I write for a living and sometimes help kids on CC with their essays. However, my sister hired an essay coach because we both thought a relative might not be the best person to work with her kid.
However, her kid wrote an essay which had some grammatical errors, and the essay coach did not notice them. And in one case, the essay coach actually changed something which made the sentence no longer grammatically correct. Essay coach also pushed kid towards a topic that was not really that interesting, but kept pushing because topic was unusual (unusual hobby). My sister realized there were issues and felt awful that she had spent money on this type of “help.” So I guess all I can say is, if you’re going to use one, make sure they are really good at their job. Topic choice can be subjective, but anyone who purports to be a professional in this area should at least know correct grammar.
The college application essay process was a struggle with D1 and S2. It wasn’t that they were not good writers, but more that they had no idea who they were or what to write about. For S3 I decided to try outside help. I found a local college counseling company that offered an “essay package”. It included some sort of seminar where they discussed college essays, a one-on-one session with a private college counselor, and then he submitted his essays and a “reader” suggested several changes. It was somewhat helpful,more for getting him started on the process than anything. But I never felt that his essays captured who he really was. I feel like if we had gone to a private college counselor for everything they would have known him better and could have maybe given suggestions on what he should highlight. If I had had a fourth kid I probably would have gone for the full college admissions package, and/or sent him to one of those “essay camps” summer before Senior year. That being said, for all three they ended up where they were probably meant to go and ended up happy and successful.
I am with Gossamer on this. I’ve had kids ask me to review essays that a “professional” helped them with which were riddled with errors- and not in a charming ee cummings way but in a clunky, poor syntax way.
My kids used their English teachers for a second set of eyes. I see nothing wrong with that. A good English teacher can point out when something is illogical- or where there are better choices of words to communicate the same thought- without removing the kids voice and vision. Were these teachers “professional get kids into college” folks? No. But I’ve seen the result of the heavy spending on advisers and coaches and what-not and I’m not terribly impressed. I think the importance of the essay is over-rated as a major factor in admissions, and I’ve observed that the families who go nuts over the essays tend to be those where the kid is something of an under-achiever and they are hoping for a Hail Mary Pass if they hire a pro to help.
Your kid who is a nice, solid admit at Farleigh Dickinson or Pace is not getting into Columbia just because you spent the big bucks and got a fantastic essay out of it.
S at Columbia had a non-scientific conversation about essay coaches and other “professionals” - it came up because one of his friend’s mom had sent her little sister’s essay to big sis at Columbia for her thoughts, but when big sis told her she didn’t have time to review it because of her own project, mom sent it to an essay coach. Big sis, and the 4 Columbia kids in the conversation, all thought it was a ridiculous idea, as none of them had any outside help. Worst part was that essay coach did a terrible job. S mentioned this to me and actually thanked me for my review of his essay - and as I recall, I didn’t advise him to change anything.
Do whatever you feel is right for your child. If you can entertain the idea of paying for an essay coach, you are likely more privileged than many. Just like test prep, etc. there is nothing wrong with wanting to do whatever you can to help put your child in a position to succeed.
I tend to agree with @blossom about nothing wrong with a good English teacher being a second set of eyes. But I disagree with her thought that the essay is over-rated as a major factor in admissions. Depending on the competitiveness of the school, of course, but in the case of HYPS and the other elites, virtually all of the applicants are top notch GPA and test scores - so the essay is really the only chance a kid has to stand out in his/her own voice. The admin officers at all of the elites we visited consistently made this clear to us. And even though my pups got in to many more of these great schools than not, their rejections were a reminder that this is as much an art as it is a science.
Me. D struggled with writing them (postponed doing it, dreaded it) and she had a lot, with supplements (20-something). So I took her out to a coffee shop or restaurant every Sunday for two months, we got coffee and snacks and I read a book while she wrote. She’d show a draft, I’d give her feedback, and she’d incorporate whichever of my suggestions she wanted to incorporate.
I helped her think through some intimidating prompts and sometimes pointed out those that she might be able to rewrite one of her other essays to answer.
I was the only essay coach my children had. My DW deferred to me (but she’a a better writer than I am!). If you have the skill, you will know your child better than any teacher or coach does. What I sought above all in the kids’ essays was authenticity – their ideas, their voice. I could help to supervise the grammar and tone but I didn’t mess with the content.
As mentioned above, I was also my kids’ essay coach. With D2, we did it 99% via email, even when we were I the same house. I would email a topic and target date for a draft, and she would email back a draft by that date. I would return comments & suggestions, and we would go around again. I wouldn’t point out typos, but I would tell her how many I saw in each draft – she had to track 'em down. A couple times she came downstairs to ask for brainstorming help in topics, but that is it for face to face conversations.
I have some pretty hilarious email titles still in my inbox: “Favorite Things Essay Death March v5” and “Entomology Essay Torture Continues v7” type titles.
