[PDF] Five Ways to Go Wrong in College Essays
Meet Brittany Stinson, an 18-year-old senior at Concord High School in Wilmington, Delaware, who just last week found out she got into Yale, Columbia, University of Pennsylvania, Dartmouth, Cornell, Columbia, and Stanford. What is so special about Stinson, you might ask? Besides the fact she's undoubtedly an excellent student, she wrote her college essay on Costco. Yes, Costco.
First thoughts: It’s aight. I see why she got in places. My biggest negative towards the whole thing was actually how calculated and polished the piece was. Yes, it’s a wacky Costco essay. But to a trained eye, it’s the work of a professional writer expertly crafting a work that will make a student come off well. One of the greatest magic tricks we as consultants play is making it seem like we were never there at all. The much rougher version of this type of essay is the essay I can tell a parent wrote. Those tend to be calculated as hell but never polished and usually really bad. This is a much higher level of touch-up.
Take this as an analysis of what I think goes into a top-tier college essay. As well as the type of feedback and advice I tend to give when doing my editing. Spoiler: It’s a lot more about strategy than talent.
Student Gets Into 5 Ivies With College Essay About Love for Costco
Downvote this all you want. Don't get me wrong, I think it's definitely a GOOD essay, but does it deserve the hype? Probably not, imo. The topic itself is pretty unique (the exploration of Costco and how it relates to the author's own inquisitive nature) which is why I think it stands out--most essays are a variant on some cliche or trope--but the message it sends about Stinson is still somewhat trite and overdone (basically: I love learning and have been a curious person my entire life).
I've been encouraged time and time again to look at the iconic Costco essay for a shining example of what the common app essay/personal statement should look like. This essay has been hailed as the quintessential college essay and has gained a lot of notoriety for its supposedly unparalleled quality and uniqueness.
While on the surface level Stinson’s essay is about Costco, she uses the topic to demonstrate her intellectual curiosity. One of the most memorable lines is, “I contemplated the philosophical: If there exists a thirty-three ounce of Nutella, do we really have free will?”
Within this sentence, Stinson takes a simple object, a jar of Nutella, and uses it to playfully ponder a philosophical question. These kinds of moves suggest that she is a thoughtful, curious person who will ask engaging questions inside and outside of the classroom. They also lead to the final turn of the essay, where Stinson opens up her topic in showing how her experiences in Costco inform who she is as a curious individual even when she’s not shopping for Nutella.
College Essay Costco Ivy League Accepted Student - Refinery29
In response to the essay question, which asks students to share a "background, identity, interest or talent that is so meaningful," their application would be incomplete without it, Stinson described her admiration for America's largest wholesale warehouse — and how "the kingdom of Costco" was symbolic of so much more in her life.
Picking the Best College Essay Topic - Young Prodigy
By now you have probably heard about or read the college essay by high schooler Brittany Stinson detailing how her routine trips to Costco shaped her life and world. In the piece, now , Stinson paints a vivid picture of how wandering up and down the aisles at her favorite big box store inspired her to ponder the addictive nature of Nutella, imagine physics experiments involving 3-pound tubs of sour cream and converse with her father about historical figures who share their aliases with . The essay is clever, warm and highly observant and introspective. If Costco is a kingdom, as Brittany claims, she is currently its reigning Queen. […]
Teaching the College Essay | Edutopia
But Costco is an unexpected and humble route into those topics. While Stinson uses her essay to show off her intellectual curiosity and her writing ability, it is not centered around an event or experience that showcases how brilliant or accomplished she is. Instead, she simply wrote about something she genuinely loved to do, without worrying about the prestige of it.
College Essay about Costco Gets Teen Into Give Ivy Leagues
Not only does Stinson use shopping at Costco to illustrate her intellectual curiosity—in listing her interests and activities, Stinson also explicitly links her topic to the rest of her application. In this way, the essay helps to create an overarching narrative or story about who Stinson is, a story that admissions counselors likely remembered as they reviewed the rest of her materials and moved forward in the admissions process.
college application essay set at Costco
that originally introduced Stinson’s essay to the world framed her success in their title: “This Essay Got a High School Senior Into 5 Ivy League Schools and Stanford.” As a college essay expert and advisor, I would love to be able to tell you that a college essay can get you into the school of your dreams. But the truth is, a wide array of factors are considered in admissions decisions and the essay is just one of them. And media attention that focuses exclusively on students who gain admission to multiple Ivy League Institutions sends the wrong message to students (and parents) about what is important and why they should pay attention to Stinson’s writing.