Application Essays

gileyal · Posted: Sun Aug 17, 2008 7:03 am Post subject: Application Essays

Hi,

Thank you for this wonderful forum.

I'm curious. What do you think goes through the heads of members of the admissions committee when they read the essays?

Obviously, they read plenty of essays, maybe several a day. It has to become routine after a while. Is there any hope of really standing out with a compelling essay? One that would make the reader say to himself: "I have to meet this person"?

I guess I'm asking - is there any point in actually trying to make them like you, or should you just focus on answering the question and on listing as many impressive achievements as you can?

I know word count is crucial, but do you think I should waste some words on "color" and "mood"?

When I read a book I always measure it by how much I would have liked to meet the hero, or how much I would have liked to see a sequel. Is there any hope of duplicating that with the admissions committee or are they so tired of reading applications that they won't notice?

Thanks!
Gil

VP_MBA Expert · Posted: Mon Aug 18, 2008 7:43 am Post subject:

Your essays should not merely be a list of achievements. Most of the people who apply to top tier schools have impressive WE and achievements. The goal of your essays should be to make the adcom see you as an individual not just as another applicant.

The essays provide you with an opportunity to talk about specific experiences particularly those that are unique. Experiences can include community involvement, extracurricular, personal and/or work related experience. You do not have to write like you a creating a novel however you should come across as personable and interesting.