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Getting into the
college of your choice!
Let College Admissions Know
It is not enough to be a strong candidate, you must show that you are one.
The college admissions officer only knows what you and the application
tell him.
The application is your tool.
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Establish a strategy for your application.
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Know your strengths.
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Know what you want to tell about yourself.
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Know why you picked each school you apply to.
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Convey your message.
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True Life Story: |
Worried that Don’s 6 transcripts, from two high
schools and four junior colleges, with several D’s, arriving cold,
could ruin his chances, I convinced him to write a cover letter, even
though none of the colleges he was applying to required a personal
statement.
He explained that after working part time jobs and taking occasional
courses, he had in the past year focused more seriously on his studies
and attended community college full time. Both his life and his school
experiences now led him to choose a program in international
relations. He had lived and traveled in the Middle East, and was
comfortable with and knowledgeable about foreign cultures. While his
academic performance was uneven, his grades in courses related to his
intended major were excellent, with A’s in government, history and
anthropology.
Don’s well crafted note drew attention to what he wanted to emphasize
in his record and communicated that he had become mature, focused, and
ready to succeed. |
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True Life Story: |
Dana’s grades would guarantee admission to
the University of Texas, but acceptance to the highly competitive
School of Communication was a different matter. Our application
strategy was to showcase qualifications relevant for the particular
program.
First, she focused her resume. She did not limit inclusion of her work
in a youth organization as a single item on a long list of activities.
She devoted a section to her responsibilities and accomplishments as
an officer. Bullet points showed she had planned and run a campaign
that increased membership 200%, and that under her leadership
retention increased 30%. Her resume made her already look like a pro!
Then she focused her essay to demonstrate that she is creative and
communicates effectively, without ever saying so directly. Elsewhere
in the application, she referenced having both the quantitative (AP
score of 5 in statistics) and people skills that would be useful in
the fields of marketing, advertising and public relations.
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True Life Story: |
| It was a stroke of genius as we were batting
around ideas, when Joshua decided to write his essay about Emperor Fabius Maximus, nicknamed Cunctator, The Delayer . Surely
college admissions readers would not yawn, having read thousands of
essays on this topic!
Beyond catching attention, the topic was
strategically a good choice. It reinforced Josh’s A’s and prizes in
Latin. Writing playfully about how he and the emperor shared a
tendency to delay, Joshua demonstrated wit, introspection, and his
talent for finding relevance in ancient texts.
Joshua’s essay
enhanced his intellectual and academic stature and certainly set him apart from
others with a C average and in the bottom half of the class. |
Other memorable essays:
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What to place in the unusually shaped pockets of my
carpenter jeans.
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Why my mother is short and my father is tall.
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How to eat matzo balls with chopsticks.
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Setting free a pet squirrel .
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True Life Story: |
| “Miss Nancy. Miss Nancy. I got in trouble
today!”
Immediately the dialog format catches the
reader’s attention. Nancy writes about her conversation with the
playground bully at the school where she worked as a teacher
assistant. The boy complains that the teacher punished him when, “I
said a bad word and pushed Tommy because he was making fun of me.”
Nancy commiserates saying, “Getting in trouble
isn’t much fun.” Later on she shares her own experience, “One day I
figured out that if I didn’t let my sister see me get mad, she
wouldn’t make fun of me because I wasn’t getting angry.” At another
point she suggests, “We are going to have a secret code. Every time
you get angry, flip your retainer in your mouth and that will let me
know… I will come over and give you three minutes of alone time to
calm down…”
Without a boastful word, Nancy’s essay shows her
insight, compassion, tact and creativity. |
Essay Pointers:
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Focus on a specific incident, encounter, or moment to
convey something of who you are, how you see the world, what you consider
important.
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Do not use originality as a gimmick.
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A humorous essay is hard to write. Do not do one unless
you can pull it off.
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Whatever you write, be sure it is well written. This
does not only mean check your grammar and punctuation. Organize your
thoughts and make the writing flow.
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Avoid generalizations and repetitions of the same point
in different words.
Want to work together to see what you might write about?
Click here if you want help editing your essay.
Let me help you.
Together we can select schools that are a good fit and convey your
message convincingly.
• Become a stronger candidate • Junior year activities • Let College Admissions know • College Admissions Help •
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