Hi Stacy,
I'm curious. What do you think goes through the heads of members of the admissions committee when they read the essays?
Obviously, they read plenty of essays, maybe several a day. It has to become routine after a while. Is there any hope of really standing out with a compelling essay? One that would make the reader say to himself: "I have to meet this person"?
I guess I'm asking - is there any point in actually trying to make them like you, or should you just focus on answering the question and on listing as many impressive achievements as you can?
I know word count is crucial, but do you think I should waste some words on "color" and "mood"?
When I read a book I always measure it by how much I would have liked to meet the hero, or how much I would have liked to see a sequel. Is there any hope of duplicating that with the admissions committee of are they so tired of reading applications that they won't notice?
Thanks!
Gil
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Application Essays
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Lisa Anderson
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Dear Gil,
Yes, admissions folks do read multiple applications on a daily basis and so it is hard to be "memorable". They usually make notes and evaluate the candidate upon reading the application, using these notes during admissions committee meetings when decisions are being made. So, if your essays are compelling, they will be remembered during the meeting or contrastingly, if they are poor, that will also be remembered.
Thus it is important to answer the question being asked, paying attention to details like grammar and punctuation, and staying within the word limit. Adding some color and detail to an example or anecdote is perfectly fine, it can even be quite effective. However, you have to be careful with trying to be too clever or writing what you think they want to read. A compelling essay will not only be well-written technically, but also effectively communicate the answer to the question.
Best of luck,
Lisa
Yes, admissions folks do read multiple applications on a daily basis and so it is hard to be "memorable". They usually make notes and evaluate the candidate upon reading the application, using these notes during admissions committee meetings when decisions are being made. So, if your essays are compelling, they will be remembered during the meeting or contrastingly, if they are poor, that will also be remembered.
Thus it is important to answer the question being asked, paying attention to details like grammar and punctuation, and staying within the word limit. Adding some color and detail to an example or anecdote is perfectly fine, it can even be quite effective. However, you have to be careful with trying to be too clever or writing what you think they want to read. A compelling essay will not only be well-written technically, but also effectively communicate the answer to the question.
Best of luck,
Lisa
