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As the competition for college admission has increased, so has the importance of the application essay. Let me try to explain why the application essay can be crucial and then explain how I might be of some help.
More schools are being more selective. Greater numbers of high school students are heading for college. Many of them are better prepared than in past years and they are applying to multiple schools. As a result, competition is increasing at all levels. Some elite colleges now have so many good applicants to select from they are passing over students with perfect SAT scores (see info). And the selection process has tightened right down the line, with admission rates at some schools being cut in half. Many colleges, including some in Ohio, that reliably accepted a high percentage of all students who applied are now turning away increasingly larger numbers of them (see info). The importance of selection criteria -- test scores, GPA, extracurriculars, application essay -- has increased, according to admissions counselors, with the weight given to the essay almost doubling.
Last chance to shine. By the time many students are actually applying to colleges their grade point averages are pretty much fixed, their SAT and ACT scores probably aren't going to change that dramatically even if there is time for retakes and, realistically, it's too late to set in motion any extra-curricular activities or meaningful experiences not already on their resumes. Though necessary, letters of recommendation can't change the tide. That leaves the application essay as the only potent option still under a student's control at this relatively late stage.
An opportunity to stand out. Many college-bound high school seniors have a dream school, that one college they would give anything to attend. It could be a stretch school, perhaps because of their test scores or GPA, or it could be a college that is highly selective because an overwhelming number of equally matched students are applying. Either way, the application essay is the remaining tool students have for distinguishing themselves from thousands of other applicants with similar or better grades, test scores and resumes, and to present a convincing case why their qualities and potential make them a special candidate for a place in the new freshman class.
Being a good fit can be the deciding factor. College admissions officials aren't just filling the new class with the top slice of applicants who fit some GPA/test score/class rank formula. Most schools want a balanced, diverse class with a variety of backgrounds and talents, filled with individuals who appear passionate and committed. As the living, breathing part of the college application, the application essay is where students should use their own voices to say what sets them apart, to establish themselves as unique individuals, to add personal dimension, and to let the admissions staff see them from many different angles.
Do the math on the essay. About one in 10 essays is so good it significantly boosts an applicant, according to admissions counselors, meaning it could win admission for a student ranking lower than the others being accepted. On the other hand, about 10% of essays are so bad they can sink applicants who otherwise might be admitted. If a student’s grades, test scores and resume are above the average of other applicants being considered, a solid essay should see that student safely through to acceptance. If a student’s other selection criteria are average or worse, to at least have a chance the student probably needs to write an essay that is in the top 10% of all those being read by the admissions staff.
Getting and staying on message are important. A recurring observation by admissions officials about ineffective essays is that students fail to answer the essay question. A college expects to get a certain feel for the student from the application essay, sometimes called a personal statement and packaged on the application with other related questions. Even if the essay questions on different schools' applications sound similar, each college can have a different definition of a good answer. Some schools may be swayed by introspection that tracks with the school's mission or characteristics with which it identifies. Others may reward personal insight that is predictive of what the school wants its students to achieve. Knowing what works comes with the experience and research expected of a coach. An experienced coach also knows other techniques for increasing success, such as ensuring the essay and the answers to other questions are calibrated to each other for consistency and overall message.
Planning and allowing sufficient time are important. Not spending the needed time has to be the biggest downfall for college application essays. First, there is the motivation factor. It's a very busy time at school and in a student's life. And then the overall essay process can be complicated and burdensome. Just the average suggested minimum of three college applications (a stretch school, an acceptable school to which admission is expected, and a safety school) can mean as many as three separate essays, plus perhaps a half dozen related questions. Many students apply to between six and ten colleges. Even with the Common Application, these students can face separate essays and related questions from each school because the majority of colleges now have their own supplements to the Common Application (see more info). And if students are also applying for scholarships most often there are separate essays for them. Getting essays written is a daunting task in itself, but it also has to be appreciated in the context of everything else that needs to get done to be able to submit what often turns out to be a series of college applications due on rolling deadlines.
Student-parent-coach partnership. Using a coach to help students find their own voice and then use it to effectively express themselves in college application essays, while leveraging parent insight and resources, is the one best way to handle this critical, lifetime opportunity. Such a partnership combines the strengths of other approaches to the application essay process while avoiding many of the problems: student works alone (risky, most problemmatic); student and parents work together (most common, but often stressful); Internet sources (expensive, impersonal, potential scams); school resources (valuable, well-intentioned, but often lacking); books and other guides (inert, static, not always effective).
How I can help. Either as an integrated package or as separate individual services, I will work one-on-one with your student to:
• do an inventory for introspective traits that will appeal to the target school;
• brainstorm for an effective topic that fits with target school;
• find the proper voice to create a likable, lasting impression;
• guide successive stages of drafting the essay, getting input, considering changes, revising and rewriting;
• ensure cumulative versions retain voice, texture, originality;
• make sure the essay question is answered;
• edit for clarity, simplicity, and proper structure, word usage, grammar and spelling;
• integrate answers to application's other questions with essay;
• provide structure and easy discipline to keep essay work on track;
• keep parents appraised and plugged in;
• deliver a polished essay in student's own voice that student can truly sign off on as his or her own work;
• at same time as all above, do all above for essays needed for any other applications and for scholarships;
• plan, track, coordinate efforts to ensure essays for multiple applications are finished on time for rolling deadlines,
• and in what often is already a very busy and stressful time in the student-parent relationship, serve as a go-between, buffer, pressure valve and willing scapegoat in all essay matters.
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