Most students will save the supplemental essays as the very last thing they do on their application. But those supplemental essays are important. Some would say they are as important as the personal statement. Admission officers definitely raise an eyebrow when they read an excellent personal statement and then a less than mediocre supplemental essay.
Admissions officers often give a score to the essays as they read them. In some instances, the Common App essay is scored separately from the supplements. In other cases, admissions officers score all the essays together: Common App plus the supplements.
Either way, lackluster responses to those supplemental essay prompts can really hurt your chances of admission. So put in the effort to make sure those supplemental essays shine.
Top 3 tips to improve your supplemental essays
Don’t wait until the last minute!
Some students are chronic procrastinators. They leave important things to the last minute. While I will admit, reluctantly, that once in a blue moon a student is able to pull out a masterpiece with only minutes to spare, these sorts of students are about as rare as snow leopards.
You want to make sure you have plenty of time to brainstorm good messages for your essays, and that you have time to create paragraphs that are well-structured, clear, and concise. Many supplements are short. Therefore you need to pack them full of juicy words and ideas. Creating prose that is both pithy and clear takes time and effort–and usually multiple drafts.
So start early, and focus on ensuring that the messages you want to convey in these short supplemental essays are clear and compelling.
Answer the question!
One of the most frustrating things about reading supplemental essays is that students often do not answer the question. The admissions officers take a lot of time crafting the prompt in hopes that they will get thoughtful, interesting answers that will help them differentiate the applicant pool. They want to admit applicants who have taken the time to answer their questions carefully and completely. They want to know that the applicant cares enough about their application to their school that they dedicate the time necessary to do a great job.
The “Why do you want to go to this college” is among the best examples of how important it is that you take the time to plan and execute a teriffic answer to this prompt. Most colleges want to know why you are interested in attending. So tell them!
Write about specific things that have attracted you to the school. Go beyond the beautiful campus and great food in the dining hall. Talk about a professor you researched on-line and can’t wait to take a class from. If you are playing a sport, talk about your impressions of the coach and the team. Find out about the programs the student government organizes then talk about how you can’t wait to organize a specific event next year. Really envision yourself as a student at the school and then tell the admissions officer what you think that would be like.
Similarly, the “tell us about your academic interests” essay requires thought. You want to take the time not only to say what interests you, but why you are interested in these disciplines, topics, or ideas. What excites you about these ideas and theories? Why would it be important to you to explore these ideas more deeply? What resources at the school would help you achieve your academic objectives? Be specific, be concise, and be enthusiastic.
Though it may sound weird and cruel, supplemental essays are supposed to be the “fun” part of your application. So, take them seriously.
Don’t repeat yourself on your supplemental essays
Each piece of writing on each application you submit should tell the admissions office something different and interesting about you. So you should not write supplemental essays that significantly duplicate information provided in other places on your application.
For example, don’t use the supplemental essays to recount or amplify your extracurricular activities. There is ample space on the Common Application to identify and explain your extracurricular involvements: the Activities section. Use that space wisely. But don’t repeat yourself by saying similar things in your Common Application. For example, if you are the captain and quarterback of your school football team, don’t write a supplemental essay that talks all about football. If you’re asked to write about an activity you enjoy, use the supplemental essay to highlight your interest in building model airplanes or archery or crossword puzzles. Round out the vision of you as a multidimensional person so that the admissions office gets a more complete picture of your humanity.
Similarly, don’t repeat facts or themes or ideas from your Common Application personal statement. You want each supplemental essay to present fresh content–fresh ideas about who you are as a person. Admittedly, sometimes the prompts from the Common App can come back around in a new form in the supplemental essays. Try to find a way to write about something new without duplicating the personal statement.
If you really can’t think of anything, it might be best to rework your personal statement into a supplemental essay for a particular application, and then write an entirely new personal statement (the Common App allows you to do such shenanigans for one application, if you need to). But this would be a drastic measure. So avoid it, if you can. Instead, think of new ways to explore a similar topic so that you can reveal more about who you are on the application as a whole.
Need help writing supplemental essays for your college applications?
The expert college counselors have years of experience helping their students develop interesting, clear, and successful supplemental essays for the Common Application. Whether you need help only with essays or you prefer to get more comprehensive college admissions help, the folks at Great College Advice can make the entire college admissions process less stressful and more successful. Contact us today for a free consultation. We look forward to getting acquainted.
