Morgan's Sample Common App College Admissions Essay -- with my commentary Morgan's advice to applicants: "You've got to be vulnerable, or it's not going to work." Believe In Yourself Harder Your lowest point can be your turning point. I learned this in 10th grade when I told my mom about my reading problems. She didn’t believe me. Wasn’t she supposed to be my biggest supporter? I was scared. Were my feelings accurate or imagined? Was I just “a slow reader” or was it something else? Either way, I could not go on like this. I knew I hadn’t performed well on my first test of the year. When the grade was posted as 63, I was speechless, painfully holding back tears. My parents seemed furious (in reality, probably just confused). “Did you study?” I thought they’d be understanding, but “D” was a new game. I knew I’d have to work even harder to believe the affirmations I repeated daily, “I am smart, I am capable,” – reminders that my intelligence wasn’t determined by grades alone. Raised to have agency, one of my greatest fears is turning into someone who looks for pity or sees myself as a victim. To avoid this, I’d study 10+ hours for one test– unsustainable. Would overdrive improve my performance? My grades slipped; my anxiety climbed. As my education and future depended on my actions, I admitted to my advisor there was a problem, advocating for her to speak to my mom. This paid off: we learned I wasn’t “just” a slow reader, but there was a bigger problem that I received help to address. Aware there would be a day when I’d have to stand up for myself, I never imagined it would be at home. My parents had always encouraged positive self-talk, emphasizing the importance of feeling confident in our skin and having pride in our heritage. They taught us always to give 100% effort, never quit, and find paths forward. These beliefs were pivotal to the development of my self-esteem, my crown jewel. Now, when seemingly no one validated my perspective, I was forced to Continue Reading …
Solutions
Avoid these 5 college essay mistakes!
To an essay coach (me) who has helped hundreds of teens write their best college essays, there is nothing new under the sun. Even the sun. Especially when it comes to paralysing fear tactics delivered via expert headlines! Don't worry: the college essay process is NOT just a Greco-Roman road full of ankle-annihilating potholes and partially-discernible SAT-word mosaics. So I'm cautioning YOU against these top five college essay mistakes I've seen applicants make. Avoiding these five college essay mistakes will save you time, sweat, tears and curse words as you write-- or delay writing-- your admissions essay content. To write your absolute best college essay, or even mediocre-but-passable college essay, avoid these 5 things: Spending all your time reading 'what to avoid in your college essay' lists Hyper-focusing or procrastinating Modeling your essay too closely after someone else's Missing out on other life and growth experiences Not trusting that who you are is enough Let's break down these common mistakes. Don't: 1) Spend all your time reading avoid lists Students sometimes show up at sessions like bullet points with legs, "What not to do" items they've absorbed from the internet, counsellors, teachers. Yes, there is good advice in those lists. Lots I agree with. But no one ever got great at something from reading all the ways NOT to do it. Yes, limit your scope; yes, proofread carefully, yes, don't use invective or rage against the machine. But also, write. Keep writing. Experiment. Discover. Revise. Try again. Use detail. Hook me emotionally. 2) Hyperfocus or procrastinate Like many other coaches, I encourage students to start writing application essays early. You may write a few "practice" drafts or "warm up" drafts (or even "garbage" drafts), like you would for any big "game." And, like most of us, you might want to stall a bit on the stickier parts, or the dread of facing yourself. BUT over focusing on the essay too Continue Reading …
Your college essay is a mess, but it will be amazing
"Messay" Process Your college essay might be a mess before it's amazing. I have many students freaking out when their essay is in the messy inchoate stage. Trust the writing process to move from a-mess-ing to amazing! You know what happens when the sun begins to rise? That's just the idea of the day beginning. It hasn't figured itself out yet. It's a hot mess! The whole sky goes crazy, and it tries out all these different colors. They are not the same colors, or in the same order, as yesterday's sunrise. You know why? Me neither. The sun is just going through a process. The atoms have moved around and swapped outfits. They blaze and reorganize. Take notes for your college essay! Beautiful Oops = Mistake Composting I read my kids a book called Beautiful Oops (if I'm really honest we lost our copy, but stick with me). I recommend everyone get their hands on it and absorb it. This is a how-to book designed to help the perfectionists among us calm the F down. It's also for those who can't handle their mistakes and meanderings as a natural part of the process. This book says-- no such thing as a mistake! Take that coffee spill, that misshapen tree, that sentence that is tomato sauce dribbled on your prom outfit, and turn it into something else. It was getting you to your art all along. In fact, that might be your stroke of genius. It's messy before it's sweet I have a lot of students who come to me very early in the college essay process. They are stressed the F out, because they are not sure what they are writing about, and the essay isn't coming out looking finished, in 650 words. That advice thread on Reddit didn't make their essay get born whole. Prince Ea's magic words didn't conjure it. The messy process of creation is a bit uncomfortable. Hey now! Is the sun making a big deal about its sprawl? Should my kids never scribble scrabble in the process of drawing a dragon (it breathes fire, yo!)? Is it OK that I have to step to the left and right Continue Reading …
“I hate my college essay supplements!” It’s OK, we got you.
Are you stressed as all hell about supplements? Are you starting to get stiff in your language or overwhelmed by the sheer number of prompts, that all feel vaguely similar? I'm here to give you a pep talk about the “Why This School?” essays that are most challenging for students to write well. Are you starting to write supplemental essays that sound like: “The majestic campus enthralled me and I imagined myself walking down the path to the dining hall….” GAH. Take a big step back. 3 things to remember that will help you avoid common pitfalls: 1) supplements are a dating game 2) go beyond 1-click research to authentic interest 3) don’t tell them what they already know (OK, and four-- it’s OK to sound like you.) These Tips Will IMMEDIATELY Make Your College Supplements Suck Less The supplements are a dating game and you don’t have to treat them any differently. You might be amazing, and the school might be amazing, but how does that help you be amazing together? It doesn’t. I’ve read so many “vanilla” supplements, with a lot of “right” words but no distinctive flavor about the individual applicant. If you and this school are really committing to each other (which you are), then use the supplement as a chance to weave in your particular interests. Tell them a little something you didn’t focus on elsewhere-- that you’ve been deconstructing family toasters since you were 3 and are interested in their engineering track. Or maybe you spent all of middle school browsing the library and you’re interested in literacy classes. Or maybe you grew up in a very small town and you’re so excited about their campus cultural initiatives. Make yourself an attractive person to date and commit to. 2. If you try to stack your supplements with “1-click” research, you look lazy. Dig into their website! Take a virtual tour and come up with a list of questions. Notice specifics. What research are their professors doing? What is student life like? Go at least Continue Reading …
Common App Prompt #4 is “Grateful” and Then Some
Common App #4 Is New and Gratitude Never Gets Old With the addition of the new Common App Prompt #4, students are encouraged to find something positive in their lives they can reflect on-- and this is a good thing. The prompt reads: “Reflect on something that someone has done for you that has made you happy or thankful in a surprising way. How has this gratitude affected or motivated you?” The Common App website even links to Angela Duckworth’s Character Lab where you can learn more about why science is giving a big thumbs up to gratitude and kindness practices. But just because it's certified as good for you, doesn't mean it necessarily leads to good writing. This is where a little guidance and some examples can go a long way. Continue Reading …
To write your college essay, Stay Open
Practice your ability to stay open, and the writing will come In the face of daunting things, like a college essay, it's easy to close up and shut down. But it’s spring now: stay open. If you think writing a college essay is hard, I also help people who are having babies. Now that's a bit hard. And one of the hardest things to do is the necessary thing: to stay open, and open more. Babies require it to emerge. Your writing does too. It’s spring and this is just what creatures do. Rabbits make more rabbits. Branches make buds. Buds crank petals apart and drink up sunshine. The sky seems bigger for longer. Baby turtles linger on their warmed rocks. Teenagers linger on the warmed street. You’re a creature; you can act like one. Continue Reading …