<p>To current students:</p>
<p>I saw some advice on an admissions blog of a well-know independent counselor that stated that the common application essay should have an academic flair to it (perhaps you mention research you've done, or the implications of one of Jane Austen's books, etc.).</p>
<p>In your experience, is this true? Should at least one of the essays submitted to Harvard be academic in some nature (i.e. show your learning process in some way)?</p>
<p>After all, a college is about academics! So, I think it makes sense to demonstrate your passion for learning. My main essay was on a specific topic not taught at my school which I studied and researched over many years and wrote a paper about</p>
<p>Alea’s essay sounds like his or her enthusiasm and dedication shined. That’s different than writing blah blah about how great you are, what your research entailed or an essay about Jane Austen. The “learning process” they want to see is about you, as a growing, adaptable individual, with interests, an openness to new experiences, and reactions. After all, college is about taking on challenges, integrating, growing, learning from failures. You want them to like you, not just be impressed by your intellect- after all, adcoms are equally concerned with kids who’ll add to life on campus, outside classes.</p>
<p>Colleges have the rest of your app detailing your accomplishments. No one wants to read an essay that’s bragging about your accomplishments. </p>
<p>You want an essay to be well written, certainly. But the most important part is usually showing who you are. Show your personality, your character, etc. Write about something you’re passionate about. But don’t just talk about your achievements alone. If they shaped you, changed you, or were really something incredible then sure. But I don’t think you should worry about being academic. Instead write about something you care about.</p>
<p>Mine had literally nothing to do with academics. It was about a passion for public transportation, of all things. Nothing rigorous, just something honest.</p>
<p>I think you may have misinterpreted “academic flair.” The counselor was probably implying that you should edit your essays carefully and be very attentive to technical aspects (grammar and spelling errors should be next to nonexistent) while maintaining some personal voice (write freely, but don’t degenerate into colloquialism). To be fair, your application as a whole should first and foremost demonstrate your capacity as a scholar, but I feel that for most applicants, this quality is best reflected in the objective statistics of your application such as scores and awards (in the common application, you are asked to list specific awards and recognition you have received). For the essays, you don’t have to talk about anything spectacular like climbing Mount Everest or finding an alternative treatment for leukemia. My common app essay described how a particular volunteering experience at a local charity and food pantry shaped my views of my community, thus inspiring me to reach out to the less fortunate. My Harvard supplemental essay was about teaching a special ed program at my local elementary’s summer school and how that shaped my desire to become a professor.</p>
<p>I’ve posted this elsewhere, but some of my favorite all-time college applications quotes deal with the essay. </p>
<p>What You Don’t Know Can Keep You Out Of College by Don Dunbar</p>
<h2>If the admissions office door has four locks on it, the first two keys are test scores and school record, and the third is special talent or some other accomplishment or quality. What is the fourth key? It’s “character.” An old fashioned word, it means the way you develop your inner qualities: intellectual passion, maturity, social conscience, concern for community, tolerance, inclusiveness.</h2>
<p>Acing The College Application by Michele A. Hernandez</p>
<p>Colleges look for students who show initiative and passion. Those are the two mantras you should repeat to yourself over and over as you fill out your application. Think passion and intellectual depth. If there is one single area that admissions officers are looking for above all others, it is intellectual firepower. Though there are many valedictorians, there are few who show a deep and sincere love of learning. Those are the ones who are accepted most often into the most selective colleges.</p>
<hr>
<p>On Writing The College Application Essay by Harry Bauld</p>
<p>Some of the most common snooze potions whipped up by seniors. Steer clear of these topics.</p>
<ol>
<li><p>The Trip. This is one about the visit to Europe, Israel, Kansas, or other exotic land or wilderness trips such as Outward Bound.</p></li>
<li><p>My Favorite Things. This list essay is the unmistakable sign of what is called, in admissions lingo, a Fluffball.</p></li>
<li><p>Miss America. The Big Issue questions like “I think World Peace is the most important issue facing us today…”</p></li>
<li><p>Jock. This is not a topic, as a whole way of thinking. Through________ (football, basketball, baseball, wrestling, acting, yearbook editor, club officers, piano playing, spider collecting), I have learned Noble Value A, High Platitude B, and Great Lesson C.</p></li>
<li><p>My Room. A common variation on number two. “I don’t know what to tell you about myself, so I guess I’ll describe my room.”</p></li>
<li><p>Three D’s. “I honestly believe that I have the Discipline and Determination and Diversity of interests to succeed at whatever I do.”</p></li>
<li><p>Tales of My Success (or, The Time I Won My Town The Race). “But finally, when I crossed the finish line first and received the congratulations of my teammates, I realized all the hard work had been worth it. Why must all stories of sports, elections, and other “challenges” end on a note of Napoleonic triumph?</p></li>
<li><p>Pet Death. Maudlin descriptions of animal demise, always written by the Fluffball. “As I watched Button’s life ebb away, I came to value the important things in this world.”</p></li>
<li><p>Selling and Telling Autobiography. “Hello, my name is ______. I am a very unique person with many interests and abilities and goals.”</p></li>
</ol>
<p>I didn’t write anything about academics (I was admitted to all schools applied, graduating from a Harvard peer). My 2nd essay was about how I betrayed my best friend’s secret (his sexual orientation) and how I strove to repair our friendship.</p>
<p>I can’t think of more than a handful of essays I’ve read that expressed “love of learning” in ways I felt were genuine and mature. So, what works is more about finding those learning moments in all sorts of situations- that’s a personality trait.</p>
<p>Wow, great advice. Thanks much!</p>
<p>So perhaps focus an essay on growth in some manner or other? And hint to my intellectual passions (as opposed to boasting about what I’ve done academically)?</p>
<p>Academic passions can be completely separate from your personality. They will see your passions in the rest of your app. Write an essay about something you care about, but most of all the essay is to show who you are (not what you do). It’s to show your personality. Definitely don’t boast, but even mentioning/hinting towards intellectual ECs isn’t necessary.</p>
<p>In case you haven’t seen it, Yale has some great advice about essays on their website: [Advice</a> on Putting Together Your Application | Yale College Admissions](<a href=“Advice on Putting Together Your Application | Yale College Undergraduate Admissions”>Advice on Putting Together Your Application | Yale College Undergraduate Admissions)</p>
<p>^ Good advice. Any kid wanting a top school should read it over and over.</p>
<p>Thank you so, so much. I appreciate the help!</p>
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<p>Nah. As a Class of 2015 admit, I received a letter from one of the admissions officers complimenting my Common App essay. It was about getting lost in my car, and when I finally let my mom read it, she took to calling it the “Seinfeld essay”: it was an essay about nothing.</p>
<p>The lesson? In the essay, personality matters; demonstrating scholarship doesn’t.</p>