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Tell me about essays
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Anonymous
| Just saw on the extra curriculars thread how important the essay is. My oldest is entering 9, so I'm still clueless. I am curious how a kid who has led a pretty pedestrian life has anything to say that makes an essay stand out. What sorts of questions are asked? I am also curious how colleges can even take essays seriously given that parents can help or hire coaches to help write them. It seems to me that the SAT writing section would be a better indicator of true writing ability because it has to be written by the student. Thanks! |
Anonymous
| I know where you're coming from. Check out a few examples of good essays (I bought a book or two at Amazon about the essays and college admissions in general. DD didn't read them, but I enjoyed reading the essays). You'll see that the essays can be very simple but tell a neat story -- about a recipe or a car ride or a vacation. Yes, lots of stories of grandmas back in the ole country or an ethnic food favorite or a trip to a foreign country. I didn't change a comma on DDs essay, but hounded her to start writing early (summer before senior year) and to edit, edit, edit. College admissions people say they can tell when an essay has outside help -- who knows, but from what I hear, lots of moms just do the hounding part. As for the writing section on the SAT, we didn't come across a college that counted it (although it's required) -- they still just use the math and verbal, just like when we took it. |
Anonymous
| They're likely to change by the time your child reaches college apps age. No need to sweat it. The child does the work and the colleges generally supply the questions they want answered. Colleges do say they can tell when the essay is written by an adult. |
Anonymous
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Saw a book of sample essays in the library and skimmed it. Was surprised at how pedestrian successful essays were. They were, as a PP noted, "neat," succinct, maybe a touch of pathos, some clumsily inserted recently acquired vocab, but not amazing. They were not about Olympian deeds or saving the world.
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Anonymous
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From what we gleaned in the process some schools use the SAT essay as a check to see how it compares to the formal essays. That may be one way they can tell how much help a student has had with the essays.
We read our dc's essays and gave some feedback but did not rewrite and did not insist on changes. Not that DC would have listened to us anyway. I agree with the advice to start early - some of these applications are brutal. If you want to get a sense of the range of questions check out the app for Wake Forest online. |
Anonymous
| I second the suggestion to check out Wake Forest's application (just for fun!). After viewing it, I take back everything I ever thought or said that may have been perceived as negative in any way about the school, its students or applicants. I have a degree in engineering and law and write legal court briefs for a living. I would not be a successful applicant if I had to complete Wake's app. For the the rest of us (and our offspring), thank God that the Common Apps are gaining popularity. We found that if DD wrote 2 strong non-overlapping essays, they could be morphed into almost any question asked on all her college apps. (But when she saw Wake's application questions, she figured that it probably wouldn't be a good fit college for her.) |
Anonymous
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I'm an intern for a company called Mytonomy (www.mytonomy.com), and here is some great advice for college admissions essays from great college students in short video form!
http://www.mytonomy.com/videos/tips-for-writing-college-essays http://www.mytonomy.com/videos/college-essays-how-to-write-with-your-voice http://www.mytonomy.com/videos/a-school-counselors-thoughts-on-essays http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hDTu0EpXjYM http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kXVZwXqxcN0 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ujANFbnuEMk There's dozens more where these came from! |
Adam
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| Many colleges are essay writing and its related assignment is primary part of study. So most of students have good knowledge about essay and its different formats. |