First draft of my essay, I’m currently a junior and will be applying around November , I have no idea what I’m doing I literally sat down and wrote this 5 minutes ago.

Prompt 1 - Some students have a background, identity, interest, or talent that is so meaningful they believe their application would be incomplete without it. If this sounds like you, then please share your story

Ding ding ding “ROUND ONE” The bell rings, marking the start of another round , but for me the fight started long before stepping into the ring. The world never made sense growing up. I would watch movies about these spectacular lives filled with luxury, as I sat in a one bedroom apartment hearing my parents argue about rent, and frequently telling myself that the loud bang was “just a car.” Why couldn't I go to that nice school, learn that cool hobby, or live in a safer neighborhood? The question plagued my young mind, “why not me?”

Everything felt so out of control in life until I stepped into the ring. There, it was just me. No one cared about my name, my shoes, or my past. In that space, no one knew me, and more importantly, no one could define me. It gave me the opportunity to be self-accountable. No excuses, no one to blame. It was a chance to prove to myself that I was capable not just as a fighter, but as a person. A person capable of hard work. A person capable of success

Coach yells “ROUND TWO.” I get up and focus on the task at hand. At first martial arts was just an escape from all of my struggles, but it quickly became everything to me. It was more than a sport filled with cuts and bruises, it was my chance to grow as a person in a truly equal environment. It was no longer about escaping reality, but instead creating a new one. It taught me to redirect all my fear, self doubt, and anger, into something positive. A new me.

I spent the whole time in the corner critiquing myself instead of resting, but it was this constant self reflection that allowed me to develop a “no excuses” mentality in life. It’s difficult to push yourself with no support. No parents driving you to practice, no friends wishing you good luck, no one to truly fall back on. Maybe these circumstances would have broken most people but for me, they were the best thing that ever happened. It allowed me to try my best for myself, not to impress anyone else, but instead for my own personal growth.

“ROUND THREE”. The stress is overwhelming, the weight of my future drags my hands down. A sharp pain engulfs my jaw. I lost focus. “TEN” I can't believe I let that happen. “NINE” I struggle to get up. “EIGHT” I remembered something I had read. “SEVEN” What separated the average champion from the greats was their legacy. “SIX” I wasn't just fighting for myself. “FIVE” I was fighting for the little girl in the neighborhood whose brother just got arrested. “FOUR” I was fighting for the homeless father who just lost his job. “THREE” I was fighting for the teenager contemplating their self worth on what could be their last day. “TWO” I was fighting to change the world. “ONE, ARE YOU READY?” “YES COACH!”

Ding ding ding The bell rings, marking the end of today’s sparring. I take a minute to reflect. I’ve come a long way, not just in the gym but in life. Martial arts gave me the tools to navigate challenges, but it also helped me understand that life is about more than just what you accomplish. It’s about the person you become along the way. I take my gloves off, but I hear another bell. I realize that the fight doesn’t end with the final bell. It continues in every choice I make, every step I take toward my goals. I was going to take that mentality everywhere whether it was on the floor of a world championship fight, an all nighter in my dorm room, or in the testing room of my final exam.

While I couldn't see into the future there was one thing I was fully sure about. No matter what happened in my life, I Would Not Quit.

Draft 1

A gun to my side on the bus. A break-in at my home, just me and my little brother inside. I still ask myself why those two men didn’t just pull the trigger if all they wanted was to leave me with memories that will traumatize me forever. Why leave me with the fear that follows me on my way home every day? Why make me feel unsafe in the one place that’s supposed to be my haven, my home?

 They got to live their lives. And I was just a kid wondering if I’d live to see tomorrow. Wondering if my little brother would be okay. Wondering why me?

Maybe it was because I already lived with severe fear, anxiety, no confidence, this aching belief that I had no talent, no real purpose. Or maybe it was because this wasn’t the first time I had a gun pointed at me, not by strangers  but by my mother.

Ever since I graduated 8th grade, she’s said it repeatedly: “You’re going to be the first of us to make it. You’ll go to college. Do this for your brothers. For me.” I didn’t understand the weight of those words until I was in high school, drowning in expectations. First-gen. College-bound. The one to break the cycle. I wasn’t just carrying books. I was carrying my whole family’s hope and it was heavy.

How could I be the one when all I saw in the mirror was someone who wasn’t enough? No confidence. No talent. Just constant self-doubt having the gun to my head whispering, “You’ll never make it.”

Then I found debate.

At first, I thought it’d be another thing I’d fail at. I started later than most. I only had two years to learn what others had been doing for years. I felt small. Unintelligent. But something was different this time.

I didn’t let go. Even when I wanted to, even when anxiety gripped me so tight I could barely breathe before rounds. I stayed. I pushed. My coaches and teammates believed in me when I couldn’t. Slowly, I started to believe in myself too. I went from feeling like an outsider to making out rounds, placing in the top 16, and eventually becoming state champion. In my second year, I became captain.

For once, I felt powerful. Like I’d taken that gun I’d been holding to my head and reloaded it — not with fear, but with passion, ambition, confidence. I pulled the trigger, and instead of destroying me, it awakened something new.

But even then, the pressure didn’t stop. My mom still held her gun to my head, threatening to take debate away if I didn’t do better in school. Pushing me, pressuring me, telling me I had to succeed because she never got the chance.

Eventually, I stopped letting her fear shape my future. I didn't wanna be shackled to school books, tests, and Lectures. I wanted to live and make the most of highschool, and debate was my way of doing that

I started living for myself. I picked up a new Gun. not of violence but of power: my voice. Debate gave me that. It gave me a future I couldn’t see before, a self I never thought I could become.

Maybe I’m just another statistic to you. Just another kid with a rough story.

But to me? I’ve changed everything. I may not have the perfect SAT score or GPA, but  I’ve lived the hell out of high school. In my last few years. Traveling the world. Making friends from different states. Spending the summer on college campuses for debate camp, and making my coaches, teammates and even myself proud. I took my miserable life, and I’ve built something new out of pain. And now, I’m ready to take this version of me to Texas A&M.

Draft 2

 Gun to my side on the bus. Break-in at my home, I still wonder why those men didn’t just pull the trigger if they were going to leave me scarred, afraid to ride the bus. Afraid to sleep in my house, why not just finish the job?

That’s the thing about guns. Sometimes they don’t go off but still strike something into you.

Ever since then, I’ve been trying to live with the sound of a silent shot. I ask myself, why me? Why was I the one left behind to carry this fear? Why did they get to walk away, while I was left stuck in that moment, body shaking, heart racing, wondering: Am I going to die? Why me?

Maybe because that wasn’t the first time I was held at gunpoint.

I’ve felt the cold press of the barrel before. Not made of metal, but pressure. Not from strangers, but from home. From the moment I graduated 8th grade, my mom loaded the chamber with expectations: “You’re going to be the first to make it out. You’re going to college. For your brothers. For me.”

I didn’t know that those words came with their own kind of trigger.

I didn’t understand that “making it” meant carrying the weight of being a first-gen student,. That I was supposed to aim higher than anyone before me but how? when I didn’t even believe in myself. I walked through HighSchool with a gun to my head every day, not from anyone else, but from within: You’re not good enough. You don’t matter. You’ll never make it. Click. Click. Click.

Every day, the pressure built inside and out. At home, at school, in my mind. It felt like I was constantly dodging bullets I couldn’t even see. Expectations. Doubts. Fears. I kept my head down, hoping to survive another day.

And then one day, I stumbled into the debate room.

I didn’t walk in thinking it would save me. Honestly, I thought it’d be another place where I wouldn’t measure up, where I’d hear more voices, and shrink back like always. I thought it was just another bullet, another chance to fail. I started late. I was lost. Everyone seemed smarter and faster. But debate didn’t give me a way to hide. It handed me a mic and dared me to speak.

 Something about standing up, speaking out, and thinking hard and fast made it feel like grabbing the gun back, like maybe, for once, I could choose where to aim it.

I reloaded the clip not with fear, but with purpose. I pulled the trigger. And this time, the shot didn’t wound me, it woke me up.

I got Better with every round, loss, and shaky speech. My coaches and teammates saw something in me I didn’t, and eventually, I saw it, too. I made it to the out-rounds of almost every tournament, the top 16,  state champion, and then captain.

For the first time, the gun wasn’t something I was running from, it was something I’d learned to carry. Not as a weapon to destroy myself, but a symbol of my power. My voice. My control.

But at home My mom still raised that same pressure cocked and loaded. “Do better or I’ll take debate away.”  “Do better than I ever could”. The barrel was still against my head.

But something had changed.

I didn’t flinch this time. I stopped letting her fear pull the trigger on my future. I stopped being a target. I started being the one aiming not to hurt, but to build. To choose.

Now I’m the one holding it. And I’ve learned where to aim it. Not at my head but. Toward something better. Toward (Texas A&M), where I can keep building this version of myself: not a victim, not a statistic — but a survivor who finally took the safety off his potential.

Hi , I am applying to UIUC CS+Ling program as a transfer was wondering if someone can please look over my essay would really appreciate it.

I’m applying to a DNP program. My admission essay has to answer 5 questions. 1. How did I decide I was ready for doctoral study. 2. Describe exposure to APRNs. 3. Describe career goals after DNP completion. 4. Describe involvement in leadership, quality improvement program evaluation or intra-professional collaboration. 5. Describe a time I was under significant pressure to complete a task. Looking for anyone who is willing to read and review my essay! Thanks!

1540 SAT, international student applying for engineering, my school doesn’t do gpa(I go to a British curriculum international school) or class rank, but when I submitted my school transcript they were all A’s(highest for as level). Like I get that I got rejected from ivies and <20-30% ar schools that were my target but like I also got waitlisted from a 50% ar school and only got into a 80% ar one.

Extracurriculars(a summary)

-I was maths club senior leader which was basically vice president(2 yrs and raised 500 dollars annually via pi day bake sales, pi day poster contests and pi day arcade games) -soccer player(3 yrs) -study group for 4 yrs(shared a 50 page google docs summarizing the entire economics textbook for my classmates + tutored a junior to bump her grade from c—>a* IGCSE) -internship fixing airplane parts at an engineering firm(2 weeks only) -internship at a hotel baking, cleaning and organizing data(1 month only) -coaching assistant for both U11 and U14 soccer teams -helped found an 11-a-side soccer club with other international schools(around 40 ppl total) with our own jersey designs and social media -newspaper club(2 years)

Awards( a summary)

-got both distinction and school highest medal twice for the Waterloo international maths competition, and a silver medal at AMC(not American it’s some Cambodian regional maths test) -won first at a league, second at a tournament and first at another tournament (all around 7 teams in total and all regional level) -school level economics excellence award x2 -school level award for newspaper club

I will admit, there were definitely some things I could have done about my extracurriculars which I thought was my weakest point—> being more involved in newspapers club and gaining a leadership position like chief editor, and also I could have submitted the monthly newspaper/magazine articles as a supplement which was my bad for forgetting, and also being captain of soccer team. I could have gone for student council too and year book committee.

TLDR: I think, considering my stats and ecs, my college decisions were kinda unfair(except for like ivies and single digit ar, I’m not that delusional). Is anyone willing to review my essays, sorry for the long message.

TW: Teen Suicide

Yesterday, one of my students lost a close friend suddenly. The student was a senior. While the cause of death has not been officially confirmed, the community is treating it as a possible suicide.

I don’t think it’s a coincidence that this happened on a day filled with big college news—a time of high highs for a select few and low lows for many others. As counselors, teachers, advisors, family members, and friends, we often see the excitement on the surface. But it’s important to remember how much can be hidden behind strong transcripts, sculpted activity lists, and carefully curated application stories.

For students reading this, please remember that no decision—college or otherwise—defines your worth. You are more than what any application portal tells you. If you are feeling overwhelmed, you’re not alone, and you’re not a burden for speaking up. There are people who care about you and want you to succeed and live happy lives.

And for adults—especially those of us who work closely with teens and for some, our own kids—this is a painful reminder to slow down, check-in, and be present. Most of us might not be therapists, but we are trusted adults. We have the power to model rest, to hold space for hard conversations, and to remind families that emotional well-being matters just as much as academic success. Sometimes we’re the only ones in a student’s life who say, “It’s okay to take a break,” or “You don’t need to have it all figured out.”

So please: stay vigilant. Say something if you see something. Check-in even when things seem fine. That little extra effort might mean more than we know.

My heart goes out to the family and community grieving this loss. I hope they find peace, as we carry forward with care and compassion.

I’m writing an appeal letter to umich can someone read it please

Sorry if this is the wrong subreddit, but I figured everyone is almost done with college application questions so now is a good time as ever to ask. I need to write a short (300ish) word essay for a criminal justice program. It is through my county and seems to be fairly non competitive, but I would really like to maximize my chances of being accepted. I don’t have a “passion” for law nor have I wanted to do it for a long time, but I am interested in it, albeit not particularly in criminal justice (they do not need to know this). I’m thinking about writing in my faith in human nature and a little bit about overcoming some challenges, and I know it sounds corny but I’m generally a strong writer. I would love suggestions on what to touch on and how to make it compelling while still being applicable to the subject. This might be too vague, but any help is appreciated!

Hi! I'm currently trying to appeal for a college rejection for personal challenges that was not disclosed earlier. I would like to ask for an outsider perspective because everyone I could have asked (incl. school counselor) was actively involved in the said situation. Thank you! Leave a comment and I will dm it to you.

Hi, I would like someone to take a quick 5 minute look to this essay. It was for Code in Place, Stanford application. I will be writing my actual college application essays soon. So I wanted to know if there are any irrelevant stuff here, and I want to expand the possible ideas I can include on my college application essays. Thank you for reading and responding in advance!
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1AQQvtomq80bmMSg5QtTka5bcgFirCZ9QBDTc0-2Yom8/edit?usp=sharing

for the prompt: Some students have a background, identity, interest, or talent that is so meaningful they believe their application would be incomplete without it. If this sounds like you, then please share your story.

I literally wrote this an hour ago and have been over it maybe once, just looking for early feedback before i get attached to this version at all.

what do you guys use for college essays - any recs?

I am applying for a scholarship from my dream school and it asked 5 short essay questions with a word limit of 300 each. I have it prepared I would just like to have some feedback on it. If anyone could help that would be much appreciated.

i'm open to hearing any feedback on my essay that can help me word it better! any help is greatly appreciated!

Hie everyone! I have been stucked in this question for days now and still i am unable to come up with anything. So I was wondering how you guys would approach this question. Please help me out.

hi! so i am class of 2027 (i feel so old) but i applied to like 30 colleges and that was a loOOOOt of essays.

currently at a t20, so it worked out (yay!) but WOW that process was gruelling it still haunts me. i wanna create something that makes the process of writing 50 billion essays (about your own self) easier and smoother and not so exhausting (i know its vague but pls humor me)

i wanna ask yall WHAT DID YOU WANT when you were writing essays, what is something anything you wished you had with you to help you out i am gonna build it I WANNA HELP 😤

GOOD LUCK and THANK U  💖 💖 💖 

I applied early as freshman to reed. I received they've waitlisted me? What should i do now, its around april and they said they will start reviewing waitlist candidates on april. I wanna increase my chances of getting admitted. What should i do?

I have a 500 word essay I need help editing! If anyone is able to please let me know.

Would anyone be willing to review my common app essay?

lmk, thanks!

Hey!
I'm currently a senior this year and finished the 2025 application season. I got admitted early to schools like Yale, UMiami, Penn State BS/MD, etc and am currently waiting for my RD's (please someone take me). Rn (since senioritiis is kicking into high gear and applications are done) am looking to help out others! This subreddit helped me alot the past couple months so if you have any questions feel free to drop a question or pm me.

I'm applying for college in a year and I want to get a headstart on my college essay. I chose common app prompt 3 but I'm worried it's not very good. I just need someone to review and look over it & give brutally honest feedback.

Hi everyone,

I am writing a transfer essay for Boston college and would like to get some feedback. If anyone has experience and is willing to read it and give reed back it will be greatly appreciated.

Not exactly a college essay but I have some essays/supplements I did and I need help looking over them! Please let me know if anyone is available to give me feedback.

Lmk if you want to critique my Common App essay. It's not long, only two and half paragraphs really. Be as honest as possible.