College Admission Essays

College and Graduate School Admission Essays

Overview:

Offered  in-person or virtually, admissions essay coaching encompasses all aspects of the  personal statement and  supplemental essays including  brainstorming, suggesting a  structure, and editing drafts. We offer packages with varying hours for live coaching and remote editing. If you would like to learn more about our fee structure, please email admissionignition@gmail.com.


Process:

Admission Ignition prefers that students begin coaching before they have started writing. This clean slate allows students to participate in Admission Ignition’s  brainstorming process, which engages students in conversation about their interests, experiences, cultural background, academic curiosities, and values. From this conversation, essay coaches help the student develop a compelling personal narrative that focuses on their unique qualities and emphasizes what they would contribute to a university campus. Essay coaches will also help the student strategize  which content would be best for the main essay and supplemental essays, allowing admissions officers to view the student  holistically. Starting with a brainstorming session is highly recommended but not required. Admission Ignition will work with students at any part of the process and will provide edits to an existing draft if desired. See the personal statement review below for details! 


Strategy Sessions:

Strategy sessions are 60-minute Zoom group workshops  in the spring and summer that teach important strategies (including descriptive writing and cutting words) and introduce activities to help students tackle the personal statement and common supplemental essay topics (such as the activity, identity, and “Why Us?” essays). The purpose is to explain important techniques and review samples in a group setting so students can use their one-on-one sessions most effectively. After learning concepts in a group session, students can put them into practice for their next meeting rather than use meeting time to learn larger concepts.


Brainstorming: March 19

Writing Descriptively: April 2

Revising: May 21

Activity Essay: June 18

Identity Essay: July 9

Why Us Essay: July 30 

Remote Editing:


Coaching hours can be used for face-to-face meetings or for remote editing in Google Docs. This is a great fit for students who have drafts and need help refining them.  A review includes: line edits, comments, and suggestions.


Remote editing can be used for personal statement and supplemental reviews.

The sample to the right is a supplemental essay draft answering a prompt about a meaningful activity.

Essay Master List:

In addition to essay coaching, Admission Ignition provides organizational tools to help students through the application process. One such tool is the Essay Master List, which organizes the student’s essay prompts, word limits, and deadlines. It helps students keep all of their information in one place and fully understand the scope of their work. Students can use color coding to emphasize when the same essay can be used for multiple schools. Below are examples of supplemental essay prompts.

  • Vanderbilt

    Vanderbilt University’s motto, Crescere aude, is Latin for “dare to grow.” In your response, reflect on how one or more aspects of your identity, culture, or background has played a role in your personal growth, and how it will contribute to our campus community as you dare to grow at Vanderbilt.

  • Boston College

    Words: 400


    All applicants, except those applying for the Human-Centered Engineering (HCE) major, should respond to one of prompts #1-4 listed below. Students applying to the HCE major must respond to prompt #5 only.


    1. Each year at University Convocation, our incoming class engages in reflective dialogue with the author of a common text. What book by a living author would you recommend for your incoming class to read, and why would this be an important shared text?


    2. At Boston College, we draw upon the Jesuit tradition of finding worthwhile conversation partners. Some support our viewpoints while others challenge them. Who fulfills this role in your life? Please cite a specific conversation you had where this conversation partner challenged your perspective or you challenged theirs.


    3. In her November 2019 Ted Talk, “The Danger of a Single Story,” Chimamanda Ngozi Adichi warned viewers against assigning people a “single story” through assumptions about their nationality, appearance, or background. Discuss a time when someone defined you by a single story. What challenges did this present and how did you overcome them?


    4. Boston College’s founding in 1863 was in response to society’s call. That call came from an immigrant community in Boston seeking a Jesuit education to foster social mobility. Still today, the University empowers its students to use their education to address society’s greatest needs. Which of today’s local or global issues is of particular concern to you and how might you use your Boston College education to address it?


    5. Human-Centered Engineering (HCE) Applicants only: One goal of a Jesuit education is to prepare students to serve the Common Good. Human-Centered Engineering at Boston College integrates technical knowledge, creativity, and a humanistic perspective to address societal challenges and opportunities. What societal problems are important to you and how will you use your HCE education to solve them?

  • University of Georgia

    The transition from middle to high school is a key time for students as they reach new levels of both academic and personal discovery. Please share a book (novel, non-fiction, etc.) that had a serious impact on you during this time. Please focus more on why this book made an impact on you and less on the plot/theme of the book itself (we are not looking for a book report). (350 words)

  • University of Michigan

    Everyone belongs to many different communities and/or groups defined by (among other things) shared geography, religion, ethnicity, income, cuisine, interest, race, ideology, or intellectual heritage. Choose one of the communities to which you belong, and describe that community and your place within it.  (300 words)


    Describe the unique qualities that attract you to the specific undergraduate College or School (including preferred admission and dual degree programs) to which you are applying at the University of Michigan. How would that curriculum support your interests? (550 words) 

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