer (Junior, Fall 09) on sledding down a hill on a Thermarest sleeping pad. I'll let you know how it goes in about 8 months. I figure, my grades, stats, etc. are about on par with what all the other applicants will have...so the only shot I have is to go out on a limb and write a really quirky essay that will make me stand out.</p>
<p>"Its a MYTH that an essay can "recover" from mediocre grades or SAT scores. Its important to write a good essay....even a clever one, but it will NEVER replace the numbers. Colleges that tell you that are being disingenuous. They are numbers driven."--nocousin</p>
<p>Not true. While some schools place more of an emphasis on grades and scores, they are not a be all end all measure with the admissions process. There are a variety of reasons for why a student could have an average GPA or mediocre test scores, and you have to keep in mind that the standard of competition for most schools was created by the applicants themselves (trying to edge out other applicants via higher SAT scores, more EC's, etc.) and not any real requirement set forth by the school (in the vast majority of schools). Pretty much every school is more concerned with what kind of a student you will be, how you will contribute as a student, and in some cases what kind of an alum you will make. High schools receive funding based on students performances, colleges do not. Your high school performance is in the past. So, your essay is your chance to shine and give reason to your 'poor' performance and what you are now doing to overcome that. A strong, well written essay -no matter how quirky- will help keep you in consideration.</p>
<p>^^^ baracuta_jones, I'm afraid you're a bit overly optimistic. Even the world's most wonderful essay won't make up for 4 years of poor/mediocre grades when considering admission to a top college. If an admissions officer starts their review of your application by looking at what all schools tell you is the most important part of the application - the transcript - and they see grades that are clearly below the normal standards for that college, they may never even read the essay.</p>
<p>That said, if your grades (and test scores) are good enough for the school to even consider accepting you, then your essay is indeed "your chance to shine" and get your application moved from the massive "maybe yes, maybe no" pile into the "yes" pile.</p>
<p>Baracuta_Jones, I've heard it put another way several times: "A terrific essay can heal the sick, but it won't raise the dead."</p>
<p>"^^^ baracuta_jones, I'm afraid you're a bit overly optimistic. Even the world's most wonderful essay won't make up for 4 years of poor/mediocre grades when considering admission to a top college. If an admissions officer starts their review of your application by looking at what all schools tell you is the most important part of the application - the transcript - and they see grades that are clearly below the normal standards for that college, they may never even read the essay."</p>
<p>Just so you know, I am 34 years old and have acquired two degrees so far. I am currently working on a third for certain reasons, so I definitely have been there and done that. When a person is sixteen, eighteen or even twenty-five, their idea of college is largely based on what consolers, recruiters, their parents or maybe even society tells them what it is (yes, I know, that is a vast generalization). When you reach my age and are still interested in college, you will find that most of what you were told when you were younger is, more or less, exaggerated. </p>
<p>Also, you should note that I did not say all schools. I am fully aware that some colleges do have a minimum GPA and/or SAT/ACT score, but those schools are the exception, even for the prestigious ones. I am currently finding myself in a unique position for two reasons; one because I want to transfer to the best school that I can get into, and two, my age. These two things have placed the cards stacked against me so in order to generate my best chances of success at transferring to a prestigious school I have dug deep and done my homework regarding this issue. </p>
<p>One thing that I found was that if you look at many colleges admissions requirements, you will find that they generally say something to the effect of, WHILE WE DO NOT HAVE A MINIMUM GPA REQUIREMENT, THE AVERAGE GPA OF APPLICANTS IS 3.5. Or what ever. One of those schools is MIT. BU, has openly said that they place more of an emphasis on the essay, then they do on past grades and test scores. So yes, the admissions process does very from school to school, but like I said previously; your essay is your chance to show them who you are. </p>
<p>Now, without going horribly off topic I will say that the quirky essays are a good way to help you stand out from other applicants as long as that essay relates your personality and is well written, no matter how off the wall the subject matter may be. It would still be in everyone's best interests to research what kind of essays a particular school favors. No use in writing about your lawn mower if they do not have a sense of humor.</p>
<p>Our S wrote about driving a brand new Prius over a retaining wall into the hot tub (true story) during a driving lesson. We both escaped without a scratch and a new appreciation for being alive and healthy.</p>
<p>"When you reach my age and are still interested in college, you will find that most of what you were told when you were younger is, more or less, exaggerated."</p>
<p>Barracuta, "just so you know"... I'm older than you, I have a degree, my husband has degrees, and my son is currently in college so we have very recently gone thru the entire application process and heard speeches from many admissions offices. Our friends' kids have also recently gone thru the process or are doing it now, and we have all swapped stories (and SAT scores and GPA's and essay topics...) I have a friend who is works in admissions at a very well regarded university. I also deal with high school guidance counselors on a regular basis in my job. I don't mean to sound haughty, but I suspect I know at least as much about college admissions these days as you do.</p>
<p>neuron put it better and more simply than I did. "A terrific essay can heal the sick, but it won't raise the dead."</p>
<p>I think we can both agree that a great transcript accompanied by a lousy, unoriginal, poorly constructed essay is not a good thing. A great transcript accompanied by a great essay is a great thing. Students with an "iffy" transcript should work hard to write an original, well-constructed essay that showcases who they are, but I would never expect a fantastic essay to get my B student daughter into an Ivy.</p>
<p>Lafalum84,</p>
<p>Heh, I know that there are some on here who are older then me, but the majority are not. I apologize for making that assumption towards you. Chances are, you know more then I do, as you seem to have more experience in this. I just know what I know.</p>
<p>Yes, neuron said it best.</p>
<p>That's ok. I usually hang out on the Parent pages, I forget how many high schoolers and college kids are actually on the boards! I wonder how many in-betweeners your age are here.... I'd bet there's not too many. But I could be wrong!</p>
<p>And now back to our topic - any more quirky successful essays?</p>
<p>too lazy to go through all these 7 pages to see if the essay was posted. let me just post it. here it goes:</p>
<p>This is an actual essay written by a college applicant. The author,</p>
<p>Hugh Gallagher, now attends NYU.</p>
<p>3A. ESSAY: IN ORDER FOR THE ADMISSIONS STAFF OF OUR COLLEGE TO GET TO KNOW YOU, THE APPLICANT, BETTER, WE ASK THAT YOU ANSWER THE FOLLOWING QUESTION: ARE THERE ANY SIGNIFICANT EXPERIENCES YOU HAVE HAD, OR ACCOMPLISHMENTS YOU HAVE REALIZED, THAT HAVE HELPED TO DEFINE YOU AS A PERSON?</p>
<p>I am a dynamic figure, often seen scaling walls and crushing ice. I have been known to remodel train stations on my lunch breaks, making them more efficient in the area of heat etention. I translate ethnic slurs for Cuban refugees, I write award-winning operas, I manage time efficiently. Occasionally, I tread water for three days in a row.</p>
<p>I woo women with my sensuous and godlike trombone playing, I can pilot bicycles up severe inclines with unflagging speed, and I cook Thirty-Minute Brownies in twenty minutes. I am an expert in stucco, a veteran in love, and an outlaw in Peru.</p>
<p>Using only a hoe and a large glass of water, I once single-handedly defended a small village in the Amazon Basin from a horde of ferocious army ants. I play bluegrass cello, I was scouted by the Mets, I am the subject of numerous documentaries. When I'm bored, I build large suspension bridges in my yard. I enjoy urban hang gliding. On Wednesdays, after school, I repair electrical appliances free of charge.</p>
<p>I am an abstract artist, a concrete analyst, and a ruthless bookie. Critics worldwide swoon over my original line of corduroy evening wear. I don't perspire. I am a private citizen, yet I receive fan mail. I have been caller number nine and have won the weekend passes. Last summer I toured New Jersey with a traveling centrifugal-force demonstration. I bat .400. My deft floral arrangements have earned me fame in international botany circles. Children trust me.</p>
<p>I can hurl tennis rackets at small moving objects with deadly accuracy. I once read Paradise Lost, Moby Dick, and David Copperfield in one day and still had time to refurbish an entire dining room that evening. I know the exact location of every food item in the supermarket. I have performed several covert operations for the CIA. I sleep once a week; when I do sleep, I sleep in a chair. While on vacation in Canada, I successfully negotiated with a group of terrorists who had seized a small bakery. The laws of physics do not apply to me.</p>
<p>I balance, I weave, I dodge, I frolic, and my bills are all paid. On weekends, to let off steam, I participate in full-contact origami. Years ago I discovered the meaning of life but forgot to write it down. I have made extraordinary four course meals using only a mouli and a toaster oven. I breed prizewinning clams. I have won bullfights in San Juan, cliff-diving competitions in Sri Lanka, and spelling bees at the Kremlin. I have played Hamlet, I have performed open-heart surgery, and I have spoken with Elvis.</p>
<p>But I have not yet gone to college.</p>
<p>Someone I know wrote her essay on Pez (the old candy) and got into Harvard.</p>
<p>i wrote about how much of an annoying prat my neighbor's 6-year-old son is, wrote an extended metaphor about how he was a beast needing to me tamed by a beautiful knight(ess) (me), and how i conquered him with popsicles, olympics cookie dunking and drowning in the dumpster in a rainstorm. LOL, all in fairy-tale format. i got into most of my 12 colleges (brandeis, bc, etc...) :)</p>
<p>I read (what I'm fairly sure is a myth) the response to a Harvard Essay </p>
<p>Question: What is the biggest risk you've ever taken?
Essay: **** off.</p>
<p>Like I said, I'm pretty sure it was made up but I find humor in it.</p>
<p>^haha... that just goes to show how "telephone"-like things happen all the time.
i've heard a similiar rumor. the prompt was: what is courage.
essay: this is. </p>
<p>i think it's a little more realistic.</p>
<p>^ A rumor I heard (on CC) was that for a Harvard essay on "define courage", one applicant responded: Go Yale. </p>
<p>I wish I was brave enough to write what Hugh Gallagher wrote!</p>
<p>wowoowwow to the last few posts :D i wonder what would happen if someone actually did that! (maybe, minus the profanity, lol.) i would love to try it, but i'd prolly begin to freak out and cry once i send it in, haha. :)</p>
<p>i'm planning on writing for my love of cheese and how it's changed me.</p>
<p>you'd be surprised...</p>
<p>Are most of these the common app personal statement? And I'm guessing they fall under "Topic of your choice."</p>
<p>I am in the midst of writing all my essays at the moment but im boring myself to death writing about the same old boring stuff! I want to stand out in the eyes of the readers does anyone have any ideas for me?! I am an extremely quirky person but just cant seem to think of a good idea. I feel like I am thinking too much about it but I love all your topics you all used for you essays. SO creative!! Please let me know if you have ANY ideas and how I could go about writing it. THANKS!!</p>