<p>I wrote the second essay but it is 625 words long, not the 500 it is supposed to be. I really like it the way it is and feel that if I start omitting things, that it will lose the feel of it. Would adcoms really mind those extra 125 words?</p>
<p>From the Yale Admissions site:</p>
<p>"Q: My essays are more than 500 words each. Is that OK?</p>
<p>A: We ask that you respect the word limits we suggest. Will we read the words beyond 500? Yes. But if your essays are much longer than 500 words, understand that you will not help yourself by seeming to have ignored our request."</p>
<p>I suggest trying to scale it back to under 600 words.</p>
<p>I cut it down to 593. would they really notice those extra 93 words? I'm scared that they will think I didn't follow the rules, but I also don't want the essay to lose its essence. Also, is it ok if I use contractions in order to make it shorter, or are we supposed to write out everything. I also don't want it to look sloppy and not serious.</p>
<p>if you really think your essay needs those 93 words, don't cut them out. it should be fine. as for contractions, as long as you don't use them everywhere you should be fine. i mean, don't use them in every instance.</p>