Synergy re How to Write a Great Application Essay

How to Write a Great Application Essay

Sing your own song in your own true voice.

协同 配合 = 1 + 1 》2

Patent pending 2011.

This Ppt was created by:

Ned Boudreau, founder & president, Synergy Educational Services LLC, a college advisory firm in Shanghai.

协同 配合 = 1 + 1 》2  Go to www.synergyedu-usa.com Patent pending 2011.

Ned Boudreau * Boston College: B.A. summa cum laude in Philosophy * Northeastern University: graphic arts * Harvard University: marketing * Southern New Hampshire University: M.Sc. in Development Economics • 20 years in U.S. corporate sector (marketing) • 2+ years in Africa * 8 years teaching in Shanghai Patent pending 2011.

Ned Boudreau    

Authored 100+ published works Award-winning creative director Languages: German, French Countries lived in:  England, Sweden, Germany, Israel, Ghana (West Africa), now China

Patent pending 2011.

Synergy Educational Services LLC Synergy is a legal entity incorporated and registered in the state ofDelaware, USA. (Delaware State File Number: 50117-41) Mission: to provide informed, appropriate advice regarding colleges in the U.S. or U.K., as well as to provide native-level editorial services. Synergy guides students through the entire college application process, and ensures that essays and personal statements are polished to a professional level. Patent pending 2011.

Students admitted to:         

Harvard Stanford Columbia Cornell Duke PENN Northwestern U of Chicago + Rice, Vanderbilt and many other Top 100 universities and colleges

Patent pending 2011.

1st rule re: Application Essays  Do not go over the maximum word count  Not by a single word

 At the SH Educational Fair last year, I asked admissions officers this question: “What about long statements of purpose and personal essays?”

Patent pending 2011.

Their replies: 

Anyone dumb enough to write beyond the word count is too dumb for our school.

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Students who cannot follow the most basic rules are not likely to obey other rules. Long essays go right into the REJECT folder.

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Exceeding the word count is a type of cheating. If students cheat on word count, they’ll probably cheat on other essays or tests. I put long essays directly into the REJECT pile.

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So! Rule #1 about PS or SP essays: Don’t ever go over the word count. Full stop.

Patent pending 2011.

Rule #2: Personalize  Use the word “you” in your essay  Refer to specific Professors and their research  Tell the Application Committee why you hope and intend to study with those professors  Go to the school’s website and research

 We will come back to this when I show you a real SP Patent pending 2011.

Rule #3: Customize  Refer to the specific department and to the school  This is true for letters of recommendation, too

 Will show you how when we look at a real essay Patent pending 2011.

Tell how you will add value . . .  . . . To your program, the department, and to campus  Will show you how

Patent pending 2011.

Above all (this is Truth #4)  Do not imitate or model your SP or essays on someone else’s.  Speak/write with your own voice in your own words; tell your own story. Patent pending 2011.

Truth #4, continued Admissions reps will know the difference between your SP and a copied idea  They’ve heard and seen all the major “models” on the various websites and chat sites where Chinese students swap info and tips.  And don’t let your teachers copy a standard or form letter of recommendation.

Patent pending 2011.

Special note re: Letters of Recommendation  In 2009, the school where I taught brought in an American consultant to speak about recommendation letters.  She had been an Admissions Rep and Director at top U.S. schools (UConn, Yale)  She used my letters of recommendation as handouts.  I write the best, most powerful rec letters in the known universe.  Go to synergyedu-usa.com to read samples. Patent pending 2011.

So! On to a real SP  Note:  The client’s name has been changed because he does not want to lose

Face or be embarrassed.

Patent pending 2011.

Remember:

Sing your own song in your own voice. 协同 配合 = 1 + 1 》2

Patent pending 2011.

Before I say Good night . . .  I would like to say thank you to Gavin Lee, our host and the Director of the PR Club.  And special thanks to Fred Li, who helped organize this presentation.

Patent pending 2011.

Best wishes & best success  Thank you

 Questions? (changing majors?)  协同 配合 = 1 + 1 》2 

Go to www.synergyedu-usa.com Patent pending 2011.