Health & Fitness
College Application Essays- Avoid the Stress
It’s only July 10th and I have about a dozen or so clients who are FINISHED with their common application essays. Polished, perfected and put aside. August 1st the supplemental essays come out and we begin to tackle those…
Mistake: Not reading the school’s website.
WHY US? Within the supplemental essays, each college is going to ask why you want to attend that particular institution.
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If you are a guy, imagine this: You walk up to a girl and ask, “Will you go out with me?” She says, “Why me?” You respond, “I don’t know….you’re standing here.” (Obviously, not a good answer). Of course I put that out to the guys because if a girl did the same thing to a guy, the guy would say, “Sounds good to me.”
The Point is…you need to KNOW the school. Think of their website as an advertisement for their product. The site is designed to sell you on them by telling you all they have to offer.
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Penn Nursing’s motto, “Care to Change the World,” speaks to who I am. I want to be that nurse practitioner who impacts families, who betters society, and who makes a difference. I want to be that PNP who smiles, who makes children feel comfortable, and who heals.
And Penn’s School of Nursing will help me achieve that goal. Where else can you gain clinical exposure in the sophomore year with access to world-class hospitals, such as The Children’s Hospital of Pennsylvania? Where else do you have the opportunity to engage in real-world research, like at LIFE, and improve quality of elder care?
But practical experience is just one side of the double helix of education. The rigor of Penn’s academic curriculum also calls my name. The emphasis on leadership appeals to me.
The above example tells me NOTHING about the teen. I may hire her to work in the public relations department but she’s not becoming a student in the nursing department.I want to go to (Name of School Here): “I want to go to NYU because it is in New York City and I want that city experience.” There are more than FIFTY colleges in New York City so saying that you want to go to NYU because it’s in the city is as bad as saying, “I want to go out with you because you are standing here.” Why specifically NYU? What does NYU offer that all the other institutions don’t offer? What is it about NYU that will complement your aspirations? SPECIFICALLY.
Don’t cut and paste. Don’t plagiarize. Don’t regurgitate the website’s stats.
Be Specific to…
· Academics
· Extra-curricular activities
· Clubs and organizations
· Traditions
What does the school SPECIFICALLY offer that is SPECIFIC to YOUR needs.
Bottom Line: Why is this place specifically the best fit for you?
Check my website to see if I will be giving my presentation on the Top Five Mistakes Students Make on their College Application Essays at a libraries, PTA or an organization near you. I am limiting myself to only a few in the fall. Most of my presentations will be in the spring. I am also available to speak at YOUR organization. Did I mention it’s FREE?
Randy Levin is the ONLY college application essay adviser asked to speak annually at the National College Fair- Nassau Coliseum. The Guidance Dept and English Dept of Half Hollow Hills HS bring Randy into the classroom annually to speak directly to students
He has a MA in English and a MFA in Creative Writing. He is a published writer and former high school English teacher. For FREE information, go to his website: WriteToCollege.com
