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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]I'm embarrassed to write this (pls don't flame). DC spent all summer struggling with his essay - wrote so many drafts on different topics. Finally landed on a topic he liked, got fired up, and last night he wrote a draft he is genuinely excited about. He was so relieved and proud. BUT. I just logged onto his computer and read it. The writing is great and the anecdotes are super compelling - subtlety humorous, show personal growth. The problem is, I'm fairly certain they're totally made up. Or maybe based on something that happened, but the details don't ring a bell to me. WWYD? I think DC will let me "officially" read it if I ask.[/quote]

As long as it's not plagiarized, who cares?  Tons of those essays are written by "consultants" or parents and/or are totally made up.  I read one from a neighbor's kid where the opening paragraph was a blatant rip off of my DS' and the whole thing he wrote about was something he had done once, not continuously.  Whatever.

I think they need to do away with them.  [/quote]

I'm a college counselor and would call the kid out on this. It's a bad choice to turn in an essay that doesn't reflect his actual experiences, both from an ethical standpoint and also a practical one—authenticity plays better in applications than fabrication does.[/quote]

DP and I was wondering how hard it might be to remember the false anecdotes and be consistent with them if needed later. Would be awkward to get caught embellishing, right?[/quote]

Yes, I'm having mixed feelings. Have your son imagine getting called for an interview with his school, or even a program within the school. (Like an Honors College.) Imagine the dean saying, "Hey, I loved your essay! Can you tell me more about that crazy that happened with the conductor?"

This is the worst case scenario, but I could see it happening.

I think there's room for a LITTLE creative license, but not a lot. [/quote]

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