Month: November 2016
College Applications: December Due Dates!
There are quite a few colleges with a December 1 deadline! Check if your target colleges are listed here and get cracking on getting your application ready to submit.
(For transfers or other requirements, please check the college website for more details.)
December 1 Deadline
Cleveland Institute of Music
Manhattan School of Music
Marquette University
San Francisco Conservatory of Music
The Juilliard School
The University of Tennessee
The University of Texas at Austin
University of South Carolina Columbia
University of Washington Seattle Campus
December 31 Deadline
28 Nov, 2016
How To Get The Right Help For Your College Application Essay
In our last post, we outlined the reasons why it is perfectly okay to get some help when writing your personal statement. But the help should fit your requirements and make you satisfied that you got what you needed, so let’s talk about how to get the right help for your college application essay.
As you start your search for help with your personal statement, you may find yourself overwhelmed by the sheer number of options available (about 284 million search results for “personal statement help”!). But choice in this case can be a good thing, as long as you know how to go about making it right.
Just as you want to get to the right college, there are steps you can take to make sure you get the right kind of help for writing your essay – and we’ve compiled the key ones here to help you get started.
Figure Out What You Need
You make choices all the time, and the first thing you do, often subconsciously, is to figure out what you want, before you decide to choose something. When you go up to the lunch counter to order a cheese pizza, you’ve quickly determined that (a) you want a pizza, not a sandwich or salad because pizza is hot and you’re craving something warm (b) you want just cheese because it is always good and (c) you have enough money for it. You have made a choice that suits you and fits your needs.
That is pretty much what you should do before looking for help with your college essay – figure out what you need. Here are questions you should ask yourself:
– Do you need help writing the essay or just reviewing it?
– How much time do you have? Do you need someone who responds quickly?
– Are you comfortable working online or do you want to meet in person?
– How much are you (and your parents) willing to spend?
Once you’ve identified your needs, it will be easier to go to the next step. Make a list, or, if you’re into that kind of thing, create a spreadsheet !
Ask People You Know
You could ask a friend, but typically your friends who are in your grade are in the same state that you are in and may not be able to make suggestions. But if you have friends, or older siblings/relatives, who have recently graduated and successfully got into college, they could be a great source.
Your teacher and your high school counselor may have recommendations too. Ask them to provide information on any services they have heard about, as well as those that they specifically recommend – the more options you have to research, the better off you are in finding the right fit.
Search Online
You already knew about this one, right? Of course, pretty much anything we want to know about, it is worth starting with an online search. Most college essay guidance coaches know that it is critical to have an online presence of some sort, and it is a good way to find out what’s available.
But take care to do the search right! If you want to work with someone in person, look for options near you. And search for specifics, something more than “essay help” which might give you hundreds of questionable results.
Research-Match-Choose
First , mark your requirements as “must-have'” and “nice-to-have”. For example, you may have “Meeting in person” as a “nice-to-have” (which allows you to work with coaches remotely), but may mark “Help writing the essay” as a “must-have” as you’re stuck and unable to get started.
Now that you have a bunch of options to choose from, start finding out more about them, particularly in relation to every item in your list of requirements . For each option, match their description of what they offer, and how, against your requirements and you will probably end up with only a few that satisfy all your needs. At this point, you may want to check if you can contact any of these coaches/agencies and get more info.
Trust is important, so if it is not through a personal referral, make sure the agency is run by reputable people, has a clear refund policy, and a solid web presence. By the way, Meemli might give you just what you want – take a look at our college essay guidance offerings (there’s a free one to get you started)!
You can enlist your parents help in making a choice – and paying for it! – but it is helpful to do as much of the research as possible on your own. It is time to start building critical life skills as someone who’ll be heading off to college soon!
Have more ideas on how to find the right kind of help with your college essay? Tell us about them!
19 Nov, 2016
4 Reasons Why You Should Get Help With Your College Application Essay
You’ve done all you need to in four years of high school – getting good grades, lining up extracurriculars, taking the requisite SAT and/or ACT – so you’re feeling pretty good as you start filling out your college application. But there’s one thing you weren’t anticipating: writing a personal essay is really hard. You feel you can’t do this alone and want some assistance. But wait! Is it OK to get help with your college application essay?
Maybe English was never your strongest subject, or maybe you’re just not that skilled in writing about yourself yet. For every other aspect of your college applications, there’s a clear path for preparation. But when it comes to writing a college application essay that stands out amongst hundreds of others—which is becoming increasingly important to admissions officers—you may find that daunting.
What should you do? We recommend that if at all possible, you should get some quality help for making sure you write your best possible essay. Here’s why.
Get Ethical Help
Many students get tutoring in various subjects at various points in their school year, and go through SAT and ACT prep classes so they can do better in them. They do this because schools may not have done a good enough job of preparing every student for these tasks. And schools often do not have the resources to help every student become proficient in writing a compelling personal statement. So why is it a problem to get help with your college application essay?
It is because some people resort to having someone else write their essay. That is patently dishonest, as would be having someone else take your SAT/ACT exams. Colleges want to hear what you have to say, and you are doing yourself a disservice by having someone else write it. Have the courage to tackle your personal essay yourself, but feel comfortable that it is ethical to get some guidance in doing it right.
A Coach Can Show You The Way
Even for adults, learning to write about yourself—and write well—may take years of practice. You have to write from a place of authenticity while still making your story accessible to the audience—why should they care about what you have to say? What makes your point of view unique?
An experienced writing coach can help. Not only will they have knowledge about writing personal narratives for public audiences, they will also be able to help target it to the college application. They’ll be able to help you write a good story that fits within the limits imposed by your specific applications, such as word count and subject matter.
Quality Feedback Improves All Of Your Writing
Parents, teachers and other trusted adults are often good people you can ask to read your personal essay. However, they won’t be able to give the objective, unbiased opinion you’d want for something as important as a college application. An outside review would help you understand how someone who doesn’t know you personally would react to your essay.
Depending on how you get your feedback and whom you get it from, getting help with your personal statement can also improve your writing in the long run. You’ll receive personalized feedback and can apply it to anything you write in the future. The techniques for good writing that you learn with a high-quality writing tutor are especially helpful for students who don’t write as frequently.
Reduces The Stress Of Perfecting Your Writing
There are many aspects to consider in writing an effective personal statement, from picking the right story to match your prompt, to using the right voice to provide the maximum impact to the reader. Making sure you hit every point correctly and make your essay compelling to read may leave you feeling overwhelmed.
Be kind to yourself. Submitting the college application is a nerve-wracking experience, so take every opportunity you can get to reduce your stress and anxiety. It is a big relief and confidence booster to have someone help you pull it all together.
Of course you have to find the right kind of help for you: based on where you are in the process and your own needs and preferences. Step 1 is making the decision to get help in writing your essay, Step 2 is finding the help you need. Look for our next post on this topic!
Meanwhile, follow us on Instagram, Twitter or Facebook to get weekly tips and other useful information for your college admission essay!
9 Nov, 2016
College Applications: November Due Dates!
Trying to figure out if it is time to get serious about the college process? Check out our handy list of college applications with November due dates and see if your target schools are listed here!
(For transfers, early decision or other requirements, please check the college website for more details.)
Colleges With November 30 Deadline
Get Started Now!
If any of your favorite colleges are listed, first visit their website and confirm the deadline details and requirements.
November is a short month, plus it is the beginning of the holiday season kicked off by Thanksgiving. So, start making a plan, if you haven’t done so already, and get cracking on your application.
Your personal statement will take time, so make sure you set aside enough time for it. If you think you may need help with your college application essay, line up your resources early – everybody is going to be looking for essay coaches at the same time! In a time crunch? Meemli can help, with flexible offerings (including a free one) to suit your needs, check out what we can do.
Applying to college is hard work, but it can also be enjoyable. Take a moment to breathe and appreciate the fact you’re now preparing to leave high school and move on to the next big life adventure!