<p>My friend is applying to Brown, and she told me that because there’s no word limit to Brown’s essay (whatever essay that may be), it can be as long as you want it to be. Her essay is more than 2,000 words. Is that smart? Or should she cut down on it a lot more?</p>
<p>There is a word limit. The paper application says around 500 words, and the online application limits itself to 5000 characters.</p>
<p>My essay is a little under 1,000 words, but it's only 4,200 characters. Should I ignore the word limit and put it into the online app where it'll fit, or should I trim it down/get a new essay?</p>
<p>If your other essays fit the online limit, enter it online. Otherwise, trim it.</p>
<p>That is, as long as your essay isn't boring or anything within the course of the 1,000 words.</p>
<p>Mine was way over 500 words (~800) but under 5000 characters, and I just submitted it.</p>
<p>I think 400-650 words will be a good number to hover about. As Shakespeare once wrote, </p>
<p>"Brevity is the soul of wit."</p>
<p>You want to be succinct; not flooding your officer with drivel.</p>
<p>For the essays, did you guys write format all the 5000 character essay to answer all the questions, or did yours focus on a single point or storyline?</p>
<p>i formatted mine to answer all the questions... i now kind of regret it, but oh well.</p>
<p>I had a story that expressed a portion of what I am interested in, certainly how I think, and gave insight on me that would probably set me apart from other applicants (because the essay topic was something I'd wager to say they had never heard of before).</p>
<p>mine is a story that addresses everything except what issues interest me most. it didnt feel as though i could address all three topics without making my essay choppy and boring.</p>
<p>Mine's 828 words, ~4600 characters. I hope this isn't too long, but I poured myself out on this one. I actually started crying as I typed it, which I don't think I've ever done. I basically described my persistence with going on an exchange despite people's doubts and judgments and described my thought process from leaving the airport to arriving in Germany. I feel like it really shows me as an individual, but it doesn't answer the questions directly. I honestly didn't even think about the question..I just wrote. It's also very casual and conversational and definitely doesn't display my vocabulary or anything (should it more accurately show my true writing ability or was I right to focus on the content and how it conveys myself as a person?). Think Brown will go for this?
Blehh, I know you guys don't know the exact answer to this, but input is welcome. I'm just relieving application anxiety :)</p>
<p>scarolina89, send it to me. 828 words, can be painful. But if your essay can compel the reader to go from first para to second, second to third, so on and forth, you should be okay.</p>
<p>Mine was ~900 words and I submitted online (and got in). But it was also a sensitive issue that needed to be addressed properly.</p>
<p>The online application says "If your essay is over 5000 characters, please upload your essay..." Does it mean 5000 isn't actually the cap? But the paper version says "your statement should not exceed 500 words". I saw this only when I'm printing it for preview. I'm so confused! Any suggestions please?</p>
<p>I trimmed mine down to 550 words. If you can make it shorter, make it shorter. If you absolutely can't, then I guess you should just submit it anyways. Don't do anything that will harm your essay, but you should still take into account the fact that they will be expecting to read ~500 words.</p>
<p>Just an update....my friend got in ED to Brown with a 1,800 word essay. She trimmed it down a bit from 2000. So, I wouldn't worry about trimming down an 800 word essay.</p>
<p>It's unfortunate, but it's impossible to tell whether or not the length of the 1,000+ word essays people submitted worked for or against them during the application process, regardless of whether or not they were admitted. I guess the only sure thing you can do is to try to make the essay as best as you can. If it's as good as you can make it, then don't trim it down. If there's a section in the essay that you really like but you really don't need, then you might want to consider removing it.</p>
<p>Mine was around 670, trimmed down from 800.</p>
<p>I feel like a page to a page and a half (single spaced and regardless of word count) is in the same category for colleges in terms of the time it takes to read such an essay. I think the point is just to send a piece of writing that contains only the necessary words. </p>
<p>Mine was 676 words, and I treated the prompt as kind of a "topic of your choice." It definitely says something about me, but not about ideas or issues persay.</p>
<p>eb white once said that writing succinctly requires rigor.</p>