Having worked with seniors on more application essays than I care to remember, I'm always amused to see what level of thought (or lack thereof) aspiring college frosh are putting into their personal statements. That's why I got such a big kick out of Bloopers from College Admissions Essays, billed as "Bloopers from College Admission Essays From Chicken Soup for the Soul: Teens Talk Growing Up."
As the article notes:
<p><em>Caught up in the hurly-burly, helter-skelter and hugger-mugger of college applications, a student aspiring to enter Bates College once wrote, "I am in the mist of choosing colleges." The admissions departments at Bates and Vassar Colleges have compiled a list of bloopers from their admissions essays: </em></p><h2>Here are a few examples:</h2><p>- If there was a single word to describe me, that word would have to be "profectionist."</p><p>- I was abducted into the national honor society.</p><p>- In my senior year, I am serving as writting editor of the yearbook.</p><p>- I want to be bilingual in three or more languages.</p><p>- I have made the horror role every semester.</p><p>- I want a small liberal in the northeast part of the country.</p><p>- Bates is a college I can excell in.</p><p>- I am writing to tell you that I was very discouraged when I found out that I had been differed from Bates.</p><p>- I am thinking of possibly transferring to your college. I applied as an undergraduate but was weight listed.</p><p>- I first was exposed through a friend who attends Vassar.</p><p>- I would love to attend a college where the foundation was built upon women.</p><p>- My mother worked hard to provide me with whatever I needed in my life, a good home, a stale family and a wonderful education.</p><p>- Playing the saxophone lets me develop technique and skill which will help me in the future, since I would like to become a doctor.</p><p>There's more, if you care to keep laughing. However, if you would like to see what truly excellent college application essays look like, check out my <a href="http://www.collegeconfidential.com/college_admissions/sample_college_essays.htm" target="_blank">real-life examples</a> on <a href="http://www.collegeconfidential.com/" target="_blank">College Confidential</a>.</p><p>Essays are no laughing matter, though. One more suggestion for all you aspiring applicants: Get <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Writing-College-Application-Essay-Acceptance/dp/0064637220/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1242996600&sr=1-1" target="_blank">Harry Bauld's great little book</a> on essays. You can see what I think of it <a href="http://www.collegeconfidential.com/college_books/college_essay.htm" target="_blank">here</a>.</p><p>Regardless of how you approach the task of writing your college application essays, please . . . don't become a star on America's Funniest Essay Mistakes. That's one show that's been running entirely too long.</p>
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