<p>Dean J is awesome isn’t she! She makes the entire process so open and less scary. I love the pictures of stacks and stacks of all the application packages they have to go through sitting on their desks. It puts it in perspective what they go through on their end, and all the hard work they put into making sure each applicant is reviewed fairly.
The only thing I would offer on your essays is to avoid what I have heard referred to as the ‘McEssay’. This was something an associate Dean of Admissions at UVa, Parke Muth, spoke about extensively and is highly respected. If you google it you can find an article from the Washington Post that gives his theory very clearly. It’s not hard, but reminds you of key principles of things that will make your essay personal and stand out.
Dean J, If this information is outdated, or you would advise otherwise please pop in and let us know. My intentions are pure, but I am certainly not the expert and would rather UoB have correct direction if I am misguided.
Good luck to you UVAorBUST!!! :)</p>