by j9robinson | May 31, 2016
Learn How to Avoid Black-and-White Thinking to Add Depth to Your Essays It’s exciting to see that word is getting out to collegebound students, and those who support their admissions quests, that real-life stories power the most effective college...
by j9robinson | Feb 19, 2016
After working with thousands of students from all over the world on writing the dreaded college application essay for the last eight years, I’ve finally been able to boil down the process to three simple steps. Yes, just three steps. If you follow these...
by j9robinson | Jul 25, 2015
The Best (and Worst) College Application Essay Topics Are Not What You Think! When I first started working with students on how to write college applications essays about eight years ago now, I put together a list of Do’s and Don’ts about picking...
by j9robinson | Nov 18, 2014
This hilarious video is making the rounds on the Internet (my niece’s husband shared it with me on Facebook) just in time for many college application essay deadlines. It’s funny because the outrageous statements made by students are painfully true. A...
by j9robinson | Aug 21, 2014
The University of California CHANGED its prompts for transfer students this year (2106)! Read Strategies for the New University of California Transfer Essays for the updated information on the new prompts. CLICK HERE FOR UPDATED POST ON NEW UC TRANSFER ESSAYS!...
by j9robinson | Jun 9, 2014
Over the years, I’ve heard almost every imaginable complaint and concern about writing college application essays. Like most common fears, they are almost all in your head. That doesn’t mean they don’t feel real. But if you can realize that a...
by j9robinson | May 27, 2014
When my two kids were finishing their junior years of high school, they each received the assignment from their English teacher to write a college application essay. It sure sounded good—they could get a jump on these dreaded essays and receive professional...
by j9robinson | May 22, 2013
College Admissions Essays: The Common App. Prompt #1 My Favorite Out of the seven prompts you can chose from to write your application essay for The Common Application, I like the first one a lot. (UPDATE: As of 2017, you can now write about any topic you want. See...
by j9robinson | Oct 27, 2012
College Admissions Essays: Five Tips for the Perfect Topic Still looking for a college application essay topic that will set you apart from the pack? Here are my Top Five Tips on finding compelling and memorable topics: 1. Start with a defining...
by j9robinson | Sep 22, 2012
College Application Essays Five Places to Start After helping students discover their own unique topics over the last five or so years, I can spot a great topic the minute a student mentions one. And I suspect it’s no different for the college admissions people...
