<p>Hello everyone!</p>
<p>I was wondering: How important is it to adhere to the 250-500 word limit? Would some +100 words be okay?</p>
<p>It depends upon the college. </p>
<p>At Harvard, the length of the essay does not matter; they will read whatever you send in. See: [Admissions</a> Office Says Not To Fret Over Common App Word Limit | News | The Harvard Crimson](<a href=“http://www.thecrimson.com/article/2011/11/15/common-app-new-word-limit/]Admissions”>Admissions Office Says Not To Fret Over Common App Word Limit | News | The Harvard Crimson). </p>
<p>On the other hand, Yale says “We ask that you respect the word limit we have set. Will we read the words beyond 500? Yes. But if your essay is much longer than 500 words, you will not have helped yourself by ignoring our request. Remember, concise and simple writing is often the best writing.”</p>
<p>I honestly would keep it under 500 for Harvard. They will read, but shorter essays can be appreciated much more. Not because they take less time to read, but because they are concise and to the point and are loaded with proper, word-saving vocabulary.</p>
<p>I would stick to the guidelines of +/- 10%, so up to 550 would probably be ok. Any longer than that and they will definitely notice.</p>
<p>Well, mine was 750+ and I was just accepted EA. That’s in addition to an approx. 900 word supplement. I wouldn’t worry about it.</p>
<p>HOWEVER, and I cannot believe this - next year the common app will begin to actually enforce the word limits. Maybe I’m being extreme, but I have to wonder if I would have been able to write an essay that would get me accepted were I actually limited to 500 words. All I can say is, I’m so glad I got in the last year before this new enforcement.</p>