Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Both my kids were high stats kids and decent writers but the college essays were like pulling teeth. That type of self reflection is super awkward for a lot of kids (and adults) especially when the stakes feel so high.

100% agree. For kid 1 I ended up writing them and for kid 2 we hired a coach that didn't write them but steered them heavily. One is at a selective private and one a selective public.

How are they doing with college level writing? (Sincere question, not snark, as this is a big concern I have for my senior)

My kid had top stats and very good ECs, hated writing the common app and supplemental essays (plus the UCs). Getting him to work on them was misery. But he got into his ED school and has been hanging out this past week with a girl helping her with her supps.... I remarked to my wife this evening that he has spent much, much time on hers than he did his.

So happy this process is over.

Anonymous wrote:Write the supplemental for them.

That's a terrible suggestion. What are you teaching your kid by writing their entrance essay for them? Are you going to write their essays and tests in college too??

Anonymous wrote:One is at a Top 25, the other is at a Top 40. These were their top choices.

So one is at Rutgers?

Anonymous wrote:Both my kids were high stats kids and decent writers but the college essays were like pulling teeth. That type of self reflection is super awkward for a lot of kids (and adults) especially when the stakes feel so high.

100% agree. For kid 1 I ended up writing them and for kid 2 we hired a coach that didn't write them but steered them heavily. One is at a selective private and one a selective public.

Anonymous wrote:Write the supplemental for them.

This!!!
Come on. You gave 24 hours give or take!

My daughter was similar, OP, and ended up reusing the same three main essays for a majority of supplements by tweaking them. She had a diversity one, a community one and a major one. She wrote them all at about 400 words or so and then cut them down while saving them at different lengths (so she had a 400, 350, 300 and 250 words version of each).

This was not a perfect method but it let her get them all in. She never would have been able to write 15 different essays. She finally submitted the last one this afternoon.

DC was similar. The college results were indeed disappointing, at least initially. Ended at a nontop school and is doing fine.

One way to consider helping, make a list of the supplements and identify how many are of the same type: why major, why us, diversity, etc., so that the number is not so overwhelming.

Have you ever tried starting with a speech to text (dictation)? For some kids, just talking out some ideas first can get things rolling. Then those initial ideas are put on paper to edit.

Write the supplemental for them.

One is at a Top 25, the other is at a Top 40. These were their top choices.

Anonymous wrote:Both my kids were high stats kids and decent writers but the college essays were like pulling teeth. That type of self reflection is super awkward for a lot of kids (and adults) especially when the stakes feel so high.

Glad to hear, how did they fare?

Both my kids were high stats kids and decent writers but the college essays were like pulling teeth. That type of self reflection is super awkward for a lot of kids (and adults) especially when the stakes feel so high.

Reading through these posts, it seems like most have kids that are great writers and can self-reflect. My DC, a high stats kid, hits a wall most days when it comes to essay writing. It is like pulling teeth to make sure they stay on track/focused so they can narrate themselves on paper. Anyone else have similar DCs and strategies on helping them without being too heavy handed. We have 2 more applications to go, but not sure if they will be solid. Kind of worried that they will not land where they are supposed to because of weaker essays.