Yale’s College Application Essay Video Advice is for All Students
September 13, 2011. If you are applying to college, take five minutes and watch the video below, even though you may not be applying to Yale. Marcia Landesman, a Yale Admissions Officer, eloquently describes what Yale is looking for in an essay. She says to make your essay specific, use an anecdote, have a point, write in your own voice. This advice also describes what other colleges are looking for in a college application essay. However…
Essay Coaching presentations have mentioned all of these points in school talks and workshops since 2005. What we have found is that although all of these points are helpful, they may not change your writing behavior. That is because knowing what you should do and knowing how to do it is two different things.
The solution? Write a rough draft and then ask for feedback. Ask the reader: What have you learned about me from reading this essay? Is my point clear? Is there anything that confused you? What parts did you find most interesting? Then edit accordingly. You’ll notice the difference. Visit essaycoaching.com or write to debbie@essaycoaching.com for more information about how you can improve your college application essays.
After watching this video, I think all my essays are on the right track. However, I want to write a “risky” one for my reach school, and I hope that if there is a sample of doing so that will be really helpful, even though most risky essays are original and hard to imitate.
Thanks.