What is college essay advising, and why do applicants benefit from it?
Let’s back up.
I call my work college essay advising, but I actually guide students through the entire college application process (more on this later). Parents, of course, are guiding too, so I’ll start with them.
Parents are talking with their teenagers about post-high school plans, and these conversations are crucial. Invested in their children’s road to adulthood, parents have details and data points that inform their advice. I appreciate parents’ perspectives, especially because I know the early years are the most important, and parents have the goods on this. They can see far in the rearview mirror, and I want to know what they’re looking at. I listen to parents describe their children’s journey as they explain their children’s gifts, quirks, struggles, and breakthroughs. In more ways than one, parents lay the foundation for my work with their children.
Candidly, I’m more of a closer. I meet students when they’re mostly formed (I love this time in a person’s life.), and I use what I’ve learned from parents to individualize my collaboration with their child. Lucky me, I glide in, slipping right by the tension. I’m not enmeshed, and this is gold.
So what is college essay advising?
In short, college essay advising means helping applicants write their most authentic and compelling personal narratives. This kind of advising requires my openness and enthusiasm. This isn’t hard: I’m not judgemental, and I’m easily excited. And as college essay writers tell me their stories, I ask probing questions and connect the dots. I both follow the writer’s lead while escorting them where they need to go. I ricochet back and forth — ahead, behind, ahead, behind — and they rarely notice me bouncing.
For an even deeper explanation: college essay advising means extracting an applicant's most searing thoughts and distilling them to their essence. It’s chemistry, really. Together, we explore the applicant’s uncommon (and common) experiences and cook up ways to tell these tales directly to the reader’s heart. We consider the applicant’s most valuable attributes and what they should spotlight. While we discuss what makes them tick, I take detailed notes on a shared document so the writer can watch their ideas take shape on the page. I help college essay writers discover themes, pull through threads, and draw connections.
In the end, I help each college applicant stand apart.
Why do applicants benefit from college essay advising?
Because one-on-one attention works. You know it, I know it, and they know it. It’s the same reason why students benefit from clarinet lessons or math tutoring or personal training or therapy. Private lessons, private sessions, private conversations. The magic is at the intersection of private space and one-on-one feedback. At this crossroad is where our young people write their very best college applications.
Why does my service not end with college essays?
Comprehensive college counseling happens organically when discussing college essays, and I am about doing what is natural. I know after 30+ years of teaching that my superpowers are writing instruction and communicating with teenagers, so that’s where my services distinguish themselves. I listen to their voices and help them tap into their one-of-a-kind outlook. I help students discover how they want to share their stories and how to write with courage and honesty. I insist they write the best college applications possible, and along the way, I act as a resource, sounding board, master organizer, and sage guide.
So, yes, my services do not end with college essays. In fact, my services never end. I have past clients still texting me as they decide which college to choose, what strategies to use in their appeal letters, who they should contact with their queries, and just about anything else you can imagine. I never abandon a client. It’s just not in my nature.
photo credit @charlesetoroma
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