When applying for college, students usually have to write an essay.
It's a chance for them to get personal, and show the admissions board they're more that just a combined GPA and SAT score. But are certain essay topics the key to getting in?
Marjorie Schiff is the senior assistant dean of admissions at the University of Virginia. According to Psychology Today, she did a little research and found that there was one topic last year that had a higher acceptance rate than others. 67 percent of students who wrote about work by Russian-born American Novelist Vladimir Nabokov were accepted, whereas only 18 percent of those who took on J.D. Salinger got in. Schiff said this isn't surprising. Being familiar with the more obscure Nabokov shows that students are more engaged with literature. Salinger's novel "The Catcher in the Rye" is pretty much mandatory reading for all high school students.
And this year, 87 students who applied to the university wrote about Dan Brown's best-selling novel, "The Da Vinci Code." But according to Schiff, some staff members were mad because they were reading the book and didn't want the plot spoiled.
Only 24 percent of students who wrote about the novel got on. But 39 percent of people who wrote about George Orwell's classic "1984" were admitted. Conspiracy? Probably not, but it suggests that students really need to think carefully about their essay choice.
So what's the best pick? Admissions officers say the topics that really make students shine have to do with setbacks - like divorce or a death, and show resilience and depth. Things like "What I Did on My Summer Vacation" usually don't cut it. But no matter what the topic, they say the most important thing is that the essay is thoughtful and expressive, and that it enhances the rest of the student's application.
Marjorie Schiff is the senior assistant dean of admissions at the University of Virginia. According to Psychology Today, she did a little research and found that there was one topic last year that had a higher acceptance rate than others. 67 percent of students who wrote about work by Russian-born American Novelist Vladimir Nabokov were accepted, whereas only 18 percent of those who took on J.D. Salinger got in. Schiff said this isn't surprising. Being familiar with the more obscure Nabokov shows that students are more engaged with literature. Salinger's novel "The Catcher in the Rye" is pretty much mandatory reading for all high school students.
And this year, 87 students who applied to the university wrote about Dan Brown's best-selling novel, "The Da Vinci Code." But according to Schiff, some staff members were mad because they were reading the book and didn't want the plot spoiled.
Only 24 percent of students who wrote about the novel got on. But 39 percent of people who wrote about George Orwell's classic "1984" were admitted. Conspiracy? Probably not, but it suggests that students really need to think carefully about their essay choice.
So what's the best pick? Admissions officers say the topics that really make students shine have to do with setbacks - like divorce or a death, and show resilience and depth. Things like "What I Did on My Summer Vacation" usually don't cut it. But no matter what the topic, they say the most important thing is that the essay is thoughtful and expressive, and that it enhances the rest of the student's application.
