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How Long Should Your College Essay Be? What Is the Ideal Length?

What’s covered: , personal statement length vs. supplemental essay length, are college essay word limits hard, what if a college essay word count isn’t given, what if you need to submit a graded paper, where to get your essays edited.

Students often spend hours agonizing over the best topics for their college essays. While it’s natural to wonder whether your personal statement is original or compelling enough, there’s one aspect of the process that shouldn’t cause you undue stress—how many words should a college essay be? Fortunately, with a little research, you can uncover the ideal college essay length for all your applications.

Unlike high school assignments, which typically have a strict page requirement, most colleges provide a word limit or word range for their application essays. This practice helps ensure that essays are the same length regardless of font or formatting. A good guideline is that students should strive to get as close as possible to the upper limit of the word range without exceeding it. Keep reading to learn more about best practices for college essay length.

How many words should a college essay be? Personal statements are generally 500-650 words. For example, the Common Application , which can be used to apply to more than 800 colleges, requires an essay ranging from 250-650 words . Similarly, the Coalition Application , which has 150 member schools, features an essay with a recommended length of 500-650 words.

650 words is the most common limit for your personal statement, but some schools may ask students to write more or less. For example, ApplyTexas , a platform used to apply to Texas public universities and other select colleges, requests essays with requirements that vary by school. For example, students applying to UT Austin will need to submit an essay of 500-700 words, along with three short-answer questions of 250-300 words each.

On the other hand, the University of California (UC) application includes a Personal Insight section with eight prompts . Students are asked to respond to any four of these prompts, with each response topping out at 350 words.

Additionally, some schools request a few supplemental essays, which are typically shorter than a personal statement. These questions are designed to gain more information about a student’s interests and abilities, and may include topics like your reasons for wanting to attend their school, your desired major, or your favorite activity.

Most schools require 1-3 supplemental essays, though some may require more or none at all (see our list of top colleges without supplemental essays ). These essays tend to be around 250 words, but some may be just as long as your main essay. For example, Cornell requires applicants to write a second supplemental essay (of 650 words max) that is specific to the program they’re applying to. The exception to this is the Cornell College of Engineering, for which applicants are required to compose two supplemental essays of 250 words max each.

For best results, keep your essays within the word range provided. While you don’t have to hit the count exactly, you should aim to stay within a 10% difference of the upper limit—without including fluff or filler. For example, if the school requests 500 words, try to ensure that your essay is between 450 and 500 words.

For the Common App, try to stay within 550-650 words, even though the given range is 250-650. Any submission shorter than 500 words will make it look as though you simply didn’t care enough to give your best effort. An essay shorter than 500 words won’t be long enough to truly share who you are and what matters to you.

Exceeding the word count isn’t an option—the application portal cuts off anything over the maximum number of allowed words. This is something you want to be particularly careful of if you’re drafting your essay in a Word or Google document and pasting it into the application.

Although most schools provide applicants with a specific word count, some offer more general guidelines. For example, a college may ask for a particular number of pages or paragraphs.

If you aren’t given a word count, try to adhere to the best practices and conventions of writing. Avoid writing especially short or overly long paragraphs—250 words per paragraph is generally a safe upper limit. If you’re asked to write a certain number of pages, single- or double-spaced, stick to a standard font and font size (like 12-point Times New Roman).

In the event that the college doesn’t offer any guidelines at all, aim for an essay length of around 500 words.

While essays are the most commonly requested writing sample, some colleges ask for additional pieces of content. For example, Princeton University requires students to submit a previously graded paper for evaluation .

Princeton offers guidelines that cover length, but if another school requests an old paper and doesn’t offer length requirements, a paper ranging from 3-5 pages should yield the best results. The goal is to select a paper long enough to showcase your writing skills and unique voice, but short enough that the admissions officer doesn’t get bored reading it.

Is your essay effective while staying within the required word count? It’s hard to evaluate your own writing, especially after rereading it numerous times. CollegeVine’s free Peer Essay Review provides an opportunity to have your essay reviewed by a fellow student, for free. Similarly, you can help other students by reviewing their essays—this is a great way to refine your own writing skills.

Expert advice is also available. CollegeVine’s advisors are prepared to help you perfect your personal statement and submit a successful application to your top schools. Find the right advisor for you to improve your chances of getting into your dream school!

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How Long Should Your College Essays Be?

Cait Williams is a Content Writer at Scholarships360. Cait recently graduated from Ohio University with a degree in Journalism and Strategic Communications. During her time at OU, was active in the outdoor recreation community.

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Bill Jack has over a decade of experience in college admissions and financial aid. Since 2008, he has worked at Colby College, Wesleyan University, University of Maine at Farmington, and Bates College.

Maria Geiger is Director of Content at Scholarships360. She is a former online educational technology instructor and adjunct writing instructor. In addition to education reform, Maria’s interests include viewpoint diversity, blended/flipped learning, digital communication, and integrating media/web tools into the curriculum to better facilitate student engagement. Maria earned both a B.A. and an M.A. in English Literature from Monmouth University, an M. Ed. in Education from Monmouth University, and a Virtual Online Teaching Certificate (VOLT) from the University of Pennsylvania.

For the most part, colleges tell you exactly how long your college essays should be, but what happens when they don’t? In this article, we will go over the reason behind word limits and what to do if a college you’re applying to does not provide a word limit.  

Why is there a word limit? 

Because most colleges receive such a large volume of essays, they don’t have time to read through multi page essays from every student.  If you’re having trouble staying within a given word limit, you might begin to feel frustrated. Maybe you are asking yourself, “why is there a word limit?” Rest assured that colleges don’t just come up with these word counts randomly. They know how long it should take for the average student to answer the given questions.    

Additionally, having a word count can be beneficial to you, even if you don’t initially realize it. Without a word limit, you might find yourself feeling anxious that you didn’t say enough or that you said too much. A word count can help you gauge how much detail you should go into and help reassure you that you said what you wanted to say within the guidelines. 

How to draft your essay with a word count 

Word count is a limitation to factor into your college applications, but it shouldn’t be what dictates how you answer essay questions. Write the first draft of your essay without a word limitation. Simply write down what it is you would like to convey and how. This will give you a good starting point from which you can tailor your essay to be either longer or shorter.  

You can use some of the questions below if you find that your essay is getting too long or too short.  

Is your essay too short? 

• Did you mention all necessary details and clearly convey your message?  
• Is there an added point that you would like to make that could strengthen the core of your essay? 
• Is there another essay question that you could answer in addition to the one you just answered? 

Having an answer that you struggle to make long enough isn’t always a bad thing. If you can get your point across in fewer words, while not compromising the core of your essay, that’s okay. However, you should certainly check back through your answer a few times. The last thing you want to do is submit an answer that is too short and doesn’t fully answer the question asked.  

Don’t miss: How to end a scholarship essay

Avoid “fluffy filler”

You might feel tempted to use a lot of filler words in order to hit a certain word count, but this isn’t the best strategy. College admissions officers want to read engaging responses to get to know you. With such limited space to show off who you are, it’s important to take advantage of the space you have. If you’ve entirely answered the essay and are short on words, try incorporating an added point that ties well to your essay. 

Is your essay too long?  

• Are there any details that could be omitted without changing the core of your essay?  
• Is there anything you said that could be inferred and doesn’t need to be explicitly said? 
• Did you use any filler words or is there wording that you could change to be more concise?  

Having an answer that is too long means you probably very thoroughly explained your answer, which is a good thing. But it also might mean that you went off track a bit and mentioned some things that weren’t necessary.  

Scan back through your article and try to be as concise as possible with your writing. If you can’t find anywhere to make cuts, have a family member or friend read through it for you and offer an outside perspective.  

Okay, but what happens if your essay really is too long, and you absolutely cannot cut it down… 

What happens if you exceed the word limit?  

If you exceed or come in just below the word limit by a few words and you’re sending your essay through a PDF or attached file, it’s not the worst thing. College admissions officers probably won’t notice that they had to read ten, or potentially even twenty extra words. The same goes for if you are below the word count.  

However, if you have to answer the essay question within a textbox, or a provided space, you may be unable to submit your answer unless it falls somewhere within the word count. So, keep that in mind as you move forward. You may not have any other choice but to revise your answer to make it fit the word count.  

Related: Tips for a successful college application

Additional resources

We have plenty of resources to help you with essay writing, so before you start writing. Learn some tips on writing 250 word essays as well as 500 word essays. Maybe you need help starting your essay? Learn how to  start a scholarship essay (with examples!)  One of the hardest things to do is write about one’s self. We can help you there too! Learn how to write an essay about yourself and wow whoever reads your essay! 

Key Takeaways

• Word counts aren’t meant to be an added challenge to the college application process 
• Before writing your essay, verify if you will be sending it via PDF, Word document, or if you will need to type it directly into a designated space 
• Write the first draft of your essay without a word count in mind and then critique your essay from there 
• If possible, give yourself a few different times to sit down and write various versions of your essay  

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Ideal College Application Essay Length

Can you go over the Common App length limit? How long should your essay be?

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The 2019-20 version of the  Common Application has an essay length limit of 650 words and a minimum length of 250 words. This limit has remained unchanged for the past several years. Learn how important this word limit is and how to make the most of your 650 words.

Key Takeaways: Common Application Essay Length

• Your Common Application essay must be between 250 words and 650 words.
• Don't assume shorter is better. A college requires an essay because they want to learn more about you.
• Never go over the limit. Show that you can follow instructions and that you know how to edit.

How Strict Is the Limit?

Many wonder whether they can go over the limit, even if only by a few words. What if you feel that you need more space to communicate all of your ideas clearly?

650 words is not a lot of space in which to convey your personality, passions, and writing ability to the people in admissions offices—and the title and any explanatory notes are also included in this limit. The holistic admissions processes of most schools prove that colleges really do want to get to know the person behind your test scores and grades . Since the essay is one of the best places for showcasing who you are, is it worth it to go over?

Most experts recommend adhering to the limit. The Common Application will even prompt its applicants if they exceed the word count to prevent them from going over. Most admissions officers have stated that, while they will read all essays in their entirety, they are less inclined to feel that essays over 650 accomplish what they set out to do. In short: any of the prompts can and should be answered in 650 words or fewer.

Choosing the Right Length

If everything from 250 to 650 words is fair game, what length is best? Some counselors advise students to keep their essays on the shorter end, but not all colleges place the most value in succinctness.

The personal essay is the most powerful tool at your disposal for showing readers your personality without meeting them. If you've chosen a focus that reveals something meaningful about you, you're probably going to need more than 250 words to create a thoughtful, introspective, and effective essay. However, it isn't essential to hit the 650 mark, either.

From the Admissions Desk

"There is no need to meet the full word count [650] if the essay captures what the student would like to share. Visually, you want to make sure the essay looks complete and robust. As a general rule, I would suggest the essay be between 500-650 words."

–Valerie Marchand Welsh Director of College Counseling, The Baldwin School Former Associate Dean of Admissions, University of Pennsylvania

Each of the Common App essay prompts creates different writing challenges, but no matter which option you choose, your essay should be detailed and analytical, and it should provide a window into some important dimension of your interests, values, or personality. Ask yourself: Will the admissions officers know me better after reading my essay? Chances are, an essay in the 500- to 650-word range will accomplish this task better than a shorter essay

In general, the length of an essay does not determine its effectiveness. If you have answered the prompt in its entirety and feel proud of your work, there is no need to stress about any particular word count. Do not pad your essay with filler content and tautologies to stretch it out, and on the flip side, don't leave important sections out in the interest of keeping the essay brief.

Why You Shouldn't Go Over the Essay Length Limit

Some colleges will allow you to exceed the limit set by the Common Application, but you should avoid writing more than 650 words in all cases for the following reasons:

• College students adhere to guidelines : If a professor assigns a five-page paper, they don't want a 10-page paper and you don't have 55 minutes to take 50-minute exams. The message that you send to a college when you write a powerful essay in 650 words or fewer, even when they accept longer submissions, is that you can succeed under any conditions.
• Essays that are too long can leave a negative impression: Essays over 650 may make you appear over-confident. The word counts have been established by experts for a reason and writing more than you are allowed might make it seem like you think what you have to say is more important than other applicants, who have to follow the rules. Avoid seeming self-important by stopping yourself from going overboard.
• Good writers know how to edit and cut : Any college writing professor would tell you that most essays become stronger when they are trimmed. There are almost always words, sentences, and even entire paragraphs that don't contribute to an essay and can be omitted. As you revise any essay you write, ask yourself which parts help you to make your point and which get in the way—everything else can go. Use these 9 style tips to tighten up your language.

College admissions officers will read essays that are too long but may consider them to be rambling, unfocused, or poorly-edited. Remember that your essay is one of many and your readers will wonder why yours is longer when it doesn't need to be.

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Must I Cut My Too-Long College Essay? If So, How?

I am working on my Common App essay and I've cut it down significantly, but can't get it below 650 words. I had someone else work on it and they got it below 650, but some key elements were missing and after I added them back in, it was above 650 again. Will colleges accept a longer essay? If not, what tips do you have on cutting?

“The Dean" has read hundreds of college application essays (can you see that permanent glaze over my eyes?) and only rarely have I found a draft that benefited from exceeding the length limit. As I writer myself, I do appreciate how tough it can be to part with even a single well-chosen word, especially if the final product is pleasing. But when it comes to college essays, it's a mistake to ignore the rules. Why?

For starters, depending on which applications you're using, your precious extra words may never reach the intended audience. Sometimes they won't fit in the text box you were provided, which at least makes it easy to know that you'll need to chop. In other instances, however, the box might accept the entire essay but then the “Submit" function won't work at the end. Occasionally, too, the essay may seem to fit and even to “Submit," but then the admission folks receive only a truncated version.

Second, when an essay is just a handful of words over the limit, it's often possible to sneak it by the system, but any writing that is clearly much longer than expected is apt to irk admission officials who will know at a glance that you ignored the instructions. And speaking of instructions, take them literally. The Common Application, for instance, insists that you must, “ ... write an essay of no more than 650 words." Don't mess with that! Yet, you may find that other applications offer a limit that's tempered with “approximately" or “about" next to the word count, and this gives you license to go a little longer (but anything beyond 100 additional words is not “a little.")

So what should you do with your current excessively long draft? Here are some suggestions on how to make it shorter while not throwing out the baby with the bath water:

Don't clear your throat

Many of the essays I've reviewed begin with an unnecessary introduction -- a paragraph or more of what I call “throat-clearing." Often you can lop off the entire first paragraph and discover that what you'd thought would be your second one actually makes a better beginning .

Use contractions

Students are sometimes told that contractions have no place in a college essay but, in fact, an essay without them usually sounds overly formal and even stilted . And every time you change “Did not" to “didn't" or “it is' to it's," you shave down your total word count.

Select more descriptive words

For instance, instead of saying, “He was quite angry," try, “He was infuriated." You saved a word there! Or if you didn't “walk quickly toward the large opening between the huge rocks," you “raced toward the gorge," that'll save you six! Go through your entire essay and see how often you used words like “very," “really," and “quite." You can probably eliminate all of them by choosing stronger synonyms for the words they're modifying (e.g., “massive" in lieu of “very big"). Many adjectives, too, can be eliminated by selecting more specific (and often more interesting) nouns. A “high fence" can be a “barricade;" a “small, decrepit house" might be a “shanty."

Add hyphens occasionally

One student in my orbit ended her Common Application essay by saying: This time, as the final credits roll, my mother is dancing with me. Then she discovered her essay was two words over the limit. Ouch! So she rewrote that final sentence like this: This time--as the final credits roll--my mother is dancing with me. And by using those hyphens, she tricked the Common App into reducing her final tally by two all-important words because the software counted “time--as" and “roll--my" as single words! The entire essay shouldn't be peppered with hyphens everywhere, but a few judicious ones can go a long way toward making the final (and often most difficult) cuts.

Don't repeat yourself over and over (and over)

Whenever I edit student essays, I almost always find unnecessary repetition. Even if the language is different, the meaning is the same. For instance, if you've proclaimed at the start of your essay that you're petrified of heights, then you don't have to explain later on why you wouldn't climb the fire tower on the fifth-grade field trip. Trust your readers to understand without beating them over their heads. Even experienced writers can have trouble with this concept, and I bet if you go through your essay, you'll find at least one redundancy that you can strike.

Eliminate Excessive Examples

You've probably been told that a good college essay will “show and not just tell" and you've dutifully provided examples accordingly. But perhaps you've offered too many examples? Even if you've got tons of anecdotes about how you helped your elderly neighbors during the big power outage last summer, one or two of them might suffice when you're trying to keep your word count down.

Scratch the superfluous details

Whether you're writing a college essay or The Great American Novel, don't include details that aren't critical to your “story." Not only will they torpedo your word count, but the reader may wonder why they're there in the first place. Let's say that your essay begins like this: When I was four, Cara moved into the house next door, along with her brothers Sam, Ben, and Isaac and their English Pointer, Raisins, and practically since that first day, she's been my best friend. While all those names may add some flavor to your prose, unless the brothers — or the pooch — are an essential part of your relationship to Cara, then you can save 13 words by deleting them.

Use “Additional Information" when you truly do have additional information

Some of the longest college essays I've seen were written to explain personal circumstances that affected the author's grades, test scores, course choices, activity choices, living situations, etc. Most commonly, these essays were about physical or mental health problems or about challenging domestic situations. If your essay is extra long because you want admission officials to understand the atypical obstacles you've surmounted, and if you're convinced that you can't do this in 650 words, then consider disclosing these issues in the “Additional Information" section of your application or in a separate, unsolicited essay or letter. Then you can write your primary essay on an unrelated interest or experience. By approaching the essay assignment this way, you're sending a message that suggests, “Sure, I've had this problem all of my life, but it still doesn't define who I am."

Ask for Outside Opinions

I know you've already sought a second opinion and weren't happy with the results. But it's important to respect the 650-word maximum, so ask someone else (an English teacher? A family friend?) to read this list of suggestions above and point out places where your essay could be shortened. Then you can make the changes yourself. Alternatively, bring in a ringer from a professional college essay editing firm.

Of course, it can be frustrating to write an essay that you're proud of and then to realize that it needs major surgery to meet the colleges' requirements. So don't delete a draft you love. File it away for safe keeping. There may come a day later on when you can recycle it in its entirety. But, for now, stick to the application limits. Otherwise, even a great essay may do you little good.

If you'd like to submit a question to College Confidential, please send it along here .

Sally Rubenstone

Sally Rubenstone knows the competitive and often convoluted college admission process inside out: From the first time the topic of college comes up at the dinner table until the last duffel bag is unloaded on a dorm room floor. She is the co-author of Panicked Parents' Guide to College Admissions; The Transfer Student's Guide to Changing Colleges and The International Student's Guide to Going to College in America. Sally has appeared on NBC's Today program and has been quoted in countless publications, including The New York Times, The Washington Post, USA Weekend, USA Today, U.S. News & World Report, Newsweek, People and Seventeen. Sally has viewed the admissions world from many angles: As a Smith College admission counselor for 15 years, an independent college counselor serving students from a wide range of backgrounds and the author of College Confidential's "Ask the Dean" column. She also taught language arts, social studies, study skills and test preparation in 10 schools, including American international schools in London, Paris, Geneva, Athens and Tel Aviv. As senior advisor to College Confidential since 2002, Sally has helped hundreds of students and parents navigate the college admissions maze. In 2008, she co-founded College Karma, a private college consulting firm, with her College Confidential colleague Dave Berry, and she continues to serve as a College Confidential advisor. Sally and her husband, Chris Petrides, became first-time parents in 1997 at the ripe-old age of 45. So Sally was nearly an official senior citizen when her son Jack began the college selection process, and when she was finally able to practice what she had preached for more than three decades.

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How Long Should a College Essay Be?

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College Essays

If you grow up to be a professional writer, everything you write will first go through an editor before being published. This is because the process of writing is really a process of re-writing —of rethinking and reexamining your work, usually with the help of someone else. So what does this mean for your student writing? And in particular, what does it mean for very important, but nonprofessional writing like your college essay? Should you ask your parents to look at your essay? Pay for an essay service?

If you are wondering what kind of help you can, and should, get with your personal statement, you've come to the right place! In this article, I'll talk about what kind of writing help is useful, ethical, and even expected for your college admission essay . I'll also point out who would make a good editor, what the differences between editing and proofreading are, what to expect from a good editor, and how to spot and stay away from a bad one.

Table of Contents

What Kind of Help for Your Essay Can You Get?

What's Good Editing?

What should an editor do for you, what kind of editing should you avoid, proofreading, what's good proofreading, what kind of proofreading should you avoid.

What Do Colleges Think Of You Getting Help With Your Essay?

Who Can/Should Help You?

Advice for editors.

Should You Pay Money For Essay Editing?

The Bottom Line

What's next, what kind of help with your essay can you get.

Rather than talking in general terms about "help," let's first clarify the two different ways that someone else can improve your writing . There is editing, which is the more intensive kind of assistance that you can use throughout the whole process. And then there's proofreading, which is the last step of really polishing your final product.

Let me go into some more detail about editing and proofreading, and then explain how good editors and proofreaders can help you."

Editing is helping the author (in this case, you) go from a rough draft to a finished work . Editing is the process of asking questions about what you're saying, how you're saying it, and how you're organizing your ideas. But not all editing is good editing . In fact, it's very easy for an editor to cross the line from supportive to overbearing and over-involved.

Ability to clarify assignments. A good editor is usually a good writer, and certainly has to be a good reader. For example, in this case, a good editor should make sure you understand the actual essay prompt you're supposed to be answering.

Open-endedness. Good editing is all about asking questions about your ideas and work, but without providing answers. It's about letting you stick to your story and message, and doesn't alter your point of view.

Think of an editor as a great travel guide. It can show you the many different places your trip could take you. It should explain any parts of the trip that could derail your trip or confuse the traveler. But it never dictates your path, never forces you to go somewhere you don't want to go, and never ignores your interests so that the trip no longer seems like it's your own. So what should good editors do?

Help Brainstorm Topics

Sometimes it's easier to bounce thoughts off of someone else. This doesn't mean that your editor gets to come up with ideas, but they can certainly respond to the various topic options you've come up with. This way, you're less likely to write about the most boring of your ideas, or to write about something that isn't actually important to you.

If you're wondering how to come up with options for your editor to consider, check out our guide to brainstorming topics for your college essay .

Help Revise Your Drafts

Here, your editor can't upset the delicate balance of not intervening too much or too little. It's tricky, but a great way to think about it is to remember: editing is about asking questions, not giving answers .

Revision questions should point out:

• Places where more detail or more description would help the reader connect with your essay
• Places where structure and logic don't flow, losing the reader's attention
• Places where there aren't transitions between paragraphs, confusing the reader
• Moments where your narrative or the arguments you're making are unclear

But pointing to potential problems is not the same as actually rewriting—editors let authors fix the problems themselves.

Bad editing is usually very heavy-handed editing. Instead of helping you find your best voice and ideas, a bad editor changes your writing into their own vision.

You may be dealing with a bad editor if they:

• Add material (examples, descriptions) that doesn't come from you
• Use a thesaurus to make your college essay sound "more mature"
• Add meaning or insight to the essay that doesn't come from you
• Tell you what to say and how to say it
• Write sentences, phrases, and paragraphs for you
• Change your voice in the essay so it no longer sounds like it was written by a teenager

Colleges can tell the difference between a 17-year-old's writing and a 50-year-old's writing. Not only that, they have access to your SAT or ACT Writing section, so they can compare your essay to something else you wrote. Writing that's a little more polished is great and expected. But a totally different voice and style will raise questions.

Where's the Line Between Helpful Editing and Unethical Over-Editing?

Sometimes it's hard to tell whether your college essay editor is doing the right thing. Here are some guidelines for staying on the ethical side of the line.

• An editor should say that the opening paragraph is kind of boring, and explain what exactly is making it drag. But it's overstepping for an editor to tell you exactly how to change it.
• An editor should point out where your prose is unclear or vague. But it's completely inappropriate for the editor to rewrite that section of your essay.
• An editor should let you know that a section is light on detail or description. But giving you similes and metaphors to beef up that description is a no-go.

Proofreading (also called copy-editing) is checking for errors in the last draft of a written work. It happens at the end of the process and is meant as the final polishing touch. Proofreading is meticulous and detail-oriented, focusing on small corrections. It sands off all the surface rough spots that could alienate the reader.

Because proofreading is usually concerned with making fixes on the word or sentence level, this is the only process where someone else can actually add to or take away things from your essay . This is because what they are adding or taking away tends to be one or two misplaced letters.

Laser focus. Proofreading is all about the tiny details, so the ability to really concentrate on finding small slip-ups is a must.

Excellent grammar and spelling skills. Proofreaders need to dot every "i" and cross every "t." Good proofreaders should correct spelling, punctuation, capitalization, and grammar. They should put foreign words in italics and surround quotations with quotation marks. They should check that you used the correct college's name, and that you adhered to any formatting requirements (name and date at the top of the page, uniform font and size, uniform spacing).

Limited interference. A proofreader needs to make sure that you followed any word limits. But if cuts need to be made to shorten the essay, that's your job and not the proofreader's.

A bad proofreader either tries to turn into an editor, or just lacks the skills and knowledge necessary to do the job.

Some signs that you're working with a bad proofreader are:

• If they suggest making major changes to the final draft of your essay. Proofreading happens when editing is already finished.
• If they aren't particularly good at spelling, or don't know grammar, or aren't detail-oriented enough to find someone else's small mistakes.
• If they start swapping out your words for fancier-sounding synonyms, or changing the voice and sound of your essay in other ways. A proofreader is there to check for errors, not to take the 17-year-old out of your writing.

What Do Colleges Think of Your Getting Help With Your Essay?

Admissions officers agree: light editing and proofreading are good—even required ! But they also want to make sure you're the one doing the work on your essay. They want essays with stories, voice, and themes that come from you. They want to see work that reflects your actual writing ability, and that focuses on what you find important.

On the Importance of Editing

Get feedback. Have a fresh pair of eyes give you some feedback. Don't allow someone else to rewrite your essay, but do take advantage of others' edits and opinions when they seem helpful. ( Bates College )

Read your essay aloud to someone. Reading the essay out loud offers a chance to hear how your essay sounds outside your head. This exercise reveals flaws in the essay's flow, highlights grammatical errors and helps you ensure that you are communicating the exact message you intended. ( Dickinson College )

On the Value of Proofreading

Share your essays with at least one or two people who know you well—such as a parent, teacher, counselor, or friend—and ask for feedback. Remember that you ultimately have control over your essays, and your essays should retain your own voice, but others may be able to catch mistakes that you missed and help suggest areas to cut if you are over the word limit. ( Yale University )

Proofread and then ask someone else to proofread for you. Although we want substance, we also want to be able to see that you can write a paper for our professors and avoid careless mistakes that would drive them crazy. ( Oberlin College )

On Watching Out for Too Much Outside Influence

Limit the number of people who review your essay. Too much input usually means your voice is lost in the writing style. ( Carleton College )

Ask for input (but not too much). Your parents, friends, guidance counselors, coaches, and teachers are great people to bounce ideas off of for your essay. They know how unique and spectacular you are, and they can help you decide how to articulate it. Keep in mind, however, that a 45-year-old lawyer writes quite differently from an 18-year-old student, so if your dad ends up writing the bulk of your essay, we're probably going to notice. ( Vanderbilt University )

Now let's talk about some potential people to approach for your college essay editing and proofreading needs. It's best to start close to home and slowly expand outward. Not only are your family and friends more invested in your success than strangers, but they also have a better handle on your interests and personality. This knowledge is key for judging whether your essay is expressing your true self.

Parents or Close Relatives

Your family may be full of potentially excellent editors! Parents are deeply committed to your well-being, and family members know you and your life well enough to offer details or incidents that can be included in your essay. On the other hand, the rewriting process necessarily involves criticism, which is sometimes hard to hear from someone very close to you.

A parent or close family member is a great choice for an editor if you can answer "yes" to the following questions. Is your parent or close relative a good writer or reader? Do you have a relationship where editing your essay won't create conflict? Are you able to constructively listen to criticism and suggestion from the parent?

One suggestion for defusing face-to-face discussions is to try working on the essay over email. Send your parent a draft, have them write you back some comments, and then you can pick which of their suggestions you want to use and which to discard.

Teachers or Tutors

A humanities teacher that you have a good relationship with is a great choice. I am purposefully saying humanities, and not just English, because teachers of Philosophy, History, Anthropology, and any other classes where you do a lot of writing, are all used to reviewing student work.

Moreover, any teacher or tutor that has been working with you for some time, knows you very well and can vet the essay to make sure it "sounds like you."

If your teacher or tutor has some experience with what college essays are supposed to be like, ask them to be your editor. If not, then ask whether they have time to proofread your final draft.

Guidance or College Counselor at Your School

The best thing about asking your counselor to edit your work is that this is their job. This means that they have a very good sense of what colleges are looking for in an application essay.

At the same time, school counselors tend to have relationships with admissions officers in many colleges, which again gives them insight into what works and which college is focused on what aspect of the application.

Unfortunately, in many schools the guidance counselor tends to be way overextended. If your ratio is 300 students to 1 college counselor, you're unlikely to get that person's undivided attention and focus. It is still useful to ask them for general advice about your potential topics, but don't expect them to be able to stay with your essay from first draft to final version.

Friends, Siblings, or Classmates

Although they most likely don't have much experience with what colleges are hoping to see, your peers are excellent sources for checking that your essay is you .

Friends and siblings are perfect for the read-aloud edit. Read your essay to them so they can listen for words and phrases that are stilted, pompous, or phrases that just don't sound like you.

You can even trade essays and give helpful advice on each other's work.

If your editor hasn't worked with college admissions essays very much, no worries! Any astute and attentive reader can still greatly help with your process. But, as in all things, beginners do better with some preparation.

First, your editor should read our advice about how to write a college essay introduction , how to spot and fix a bad college essay , and get a sense of what other students have written by going through some admissions essays that worked .

Then, as they read your essay, they can work through the following series of questions that will help them to guide you.

Introduction Questions

• Is the first sentence a killer opening line? Why or why not?
• Does the introduction hook the reader? Does it have a colorful, detailed, and interesting narrative? Or does it propose a compelling or surprising idea?
• Can you feel the author's voice in the introduction, or is the tone dry, dull, or overly formal? Show the places where the voice comes through.

Essay Body Questions

• Does the essay have a through-line? Is it built around a central argument, thought, idea, or focus? Can you put this idea into your own words?
• How is the essay organized? By logical progression? Chronologically? Do you feel order when you read it, or are there moments where you are confused or lose the thread of the essay?
• Does the essay have both narratives about the author's life and explanations and insight into what these stories reveal about the author's character, personality, goals, or dreams? If not, which is missing?
• Does the essay flow? Are there smooth transitions/clever links between paragraphs? Between the narrative and moments of insight?

Reader Response Questions

• Does the writer's personality come through? Do we know what the speaker cares about? Do we get a sense of "who he or she is"?
• Where did you feel most connected to the essay? Which parts of the essay gave you a "you are there" sensation by invoking your senses? What moments could you picture in your head well?
• Where are the details and examples vague and not specific enough?
• Did you get an "a-ha!" feeling anywhere in the essay? Is there a moment of insight that connected all the dots for you? Is there a good reveal or "twist" anywhere in the essay?
• What are the strengths of this essay? What needs the most improvement?

Should You Pay Money for Essay Editing?

One alternative to asking someone you know to help you with your college essay is the paid editor route. There are two different ways to pay for essay help: a private essay coach or a less personal editing service , like the many proliferating on the internet.

My advice is to think of these options as a last resort rather than your go-to first choice. I'll first go through the reasons why. Then, if you do decide to go with a paid editor, I'll help you decide between a coach and a service.

When to Consider a Paid Editor

In general, I think hiring someone to work on your essay makes a lot of sense if none of the people I discussed above are a possibility for you.

If you can't ask your parents. For example, if your parents aren't good writers, or if English isn't their first language. Or if you think getting your parents to help is going create unnecessary extra conflict in your relationship with them (applying to college is stressful as it is!)

If you can't ask your teacher or tutor. Maybe you don't have a trusted teacher or tutor that has time to look over your essay with focus. Or, for instance, your favorite humanities teacher has very limited experience with college essays and so won't know what admissions officers want to see.

If you can't ask your guidance counselor. This could be because your guidance counselor is way overwhelmed with other students.

If you can't share your essay with those who know you. It might be that your essay is on a very personal topic that you're unwilling to share with parents, teachers, or peers. Just make sure it doesn't fall into one of the bad-idea topics in our article on bad college essays .

If the cost isn't a consideration. Many of these services are quite expensive, and private coaches even more so. If you have finite resources, I'd say that hiring an SAT or ACT tutor (whether it's PrepScholar or someone else) is better way to spend your money . This is because there's no guarantee that a slightly better essay will sufficiently elevate the rest of your application, but a significantly higher SAT score will definitely raise your applicant profile much more.

Should You Hire an Essay Coach?

On the plus side, essay coaches have read dozens or even hundreds of college essays, so they have experience with the format. Also, because you'll be working closely with a specific person, it's more personal than sending your essay to a service, which will know even less about you.

But, on the minus side, you'll still be bouncing ideas off of someone who doesn't know that much about you . In general, if you can adequately get the help from someone you know, there is no advantage to paying someone to help you.

If you do decide to hire a coach, ask your school counselor, or older students that have used the service for recommendations. If you can't afford the coach's fees, ask whether they can work on a sliding scale —many do. And finally, beware those who guarantee admission to your school of choice—essay coaches don't have any special magic that can back up those promises.

Should You Send Your Essay to a Service?

On the plus side, essay editing services provide a similar product to essay coaches, and they cost significantly less . If you have some assurance that you'll be working with a good editor, the lack of face-to-face interaction won't prevent great results.

On the minus side, however, it can be difficult to gauge the quality of the service before working with them . If they are churning through many application essays without getting to know the students they are helping, you could end up with an over-edited essay that sounds just like everyone else's. In the worst case scenario, an unscrupulous service could send you back a plagiarized essay.

Getting recommendations from friends or a school counselor for reputable services is key to avoiding heavy-handed editing that writes essays for you or does too much to change your essay. Including a badly-edited essay like this in your application could cause problems if there are inconsistencies. For example, in interviews it might be clear you didn't write the essay, or the skill of the essay might not be reflected in your schoolwork and test scores.

Should You Buy an Essay Written by Someone Else?

Let me elaborate. There are super sketchy places on the internet where you can simply buy a pre-written essay. Don't do this!

For one thing, you'll be lying on an official, signed document. All college applications make you sign a statement saying something like this:

I certify that all information submitted in the admission process—including the application, the personal essay, any supplements, and any other supporting materials—is my own work, factually true, and honestly presented... I understand that I may be subject to a range of possible disciplinary actions, including admission revocation, expulsion, or revocation of course credit, grades, and degree, should the information I have certified be false. (From the Common Application )

For another thing, if your academic record doesn't match the essay's quality, the admissions officer will start thinking your whole application is riddled with lies.

Admission officers have full access to your writing portion of the SAT or ACT so that they can compare work that was done in proctored conditions with that done at home. They can tell if these were written by different people. Not only that, but there are now a number of search engines that faculty and admission officers can use to see if an essay contains strings of words that have appeared in other essays—you have no guarantee that the essay you bought wasn't also bought by 50 other students.

• You should get college essay help with both editing and proofreading
• A good editor will ask questions about your idea, logic, and structure, and will point out places where clarity is needed
• A good editor will absolutely not answer these questions, give you their own ideas, or write the essay or parts of the essay for you
• A good proofreader will find typos and check your formatting
• All of them agree that getting light editing and proofreading is necessary
• Parents, teachers, guidance or college counselor, and peers or siblings
• If you can't ask any of those, you can pay for college essay help, but watch out for services or coaches who over-edit you work
• Don't buy a pre-written essay! Colleges can tell, and it'll make your whole application sound false.

Ready to start working on your essay? Check out our explanation of the point of the personal essay and the role it plays on your applications and then explore our step-by-step guide to writing a great college essay .

Using the Common Application for your college applications? We have an excellent guide to the Common App essay prompts and useful advice on how to pick the Common App prompt that's right for you . Wondering how other people tackled these prompts? Then work through our roundup of over 130 real college essay examples published by colleges .

Stressed about whether to take the SAT again before submitting your application? Let us help you decide how many times to take this test . If you choose to go for it, we have the ultimate guide to studying for the SAT to give you the ins and outs of the best ways to study.

Anna scored in the 99th percentile on her SATs in high school, and went on to major in English at Princeton and to get her doctorate in English Literature at Columbia. She is passionate about improving student access to higher education.

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July 8, 2023

College Essay Length: Go to the Maximum Word Count

Previously Published on September 24, 2017:

College applicants should use the real estate offered in college essays to make their case — all of it! If the maximum word count for a college admissions essay is 650 words, applicants should not write 500 words. They should write 650 words — or pretty close to it.

When you’re a real estate developer in Manhattan, and you’re allowed to build twenty-five stories, you don’t construct ten stories and dedicate the rest of the space for the native pigeons of Manhattan. You build up —twenty-five levels. The pigeons have the skies.

And yet even though it seems only logical that college applicants should use all of the allotted real estate to make their case in essays, to tell their stories, to distinguish themselves in super competitive applicant pools, it never ceases to amaze us how many students write essays that don’t come anywhere near the maximum word count. Instead, they leave the space on the table to the disservice of their candidacies.

Students Should Go to the Word Limit in Every College Essay

It’s not as though students only make the mistake of leaving words on the table in their Common Application Personal Statement . They also often do so in their equally as critical supplemental essays.

If Brown University asks applicants to write a 200-250-word essay on how students would take advantage of the Open Curriculum, as the Ivy League school does on its 2022-2023 application, students should not offer them 200 words. College applicants are not interior designers — blank space does not look lovely. They should submit 250-word essays. 

When Brown admissions officers come across an essay that doesn’t come close to the school’s maximum word count, they’re likely to think, “This student doesn’t love our school enough to put in the work to write an essay just for us. She probably wants to go elsewhere.”

And if that thought crosses the mind of an admissions officer, the odds are strong that the same admissions officer is unlikely to offer that student a spot in the incoming class. And, of course, this doesn’t just apply to Brown — it applies to every highly selective institution in America.

Students Should Use the Maximum Word or Character Count in Short Answers Too

We can’t stress enough the importance of taking advantage of the real estate an applicant is afforded in essays to make their case. But don’t be fooled that an essay only means boxes on The Common Application that allow students to include 100 words or more.

After all, many top schools pose short answer questions too. Maybe they’re called short-takes. On the 2022-2023 application, the University of Southern California , for instance, asks applicants to name their favorite movie of all time, their dream job, favorite trip, and favorite snack, among others.

Students should go up to the maximum character count in these opportunities too — and  opportunities  is the apropos word because they’re opportunities to wow admissions officers, present a window into a student’s world and distinguish themselves from other talented applicants. In short, students should not just name their favorite movie — they should say why concisely.

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What I’ve Learned From My Students’ College Essays

The genre is often maligned for being formulaic and melodramatic, but it’s more important than you think.

By Nell Freudenberger

Most high school seniors approach the college essay with dread. Either their upbringing hasn’t supplied them with several hundred words of adversity, or worse, they’re afraid that packaging the genuine trauma they’ve experienced is the only way to secure their future. The college counselor at the Brooklyn high school where I’m a writing tutor advises against trauma porn. “Keep it brief , ” she says, “and show how you rose above it.”

I started volunteering in New York City schools in my 20s, before I had kids of my own. At the time, I liked hanging out with teenagers, whom I sometimes had more interesting conversations with than I did my peers. Often I worked with students who spoke English as a second language or who used slang in their writing, and at first I was hung up on grammar. Should I correct any deviation from “standard English” to appeal to some Wizard of Oz behind the curtains of a college admissions office? Or should I encourage students to write the way they speak, in pursuit of an authentic voice, that most elusive of literary qualities?

In fact, I was missing the point. One of many lessons the students have taught me is to let the story dictate the voice of the essay. A few years ago, I worked with a boy who claimed to have nothing to write about. His life had been ordinary, he said; nothing had happened to him. I asked if he wanted to try writing about a family member, his favorite school subject, a summer job? He glanced at his phone, his posture and expression suggesting that he’d rather be anywhere but in front of a computer with me. “Hobbies?” I suggested, without much hope. He gave me a shy glance. “I like to box,” he said.

I’ve had this experience with reluctant writers again and again — when a topic clicks with a student, an essay can unfurl spontaneously. Of course the primary goal of a college essay is to help its author get an education that leads to a career. Changes in testing policies and financial aid have made applying to college more confusing than ever, but essays have remained basically the same. I would argue that they’re much more than an onerous task or rote exercise, and that unlike standardized tests they are infinitely variable and sometimes beautiful. College essays also provide an opportunity to learn precision, clarity and the process of working toward the truth through multiple revisions.

When a topic clicks with a student, an essay can unfurl spontaneously.

Even if writing doesn’t end up being fundamental to their future professions, students learn to choose language carefully and to be suspicious of the first words that come to mind. Especially now, as college students shoulder so much of the country’s ethical responsibility for war with their protest movement, essay writing teaches prospective students an increasingly urgent lesson: that choosing their own words over ready-made phrases is the only reliable way to ensure they’re thinking for themselves.

Teenagers are ideal writers for several reasons. They’re usually free of preconceptions about writing, and they tend not to use self-consciously ‘‘literary’’ language. They’re allergic to hypocrisy and are generally unfiltered: They overshare, ask personal questions and call you out for microaggressions as well as less egregious (but still mortifying) verbal errors, such as referring to weed as ‘‘pot.’’ Most important, they have yet to put down their best stories in a finished form.

I can imagine an essay taking a risk and distinguishing itself formally — a poem or a one-act play — but most kids use a more straightforward model: a hook followed by a narrative built around “small moments” that lead to a concluding lesson or aspiration for the future. I never get tired of working with students on these essays because each one is different, and the short, rigid form sometimes makes an emotional story even more powerful. Before I read Javier Zamora’s wrenching “Solito,” I worked with a student who had been transported by a coyote into the U.S. and was reunited with his mother in the parking lot of a big-box store. I don’t remember whether this essay focused on specific skills or coping mechanisms that he gained from his ordeal. I remember only the bliss of the parent-and-child reunion in that uninspiring setting. If I were making a case to an admissions officer, I would suggest that simply being able to convey that experience demonstrates the kind of resilience that any college should admire.

The essays that have stayed with me over the years don’t follow a pattern. There are some narratives on very predictable topics — living up to the expectations of immigrant parents, or suffering from depression in 2020 — that are moving because of the attention with which the student describes the experience. One girl determined to become an engineer while watching her father build furniture from scraps after work; a boy, grieving for his mother during lockdown, began taking pictures of the sky.

If, as Lorrie Moore said, “a short story is a love affair; a novel is a marriage,” what is a college essay? Every once in a while I sit down next to a student and start reading, and I have to suppress my excitement, because there on the Google Doc in front of me is a real writer’s voice. One of the first students I ever worked with wrote about falling in love with another girl in dance class, the absolute magic of watching her move and the terror in the conflict between her feelings and the instruction of her religious middle school. She made me think that college essays are less like love than limerence: one-sided, obsessive, idiosyncratic but profound, the first draft of the most personal story their writers will ever tell.

Nell Freudenberger’s novel “The Limits” was published by Knopf last month. She volunteers through the PEN America Writers in the Schools program.

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How Long Should a College Admissions Essay Be?

Sarah farbman.

• January 23, 2024

Throughout the process of applying to college, students must follow many steps and jump through what can feel like ten million hoops before (and even after!) hitting that submit button. But one part of the process looms large in the minds of students and parents alike: the college admissions essay . It feels so open-ended. How long should a college admissions essay be? What should you write about? How should your tone sound? How do you know if your reader will like what you wrote? 

A lot of these questions are subjective and personal, but one is much more clear-cut: essay length. In this post, we’ll go over how long your essay should be, how strict these guidelines are, and what to do if your writing doesn’t fall within the word limit provided.

How long should a college admissions essay be?

College admissions essays vary in length, but you’ll most likely be asked to write somewhere between 150 and 650 words per essay. That’s about a quarter of a page to one full page, double-spaced.

Sometimes, the word limit will be given to you right in the prompt. Take a look at this example from Villanova University:

“Why do you want to call Villanova your new home and become part of our community? Please respond in about 150 words.”

Often, the prompt itself may not state the word limit, but if you’re submitting your application through an online form like the Common App, the word limit will appear in tiny letters underneath the box where you’re supposed to paste your answer. Take a look at this screenshot from the Common App page for the University of Colorado Boulder.

As you can see, the maximum number of words the form will accept is 250, and it won’t allow you to submit fewer than 25 words, even if you want to.

Are college admissions essay word limits flexible?

So now you know how to find the word limits, but how closely do you have to stick to them? Is it okay to write less?

If a college gives you a range of words, your writing should definitely fall within that range. For example, Tufts University asks you to pick one of three topics and write between 200-250 words. In this case, you should write at least 200 words. In this case, writing fewer than 200 words could give the wrong impression for a couple of reasons.

• You may give the impression that you don’t have a lot to say. Since college is, after all, an educational venture, schools are looking for thoughtful applicants who like to mull over new ideas. If you write too little in what is already supposed to be a pretty short piece of writing, you’re not providing the college with evidence that you like to embrace your nerdy side!
• It might seem like you’re not good at following directions or feel that the rules don’t apply to you. Following directions is a significant part of the college application process, partly because there are just so many moving pieces and partly because you want to show that you’re a respectful applicant.

If the prompt only gives an upper limit, aim to write no fewer than 50 words under that limit. So, if the prompt asks you to write up to 450 words, try to write no fewer than 400 words. Again, this will help give the impression that you’re a thoughtful student who takes your time and considers your ideas carefully.

Remember: the point of your college application is to help your reader get to know you and to make a case for why you’d be an excellent fit for a given college or university. Readers already have so little to go on. You want to take every opportunity available to you to share with the reader more information and more evidence that you’re a great student!

What if you go over the word limit?

While some students may struggle to fill an essay, most students have the opposite problem, especially on first drafts; they blow that word limit out of the water!

It is totally, 100% acceptable to exceed that word limit, even by a lot, on your first draft. In fact, it’s crucial when drafting to take away those word limits and just let yourself write without any limits or judgment. That’s often how we, as writers, find our best ideas and figure out what we’re really trying to say.

However, it’s important not to exceed the given word limit on your finished product. For one thing, many colleges use a web-based form, often the Common Application , to collect applications. These forms will not allow you to submit more than the given number of words.

Even if you’re submitting your application in a format that does allow you to technically include as many words as you like, say, as a PDF or Word attachment, admissions readers may well stop reading after they hit the word limit.

Remember, admissions readers must read A LOT, usually under a stringent time limit. They may only have ten or fifteen minutes to read your entire file, including all your essays and letters of recommendation. And then they have to make some notes and repeat the whole exercise with someone else’s file, over and over, all day, for months. A pressed admissions officer simply doesn’t have the time to read the extra words you wrote!

Don’t worry, though, even if your first draft is significantly longer than it’s supposed to be. First drafts are often repetitive and wordy. Most students find that once they have a good idea of what they’re trying to say, it’s reasonably easy to cut words. 

First, review your draft and ensure you only present each idea once. Then, see if reorganizing the paragraphs would allow you to streamline your ideas to cut words. Finally, see if specific phrases can be replaced with shorter synonyms. You’ll see the words start to fall away pretty quickly.

So really, how long should a college admissions essay should be?

How long should a college admissions essay be? Most essay prompts will tell you either the range they’re looking for (e.g., “Respond in 200-250 words”) or the hard upper word limit. You’ll find this either written out right in the prompt or in little gray letters below the part of the application where you’re supposed to paste your answer.

If you don’t see a word limit anywhere on the prompt, don’t fret! Look around the college’s website for an FAQ section. If you still don’t see the answer you’re looking for, call the admissions office and ask!

It’s vital to stick fairly closely to the word limit given. Certainly, do not go over!

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How to know if your college essay is too long or too short

Writing a college essay can prove to be quite a challenge. Even if you have already picked a topic and know precisely what you want to include, there are still numerous things you have to consider. After all, it is a crucial document you have to provide, and therefore, you have to make sure to meet all the requirements.

One of the most common dilemmas students have is regarding the essay’s length. Can it be too short or too long? How to know if it’s just right? How to adjust it? In the following article, we will discuss these questions and tell you about some tips you should use while completing this task.

Follow the instructions

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Surely you have written many essays in the past, but the length of these was based on the number of pages (5-page paper). Well, when it comes to college essays, you have to follow the number of words. Colleges count the words to ensure that all application papers are similar in length, regardless of the font and format of the paper.

When it comes to this, the limit varies between schools. Some accept letters that are only 200 words long, while generally speaking, the upper limit is about 600 words. Yes, it is pretty short, which can be a challenge of its own since you have to find a way to express your thoughts while making sure that the essay is clear and concise.

Due to this reason, you have to read the instructions carefully. This document states what you need to include in your essay, and naturally, it also determines how long your paper should be. If you need additional help check  mypaperdone.com/do-my- thesis .

Is it too short or too long?

Now, this is the big question. Can this paper be too long or too short? The answer to this question is obvious. If it is not within the word count limit, you need to work on it once again. Yes, you have to follow this rule because otherwise, your application may not even be considered. It can demonstrate your lack of interest or the ability to write concisely.

The rule is that you have to meet the lower limit. For example, if the instructions state that you should write between 250 and 600 words, make sure that you reach that 250-word mark. On the other hand, when it comes to the max number, you don’t have to meet it, but you have to stay within a 10% difference. If you are required to write 500 words, you can submit a paper that is between 450-500.

How flexible is this?

If you have already written something that doesn’t meet these requirements down to the last detail, you are probably wondering whether you can submit it. First of all, let’s discuss what can happen if you exceed this number. If you have extra 20 words that will probably be okay. However, if it is significantly longer, the admission officer may stop reading it, and you won’t be considered as an applicant.

Furthermore, you have to consider how you will send this document. If you need to email it, it will be fine. On the other hand, if you have to copy/paste it and send it via the college’s platform, there may be an issue. What are we talking about? Well, if this is the case, there probably is a word limit you can include, meaning that you won’t be able to copy the entire text if it has even a few extra of these.

Finally, you also may be perceived as someone how cannot follow the rules, hasn’t mastered the writing skill , and cannot express themselves concisely.

On the other note, no, you should not go under this word range. If it isn’t specifically stated, you can maybe write a shorter essay. Still, you have to learn about the average word count and try to stay within it. If this requirement is clearly indicated, you have to meet it. Otherwise, the admission officer probably won’t even bother reading it, and it will tell them that you are not very enthusiastic about attending their school.

How to adjust it?

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This is another common problem people face. When working on this task, it may seem impossible to conclude it successfully if you have a lot to say, or not enough on the other hand. Still, there are some general tips you should follow, and you can always learn more about these on www.homeworkhelpglobal.com .

The very first thing you can do is go over the essay and look for long sentences. You will surely find a few of these. The easiest way to reduce the word number is to rewrite these. If possible, cut one long sentence into two shorter ones. This way, you will eliminate all the redundant words and make sure the paper clear and easy to read.

Then, read it one more time and check if you have included too many non-essential details. The rule is to avoid these at all cost. Why? Well, you have to write an attention-grabbing story, and these details can easily cause the reader to lose interest and forget about the main message of the essay.

On the contrary, if you didn’t meet the lower limit, you have to include additional details. Think of the way you can make your story appealing. Did you leave out some important information? Are there any essential details that can make your story even better? You should always choose to include these instead of writing lengthy sentences just to meet the word requirement.

The best thing you can do to prevent any of these issues from occurring is first to write the outline of the essay. Brainstorming is a great place to start, and you can even use a mind map. Start with a general idea, and then add supporting details and information. You should also write an outline before you start working on the first draft. This will enable you to have a clear image of how the final draft will look like and the direction you want to go to.

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Does my Common App essay need to be exactly 650 words? Is it OK if it's longer or shorter?

3 answers by expert tutors.

Barbara B. answered • 10/21/19

English Teacher aiding students to successfully complete applications

If your essay is longer than the limit, the application process cuts off the extra words when you submit it. Therefore, colleges will receive an incomplete essay.

Paige F. answered • 10/17/19

The College Essay & Application Guru- Oxford Grad

I've interviewed numerous College Admissions Reps on how to write a strong admissions essay and many have mentioned the importance of adhering to the word limit. It's not okay to exceed the 650 word limit on the common application essay, but your essay can be less than 650 words. Of course, you still need to make sure you've written a complete essay that tells the admissions committee something important about yourself- something not previously mentioned in your application. The essay is a chance for admissions to get to know you as a person not just a resume. Although I'm new to Wyzant, I've spent the last six years coaching students on all aspects of admissions, so I have loads of of other tips to share on writing college essays if you're looking for additional help.

Abby K. answered • 10/16/19

Writing coach/editor with 25 years of experience and MA from Harvard

Your essay must not be longer than 650 words, but it can be shorter. Anything over 500 words is fine, as long as your essay is thoughtful and complete.

If your essay is running short, add relevant details and descriptions that help the reader get a better glimpse of the situation and your personality. Do not add fluffy adjectives, redundancies, or grandiose closing statements such as "Your university will make my dreams come true." This is likely off the topic of your story, and well, it's not memorable because a zillion essays end this way.

If you need help brainstorming topics, revising, or finalizing your essay I'd be glad to help. I'm a published writer wot over ten years of experience tutoring college applicants as well as degrees from the University of Michigan and Harvard.

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Common App Essay: how long is too long?

<p>I have a great draft and it’s 865 words long. Is this too wordy? I feel that everything I’ve written is necessary, and my essay deals with a very layered and significant experience. Still, I don’t want it to initially repel college admissions people with its sheer length. </p>

<p>Also is it ok to include a quote at the beginning of the essay? I found one that captures the essence perfectly and I put it at the top before I dive into the actual essay.</p>

<p>Mine is 500 words. I believe you should just be comfortable with the length of your essay. Does it say everything you want it to say succinctly? If so, I wouldn’t worry.</p>

<p>865 words might be too long. have you had a couple of strong writer/editors review it?</p>

<p>xavier110, i do feel like i’ve said everything i needed to say succinctly. griffen, i have had some strong editors long at it and make their suggestions. they’ve given me very positive feedback on it. but they aren’t high school teachers and aren’t really familiar with the typical length of a college essay. i suppose i can ask my english teacher for help in that regard</p>

<p>Aim for 500-600 words, tops. 865 words can almost always get better with some chopping.</p>

<p>About your quote: this could detract from your essay. Do you weave it in? Do you refer to the quote? If you start with the quote, do you end with some kind of tie-in? Usually I’d say to skip it. Is there a really compelling reason to include it?</p>

<p>I dont think 865 is too long at all. As long as you are not repetitive, and keep the essay interesting to read, it will be just fine. The last thing you want is to bore the admissions officer. But if your essay is better longer, then keep it that way</p>

<p>I didn’t say 865 words was too long, but it usually works out that cutting it down makes a better essay. Oftentimes, what you say in 856 words can be trimmed to 600 words without losing the essence while gaining some pizzazz. Try it. What can you lose (other than a few words?).</p>

<p>BTW, if you didn’t want an opinion, why did you ask?</p>

<p>The issue with my essay is that it’s about a collection of experiences and how they have affected me. It’s almost like a journey I went on, and each part of the essay describes places and topics I’ve explored. I don’t think I can cut it down. I think going into a certain level of detail for each part of the journey is sort of necessary so it doesn’t seem superficial. But I do think it’s interesting longer. The people who I’ve shown it to have hardly had a problem with the length. At the same time, I know that admissions people are pressed for time so I didn’t want to annoy them. I guess then I can do additional supplementary essays a bit shorter? Limabeans - I do refer extensively to the idea the quote conveys, without specifically saying “oh this is just like the quote” if you know what I mean. It’s a pretty unique concept that, interestingly, is from my favorite book… and I DO want your opinion!</p>

<p>all the essays I’ve written have been between 750 and 800 words. I am also prefacing my common app essay with a quote. I feel this is a completely appropriate way to write an essay-- as if your writing is a well-thought-out, structured reaction (or elaboration upon) the idea represented by the quote.</p>

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How to Shorten an Essay To Make It Fit The Set Limit?

EssayEdge > Blog > How to Shorten an Essay To Make It Fit The Set Limit?

Here at EssayEdge, one of the most common requests we receive from customers is to help them shorten an essay so that it meets a set word, character, or page limit. This highlights one of the many challenges posed by admissions essays. Such pieces not only ask you to provide compelling personal information that advances your candidacy, but also often require you do so within 500 words, 5,300 characters, or one single-spaced page.

Despite these limits, students frequently submit essays in excess of the length specified by a particular prompt. They do this for many reasons: they assume that nobody will notice the overage, they assume that nobody will care about the overage, or they assume that if 500 words is good, 1,000 words must be twice as good. Regardless of how it’s justified, exceeding the length limit is virtually never in your interest as an applicant. Part of the challenge posed by an application essay is effectively answering the prompt  within the space allotted.  Even a compelling, original essay has failed that challenge if it takes 800 words when responding to a prompt that asks for no more than 500. Moreover, when reviewing two well written essays, an admissions officer will likely be more impressed by the one that adhered to the length limit than the one that exceeded it.

Bear in mind that an application essay is not a regular writing assignment. It is a test designed to assess many different things, including your ability to follow directions and respect guidelines. If you blatantly ignore a word limit, you’re showing the admissions committee that you did not read the prompt carefully or did not think the word limit mattered. Either way, your chances will not be improved by this initial impression, even if your essay is beautifully written.

If you’re struggling to keep your essay within a set amount of space, take a look at the following tips.

Wordiness.  Because personal essays are almost always limited to a certain number of words, it is vital that you use the allotted space wisely. To do so, make your points in the most concise fashion possible. You may be surprised at how many words you can trim simply by reading your essay with an eye toward avoiding wordiness. Take a look at this convoluted example:

Before:   Bound to a timeless, sacred covenant of marriage, Ethan is cognizant of the significance of remaining loyal to one’s wife and also of the stigma associated with maltreatment of her. Violating this code of ethics invariably results in adverse effects, as is sadly witnessed in the outcome of Ethan Frome.

After:   Bound to a sacred covenant of marriage, Ethan understands what will happen to him if he is disloyal to his wife. Any violation of this code of ethics means disaster, as witnessed in the finale of Ethan Frome.

Though both excerpts say essentially the same thing, the second does so in substantially fewer words. Remember, when space is at a premium, make your points as clear and concise as possible.

Ridiculous vocabulary.  Students often fall into the trap of thinking that big words make good essays. Advanced vocabulary is fine if it comes naturally to the writer, but not when used incorrectly or in an inappropriate context. In addition, an admissions representative will likely be able to tell if you’ve used a dictionary or thesaurus to fill your essay with advanced, obscure expressions. Focus on telling a clear, vivid story rather than using big words and complex constructions.

Trim the fat.  Some words commonly used in application essays contribute nothing to the narrative. These extra words rob prose of energy by making language convoluted and just plain fluffy. The following words and phrases can almost always be cut from an essay.

I believe that, I feel that, I hope that, I think that, I realized that, I learned that, in other words, in order to, in fact, the fact that, it is essential that, it is important to see that, the reason why, the thing that is most important is, this is important because, this means that, the point is that, really, very, somewhat, absolutely, definitely, surely, truly, probably, practically, hopefully, in conclusion, in summary

Also look for subtle redundancies of the “X and Y” variety. A few examples are provided below. In each pair, the two words mean nearly the same thing — so why write both? Such redundancies reveal a lack of thought on the part of the writer.

Need help? Check out EssayEdge editing services:

Focus.  Remember that the essay does not need to capture everything about you. You don’t need to list every extracurricular activity on your resume, nor do you need to try and highlight your leadership, teamwork abilities, compassion, determination, diversity, and creativity all in the same piece. The essay is meant to be a snapshot of one aspect your life, not a documentary film that covers everything. Thus, stay focused on the prompt at hand. Take time to determine what specifically the essay is asking for and then craft a response that clearly responds to that main question.

If your essay is still too long even after trying these, see if a friend, professor, or EssayEdge editor can help you pinpoint areas that can be condensed or even removed. Though it may seem to you like everything in your essay is vital to its overall success, a third party will be able to provide a more objective opinion as to what is important and what is less so. Feedback can be enormously helpful when you’re struggling to shorten an admissions essay, whether you need to cut 50 words or 500.

Basic writing skills are a must for a student. Of course, you can always find professional essay editors online and delegate your work to them. But why not learn how to tackle simple issues by yourself and let experts work on something more complex? Try placing an order on EssayEdge and getting an expert’s advice on possible improvements.

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Why Recent College Graduates Can Feel Let Down

Post-graduation letdown is quite common. why.

Posted May 12, 2024 | Reviewed by Jessica Schrader

• What Is Depression?
• Find a therapist to overcome depression
• The rush of emotion and adrenaline associated with a graduation can lead to a post-event drop in mood.
• Often, graduates have unrealistic goal expectations that a graduation will lead to instant transformation.
• Considering next steps and having a series of goals to accomplish can help prevent issues.

At this time of year, we see lots of happy, eager, and sometimes hard-partying college graduates. Yet, once the commencement ceremonies and parties are over, many college and high school graduates can experience sadness or depression . It can be a troubled state. I call this the “is-that-all-there-is?" feeling.

Here are three key psychological reasons that so many graduates feel let down.

• Post-Event Emotional Decline. In the run-up to graduation, students are excited—experiencing a mix of feelings of anticipation, excitation, and a sense of “light at the end of a long tunnel.” Finishing final exams, planning and rehearsing for the graduation ceremony, and parties and celebrations all serve to keep the graduates running at full speed, with a combination of adrenaline and anticipation. After the graduation, there is a sudden drop in energy and excitement, and the new graduate may experience a sudden letdown that can feel like sadness or depression.
• Unrealistic Goal Expectations . When it comes to planned, major life events, our eyes are on the eventual goal—that long-desired diploma. However, many people have unrealistic and “romantic” expectations that attaining a major life goal will make us feel “transformed” in some way. The problem is that the day after graduation, nothing seems to change. The next day is just like any other, and this can bring you down.
• Neglecting to Consider “What’s Next.” All too often, young graduates fail to set post-graduation plans and goals . People tend to place a laser-like focus on a milestone life goal, such as the completion of a degree, and they don’t set specific, and meaningful, future goals. The inability to look beyond the graduation goal can lead to a sense of emptiness—the is-that-all-there-is effect.

Graduates need to think beyond the immediate goal of degree completion and have an exciting and engaging plan of next steps. Some graduates already have secured jobs, and that anticipation of the challenges of a new career can help fend off post-graduation letdown. Those who are not so fortunate need to turn the uncomfortable sense of insecurity (“What do I do now?”) into a life challenge and create a course of action (as one recent graduate told me enthusiastically “I’m going to move to New York City, couch surf with friends there, and find a great job!”).

It is also important to realize that achieving a major goal, such as completing a college education , and the accompanying sense of excitement and accomplishment may naturally lead to an emotional letdown. Bearing in mind, however, that it will be a temporary state (particularly as sights are set on the next chapter in one’s life) can help one cope effectively.

Ronald E. Riggio, Ph.D. , is the Henry R. Kravis Professor of Leadership and Organizational Psychology at Claremont McKenna College.

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When could you see the northern lights? Aurora forecast for over a dozen states this weekend

Read the latest on the northern lights this weekend: Saturday's forecast says parts of U.S. could see auroras .

A series of strong solar flares that the sun has been emitting since Wednesday morning could cause the northern lights to become visible this weekend to a wide swath of the United States.

The coronal mass ejections (CMEs) hurtling toward Earth prompted the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to issue a rare  Severe (G4) Geomagnetic Storm Watch on Thursday for the first time in 19 years. The geomagnetic storms that the CMEs would produce pose a limited threat to our communications, but they can also trigger the aurora borealis, better known as the northern lights.

And because the sun is at the height of its 11-year-cycle, the auroras have a very good chance of being seen by more Americans than usual .

Here's what to know about the northern lights, and when and where you may catch a glimpse of them this weekend.

Good news on northern lights: Experts predict years of awesome aurora viewing

What are the northern lights?

The auroras are a natural light display in Earth's sky that are famously best seen in high-latitude regions.

The northern lights materialize when energized particles from the sun reach Earth's upper atmosphere at speeds of up to 45 million mph, according to Space.com . Earth's magnetic field redirects the particles toward the poles through a process that produces a stunning display of rays, spirals and flickers that has fascinated humans for millennia.

Geomagnetic storm: Solar storm is powerful enough to disrupt communications: Why NOAA says not to worry

When might the northern lights be most visible?

This week's solar activity brings with it the increased possibility of seeing the aurora across the U.S.

Though the timing is uncertain and the northern lights can be a particularly fickle forecast , officials at NOAA said the coronal mass ejections could reach Earth as early as Friday evening into Saturday, Shawn Dahl, a space weather forecaster at SWPC, told reporters Friday morning during a news briefing.

Experts from NOAA said auroras could be visible into Sunday.

The best aurora is usually within an hour or two of midnight (between 10:00 p.m. and 2:00 a.m. local time). These hours expand towards evening and morning as the level of geomagnetic activity increases, according to NOAA.

Where might the northern lights be best seen in the US?

The northern half of the U.S. is forecasted to be in the view path where the auroras may be most visible.

The best chances appear to be in northern Montana, Minnesota, Wisconsin and the majority of North Dakota, according to SWPC's  experimental Aurora viewline . The visibility for viewing will also depend on local weather conditions and city lights.

Experts at NOAA said the northern lights may even be visible as far south as Alabama and Northern California. If all else fails, experts even recommend taking a photo of the night sky with your cell phone – you never known what you may capture.

"Things that the human eye can't see, your phone can, so it'll be interesting to see just how far south we're getting aurora images this time," said Brent Gordon, Chief of Space Weather Services Branch for SWPC, on the Friday call with reporters.

The National Weather Service on Friday shared an aurora forecast for Friday night and early Saturday morning, showing more than a dozen states with at least a chance to see the lights.

How does the solar maximum influence the northern lights?

Explosive bursts of radiation known as solar flares and coronal mass ejections (eruptions of solar material) drive the geometric storms, releasing solar particles and electromagnetic radiation toward our planet.

As the frequency of coronal mass ejections increases at the height of its 11-year cycle,  which NASA said is expected to be in 2025 , electromagnetic activity on the sun peaks. What that so-called "solar maximum" means for us is that the risk increases for disruption to satellite signals, radio communications, internet and electrical power grids.

'God's Hand' revealed in cosmos: Telescope images reveal 'cloudy, ominous structure' known as 'God's Hand' in Milky Way

Last December , a powerful burst of energy created the largest solar flare that NASA had detected since 2017.

The last G4 level solar storm hit Earth in March , one of only three storms of that severity observed since 2019, according to NOAA's Space Weather Prediction Center .

Just like in March, the upcoming solar storm will have particles flowing from the sun that get caught up in Earth's magnetic field, causing colorful auroras to form as they interact with molecules of atmospheric gases. The resulting glowing green and reddish colors of the aurora may be quite a sight to see.

Contributing: Doyle Rice, USA TODAY

Eric Lagatta covers breaking and trending news for USA TODAY. Reach him at [email protected]

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Your chance of acceptance, your chancing factors, extracurriculars, what's the general structure of the ap seminar course and exam.

I'm considering taking AP Seminar next year, but I'd like to know more about the course structure and exam format. Can anyone give a brief overview of what to expect in this course and how the exam works? Thanks!

AP Seminar is a unique course that focuses on developing students' research, analytical, and interdisciplinary thinking skills. It's part of the AP Capstone™ program, which also includes AP Research, and is designed to help prepare students for college-level research and academic success.

Course Structure:

In AP Seminar, you will undertake several major projects and participate in regular class discussions throughout the year. The course includes exploring various topics, themes, and viewpoints by critically analyzing varied sources. You will work individually and in teams to research, discuss, and synthesize different perspectives, creating evidence-based arguments to demonstrate your understanding. Students will develop and present research projects, honing their oral communication skills too.

Exam Format:

The AP Seminar exam is divided into three main components:

1. Team Project and Presentation (Team PTP): This component constitutes 20% of the overall AP Seminar score. You and your teammates will collaborate on a research project, selecting a theme and crafting a team question or problem based on that theme. You'll then divide the work and carry out research individually before coming together to create a team presentation, addressing various perspectives and implications.

2. Individual Research Report (IRR): Making up 35% of the AP Seminar score, the IRR is a 2,000-word research paper, developed by each student individually. The paper should delve into a topic related to the team project, providing evidence-based arguments and analysis while demonstrating critical thinking and research skills.

3. End-of-Course Exam: The last component, which constitutes 45% of the overall score, is a 2-hour exam typically taken in May. The exam has two main sections, both involving reading, analyzing, and responding to stimulus material, such as articles, infographics, and data sets.

Section 1 (Short Answer Responses): In this section, you'll analyze various sources and write three short, focused responses to questions provided. You'll need to examine, evaluate and synthesize the given information to form evidence-based arguments.

Section 2 (Essay Question): Here, you'll be asked to develop a well-reasoned argument with a strong thesis statement based on provided stimulus material. You'll need to synthesize the information into a coherent essay, incorporating evidence to support your position.

In conclusion, AP Seminar offers a diverse learning experience that diverges from the typical content-specific AP courses. It focuses on honing research, analytical, and presentation skills, which are valuable for college and beyond. Assessments will challenge you to conduct research, work collaboratively, and develop strong arguments through various mediums such as reports, presentations, and timed exams. Good luck!

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