How to Create Your College Application Writing Map

Now that the Common App is open for the coming application cycle, it’s time to work on your Writing Map. Yes, one more thing before you start writing.

“Work smarter, not harder,” is one of the strategies that we encourage students to use, but there is also a risk that you might get so focused on minimizing your work that you sabotage yourself.

One of the most common places students stumble into self-sabotage is getting focused on minimizing the number of essays you have to write and losing sight of your ultimate goal: getting into the best college for YOU.

Creating a Writing Map to help you repurpose your essays thoughtfully will keep you from making that mistake.

1. Gather all the writing questions for all of your applications. You can find those either through the college’s online application platform or on the college’s website. If you’re using the Common App, make sure to look for “hidden essays” in the college supplements on your list. Most colleges (not all!) release their questions by the end of the first week of August, so you should be able to access them for most of the colleges on your list. If the application for a particular college isn’t live for this year yet, mark your calendar to check every few days.

2. Create a Writing Map for yourself that is a giant to-do list of all the writing you have to do. Going college by college, list each writing question and make note of two critical things:

• What the Prompt Asks. You can use shorthand here. If you have a choice of topics, include all of them on your map, so that you can see overlaps with other applications. Also be on the lookout for the “Why College X” and “Why Major X” questions.
• Word Limits. Word limits dictate how many ideas you can develop in that piece of writing. We classify college application writing into three categories: Really Short Answer (requires an answer of 50 words or less), Short Answer (requires an answer of 50-250 words), and Essay (requires an answer of 250+ words). Note the word or character limit for each prompt.

3. Analyze your Writing Map to identify where you can use one piece of writing for multiple applications. Even if you discover that there are 25 writing questions among the various applications for the colleges on your list (a relatively common number), you won't have to write 25 essays. Look for questions that are the same or similar, and note where multiple questions can be answered with one essay.

4. Know when to reuse an essay as-is, when to revise it before reusing, and when to write a completely new essay. As you are making your Writing Map, you are looking for opportunities to reuse answers so you can work smarter, not harder. But don’t get carried away when it comes to reusing answers. Remember that your goal is to get into the colleges on your list, not to complete your applications with the fewest essays possible. You should reuse an answer as-is if the questions are nearly identical. If the questions are similar, but distinct, you should revise your answer for each question. This is especially true for the “Why College X” questions. If the questions are unique, then you need to write a completely new essay. A generic answer will add nothing to your application and might even detract if it is inaccurate or non-responsive for a particular college, which often happens.

Once you have your Writing Map, you'll be able to optimize the time you spend writing, and make sure that you are producing the best essays for each of the colleges on your list.