This article was originally published on Forbes.com Last year’s admissions cycle produced the lowest acceptance rates in history at Ivy League schools and at most other elite colleges in the nation. Harvard’s acceptance rate for the class of 2023 was 4.5%; Princeton admitted 5.8% and Columbia 5.1% of their applicants;
There’s no such thing as a bad question. And when it comes to college admissions, many parents share the same doubts and anxieties. So I thought I’d address some of them here, because if you’re not already working with our college admissions consulting firm (and we hope you will!), you
The college essay is the hardest part of the application process. For many students, it’s difficult to get going: they feel pressured to sum up everything they’ve accomplished, everything they are, in 650 words—so where to begin? And, for many students, it can be just as difficult to conclude: how
You’ve probably heard that it’s a bad idea to write your college application essay about world peace, a sports game (or sports in general), a trip, the death of your pet rabbit, and so on. The truth is that no topic is 100% off limits. Students have gotten into Harvard
Supplemental essays are personal statements. They need to be about you, tell a compelling story, and so on. I know, I know—you’ve already written a personal statement, and now you’re being asked to do so again, over and over. It should go without saying that you can’t reiterate anything you’ve
Welcome to the supplemental essays for the University of Chicago! UChicago is known for having some of the most creative essay questions of any college, but it’s easy to misinterpret them as casual opportunities to write about the first thing you think of. You’ll need to have a discerning eye
As you probably already know, the point of your college application is to give admissions committees a solid sense of who you are. You’ve written a highly personal college essay, and probably some supplementals on your intellectual and extracurricular activities and your leadership experience. Maybe on your intended major and
“SR 2xsci 10, 11. JHCTY online MV Calc 12 fits w/Hutch internship. Supp: Hutch MD a rare gem.” This is the language of admissions officers. It’s often said, rightly so, that admissions officers blaze through your application at breakneck pace—your personal statement in a minute or two, your activities in
Once you have an idea for your common application essay, also known as your personal statement (see my article here on coming up with a strong idea if you don’t yet), and you’ve mustered the courage to write up a first draft (see this piece on writing a first draft),
After coming up with a topic (see my post here on coming up with one if you don’t yet), putting words on a page is an intimidating step. Students with primarily academic writing experience sometimes default to the standard boring introduction, structured body paragraphs, and summary conclusion of an English
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