Reading your kids essays?

compmom
Fri, 19 Jul 2013 12:54:59 +0000

This situation is pretty common. When my 3 kids had to write their college essays, I gave them photo albums and a biography they had each written in middle school, and pretty much stayed out of it. Two of them did let me read the final essay, but it was done by then. Our school didn’t have any essay coaching or anything, but I think the third one had an English teacher look at it.

We forget that the essays were originally, in theory, really supposed to be entirely written by the applicants, without any help. Nowadays there are college essay classes in schools and a whole industry focused on helping with college applications. As result, I don’t think colleges really put that much stock in the essays. They know a lot of kids are getting help. I have also read that adult involvement can ruin a fresh, if imperfect, essay and that the applicants own “voice” is what colleges most appreciate.

If your son or daughter has some skill in writing and wants to do it on his or her own, I would rejoice, because that lets you out of all kinds of ethical dilemmas.

p.s. Originally SAT’s were to test aptitude and we were told, way back when, not to study for that reason. My own kids (ages in early to mid 20’s) didn’t study either. So that’s changed too.