Hey everyone! I'm a junior applying to Swarthmore next year, and I was wondering if anyone has any tips on how to make my Swarthmore specific essays stand out? What should I definitely include or avoid in my essay?
Hello! It's exciting that you're considering Swarthmore for your college journey. Luckily for you, CollegeVine has a blog post breaking down Swarthmore's supplemental essays: https://blog.collegevine.com/how-to-write-the-swarthmore-college-essays. By referring to this guidance, you can be sure that you're putting your best foot forward at this excellent institution.
Do keep in mind that Swarthmore's prompts may change for the 2024-2025 applications cycle, so I'd advise against actually starting to write until August 1st, 2024, when the prompts for next year will be officially released. You don't want your hard work to go to waste if the prompts change!
Finally, remember that CollegeVine offers both a free peer essay review service and paid reviews by expert college admissions advisors. Next year, once you have a working draft, considering utilizing one or both of these resources, as sometimes a look by a second, more objective set of eyes is just the thing your essay needs to go from good to great.
Good luck!
CollegeVine’s Q&A seeks to offer informed perspectives on commonly asked admissions questions. Every answer is refined and validated by our team of admissions experts to ensure it resonates with trusted knowledge in the field.