How do Admission Officials Decipher Your Essay?

Applying to College
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<p>CC is great! We got talks about the deciphering the transcripts and the myths, must read, great info!
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/college-admissions/819275-how-do-admission-officials-decipher-your-transcript.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/college-admissions/819275-how-do-admission-officials-decipher-your-transcript.html&lt;/a&gt;
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/college-admissions/818566-college-admission-myths-reality-checks.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/college-admissions/818566-college-admission-myths-reality-checks.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>For admissions, most important factors are often listed in the school common data set.
In general, we know GPA, rank, rigorous transcript, and recommendation are often the top factors.</p>

<p>As for EC, most school are really looking for “achievement”. The “myth” discussion said it all.</p>

<p>Next question, how do admission officials decipher the essays and what exactly are they looking for?</p>

<p>Base on my observation from this year’s prompts, here is my 2-cents, just personal opinion:</p>

<p>Brown supplement: You get to pick 2 concentration interests on question #6, then you get to talk about the main interest in #8, then more on #10 or #11.
No wonder “Talent/interest” is listed as the most important factor in Brown’s common data set. Brown has a open curriculum policy, but seems to me they really want students who know and passionate about their interests. So if you got nothing special to talk about, well, tough luck.</p>

<p>Stanford supplement: Unlike Brown, there is no “Why engineering” type of essay question, most questions ask about “favorite events”, “historical moments”, and “most significant challenge the society is facing today”. Seems to me, Stanford cares less about personal interest, instead, they want someone who really cares about the society and the world.</p>

<p>MIT: asking about “creativity”, “personal most significant challenge”, “do for pleasure”, “which major”. Seems to me, MIT is looking for smart and creative thinkers, not just typical working-hard engineers.</p>

<p>I think essay is very important, but not from writing perspective. Schools really want to know about their candidates through the essays, in term of their personal views, special interests, and personal characteristics, etc.</p>

<p>On the flip side, GPA/rank could be the most important factors for in-state students, since they need a quick cut-off to get the main student body to satisfy the state quota.</p>

<p>I think, understand what schools are truly looking for may also help students choose.</p>

<p>Is this a fair assessment?
How about other schools?</p>

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<p>I think your assessment is fair but don’t fall into the trap of ever making it not personal. For example, ‘most significant challenge facing society today’ is not just about sharing your insights on the question at hand but sharing how it affects you and your thinking/actions. Said another way, two people can write great essays how social interaction has become ‘people in their bubble’ where instead of shared experiences it has become cell phones, Internet ‘friends’, home offices, video games, and headphones where people are too busy to have lunch let alone lunch with others. The better essay will be the one that makes it personal, so the reader hears the author’s ‘voice’ and concerns. </p>

<p>And regardless of the essay, the only real crime is to make it uninteresting. Admission officers may be the first reader for hundreds of essays where boring essays get scanned quite quickly and dismissed.</p>

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<p>[Essays</a>, Admission Information, Undergraduate Admission, U.Va.](<a href=“http://www.virginia.edu/undergradadmission/writingtheessay.html]Essays”>http://www.virginia.edu/undergradadmission/writingtheessay.html)</p>

<p>How about this?</p>

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<p>ctyankee, well said, thanks. Making an essay personal and interesting is the key.
T26E4, nice link on UVA.</p>

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<p>the stanford response is only 300 characters long; not nearly enough room for a personal connection. but you could write about something like that in your p. essay.</p>