New York Times College Admission Essay Text

Jonathan Friesen - Writing Coach

The times has discontinued the choice blog, which was created four years ago to help students demystify college admissions and financial aid. Additionally, the times will continue to serve student readers at the learning network. A blog dedicated to teaching and learning with the times, and our reporters will continue to cover issues most relevant to college bound students and their families, including the admissions process, paying for college, and the evolving industry of higher education. Thanks to all of our readers and contributors who made this online community so dynamic, and best wishes to all students who are navigating the admissions process.

By seth allen

january 11, 2012
seth allen is vice president and dean of admissions and financial aid at pomona college in california, a liberal arts college. He was previously dean of admission and financial aid at grinnell college in iowa. This is the second post in a regular series on india ink providing advice to prospective indian applicants to american colleges and universities. the essay just may be the most important aspect of your application to a united states college or university. While your standardized test scores and grades can assure you are a competitive applicant, they won’t make you stand out in a strong applicant pool.

Extracurricular activities and recommendations help inform admission committees what you do in and out of class, but rarely serve to significantly differentiate applicants unless they speak to unusual talents or characteristics. The essay is often a deciding factor, conveying information to the admissions committee about your personality, values, creativity or other intangible qualities sought after in students. Stephen mally for the new york timesseth allen, dean of admissions at pomona college in california it’s also the one component of your application where you have full control over the outcome if you had full control over the other aspects you would have a 2400 sat score, straight a+ grades and exams, and been to the moon and back by the time you were 12. While a great essay won’t make up for poor academic preparation or other deficiencies in an application, it can mean the difference between admission and rejection.

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That said, here are seven suggestions to help you write a compelling essay:

    let your credentials speak for themselves.  there’s no need to write an essay conveying how serious an academic you are.  your transcript and recommendations will do that. Similarly, your extracurricular activities will speak volumes about how engaged you are. this is all about you.   decide there’s something interesting or original about you that you want to convey instead of writing about a piece of history or a book you recently read.  even if the essay prompt asks you to write about someone else or an important event, remember the underlying aim is for the admissions committee to learn about you.

     don’t make more of something than is warranted.   even if it’s true, it may not be credible, and you should avoid turning seemingly trivial events into profound insights or action. Such as realizing the true value of education after failing a quiz or resolving to work towards world equality after participating in community service for one afternoon. If it’s not what an adult would write.  after all, you are just 17 years old and if you were already perfect, there would be no need for you to go to college.  think how you can leverage your native culture, traditions and experiences in your essay.   when applying to schools in the united states, don’t try to americanize your application by focusing on your trip to the united states or even your participation in out of class activities prevalent in the united states. It won’t help differentiate you and may make your candidacy less appealing.  a more general mistake in essays is for the writer to try to fit into the mainstream at the school.  writing about how interested you are in pursuing political science at a college renowned for its political science program doesn’t differentiate you from others. Allen’s suggestions here? is his take on the essay from the perspective of someone who has read thousands of such submissions different than you expected? please use the comment box below to let us know. You can also tell us other topics you’d like us to explore in this series. meanwhile, there is another perspective on the college essay this post written for an american audience on the choice.

    Jfk Essay Topic

    Jacques steinberg, senior editor, the choice

    march 6, 2014
    pencils up, everybody. The sat will no longer require test takers to answer the dreaded essay question, college board officials announced wednesday. Our essay question is based on sample essay questions from the college board’s web site. Assignment: are any of these assumptions true? why or why not? support your position with reasoning and examples from your life and daily dealings.

    Think carefully about the issue presented in the following quote and the assignment below. 19 at p.m.: the final set of answers to reader questions has been posted. 18 at p.m.: the first set of answers to reader questions has been posted. original post: for high school seniors scrambling to complete essays, collect recommendation letters and construct well rounded packages, college application deadlines are looming, in a seemingly inscrutable admissions process. This week, a panel of admissions deans from yale university, pomona college, lawrence university and the university of texas at austin will answer selected reader questions.

    Financial aid, essay writing, fairness and what not to do when trying to make a good impression. Which in 2007 had 5,275 undergraduates and 6,083 graduate and professional students. Vice president for enrollment and the dean of admissions and financial aid at lawrence university in appleton, wis. 19 at p.m.: do you have a bias against homeschooled students? they don’t always have the classes available to them, such as ap, honors, labs, etc. If you don’t have a bias, what do you look for in a homeschooled student? the transcript may include nonstandard courses.

    How do we let a school know, other than with standardized test scores, how they might be a good fit for that school? leslie howard mr. Walker of texas: homeschooling is a more recognizable educational enterprise than it once was. This has made directors of admission more comfortable with their ability to properly evaluate a student’s readiness for the rigors of a challenging college curriculum and a student’s social adaptation skills. We recognize that there are many ways to get a rigorous education, and ap and honors classes are just two of the most popular examples.

    We probably provide better service and a more complete and personal evaluation of our homeschooled children than we do to our more traditional applicants. While homeschooled children present slightly different application materials, the differences are shrinking. We are seeing parents become more entrepreneurial in finding good educational experiences for their children, and more parents are pooling resources to provide the more specialized subjects in the sciences.

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