My D wrote about having an extreme lack of self-esteem, which she attributed to being bullied and shunned in middle school by a few girls she had been friends with in elementary school. She was unable to accept or feel she deserved any compliments on her schoolwork, art, music, or appearance. She overcame this in high school by pushing herself to take AP Literature and Composition in her junior year. (She was always terrible at spelling and grammar and a so-so writer, so this was a big risk for her. ) She had a fabulous teacher who both pushed her and gave her lots of positive feedback. She ended up getting an A in the class and a 5 on the AP exam. She actually wrote this essay as an assignment in that class and her teacher told her it was one of the most genuine and moving ones she had ever read. She got into all 5 schools she applied to.
My older S (2011) wrote about how our family move after his 5th grade year affected him positively. He wrote that his parents and peer group as a child forced him to participate in sports even though he hated it and wasnât good at it. After the move he tried to play baseball but didnât fit in, and then he made friends with a kid down the street who was into music and playing the guitar. We got him a guitar and he never looked back. Within a year he was writing songs, playing in a band, and attending a local School of Rock. He knew he had found his calling. This would probably never have happened had we not moved. He titled this essay âThe Best Move I Could Have Made.â He got into all the schools he applied to except NYU and that was because of his grades.
Both my kidâs essays could have answered #1. The weird skyscraper essay was actually in response originally to a prompt very similar to #4. I like those prompts better than the ones that were on the Common App back then.
My D, who at times has a very bad stutter, talked about how she joined varsity debate at school along with competing in oratorical contests. It was written in good humor and the first couple of sentences were actually written like she was stuttering - a very risky route to take that could have gone very wrong. The crux of it was how she conquered her stuttering and exceled, even winning regional oratorical contests and traveling the country doing policy debate. She spoke poignantly about her ability to wow a crowd of 600 with her oratorical skills but still not be able to interject in a conversation with her peers because she just couldnât get the words out fast enough.
Her English teacher, her counselor and I all knew that it was a winner as soon as we read it. She got a note from her regional admissions rep that specifically referenced her essay and how wonderful it was to read and how it stood out to the committee.
One s wrote about something that sounded potentially sinister, but then had an interesting, clever twist at the end that helped the reader realize what he was âreallyâ talking about, which wasnât sinister at all, but was taking one for the team as it were.
My Dâs essay was about what sheâs learned from her crazy dad - who, among other harebrained adventures, took her camping/dog-sledding in Canada during when it was 30 below and she ended up in the hospital with frostbite. It wasnât particularly well written or insightful, but it was 100% âherâ. Perhaps growing up in a non-traditional, slightly wacky family made her stand out - donât know.
I donât know what or if S had to write an essay. Heâs at a music conservatory so it was something about music, Iâm sure. But it totally didnât matter because conservatory admission is almost 100% audition.
I donât like the new prompts - they donât sound like they allow for much creativity. Plus, the average HS student really isnât insightful/introspective enough to write on those topics well. I think theyâre going to get a ton of essay on not making the basketball/football/volleyball team (#2), or how someone stood up against bullying (#3)
@megpmom I had to laugh at your daughterâs adventure! I can see why it stood out.
Itâs great to see so many creative ideas.
I told my son he should write about being accused of being a âSoulless Gingerâ and the tribulations of being a redhead and the stereotypes, with humor throughout. He didnât agree. Itâs probably for the best
D chose: âDescribe a place or environment where you are perfectly content. What do you do or experience there, and why is it meaningful to you?â - interesting that they removed it for 2015, I thought it was the best one.
She responded with an essay about her love of roller coasters, how it felt to wait in line, strap in, go up, âfall downâ etc, and how some life ups and downs made her feel. I thought it was lighthearted, mostly, and very âherâ.
She wrote a lot of supplements and those were usually more focused on experiences in her part time job, her career/study aspirations or why a particular school was where she wanted to go.
A kid who applied to Caltech the year my son also applied wrote about rollercoasters, but his was about thinking about physics when he was on them. I remember thinking it was much better than my kidâs essay! (And indeed he got in and my kid didnât - which was fine.)
One wrote about how their innately curious nature and propensity for asking questions could simultaneously be a liability and a plus in their life. The other wrote about how their experiences with stateless orphans on a self paid overseas trip informed their goals.
I believe that more important than the chosen topic, what made their essays compelling was their âshow donât tellâ qualities and how close to their âcoresâ the topics were. The one with a million questions is a journalist now and the other one has a masters in international development and works in education. I think ad coms can smell an essay that isnât sincere or is an adultâs idea of what would work.
Fun to read about all the topics and approaches to the essays.
I read my daughtersâ essays and Iâve read a few for other people. I prefer the essays that tell me things about the people that arenât elsewhere in their applications and that have a âvoice.â
Last year we visited our state flagship on a Spring Break day when there were probably 200 people in the opening welcome session. I actually wrote down what the admissions rep. had to say, because it was such a suprise. (This was my third such visit, the first was in 2008, the second in 2010. This visit had a very different tone.
She said: Last year we had 26,000 applications. Of those, ~10,000 applicantsâ essays were about a relative, usually Mom or Dad as a hero figure. Another 10,000 applicants wrote about how sports changed their lives. And an awful lot of you seem to be part of a State Championship Team. That is a lot of essays that are very repetitive and similar. Unless you have something extremely compelling to say about sports or heroism, I suggest you choose a different topic. You want to stand out from the other 26,000 applicants.
My dayghter wrote about our 26 year old ratty basement couch, and the central role it has played in her life, as the place she snuggled next to us when she learned to read, as the place where she and her friends made forts, where the family squished together to watch movies, where her friends played Rock Band, where she sometimes spreads out to study, and where she sits with a blanket wrapped around herself as she thinks about her future. She got in.
One sone wrote about himself as his saxophone. It was a beautiful essay.
My D was lucky enough to apply when you were allowed to write on a topic of your choice. She wrote about an experience when she taken in by a clever scam productâwhat about her personality had pre-disposed her to it and what she learned.
these are great. My D wrote about how she hates cars. How America made a mistake in investing in highways intend of trains or public transportation etcâŠ
Erinâsdad-
Maybe they wrote about their dad letting them write their essays all by themselves without parental oversight, and appreciated being treated as independent, responsible adults
My Dâs common app essay was a response to the prompt âDescribe a place or environment where you are perfectly content. What do you do or experience there, and why is it meaningful to you?â
She wrote about how movement and change was where she she felt the most content. She used some beautiful imagery about travel and nature, and talked about both physical movement (travel) but also intellectual movement and change (learning.) I was worried that it was a stretch from the prompt, but it was beautifully written and she had good results!
