<p>hey guys.
My essay limit is 500 words. but I have like 575. Is that ok or is that like an automatic rejection?
if I get it down to 550 would that be better?
What do you guys do in this type of case where you can realy shorten it down any more</p>
<p>It depends on the reason why your essay is over 500 words. If your essay is verbose and unfocused, it will annoy admissions officers. If you just have a lot to say but you say it clearly and judiciously, I don't think anyone will fault you for having 75 too many words. Doubling the word limit is a different story.</p>
<p>you should generally stay under 110% of the limit (i.e. 550, in this case). and although i haven't read your essay, it's usually possible to cut out 25 words without hurting anything.</p>
<p>so 525 would be ok?
Do they count words?</p>
<p>yeah, 525 would be fine.
some apps count words, but others only have the limit as a suggestion. which one are we talking about?</p>
<p>boston univeristy.
the ones that do count words, will that extra word count hurt me in the admission process?</p>
<p>75 words isn't that much over. Look on the BU's website or on their actual supplement; does it say "no more than 500 words" or "about 500 words"? If it says "no more than 500 words", you should probably try to cut it down, but if it says "about 500 words", you're probably okay.</p>
<p>However, you might be surprised, in that cutting down your essay (even if by 25 or 50 words) could actually strengthen it. I've had to do this for a few essays, and they're always stronger after shortening them.</p>
<p>lol care to take a look at my essay
?</p>