Essay optional schools

If you have nothing to add, then you do not need to write an optional essay simply because it’s there. Are your essays heavily weighted to professional experiences? If yes, use the opportunity to showcase another dimension of your life, perhaps your community service activities or involvement in a sport.

Many schools will give you word or page limits for optional essays. If they do, stick to the limit. I understand that you may feel the story you are telling needs or merits more words, but rules, no matter what old adages say, are not meant to be broken (at least, not in this case). Respect the school’s wishes.

To put it in terms of obscure 1990s pop-culture references, not completing optional portions of the application can sink your chances at getting into an elite school faster than the infamous Ninja Rap sunk Vanilla Ice’s rapping career. When colleges offer optional essays, one prompt usually involves explaining why you are applying to their school.

Don’t make law schools sit through three hours of calculus. And, most important of all, remember this: Every single part of your application should add something new. If all you’re doing is regurgitating something that has already been said or shown elsewhere in your application, perhaps you should forgo writing the optional essay.