<p>to begin with, the common app is badly designed to facilitate the indication of a passion, or to be compelling overall. From the looks of it, you fill in the blanks, and it prints out a very standardized profile for the admissions. The essay section provides a chance to indicate a passion. I plan to do this, though I’m not sure I should focus on my background or my web design firm. </p>
<p>In any case, I cannot put together a more “compelling & convincing” profile without making things up. And a person with my exact stats/ec’s/awards cannot somehow “write” a better application than me unless he/she writes a better essay</p>
<p>am I missing something? When people say they poured over their application, I always took that to mean their essay. I just doesn’t seem like the common app leaves much room for creativity otherwise.</p>