If your college essay is too long, it is advisable to edit and condense the content, focusing on the most relevant and impactful information to stay within the specified word limit and maintain reader engagement.
Now let’s take a closer look
If your college essay turns out to be too long, it is essential to edit and condense the content. This will help you stay within the specified word limit while maintaining reader engagement.
Editing your essay involves carefully reviewing each paragraph and sentence to identify areas that can be made more concise or eliminated altogether. Here are some steps you can follow:
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Identify the key points: Determine the main ideas you want to convey in your essay. These are the crucial elements that should remain in your final draft.
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Remove repetitive information: Look for any redundant sentences or paragraphs that convey the same message. Trim them down or eliminate them to streamline your essay.
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Use strong and concise language: Edit your sentences to make them more succinct and impactful. Eliminate any unnecessary words or phrases that do not contribute to the overall meaning.
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Focus on the most relevant information: Ensure that every sentence and paragraph aligns with your main thesis statement and supports your overall argument. Anything that is not directly related can be removed to help reduce the length of your essay.
Now, let’s infuse this information with an insightful quote on writing and a list of interesting facts:
Quote: “The trouble with so many of us is that we underestimate the power of simplicity.” – Robert Stuberg
Interesting facts about editing and writing concisely:
1. On average, college admissions officers spend only a few minutes reviewing an individual application, including the essay.
2. Adhering to word limits is important as it shows your ability to communicate effectively within given constraints.
3. Concise writing helps improve clarity and enhances the overall readability of your essay.
4. Effective editing demonstrates your attention to detail and commitment to presenting your ideas clearly.
5. Many renowned authors, including Ernest Hemingway, were known for their concise and direct writing styles.
6. The use of clear and concise language can make your essay more memorable and impactful to the readers.
7. Contrary to popular belief, longer essays don’t necessarily impress readers more than concise and well-structured ones.
And finally, including a table might not be practical within this text-based format. However, you can create an accompanying visual aid to support your essay, illustrating data, or key points in a separate document or presentation if it pertains to your topic.
Remember, by editing your college essay and focusing on the most relevant information, you can overcome the challenge of length and make sure your message comes across effectively within the given word limit.
See the answer to “What if my college essay is too long?” in this video
In “The Rise of the ‘Trauma Essay’ in College Applications”, Tina Yong discusses the harmful phenomenon of high school students feeling pressure to share their deepest traumas in their college applications in hopes of standing out to admissions counselors. This approach risks reinforcing existing inequities in higher education and doesn’t actually help applicants process their trauma. Yong suggests that universities be more transparent about admissions guidelines and restructure prompts to focus on students’ goals for the future and academic interests, while also encouraging applicants to remember that they are more than their trauma and find their own voice to tell their story.
Other responses to your inquiry
If you go substantially past the word limit, you risk having your essay cut off by an online application form or having the admissions officer just not finish it. And if you’re too far under the word limit, you may not be elaborating enough.
How to shorten your essay
- Stay on the main point It’s good to use vivid imagery, but only include relevant details. Cut any sentences with tangents or unnecessary information. Bad example: Too many tangents
If your essay is extra long because you want admission officials to understand the atypical obstacles you’ve surmounted, and if you’re convinced that you can’t do this in 650 words, then consider disclosing these issues in the “Additional Information" section of your application or in a separate, unsolicited essay or letter.
Pay careful attention to your professor’s recommendations re: essay length. One term I had to grade over 1,000 essays. Imagine yourself in this situation. How happy would you be if even one student went only 100 words over the stated limit? Believe me; you would be furious! Take the advice of your professor. If he/she wants 1,000 words, don’t give 15,000 words…Some students think they are so interesting that we want to read every word they have written. We are interested, but not interested enough to read an essay where the writer simply doesn’t know when to stop writing. Sorry if I sound kind of rude on this question, but I have taught at the tertiary level for over 40 years, and have had physical injuries – such as tennis elbow in my wrist; frozen shoulder; muscles that ached for weeks after grading essays. Have mercy on your instructors and follow their suggestions! I’ve known instructors who have done word counts and simply failed students who go over the limit. Hope you don’t get …
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- Delete your three Worst Paragraphs.
- Use Google Translate or Microsoft Excel to Read your Paper out Loud.
- Re-Read the Marking Criteria.
- Shorten Paragraphs over 6 Sentences Long.
- Delete Irrelevant Words.