High school seniors are now in the final stretch of cranking out their college admissions essays. Pity them.
In an effort to keep students entertained during the admissions process, some colleges ask students to respond to some pretty wacky prompts.
Why? Well, the cynic in me wants to say that these essays are [...]
Most students will save the supplemental essay as the very last thing they do on their application. (Granted if you are reading this and applying for November 1st deadlines, you are way beyond last minute!) But the supplemental essay is important. Some would say it is as important as the personal statement. Admission officers definitely [...]
Read full post...Thousands of college seniors are struggling with the elusive college essay. For a lucky few it is easy to come by. Words just begin flowing and before you know it, your personal statement is done. For the majority of students, writing the perfect essay can be a grueling and stressful process. The pressure for it [...]
Read full post...Earlier this week I had the opportunity to visit Chapman University in Orange, CA. Not only was I impressed by the beautiful campus and updated facilities, but the discussion of their Global Citizen initiative also caught my attention. Chapman has included a Global Citizen requirement in their general education curriculum. Students can fulfill this requirement [...]
Read full post...Writing about ourselves is one of the most difficult tasks we are called upon to do. Ask any adult who has written their own résumé. It can be hard to crow about your accomplishments, in part because we know that it’s not nice to brag.
Essays aren’t about bragging. They are an opportunity to bring your [...]
Writing about oneself is difficult. Really difficult.
But write about yourself you must. So you may as well get started. But how?
Most students start with the five prompts offered by the Common Application. Essentially, these boil down to the following:
A person who has influenced you
An experience that reflects your personality in some way
A social or political [...]
I ran across these hilarious mistakes on college admissions essays submitted to Vassar and Bates colleges. You can find them here at Beliefnet.com.
I laughed. And then I cried, knowing how much the staff of the admissions officers were laughing–as they sent out the rejection letters.
Always, always proofread those essays, folks. And don’t leave them [...]
The Wall Street Journal came up with a neat trick: asking college presidents to write essays from the application to their own college. Tough assignment!. The results were reported the other day in an article entitled, “Holding College Chiefs to Their Words”.
It’s a good read, and a helpful tonic to high school [...]
The latest edition of the Carnival of Education is up today at the Elementary Educator, and it’s full of interesting posts, as usual.
In addition, the third edition of a new carnival, the Carnival of College Admission is up. I’m happy to see this Carnival get going–so happy, that I’ll be hosting it next [...]