There exists a great evil that we all must experience in our high school careers. The potential power of said evil is limitless; even the smartest of the APEXers may not escape its wrath. Freshmen are blissfully ignorant, sophomores can sense it, juniors dread it and seniors despise it.
The college application process consists of several parts. The first step is preparing a list of colleges that are of interest to you, seeing which ones fit your strengths and weaknesses, your likes and dislikes and your must-have and must-avoid requirements. Putting in requests for your transcript to be sent to colleges, filling out the frighteningly official forms and asking for teacher recommendations are all steps that come later.
The juicy part of your application, though, is the essay. This raises a question: those of us who have started or completed the application process know writing the essays can be stressful, even painful, but does that mean it’s a bad thing that colleges ask for an essay or two?
According to College Board, more than 1,500,000 students took the SAT in 2009, and it’s likely that number has only increased as the 2010 testing year comes to an end. Every student in the United States has a GPA and chances are that many, many students have the exact SAT score and GPA as you. Based on these factors, you are not what sheltering adults – including some teachers and parents – have been telling you. You are not “unique.” You are a name on a list next to two numbers, underneath a name on a list next to the same two numbers. Underneath that is another name, and the same two numbers. Underneath that…need I continue?
You need something to make you unique.
Essays provide a chance to prove that you are, in fact, very different from the names above and below you on that list; you are precisely what the college you are applying to needs. The college admissions counselor has checked your GPA and SAT score and has decided that they are close enough to the college’s standards that your application has not been disregarded entirely. Whether it is a personal anecdote or just fantastic prose relating to the prompt you’ve elected to represent you, the essay gives the admissions officer reading it a glimpse into your personality. The tone of your essay, the diction that is used and even the prompt you choose all tell a bit about who you are. The more of your personality and characteristics you can bring to your writing, the better. Make the admissions officer, after reading your essay, pause for a moment and consider what that essay they’ve read says about you, and how much they want you for their college. A well-written essay can make that reader cry, jump for joy or even contemplate the meaning of their life. It doesn’t really matter what you do, as long as it’s done well.
Would I say that the essay-writing portion of the college application process is fun? No. Would I say that the essay-writing portion of the college application process is easy? No.
However, would I say that the essay-writing portion of the college application process is important in differentiating you from the rest of the pack, and allowing the admissions counselors involved to discover at least part of who you are?
Absolutely.
