Wait, what?? You got this email this year? My dd applied ED and hasn’t gotten an email about this!
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Wake buries a Why Wake essay in the contacts section of the common app. So sneaky.
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Last year, Denison made a big deal on their admissions page that they knew kids had better things to do with their time and they had no supplemental essays. About 3 weeks after the application was submitted, my student got an email or portal notice that there was an optional “why us” essay. I think it was pretty underhanded and a way to get their app numbers up for selectivity but easily cull out the disinterested applicants.
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These posts about Grinnell and Denison and others sending these supplemental requests after applications in are so shady and make me furious. It is disrespectful to the kids who put tons of hours into their applications and planning their time to spring an after the fact essay on them. If it is true that they are gaming the system to sus out interest, it borders on unethical. Playing games with interested students time to up your total number of apps and your yield is scuzzy! These kids futures are not a game. Any school who does this with D26 will get a serious downgrade on our list even if it is one she is most interested in now!
I should add that one of D26s schools had six supplementals, six! She did them because she is very interested in the school. I imagine some students would decide not to apply because of them. But they were upfront about them, not springing them on kids after they applied to up their apps and their yield.
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Sorry, no it was last year. Also, i would not expect them to ask ED students to do it. You already promised to attend.
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I’m more sympathetic to Denison. My son was aware when he applied that he might receive this optional essay later in the process - they’ve done this for years so it’s not a secret. He actually took it as a good sign that they were interested in him, and he’d had an interview with a recent alumni that helped him articulate the fit. I agree that Denison makes it easy to apply, but at some point it’s reasonable for them to try and figure out who’s not really serious.
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I have no problem with schools trying to figure out who is serious. That is what all the schools who have pre-application supplementals are doing. Make them as specific or quirky as you like, I’m fine with that. My issue is with schools, springing additional essays on incredibly busy, and often stressed out kids after the fact. If Denison advertises clearly on their admissions page (or elsewhere that everyone can see), that they will send a supplemental essay to kids after they apply, no issue with that. But, if you have to be in the know, I am not ok with it. Making unexpected demands on these kids time during this part of the year is unreasonable for colleges to do as a “yield check” in my opinion. The kids spend hours upon hours crafting their apps. The schools spend minutes on them. Not ok to then ask for more when the kid has rightfully moved on to other priorities of senior year.
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There is no big mystery, IMO. I am honestly wondering why anyone is surprised to find extra essay prompts when applying to selective colleges.
I seriously doubt that supplemental essays increase application numbers. The opposite should be true. Yield protection is probably the prime reason for supplemental essays: a student going to the trouble of writing a supplement is more likely to ultimately choose that college.
- When students routinely apply to 20+ colleges, I completely understand that a college doesn’t want to waste time on apps from students who are just hedging their bets. Supplements are one way they can determine interested applicants, as well as fit.
- ANY student applying to a selective college should be unsurprised to find a “why this college” supplement. If the student is blindsided by this and unable to come up with a legitimate reason why they are applying to a college, that is frankly their problem.
- Common App opens on Aug. 1, but anyone can set up a practice account at any time to get a good idea of what to expect. Wake Forest was mentioned above, and they have a direct message about their supplements. A Message for Rising Seniors | Undergraduate Admissions
- Common App is generally standardized. Individual colleges ensure that Common App has all the correct information about what a college requires.
- I don’t see a problem with colleges asking for another supplemental essay after the app is submitted. if anything, that is a good sign. Grinnell and Colby were transparent.
These questions are about fit, but bottom line, it’s yield protection. They want to offer admission to students they think will matriculate.
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That used to be the case but not anymore. For 2022/23 cycle, the Feds started requiring colleges only report completed apps in IPEDS. (IPEDS and CDS data should match)
But should the existence of post-application essays be prominently disclosed up front so that the applicant knows that they may be asked for later before applying (and paying the application fee)?
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My opinion, no. Colleges frequently contact guidance counselors and students to get more information. Colleges send likely letters (even not super selective ones do this). Why do they have to disclose every single thing they might do when selecting an applicant?
I have NEVER seen a post on CC where someone states, “if they had said before I applied that they might contact me for an interview, or contact my guidance counselor when they are considering my app, I wouldn’t have applied.” How is an extra statement about “why this college?” any different?
Let’s be honest here. We all know that we are talking about selective colleges in this thread. Everyone complains colleges aren’t transparent, they are sneaky, etc… They do not have to be 100% transparent about every aspect of their admissions process. If people don’t like it, don’t apply to those schools.
Bottom line: have good reasons to explain why you want to attend a school. Do the homework. Show interest, if considered.
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I don’t know the definition we’re using here of selective, but TCNJ has an acceptance rate of over 60% and has the four “optional” questions after the application is submitted. This is, as far as I can determine, not noted on their application information webpage at all. They note other elements that are not required like a resume, but there’s no mention of those four short answer questions. They do have a required essay in the Common App (classic “Why Us” essay) already.
Nevertheless, my take is that if you are specifically asking things of the student, it should as much as possible be disclosed up front. I do NOT think they need to disclose every iteration of how one might demonstrate interest as I appreciate that this can be gamed. But an “optional” essay seems pretty straightforward and important. It would be good to know about that in advance. Not knowing adds stress needlessly to an already stressful time in a student’s life.
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Not sure if you actually read the OP, but this is not about supplemental essays. It’s about schools that don’t tell you there are supplemental essays until after you submit the common app. I have no problem with supplemental essays, but I do have a problem with schools that spring them on you after you apply.
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These are not cases where they’re asking for additional info from selected students. It’s a part of the application that isn’t revealed until after you apply. You really don’t see an issue with that, for kids who may have applied to 12 or 15 schools and already written 20 supplementals and think they’re done with applying?
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I understand why people are complaining – you thought you were done, and now you feel to maximize your chances, you have to write another essay. And when students apply to a lot of schools, it may not be one essay but several.
To the extent that they are optional, some students will be admitted without them. But many more students will take this opportunity to “promote” themselves in the eyes of the AO. And many students will have quite a bit that can be recycled from essays to other schools so it may not always be a really heavy lift.
But let’s also be realistic. This is how life works. You apply for a job and are asked to come in for additional interviews or to prepare and make a presention.
You’re selling your house and have to make repairs after not getting offers.
Many processes evolve.
It feels that when parents are complaining about this, there’s a bit of a missed opportunity. Yes, it’s a drag, but it’s not unique to colleges – it’s common in numerous arenas – and it CAN be seen as an opportunity – one in which the applicant is getting to strengthen their case for admission.
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I’d argue that this process of applying to college happens relatively few times in a person’s life, tends to happen relatively early when the high schooler has the most limited amount of experience, and appears almost nothing like applying for a job where I might apply for many without the limitation of having to pick 20 through Common App or a limitation that a high school might impose on a student.
In the past I’ve had to use a realtor for this process who had a lot of experience and insight. Perhaps you’re advocating for using paid college counselors to help navigate this process? I could see the value in that when the process remains relatively opaque. It might help to avoid the surprises that students and parents experience.
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I get the sense that “surprise” supplements are used algorithmically rather than qualitatively, as in, the fact that something was submitted figures into the yield score for that applicant, rather than the content.
This favors students who have someone telling them that surprise essays are not optional or otherwise understand something about the admissions game and yield management. This may disfavor disadvantaged students who may think, “I just told them Why Them, I have nothing else to say, I’m exhausted by the process,” even for their top choice school.
I guess my quibble is that, like many algorithm factors, e.g. link clicks and such, the likelihood of yield is based on a guess that may or may not be accurate for the particular applicant, and accordingly there is a sense of arbitrary unfairness involved. (Though of course there are plenty of other inherently unfair aspects.) Perhaps it is accurate in the aggregate, but enrollment management consulting has not exactly perfected their undoubtedly expensive algorithms.
It is hoop-jumping but in black-box form. I guess I might ask, do colleges really think that surprise essays are less likely to be gamed than if they had been disclosed in advance? Somehow I don’t think so.
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This is not an evolving process. These are essay prompts that are sent to everyone, but are not revealed until after the application is submitted.
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Although in some cases, it seems to depend on major. (Based on hearsay – I don’t have an applicant this year, but this is what I am hearing from friends who do. TCNJ says on its website that everyone will get a request for a second essay, so guessing that one is not the issue.)
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I was looking for this! Do you have a link? Thx.