Welcome to my blog! As you can see from perusing my previous posts, I am relatively new to the world of blogging, to the use of technology beyond the most rudimentary of tasks, but I am so excited by all of the possibilities that this blog might offer our classes!
For our first post, I'll ask you to read at least two of the following articles regarding the college essay. Choose any two from the list provided, then respond with your insights, observations, comments, etc. Try to move beyond simple responses like, "I knew that" or "I didn't know that." Instead, reflect on your own experiences and expectations as a student readying for college admissions. What topics do you plan to explore in your college essays? What events, experiences, etc. seem like appropriate content for your essays? What insights do these readings offer on the development of those essays? These are just a few questions that you might consider...
Please refer by title to the articles that you read and use direct quotations where appropriate.
Each person is required to post an individual response, but feel free to comment upon the observations and insights of your classmates, as well.
I look forward to reading your responses...
Links:
TheAdmissions Essay Ordeal - The Young Examined Life
http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9F01E4D81331F932A05751C1A961958260
College Essays Nerve-racking...
http://www.startribune.com/local/11555871.html
Making a hard-life story open a door to college
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/27/education/27college.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1&sq=college%20essays&st=cse&scp=2
Controversy over College Essay Sites
http://partners.nytimes.com/library/tech/99/06/cyber/education/23education.html?scp=26&sq=college%20essays&st=cse
College Admissions ... A little guidance
http://questions.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/01/04/edlife_qanda/?scp=21&sq=college%20essays&st=cse
U.Va. Office of Admission Essays
Advice from an expert - The Boston Globe
College applications can be too good - The Boston Globe
How much do college admissions essays matter - USATODAY.com
Teacher Says College Admissions Essays (washingtonpost.com) (2)
61 comments:
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Making A Hard Life Story Open a Door-
"The workshop is intended to help them discover — and prove to college admissions officials — that their life stories can be as powerful as high SAT scores and stellar grades."
First how can you quantify or qualify what exactly a "hard Life struggle" is. The sole reason that we have SAT scores and grades is so that we have an even playing field when applying to colleges. Once Personal experience and hardships are favored as much as an SAT or ACT score the system becomes biased, where admissions favors those who have "struggled" and it puts the children of hardworking successful parents in a situation where they're being punished for their lack of suffering.Does an orphaned rape victim living in poverty deserve to get into a college more than a middle class student with the same SAT scores and grades? The answer is No because a student should never feel like suffering is a ticket into college and furthermore experiences should never set a student apart when applying for colleges. I think writing about an experience in order to let the college know where they're student is coming from is fine but, when the college begins to place SAT scores in the same category as life experiences it would always favor those who had hardships and we can't control that which would make working hard a useless quality and fairness nonexistent.
Nerve Racking Search
"While many colleges ask students to write about why they want to attend that school, others want something more ambitious. "Write page 162 of your autobiography" is one of the four choices on the University of Minnesota's application for honors programs and scholarships." Quirky different prompts would be really cool. i think that if students were given the chance to write about something thats not generic it would help with showing off what the students personality and writing skills are truly like because it would be something that we haven't written before and it would be much easier to stand out.
-Olivia Barnefield pr.3
The Virgina Tech one was interesting. It gave me a few ideas to revise my essays like adding the risky hook line and adding more detail. It also helped to look at the cliche beginnings to kind of get a feel for what he meant. I initially was worried but I now see that mine might be a common person but is more personalized and less generic.
Nerve Racking Search;
I agree with obarnefield about the unique prompts. The generic influential person prompt just is boring in itself. The reader will have a lot more boring pieces even if the essay is full of emotion and honesty. Some people just don't have extravagant experiences or people in their life. But it also brings up a good point about staying calm. Get it done now and don't stress the essay. They are short and can be manipulated to be easy to write while keeping its quality.
*Thank God Firefox has spell check for me*
U. Va. Office of Admission Essays -
"If an essay starts out: 'I have been a member of the band and it has taught me leadership, perseverance and hard work,' I can almost recite the rest of the essay without reading it". The author of this article suggests that some essays are typical and predictable. I think the stereotypical and ‘boring’ essay is a trap that many applicants fall into with the generic and broad topics given for admission essays. The author speaks of an instance when they "asked students to describe an invention or creation from the past that was important to them" and the number one response was the Declaration of Independence. He/she thinks, though, that "a significant portion of the people who chose the Declaration did so because they thought we would want to hear about how much they admired Thomas Jefferson". I think that most applicants over think the essay and attempt to use sophisticated language and style that takes away from their true personality, which is the reason the essay exists in the first place. I agree with the author that “a good essay always shows; a weak essay always tells” – we just have to find our voice in order to tell our story.
How much do college essay really matter? USATODAY –
Though this article mainly talks about the process that college applicants endure for the essay, I think the most interesting part is about the editing of the essay itself. It said, “Brandenburg said her biggest frustration was keeping within the word limit.” Wouldn’t the world limit help more than it hurts? If our essays were limitless, wouldn’t we just ramble on, writing useless words that waste both our time and theirs? The article also says to edit your paper, but be careful how much you edit. “I think increasingly we're seeing essays by committee," he said. "They've written a draft for their high school English class. Then their high school counselor looks it over, Mom looks it over and Dad looks it over and a friend. By the time it goes through that many people, the life is out of it." It’s interesting to see that written out, after being told time and time again that it’s important to edit this essay to the core. I agree, though, I think the more that you let other people take control, the less the essay will be yours in the end. I don’t think the biggest challenge is staying in the word limit, or editing. I think the obstacle is finding something you can write about that will stand out above the rest, something untypical and unique that’ll surprise the admission’s counselors, something that really shows who you are and why that school wants someome like you.
In "How much do college admissions essays matter" it says that college essays are supposed to be one factor of an application, but no more influential than any other part. I think that it is crucial that an essay can't make or break an application. The article says "It's an urban myth that a student who has goofed off his whole academic career can get in with a come-from-behind epic struggle in which the essay serves as the primary tool." It's good to know that colleges don't look past 3 and 1/2 years of hard work and concentrate solely on an essay that takes a week to write. An essay can be a good way to determine the writing skills and overall intellect of a student, but one essay with an extremely broad topic that has no definite answer is hard to judge between different students and different graders equally.
In "College applications can be too good," the article says two things that seem to contradictory. The first quote, "Colleges are now cross-referencing student essays against the SAT writing sample, and, if doubts linger, will ask for a graded writing sample or raise their concern with the student's high school guidance counselor," isn't exactly the same as a quote later on in the article, "When an essay raises eyebrows, the first step is to judge it against the rest of the application, administrators say. A shimmering essay from a so-so English student, for example, clashes like "red stilettos and sweats," said Sarah M. McGinty, a Boston admissions consultant and author of "The College Application Essay." I think that the first idea of comparing an essay to the SAT writing sample isn't necessarily fair. There are people who are not good under time restraints, and writing an essay in less than an hour versus as much time as needed could be extremely different. However, the degree of difference would obviously be slight. Comparing the application essay to English grades seems much more reasonable, as an English class would obviously require a lot of writing which would be reflected in the student's grade.
--Olivia Sher Period 3
I enjoyed reading "How much do college admissions essays matter?" because it gave me insight into what is actually going on in an admissions counselor's head. Barmak Nassirian, associate executive director of the American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers, says, "It's an urban myth that a student who has goofed off his whole academic career can get in with a come-from-behind epic struggle in which the essay serves as the primary tool." That statement is very calming because it revealed to me that the essay is not a vital component to the college application. Even though it is not a crucial element I still understand that it is a mandatory ingredient that does have some influence. Therefore I will still try my hardest to write my best possible essay.
The other thing that I have gained from reading this article is motivation to get a hired editor. Kathy Joon explains that your essay is "standing out amongst a pool of thousands of essays and applications — the odds of beating mediocrity to become a sure pick for the colleges thus becomes a high-pressure challenge." I have now realized that it will be a quite a challenge and I am ready to spend the money that it takes for help...even if the essay might now be as important as I originally perceived it to be.
Taesong Kim, per. 5
Sources: "College Applications can be too good," "How much do College Admissions Essays Matter"
Although the "College Applications can be too good" article does make some good points about plagiarism, I don't think it's right that admissions offices should be affected by a shining essay. Personally, I think that with the college admissions essay(s) being one of our lives' most influential works, we'd be pressured into writing our best works. Of course, if there are strange differences-- whether in voice or style-- within the submitted essays (most likely there are several per college) there are grounds for suspicion. However, without actual proof, it shouldn't be taken into account.. Then again, this isn't really a systematic, feedback-required job. Admissions "judges" can pretty much do whatever they want.
It's definitely okay to seek help from parents, friends, teacher.. etc, but overdoing it will essentially filter out the applicants' personal voices. "How much do admissions essays count" addresses this problem.
Both the articles really opened my eyes as to how careful I should be when seeking help. Fortunately, I feel pretty confident with the essay I'm working on right now, so I don't feel pressured to ask for heavy aid.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/27/education/27college.html?pagewanted=1&_r=2&sq=college%20essays&st=cse&scp=2
I believe that a strong emphasis on an admissions essay with regards to showing life struggles is a wonderful thing. As both the SAT and ACT have been proven to disadvantage those living in poverty through their use of language (although they are retooling the tests to make them better), being able truly express ones self in a creative way is an opportunity which no numerical value can ever match. However, a strong emphasis does not mean an equal one. There are many reasons why an admissions essay should not be valued at the same level as an SAT or ACT score. For one, the fact that these essays are not written in a controlled environment such a standardized test, it leaves room for an essay being fantastic, but not being the applicants own words. This being so, I still believe that a creative portion of a college admissions portion is a necessary thing in order o give all kinds of minds from all kinds of backgrounds an opportunity to go to college.
http://www.virginia.edu/undergradadmission/writingtheessay.html
In the section “the Bad” this article gave me better insight into how one goes about deciding both which topic to write about, as well as where to go with that topic. Specifically, the portion stating that topics which have extreme emotional impacts on you should be avoided. At first this didn’t make sense because of how much “individual voice is stressed”, but like the author states, writing about the death of a loved one in 500 words can almost make it sound cheesy. Also, as far as my writing voice is concerned in these essays, the section labeled “The Good” the contrast of a good essay showing and a bad essay telling totally clarified what voice should be used.
The Young Examined Life
I fount this ironic, but it couldn't be more true. I personally have been dreading writing this essay since my sister went through the process of writing hers, when I was just a freshman. And for the few people who really have an amazing story to tell, I guess this essay is less stressful to write; but, as for the rest of us, it's difficult to search through memories and find one that will make an admissions person stand up and demand that you be accepted. But this article made me realize that admissions people, as the article states quite plainly, do "not expect everyone to have competed in the Olympics or invented a form of plastic." I guess that helps my panic over choosing a topic. It's still difficult though, and I sympathize with the kids that have been having nightmares... I guess the most difficult piece of advice is to 'just be yourself' when it seems as though an entire future depends on this single 500-word essay. I think every fear is summed up in this statement: "'Somebody's going to be judging me as a person based on what I do here,' and at my age that's not comfortable, never mind when you're 17.'" It couldn't be more true.
Writing the Essay: Sound Advice from an Expert
After reading the first article about stress-inducing essays, it was nice to read a little advice, especially since I am still, of course, dreading actually picking a topic. First off, I'm hoping a don't choose a "Big-Mac" for my paper. I am really glad I read this advice, because it was helpful to learn that, as much as I love thesaurus.com, using a thesaurus for your entire paper is not a good idea. I really like the examples. As often as we're told about college essays, I don't think I've ever actually gotten to read an example. It was interesting to read about risk papers. I don't know whether I'd be able to take that big of a risk on my paper for fear of unbelievable anxiety when I'm waiting for college letters, but it's good to know that risks are appreciated and even encouraged.
Julia Small period 5
Advice From An Expert-
I loved the "show and tell" tip the writer gives. He explains that as a reader, he wants to FEEL what the applicant is writing. This made me reflect upon some of my previous writing and realize that I rarely ever appeal to the senses other than sight.
His tip about thesaurus use all hit the bull’s eye. In stead of stressing about the content of my writing, I sometimes want to stress about making it 'flowery'. This article helped me tons! I needed this article as a fresh reminder of rules to stick to!
Teacher Says: College Admission Essays-
I was especially surprised by Vuko's description of one of her favorite essays. This essay was about a boy finding the guts to ask a girl out. I love this idea! It is definitely not cliché and opened a door to several ideas!
Lily McAninch
pd. 5
Nerve Racking Search
This article showed me that is important to show your voice and personality in your essays as well as making them sound eloquent. The article showed me that your college essay isn’t the “make it or break it” factor in your application process but that it is just there to show the colleges your voice. “While a great essay won't get a student with bad grades or low test scores into college, essays can reveal the heart and passion behind the numbers.” Essays are all about you and are there to allow you to explain your grades and prove that you deserve to be at that college. Considering how “Frank Sachs, director of college counseling at the Blake School in Minneapolis, said that in more than 20 years he remembers just one essay that tipped a decision the student's way” you know that the essays still hold importance so the pressure still comes in but it is relieving to know that the essay, more than likely, is a way for the college to get to know you better than just knowing your accomplishments.
Kristin Rollins
4th period
How Much Do College Essays Really Matter -
“Muth advises students to read their completed essays to their best friend. If it sounds like them, they've probably done a good job, he said. ‘If it sounds like a Ph.D. thesis, it's probably not their voice, the voice we're looking for.’”
This article really shows the importance of keeping your own voice in the article. One must place the most importance on what they mean to say and not on what others can tell them to write. While it is necessary to have your work proofed and edited, one must not do so to the point that it is not their essay anymore. Now I better understand that colleges do not simply look for the difficulty or the perfected nature of the writing, but rather what it tells about the individuality and uniqueness of the student.
I also found interesting the part where Muth says that "it shouldn't be an essay about community service. It should be about a moment of time….” I found this particularly helpful in starting out my college essay. It makes the topic much more manageable when you start out with a particular event or time and then move into the point you are trying to get across.
Making a Hard-Life Story Open a Door to College
“He went on for several hundred more words, focusing on his drive to prove that he ‘can be brilliant and hardworking,’ to rise above the stereotypes, his feeling that Richard Wright, the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Tiger Woods ‘are rooting me on as my personal fans.’”
I believe that all people should have the ability to achieve their goals, but I also believe that to achieve their goals they must put in the required work. It is said earlier in the article that Antoine struggles in school. Yet in his essay he is saying that he can be “brilliant” and “hardworking.” I believe that for that to be considered in the admissions process, it must also be shown in the student’s actions and grades throughout high school, not just him saying what he could do. Additionally, Antoine’s constant reminder to the reader that he doesn’t want to be another “African-American statistic” seems to be pressuring the reader into accepting him, despite the fact that he may or may not be qualified. It causes the reader to feel as though if they do not accept him to the school, that they are a bad person, denying someone a chance just because of their background.
-Lindsey Wohlfort
Period 5
Making a Hard-Life Story Open a Door to College
I do agree that writing about personal struggles provides an individual with an opportunity to lace a college admissions essay with a powerful voice as well as impact the reader emotionally. However, only so many can be deemed effective. Many people attempt to write about personal struggles, or in Antoine’s case, not wanting to “become another stereotype,” which can easily end up sounding generic thus defeating the purpose of one’s attempt to stand out with this particular topic. Though I’m sure it is thoroughly pleasing to an admissions staff to read about how a young individual’s mind was shaped through a hardship, after the first hundred or so it can be assumed that from then on the rest of the essays can be recited verbatim after the first sentence. This article seems to praise the idea of writing about a personal obstacle, but I personally would avoid doing so. Writing about a personal struggle and claiming how it differentiates you from the rest of the applicants deems counterproductive if your essay ends up being generic and predictable since it will ultimately blend you in with the rest of the applicants.
How Much Do College Essays Matter?
Although it’s pretty obvious that college essays are not held up to the same standard of merit as an individual’s GPA or SAT/ACT scores, it helps colleges gain perspective on the student behind the numbers. Before reading this article, I had little knowledge of how much detail mattered. I was completely aware that detail does in fact matter, but I had never realized the magnitude of emphasis placed on the necessity for it. I previously had a false mentality that my essay absolutely needed to be superior in aspects such as vocabulary over other applicants but I now realize that personal voice is truly the major key that outweighs any other approach. Muth’s advice to students on “reading their completed essays to their best friend” is probably great advice, although it seems simplistic. Sometimes your best friend is able to determine your personal voice more easily than your parents can, and by allowing them to read your completed essay you can confirm that it doesn’t sound “like a Ph.D. thesis.” This piece of advice will probably prove to be quite effective in terms of being able to see whether or not a strong voice is behind your essay.
Advice from an excerpt
“Detail is what differentiates one essay from another, one applicant from another. Instead of detail, however, students try to impress with big words.” It’s reassuring to know that colleges aren’t looking for the essays that use the most impressive vocab, they want us to be secure enough to use our own voice in our essays and to encourage us to stand out. The “show and tell” analogy further encourages us to show a story instead of being bland and boring in telling one.
Nerve-racking search for just the right words
“Application essays have three purposes, Sachs said: to give a college an idea of how well students write and how well they think, and to reveal something of their personality.” Colleges are more interested in learning about our personalities and hope to find out about us through our essays. They don’t want them to be polished of by tutors who completely diminish our voice. "The rough edges are sometimes the really interesting parts of the essay," Walsh said. She said the best essays "are reflective, they show what interests them and what makes them interesting. It's not so much baring their souls as it is getting across a sense of who they are." It seems like the main use of the admissions essays are to just get to know the applicant so that the college can get a feel of who they are.
Cat Cook
Period 5
The Admissions Essay Ordeal
"This article contained several of the things I've struggled with, such as students oomplaining that their lack of personal tragedies make them feel like their essays will be boring. However, one admissions dean stated that when he picked up an essay he hoped, not to be entertained, but to truly grasp who the applicant is. The article encouraged me that colleges look more for voice and personality than they do for entertainment in your essays. Of course, the essay still needs to be well developed and well written, but more importantly it needs personality."
College Applications Can Be Too Good
"This article not only alerted me to the reality of cheating on college essays, but also showed that admissions personell know about these schemes and keep an eye out for essays that seem too sophisticated. The article made me realize that colleges are looking for the work of 17- and 18-year-old students, not the work of professionals, so my essays do not need to be perfect. While my essays need to be intelligent and at an advanced level, the deans of admissions realize that applicants won't write perfectly crafted, highly polished essays. Instead, the "rough edges" on the essays make them more interesting and personal than a perfect essay crafted by a professional essay writer or a parent."
"Admissions Essay Ordeal"
First I don't believe that it has crossed many young-college bound seniors minds that the college admissions board is not a menacing group of people who sadistically want to torture you. These are all people who have a higher education and probably all went through the same process as us. Second colleges already know what they are looking for. There is no real way of measuring a persons value and therefore there is cause for disappointment.Our class watched in horror the class of 08's valedictorians and geniuses were being rejected from top institutions and accepted what seemed to be sub par offers from Texas ATM. Everybody's excuse was that the class of 08' was one of the biggest classes graduating, which was a factor, but I believe the true explanation is, it wasn't Memorials year. I also have a big problem with the entire atmosphere and spin Memorial puts on college. It is as if there is only one place you can ever be happy and successful and that is at Harvard. If you really are the hard worker that you so desperately try to convey you will always end up on top. On top of that there is this continual pressure to be perfect. Be student council president, be on a varsity team, be in top quarter, blah blah blah. All that stuff is great but if college is just some arbitrary admission anyways why not choose things you enjoy. Again it goes back to the sage advice of "be yourself". All the clubs and sports in the world don't make you a better person unless you grow from them. Dont do things just to get them done I guarantee many will regret it later in life. Its common sense really if you act like a different person then you will go to college as this other person and eventually you will get disappointed because its all the stuff you end up doing will be for somebody else. Dont work so hard to be disappointed. Be yourself and take it from there.
Nerve-racking search for the right words-
Over all this article appeared to relax the reader a bit about the stress of writing a college applications essay. However, the media tends to focus around that of what I call a hard luck story. Not saying that this person was not fair in what she wrote about. She had every right to express the hardships she had endured in her life. What better topic to get her into a college then her own person struggle she was still tyring to overcome. Though not everyone I feel has this hard luck story. My mom used to tell me that if I wasnted to be in the Olympics, I would need a story to get me in. Preferably one of overcoming some very hard struggle that occurred in my life. Once agian, nothing against the people that do, but I feel that the people that don't have this hard luck story sometimes feel like they have to compete with the hard luck story. I've had my own struggles in my life, but never one so hard to over come as the person in this article. I know plenty of people who have written TAKS papers consisting of lies about loosing legs and arms, yet still recieveing very high scores for the quality of their writting. So although I haven't dealt with poverty, I still will have to vie in the competition of getting into college with people who have dealt with worse harships then mine. Although, this article did make a good point of reassuring me better about trusting myself and trusting my ability to write a good essay as long as I find one that I can really portray myself through.
How much do college addmissions matter-
This article was definitly a more stressful essay for me. It continued to refrence that the essay in like a balance beam that can tip a college one way or the other, in your favor or out of it. What it did bring up, and what is going to be a concern of mine, is the amount of space you get to express yourself. I don't like being confined to a small amount of space. It makes me question whether I have said to much or not enough. Although, I would probably do that no matter what. This article also brought up that the topic is the hardest part. I have a topic in mind though being able to narrow it down will be my biggest challenge.
Meghan Slattery
Period 5
College Essays Nerve-racking...
Controversy over College Essay Sites
I feel that too much emphasis is placed on the college application essay and the whole college application process in general. It leads to much stress for the students, opens up possibilities for plagarism and cheating and can favor rich students more than poor ones. Although i do feel that websites helping students are no better than writing coaches, i do believe that they may help equalize the process, even though i believe that it is still not fair or accurate.
I also feel that the whole over emphasis on the college aplication process is reflective of a trend i see in American society: it is the emphasis on the next step and the future. While it is good to look towards the future, i feel that people are worrying to much upon what is next and not stopping and enjoying the present. I do agree that thought and consideration should be paid to the future, but not our every action in the present should be for the future. I know that my position is a bit extreme and probobaly not good for one acedemicaly, but this is just my oppinion.
Will Kaiser
per5
Controversy over College Application Essay Sites
As I mentioned in my previous response I believe these essays are to show off a student’s personality and whether or not he or she is capable of writing with a distinct voice. If students are using help sites to “improve” their essays they are taking some of the personality out. Even though these services are “criticized by professors and college administrators,” they are becoming more and more popular because these sites are feeding “on the anxiety that surrounds the college admission process.”
Plagiarism comes into account when dealing with these help sites, because these companies have put up “sample essays” for users to see. These essays might cause students to be inclined to take advantage to the ideas seen on their computer screens.
These sites create an unfair advantage to well-off kids who have the money to make their paper near perfect, but there is sacrifice to going along with this endeavor: there is always risk of plagiarism and loss of voice and personality in an essay that could determine your future.
Kristin Rollins
4th period
College Applications Can be too Good
This article highlighted the importance of writing a college essay in a students own words. Since everyone is now competing to get even the smallest edge on being admitted to college, outside help seems like a good place to turn. However this article mentions that admissions counselors '"...expect people to write like 17- and 18-year-olds..."'. It's good to know that those may perhaps get more than the help of an editing parent or teacher do not have that much of an advantage over those that don't. I think that the essay should reflect the student even if it is not perfect. The essay that is 'too bright and shiny' doesn't let the college truly get to know the true applicant that they may be accepting
How Much do College Admissions Essays Matter?
I liked this article because it mentioned that while the essay is important in some cases, what we've done in the past three years in high school is also greatly considered. The article also mentioned that essays shouldn't be broad. The more focused the essay is the easier it can become to write. With less details in an essay the easier it is 'to make that come alive', which seems to be what admissions officers would like to see. This article also mentions the dangers on having professional writers because the essay is not in the students own voice.
Claire Geiser
Period 3
"How much do college admissions essays matter?"
USA Today
This article begins by assessing the true value of the college admissions essay, but quickly moves toward examining how much help, if not harm, a counselor, parents, or a company can provide for a student. Personally, I feel that very little emphasis should be put upon the essay as schools seek quality students. I feel that receiving a 4 or a 5 on the AP test, in which writing is done at a much higher intellectual level in a cramped time period, shows much more about not only a students ability to write but also about how much they are willing to challenge themselves and think critically under great amounts of pressure. It also bothers me that "assisting students with their essays has become a big business" because that is not what college admissions should be about, it should be about your own voice and unique characteristics. I would like to think that all of the hard work that I put in and all the late nights that I had doing classwork not only in English, but in a wider range of classes, would be more important than writing an essay with a generic prompt that, in the eyes of the reader, might or might not be an accurate representation of my own work.
"College essay advice from an expert"
Boston Globe
This article connects with the previous one in that it stresses the importance of using one's own voice in writing the essay, and not the voice of someone who thinks that they know what they are talking about. However, this article talks about how "a good essay shows" and "a weak essay always tells." Obviously, it is good for your writing to come across clearly and accurately, but it is the extra step, the ability to reveal details in a creative, intuitive way, that will make or break your college essay. It must be the applicant's true voice and intuition in their essay that shows a college not only who they are as a writer, but also the unique qualities that make them stand out.
-John Wagner, Period 3
Admissions Essay Ordeal: The Young Examined Life
"But I just wished I had something tragic happen to me." While looking at essay topics this summer, I couldn't help wishing for anything a little more eventful in my past. It didn't help when I read the essay I'm about to write described as "the most life-determining chunk of prose they will ever produce." When the article went on to mention the businesses dedicated to making money off of nervous students applying to college, I started thinking this might be a little blown out of proportion. Even so, I can't help but feel the same pressure as the kids in the article. The excerpt from the "successful applicant to New York University " reminded me to have fun with my essay. I'm not the only one who feels like I have to "cook Thirty-Minute Brownies in 20 minutes" to get into some schools.
Writing the Essay: Sound Advice from an Expert
This was the most comforting advice I've read. I realized I don't have to have an incredibly interesting story to tell. I just have to write, or "show", my essay well. The examples were especially helpful. I don't have to write with abstract definitions such as, "Death is the impending future that all people must eventually grasp." Rather, I should focus on more concrete details and be less "concerned about demonstrating the ability to be abstract then the ability to be precise." What I would've thought of as a boring topic, such as my relationship with my family, can be "risky" as the example showed.
Annie Fogel
Period 3
Rachel Von Gonten, per. 5
College Applications Can Be Too Good-
I disagree with the article by the Boston Globe concerning college essays written with the help of a tutor or advisor. I have a college essay advisor and I did not in any way plagiarize like the article implies. He came over and helped me pick a topic for me to write about. The topics that the colleges give are broad and hard to narrow down into just one page, so he helped me choose an instance or aspect of my life to write about. The Boston Globe insinuates that there are kids who hire someone to edit their paper and they become "ghostwriters" who essentially rewrite the essay. Most college applicants write their essays with little help, but the ones who hire people to help them usually recieve help as i did on picking a topic. I think it is unfair to go back and look at the SAT writing section and compare the writings. I know that in the limited time on the SAT, my essay was as not well written or planned exactly as I'd wished it to be. Therefore, the comparison between an essay that I spend a lot of time thinking about and editing to near perfection and an essay I had 30 minutes to write is unfair.
How much do college admissions essays matter?
This article was enlightening and helpful. Advice was given on how to add personal voice and evoke passion in the essay. They said that by having your best friend listen to your essay, they can judge whether it is a good representation of you and your writing. I agree completely because that is the one person who knows you best and they are the best judge of personality and substance. Also, the article mentioned how colleges are "seeing essays by committee." Eager applicants are nervous about their essays and how they are judged by the college admissions, so they have everyone who is willing read and edit their essay. However, each time the essay is read and "polished" the voice of the essay diminishes. Words are changed and additions are being made. The essay will loose character, so I think that students should look at how many times their essay is proofread and decide what changes, if any should be made. Although this is the most stressful part of college applications, the essay still needs to have personal experience told in a way that only the author can tell.
I can see where Obarnefield and Will are coming from on the topic of having a wider spectrum of essay topics, but I think these so called "boring" prompts (while some definitely are) provide the University with a better way to find its desired students. If everyone is forced to write an essay from a prompt on say, an influential person, then the ones who take the prompt and come up with something that distinguishes them from everyone else will be the ones that stand out to the colleges. It will also show the applicants strength as a writer whereas most everyone can write a creative essay out of an exciting prompt. Again, the way they do it now allows the college to find the best writers the most efficient way.
UVA admissions essay-
I enjoyed the part dealing with "the good essay". The "show and tell" aspect resonated in my mind. As a elementry school kid, I remember "show and tell" times, and I specifically recall being enthralled by the object itself, even more than the story being told by the person behind it. The object seemed to come to life, with the story just serving as spark to my imagination. This is how I want my essays to be; exciting, captivating, and not just a "show and tell" session that is missing the most vital part that makes it unique, the "show" aspect.
Davis Miller period 3
Nerve-racking search -
"'Write page 162 of your autobiography' is one of the four choices on the University of Minnesota's application for honors programs and scholarships."
I think this would be so much fun and gives you a chance to write about any time in your life. This essay could be about yesterday or five years ago, depending on how short you think your autobiography can be. I think the most random prompts can bring out the real you.
Making a Hard-Life Story Open a Door to College
After reading this, it makes me wonder how my personal essays are ever going to compete with those of people who may not be as well off as me. What if their "hard-life" story pushes mine out of the race, because I led a more privileged life? It makes me insecure yet at the same time, in a way, it motivates me to write more eloquently so that even though I may not have a gut-wrenching story, I still have a good, polished essay.
In the article "Making a Hard-Life Story Open a Door to College", certain things were clarified for me. Though one might not have amazing grades, this article proves that certain "life stories can be as powerful as high SAT scores and stellar grades," which is an encouraging statement for quite a few people. I had always thought that addressing religion was out of the question as far as college essays go, but in this case, Antoine establishes right off the bat that the worst thing he could ever do was "accidentally giving [his] life to God at a young age." Though it may be considered offensive, this statement is thought provoking and edgy, making it clear that it's possible to say anything in a college essay. My one problem with this essay, though, was the judgemental factor of the situation. I don't quite understand how one can tell whether or not someone's certain struggles "make the cut" so to speak. It is almost impossible to tell who's struggle is harder and who has the good life, nor is it our place to say anyway.
I have never given much thought to college essays, but rather kept my focus on my grades and finances, the article "How Much Do College Essays Really Matter" opened my eyes to an entirely new spectrum of the college application process.
It says in the article that "[The admission essay is] not a substitute for a rigorous curriculum, good grades and evidence that you're going to do well," (as said by Barmak Nassirian). And though essays cannot redeem 17 years of slacking, they are a vital part of your perfectly crafted college portfolio.
College essays have been taken advantage of and turned into big business, but at the same time, the ability to narrow down what it is that you want to say in the 500 words you are alotted, is well worth the $200 an hour tutor (if it's within your means, that is). I have become much more aware of the improtance of the college essay and have gathered some very useful tips along the way.
In “Writing the Essay: Sound Advice from an Expert,” the author comments on a typical hardship in a person’s life. It was interesting to read the different examples and see a typical answer turned into a great essay. Almost immediately after reading this, I began thinking about the essay topics we received in class today and saw how I could fit one experience into “A, B and C.” In addition, it made me aware that even if you have a “technically correct” essay it may not even be considered highly because of the stereotypical response.
While reading the article, “How much do college admissions essays matter?” I knew that I wanted to write about my summer internship at Landmark Chevrolet. I felt a connection to Brandenburg. I was surprised to learn how important maintaining “voice” through the essays. Up until this article, I did not think about how my “voice” would sound, I just thought about how I was going to write it, who was going to edit it etc. I agree with the author in that college essays are not as influential as they are hyped to be. When I read that students actually pay up $200 to have their essay edited, I was astounded. It almost seems like cheating. It is a relief, to read, that one single essay could potentially out-rule three plus years of hard work.
period 5
My choice of articles: "College applications can be too good"; "Teacher Says: College Admissions Essays"
From looking over these two articles, it's safe to say I've a better grasp of the whole point of writing a college essay. While for standardized tests, and generally most other writing assignments, one must focus, to some extent, on how well they write, for the college essay, it would seem there's far more to be said on what one writes about.
In the first article, discussing cases where parents have given assistance in writing the college essays, one point is very clearly established, from my perspective. Those who look over the admissions essays aren't too terribly concerned with the skill demonstrated by the writer, at least beyond the all-important ability to actually read the essay. No, what's more important about the college essay is that it's done by the student in question. In an essay written to demonstrate how they as a person are any more unique than the many other applicants out there, who could possibly be better than said student to tell such a thing? No, more than writing analytically, writing more from logic, trying to prove a point (and I apologize in advance if this sounds too sappy for your tastes, Mrs. Kohlmaier), but more about writing with passion, to prove that there's something in what you write that makes you really feel something, as opposed to something strung together in your head to sound like a paragon.
The second article's slightly broader. As such, there's probably more points in it than are really important here. But the one I honed in on is that the focus needs to be on you. Building off what I just said as to writing something with feeling, it stands to reason one can't very well do that if they choose to turn more attention as to the actual topic of the essay, be it their grandfather, a particularly inspiring piece of artwork, or a particularly inspiring work of art based on their grandfather, than what it actually meant, what change it actually effected in them. If one places more of a focus on the thing than the change, then there's really not much of a difference between the college essay and any number of the essays written prior about novels, and passages from novels, of which there should probably be enough for the college to judge as is.
One more helpful idea I gleaned from the second article is that the thing one chooses to talk about need not be something particularly major. Even the smaller things you experience can make for a compelling college essay, because, turning back to what I just said, how you changed, how you were affected, these things are probably more important to those examining the essay than how impressive the experience itself was.
In short, turn inward rather than out if you're going to write a good college essay. All the experience is is the tool through which you can demonstrate that you are a unique individual who has something to offer whatever college you've set your sights on.
[I apologize if I rambled too much. When there's a keyboard in front of me, I tend to be possibly more wordy than I have to be. If there's some sort of format you're looking for, which I'm pretty sure I never heard about, feel free to mention it.]
-Travis Hoyt, Period 5
The two articles that I read, “College essays: Nerve-racking search for just the right words” from the Star-Tribune, and “Admissions Essay Ordeal: The Young Examined Life” from the New York Times, were both very interesting. The interviews from the various students are very on track with how, I think, many seniors are feeling. Like Jessica Roeper from Boston, I have caught myself agonizing over what to write because I have never had an Earth-shattering event shake up my life enough to write a good essay about it. No deaths of relatives, no terminal illnesses, no ethnic or cultural obstacles, and I have never moved to a non-English speaking country where I had to surmount a language barrier. I have a perfectly normal life. Boring! I did have a pet die once. Of cancer. Does that count? Not well enough, and not without a lot of effort and creativity. While it is somewhat comforting that many college admissions officers claim that the essays are not strong enough a factor to swing your admission one way or another, I am of the opinion that they “are just saying that” to some degree.
Some of the difficulty of this process comes from the rather limiting, or too broad, depending on how you look at it, essay topics from which to choose. Most colleges give you a choice of the same watered down prompts, like “tell about a piece of advice you have been given that has really had an impact on you” or “write about a specific experience or achievement that is meaningful to you” or, one of my personal faves, “discuss an issue of personal, local, regional, national, or international importance”. I rather liked the examples of creative topics the Times article provided as examples of some rather off the wall essays like “construct a theory linking Elvis Presley sightings to five of the following: the metric system, the Mall of America, the crash of the Hindenburg, Heisenberg's Uncertainty Principle, lint, J. D. Salinger and wax fruit”, or "Write page 162 of your autobiography" as cited by the Star-Tribune. at least these wacky prompts allow you to get creative, and the chance of being cliché is diminished, which is one of my biggest worries. other colleges, like the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, have at least 8 different prompts from which to choose, each very specific and detailed, and very diverse in subject, and the applicant can pick one relating to art, or science, or history, depending on what they are really interested in. there is no pressure to come up with a hard-luck story out of nothing but a fortunate childhood.
The main difficulty that I think these essays present is that we are expected to respond to the prompt in a meaningful, eye-catching and memorable way, all while trying to “sell” ourselves and showcase who we are in roughly 500 words. no pressure. the Star-Tribune sums it up when it states that “A good essay should be short but pithy, original but not weird, passionate but not hysterical, well-written but not so heavily edited that it muffles the writer's voice. Sound like a tall order?” study says YES
All in all, college essays are looking to be a rivieting and a hopefully-ONLY-once-in-a-lifetime experience. from the movie 21, “do I, DAZZLE you? do I JUMP off the page?” My fingers are crosed.
TheAdmissions Essay Ordeal - The Young Examined Life was interesting because it emphasized how not having a hard life makes writing a meaningful essay hard for some of the prompts given to your everyday, average, college-bound, high school senior. This article also stressed that your essay isn't everything, but it's a little piece of you that you can add to an otherwise standard application. I really found this article to be enlightening on the thought processes of the admissions deans.
College Essays Nerve-racking... was a good article about how an essay can be too good and seem like it's a fake or like someone other than the student submitting it wrote it. This is both good and bad because it very well could be not genuine but it could also just be that the student in question worked much harder on his or her essays than they did on their work in school. If the admissions dean only goes by grades than many students who apply themselves only to their essays are in trouble of being accused of plagairism or some other nonsense. This article just adds an emphasis on how the "rough edges" of a paper are what add in the writer's personality.
College Applications can be too good:
I found this article very interesting because I have heard of peers paying people to help them write and edit their essays. However, I would have to disagree with their theory that a student may not write an exceptionally well essay. The article admits that, "In the past 5 years, the percentage of colleges attributing "considerable importance" to college essay has increased from 19 to 28." This increased percentage is a lot of pressure for students trying to get into their top choice for college. Therefore, many students spend countless hours brainstorming, prewriting, writing and revising their essay before submitting it. The essay, being so objective, is very important because it is one of the only parts of an application that the student is in control of. Yes, the student is in control of all of their extracirricular activities, grades and volunteer work, however, at the point when a student starts to write their essay all of those are pretty much set in stone. The essay is a student's chance to prove to the colleges that they are well qualified for that particular university. I was relieved to find out that the colleges won't deny admittance based on the essay. Also, if they suspect that the student did not write the essay on their own they will investigate it rather than comply with their assumptions. This article helped me because I realize now that I don't have to write a superhuman essay where every sentence is perfect and eloquent (just very close to that).
College essays: Nerve- racking search for just the right words
After reading this article I was able to relax a little more. I was reassured by the fact that the article stated "admission decisions almost never rest on the essay." Some good advice that I picked up on is to revise the essay while maintaining voice. I like the idea of writing page 162 of my autobiography because I believe college essays should be personal and reveal something unique about the applicant. After all, the essay is your one chance to set yourself apart from all the other applicants because so many people are involved in the same extracirriuclar activities and have the same GPA. However, it is hard to forgo the mundane autobiography and to not sound generic.
-Rachel Porter, period 5
"Making A Hard Life Story Open A Door"
Lets face it we go to memorial. yes we have hardships and alot of us have hard lives that no one knows about but we as a whole have not expierienced as much as some of the inercity school. So for the "hardlife stories" to count as much as GPA or Test scores seems unfair. Especially to those who work hard to keep up their grades. Just because some one may have a harder life doesn't mean they are better equipped than a person who has a higher GPA or better grades to attend a more prostigious college. Yes your essay can be great and help you get in but because someone has more to write about in the difficulties they have been through doesn't mean they should be excepted. That is almost encouraging kids to lie in there college essays.
"Nerve Racking search for just the right words"
How can you right an upbeat and enthusiastic essay about a topic that is so boring? Write an essay about someone who has changed your life. This might be the most difficult and boring essay topic ever!! First you have to make sure you stand out and not pick a person so cleashe like mom or dad. But this essay does bring up alot of important reminders about not procrastinating! i think i need to finish my essays!!!!:)
Source: "College essays: Nerve-racking search for just the right words" and "Writing the Essay: Sound Advice from an Expert"
For me, vague and personal prompts have always been difficult because writing with a strong voice does not come natural to me. I prefer impersonal but still thought-provoking topics. However, each article I have read suggests that college essays should not only show your capacity for intelligent and original thought but also "be a representation of who [you are]" (Herman in Smetanka).
It seems that the best approach to writing a thought provoking college essay with voice is to pick a specific event in my life and fill my essay with interesting and meaningful details that reveal my individuality. I found Parke Muth's advise in "Writing the Essay: Sound Advice from an Expert" particularly helpful. He suggests that rather than telling the reader about our experience with vague generalizations, we should "show" our story to the reader using specific details. I think this is the best way to add voice to my college essay.
Preston Moore p.3
- "How much do college admissions essay matter?"
I think its absurd of how big businesses, subject books, and editing services have become the "new fad" of our century for college admission essays. Yes, I understand that even applying to college is scary already and having the pressure of presenting an essay to the college, is also scary. College essays have "become a sure pick for the college thus a high pressure challenge". I agree that these college essays should be from the heart,but not from an editing service company. It should have the student's voice, not a complete stranger's. I understand that colleges want to see our writing skills and how we construct the essay in a nice fashion. The colleges want to see our knowledge that we gained over the years. I'm thinking to write my college essay about my summer job in Abercrombie. I want to get my B.B.A. and my M.B.A.. I want to own my own business and be my own boss. This essay would be a good factor of opening my eyes, or atleast a peek to the business world. I might also talk about my family's business and how that shaped my lifestyle, and how it has influenced me. Because of my restaurant, it has made me realize and made me have a chance to see close by the work it takes to become a business owner/ entreprener.
-"College essays: Nerve-racking search for just the right words"
I agree that "essays can reveal the heart and passion behind the numbers". It is another point of view of the applicant for the admissions office. Unfortunately, I also agree that it is a "source of stress". Everyone wants their essays to be perfect for the admissions essay. Yet, it should not be so perfect that the essay does not have a voice. The essay should have personality and character. It should somewhat resemble how the applicant writes, thinks and who the applicant is as a person. The weight of the essay should be minimal though, but be acceptable enough for the admissions process. The weight of the essay should not be yes or no for admissions.
GRACIAS!
Jasmine
Admissions Essay Ordeal: The Young Examined Life
Thankfully, after reading this article I do actually feel slightly more comforted about this daunting task of having to write a college admissions essay. Now, I understand that colleges
don’t really want to hear about your successes or hardships, but simply ‘just want to put some flesh on an admission application.’ Reading this article was also helpful in the fact that it allowed me to change my perspective and see my essay from the viewpoint of an admissions officer.
However, attempting to eloquently sum up (in as little as a page!) your most important and unique traits to a complete unknown stranger still remains to be a very, very hard task. I also now have a newly discovered hatred for internet based sights that claim to write wonder essays for students. What a scam! And thanks to these sites, which in my opinion are only greedily capitalizing upon frazzled and desperate college bounders, universities are now considering to make it mandatory for all students to submit “a graded paper from one of their courses as well.” As if the application process is not complicated enough!!
College applications can be too good
I can’t help but to now feel slightly paranoid that my essay will be too ‘polished’ after looking over this article. Writing my college essay is going to be mighty tricky. I am being told by different sources that it shouldn’t be too sophisticated, yet it should have depth and meaning. This leads me to be a little confused. I’m assuming that content holds more value over elegant style and things of that sort. Therefore, I am relieved to say that my new strategy is to “write from the heart,” avoid that “lemony-fresh smell that makes you wonder” and be extremely concise in my own manner and personality.
How much do college admissions essays matter?
The college admissions process generally forces us into a double sided state. One side of us is stressed out, nervous, tired and tormented with the heavy amount of challenges. However, the other side reveals determination, dedication, and an enthusiasm to succeed. Both of these sides tend to frequently overlap each other in the admission process. It hits us hard when we complete one bullet of the requirements yet still realize that there is so much more to be completed. After finishing the SAT and ACT tests in June, i felt like i had time to slack off. However, the sudden awareness that there were still essays that i had to write turned my mind around, and caused me to think just how important are these essays going to be for applying to colleges. I haven't started my essays yet, but i now know that they will be thoroughly read by some very educated individuals at these universities. The most challenging part for us is "picking a topic." I completely agree with this statement. This article informed me that the essays should consist of an important meaning, whatever the topic may be, and have description, yet with a limited amount. The essay needs to represent the writer's "voice." Without this, "the life is out of it." This is surely true, because the universities are reading these essays to choose us by who we are and we represent ourselves by what we write and how we write it. Finally, I must say i don't believe this article said much to answer the "importance" of the college essay, just that it is another difficult branch of the application process, equally important as the other parts.
College essay advice from an expert
In this article, Parke Muth implies that "big words" are completely unnecessary. I can understand this because of the word limit we have and if the essay is verbose it may come across as very dull and lacking the essence required to grasp the jolt from the essay reader. This expert also states that any essay has the potential of being well-written if it shows its "voice", and symbolizing the student who writes it. It is recommended that "students need only to recall the difference between two simple concepts -- showing and telling." Parke Muth also gives an example of an excerpt from a good essay. It shows me that I can pick out an important and significant memory, event, or situation to write about and with good description that "appeals to all of the senses" the essay can succeed as being well-written.
Austin Jacobs
Admissions Essay Ordeal: The Young Examined Life
"In her desperation, 17-year-old Jessica Roeper found herself wishing that somebody -- anybody -- in her family had died."
This article immediately hooked me, portraying the main dilemma in my college applications, TAKS, and SAT essays. While privileged students may not be penalized for their financial security, they certainly don't have the benefits of struggle. I really liked the realistic views of the college application process; nobody DOES believe when admission boards say that they aren't looking to be "dazzle[d]." My favorite part was "The Mother of All Essays." If that essay really was successful, I would love to use a similar humor in part of my essay. This article helped me see how to handle the common problems of college essay writing, such as "beating [myself] up" over the application process.
Writing the Essay: Sound Advice from an Expert
I definitely benefited the most from this article. The direct examples of bad, good, and risky essays helped much more than the common advice "Be yourself." I really liked seeing how to write a risky essay effectively and will keep this in mind for my application essays. Through this article, I got some great ideas and thought of a few writing topics to go with them.
Making a Hard-Life Story Open a Door to College
Even though I don't have a situation similar to Antoine's, seeing how to write an essay about struggle without whining was inspiring. It showed me how to make my voice come through my writing more than just 'big words.' I also liked seeing how his essay unfolded from a 10-minute writing.
In “Writing the Essay: Sound Advice from an Expert,” the author distinguishes between three types of essays: “the bad,” “the good,” and “the risky.” The author claims that “a good essay is not good because of the topic but because of the voice.” While many valid points can be made to back up this claim, I believe that the topic of an essay is equally as important as the voice. When I first started writing my essays, I began brainstorming ideas that ranged from community service experiences to athletics to other “feel good” stories. However, my ideas lacked a critical component. Every high school senior in the country has probably been involved in one of these activities in some form or another, so no matter how good the “voice” is, I was not going to be able to distinguish myself from other applicants. These essays would be thrown in with the “bad essays” and immediately classified as another cliché “McEssay.” While writing my college essays, I have realized that it is necessary to take risks in my writing that I normally wouldn’t take. While I would never use an opening line as obscene as that used in the example of a risky essay, I think it is very important to incorporate humor and a great deal of personality so that the admission officers can learn about who I am as a person.
The article “How much do college essays matter?” discusses the role that college essays play in the admissions process. Barmak Nassirian claims that “it’s an urban myth that a student who has goofed off his whole academic career can get in with a come-from-behind epic struggle in which the essay serves as the primary tool.” However, I do believe that essays can be what puts some students over the top and gets them in to schools that might be difficult to get in to. Once “the SAT scores are in, the GPA is established, and teachers’ impressions are formed,” some people believe that there is nothing left you can do. What I have realized, however, is that essays can be the most important part of the application. At many competitive schools, everyone’s test scores and GPA will be very similar, but essays are really the only thing that can show admissions officers who you are and can make you stand out from the group.
Making a hard-life story open a door to college
After reading this article, I have learned that all students don’t have the same opportunities to pursue higher education. Students like Antoine attend predominantly minority schools with inadequate resources. And while they might not be completely prepared for college, they are intelligent and have the ability to succeed in college with an extra boost. This is why the College Summit program is so important. It gives people, like Antoine, a chance to pursue their college dreams even though many don’t have parents who attended college themselves and know how the college admission process works. Antoine’s story is not typical and it is clear that he is pushing himself to be the best he can be given his circumstances. He works hard to overcome stereotypes because he does not want to be another statistic or death case. Instead, he wants to be a productive member of society and in order to do that he knows he must have a college education. Antoine’s story, like many other students in his position, show that if you work hard you can achieve your dream without limits placed on you by your economic or social position in life.
How much do college admissions essays matter?
It is common knowledge that the college admissions essay is a critical part of a college application. Other things such as SAT scores and grades are hard criteria that colleges use to judge students. They don’t, however, give a complete snapshot of a student. The essay can provide a more in-depth look into a student’s academic capabilities as well as their personality. Essays can make a person come to life on paper. I agree with the article when it says that “Admissions counselors at the University of Virginia read every essay looking for the student's voice.” Every student has a voice and it is hard for an admissions committee to get to know that person simply by reading a cold application. But since writing is a unique form of creative expression, the committee can use a student’s essay to get a glimpse into the mind of the applicant and learn how they think and see the world. I think the best essays are those which focus on a single topic, which is personal to the student. A student should always pick their own topic and write their essay using their own sense of style. A student applying to college should really take this article seriously because it provides some great advice on creating this very important document.
What I've found important about college essays is realizing their purpose. I believe that their purpose is for the college to get to better understand the applicant, not the applicant's tutor or parents. Robin Mamlet from Swarthmore as published in the New York Times stated many things that an essay is not, and in the end the goal is to realize "Who is this person?" Yes it is said by many to "just be yourself" when writing an essay but that is obviously easier said than done. Focus on your passions, your experiences, anything that makes Eric Perkins who he is, or what makes Jane Doe who she is. I just went to a college fair kinda thing this evening and the Dean of Admissions at Claremont McKenna said that your essay should match who you are. Your essay should match up with your passions listed on your resume' as well as your teacher reccomendations. As the Star Tribune puts it, "essays can reveal the heart and passion behind the numbers," and i can't say i've heard truer words with regards to college essays. In the end, your essays will not be what determines if you get accepted or rejected from your top college, but rather they are the icing on the cake. Hopefully you have been passionate about going to college before you began the essay writing process, and how you write your essay will only build on your transcript and personal qualities. I cannot imagine a feeling better than the day i finish all my college applications, and the fact that i know those apps represent who i have been the past 4 years as well as my entire life. So yes it's very cliche', but just be yourself.
After reading “Admissions Essay Ordeal: The Young Examined Life” one particular statement stood out to me—“We just want to put some flesh on an admissions application,” said by Gary Ripple the director of admissions at Lafayette College. I’ve always viewed my college essay to be my final impression on the admissions officers that would either make or break my future. After rationally reflecting on its true importance, I realized it isn’t as “redemptive” as I always believed. Like myself, Jessica Roeper of Newton high school stressed about the importance of her essay, particular what to write about. Like her, I feel my life is simply boring. Nothing “interesting or “tragic” has happened to me. However, focusing on Ripple’s statement—“flesh on an admissions application”—I have confidence in writing to convey who i am. Hopefully that will be enough to stand out amongst the thousands of other applicants.
In the USA Today article “How much do college admissions essays matter?” a lot of the same myths of high school students were proven wrong. All my anxiety to over-revise, hire “professionals,” and strategize every last comma in my 500 word essay now seem a little...obsessive (to say the least). Admissions counselors at the University of Virginia gave their advice on how to write an impressionable essay, what to focus on, how to avoid clichés, etc. Fortunately I already knew most of these trips, however, when Mr. Nassirian an admission officer at UVA stated how good at "detecting paid embellishments" in essays officers have become, I re-committed his words to memory. My newest college essay strategy (re-defined after these two articles)—focus on a “particular moment in time,” avoid over analyzing my essays, and put all stress to a halt.
Claire Lensgraf, period 3
UVA Admission Essay Advice
When I visited the University of Virginia last spring break, the admissions counselor gave a lecture on tips for the application process. One of the questions that year asked students to pick one word and explain its significance to them. The most popular essay of an admitted student was simply, "Brevity-- it's concise." Like this risk-taker, I am going to make my essay stand out, not like a "McEssay - usually five-paragraph essays that consist primarily of abstractions and unsupported generalization." I might try to see a different side of a prompt or take a different spin on it in order to stand out. In order to be success, risks must be taken, but I must be careful because "a risky essay can border on the offensive." I will elaborate with details and thoroughly support my abstract ideas. Instead of writing about my strengths, I might to try to focus on one of my downfalls- like my bad habit of judging people before I get to know them. Then, I can bring in specific examples and precise details.
StarTribune College Essays: Nerve-Racking
This article helped me to realize that an essay will not necessarily be the deciding factor when I apply to colleges. I need to finish the essays early and focus on showing my personality, but my four years of hard work are still the main factor. A college essay needs to be "short but pithy, original but not weird, passionate but not hysterical, well-written but not so heavily edited that it muffles the writer's voice." While this may seem difficult, I have some unique ideas that will showcase my personality and set me apart. I do not have any significant hardship in my life, but I might try to write about one of my downfalls or a time when I was not successful.
Colleen Mattingly
Pd. 3
"How much do college admission essays matter?" in the USA Today
The article was rather interesting to me as it placed a stress on the student's willingness to apply his or her own personal experience to make themselves stand out. Although the article never gave a direct, statistical answer, the viewpoints expressed advise to seek only limited editing, which intrigued me. Usually for my research papers I feel the need to have multiple editions, proofs, etc. but Brandenburg suggested to accent your own personal voice instead of stylized, sophisticated language. I agree that professional editing should be discouraged as it only shows a spurious voice from "two" authors.
"College Essays, Nerve racking..."
in Star Tribune
This article also had an interesting point. It asked you to "turn to a certain page in your autobiography" and write what comes to mind. Similarly, many essay questions invite the student to partake in an often personal journey while writing. They ask you to examine times that affected you as a high schooler for better or worse. Like some of the applicants said, you can't make the essay too weird or soppy, yet to give it a touch of the heart and a snapshot of time. The obstacle lies in the wording of the emotions. You can't impress a sense of hardship unless there is a style of personal voice and a will to communicate your story.
"College Essays: Nerve Racking search for Just the Right Words"
The most helpful advice that this article gave would have to be about how the essay is used. When faced with pressures from counselors, parents, teachers, and even friends we tend to focus on the essay part of the application as the most important not realizing what lies behind its power. The essay should be who we are. Not just what you have been through, but rather demonstrate "how well students write and how well they think, and to reveal something of their personality." After reading this line it became apparent to me that my thought process is unique from everyone else. How I can interpret this into my writing will be difficult but when a college sees why I make a decision they can understand my values, which help to define who I really am. Then again, later on the article explains that the essay is not the decisive factor most of the time rather the other information given such as recommendations, resumes, and, sadly, grades. The essay matters to me because I want to be accepted into a college where they believe I belong with similar yet unique students.
"Admissions Essay Ordeal: the Young Examined Life"
The title of this article grabbed me as I realized that my application has to represent me. When someone sees the entire product it should be as though they could look in a fish bowl to see me and my work. It is almost creapy how well a college can "get to know you" through these numbers and words. This whole thought fuels a students stress like myself. However, we have to realize that we are not a lone in this process as we see everyone's posts and thoughts over the essays. This bond can help us conquer our fear. This article is very similar to the previous as both make an issue that the essay focuses more on who you are rather than what you have been through. ironically both make references to the prompt of "a page from the middle of a student's autobiography", which would be a lot more easy for me to write than about a personal experience I have been through. Also the way both articles talk about how much parents hover over us during the essays as they continually try to get me to work. The stress of applications obviously affects more than us when we see our parents actually volunteering to read our drafts. The articles' examples of prompts help to reshape the ones for the common apps giving more ideas that can fall in line with our essays.
Teacher Says: College Admissions Essays:
my favorite part about this whole article is when the author says, "Write about HOW YOU FELT about what you saw, what you learned ABOUT YOURSELF, and/or HOW YOU CHANGED as a result of the experience." The reason i like this so much is that i have a large amount of experiences that i could write about but i never know what questions to ask myself while writing. Now i feel like i could take a list of things i could write about and then next to each subject i could write a quick bullet about how i felt and how i changed as a result. That way I can compare and be more able to choose the most effective topic.
College essays: Nerve-racking search for just the right words:
I am so nerve-racked about my college essays and applications because i feel like i have so many things to do at once! not only do i have to keep up my grades and focus on school work but i also have to focus on getting into college. I'm so worried that i'm going to write an awful essay that i keep putting it off. The essay practically has to be perfect. the author of this article said," A good essay should be short but pithy, original but not weird, passionate but not hysterical, well-written but not so heavily edited that it muffles the writer's voice." I'm not worried about writing with passion because i have many topics that i can get excited about but I am worried that my writing skills aren't good enough to convey my passion completely
College applications can be too good –
Though the article seems to suggest that admissions officers lack faith in even the “most brilliant 17-year-old," which seems completely preposterous, it did put forth some valuable points. The emphasis placed upon authenticity and personal tone seems to suggest the strong need for the student, as the article claims, to “write from the heart.” It is evident from this article that authenticity and personal tone within the essay is what distinguishes not only the genuine from the contrived, but also the extraordinary from the ordinary.
Advice from an expert - The Boston Globe –
The article stresses the fact that substance matters more than form. More eloquently put, the use of grandiloquent words will strike the reader as superfluous and deem the essay fictitious. The example given in the second paragraph gives a good example of how too many flowery words can cloud the personal tone and make the essay seem “over the top.” We have all previously studied the difference between “showing and telling” which seems to be an essential factor in the writing process. Although the last example sounds a bit too polished for the average 17 year old, it is helpful to see how the use of description to “show” the story feels much more authentic than the use of advanced vocabulary to only “tell” the story.
- Aleko
Soud Advice from an Expert
The "good essays" are those that the reader can visualize and experience much like they were actually with us. I like the idea of a college essay being able to capture all of our senses as a "feast for the eyes, ears" etc. Embedding specific details is a key component for the reader to feel impressed, touched, entertained, and wanting to know more. However, similar to how the reader probably dreads reading essay after essay with abstract ideas, I think concrete details should only be supportive and a setup for what our main focus or epiphany was.
How Much Do College Essays Matter?
"The biggest problem for students, he said, is starting with too wide a focus. "By the time they get to the details, they run out of space," he said. "I'm all for cutting to the chase."
Although every college essay prompt I have read has addressed some life experience or overcoming an obstacle, (those feel good TAKS prompts)it is the writers job to create details to make an abstract topic into a plausible reality. I think that the only thing more important than having those pronouns and details is for my "voice" to shine through. The most difficult thing will be for the reader to understand who I am with a one page essay in a specific "moment in time." It will probably be most important that in the case of the college essay, my actions and my words are intertwined to emphasize who I am.
Too Good To Be True?!
Jeez college admissions people are almost as bad as those girls on My Super Sweet 16! You just cant please them which again leads back to my point that college admision is half luck. Kids these days get so stressed out trying to please these people who already know who is getting in. People who are so desperate to get into a good school that they have a parent write there essay for them, I think they should just let them in. This essay examines some of the causes for the increase in stress level for college but there are some factors that have gone without notice. The American dream (ahh The Great Gatsby) is changing. Not only do people have to work hard these days but they must also have a good education. Before in fields like business and engineering it didn't matter if you had never set foot on a college campus, as long as you could do the work you were fine. Now college is just some mundane requirment. So why are so many people willing to spend their life savings on something that has become stressful and sometimes over rated? Its not worth it unless you do something you enjoy. Plagiarism forms this superficial persona and eventually reality will hit.
Nerve Racking Search...
Like most eager parents, my mother had me researching colleges almost immediately upon exiting the womb. I've been pondering this whole "share-your-deepest-darkest-secrets-with-a-total-stranger" concept that is your college essay, and I can completely relate to Mao when she explains her angst about revealing her unsettling life with someone who she has yet to even shake hands with. On top of allowing yourself to not only come to grips with certain aspects of your life that you have happily kept in your closet, you must also understand that "a good essay should be...original but not weird, passionate but not hysterical". Would like fries with that? The one upside is that the essay does not make or break you. It simply provides the administration with a way to better understand the student and allow the individual to be defined by their name and story as opposed to their number. Hopefully, by simply knowing that the essay is not "the tail that wags the dog", students will be able to loosen up and create a genuine work that expounds on who they are and what their motivation is.(Associate Director of Admissions at Macalester College Anne Walsh)
College Essays Can Be Too Good
I can't help but silently snicker at the poor students who really think a red flag won't be raised when their SAT score is scrapping the bottom of the academic barrel, they barely passed high school english, and their essay shines like the top of the Chrysler building. I mean, really? As for the parents or well paid tutors who think they're being oh so helpful, give administrators a little more credit. Believe it or not, a student's essay is not a free invitation to talk about your self for 300 words. It displays the individual's motivation, morals, beliefs, views, and voice. A+ on the thought process there, buddy. Your parents must be so proud. Although admission officers assure us that the overall decision would not revolve around a "suspicious essay", in a competitive university, any question about the morale of a specific student may easily "tilt the balance". With this reoccurring issue, students are urged to spend time creating a legitamite representation of themselves and their story and avoid any outside help that may turn off the college of your dreams.
I was compelled by the differences presented in "How much do college admissions essays really matter" and "making a hard life story open a door to college". These articles struck a chord with me becuase its upseting for anyone to think that your essay dosen't really make a difference and that admissions have already decided your fate before even reading your essay. But what also bothered me was the fact that students , "seek assistance from professional counselors and essay companies," instead of trusting their own honest work. They write what is going to look good and not what they actually believe in. While at the same time underprivilaged students from the 8th ward can barley succumb sterotypes. But these students lucky enough to be chosen for outside counseling don't just write whatever is needed to get them in to college, they write from the heart. "The writing coaches are not there to tell students what to write or to ploish their sentences" they just simply ask the students to dig deeper. Hopefully one day there will be justice in the college admissions.
U.Va. Office of Admissions Essays
First of all, I loved Parke Muthe's description of the McEssay - the traditionally flat and boring 5-paragraph essay that my 11th grade English teacher dutifully told us to never dare compose. His mentioning of this particular format reaffirmed to me that it wasn't just AP English teachers that despised it.
This article seemed to be perfect for me in that it highlighted the very same shortcoming that I have always struggled with in my writing - voice. "Instead of detail, however, students try to impress us with big words. In trying to make a topic sound intellectual, students resort to the thesaurus and, as a result, end up sounding pretentious or at least insecure about using the voice they would use to describe an event to a friend." That is exactly me. As I have never quite understood how to bring out my voice in papers, my writing has mostly come out stilted and too structured to be genuine. However,I think Muth's suggestion of showing instead of telling seems a very promising concept for authenticity. I will definitely need to start appealing to the 5 senses in my writing now.
College Essays: Nerve-racking
One of the most outstanding statements from this article was what Frank Sachs' said about the college essay: "It needs to fit you.They aren't looking for a 35-year-old.". The latter part of the comment is what I believe I can really connect to. I realize that thus far in my writing, I've been trying to sound older or more intellectual than I am. Trying to use big words and complex grammatical arrangements has unknowingly made me sound pretentious. I guess a large part of this can be since I'm more of a maths/sciences person as opposed to an arts-conscious student. My mind is oriented to think formulas, structures, and orders instead of free-flowing thought. I need to break from this mindset to achieve the personality and voice in my writing for college essays.
"Nerve-Racking Search" was revealing--it kind of took a bit of the "nerve racking" portions out of my thoughts on the essay. It's not as hard as I'm making it out to be, it seems.
"Essay Ordeal" had the best beginning! It was hilarious, as well as informative.
The Young Examined Life-
This article touched on many of the anxieties I have been feeling throughout this dreaded process. I feel conflicted about what to write and often wonder If I should write an essay like the super hero one (that shows personality) or a standard one. With the latter comes a series of challeges that the article touched on. I want to find a "life experience" that doesn't make watching paint dry a more entertaing activity than reading my essay.
How Much Essays Really Matter-
This essay reaffirms and my thoughts on the importance of the essay: Though its no substitute for strong grades, test scores, and community service, it can bring "flesh" to the application and give it a sense of personality.
Its almost terrifying that the only thing standing you out from the other 10,000 applicants with great test scores is the essay. But I suppose that's why we are working on them on the 2nd day of school.
Lets hope practice makes perfect!
Rachel Wardzinski P.5
Wow Sister! Now this is a lot of attention. I'm probably not supposed to butt in but I am overwhelmed at the many and varied responses. Way to go! You might introduce them to NSCU. I'm never going to make Webster 2009 edition at this rate.
I appreciate the work of all people who share information with others.
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