Hi, Reader! Quick story. Every summer for the past five years, I’ve gone to Texas A&M to run essay workshops for aspiring Aggies. When I head up there on Tuesday for this year's workshop, things will be different: A&M just added four new required essay prompts, which means more students than ever will be writing essays they’ve never seen before, without much guidance on what A&M is actually looking for. Here's me a few years ago on campus. Students often show up with ideas already — which is...
4 days ago • 2 min read
Hi, Reader! Here's something I see a lot, especially as deadlines draw closer: a student finishes a draft and shares it with everyone they trust. Mom, dad, older sibling at Duke, favorite English teacher, piano teacher, the family friend who went to a good school 30 years ago. But here's the problem: Two weeks later, the student has six sets of notes, a lot of confusing feedback, and an essay that sounds like nobody. (Check out this video from the College Essay Guy on the risks of getting too...
5 days ago • 3 min read
Hi, Reader! For the past five summers, I’ve run live essay workshops on the Texas A&M campus for aspiring Aggies — all focused on the written pieces of the application (including supplemental essays) A&M requires. A few years ago, but this is me every year on campus! This year, the stakes are a little higher. A&M just added four new required essay prompts to their application. That means more to write and more chances to get it right — if you're ready. Here’s something I’ve noticed over my...
9 days ago • 1 min read
Hi, Reader! Last week, I helped my daughter move into her first post-college apartment. There were lots of feelings. Pride, mostly (both of us). Some tears (happy and sad). Several trips up and down an elevator with boxes and suitcases that weighed more than anyone expected. She was so excited, and rightfully so. Watching her step into her next chapter made me think about all the rising seniors right now, standing at the edge of their own adventure that's not too far off. Often, I hear the...
18 days ago • 2 min read
Hi, Reader! I fancy myself fairly tech-savvy, but I've learned that prompt engineering isn't my strong suit. I've been playing around a little with Claude Cowork to do things like help me keep my calendar of webinars and deadlines current. But getting Claude to accurately create what's percolating inside my brain? The output just never seems to quite match my vision. It's even worse if I ever have it take a first pass at writing something for me. It tries, but it invariably falls flat. I...
about 1 month ago • 3 min read
Hi, Reader! Last week, my son's school was one of thousands affected by the Canvas LMS data breach. The timing was brutal — right in the middle of finals week. For 24 hours, many students couldn't access assignments, grades, or announcements. Teachers couldn't submit feedback. The entire system that schools and students had come to depend on was suddenly gone. It forced an uncomfortable question: What happens when the tech we rely on fails? We're more dependent on these systems than we...
about 2 months ago • 3 min read
Hi, Reader! We hit a huge milestone this week: May 1. If you're a current senior who committed to a school — congratulations. That's a big decision, and you made it. Go celebrate. For everyone else, May 1 is a quieter kind of milestone. The season is shifting. AP exams are wrapping up, and finals are just around the corner ... as is summer! And if you're a rising senior, the countdown timer on your own essay season has just about started. So let me ask you something — and I mean this as an...
about 2 months ago • 3 min read
Hi, Reader! April is almost over, which means summer is closer than it feels — and the college prep clock is ticking (although admittedly a little louder for some of you than others). To help turn "to do" into "done," I put together a quick grade-by-grade checklist of what's most useful to do right now and over the next few months. Find your grade (or your student's), and take it one step at a time. 9th Graders Start building a summer reading list. Fiction, nonfiction, whatever you'll...
2 months ago • 4 min read
Hi, Reader! Spring is one of my favorite times of year in this work — not because things slow down (although I do love catching up on TV and hobbies), but because I'm seeing the students who want to have a smooth application season start to think about how they can make that happen. And, of course, planning out their main essay (also called the Common App essay or the Personal Statement) is a big part of having that smooth season. Here’s the truth about the college essay: it doesn’t write...
2 months ago • 3 min read