What Are College Essays About

But let’s just say you have lost a close family member.

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If your idea falls into any of these categories, you might want to reconsider (or frame it as suggested under our BETTER ANGLE alternatives).

And while we totally think the emphasis on unique essays is wayyyy overhyped, you definitely don’t want to blend into the crowd either.

It might also leave them worrying about you, feeling guilty, and wondering if college is a positive environment for you to be in.

And in the case that the person who reads your essay is a mandatory reporter, your first interaction with the college you hope to attend might be a referral to a counselor.

I can’t wait to sit at my desk for 80 hours a week even though you’re only paying me for 40.”) But college admissions counselors aren’t buying it. The WORST Candidate I understand your humble approach but I think it backfires here.

If your essay starts with “I’m just your average American teenager with mediocre grades, a few close friends, and a dog named Sue” and then you go on to describe all the reasons they should accept you, you’re creating a lot of confusion.The Over-Sharer Here’s my rule of thumb: if it’s something that could potentially come up in a therapy session, then it has no place in your college essay.This includes experiences with suicide, sexual abuse, eating disorders, and addiction.In each of these essays, students were able to share stories from their everyday lives to reveal something about their character, values, and life that aligned with the culture and values at Hopkins.","_modules_admissions_0_content_0_body":"field_590787fdbf314","modules_admissions_0_content":["body"],"_modules_admissions_0_content":"field_58da6dc5ec530","modules_admissions_0_button_type":"none","_modules_admissions_0_button_type":"field_58e79c0c1e382","modules_admissions_0_image":"2238","_modules_admissions_0_image":"field_58da6df4ec533","modules_admissions_0_image_position":"left","_modules_admissions_0_image_position":"field_58da6e06ec534","modules_admissions_0_image_glow_color":"none","_modules_admissions_0_image_glow_color":"field_58da6e17ec535","modules_admissions_0_vector":"overlapping-circles","_modules_admissions_0_vector":"field_58eba78a55869","modules_admissions_0_submodules":"","_modules_admissions_0_submodules":"field_58f5331e65bcd","modules_admissions_0_button_label":"Get essay writing tips from the Hopkins Insider","_modules_admissions_0_button_label":"field_58da6ddfec531","modules_admissions_0_button_link":"https://blogs.hopkins-interactive.com/blog/2015/09/advice-on-writing-your-application-essay/","_modules_admissions_0_button_link":"field_58da6deaec532","_yoast_wpseo_focuskw_text_input":"essays that worked","_yoast_wpseo_focuskw":"essays that worked","_yoast_wpseo_title":"Essays That Worked | Undergraduate Admissions | Johns Hopkins","_yoast_wpseo_metadesc":"Read selected examples of essays that worked, as nominated by our admissions committee.The essays can be the most important components of your application.","_yoast_wpseo_linkdex":"53","modules_admissions_1_stats_0_type":"text","_modules_admissions_1_stats_0_type":"field_58d828561035a","modules_admissions_1_stats_0_text":"Join","_modules_admissions_1_stats_0_text":"field_58d8287d1035b","modules_admissions_1_stats_0_body":"our mailing list to get updates from Johns Hopkins","_modules_admissions_1_stats_0_body":"field_58d8289b1035d","modules_admissions_1_stats_1_type":"text","_modules_admissions_1_stats_1_type":"field_58d828561035a","modules_admissions_1_stats_1_text":"Read","_modules_admissions_1_stats_1_text":"field_58d8287d1035b","modules_admissions_1_stats_1_body":"more inspiration from current students at Hopkins Insider","_modules_admissions_1_stats_1_body":"field_58d8289b1035d","modules_admissions_1_stats_2_type":"text","_modules_admissions_1_stats_2_type":"field_58d828561035a","modules_admissions_1_stats_2_text":"See","_modules_admissions_1_stats_2_text":"field_58d8287d1035b","modules_admissions_1_stats_2_body":"campus in person at an upcoming event","_modules_admissions_1_stats_2_body":"field_58d8289b1035d","modules_admissions_1_stats":"3","_modules_admissions_1_stats":"field_58d8284b10359","modules_admissions_4_tag_text":["",""],"_modules_admissions_4_tag_text":"field_58dd955014803","modules_admissions_4_heading":"","_modules_admissions_4_heading":"field_58dd955614804","modules_admissions_4_lead":["Admissions Committee Comments","Admissions Committee Comments"],"_modules_admissions_4_lead":"field_58dd955e14805","modules_admissions_4_content_0_body":["Jerry’s essay helped the admissions committee understand his background and how he persevered and grew through debate.Although we had already learned about Jerry’s enthusiasm for debate in other parts of his application, this essay gave so much more depth into why this activity is meaningful for him.Given what he shared in his essay, we can imagine Jerry being an active participant both in and out of the classroom.","Jerry’s essay helped the admissions committee understand his background and how he persevered and grew through debate.This is where I think that the desire to be unique can take a dark turn.While writing about these things can be incredibly beneficial in the healing process, I strongly discourage writing about them in the college admissions process.Okay, well here’s what you should avoid: You might feel inclined to share that death is shitty but I promise you everyone knows that already.I’m not trying to be insensitive about this topic, I’m just trying to get across that no one wants to read a depressing story that reminds them of a death in their own family, nor does anyone want to read an esoteric, philosophical analysis of the meaning of life and death.