FACT: By application time, your kiddo will need to have written and refined about 30 essays. BUT many of these will be versions of a baseline essay adapted for each specific question and school. If we can manage to finish a core stable of essays by the end of July, we’ll have no problem finishing all of it by September.

FACT: Good college essays are not like academic essays. In fact, college essays might be unlike any essays your kids have ever written. We'll make sure they're all technically correct, of course, but these essays need to be voice-driven and personal above all else.

FACT: We do NOT need to know where your kid is applying to work on their essays.

FACT: Colleges aren’t looking for competence; they’re looking for passion. A student who has spent years becoming an expert weaver and can articulate why weaving is a way to live authentically in the world is MUCH more attractive than a kid who spends all their time playing sports or getting straight As. What you consider your kid’s academically irrelevant quirk might be their ticket to the top of the admission pile.
Here are some things I know from experience as a writing advisor that I might not have known otherwise:

FACT: There are “off limits” essay topics, and some are a little surprising.

FACT: AI might help students organize their thoughts, but without a deeply realized voice, an AI--generated essay will hurt more than help.

FACT: Schools have big egos. Every school should feel like it’s a student’s Top Choice.

FACT: Visiting schools can help a lot with essay writing. Even an online tour or an interview will help. Colleges want to believe your kid is aiming straight toward them. 

FACT: Relatedly, I can help your kiddo formulate questions and make a plan before they tour a school.

FACT: A school’s diversity essay is not about proving you bring a unique background to the table -- it’s about conveying what diversity means to you and how it will affect your future. Since many of us are raising white children in a primarily white part of the country, it can be easy to see this as a question we’re not prepared to hit out of the park. That’s not the case.

FACT: Like anyone else, colleges want to hear your kid’s stories. Not just what you learned but what happened before any learning took place. They want to know that time you failed big time as well as what you took away from it. This is harder than it sounds.

FACT: No matter where your kiddo applies, they’ll very likely need at least 4-5 of the following, including the first three. These can be written *before* finalizing a college list. 

-- a personal statement

-- diversity essay

-- major essay

-- community essay

-- stand out essay

-- leadership essay

-- creativity essay 

-- special talent/skill essay

They’ll also need a Why This College essay, which has to wait until their college list is final.