Is Your Privilege Showing?

  College Application Essays Humility Goes a Long Way   Many of the students I work with are from privileged backgrounds. (Hey, it’s expensive to hire a tutor!) They live in affluent communities, go on extravagant vacations and enjoy pricey hobbies and...

How Will They Dub You?

Everyone is looking for that magic topic for their college application essay that will help them jump out from the essay pile, and shout, “Yes, that’s me!” I’ve written a lot about how you can go about landing on that unique topic. Here’s...

Writing Advice from a Hip Dean

Insider Writing Tips From a School That Knows Creative Writing When I read this post by an admissions officer at Tufts University named Lee Coffin (who has been dubbed “Hip Dean”) on word limits for Common App essays, I discovered he also included some...
Colleges Want More Creative Essays. Wonder Why?

Colleges Want More Creative Essays. Wonder Why?

The Colorful New World of College Application Essay Prompts But What Does It Really Mean?   University of Chicago: “Tell us your favorite joke and try to explain the joke without ruining it.” Brandeis University: “If you could choose to be...

English Teachers Don’t Always Get It Write

At our local public high school in Laguna Beach, the English teachers assign juniors to write college application essays at the end of the year. It’s a great idea. For many students, this may be the only time they get any guidance on how to write these essays....

Grab Your Readers with An Anecdote

College Application Essays How to Write An Anecdote About Almost Anything   Before one of my college application essay writing workshops yesterday, I skimmed over some of the rough drafts the students had written last semester for their English classes. The...