College essays that made a difference - Princeton Review 2010
The essay’s influence
Q & A with admissions officers
Can an essay move an application from the “maybe” pile to the “probably” pile? From the “maybe” pile to the “long-shot” pile?
Bucknell: It is rare that an essay will have such an impact that it affects the application decision. However, all application essays are reviewed for both content as well as grammar. A poorly written essay can adversely affect an applicant’s candidacy. However, if a student does not meet the quantitative qualifications, then the essay cannot positively affect [his or her] admission decision. There are also instances where a truly outstanding essay may push a student over the top in the final decision process.
Deep Springs: Yes, essays are essential, and the discussion of essays during committee routinely changes an applicant’s standing.
Olin: If an essay is poorly written, does not address the assigned topic, or includes inappropriate content, it is unlikely the applicant will be considered for admission. Taking risks to set yourself apart from the rest of the applicant pool is fine as long as the essay is not irrelevant or erroneous. By taking applicable and calculated risks the student demonstrates their maturity and the confidence to be themselves.
UVA: A[n] essay can have significant impact on the decision.
Wake Forest: [An] essay can tip the scales in an admission or a denial. It is a very important factor in our process.
If you have an applicant with lower numbers but a great essay, what do you do?
Bucknell: If a student is not competitive in the admissions process based on the quantitative factors, a great essay [will] not affect [our] decision enough to lead to an offer of admission.
Cooper Union: If the student is in the ballpark—either talent-wise or academically speaking, then the essay can make a difference. Otherwise, an essay cannot makeup for a deficiency in an area necessary for academic survival. If an engineering student fails math throughout high school, there is no essay that can change that fact and prepare the kid for an engineering education.
Deep Springs: It is very rare for an applicant to have outstanding essays but disastrous test scores, so I can’t speak to that aspect of the question. As to a low GPA, we would take it into account when deciding whether an applicant would take advantage of the intellectual atmosphere at Deep Springs. Good essays can help us with this decision by reflecting on the applicant’s poor academic performance and addressing how it would affect his potential time here.
Macalester: We read the rest of the application and make a decision based on everything, not on individual parts.
Northwestern: We’d have to look at everything. Grades are most important. It’s rare that a good essay would overcome bad grades.
Olin: We look for students who are able to meet a high academic standard and can provide solid teacher and counselor recommendations as well as finely written essays. If the teacher or counselor recommendation includes reasoning for poor academic performance during a particular year or semester (i.e., student illness, family problem, etc.), then a few poor grades can be “excused.” However, a few poor grades must be accompanied by high test scores, a “rebound” in academic performance, and excellent recommendations and essays. We are looking to admit students who can succeed academically in a rigorous engineering program so excellent grades in math and science are a must.
UNC: An essay alone cannot make or break an admissions decision. The quality of the essay is always considered in combination with other information about the applicant.
UVA: A great essay in and of itself will not get a student in. Typically, great essays are accompanied by other evidence of success such as recommendations from English teachers.
The reality of selective admission is that most students who are offered admission are strong in most categories.
Wake Forest: If a student is unqualified academically, a great essay will not make the difference, but it certainly helps differentiate among similarly qualified students. Essays may also reveal diversity of thought, experience, or talents that are desirable in the class and may not show up elsewhere in the application.
If an essay is unimpressive but the student’s grades are great, what then? Is it possible for an essay to change your mind about a candidate?
Bucknell: A strong candidate based on the quantitative factors who submits an unimpressive essay will likely still be admitted, assuming the essay was unimpressive due to content. If the essay is poorly written with some clear grammatical errors, it may cause enough concern to keep a student from being admitted.
Cooper Union: We will certainly deny admission to an applicant who has stellar grades and scores yet didn’t bother to work on his or her essays.
Deep Springs: The quality of the essays most certainly outweighs test scores and GPA. It could be said that the essays initially determine what we think and SAT and test scores serve only to refine or change that initial determination.
Macalester: Then the student may not be admitted.
UVA: Yes, but there are certainly gradations of unimpressive essays. It is a holistic evaluation and not a formula.
Wake Forest: Poorly written essays submitted by academically sound students suggest a lack of interest in the University which may result in a denial of admission.
Yale: There’s nothing so stellar about academic credentials that’ll convince us to take [a student] without looking at the rest [of his or her application]. The transcript is certainly the single most important document. And the recommendations are very important.
You know, we admit students who write flat essays and we reject students who write great essays. At a place like Yale, there just aren’t that many kids who are so powerful that we have to take them. At many other institutions, you might not have the privilege of turning down a really strong student based on the tone of an essay. Here, we can do it.
Are there essays that make you unable to turn down applicants? What are such essays like?
Amherst: [They are] real, intellectually. One particular student had the combination of a great essay and a reading list, which overcame a good but not great record; in this case the essay might outweigh other factors—these are the [top] 10 percent.
Bucknell: There are essays that are very compelling, often written about a personal hardship or family tragedy that really draws the reader into the story. Yet if the academic record suggests that the student will be unable to do the work here, that must drive the final decision.
Cooper Union: No.
Deep Springs: A single essay isn’t capable of clinching acceptance. An attitude/capacity that seems to sustain itself through all of the required essays is necessary.
Johns Hopkins: There are essays that are compelling, that make the difference. So students should know that essays should be taken seriously. If a student puts effort into the essays, they should help his or her chances.
The remarkable thing about essays is that there’s no ceiling on quality, unlike SAT scores or GPAs. A great essay can carry a student. A poorly done essay might do the opposite. It can certainly determine the initial path an application takes through the process.
Macalester: No.
Olin: By itself an essay will never make or break our admission decision, but a good essay can add increased validity to an “on the fence” candidate.
UNC: An essay alone cannot make or break an admissions decision. The quality of the essay is always considered in combination with other information about the applicant.
UVA: The one-in-a-thousand essay does exist but there is no formula for what it must be like. Usually, it is so jaw-droppingly original and smart that we just can’t say no.
Wake Forest: The essay alone cannot guarantee admission, but it if it reveals a depth—a strength of character, or if it demonstrates a strong academic focus or diverse perspective that we seek in the class, [it] may indeed tip the scales.