Essay Lessons From a College Applicant Superstar

What You Can Learn From Michael Brown’s College Application Essay   I must have watched the viral video of Michael Brown learning he got into Stanford at least three times in a row. Such a feat and well-deserved accomplishment for what seems like an...

New Trick for Finding Killer College Application Essay Topics

Let Lynda Barry Help You Find and Tell Your Best Stories! Try One of Her Awesome Brainstorming Exercises If you’re starting to brainstorm that perfect topic to craft your dreaded college application essay, I have a new writing technique you might find helpful....

Support High School Students Who Call BS on Guns

Learn How You Can Stand Up for Your Rights Join the Parkland Students and Rally Your Own High School! For the last decade, I’ve worked with hundreds of high school students every year on the notorious college application essay. Once these teenagers start...

College Rejection: 3 Lessons

Don’t Despair over College Rejection Sometimes You Discover a Better Path   It’s the time of year when high school seniors are learning where they got accepted to colleges or universities. Yay! Good for you! Time to celebrate! Many are also opening...

10 Quickie Tips to Nail Your UC Essays

If you are just starting to write your four short UC essays (called Personal Insight Questions), here are ten simple tips that can help you crank them out. I’ve written longer posts on how to brainstorm and map out answers for each of these questions for the...

The Big Eclipse: A Lesson in College Application Topic Ideas

  Don’t Even Think About Writing About the Eclipse And What to Write About Instead   When I was invited to give one of my college application essay writing workshops to students at Colorado Academy in Denver, Colorado, I had no idea it would be on the day of...