Parental essay review

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Many many people on DCUM hire people to help their kids with their essays. Others are making suggested changes themselves. They aren’t going to volunteer this information on this thread. But I saw something from a highly selective college the other day that surveyed their students and more than half had paid college consultants.

Wow.
We haven't paid anyone specifically. I did shell out $300 for the College Essay Guy 4-week course. I don't know if that counts as a "paid consultant." The course was great, and I highly recommend it for kids in the late spring of their junior year. It was the jumpstart DD needed in June to begin building the story she wanted to tell about herself. She needed the summer to let it marinate.

As for edits, I've definitely given input to the essays when something sounded confusing or harsh, as another poster said. And I've helped with what I call "surgical edits" to get within the word count. DD is really proud of what she's written, and I'm excited for her. She said she's ready to hit submit for an Ivy ED app this weekend. Then the wait begins...

[Anonymous]

I wish. My kid wants to do it completely herself. At one point I insisted on seeing the common app essay and it was pretty good. I suggested a few places where she needed more detail. I've no idea if she took the suggestions. On the other essays, hen I ask, she is cagey about whether she's either started. I had her big sister ask casually and she got a better response (that she's almost done). But I really have no idea...We'll see if she actually submits anything next week!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Make sure they upload it. That's most important.

You can’t submit if it isn’t uploaded

[Anonymous]

Mine always had me read over them when she was done (last year). Everyone should have someone look over their work before it goes out , especially in something important. Once or twice we reworked an essay when it was oddly structured or didn’t really answer the question but mostly I advised on grammar or active voice. Sometimes I just said “great job”.

[Anonymous]

My dd (2020 hs grad) was studying abroad senior year. We worked out a nice system where she sent me all her essays and I used the google doc edit function that let me put comments in margins only, I never touched the essays. She could consider the feedback and make edits or not. I think she also asked her junior yr English teacher to review. But no “consultants” for this process, and much of my advice was soundly dismissed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Are any of you doing last minute Google Docs edits to your kids essays? How much to edit??

Mine did not want us involved in the process at all - until last night and I just got dumped with 6 supplementals and the personal statement…

You give feedback in comments. You don't edit.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Suggest grammar and misspelling changes. For areas that need more tightening or a different organization, don't be specific, just point out the areas and the problems - edits that are too specific risk losing the student's voice.

That's hilarious. Most kids either are past that now or have autocorrect.

Obviously, though those tools are not perfect.

Where are you living, in 1980?

DP. Just stop. There are many spelling errors that autocorrect and spellcheck won't catch. The first PP offered good advice. Don't be a jerk. Just scroll on.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Are any of you doing last minute Google Docs edits to your kids essays? How much to edit??

Mine did not want us involved in the process at all - until last night and I just got dumped with 6 supplementals and the personal statement…

You give feedback in comments. You don't edit.

It’s all called “suggestions” now in Google Docs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Many many people on DCUM hire people to help their kids with their essays. Others are making suggested changes themselves. They aren’t going to volunteer this information on this thread. But I saw something from a highly selective college the other day that surveyed their students and more than half had paid college consultants.

Those paid people should be offering feedback, not making actual syntax suggestions. I think people on dcum like to inflate what the paid consultants do in order to justify writing for their own kids.

Would have been nice to afford one of those, but we can't. So, that's why I give feedback. (And read Selingo, and listen to podcasts and sift through dcum, reddit and cc). All the stuff I learned about admissions from these various resources helped convince DD that feedback is good, even though it's hard to let your mom read your work!

[Anonymous]

Most parents give suggestions. Colleges expect students will show their essay to an adult to proofread etc.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:our kids are in college now but we never saw them, had no idea what they wrote about and it turned out just fine.

Do you know now?

[Anonymous]

We told him to get 3 people to review the essay (us, teachers, other trusted adults) and he chose 2 English teachers (11th and 12th grade) + AP US gov't teacher. We never read it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We told him to get 3 people to review the essay (us, teachers, other trusted adults) and he chose 2 English teachers (11th and 12th grade) + AP US gov't teacher. We never read it.

Probably not the best advice. Should stick with one qualified person to review/edit any writing.