FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions

Application Essays

  • When should a student start college essay coaching?

    Ideally, students will start in the spring of their junior year. We aim for all students to finish their personal statement for the Common Application and Coalition Application by June/July before their senior year so they can start the supplemental essays when they are released at the end of the summer. This way, students only have to work on remaining supplemental essays once their senior year begins, which reduces stress for both students and parents.

  • How many sessions will it take to complete all of the supplemental essays for college applications?

    Every student’s college process is different. The number of sessions depends on three factors: the student’s writing ability, comfort level with opening up about personal matters, and the college list. Since colleges often require their own supplemental essays, the student’s essay load is dependent on the number of colleges to which the student is applying and how many supplemental essays those colleges require. For this reason, a student applying to 10 schools may have to write 8 essays or 15 essays. If a student sends a college list in advance, an estimate of the number of hours can be provided.

  • Do you help students with applications for graduate school?

    Yes! Admission Ignition essay coaches have worked with students on applications for law school, medical school, and dental school as well as master’s degrees in social work, clinical psychology, mental health counseling, engineering, computer science, marketing, real estate, and physician assistant studies.

  • How will the essay coach ensure that the student’s essay sounds like their voice?

    College admissions officers are looking to read essays from a high school student– not a parent or professional. Therefore, keeping the integrity of the student’s voice is one of the top priorities of Admission Ignition’s essay coaching process. Therefore, Admission Ignition never discourages humor, wit, or quirkiness and has a strict policy of limited parental involvement, as parent editing tampers with the student’s voice. Please read this New York Times article for more information.

  • Are virtual sessions on Zoom less effective than in-person sessions?

    Not at all! Many students who live 20 minutes from the Admission Ignition office choose to have virtual sessions because of convenience. Students and essay coaches use Google Docs, so the essay coach and student can see what the other person is writing in real-time. Also, screen sharing is a great option when browsing a college’s website for Why Us essay research.

Writing and Organizational Skills

  • At what age should students start writing coaching?

    Admission Ignition offers writing coaching to students in 6th grade through college and focuses on the skills that students need to master at every grade level.

  • Does Admission Ignition offer writing skills coaching for adults?

    Absolutely! All sessions are customized to fit the student’s individual needs and the skills he/she wants to build. Learning to write professional emails is a common motivation for adults who seek writing coaching. Admission Ignition offers targeted assistance to graduate students and those in the workforce. Find out more about our professional writing coaching

  • Can strong students still benefit from writing coaching?

    Absolutely! Admission Ignition helps many outstanding students develop high-level writing skills that will help them succeed in college and life. Whether writing an email to a professor, boss, or friend, knowing how to organize and articulate one’s ideas is extremely important. Writing coaching not only helps students build skills but also confidence! With writing coaching, students will feel more secure approaching assignments in and out of the classroom.

  • What types of skills are emphasized in writing coaching?

    For middle school students, coaching focuses on writing strong body paragraphs and five-paragraph essays. For high school and college students, writing coaching focuses on equipping students with the skills necessary to write a well-developed research paper by utilizing scholarly sources to formulate a compelling thesis statement. This skill set will ease  their adjustment to college-level academics. General concepts enforced are organizing ideas, utilizing transitions, improving flow, using active voice, writing thesis statements, integrating quotes and outside sources, writing compelling introductory and concluding sentences and paragraphs, and citing properly in MLA and APA format.

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