1. College Essays Jen Motzer Associate Director of Admissions Lake Forest College

2. Why do colleges require essays?  We want to learn more about you  Demonstration of your writing ability  Provides YOUR voice to your application for admission

3. What do admission counselors want to see?  YOUR personality  Be concise  Strong opening paragraph to capture the reader’s attention  Tell us something we won’t learn from the rest of your application  Stay focused  Write something different than the “common essay”

4. What do admission counselors NOT want to see  No personality (or your parent’s personality!)  Fragments or run on thoughts/sentences  Grammar/Spelling Errors  There, they’re, their’s…two, too, to’s.. Etc.  The essay telling me how much they want to go to another college

5. Tips to Get Started  Start writing early  Your essay should have a thesis- what are you trying to communicate?  Make sure you’re answering the essay question  Have someone review your essay (teacher, parent, etc.)

6. Common App Prompts Some students have a background or story that is so central to their identity that they believe their application would be incomplete without it. If this sounds like you, then please share your story. Recount an incident or time when you experienced failure. How did it affect you, and what lessons did you learn? Reflect on a time when you challenged a belief or idea. What prompted you to act? Would you make the same decision again? Describe a place or environment where you are perfectly content. What do you do or experience there, and why is it meaningful to you? Discuss an accomplishment or event, formal or informal, that marked your transition from childhood to adulthood within your culture, community, or family.

7. Unique Supplement Essay Examples  What does #YOLO mean to you? (Tufts)  “Winston Churchill believed ‘a joke is a very serious thing.’ Tell us your favorite joke and try to explain the joke without ruining it.” (University of Chicago)  What matters to you, and why? (Stanford)  What makes you happy? (Tufts)  “Pick one woman in history or fiction to converse with for an hour and explain your choice. What would you talk about?” (Barnard)  What’s your favorite word and why? (University of Virginia)  What do you hope to find over the rainbow? (University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill)  “You’ve just reached your 1 millionth hit on your YouTube video. What is the video about?” (Lehigh)

8. How to know if you did it right  Is it in the student’s voice?  Does it progress as it unfolds?  Does it have a beginning, a middle and an end?  Did you answer the essay question?  Did we learn something new?  Has it been proofread?  Is the student excited about it?

9. Lake Forest’s Writing Evaluation of Applicants “The College believes that strong analytical writing skills are one of the cornerstones of a liberal arts education. Students submit an essay as part of the admissions application and this becomes the basis for not only admissions evaluation, but First-Year English placement for those who matriculate.”

10. Lake Forest College: Scale for evaluating essays Lake Forest admission counselors rate essays on a scale of 1-5 (5 being the highest) Rating 3 Demonstrates some signs of critical thinking Essay develops a point from beginning to end Proper paragraphing and use of topic sentences and transitional elements Shows some sophistication in vocabulary and sentence structure

11. Questions & Contact Information Jen Motzer Lake Forest College Associate Director of Admissions 303.838.0818 jmotzer@lakeforest.edu