One of my favorite aspects of essay-coaching is helping students write Supp Essays that support the Personal Statement or Common App Essay to collectively create a 3D portrait of themselves. Here are some pro tips for recycling great written content:
Recycle, but Carefully Read the Prompts
It may seem obvious to copy/paste content for prompts that seem the same with seem being the key word. This year, I had a few students miss addressing a question wedged into in the middle of a paragraph-size prompt. (TBH: It was a confusing prompt!) The students were able to weave a few fresh lines into the tapestry of their already-written “Community Essay” that answered the buried question — and hit SUBMIT on due day.
The Art of the Tweak
For the University of California Personal Insight Questions (PIQs), I advise students to find a prompt where they can recycle their Common Application Essay. If their already-written copy doesn’t exactly address one of the PIQs, don’t fret; there are workarounds! With deletions, additions and minor edits, most students can successfully repurpose their content versus reinventing wheels.
Adding What’s Missing
The goal with the Supplemental Essays is to focus on the student’s academic and extracurricular lives, including their athletic, artistic, intellectual, activist, curious, creative selves. If a particular school either has no Supplemental Essay prompt or the prompts they offer don’t allow a student to recycle content that reflects the parts of their character they want communicated, I help the student sleuth out other ways to share this essential information.
DEC