5 reasons to work with an independent counselor: #2

​2. Your child doesn’t know what to write his essay about.

I give a lot of free seminars about writing great college essays. I come from a writing background, so the essay is my favorite part of this process. I love being able to spend an hour with a group of students, knowing they’re going to leave feeling more confident and prepared to go off and write their first drafts. But sometimes I get a question I can’t answer: what should I write my essay about? I honestly don’t know; I just met you. But once I’ve spent an hour with a kid, once I’ve read through his responses to our brainstorm questions, I know what he should write his essay about. I can tell by the way his face lights up when he starts describing it, or how I can’t type fast enough to catch all the great phrases he’s using, or how I’ve never heard anyone tell a story quite like that before. Independent counselors know what colleges are looking for in the essay, and how a student should share his story to be a stronger applicant. A good counselor can help you see an exceptional story you didn’t even know was there. 

Next: Reason #3 - You're not sure which schools are "safety schools"