Is the 'Make your own question' essay a trap?

JHS
Fri, 20 Dec 2013 17:51:43 +0000

It’s not a trap. And, honestly, I doubt they care much if you recycle some other essay, if it’s a well-written essay. They aren’t playing games, they are trying to find the best students with the best fits (which, by and large, means the best students, period), and if your recycled essay shows that you belong, it will be fine. On the other hand, they sure aren’t going to cut you any breaks with a recycled essay. Everyone is going to recognize what you have done, and interpret it, correctly, as a sign of some arrogance and disrespect. If your essay and the rest of your application don’t really deliver the goods, you will probably be toast. I assume Recursive was a pretty strong candidate, and wrote a very good obstacle essay.

I think they affirmatively like it when applicants come up with their own UChicago-style prompts. A number of official prompts over the years began life as a roll-your-own prompt on someone’s application. Remember, everyone is reading hundreds of applications, which means scores and scores of the suggested essays. When someone comes up with a really good essay that doesn’t have the same approach as 50 other essays the same reader has read, that essay is going to stand out.