Oh, the pressure of writing the college essay – how heavy and unrelenting it can be! 

When a student is compiling their application package to submit to their dream schools, they can no longer change certain aspects of that package. For example, the grades they have earned over the previous three years are set; the recommendations that their guidance counselor and teachers have written are uploaded; their class rank probably won’t budge. However, at this point, a student can still wield power over their college essay. 

According to a recent report by the National Association for College Admission Counseling, most colleges and universities consider the personal statement and supplemental writing samples as “moderately important” factors in their admission decisions. (A student’s grades in college-preparatory courses, their standardized test scores, their GPA, and the robust and challenging quality of their high school curriculum are the top criteria.) But the college essay is the primary venue through which a student can share their heart and spirit and world view; their passion for a particular interest; their vulnerability; their acknowledgment of uncomfortable but life-changing growth; their comical, wry, lyrical, or questioning voice; and their dexterity in crafting precise, grammatically-sound, and emotionally-rich prose. A strong essay might very well tip the scale in an applicant’s favor if an admission committee is vacillating between them and three other students with similar academic profiles. 

This prospect can seem daunting! But if a student considers the college essay, and the experience of composing it, as having multiple purposes and exponential value, they might lift a bit of the burden from their own shoulders.

For what other reasons might a student hold sacred the process of writing the college essay?

-The college essay is a permanent (thanks to Google Docs) testament to the individual a student is at this point in their life. (I wish I knew where even one paper copy of my college essay might be. What did I even write about?!)

-A compact story that a student has crafted, beginning to end – there’s something satisfying about this accomplishment.

-An opportunity to challenge a lot of the standards a student has been programmed to follow by writing academic papers.

-An exercise in concision and precision. How much can a student say without overwriting, overstating, and repeating themselves?

-A process of discovery. Writing the personal narrative can lead to pursuing pathways of thought and reflection that a student might not otherwise...they might unveil their most authentic feelings about a trauma they endured, or realize the extent of someone's positive influence in their upbringing.

The college essay is not simply an obligation; it's an opportunity for a student to celebrate themselves and capture a stage of their legacy.