Your Essay Is Your Introduction
It’s here! College essay season is officially here. Are you EXCITED?!
Your college application essay is your introduction to the people evaluating you as a student, and even as a person. It is your chance to show not just all of the impressive things you do, but who you are. And as acceptance rates get smaller and smaller, I believe it is one of your most valuable tools to prove that you are a great fit and an asset to a school.
I’m regularly asked, “What are schools looking for? And what are they not looking for?” These are questions I address regularly in blog posts (like here, here, and here) and guesting on some great podcasts (like most recently, right here!). But this weekend I heard again the persistent rumor that for parents of high-schoolers is like a favorite ghost story, and it’s time for me to tackle it.
So does your essay matter? And how do you effectively introduce yourself?
Would You Accept You?
First we’re going to talk about what they’re not looking for. This story I’ve heard too often—I’ll bet you’ve heard it, too—came up this time from friends, who heard it from other parents at their children’s school. It’s the parents’ nightmare of the Perfect Child—the “perfect” candidate, a “shoe-in” for any school—who was rejected from one or many big-name schools.
I have seen more than one irate parent or older relative posting on social media about these cases. “How could this child be rejected?” the post goes. “They were on varsity and took only AP classes and and and—” All of this effort no longer matters, they suggest. Excellence is irrelevant.
All of these questioners are—sometimes subtly and other times quite openly—suggesting that the way to get into schools—the only way, in fact— isn’t to have an outstanding resume, but to be part of a disadvantaged or under-represented group.
The problems with these allegations, however, are many. First, we often know very little about the student in question. A 4.0 GPA can mean very different things depending on the school, and even high SAT and ACT scores are not as unusual as parents believe. Being the lead in the school play or a varsity tennis player (or both!) are positions ranked against other members of an unknown student body (the “big fish in small pond” effect). In other cases, students who “take all AP classes” (or even just many AP classes) might not have time to develop as a whole person, and while their academics might be flawless, the lack of service or leadership on their application might hurt them.
But in the end, when I hear these stories, I can’t help wondering about the possibility of well-meaning parents instilling in their teen—in the name of self-confidence!—an entitlement that might have come through in his or her application. If you believe you are a “shoe-in” at any school with an acceptance rate below 15%, you are either arrogant or bad at math. (And between those two, unless it’s an engineering school, I believe poor math skills would hurt you less.)
The question I have is, Are you likable in your application? Would you accept you?
So What ARE They Looking For?
Academics are important—but so is being a person with interests and the kind of personality that will make you an asset to a campus community and an alumni community. Diversity is a legitimate part of that, but not the only part. I believe that consciously or not, college officials have the question in the back of their minds—Is this the kind of person I’m going to be proud to call an alum?
If you start from the premise that all of your competitors have resumes every bit as impressive as yours, you will realize why trying to be the most impressive is a losing game. Being likable and interesting, however, is open to everyone. What are you excited about? Why do you love it? What is going to propel you through college with focus and determination?
The thing I believe colleges most want to hear in your essay is your capacity for reflection and growth. Rather than spending your essay desperately attempting to show what an amazing person you already are, use that space to convey your capacity to learn from mistakes or be open to change. Because isn’t learning and growing why you’re going to college?
Read the prompts. I’ve said it again and again—they are looking for growth. So find your growth. And if you can’t find it … why don’t you set up a 15-minute consultation so we can talk about how to get that essay started with less stress and more success?
(Photo by Christina @ wocintechchat.com on Unsplash)