What is the purpose of the college essay?
Colleges would like to know their applicants beyond grades, test scores, and extracurricular activities. They would like to see the applicant’s personality and character, and hence ask for personal essays. The application essay must tell a story about the student that shows the student will be a valuable and interesting addition to the college.
You can apply via the institution’s own application system (such as the University of California system), directly to the institution (e.g. MIT, or Georgetown), or through the Common Application portal (which serves over 1000 institutions). All these methods require the student to submit personal essays. The essays usually range from 200-650 words.
The essays are hugely important, as they enable the student stand out in the applicant pool for that college. The pool for each college will consist of students with similar GPAs and SAT/ACT scores. Furthermore, most will have noteworthy but similar achievements in sports, music, and extra-curricular activities. One of the best ways to distinguish yourself from your competition is the essay component.
The more selective the institution, the greater the importance of the essay. Here is Stanford’s ranking (by importance) of the factors used to evaluate a candidate. Note where the essays are ranked—and also note where activities like volunteer work and work experience are ranked!
STANFORD (2022-2023)
Source: Common Data Set for each university
Please note that unless you are a recruited athlete, or have acquired national-level fame in a non-academic field, the most important part of your application for any selective college is ALWAYS your academic record. Essays do not “compensate” for grades/scores that fall below the school’s requirements.
What does a college essay coach do? Should I get a college essay coach?
“The more exclusive the college, the more weight the essay is given.” In today’s ultra-competitive admissions scenario, excellent grades and (near) perfect SAT/ACT scores are necessary but not sufficient conditions for admission to the top tier of universities. Memorable essays will distinguish the student from equally high-performing peers.
Letters of recommendation and standardized test scores are not entirely in your control, but you can tailor the essay to portray you in the most appealing light. A compelling essay is one that will keep the admissions officer reading till the end, and convince the admissions committee that the applicant would be a strong addition to the institution. A good essay coach will work with the student to identify their unique story and give them the tools to articulate it in the most authentic and compelling manner.
Honestly: a great essay will not let you magically leapfrog over more qualified applicants. But, if your application lies a large pool of similarly-qualified applicants, a strong essay will significantly improve your chances of standing out from others with very similar profiles.
Good writing appears deceptively effortless, but it's not easy. The Common App personal essay in particular requires a level of self-reflection and audience awareness that can be incredibly challenging, especially to a high school student unused to this sort of writing.
Most selective universities will ask for 2-4 supplemental essays each, in addition to the main essay. A student applying to 10 competitive institutions will be writing at least 30 essays for the admissions cycle.
Why work with Niranjana?
My students have been admitted to the most competitive and selective institutions, including the Ivies, MIT, Caltech, Stanford, The University of Chicago and more. My results are proven, and verifiable! Do check out my testimonials on this website and my recommendations on LinkedIn.
I’m all about writing to maximize success. I’m a successful editor as well as a widely-published writer whose work appears in national magazines and newspapers across North America, and has found a home in Readings For Today, an essay anthology used as a college text. I have been in the business of critically evaluating prose for two decades now. I place as much emphasis on crafting a well-written story as on rigorously assessing the appeal of the essay to the admissions committee.
Every one of my clients comes to me via referrals by satisfied students and parents. I do not advertise my services anywhere, and I’m not on Yelp or any other platform. I work with a very limited number of students and enable them to write their best essays for their dream schools. I give each student intensive personal attention, and work one-on-one with all my students. I do not outsource any of my work to interns or associates.
When should I start working on my college admissions essays?
Early, but not too early! Good writing needs time to marinate, but it also needs to sound fresh and urgent. There is no "best" timing, as the process is driven by the needs and personality of the particular student, but in general: students should begin thinking about ideas and topics at least during the summer break before senior year (Grade 12). You will have a lot to do in the fall of senior year, so try and finish the Common App main essay before school starts.
Do I need college counseling services?
Most counselors focus on the following services: helping the students chose their major and the universities they’d like to apply to, financial aid advice, essay guidance, and filling out the application. In senior year, the majority of the application work is essay writing.
I do not offer general admission counseling services. Many of my students work with other counselors and come to me for the essay component as they need expert essay help—many counselors aren’t trained writers. Some of my students prefer to do their own research, and choose to invest in an essay coach as they need specialized help in this particular area.
I do offer a lot of informal counseling. Essay writing does not happen in a vacuum—it reflects the student’s choices. Hence, I’m happy to answer college admission questions about non-essay matters with the aim of helping my students clarify their goals and approach for the essay.
Please see the services and rates section for further details about the services I provide and the costs for each.