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 …
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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 …
Your story matters more than ever
Does anything matter now? Yes! It's hard to think straight some days about what matters, when we've lost so much in the past year of the pandemic. We're at the 500,000 mark, in February; where is the sun, again? But in this context, your story matters more than ever. It can be hard to think well about future, about goals, when getting through the day sometimes takes all we have-- or as my friend and mentor Margaret Klawunn put it, while we're "fluctuating between boredom and terror." Colleges are trying to keep up with the new landscape, adjusting their admission requirements to accommodate student realities, the boring, the terrible and the indelibly altered. Your story, when you find it, is neither boring, or terrifying. It's perfect, and your job is to unearth it. Continue Reading …
Writing About Your Weaknesses in Your College Essay
A piece in which I say YES YOU CAN and tell you a story about my sour relationship with math. Will My Weaknesses Work Against Me in My College Essay? I had a parent reach out and ask if their kid was hurting their chances in their college essay by writing so articulately about their weaknesses. The answer is: no. Not if other ingredients are there. To be articulate about your weaknesses, to reckon with them honestly and without self-pity, to show transformation in your character (as this student did), these themselves are strengths. (And also commendable qualities in grown-up people: I know many who still can’t do this without elaborate defenses, and yelping ego). To also write well in the process, and think methodically? Well, these are prized traits in college admissions essays. So I want to take a minute to experiment with writing about one of my weaknesses--starts with an M, ends with an H, and has AT in the middle. 4 letters. Guess it yet? Continue Reading …
Frog and Toad Write Your College Essay
Frog and Toad Write Your College Essay In one episode of the children’s book series Frog and Toad, Toad is concerned. His friend Frog has gone alone to their favorite rock, unannounced. Frog and Toad announce everything to one another, so, yes, this is a little strange. Toad does what any anthropomorphizing amphibian would do in a vacuum of information: he starts making stuff up. Does Frog not like him anymore? Is Frog mad? Does Frog think Toad is not a good friend? Did the flies they had at their last dinner party suck? (They are not true to their species: they eat sandwiches, cookies and ice tea). Did Toad do something wrong? Continue Reading …