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Essays, What Works – Inside the Yale Admissions Office

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AOs love to read and learn from the essays of such a creative, diverse, intelligent group of students. These essays are essentially the opening scene of a movie or the first page of a book ~ it sets the table for what to expect.

General Knowledge

  • No specific topic that is prevalent
  • Essays should be reflective, and allow AOs to get to know the students
    • Not graded like in English class
    • Essays are not even primarily a way to judge writing ability
      • You should be thoughtful and sophisticated but thats not the point
  • The essay is an opportunity, not a hurdle
    • It is a window to express yourself to AOs
  • If you accurately convey who you are, it will fit with the rest of your application anyway
  • Even the most ordinary topic can be enticing if it is authentically you
  • The essay is often not the most important part of the file
    • They don’t take away from candidacy, but they do contribute to it
    • Essays can also become the centrepiece of the application if they are really good
  • Essay is not make-or-break, GPA is not make-or-break
    • There are great people who are not great readers

Main Insights

  • Show, don’t tell
    • It should not be a recounting of the fact
    • Vivid language; creates a sense of place; shows how you are reflecting on things
  • Be reflective
    • Essay should be about you
    • The goal is so for AOs to be able to see who you are
      • Essays are simply a means to an end to achieve this
    • Let your voice come through
      • AOs should be able to read the essay and then kinda know what it would be like to have a real conversation with you
      • If it is worked over and edited and edited, you might lose the voice
        • While you need it to be reviewed, make sure no one is rewriting
      • It should sound like you
        • Funny or liked? That should be your voice in the essay
        • Serious or solemn? That should be your voice in the essay
    • β€œIf we get to the end of an essay, and we know what it means for you, thats when your voice has come through”
  • Keep it simple
    • Its maximum of 650 words
      • not a place to show off a big vocabulary
      • not a place to write big sentences with semicolons and commas and everything
    • Your voice is hopefully
      • Sophisticated and thoughtful
      • But also natural and approachable
    • Someone who has never met you before should be able to read it and get a sense of who you are
  • Unsuccessful essays are ones that sound like they weren’t authentically written, or they dont match the application
    • Trust yourself and understand that you are the best person for the job

Often Successful Tropes

  • When a student writes about changing their mind about something, and now see things differently
    • Not just because they grew up and became mature
    • But more when they are generous towards their previous position
      • It shouldn’t be β€œoh I was ignorant and I was a fool, and now I am enlightened and I see it this way”
      • it should be more like β€œthings kinda made sense to me this way, and then this happened, and now I see it this way”
  • Reflecting on a relationship
    • Make sure you don’t write about others but write about you
      • Don’t forget to reflect, and bring back why it is important to you
      • Bring it back to you, and how specifically how that relationship has affected you
    • Relationship essays are valuable, they go in two directions:
      • You and the person
      • How you interact with the person
    • College is residential, you make relationships with other people
  • Passion
    • How a passion animates you and gets you excited
    • Allows AOs to see how a student is excited about a certain topic
    • Make sure you reflect on what it is that makes you excited, and show that excitement
  • Conveying a great sense of place
    • How a place or where someone comes from has influenced/affected them
      • β€œThink about a place that is important to you, and why”
    • Reflect on how you have grown up, where you come from, etc
  • Talks about an experience that humbled them and made them feel vulnerable
    • Instead of β€œI experienced failure, and then I turned it around and became widely successful”
      • But rather, being able to sit in the experience of being wrong about something, or hurting someones feelings, having real regret about something
      • Doesn’t have to be a miserable picture, or be wallowing in self-pity
    • To err is human
      • We all have experiences where we are not at our best
    • Showing vulnerability and highlighting an experience where you weren’t at your best can show a new dimension of your humanity
    • Its people who read and discuss your applications
      • You can strike chords and be relatable
  • When you have mentors and friends read you essay,
    • instead of asking β€œis this good”, ask β€œdoes this sound like me?”

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