<p>Hello! I am a prospie for '10 and, being overly-eager as I sometimes am, have begun filling out my application supplements. As far as the 'Why Swat?' question is concerned, approximately how long should it be? The application places it under "essay" and provides an enitre page, but the instructions ask for a "brief statement."<br>
Also, do you think it wise to send both an academic paper AND a creative writing supplement? I intend on majoring in English with a CW emphasis, and writing is my greatest love and a significant part of my life (which I will certainly bring out in my essays, etc) so I feel that the CW supplement is something I should send. But do you think they would mind if I sent an academic paper as well? Or would they be annoyed and think that I'm over-doing it?<br>
Any advice you have would be greatly appreciated. Swat is without a doubt my first choice school, so I want to be sure to do things to my advantage. :) Thanks so much!
(Also, if someone is willing to have a look at my stats, etc. and give me his/her opinion on how high or low my estimated chances are and identify some things I can still improve with the time I have left, I would really, really be grateful. I just don't want to post them publicly on this board. :) If anyone would be willing to do this, just PM.)</p>
<p>Mine was exactly 561 words, but you shouldn't worry too much about length. I know other accepted students who wrote essays that were much longer than mine...as long as it answers the question and shows the adcom why you want to go to swat and yada yada, then you will be fine. As for the other supplements, I can't really say...I doubt that submitting "too much" could ever hurt someone. If you like both of your pieces that much, then I would suggest sending them (personally, I didn't send anything extra and I turned out fine). If you have any other questions, feel free to IM me. (I am ED '09, btw)</p>
<p>hey, wow im impressed that you started applying to colleges already!!!! this time last year i still had barely begun visiting, and i dont think i had even heard of swat yet. i guess i was a little late in the game, but i applied rd and got in...and i honestly believe that this essay was probably the reason i got in (i had pretty good ecs and stats, but they were barely average for swat). dont underestimate the importance of this essay. i remember i spent a really really long time on it and got a bunch of opinions from this board. everyone pretty much agreed that it should fit on one page, so i typed it up with size 11 font, and shortened the margins to get everything to fit. at first i was going to submit 2 pages but im glad i didn't because it was probably too windy..shortening it to a page really helped me focus and tighten it up, which is what i would recommend. id be happy to read it if you want another opinion whenever you're done.</p>
<p>as for the writing samples, if you really love both pieces, go for it and submit them. i remember they wanted a work with teacher's comments on it, but i wanted to send them an article i wrote that got published in a magazine, so i sent them a cw sample from school and then a copy of the magazine, and in the cover sheet i explained why. </p>
<p>feel free to pm me with an questions/concerns/whatever because sometimes i forget to check back where i posted</p>
<p>I sent in the Academic sample a couple days after I sent the Swarthmore Supplement. I didn't have a good piece to use, then I got something back from my Government class that was great (teacher said "the most well thought-out essay I've read yet on the subject") so I figured it would be good to use. Needless to say it didn't hurt.</p>
<p>As for the "Why Swat?" question, make it personal. Read the guidebooks and visit the campus, and write about things that you're going to want to pursue once you get to campus.</p>
<p>" Swat is without a doubt my first choice school, so I want to be sure to do things to my advantage. "</p>
<p>If you can afford it (don't need to compare fin. aid packages), applying ED would increase your chances.</p>
<p>Thanks for all the advice! Truth be told, I'd love to apply ED, but we do unfortunately need to compare financial aid. :-(</p>
<p>Actually, when it comes to pretty much any ED app anywhere, if finances become problematic you are excused from honoring the ED obligation. Finances are pretty much the only legit excuse.</p>
<p>Once you are accepted ED, you have to withdraw all other applications. So even if you will not be forced to attend your ED school if you can't afford it, you will have no other options left. ED is a BAD choice for people who need to compare financial aid packages.</p>
<p>I applied ED to Williams and, while I received a generous amount of aid, it still wasn't anything we could afford. They were, however, very nice about it and released me from my ED binding agreement, saying that they would 'save me a spot' in the event that my circumstances changed or if I got a better aid package elsewhere that they could possibly meet. As it turned out, Swarthmore gave me some of what Williams considers 'merit aid' so it didn't meet their criteria for trying to meet it (and I'm glad, too, because I decided I really liked Swat!).</p>
<p>So there's still hope in terms of applying ED and needing financial aid---just have other applications ready and waiting to send to other colleges in the event that you have to get out of your ED acceptance (and you need to make sure you'll get an aid decision before the deadlines for applying to other schools comes up).</p>
<p>Armando:</p>
<p>That is a very interesting story. If you can do so without going into personal financial information, could you elaborate a bit? Philips Evans Scholar?</p>
<p>Just as a caution for others reading about your experience, I would be very careful about counting on a similar ED release if the financial forms indicate that your family really could pay the price.</p>
<p>armando might be talking about being a "swarthmore scholar" which i also am. basically you get a normal finaid letter like everyone else, and then they tell you that the part that would normally be a loan is eliminated and becomes a scholarship (so say if someones efc was 10k, the other 30k would become scholarship money). they didnt say ANYTHING about this being need based (i looked) but i suspect that it is (at least partially) because i'm just average for swarthmore..definitely nobody would would just get a purely merit scholarship out of nowhere..but i do have a lot of need..hmm..</p>
<p>Hey, Lisa, you are definitely not 'average' for Swarthmore. I've seen parts of your application! You deserve it....</p>
<p>Swarthmore fills most of your need by grants. Grants are listed on the bill as "Swarthmore scholarship."</p>
<p>I'm almost 95% that Swat did not offer Philip Evans for ED kiddies.</p>
<p>As for Swat scholars, doesn't that mean a fair majority of Swat acceptees get "Swarthmore scholarships" then? Just wondering...</p>
<p>"Swarthmore scholarship" is just the term for need-based financial-aid that is not covered by federal, state, or outside funds. Virtually anyone qualifying for need-based aid at Swarthmore receives a "Swarthmore scholarship" as opposed to a Pell Grant Scholarship, a National Merit Scholarship, or a Toyota Scholarship.</p>
<p>I found the program that LisaSimpson and probably Armandoleon must be talking about:</p>
<p>
[quote]
The National McCabe Scholarship was established by Thomas B. McCabe, Class of 1915. The McCabe Scholar selection committee places emphasis on ability, character, personality, leadership, and service to school and community. The amount awarded is based on a student's demonstrated financial need and all need is met with scholarship. No interviews or separate application is required for consideration.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Basically, your financial need is determined the regular way (nebulous though that may be), but any loan component of the need-based financial aid package is then converted to additional grants so you graduate loan-free.</p>
<p>In practice, this is no different that Harvard saying they've eliminated loans for anyone below $40,000 annual income or the packages that Williams offers to their Questbridge supplied applicants. It's a kind of "merit-aid" from schools that don't offer "merit-aid".</p>
<p>Since the loan portion of the financial aid packages is so small for higher-need applicants, it's a modest cost to the college, but it makes a big difference to the individual student/family.</p>
<p>Although not exclusively so, these kinds of programs are used as tools in attracting a diverse student body in the same way that other schools use merit-aid to attract high SAT scorers.</p>
<p>I think interesteddad's right b/c I found my acceptance letter and it says...</p>
<p>"The Swarthmore Scholars are named in recognition of outstanding scholarship, leadership, and the potential to contribute actively to the Swarthmore community. The College confers a special honor upon Swarthmore Scholars by eliminating the loan component of any financial aid package awarded them."</p>
<p>I had tried googling "swarthmore scholar" before and I came up with virtually nothing. I guess that's because the official title is "McCabe Scholar." The loan scholarship just seemed a total mystery to me, not being officially mentioned anywhere on the website or on the FAQ.</p>