Using names in the personal statements/essays

danceclass
Sun, 28 Nov 2010 19:27:56 +0000

My d used the full name of the person who had a significant influence on her in her essay and I wondered the same thing. But I kept quiet because her essay was a total tribute to him and something I believe his family would be proud to read if it ever came to light. In these days of putting your whole life up on Facebook I don’t think a college application essay is too much of an evasion of privacy. I may be wrong of course. If you are uncomfortable, maybe just use their first name, or their relationship to you (my cousin, my neighbor, etc.), or a nickname if it’s that kind of relationship.