If you’re reading this blog then you’re most likely a rising senior (or parent of a rising senior) and you are in the process of deciding which prompt to choose.
The Common Application Essay is the most important essay that you will write as a high school student. With a word limit of 650 words this means that every word, phrase and punctuation point will count, in addition to the tone and flow of your essay.
The 2018-2019 Common Application Essay Prompts are as follows:
- Some students have a background, identity, interest, or talent that is so meaningful they believe their application would be incomplete without it. If this sounds like you, then please share your story.
- The lessons we take from obstacles we encounter can be fundamental to later success. Recount a time when you faced a challenge, setback, or failure. How did it affect you, and what did you learn from the experience?
- Reflect on a time when you questioned or challenged a belief or idea. What prompted your thinking? What was the outcome?
- Describe a problem you’ve solved or a problem you’d like to solve. It can be an intellectual challenge, a research query, an ethical dilemma – anything that is of personal importance, no matter the scale. Explain its significance to you and what steps you took or could be taken to identify a solution.
- Discuss an accomplishment, event, or realization that sparked a period of personal growth and a new understanding of yourself or others.
- Describe a topic, idea, or concept you find so engaging that it makes you lose all track of time. Why does it captivate you? What or who do you turn to when you want to learn more?
- Share an essay on any topic of your choice. It can be one you’ve already written, one that responds to a different prompt, or one of your own design.
We spend hours brainstorming and deciding which prompt will best apply to our clients to help them stand out. We assist our clients in organizing their thoughts. Then, after our clients submit a draft, we discuss the draft and then spend hours, with up to 10 revisions, for a final version. Yes, it takes that long for a masterpiece to be created and enhanced!
Most admissions officers tell me that an applicant’s personal statement is absolutely their favorite part of the application and that it’s really a chance for them to get to know who applicants are as well as a major opportunity for students to speak up about themselves. Essentially, their view is that the rest of the application is about other people talking about the applicant, rather the applicant’s in-depth view of him or herself.
Admissions officers want a well-written essay in your own voice that emphasizes insight into your unique character and personality that is thoughtful and reflective. Essays written by our clients lets the admissions committee get to know them well as a person and demonstrates how you think and why you think and what really matters to you.
Blog: College Admissions is a Competitive Sport – How to Win Your Personal Admissions Game!
“Admissions is a competitive sport! Why gamble with uncertainty?” – Dr. Paul Lowe
Dr. Paul Reginald Lowe, founder and managing director of Pinnacle Educational Center Admissions Advisors Group, provides comprehensive counseling advice, exclusively for admissions to top private schools; Ivy League and highly-selective colleges/universities; BS/MD programs; graduate and medical schools and top visual and performing arts programs. The admissions affiliate: Ivy League Admissions Advisors specializes in admissions to Ivy League and highly selective colleges, Dr. Lowe also specializes in helping students who have been wait-listed, deferred or rejected gain admission into their top-choice schools: College Application Rejected. and student who wish to transfer to another college: College Transfer Admissions Advisors. Summer Camps: BS/MD Application Boot Camp and Ivy League Application Boot Camp.
Dr. Paul Lowe - Admissions Expert 