[Tea] Buff It Till It Shines

Welcome to "Tea with Julie," a weekly missive by me, Julie Bogart. My wish is to give you food for thought over a cup of tea to enhance your life as an educator, parent, and awesome adult. Glad you're here. Pinkies up!
P.S. Was this email forwarded to you? Add yourself to the list and get your own!

Cincinnati, December 23, 2023

Hi Friend,

When it's time to put the finishing touches on your college admissions essay, here are some things to keep in mind:

Check the shape of your essay. Does your story include obstacles that you overcome, or move through changes that lead you to a discovery?
Check your word count and if you need to, cut. Reread and take out repetitive phrases. See where you can condense words (for instance, “return” is one word, “go back” is two). You want to pack as much into your word count as you can (do you really need that whole paragraph about how never giving up is important, when the story about how you shaved seconds off your racing times until you finally won the national meet demonstrates that to the reader?).
Run the spell check in your computer as well as the one in your brain. Use a dictionary.
Find the "mot juste"—just the right word for what you are trying to say.
Attend to your punctuation.
Make sure your sentences are complete and clear.
Think about adding a title. If you have leftover words in your count and you want to, a title can be a way to add meaning to an essay by giving the reader a little something extra to think about.

Let your essay sit a few days and read it again before uploading: you may catch something new.

If you do have a student who is planning to attend college and apply in the next year, definitely book mark this series and return to it at the right time. We also offer a College Admissions Essay online writing class with the support of a writing coach when that time comes as well. We usually offer that class in the summer session.

Warmly,

P.S. Catch up on all the “Tea with Julie” emails here! Follow me on Instagram.