Your Presenters

1. Communicating Their Stories: Strategies to Help Underrepresented Students Write Powerful College Application and Scholarship Essays

2. Your Presenters • Valerie Gregory, Associate Dean of Admission and Director of Outreach, University of Virginia • Rebecca Joseph, Professor, California State University, Los Angeles; and College Access Expert, Get Me To College • Evan Read, Educational Advisor, Jack Kent Cooke Foundation • Calvin Wise, Senior Associate Director of Admissions, Johns Hopkins University

3. What Colleges Look For…

4. The Common Application

5. Current CA 2015-2017 Prompts Some colleges require submission of the personal essay with your Common Application. You may submit a personal essay to any college, even if it is not required by that college. If not required by a college, you will be given the option during submission to include your essay or not for that college. The essay demonstrates your ability to write clearly and concisely on a selected topic and helps you distinguish yourself in your own voice. What do you want the readers of your application to know about you apart from courses, grades, and test scores? Choose the option that best helps you answer that question and write an essay of no more than 650 words, using the prompt to inspire and structure your response. Remember: 650 words is your limit, not your goal. Use the full range if you need it, but don't feel obligated to do so. (The application won't accept a response shorter than 250 words.) 250-650 Words (2015-2016 percentages) 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. (49%) 2. The lessons we take from failure can be fundamental to later success. Recount an incident or time when you experienced failure. How did it affect you, and what did you learn from the experience? (17%) 3. Reflect on a time when you challenged a belief or idea.  What prompted you to act? Would you make the same decision again. (4%) 4. Describe a problem you’ve solved or a problem you’d like to solve. It can be an intellectual challenge, a research query, an ethical dilemma-anything that is of personal importance, no matter the scale. Explain its significance to you and what steps you took or could be taken to identify a solution. (10%) 5. Discuss an accomplishment or event, formal or informal, that marked your transition from childhood to adulthood within your culture, community, or family. (22%)

6. Each College’s Additional Essays Differ

7. Johns Hopkins University

8. JHU: Common App + 1 Writing Supplemental Essay Member Questions: Activities If you wish to submit your résumé, you may upload it here.
 2015-2016 John Hopkins University Writing Supplement For both Freshman and Transfer Applicants Johns Hopkins University was founded in 1876 on a spirit of exploration and discovery. As a result, students can pursue a multi-dimensional undergraduate experience both in and outside of the classroom. Given the opportunities at Hopkins, please discuss your current interests—academic or extracurricular pursuits, personal passions, summer experiences, etc.—and how you will build upon them here. (Required, 300-500 word range, Paste in) For Transfers Only In your personal statement on the Common Application, you explained why you are seeking to transfer. Please explain in detail why you wish to transfer to Johns Hopkins University specifically. (Required, 300-500 word range, Paste in)

9. JHU Scholarships • Woodrow Wilson Undergraduate Research Program • Due: February 19, 2016 • https://apply.jhu.edu/form/c6036ffb-5094-4590-81de-55d2c0489ce3 • In the space below, please provide an example of a possible project you might choose to pursue if selected as a Woodrow Wilson Research Fellow. Feel free to discuss past projects you have completed or work of which you are especially proud in your explanation. The recommended length of your explanation is one to two pages. • Please note: if you are cutting and pasting your text from another program, we recommend that you copy it from your word processing program, paste it into Notepad or another basic text editor, copy it out of Notepad, and then paste it into the box. This will prevent reformatting issues and make your text easier to read. • If you wish to attach a document and send it via email instead of copying the text into this form, please enter "Sent via email" into the box below and send the document to applyhelp@jhu.edu. • Be sure to send it from the same email address you entered on this form and include your name in the body of the email; this will make it easier to match the document to your application data.

10. University of Virginia

11. UVA: Common App + 2 Writing Supplemental Essays Member Questions: Academics 2015-2016 First Year UVa Application Essays 1.    We are looking for passionate students to join our diverse community of scholars, researchers, and artists.  Answer the question that corresponds to the school/program to which you are applying in a half page or roughly 250 words. (Required, Paste in, 300 word max) College of Arts and Sciences - What work of art, music, science, mathematics, or literature has surprised, unsettled, or challenged you, and in what way? School of Engineering and Applied Sciences - U.Va. engineers are working to solve problems that affect people around the world, from our long-term water purification project in South Africa to continuing to research more efficient applications of solar power. However, most students start small, by using engineering to make a difference in daily life. If you were given funding for a small engineering project that would make your everyday life better, what would you do? School of Architecture - Describe an instance or place where you have been inspired by architecture or design. School of Nursing - Discuss experiences that led you to choose the School of Nursing. Kinesiology Program - Discuss experiences that led you to choose the kinesiology major.

12. UVA Second Supplemental Essay 2. Answer one of the following questions in a half page or roughly 250 words. (Required, Paste in, 300 word max) What’s your favorite word and why? We are a community with quirks, both in language and in traditions. Describe one of your quirks and why it is part of who you are. Student self-governance, which encourages student investment and initiative, is a hallmark of the U.Va. culture. In her fourth year at U.Va., Laura Nelson was inspired to create Flash Seminars, one-time classes which facilitate high-energy discussion about thought-provoking topics outside of traditional coursework. If you created a Flash Seminar, what idea would you explore and why? U.Va. students paint messages on Beta Bridge when they want to share information with our community. What would you paint on Beta Bridge and why is this your message?   A note about word limits from UVA: We aren't counting words on these. The word limits are there so you know that we are expecting short statements, not term papers. The boxes where you paste in your essay will cut you off at some point, but there is a little bit of leeway. Be concise and thoughtful in your statement statement and try to convey your voice and style in your words. This is the one spot on your application where your personality gets to shine, so don't treat this like a formal school assignment.

13. Strategies To Help Applicants Communicate Their Stories

14. Contact Us Evan Read eread@jkcf.org Valerie Gregory vhg9t@eservices.virginia.edu Rebecca Joseph, PhD getmetocollege@gmail.com Calvin Wise calvin.wise@jhu.edu