Essay

Essay Let’s come up with a new solution that allows all children fair access to academic institutions. And let’s keep the personal in the essay by not allowing third parties to ghostwrite our children’s future. To submit a letter, comment or column, check oursubmission guidelines. Some college traditions are no longer applicable in today’s society. I came up with a really good idea about how an experience at school with another student changed my perception on how I treat others. Its not very #DEEP or overly dramatic or littered with tragedy. If you’re an international applicant, Native American, or otherwise non-traditional student, don’t try to “Americanize” or “mainstream” your application. The goal is to stand out and not appear to be like all the other applicants. Always think about what information you want colleges to know and use when evaluating your application. Don’t share anything that doesn’t make you sound good, unless you absolutely have to and you can turn it around to show the positive. Demonstrate how you are compassionateâ€"don’t just tell readers you are. If you had a difficulty, don’t give the admissions committee a list of complaints. After Ye Luo rewrote his essay with a narrower, deeper focus, he was accepted by a number of colleges, including Wesleyan University, where he is now a freshman. He hasn’t yet declared a major, but he’s studying Chinese in Wesleyan’s College of East Asian Studies. Ye Luo says that their words gave him a sense of pride and determination to succeed. Think of the essay as a 3-dimensional snapshot of who you are.Focus on a brief event or conversation, much the way a photo captures a moment in time. Highlighting one event, activity or relationship allows you to provide interesting details and share your passion. Write about something that is important to you.It will be a much easier essay to write if you care about your topic. Last week, the Department of Justice charged 50 people in schemes to pay for positions for their children at top universities across the country. It was called the, “largest college admissions scam ever prosecuted,” but it doesn’t paint the whole picture. Share your thoughts on how you’ve changed or grown.Be introspective, but don’t equate going “deep” with sharing your most depressing stories about being lonely or left out or not fitting in. You can write conversationally, but the grammar and spelling still need to be correct. And don’t solely rely on your computer’s spell-checker. Leverage your native culture, traditions, and experiences. You don’t want to present yourself as a mental health risk to a college admissions person. Avoidself-pity, self-loathing and above all don’t make excuses.Remember that essay readers ask themselves “would this person make a good roommate? ” Your essay doesn’t need to be falsely cheery, but watch your tone. Spend some quality time with the essay prompts.The essay prompts on the Common Application and the Coalition Application are intentionally broad and can easily be interpreted in a variety of ways. You can read diverse opinions from our Board of Contributors and other writers on the Opinion front page, on Twitter @USATOpinion and in our daily Opinion newsletter. Students are essentially paying a third party to ghost-write their story in an essay which is supposed to be a culmination of their skill set, not a professional’s. This may be acceptable for athletes and movie stars who pay for assistance with their memoirs, but should not be commonplace when competing for collegiate acceptance. “I never saw a phenomenal essay suddenly make up for everything” Heaton agreed.