College counselor Brenda Poznanski says the best way for students to sell themselves is their college essay. “Polish that application essay,” she writes. “It’s the most important way to sell yourself to the college of your dreams.”
“It’s the piece of the application that stops them in their tracks,’’ she goes on. “These kids are not used to writing about themselves. They’re used to writing about something. You answer questions for history. You write an essay for English based on what you think the writer was trying to say. You’re not writing from the inside out. You’re writing from the outside in. It’s a really different type of writing at the most critical juncture.”