A student from last summer sent me this:

You really got me to stick with it, and I believe you’ve helped me write a wonderful essay.
It wasn’t easy, but I think I’m going to miss meeting with you.

 

-> If we have already worked with you (e.g, test prep), use coupon code existing (on next page) to save $200, so net is $900<-

Stand out!!  Reveal your inner marvelousness!!

For all students, writing the college application essay is an exciting opportunity to stand out. For (a) students applying to very competitive schools – every applicant has good grades, test scores, experience, etc. – and (b) students with credentials that are marginal for the school(s) they are applying to, standing out with a great essay may be especially valuable.  It is really true: the essay can be the thing that gets such students in. One admissions officer said that a great essay can “cure the sick.”

A well-constructed but generic and bland my-year-as-class-treasurer kind of essay almost surely will not cure anything at all.

No, the thing to do is to be bold enough and skilled enough to write a very personal essay that expresses the unique wonderfulness of the student. The essay should be one that only he or she could have written. We’d like it to interest the admissions people and stick in their heads.

I am offering to help your junior write such an essay over the summer before his or her senior year.  Note: to be realistic, I’ll acknowledge that sometimes we go beyond the end of the summer). First, we’ll brainstorm to explore possible topics. We’ll select two or three topics and brainstorm this set more extensively. We’ll settle on one topic and devise a structure for the essay. This first phase – deciding what to write about and how to put it together in an engaging way – is the most critical and the most difficult. Your student will produce a draft. We will work extensively to refine the draft, leading to the final draft. After final clean-up, your student will have a very high-quality piece in his or her own voice that reveals a bit of your child’s essential excellence.

 

A few details:

  • Length: We’ll work to the 650-word limit of the Common App. unless your student has a different requirement.
  • Supplemental essays are not included, but I will be happy to help with those, too, as an extra assignment. Your student may not know during the summer what supplemental essays he or she will need; we can take that up in the fall (but please do not wait until the last minute!).
  • Writing is hard. Writing this kind of piece is harder still. This essay process won’t work if your student doesn’t do the work. I will expect your student to complete tasks as agreed to. I am “nice” and “reasonable” but not infinitely patient. If I do not get adequate cooperation, I’ll end the relationship and refund the unused part of the fee, less an early termination charge of $50. So far, this has never happened.
  • I believe in this process and work seriously at it (I also enjoy it). But what I am proposing is not for every family. Not all parents are comfortable giving students as much leeway as I think is needed to get the right result. If you sense this could be you, or you’d just like to better understand the approach, let’s talk before you sign up.

– Nick

-> If we have already worked with you (e.g, test prep), use coupon code existing (on next page) to save $200, so net is $900 <-