Personal essays are fine and dandy....for Freshman Comp 101. But not if you're trying to crash the college scene in the first place. So says this Boston College professor and part-time advice-columnist.
"Hi. I'm Ron...Dr. Fletcher to you.
I teach personal essay-writing at B.C. and publish an advice column on the side...Dr. Phil's got nuthin' on me!"
Quoth he:
- Each year I've had to walk a fine line with students who've wanted to write about intimate matters, such as discovering their true sexual orientation or revealing a struggle with depression. I applaud their courage and candor, but ask that they step back and consider the audience and objective of the college essay.
Tales of besting adversity can work well. Tales of existential despair, however, can appear as a red flag to admissions committees, many of which are increasingly concerned about their prospective students' state of mind.
And in this era of Columbine and Virginia Tech, one can see why.
Thus, Fletcher warns, if you wanna wow the powers-that-be and show the big-shots in Admissions that your wonderful writing can move mountains more forcefully than a California earthquake, then you better wait till you sign up for his class. Until then, cool it and keep it strictly impersonal.
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