Should You Gamble on Your College Application Essay?
This time of year, a flurry of stories hit the national media about students who get into all the Ivy League schools (plus Stanford).
The stories always include scrutiny and speculation about their college application essays.
I have to admit that I’m sort of a sucker for these articles.
There’s such unpredictability with who gets into what schools.
Everyone is looking for clues as to what works and what doesn’t especially with the essays.
Can you blame them?
Often, the risk-takers seemed to prevail.
Over the last month we’ve had Ziad and his #BlackLifeMatters essay; the Quadruplet’s package deal; and first-gen Cassandra Hsiao’s piece on her broken English.
Does this mean you should take a risk with your essay?
The reality is what works for others most likely won’t work for you.
In fact, it could backfire.
So how do you know?
(For the record, I don’t believe the ivies are the end-all in getting a stellar education. But if you are obsessed, read on…)
Ziad and the Quadruplets Took A creative risk with Their Essays And Won!
I loved the article about the quadruplets who teamed up on their applications and essays and got into Yale and Harvard as a package deal.
This was clearly a calculated risk that paid off big time.
‘In a clever stroke, the four brothers wrote essays that can be read separately, yet are meant to be read together, like four pieces of a puzzle. Each piece is charming and winning on its own, but together, they are even better, and college admissions officers everywhere seemed to agree and were unwilling to pull them apart.’ From the New York Times article. Continue reading “Should You Gamble on Your College Application Essay?”