10 College Admissions Essays That Worked—And Why

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10 College Admissions Essays That Worked—And Why

TOPIC 1: Redefining The Idea of Masculinity While Growing Up With Two Moms

SUCCESS RATE: Accepted to all 10 schools he applied to, including Cornell University, Dartmouth College, Yale University, Princeton University, and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. 

WHY IT WORKED: Colleges want to see exceptional students who overcome adversity because it shows strength and students are not afraid to challenge societal norms, because that takes risk. This essay manages to convey both at once.

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3 Reasons You Might Get Rejected — And How To Avoid Them

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3 Reasons You Might Get Rejected — And How To Avoid Them

While rejection is inevitable during the college application process, it never feels good. Here are 3 of the most common mistakes that could cost you that acceptance letter to the college of your dreams and ways around them.

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How to Revise Your Admissions Essay

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How to Revise Your Admissions Essay

Aha, you’ve written your first draft. Congratulations! This is the hard part. Now, give it a breather and put it away for a few days at least so your words will seem fresh for the revision process.

First, look for repetitions.

Are you using the same word over and over? (Everyone has their own personal crutch). If you're a vocab savant, check for other repetitions like, are your sentences all periodic and using the same construction? Like life, good writing needs variety.

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Admissions News You Might Have Missed: Inside the Harvard lawsuit

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Admissions News You Might Have Missed: Inside the Harvard lawsuit

The 2019 Best College List is oouuuuuuuttttt [US News]

Out-of-state students may have an advantage when applying to UCs. [Forbes]

Get ready for some spilled tea: Inside the affirmative action lawsuit against Harvard [NYTimes] & 4 factors that give you an advantage for getting in. [NYTimes] [WashPo]

Grades are still the top-rated factor in admissions. Notably, the importance of standardized test scores is decreasing. [Inside Higher Ed]

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What High School Doesn't Teach You About The Admissions Essay

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What High School Doesn't Teach You About The Admissions Essay

Most high schools focus on teaching you the academic essay: you know, thesis statement, supporting paragraphs, and a closing paragraph summarizing the above. There is a pretty exact formula you have to stick with and not much room for creativity. Your tone is overly formal and you are expected to cite and analyze texts for a unique argument and conclusion. The good news: You spend 4 years learning this academic skill, which is helpful and will be what you are expected to write in college. 

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This is What Admissions Officers See When You Use a Thesaurus in Your Personal Statement

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This is What Admissions Officers See When You Use a Thesaurus in Your Personal Statement

When writing the essay that *may* determine the rest of your life, you may be tempted to embellish a little. You're competing with SO MANY OTHER KIDS that you think you need to sound that much smarter and well-read. The best writers use big words, right?

Wrong.

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Stuck On Your Essay? This Writing Mantra Will Save You

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Stuck On Your Essay? This Writing Mantra Will Save You

The hardest part about writing is getting out of your own head and silencing your inner critic. This quote helps remind you that all you can do now is word-vomit your first draft and then take time later to finesse it into perfection. 

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Admission Essay Lessons from Tonight's Election Debate

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Admission Essay Lessons from Tonight's Election Debate

Whatever your politics, you can agree that presidential debates can bring out the best in people—or the worst. Some people onstage look calm, educated, and even presidential. Others look mean-spirited, angry, and even unstable. So what does that have to do with the admissions essay? Republican or Democrat, you have to come across as LIKABLE in your personal statement. Based on countless interviews with admissions officers, that is the #1 quality they look for when making the decision to accept you or not. So how do you that exactly? 

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