<p>I remember I would just start writing a couple paragraphs with various anecdotes about me- I must have written like 10+ college essay starters, and all of them are unfinished. For me, my first idea was definitely NOT a good one, so don't focus too much on just "polishing" one essay. You might notice that over the course of a week or two, it really starts to annoy you and you find it cheesy. The most-sent essay (4 or 5 times) that I ended up writing is one that I actually still really like. So start early like everyone says, but don't be afraid to let a lot of those early ideas go... and think of essays that you can use multiple times.</p>
<p>I agree blindkite-the summer is much too early. Sure, many will say "there's no such thing as too early" but I state that it is your senior summer and you must above all enjoy it. Also, you can't start if you aren't inspired, but you won't get inspired if you don't start...</p>
<p>i would say at the end of summer..cuz most apps are due by January 1st minus the UCs which are due at the end of November. but you want to at least get started at the end of summer. I applied this year, and wished i would've started earlier. It got really hectic at the end. And 15-20 colleges is a lot..you might want to cut that to 10 colleges. After all its undergrad, if you were applying to a grad school 15-20 would be understandable. you know. add more reaches than high reaches</p>
<ol>
<li>there is no such thing as too early</li>
<li>writing can be a spontaneous activity. start thinking about it now, but there's no telling exactly when that good idea will pop into your head. start writing whenever you get that idea</li>
<li>write lots of essays. sometimes, when you have a good idea, it doesn't always turn out to be a good essay. in the end, pick your best ones.</li>
</ol>
<p>I mean, don't wake up every day during the summer like at 7AM and work your butt off. Of course, set aside time to relax and have fun with your friends. "Work on your essays this summer" means just get started on them. Most of your friends won't, so just starting them will get you ahead by a lot. After a movie, come home and spend and hour or so brainstorming on a topic/question. If the topic is about describing yourself, make a big list of qualities that describe you well. You know, get started like this. You dont need write one essay per day and go all crazy. Start lightly and you'll see that if you work on your essays everyday, that by the end of summer, you'll have so much information to use that your friends will be jealous! Think of it as a fun process. Also, if you get them done sooner, you'll have time to ask your teachers/counselor/parents/siblings/friends/etc to edit your essays. Have fun and don't cram them last minute. I've been through this entire process, and I know many (myself included) crammed. </p>
<p>Good luck.</p>
<p>15 to 20 schools isn't that bad. I applied to 15 different schools, only 8 of which were on the common app. What really helped me out and made it manageable for me was that I chose one prompt and that was both my common app essay and my personal statement essay.</p>
<p>I agree...start thinking about it now. That doesn't mean to actually write anything yet, but to think about what topics tell your story and how you can "market" yourself in a subtle way through this slice of life story. Think about what someone learns about you after getting to know you through your topic.</p>
<p>For example, my d wanted to let the reader know that her "journey" through high school involved her growth as a leader and as a vocalist.</p>
<p>Once she decided this, it became clear that the topic to write about should be about founding and directing a co-ed acapella group in hs.</p>
<p>So her essay was not a laundry list of ALL her leadership roles, but just focused on this one accomplishment. But since it was related to music, it also alluded to her growth as a musician as it discussed arranging the groups songs and conducting them.</p>
<p>The essay started with her feelings on the very first day the acapella group met at our house September of freshman year and concluded with her envisioning the group's very last meeting with the graduating seniors this coming June.</p>
<p>She did not write the essay during the summer, but regrets that she did not. Senior year she took 6 AP classes, and it was very difficult to find the time.
I would strongly advise taking one or two days to attempt actually writing, reviewing and editing it during the summer to relief the stress of senior year.</p>
<p>recycling essays from summer programs and essays written from school?</p>
<p>yes or no?</p>
<p>I would not spend every waking hour thinking of your essays, but there is nothing wrong with looking at the prompts on the Common App to see if there is something that hits you.</p>
<p>As for recycled essays, my son says that he has two or three really good ones from an AP English class that he might be interested in using. They already have gone through his teacher and peer editing from classmates, and they were liked. So recycling is not so bad if you have something that is good.</p>
<p>i would definitely agree in theory that starting early is good, but remember that you and your experiences will change. dont be surprised if you write a whole essay and never use it.</p>
<p>I really want to start my transfer essays next week (right after my finals) but how can I do so if most of the schools won't publish the essays prompt till mid August? I know that I can do the generic "Why do you want to transfer" and I saw some the prompts that the universities that I want to apply to used this year. However, I don't want to write essays on them in case the schools change their prompt (for supplements and personal statements. I just want to finish my whole applications this summer then mail them November. I will definitely not be able to work on the transfer application during the school year. Any advice?</p>
<p>Everyone says to start your essays early, so you must know you probably should start early. However, early is whatever you feel is comfortable for you.</p>
<p>Everyone told me to start early, though lots of people also said they tried to do so but ended up doing it the week before the deadline, and I (haha) definitely was one of those who really had to focus and churn out my essays during my entire winter break before the January deadline. START EARLY. It's better to have more time than less time! I cannot stress that enough, that's probably one of the top things I've regretted since I've finished my college application process. Trust me, it's not a great feeling having to be home sitting at the computer writing and rewriting your essays while people are out on vacation and all have finished their applications.</p>
<p>However, personally speaking, I really don't work well when something is due MONTHS to follow; I started my CommonApp essay maybe a month before it was due, and the supplemental essays a week or two before I had to turn them in. I came out fine, and am happy how things turned out :) I applied to 12 colleges, and was planning to add 5 more to that list (thank goodness I didn't) but realized due to time constraints that'd be utterly impossible.</p>
<p>It really does depend what kind of person you are. If you don't work well under pressure, by all means start as early as possible. However, you might've been like me and maybe you DID want to start early but just didn't get that "epiphany" or "right" thing to write about. </p>
<p>Only you know what works best for you.</p>
<p>Also, I had several SAT IIs to take last fall of senior year so that kept me busy studying for a while. Ideally, you would have all your tests taken care of before senior year starts, but you never know--you might need to retake the SAT/ACT and/or SAT IIs.</p>
<p>But the bottom line is: there's no such thing as too early. I would highly recommend you start early on your essays (but don't stress yourself out) over the summer, just maybe jot down some ideas etc, so you have stuff to work with later this fall.</p>
<p>The CommonApp essay prompts don't change year by year, so you definitely can brainstorm about what to write before it officially comes out in July (I think?). Later on, you will also acquaint yourself with the fine art of recycling essays ;)</p>
<p>The idea that they want to hear 'you' is ridiculous. Well, it's true, but it's awful advice. Hearing about your alcoholism or desire to commit suicide is not likely to make them accept you.</p>
<p>I wrote three of my essays over the summer because I worked at a mini golf course and spent a lot of time in the mornings just sitting in the little building before anyone arrived to play. For lack of anything more constructive to do, I brought a legal pad and after a few days ended up with three handwritten essays which I later edited and improved on the computer. My other essays I did in the early fall.</p>
<p>I don't think anyone is going to tell you "If you start your essays on June 2 you will have amazing essays" and "If you don't start until November you will never get into any colleges". It's all about how you operate-- many people produce their best work under the stress of a deadline.</p>
<p>While originally I wanted to say "it's never too early", that's not true. Keep in mind that this essay will go through MANY edits, so you will be dealing with it for awhile. If you start too early, you will reach a point that you can no longer even look at it, because you're SO sick of it.</p>
<p>So for that reason, I suggest waiting until this school year is over. Otherwise, you may lose focus on your schoolwork because of something that isn't even "due" yet. So keep school your priority and wait until summer to really start.</p>
<p>But kudos to you for being ahead of the game.</p>
<p>As an aside however, 15-20 schools is a bit much, you should <em>consider</em> narrowing that list down to 10 - 15. It will be much less of a burden to you, I promise.</p>
<p>The right timing may be very individual. If you're considering ED or EA and are in a fall sport or Marching Band, you'd be wise to get a good start in the summer or even now as the AP classes wind down and you're still in "school" mode. OTOH if you're in a spring sport and finishing you Gold Award or Eagle Project this summer, fall might work better.<br>
As many have suggested - just having some prompts in the back of your mind will keep you open to ideas.</p>
<p>I forgot to mention what bingle said, keep EA/ED in mind!!!!
That's really crucial, because those deadlines occur before thanksgiving, which comes up VERY quickly in senior year.</p>
<p>I wrote all my college essays three days before the apps were due. Worked for me. There is no "best time" to start; it'll different for different people.</p>
<p>So if you're applying early somewhere, you should probably try to start those applications over the summer because you only have like 2 months once school starts to get them done, and if you're still taking SATs, that's even less time!</p>
<p>For RD schools, my counselor told us if we got them done before early results came out, it would be like good luck...</p>
<p>I also advise not sending in RD applications before your early decision has come out though. For one of my schools, my application was the same as the application I submitted to my early school, so I sent it in in November, but then I was deferred, and I kind of wish I hadn't sent in the other application then because it wasn't as polished as the ones I sent in post-deferral.</p>
<p>I would find scholarships with essays and apply for as many of those as you can. You can typically tweak them slightly and use them as app essays. That way you kill two birds with one stone.</p>