Navigating the College Essay Process

Do you have a rising high school senior for whom college applications are looming?

This year’s incoming seniors began high school in the shadow of COVID, so they may not have had many of the service project opportunities their predecessors did. Even if the pandemic shutdown didn’t impact their academic progress, they may feel they lack the experiences that make for good college admissions essays.

The good news is college admissions counselors are looking for admissions essays and statements that express a student’s uniqueness, not just another story about a mission trip or serving at a soup kitchen. The bad news is many students have difficulty seeing the uniqueness of their own life, which to them may feel mundane.

They need time to sit and reflect, to remember significant events in their life, and to consider the shaping impact those events have had on their lives.

Right now is a great time to have your teens do some personal journaling and narrative writing to help generate ideas for that common app (or other entrance) essay.

If your student is open to it, take time this month to look at the 7 Common App prompts together (available on their website). You could spend time recounting pivotal events you both remember. Reliving meaningful memories and brainstorming takeaways could give your teen a few story ideas to journal about.

Students who spend even a little time NOW considering how they’ve been shaped by life events and how that shaping makes them an outstanding candidate for the college of their dreams will have options to work from this fall as they begin to write those essays.

One of the best websites I’ve found for brainstorming, writing, and navigating the college essay process is The College Essay Guy’s website. You and your senior can check it out together.